“Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.” (Deuteronomy 32:46–47) by Tim Archer on Nov.30, 2013, under Messages

God’s words are not idle words. They are life! We need to study what God has said, because those words are words of life.

But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the Lord. (Jonah 2:9) by Steve Ridgell on Nov.29, 2013, under Messages

Give generously to God.  Support people and projects that make known the salvation God gives.  And do it while giving thanks for the salvation he gave you.

“In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong.” (Nehemiah 9:33) by Tim Archer on Nov.28, 2013, under Messages

What can you depend on? Whose word can you trust? How do you know that something or someone is going to be reliable?

Let me assure you of this: God will be faithful. God will be just. God will do what is right.

I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers … Philemon 4) by Steve Ridgell on Nov.27, 2013, under Messages

Spend some time today thanking God for the special people he has put in your life.

“Then Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”” (Mark 4:9) by Tim Archer on Nov.26, 2013, under Messages

Do you have ears? What a silly question! Of course you do.

Do you have ears to hear? That is, are you willing to hear what God has to say to you?

Then study and learn the things that Jesus taught.

He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord. (Proverbs 18:22) by Steve Ridgell on Nov.25, 2013, under Messages

Marriage is a blessing from God.  Give thanks today for your mate.

One Out Of Ten by Tim Archer on Nov.24, 2013, under Hope One came back to say thank you. Ten men were healed, miraculously healed. Only one came back to say thank you.

As we see in Chapter 17 of the Gospel of Luke, Jesus was traveling along the border between Samaria and Galilee. The people of Galilee were his people, Jews. The people of Samaria were the others, the half-breeds, the ones that the Jews wouldn’t have anything to do with.

Unless they had leprosy, a terrible disease that forced people to live away from the rest of society. Then Jews and Samaritans could mix. As these ten men had done. Nine were Jews. One was a Samaritan.

They saw Jesus from a distance and called to him, asking to be healed. In answer, Jesus told them to go show themselves to the priests. According to the Law of Moses, the law that the Jews followed, that was the only way a leper could be certified as having been healed. He had to show himself to the priests.

As they went along, they were healed. Cleansed, as the Bible says.

Only one of them went back to thank Jesus. The foreigner. The Samaritan.

I’m sure the others were grateful. I’m sure they would profoundly thank Jesus if they ever met him again. But now they wanted to get back to their lives. Get back to their homes. Get back to their families.

Nine of them did exactly what Jesus told them to do. Nine of them did what the Law said to do. But only one did the right thing.

What about you? Do you stop to recognize the things that God has done for you? Do you thank him and praise him for his goodness?

Here in the United States, we have a day for giving thanks. But our gratefulness shouldn’t be a one-time-a-year feeling. Let’s stop, go back to God, and thank him for all that he’s done for us.

“Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far has the LORD helped us’” (1 Samuel 7:12) by Tim Archer on Nov.23, 2013, under Messages

The words of the old hymn say, “Here I raise my Ebenezer.” It’s the idea of stopping and recognizing what God has done, how he has helped us get to where we are today.

Have your raised your Ebenezer? Have you recognized what God has done in your life? Today is a good day to take stock of your blessings, to see that even in the hardest of times, God is at work.

What has God done for you so far?

…who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. (IICorinthians 1:4) by Steve Ridgell on Nov.22, 2013, under Messages

We live in a hard world.  God has given you peace and comfort through Jesus.  Share that comfort.

“The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” (Genesis 2:15) by Tim Archer on Nov.21, 2013, under Messages

Did you realize that work is something that man was created for? It’s part of God’s plan for us. He wants us to work and take care of all that he has created.
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