communion

You Prepare a Table

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You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever Psalm 23:5-6

God loves to do is to bless us especially when our enemies are watching! He is not at all afraid of their power, their schemes or their desires. He has everything so under control.

The night that Jesus sat down for the last supper it seemed that just about everything was going wrong. Judas had already gone to the high priests to betray him. The Sanhedrin had already decided to have Jesus put to death. Even Jesus other eleven disciples were spending part of their time at the table arguing over which one of them was the most important. But in the presence of so many enemies the Bible tells us that on that same night when he was betrayed He took bread and blessed it, saying “This is my body which is given for you.” Jesus was not depressed, discouraged or dismayed. Jesus shared the bread, then the cup. Not one single detail of His plan was stopped by the enemies that were watching. His cup ran over so much that all around the world Christians are still drinking from it. The goodness and mercy that came as a result of His sacrifice still follow us. He went ahead of us to the Father’s house and prepared a place so that together we will forever live in the house of the Lordfxcd0002-2

Prayer for Mercy

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I said, “Lord, be merciful to me; Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You.” Psalm 41:4

Today there is such a fascination with super heroes. Captain America, Superman, Iron Man or whoever our favorite is, appeal to us because they are smarter, stronger and better looking than we are. Our lives seem pretty ho-hum compared to people who are always busy saving the world from the latest bad guy (or gal).

But the reality of life as king David discovered was not just about defeating Goliath. Sometimes we are our own worst enemy and our own sins have left wounds behind that we need for God to forgive and heal. David was just as much a man after God’s own heart when he cried out for God’s forgiveness as when he was busy killing giants and winning battles. Jesus didn’t come to die on the cross for Superman, Wonder Woman or the Flash; he came to die for plain vanilla sinners like you and me! The good news of the kimg0706Gospel is that the one and only truly Superman left His super powers behind and was born in a barn next to cows and sheep. The good news is not that God left us a secret formula by which we could gain special powers, but that He listens when we cry for help.

Remember when Jesus told of the Pharisee and the tax collector who went to the temple to pray? The Pharisee thought he was strong, so never asked God for help. But the tax collector, who knew only too well of his weakness, cried out for mercy and God heard and forgave. Super strength doesn’t come from some mysterious force but from the peace God gives when the blood of Jesus Christ washes clean every stain!

Challenged to Thank God

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My wife came across an interesting sign that asked the question, “What if you woke up tomorrow with only what you thanked God for today?  After we shared Communion tonight I began to ask myself, “What if next Sunday we only had the people for whom we thanked God for today?”

Maybe our church and yours would have a lot less empty seats if we wete grateful for one other rather than complaining. ( I confess to being one of those!) Maybe if we began to truly appreciate the people who do come to our services God could help us to grow and then He would get the credit!

1 Thessalonians 1:2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers.

I would be willing to bet big money that when the apostle Paul visited the folks couldn’t wait to get to church! When was the last time you couldn’t wait to get to church? I am taking the thankfulness challenge this week. Anyone care to join me? Let’s give thanks for as many people as we can remember starting tomorrow. Let’s give thanks and ask God to have His way in their lives and ours, then wait and see what He will do!