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"Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19

Month: September 2022

We Do It By Remembering.

September 24, 2022 /
MaryEllen Montville

“Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised” –Hebrews 10:36.

I know, I know, Christian Soldier, you’re weary. Battle fatigued.

“My arms are tired from the seemingly endless fight.”

I’ve heard this same statement from many brothers and sisters of late. A few weeks back, in her teaching entitled “Fading Out,” Kendra briefly touched on the effects of weariness. She said, and I quote: The cycle of living can feel exhausting. Wake up, eat, work, take care of the house, sleep, repeat. I think we can agree that at one time or another, we have all understood, related to this reference from Ecclesiastes 1:2 “Utterly meaningless, everything is meaningless.” We try our best to be good people. Yet leaving a mark on the world feels like a futile effort many days.

If you haven’t read this teaching in its entirety, I encourage you to do so.

I understand feeling weary; I do. Recently, I’ve been wrestling with the spirit of discouragement. Yet by God’s grace and in His strength, that thing has not been allowed to win the fight—try as it might. I thank God that we, as Blood-bought believers in Jesus Christ, are called, equipped, and sustained to live by faith, not by our flighty, one-minute-up-the-next-down, feelings. And when we forget this fact, I thank God for His eternal Word—our sure foundation. “But Jesus replied, “It is written and forever remains written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD THAT COMES OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.'” –Matthew 4:4.

Being God, and like any good father, Jesus knows not only what to say to us but equally how to speak to each of His children effectively.

Jesus, the Living Word, in the Person of His Holy Spirit, shows up in what sometimes feels like the very last second of our midnight hour. Yet, faithful Father that He is, He always comes as promised. “…and behold, I am with you all the days (perpetually, uniformly, and on every occasion), to the [very] close and consummation of the age. Amen (so let it be)” –Matthew 28:20.

And most often, God speaks to His children through His inerrant, eternal, written Word; yet at other times, He speaks just as plainly through His creation. I love both, each an ever-present reminder of God’s faithfulness. From Genesis through Revelation, I find peace and security, assured that God is indeed the same today, in my life, as He was in Adams or Moses’, Miriam’s, or the Apostle John’s. He is the same God who shows Himself anew every Spring, as nascent buds take over bare winter branches. Giving us a foretaste of what’s to come in the fullness of time. “He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true” –Revelation 21:5.

God is always speaking to us. The question is, are we listening?

Know this, child of God. The Holy Spirit can and will speak volumes through sunbeams flashing across treetops, making each leaf appear lit from within—afire somehow. He’ll change every leaf’s color in season to catch our attention, taking our breath away. When we witness thousands of sparking, tiny, diamond-like bits of that same Sun dancing wildly atop the surface of some pond, lake, or sea, God is essentially saying, “Here, look over here, at Me. Marvel over how I can make sunlight dance!” Listen to how King David described this same Sun. “It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course” –Psalm 19: 5.

I Am here, brilliant and captivating. I cause everything I touch to pulse with life. I AM ever consistent yet ever-changing, both Alpha and Omega, yet all the while able to show Myself uniquely to each of my children through every thing I have created.

God speaks of His character and love through His creation. He shares glimpses of His person, beauty, brilliance, and consistent nature with us. With His rainbow, God demonstrates He’s a promise keeper—throughout the generations. God will speak to us of change and changing through tides, both in their ebbing and flowing. He’ll talk of trusting Him—even as the seasons change. In winter’s stark, cold barrenness, God teaches us to draw near to Him for comfort and warmth. And with Spring’s promises of newness, God reminds us that hope never fails. Summers heat seeping into our pores reminds us that our God is in us, closer to us than our own breath, help in our hour of need. “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble” –Psalm 46:1.

God uses such moments found in nature to arrest our attention.

Redirecting us, resurrecting what has been lost, our focus, back towards Him—imbibing us with new hope, we are refreshed, made new. I love that God is so diverse! How He uses a sunbeam or leaf, some dizzying sight, to capture our attention, arresting it. God speaks through these as loudly and with the surety of His written, Thus Says the Lord. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world” –Psalm 19:1-4.

God’s Word, written or spoken through a sunbeam, renews us—in the twinkling of an eye. The needle of our compass ceases to spin wildly at will. God has restored True North. And with it, a heavy dose of much-needed encouragement. Encouragement is, after all, that spiritual elixir Jesus uses to refresh us along our long trek back Home. A font of Living Water bubbling up afresh from within, washing away our battle weary-ness. And, just like that, season after season, day after long day, we are reminded that we serve a loving, kind mercy-full Father. More, this same God who caused the Sun He created to light up the leaves He created—desires fellowship with us—with you. God is nothing if not personal. Jesus loves you. Mind-blowing, right?

The Sovereign God of the universe, Creator of heaven and earth, wants to be the Lover of your soul—your One and only True Love.

Jesus assured us He would stick by us until the very end. And we know that He is not a man that He can lie. “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint” –Isaiah 40:30-31.

We must hold tight then to His every promise, His every Word. We must fix our eyes on Christ alone and keep them there. We must battle weariness head-on. And we do this by remembering God’s faithfulness, paying attention when He sends some ray of light our way, causing it to glimmer and shine just so. By trusting that if God did what He said He’d do in days past, He’ll surely do it now, today, and in the coming days. Life is not rinse and repeat, Beloved. Life is Christ, in us. Never forget that.

Friend, if you have yet to ask Jesus, the One who sticks closer than a brother, into your heart as Lord, please, do it today. To those who are faithful, God shows Himself faithful. And, unlike those who may have left you, Jesus never will. It’s His promise, and He cannot lie. “He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” – 1 Corinthians 1: 8-9.

“Walk Into It.”

September 17, 2022 /
Matthew Botelho

What an amazing, loving God we serve! I am so excited to share the conclusion of “Crossroads” with you all. If you have not read Part One of this teaching, I encourage you to go back and read it now. The last time we met, we discussed the crossroads God sometimes brings us to. Those significant points in our Christian walk where we must decide to take that step of faith, walking our faith out with Him. God knows the heart of every one of His children. So I’m titling the close of this teaching “Walk into It.” Because when we walk in the anointing God has poured out on us, God will bring us to a place of honor. It’s all about that first step of faith. And after the first comes the second, the third, and so on. Next thing you know, you are walking on water with Jesus right in front of you!

Yet there will also be times of waiting, preparation, and equipping, times when it’s just you and the Lord.

Every child of God eventually finds themselves in those moments spent in the wilderness. Now I can almost hear the groaning! Many of you might say, “but I do not want to be in the wilderness! How is this a good place to be?!” And I agree. The wilderness is a place we don’t run and sign up for; however, the wilderness experience is necessary. “He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also put eternity in their hearts, but man cannot discover the work God has done from beginning to end” –Ecclesiastes 3:11 (HCSB).

My brothers and sisters, we are all unfinished works. Be patient, then. God is still working. He has not forgotten you.

So, let’s dive into this lesson by looking at a young man who will be the greatest king Israel has ever seen. His name is David. A warrior and worshiper of God. This young man started out in a field caring for his father’s sheep, fighting off bears, lions, and other dangers that would harm the flock. But most importantly, David had a heart for God. He saw the importance of having a relationship centered on worship and time with Him. His heart was for the Lord.

I cannot stress strongly enough David’s heart for the Lord.

Yet David was overlooked by his very own father and brothers when the prophet Samuel came to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king. From the very beginning, God tells the prophet Samuel: “…Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have rejected him. Man does not see what the Lord sees, for man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart” –1 Samuel 16:7 (HCSB).

So why was David anointed king out of all Jesse’s sons?

A large part was David’s genuine heart for God. 1 Samuel 13:14 says David was a man after God’s own heart. David’s true love for the Lord was one of the things God used to bring David out of the fields and into the throne room, but not immediately. Now here comes that wilderness moment we all love. Not! First, Saul was already Israel’s king. Secondly, although Samuel anointed David King, David still had some growing up. He had to learn to walk in the anointing and what it was to run a kingdom. In part, which meant humbling himself under a very jealous king Saul.

David’s crossroads moment came only after being anointed king.

 Scripture tells us it happened when Israel battled an enemy known as the Philistines.

David’s older brothers had volunteered to battle the Philistines. They were on the front lines defending the land God had given them. Now, for those who know the story of David and Goliath, you may be saying, isn’t that the moment David went to face Goliath? Yes, but no. To defeat something, you first need to show up. And David was still tending his father’s sheep. Goliath’s defeat would soon follow. “One day Jesse had told his son David, “take this half-bushel of roasted grain along with these 10 loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to the camp. Also take these 10 portions of cheese to the field commander. Check on the welfare of your brothers and bring conformation from them. They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the valley of Elah fighting with the Philistines. So David got up early in the morning, left the flock with someone to keep it, loaded up, and set out as Jesse had instructed him” –1 Samuel 17:17-20 (HCSB).

David’s father had sent him to bring provisions to his brothers. David’s time of waiting had ended. He left behind the flock and the fields. Everything David had known, he now laid aside. It was time to go into the battle. As David arrives, he hands off the provisions he’d brought and runs to meet his brothers. Seeing all the men, he runs up to them. Scripture tells us that as David spoke to his brothers, the champion named Goliath came forward and started shouting and profaning the God of Israel. “David spoke to the men who were standing with him, “what will be done for the man who kills that Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Just who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” – 1 Samuel 17:26 (HCSB).

After David spoke these words, his older brother spoke out against him, claiming that David was arrogant, and his heart was evil. At that point, David could have said nothing. He could have just walked away and returned to his father’s house. Instead, it’s here, brothers and sisters, where we witness David step into what God had chosen him to do. But know this: whenever one of God’s chosen is walking in obedience to God, stepping into their calling, there will be resistance. Even from your very own family. Follow David’s lead. Do not be discouraged, my friends.

Like David, your time of waiting will end. And no man can stop what God has for you when it does! Just abide in Christ. John 15:5. Assures us of this. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” God’s Holy Spirit in you will lead you into all Truth, so remain in Him and, like David, chase after more of God!

When you get to those crossroads’ moments, know that the Father is right there with you. He wants the best for you. He wants nothing more than to have a relationship with you.

My brothers and sisters, as we close, let me remind you of the amazing, loving Father we have and serve. How He sent his Son into the battlefield called the world. And how Jesus went willingly and triumphantly to the Cross for you and me. By Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross, we are forgiven of all our sins, and because of His resurrection, we too shall see eternal life. Call out to Him today if you don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior. He is standing at the door of your heart, ready to make his home in you. Amen. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me” –Revelation 3:20.

Fading Out

September 8, 2022 /
Kendra Santilli

“He must increase, but I must decrease” –John 3:30.

The cycle of living can feel so exhausting. Wake up, eat, work, take care of the house, sleep, repeat. I think we can agree that at one time or another, we have all understood, related to this reference from Ecclesiastes 1:2 “Utterly meaningless, everything is meaningless.”

We try our best to be good people. Yet leaving a mark on the world feels like a futile effort many days. In the Gospel of John, we are presented with an example that exemplifies a counterintuitive approach to fulfillment. John the Baptist (not to be mistaken with John the apostle who penned the Gospel of John) is introduced in John 1. “There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify about the light [Jesus] so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light” – John 1:6-8.

John was Jesus’s cousin, a prophet who lived in the wilderness. John wore clothes made from camel hair and ate wild honey and locusts. Since his ministry was to prepare the way of the Lord, he would come to the people telling them to repent, to water-baptize them, and to declare there was one to follow after him (Jesus). You can read all about this in Mark 1:1-9.

I imagine John the Baptist would have been perceived as an odd man, but then again, God often moves through those we’d least expect Him to use. For John the Baptist, his ministry was fulfilled by the coming of Jesus.

And John’s purpose? Pointing everyone to Jesus Christ.

In New Testament Scripture, John’s ministry is our first example of a person testifying of the person of Jesus. The Bible says of Jesus, “He was in the world, and the world was created through him, and yet the world did not recognize him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” –John 1:10-11. And while the rest of the world didn’t recognize Jesus, John recognized Him instantly.

God was using John to prepare the hearts of those who did not know Jesus. Although the Old Testament is full of prophecies of Jesus and the entirety of the Bible points to Jesus, John is perhaps one of the first to see Jesus—physically. John gave his whole life to tell the world about the person of Jesus.

There is a great lesson we can learn from John the Baptist about pointing the world to Jesus.

John the Baptist was selfless. While the world teaches us to focus on ourselves, God’s Word teaches us to love others even when they do us wrong. The culture of this world is one of selfishness. It looks inward for its fulfillment instead of allowing its Creator to fill and fulfill its every need, including its unseen needs. The world is centered on self-gratification instead of loving thy neighbor. And as more of society has welcomed the idea of self-centeredness, it has also drifted away from the One who can deliver them from the mental prisons that hold them bound. The result? A society that has increasingly accepted depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation as normal. And while taking care of yourself is essential, it shouldn’t be our sole focus. We were created to love and exist in fellowship. Loving and serving God and one another.

Throughout the Gospels, we don’t read of John focusing on himself. There is no evidence in the scriptures of John focusing attention on himself. Instead, he readily released his disciples when they wanted to follow Jesus. When John saw Jesus passing by, he quickly said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this and followed Jesus” – John 1:36-37. John didn’t get offended that his disciples went to Jesus, no. His attitude was one of rejoicing. “My joy is complete” – John 3:29.

Is Jesus enough to make your joy complete? Or is your joy made whole by your job, family, or ministry? While each gives us a sense of well-being, Jesus must be first. Everything else is just extra. Our prayer and deepest desire should be that Jesus fills us more than we thought possible. And, for that to be enough.

John the Baptist baptized with water, but the Bible says that Jesus baptizes (present tense intentional) with the Holy Spirit. – John 1:33.

It is impossible to live a life of faith without the help of the Holy Spirit. And Jesus gives us His Holy Spirit without measure. “The man whom God has sent speaks God’s message. After all, God gives him the Spirit without limit” – John 3:34.

Our human nature is bent on us taking care of ourselves first. So, it is counterintuitive to put others before yourself, including Jesus. The work of the Holy Spirit in us gives us the grace to manifest His love supernaturally. So, I’m not talking about us manifesting love by our own power. The True Source of supernatural love is Jesus Christ, manifest and evidenced by the Holy Spirit at work in us.

The Holy Spirit does not make us do anything or possess us to do anything, however. But He does lead us. Scripture clarifies, “If you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God” – Romans 8:13-14. The choice is yours.

If we belong to Jesus—have professed Him as our Lord and Savior, His Spirit leads us. Yet, given that Jesus has also afforded us free will, we are allowed to obey or disobey His Holy Spirit’s leading us. Even though the Holy Spirit will always lead us in the way of Truth in Christ Jesus, to abundant life. Not only eternally but also on this side of eternity.

I pray that you invite the Holy Spirit to lead you in living a selfless life that points to Jesus and loves others unconditionally. If you don’t know Jesus, invite Him to your heart today and ask Him to help you live with purpose and fulfillment as He makes your joy complete.

You Are Mine.

September 3, 2022 /
MaryEllen Montville

“For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out” –Ezekiel 34:11.

God knows them that are his and can call his own sheep by name; he knows the places where they are; for he has fixed the bounds of their habitation, and was delighting himself in the habitable parts of the earth, where he knew they would be, even before the world was. –Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible.

It started in the Garden. God’s searching out His own, that is. Draw to His image and likeness; He sought communion with His creation. He’s seeking fellowship with you now, Beloved, even as you read this. God has always desired to be one with you through Christ Jesus. That started way before the Garden. Somewhere in eternity past. When Eden was but a seed yet planted and you, a mere sketch, some faint intersecting lines in God’s mind, waiting to be created.

Yet be sure of this one thing, God knows where you are.

Nothing and no one are hidden from Him, even when we think we are, especially when we may want to be. “When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in the evening breeze, the Man and his Wife hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God” –Genesis 3:8.

We serve a God whose very nature is Love. He is relational—desiring intimate communion with His children. To walk and talk with us, talk with you, friend. God’s love is personal. He knows you by name. And God loves you. Jesus lived as a man and died as one, just for you. The fact that the Sovereign God of the universe, Holy and blameless, desires to know us, be in a covenant relationship with us, with me, borders on incomprehensible. Something just too good to be true. Yet as mind-blowing as that is for this writer to take in at times. I know it to be true. God, Himself has told me so.

He is an intimate, personal Father. One who desires an open-door invitation into our hearts and lives that He might walk through them at will. Listen to how John Eldredge states this truth: Jesus came to reveal God to you. He is the defining Word on God—on what the heart of God is truly like, on what God is up to in the world, and on what God is up to in your life.

Tell me, friend, have you dared to ask God what He’s up to in your life?

Have you afforded God, His Son, Jesus, and His Holy Spirit an open-door invitation?

Have you invited them in—made room for them?

Do you seek, want to know more of, or at all, this God who thought it not too great a sacrifice to send His only Son to die in your place?

Has it crossed your mind that no one else but Jesus ever made such a sacrifice just for you?

“Then I passed by and saw you, and you were indeed old enough for Love. So I spread My cloak over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged Myself to you, entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine, declares the Lord GOD” –Ezekiel 16:8. As surely as God’s covenant with Israel stands—and it always will. So it will be with you, child of God. Having been grafted into His everlasting promise of Love and devotion, your loving Father will continually fight for you. Woo, you. Desire you only.

God wants, more; He chooses to be active in your life. He longs to be the center of your every waking moment, invited into and consulted about your dreams and decisions.

“Even those decisions I may consider far too dull, too trite to “trouble” God over. Isn’t it too much to ask of God that He help me make decisions? Listen as I talk about my dreams. Bring clarity to my confusion and doubt. After all, He’s God! Isn’t He too busy overseeing the entire planet, to say nothing of knowing the heart and thoughts of every single person—simultaneously? Doesn’t God have too much going on to be bothered with my thoughts and troubles,” you ask?

The answer, friend? Absolutely, emphatically, No! Nope. Not at all. Never.

Psalm 139 makes it plain God already knows everything about you. He’s just waiting on you to bid Him welcome into your life, heart, and your “boring” daily concerns. “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely” –Psalm 139:1-4.

You are not faceless, nameless, nor aimless in God’s eyes, Beloved. God created you on purpose, for a purpose. “As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything” –Ecclesiastes 11:5. You are no mistake. God sees you. God’s way is so much higher than our own. So far beyond our finite ability to take in, friend. You’ve been created to touch lives no one else can. Why? They don’t carry in them what God has placed in you alone. You are as unique as your fingerprint!

So regardless of what you’ve been told, think about yourself. Contrary to your feelings, God loves you and desires to have a relationship with you. Yes, you personally. He wants to make His home in you.

Now please hear my heart. I’m in no way trying to minimize your pain or any trauma you may have suffered at the hands of another. I remember the sting of such wounds all too well. I’m just speaking the Truth in love here, sharing something that can save you. The Truth that can and will heal your pain. With the full authority of one God has healed, I can say that healing from such wounds is possible—no matter how nasty or deep they are.

All things are possible with God.

Friend, God is so acutely attuned to His world. His creation, to you, personally, that even when a sparrow, some little chick somewhere, falls to the ground, it doesn’t escape His notice. “Are not two little sparrows sold for a penny? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father’s leave (consent) and notice” –Matthew 10:29.

God created you. He has a plan and purpose for your life. Still, despite the lengths this magnificent, Sovereign, Loving, relational God can and will go to reach you, the one thing God won’t do, can’t do, is violate the free will He’s given you, died to provide you. You must then choose to say yes and welcome a relationship with God.

The choice is yours. God has done His part. Ask Jesus into your heart today, as Lord, Father, and Friend. He’s waiting for you to say welcome, come in. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” –John 3:16-17.

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