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

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Who Is Worthy?

August 10, 2024 /

Matthew Botelho

“You did not choose Me, but I chose you. I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, He will give you. This is what I command you: Love one another.” – John 15:16-17.

I am so blessed to be back with you, my Sonsofthesea family! I truly have missed doing what our Lord has called me to do and connecting with all of you. God is very merciful and, like a good father, will chasten those He loves. We serve a God that will never leave you in a pit of doubt, loneliness, and depression. So, I need to be very transparent with you, brothers and sisters; I have been wrestling with the above in my heart these past few weeks away.

These very thorns in my flesh were slowly digging into my heart.

I felt that I was drowning in a sea of self-pity. Jealousy and strife were not only in my heart; they were taking root. These horrible works of the flesh were becoming manifest. Then, one day, as I was feeling sorry for myself, the Holy Spirit directed me to this Scripture, a checklist of my heart. The apostle Paul writes to the church in Galatia:

“Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds,  strife,  jealousy,  outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar,  I tell you about these things in advance-as I told you before- that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” –Galatians 6:19-21

My heart sank as I read this, and I felt sick to my stomach.

As a Christian, having just one of these sinful works of the flesh at work in you is terrible, but I could check off at least seven of these sins in my spirit. I fell on my face with tears, “Lord, how can I worship You when I am such a mess right now? How could You ever see anything in me? How am I worthy to be called you child?”

As I write this, the question returns: who is worthy?

What human is worthy to be in the presence of the Holy and Righteous Sovereign God?

After reading those verses in Galatians 6, I thank God that scales fell from my eyes, and I saw no way any Christian could, I could, boldly stand in God’s presence with all of that junk in our hearts. No man can receive the Kingdom of God in such sinful flesh. They must be born again. They need the Spirit of the living God. Jesus makes this clear in John 3:3, “I assure you; unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

My brothers and sisters, we all need Jesus!

Please hear me, friends: if you think the enemy won’t fire his fiery arrows at you or that the dark night of the soul that overtook me could never overtake you, then you are truly letting your guard down. I once said the very same thing: “My eyes are always on Jesus. That won’t happen to me.” I’d forgotten the Truth I so love. “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” –Proverbs 16:18.

Friends, as long as we live in these earthly vessels, we are prime targets for Satan’s attacks.

In 1 Peter 5:8-9, the apostle Peter warns us of this: “Be serious! Be alert! Your adversary The devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for anyone he can devour. Resist him and be firm in the faith knowing that the same sufferings are being experienced by your fellow believers throughout the world.”

Are we worthy to receive the forgiveness of God?

Humanly speaking, the answer is no if we look at it through the lens of the flesh or human ability.

We are not worthy to receive anything from a Holy and Pure God. Jesus alone is worthy! “The Lord is great and worthy of our praise; no one can understand how great he is.” –Psalm 145:3.

By nature, humans are selfish and self-centered.

We are always thinking about getting ahead or getting that next best thing, keeping up with the worldly standards of “success.” Such striving causes us to walk in fear and doubt, asking ourselves what the next day will bring before the day ever comes. Yet God still proves Himself to be a loving Father! “But God proves His love for using that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us!” –Romans 5:8.

God will never stop loving us, loving you, brothers and sisters. He cannot. God is Love. 1 John 4:16 reminds us of this. “We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.” He wants a relationship even with His most stubborn creations, you and me. “Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” –1 John 4:10.

In today’s verse, Jesus reminds us: “you did not choose Me, but I chose you.”

 Let that sink in for a moment. God chose you—in your imperfections, in your anxiety, in your mess.

But, Jesus also tells us to repent our sins and believe He is God’s Son.

We’re able to stand righteous before God only by Jesus’ finished work—His life, death, and resurrection.

It wasn’t Matthew Botelho who solved his mess. If anything, I was making things worse for myself and my family. Not to mention all those who stood beside me during this challenging time. Only the love of the Father set this servant free from all that bitterness and selfishness. And though I am not worthy of such forgiveness, Jesus said, “For God loved the world in this way; He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” –John 3:16.

I am an “everyone” who believes. I have been set free by the One who sets His children “free indeed!”

Brothers and sisters, If you are going through a trying season, please know you are not going through it alone. We at Sonsofthesea are praying for all of you. We all walk through the desert at some time or another, that dry place where our enemy can take us out if we’re not careful. But with Jesus beside you every step of the way, you will leave your valley., just as I did.

And friend, if you are reading this and you feel the pull of the Holy Spirit moving you closer to God, follow His leading. Do not harden your heart, but allow the Presence of God to saturate every part of you. Repent and believe that Jesus washed away your sins with His precious Blood. Ask Him into heart and life as Lord of all. Amen. “As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” –Hebrews 3:15.

Fragile Vessels

August 3, 2024 /

MaryEllen Montville

“But we have this precious treasure [the good news about salvation] in [unworthy] earthen vessels [of human frailty], so that the grandeur and surpassing greatness of the power will be [shown to be] from God [His sufficiency] and not from ourselves.” 2 Corinthians 4:7.

Chosen vessels, ministers of the gospel, as appointed to bear the glad news of salvation to others; called also earthen vessels, on account of their weakness and frailty. – Noah Webster.

Servant of the Living God, be reminded that we who carry within us His Spirit, called to proclaim His Gospel, are blessed yet unworthy vessels handpicked by our Father for such a weighty privilege. Yet compared to our Omnipotent God, we are infinitesimal creatures, like hummingbirds in a vast desert; we are small, fragile winged creatures called to carry the transplendent and incalculable weight of the Glory of God into inhospitable places on fragile, gossamer wings. “But God has selected [for His purpose] the foolish things of the world to shame the wise [revealing their ignorance], and God has selected [for His purpose] the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong [revealing their frailty].” –1Cor.1:27.

That God alone, not we, His earthen vessels, receive the glory. “But you are my witnesses, O Israel!” says the Lord. “You are my servant. You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. There is no other God— there never has been, and there never will be. I, yes I, am the Lord, and there is no other Savior. First I predicted your rescue, then I saved you and proclaimed it to the world. No foreign god has ever done this. –Isaiah 43:10-12.

We were not created to steal God’s proverbial thunder if you will. We are image bearers only—likenesses created to carry the thirst-quenching Presence of our Omnipresent God into a dried-up, arid world. “When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.” –Isaiah 41:17-18.

And again, concerning God’s reviving Presence, Jesus said of Himself: “But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life.” –John 4:14.

As Jesus’s disciples, we are called to lay down our lives as living sacrifices: our wants, desires, hopes, dreams, bodies, minds, wills, and emotions. Each surrendered fully at the feet of Jesus—each subject instead to His will, plans, and purposes. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is within you, whom you have [received as a gift] from God, and that you are not your own [property]? 20 You were bought with a price [you were actually purchased with the precious blood of Jesus and made His own]. So then, honor and glorify God with your body.” –1 Cor. 6:19-20. Though Paul specifically references sexual sin in this passage, it contains a broader Truth that applies to Christians.

You and I will undoubtedly fall and fail the moment we allow ourselves to see what God has called us to do as separate, somehow, from “our lives”—as though each thing is not inextricably one. This fallacious notion is deadly to the Christian because: “I have been crucified with Christ [that is, in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body I live by faith [by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting] in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” –Gal.2:20.

The second we fail to remember that we are not our own but have been called instead to be glory carriers for the Most High God, sin, as the Scriptures tell us, will have gained a toe hold in us.

By the power of this same Truth, that we are not our own but Christ’s, we mere earthen vessels, small, gossamer-winged, fragile creatures, are empowered to carry the weighty, life-saving Gospel of Jesus Christ into a parched, arid world. “You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” –2 Corinthians 4:5-8.

And so, by dying to our bulky, sin-full, and heavy-laden flesh, we are, by God’s amazing grace, made free by Christ, in Christ, to carry within us His Spirit, to proclaim His Gospel.

To be used by God to pour the Life-giving Water of God’s Inerrant Word over that one He is calling to Himself—cleaning them of those sins that “so easily beset them.”

As was done for us, we, too, must bring this same hope of new life into the most inhospitable of places. “…Freely you have received; freely give.” –Mathew 10:8.

We, frail friends, get to be used by the Omnipotent God of the universe, in whose image and likeness we were created.

May we, by His grace, both never forget and be ever grateful for this extraordinary, weighty privilege.

May God, in His loving kindness and tender mercy, remain ever mindful of our hummingbird-like frailty as He causes us, His Glory-carriers, to thrive in this inhospitable place—a world in which we, which you, beloved of God, are merely passing through. “The same way a loving father feels toward his children—that’s but a sample of your tender feelings toward us, your beloved children, who live in awe of you. You know all about us, inside and out. You are mindful that we’re made from dust.” –Psa.103:13-14.

Dear friend, are you the one I have been called to? Are you feeling dry? Are you uncomfortable living in a world that no longer feels welcoming? That is God calling you to come out of this world. To live free. Free of the weight of sin you’ve been carrying around—free from the weight of its shame and guilt. You were created for so much more. Won’t you cry out to God today, asking Him to make you His child, allowing you to carry His Glory to your family and friends—into this inhospitable world? “I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.” –Ezekiel 36:25-27.

New Season.

July 27, 2024 /

Pastor Maria Braga

“When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” –1 Cor 13:11.

Scripture is so current! It was not only for the past but also the present and the future. I have grown and become an adult woman in an adult body, and I continue to grow and mature. I have matured in many areas of my life and am still maturing in other places, especially my spiritual life. I pray that God never stops chasing me in every area, but especially the areas of immaturity where I need to become wise and discerning in life. This Scripture is life to me – it not only reminds me but also causes an urgency in me to continue transitioning and growing from the person I was yesterday into the new person I’m becoming in Christ Jesus.

Often, we think challenges come to break us! However, God sends these very challenges our way to grow us. In our limited minds, we can’t comprehend God’s plan for us, but He tells us of His plan in Scripture. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” –Jer. 29:11.

When we capture this concept, we mature and understand that to grow spiritually, we must experience growing pains. God allows us to go through some valleys to shape and mold us to fit His plan for our lives. God uses all we go through to grow and develop us while preparing us for things much greater than ourselves. The situations He allows us to go through are the foundations for our breakthroughs and our ability to experience something new. “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” –Isaiah 43:19.

Some seasons in life involve cutting people and situations away. We must delete conversations, phone numbers, and contacts, remove negativity, and bury stories and memories that will hurt us in our new season.

Even some good things from the old Season don’t fit in with the new.

All you need is to heal and grow in the confidence that those past things, as good as they once were, will now be thorns used to poke you in this new season. “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” –2 Corinthians 3:18.

 Don’t expect everyone to applaud the new in you.

Acquire the faith and trust you need to move on regardless. “No, dear brothers, and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” –Philippians 3:13-14.

It is complicated for humans to understand that God’s timing is not ours.

His timing is perfect for every situation. All things happen the way they do for a reason. Life looks like a mountain at times, a mountain of stuff accumulated over the years that becomes clutter and blurs our vision of the next season of life. We must check in daily and ready ourselves for whatever comes by wearing the whole armor of God. It will protect us from any unexpected fiery arrows directed at us.

The Kingdom of God is an ever-increasing, always forward-moving Kingdom.

An organism that moves constantly in the direction of the King of kings and Lord of Lords; God longs to lead us into maturity; His heart longs to take us deeper into our knowledge and understanding of His love.

We look to Jesus’ victory for endurance, and we embrace His joy as our strength. “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” –Hebrews 12:2.

You can choose to step through your next door, full of fear, doubt, and low expectations. But you will only experience the fullness of the new season God intends for you if you step into it with faith and great expectation.

I thank you, Lord, for this great salvation. For Your grace, we get to experience the joy that comes with it. Please fill me up with your Spirit and heal me today. Please help me continue to grow and become more and more like you as I journey through this life. Fill my heart and bless me. And I also pray for those who have yet to ask you into their lives as Lord Savior. May they do it today. In Jesus’ name. Amen. “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.” –Romans 10: 9-10.

Decision 2024: Who Is Jesus To You?

July 20, 2024 /

MaryEllen Montville

“The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” –John 1:29.

Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such importance. –C.S. Lewis

Friends, this post is not political. Though I pray your upcoming vote in November aligns with Godly principles and statutes. Still, in light of the horrific events that recently took place in Butler, Pennsylvania, my heart is nonetheless burdened for the nation and, indeed, for the families of the victims, living and deceased. Corey Comperatore—now in glory. In contrast, David Dutch and James Copenhaver are still fighting for life from the injuries they sustained. And though burdened for our nation, these victims, and their families, how much more my heart—our hearts, be burdened for all unsaved souls in light of just how quickly a person’s life can, without warning, be taken?

I’m sure if we asked the wife and daughter of Corey Comperatore, whose earthly life was ended by the sniper’s bullet, they would agree. Mr. Comperatore had given his life to Jesus, and so is far more alive now than he was that nanosecond before the bullet struck him. Though his being with the Lord is a great comfort to his family, I’m sure. We grieve with them nonetheless as they were maliciously thrown into learning to navigate the agonizing valley of loss. Thus, today, I felt led to share the Truth found only in God’s Inerrant Word.

A Word I pray that will help steady and realign our hearts and minds as we move forward individually and as a nation. “We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” –1 John 5:20.

Jesus Christ is our only hope, Beloved.

Earthly leaders are powerless to save us. Only Jesus Christ has the Absolute Power to save.

John the Baptist knew this. So do I. And for the sake of your earthy life and your eternal destiny, I pray you do as well. No matter the outcome of “decision 2024”, the Lord Jesus Christ will remain forever on His Throne, Ruler over Life and death. And believe it or not, agree with it, or not, like it or not, your knee will bow before Him, and your tongue will confess that Jesus alone is Lord. “Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” –Philippians 2: 9-11.

I pray you’ll freely do that now while the choice is afforded you.

Because every man, from those whom God appoints to hold the highest office in the land to, as Jesus lovingly calls them, “the least of these,” must choose whom they’ll serve. King Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of Lords, or the little g god of this world, Satan. There is no other choice on man’s proverbial ballot. No “other” box for us to check.

The instant John the Baptist caught a glimpse of Jesus walking amongst the crowd who’d gathered to be baptized, to choose Jesus publically—we hear John boldly proclaim words that had been put in his belly back when God was knitting him together in his mother, Elizabeth’s womb. “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! He is the One who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” –John 1:29;27.

The words John spoke that day marked the beginning of the end of his life work —making ready the Way of the Lord.

John knew his place. He never pointed to himself but rather to Jesus only.

John knew he was never meant to be the Groom—but the groomsman. “He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands by and listens to him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. So this pleasure and joy of mine is now complete.” –John3: 29.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, John recognized Jesus as the Messiah through Divine revelation.

John knew Jesus to be God’s Passover Lamb, come to be sacrificed. To once and for all take away the sins of this world and so, destined to reveal Jesus to the world, John joyfully cries out: “Here he is, God’s Passover Lamb! He forgives the sins of the world!” 

Child of God, pause hereto remember that moment you first believed.

Close your eyes and feel the joy and excitement that flooded through you when it really sank in that Jesus was with you and had chosen you as His. That in an instant, He’d pulled you from eternal death to eternal life, lost to saved—creation to beloved child.

Let the memory of that pure joy wash over you—overtake you.

Might that same joy have been the feeling coursing through John? Unable to contain it, he just had to let fly that darkness-piercing, literal life-changing revelation God dropped in his belly. Why? Because the Inescapable, Supernatural Truth, which had always existed in John’s peripheral vision,  stood clearly before him now, in the flesh!

Now, in Jesus, the days of sacrificing goats and sheep, of spilling their blood as an offering to God to wash away Israel’s sins temporarily, were over. This Spotless Lamb—God’s Perfect Son, came to accomplish what no animal sacrifice ever could—save the lost, to save you, specifically, if you’ll but accept His free gift of salvation.

Jesus’ sacrifice and death, His resurrection, all of it, everything Jesus did while on the earth, and continues to do as He intercedes for us while seated at the right hand of God, is personal and intentional because Jesus has had you in mind specifically, from before the foundation of the world. “From everlasting I was established, from the beginning, before the earth began.” –Pro.8:23.

Friend, the question before you is:

Who is Jesus to you?

Remember, professing Jesus is your eternal choice. I pray you’re not passive in that choice, friend. Because to not choose is your choice; it’s either God or Satan. There is no “other” box available to any of us.

In both the Old and New Testaments, Scripture makes that abundantly clear.

There is no “other” box to check. “By Myself I have sworn; truth has gone out from My mouth, a word that will not be revoked: Every knee will bow before Me, every tongue will swear allegiance.” –Isaiah 45:23.

God or Satan. Those are the choices before you today. Who will you choose in 2024?

Take a stand for Jesus now.

Choose Him to be the Lord and Savior of your Life.

Friend, what recently happened in Pennsylvania is a sure reminder that no man is promised tomorrow. Jesus is the only sure hope you have of eternal life. Repent of your sins and welcome His Pure, sinless Blood to wash away your every sin because only Jesus is able to cleanse you. He freely laid down His life so that you might have life eternal. Won’t you accept His free gift of salvation today? “Because if you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes [in Christ as Savior] resulting in his justification [that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God]; and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses [his faith openly], resulting in and confirming [his] salvation.” –Romans 10:9-10.

Me, Lord?

July 13, 2024 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Boaz went over and said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Stay right here with us when you gather grain; don’t go to any other fields. Stay right behind the young women working in my field. Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. “What have I done to deserve such kindness?” she asked. “I am only a foreigner.” –Ruth 2:8;10.



Like many redemption stories, Ruth’s started long before Boaz, her earthly kinsman redeemer, took notice of her gleaning grain in his field. Long before, he would waste no time hastening before the town elders and leaders to state his intentions concerning her. “Then Boaz said to the elders and to the crowd standing around, “You are witnesses that today I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelech, Kilion, and Mahlon. And with the land I have acquired Ruth, the Moabite widow of Mahlon, to be my wife.” –Ruth 4:9-10.

As with all those Jesus calls His own, somewhere in the eternal past, a conversation occurred between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit concerning us; in this instance, Their discussion centered around Ruth and Their plan for her life. As with our own, Ruth’s story began so far back that as God recounted it, the earth was yet formless and void. “According as he has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.” –Ephesians 1:4-5.

Ruth, a Moabite, married Mahlon, a Judean immigrant from Bethlehem. Son of Elimelech and Naomi, Mahlon had accompanied his parents and brother to Moab due to a famine that had struck their land. Thus, Mahlon somehow lands in Ruth’s proverbial backyard and ever the story goes. Boy meets girl. Boy marries girl, yet after ten years of marriage, Ruth is not only left childless but a widow when Mahlon dies suddenly. Nonetheless, El Roi, the God of her husband’s people, saw Ruth’s plight. “The LORD protects foreigners; He sustains the fatherless and the widow, but the ways of the wicked He frustrates.” –Psalm 146:9.

Ever watchful, El Roi, the God who saw Ruth, sees us. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” –Hebrews 13:8.

So even when we, the vulnerable and dispossessed, the seemingly unseen, unprotected, the foreigner, feel as Ruth did, wholly unworthy of receiving such unfathomable kindness and such incomprehensible love. Contrary to those feelings and far more than any man’s kindness toward us, God is far more willing, kinder, and more gracious than the best of us deserve. “Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.” –Isaiah 30:18.

“When Naomi heard in Moab that the Lord had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there.” Ruth 1:6. But somewhere en route to Bethlehem, “the house of bread,” Naomi has second thoughts. She tells Ruth and her sister-in-law Orpha to head back to Moab, their families, their gods, and, hopefully, to future husbands.

After some tears and a long goodbye, Orpha concedes and heads back to Moab, but not Ruth.

Right there on a dusty road that will lead both women to a future they could not have imagined, Ruth upends her heart, spilling its contents at her mother-in-law’s feet. “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.” –Ruth 1:16-17.

Only at the feet of Jesus, as Mary, Lazarus’ sister, cries tears born of eternal devotion and an inexpressible love while pouring spikenard over Jesus’ feet, wiping them with her hair, do we see a more moving example of such humble, pure and heartfelt devotion. But that’s a teaching for another day. Ruth’s humility, tender devotion to her mother-in-law, readiness, confidence, and courage to leave her family—and the only life she’s ever known; her emboldened plea and willingness to follow Naomi, come what may, were gifts from God.

Unrecognized at the moment, each trait was some piece of the whole she would need to walk out God’s plan for her life faithfully.

A destiny unfolding undecipherably before her as she walked beside Naomi on that dusty, one-way road that led to redemption. “So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.” Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.” –Ruth 4:13-17.

And if we follow David’s genealogy, it leads us straight to our Eternal Kinsman Redeemer, Jesus: “Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David.” Then, after skipping multiple generations, David’s natural lineage ends with “and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.”

Ruth could not have known where her obedient, submissive heart would lead her.

We know Ruth was overwhelmed with gratitude by the human kindness shown to her by Boaz; the scriptures make that clear. But what we can only imagine is how full of gratitude, how much more humbled and thunderstruck Ruth may have felt had she known standing on that dusty road that her one decision to leave a familiar world behind her to follow Naomi would one day lead to her having played some small part in ensuring her spiritual Redeemer and ours; Jesus,  Savior of the whole world, is born.

So, what does Jesus’ being born mean for you specifically?  

It means if, like Ruth, you are willing to humble yourself and follow after the One True God who has led you not to some dusty road but here, instead, you might meet and, like her, walk away following not some earthy redeemer who can offer you only temporary rewards, but your eternal, Kinsman Redeemer, Jesus Christ who offers you His Life.

Won’t you welcome His Life into your yours? Are you willing to leave behind this world’s old, familiar things and follow God more wholeheartedly, passionately, and tenderheartedly than even Ruth once followed Naomi? “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” –Psalm 32:8.

As scripture says, being born again must occur for you to have a relationship with God. A relationship Christ gave up all to have with you. “Me, Lord?” “Yes, you child.” “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” –John 3:3.

Clean Your Lenses.

July 6, 2024 /

MaryEllen Montville

“And he looked up and said, “I see people, but [they look] like trees, walking around.” 25 Then again Jesus laid His hands on his eyes; and the man stared intently and [his sight] was [completely] restored, and he began to see everything clearly.” –Mark 8: 24-25.

Have you ever felt like this blind man, perplexed by God’s actions or lack thereof, disoriented, unclear, questioning, even? Not questioning God, precisely—instead,  asking why something you’re positive God’s given you just doesn’t seem to be shaping up into all you thought or hoped it would be. You’re operating in it, walking by faith, using every drop of this God-given gift, and yet, there’s this inescapable thing in your belly telling you there’s so much more available to you. “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.”

Maybe, like the blind man in today’s Scripture, that incomplete feeling concerns your healing or that of a loved one—that ailment, insecurity, or spiritual affliction, that addiction you’ve been praying God would remove altogether, deliver you or them from. But still, it lingers—it’s 50% gone, just not 100%.

Friends, I’ve come to remind you that God’s plan is always perfect and complete—even when we perceive it to be otherwise. God’s Word promises He is faithful in finishing what He has started in us. “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” –Philippians 1:6.

It is we who must remember we operate on God’s time. He doesn’t operate on ours.

In studying today’s verses, various commentators and theologians weighed in as to why, based on Scripture, this man did not straightaway receive his sight. After all, throughout the Gospels, Jesus’ other healings were immediate—except for this lone, unnamed blind man.

Why did he require a second touch? Jesus undoubtedly intended to restore his sight fully, lest he continue to see men who “look like trees walking around.”

Those of us who know Jesus as Lord believe God is unchanging. That with only one touch from Him, this man’s sight could have been restored immediately. In fact, Scripture teaches Jesus didn’t even need to be in the same room with the one He was healing. He need only speak a Word and the person was healed. “When he (Jesus) was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.” –Luke 7:6-7;10.

But in this instance, offering us only brief glimpses of clarity, the encounter between Jesus and this unnamed blind man is shrouded and unclear, much like this blind man’s first glimpse of the world.

But was it his first glimpse of things?

I ask this to point us toward the oft-overlooked obvious.

Our blind friend instantly recognized and knew the difference between a person and a tree.

Scripture doesn’t come right out and say it; rather, it eludes to the obvious: our unnamed blind man was not born blind.

So why the double touch from Jesus?

Why didn’t this blind man’s miracle result in instantaneous healing? After all, every other healing Jesus performed did.

What is Jesus trying to teach us? Get us to see?

This is where, within the context of this seemingly brief encounter and, much like the coming together of our blind man and Jesus, the details of why Jesus chose to heal this man in the location and manner He did is shrouded in the unspoken and seemingly unfinished.

One potential answer backed by Scripture that some commentators offer up is:

  1. Jesus chose to perform this miracle for the benefit of His disciples—for us.

In Mark 8, Jesus had just fed the masses—some four thousand men, besides women and children, with a few pieces of bread and a few fish. After this, Jesus and His disciples get into a boat and head to Dalmanutha, where they go ashore only for Jesus to encounter the Pharisees, who immediately demand He show them a sign from heaven.

He assures them He will by no means perform such a sign. He returns to the boat with His disciples and heads toward Bethsaida, where a conversation between the disciples almost immediately catches Jesus’ attention. The topic? Lack of provisions—the disciples had only brought a single left-over loaf of bread. After watching Jesus take a few loaves and as many fish and feed some 10,000 men, women, and children, His disciples saw only their lack of bread! Like the blind man, they, too, saw only in part. While unbeknownst to them, it appears Jesus had been ruminating on the Pharisee’s demand for a sign from heaven because, seemingly randomly, Jesus warns them to “Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”

Why? Because at this point in their relationship with Jesus, His disciples still saw Jesus much as our blind friend’s first glimpse of the world—kind of, in part, “like trees walking around.”

 They believed, yet did not fully possess a clear understanding of Jesus. That would come later. “Jesus, aware of this [discussion], said to them, “Why are you discussing [the fact] that you have no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Though you have eyes, do you not see? And though you have ears, do you not hear and listen [to what I have said]? And do you not remember,  when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?” They answered, “Twelve.” “And [when I broke] the seven [loaves] for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?” And they answered, “Seven.” And He was saying to them, “Do you still not understand?”—Mark 8:17-21.

Bewildered and thinking only in the natural, the disciples immediately do what so many of us do: lean on their own understanding. And as a result, they miss entirely the more significant spiritual implications our Lord is trying to get them to see.

The deeper Truth Jesus wanted them—and us, to see clearly. The dangers of unbelief. How just a little can blind us to the whole Truth. In time—God’s time, each man would see clearly. So clearly, whether by martyrdom or natural causes, each would give his life for Jesus: “We [who were with Him in person] have seen and testify [as eye-witnesses] that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.” –1 John 4:14.

So be encouraged, brothers and sisters, if what you thought would happen has yet to happen, God is not finished with you. Clean your lenses by asking God to touch you—again. Trust His timing and plan for your life until all is clear and you are at peace with who God is—Lord of all.

Friend, if you want to see Jesus clearly, your first step is to ask Him into your life as Lord and Savior. Ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and give you eyes to see so much more than what surrounds you in the natural. None of us deserves to be forgiven of our sins; such forgiveness is a free gift from a loving and mercy-full God. “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” –Titus 3:5.

He Walks With Me.

June 29, 2024 /

Matthew Botelho & MaryEllen Montville

“A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.” –Proverbs 16:9.

I love this proverb because, as Christians, it is something we have all dealt with and can relate to. We all have a dream or vision that we want to pursue, and dreams and visions are good to have. Often, they are a gift from God that gives us something to strive for and a purpose to get up every morning. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law.” Having a plan to strive for is great, especially when you seek God first. God promises that it will be blessed and fulfilling; maybe not always exactly what you want or asked for, but blessed and fulfilling because He will always bring good and personal growth out of it. In Matthew 6:33, Jesus reminds us to keep God first in our hearts and everything we do. “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

My dear friends, I’m here to remind you that you have a purpose, and God has a plan for your life.

If you belong to Him, do not think for one second that God has left you as orphans. He speaks to you daily through His Spirit that dwells inside you. So do not ignore what God is speaking to you. Be wise in understanding what God is showing you regarding how to walk out what He has placed in your heart. Because when you allow yourself to think you are wise in your own ways and feel you do not need the Lord’s help, you will always be wrong. Always hit avoidable roadblocks and pitfalls. “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” –Hebrews 3:15.

God’s Holy Spirit gives you the knowledge and the peace to navigate whatever He has placed on your heart; you can confidently walk knowing that God and His promises are with you and for you. You will never hear the Lord say, “Well, got to go now! And oh, good luck, because you are going to need it! Remember God and all that good stuff. See ya!”

God forbid!

I can’t even imagine it!

I thank God we serve a faithful, kind, intentional, and loving God who created us on purpose—with a purpose.

Today, I cannot even think about what life would be without having Jesus as my Sustainer—the One who places His plans and purposes in my heart. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” –Jeremiah 29:11.

Because there once was a time when I walked in rebellion, according to my plans and desires—walking in the way that seemed right in my heart. “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, But the end thereof are the ways of death.” –Proverbs 14:12. It was not until Jesus came and set me on the path of Life that forever changed me. He said, “Follow Me,” and directed my steps in a new direction. One from which, by His grace and in His strength, I will never turn. “For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” –2 Corinthians 6:2.

Brothers and sisters, I pray that before you begin to set goals and make life plans for yourself, you first go before our Lord in prayer, wholeheartedly seeking Him and submitting yourself and your plans to God, allowing His Holy Spirit to guide your every step. “Commit your works to the LORD [submit and trust them to Him], And your plans will succeed [if you respond to His will and guidance].” –Proverbs 16:3.

So many right now do not know that the love of God is found in no one other than Christ Jesus. Jesus alone is the only way back into a loving Father-child relationship with God. “Jesus said to him, “I am the [only] Way [to God] and the [real] Truth and the [real] Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” –John 14:6.

For those who are reading this for the first time and don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus but want one, who want to know what it truly means to walk in a new direction, to have your sins forgiven and your plans firmly established and blessed by God, I invite you first to repent of your sins—ask Jesus to forgive you, then, ask Him to come into your heart as Lord and Savior believing He is truly the Son of God. God promises, “If you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes [in Christ as Savior] resulting in his justification [that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God]; and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses [his faith openly], resulting in and confirming [his] salvation.” –Romans 10:9-10.

Everlasting To Everlasting.

June 22, 2024 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities—for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!” –Psalm 2:12.

From Genesis to Revelation, one single, tenable thread establishes and unites Truth. God is Alpha and Omega, without beginning or end. He is Triune and Co-Eternal. As He was in the beginning, He will be in the end. It’s this very constancy—this “sure foundation” upon which every Blood-bought believer, starting with Moses and reaching to you and me, then locking fist and faith with that final believer, has anchored our faith. As Scripture makes plain, all else is shifting sand. “And everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not do them, will be like a foolish (stupid) man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods and torrents came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great and complete was its fall.” –Matthew 7:26-27.

Truth is Living. Immutable. Inerrant—contrary to the many jockeying voices who clamor otherwise.

“In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments.” –Colossians 2:3-4.

But more to my point, Truth is a Person:

 “Who is Truth?”  

Jesus Christ is the Living Word of God. “In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God.” –John1:1-2. Firmly establishing this Cornerstone of Christ as God’s Living Truth is paramount so that all else built atop it is sure, lasting—able to bear weight.

Jesus is God’s Living Word.

And so, I’ll lay the beginning and end of Truth side by side, exposing us to its whole counsel.

First, from the Old Testament, is Moses, who, under the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit, says this of Truth: “He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!” –Deuteronomy 32:4. From the New Testament, Truth Himself speaks: “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” –John 14:6.

Go back and trace the Scripture references within this teaching, and you’ll notice a consistent interlacing theme—the Words: He, Father, Son, Mine, I, etc. As we will soon see, the “Person” they point to is our Linchpin, our Bridge, The Truth, Jesus. “I and the Father are one.” –John 10:30.

Jesus is Eternity Past and Eternity Future, being perfectly One with the Father, spanning time as we understand it. God simultaneously birthed and fulfilled His plan and purpose for creation through Jesus. And Jesus accomplished God’s purpose through obedience and Love for the Father. In Jesus, everything is held together: every jot and tittle of Scripture, you, me, the cosmos, every molecule of our world. “And He Himself existed and is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. [His is the controlling, cohesive force of the universe.]” –Colossians 1:17.

We witness Jesus, the Eternal Presence, foreshadowed in Eden—when sinless, innocent blood was shed to cover Adam and Eve’s sin and guilt. Yet let’s remember, Jesus has always existed, and so, through Scripture, we also witness Him Pre-Garden as The Lamb.

God’s Sinless Sacrifice—prepared before God’s the foundation of the world. Waiting. Willing. “And all the inhabitants of the earth will fall down in adoration and pay him homage, everyone whose name has not been recorded in the Book of Life of the Lamb that was slain [in sacrifice] from the foundation of the world.” –Revelation 13:8.

Before Christ’s Perfect sacrifice was a time when, over and over again, the blood of bulls, sheep, lambs, and rams were sacrificed, their lifeblood spilled on alters—blood is the substance God required to rid man of his sins. “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.” –Leviticus 17:11. Blood, smeared on door posts and lintels that death might pass over those who, by faith alone in God alone, Trusted Him—another foreshadowing.

Those who ate their meals in haste behind those bloody doors knew God, but not the name of His slain Lamb—not yet.

Moses, Abraham, Noah, Joseph, and David worshiped God and served Him. Leaving behind their old way of life to follow “YHWH.”   They’d heard His Voice and came to know Him via His Spirit and Word. These men believed God to be far Greater than themselves—eclipsing all other gods they had worshipped before Him—out of custom and ignorance.

From eternity past, the Father’s plan centered around Jesus:From Genesis to Revelation, we witness this Truth repeatedly: Jesus’ eventual substitutionary death on the Cross, His defeat of sin, death, and the grave.

Even in the nascent Church, this Truth became so firmly entrenched in the hearts of Jesus’s disciples that men freely gave their lives for Him. “But when [in God’s plan] the proper time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the [regulations of the] Law, so that He might redeem and liberate those who were under the Law, that we [who believe] might be adopted as sons [as God’s children with all rights as fully grown members of a family].” –Galatians 4:4-6.

Later, as the Church grew, through the only Scriptures they knew, New Testament writers would heavily pepper the Word with Old Testament references to Christ. The birth, life, ministry, miracles, and mentions or inferences of Jesus’ Lordship, His Blood, death, and future reign all reference the will and work of God’s Holy Spirit; God’s Word is one single, seamless Truth.

Some scholars say these Old Testament references constitute as much as 33% of the New Testament. Said differently, roughly 2606 Old Testament Scriptures are directly quoted or referenced within the New Testament, every one pointing toward Jesus. “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” –Romans 15:4. This hope is part of God’s plan for all of His children—all those chosen in Christ, for Christ, before the foundation of the world. “For you [who are born-again have been reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified and] are all children of God [set apart for His purpose with full rights and privileges] through faith in Christ Jesus.” –Galatians 3:26.

Though none from the Old Testament had heard the name Jesus—they knew God—believed in God.

And because of such faith—His Blood, the Blood of Jesus, God incarnate, The Father’s Perfect, Sinless Lamb, slain before the foundation of the world, washed them clean, saving them. “Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” –Mark 12: 26-27.

We have looped full circle, ending where we began: with Jesus, our Co-Eternal, Triune God; The Father’s Spotless Lamb, whose All-Powerful Blood is far-reaching enough to simultaneously save Moses, Abraham, Isacc, Jacob, me, and you, if you’ll invite Him into your life as Lord of all. Trusting, as did Abraham before you, as I and every other believer on the planet have, that Jesus is who He claims to be—the Only Way to the Father. “Jesus said to him, “I am the [only] Way [to God] and the [real] Truth and the [real] Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” –John 14:6.

Friend, before the foundation of the world, Jesus knew you.

And if you say yes to Him today, that is evidence you’ve been chosen in Him.

Yet if you reject Him, which, unimaginably, is your God-given right, then Gentle Christ that He is, Jesus will not force Himself nor His forgiveness upon you.

He will honor your choice to reject Him.

But understand this.

From eternity past, that is never God’s choice nor His heart toward any of us—towards you. Your relationship with Jesus is personal. “Though we were spiritually dead because of the things we did against God, he gave us new life with Christ. You have been saved by God’s grace. And he raised us up with Christ and gave us a seat with him in the heavens. He did this for those in Christ Jesus so that for all future time he could show the very great riches of his grace by being kind to us in Christ Jesus.” –Ephesians 2:5-7.

Purpose and Faith

June 15, 2024 /

Pastor Maria Braga

Often, we wonder if God is hearing our prayers. We believe in His Word and promises but still wonder if He hears us when challenges present themselves. We begin to tell ourselves things, and we begin to think those things are true. These things often turn into mountains, and we feel overwhelmed and discouraged in our spiritual walk.

Scripture teaches us there was a time when famine struck Canaan, and the patriarch, Jacob (Israel), sent his eleven sons to get food from Egypt. When his sons arrived in Egypt, something unexpected was awaiting them that startled them. Joseph, the brother “they” had sold into slavery many years prior, had now become the second in command in all of Egypt and had been ordained by God to provide food for the brothers who had sold him into slavery years before. These brothers caused Joseph much anguish and pain. You can read Joseph’s complete story in Genesis, Chapters 37-50.

When jealousy caused these brothers to rid themselves of Joseph, they could never have imagined God’s plan for him—and them. The brothers had operated by what they felt and saw, but God was working it all together to fulfill the plan and purpose He had designed for Joseph’s life. As time passed, various Pharaohs came into power and died, and the Israelite people who had once journeyed from the land of Canaan into Egypt also faded into history. Their physical presence had vanished, but not their faith or traditions; they endured as a testament to the everlasting power of their trust in God’s Providence.

Four hundred years passed, and God’s people never heard His voice. God had been silent. There were no prophets, no signs, no direction.

What happened?

Where was God?

This great silence spanned the 400 years between the close of the Old Testament and the birth of the New Testament, known biblically as the Four Hundred Years of Silence.

God had promised His people that a Deliverer would come to liberate them, but He didn’t let them know when.

It was a promise to be believed by faith alone!

 After four hundred years of silence, faith thrived still among the people of God, people who had endured severe treatment and abuse under different Pharaohs, including the Pharaoh then in power—a Pharoh who was insecure and weak. He was fearful that God’s people were too great and had become more numerous than the Egyptians.

One couple, Amram and Jochebed, married and were about to have a child during Israel’s dark days. “Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months.” –Exodus 2:1-2. The king of Egypt issued a decree that every baby boy born to a Hebrew woman was to be killed. You can read this tragic account in Exodus, Chapters 1-2. Imagine being pregnant in those days! Jochebed’s faith inspires us still, primarily because she handled her pregnancy and her child’s birth with such faith! She knew the son she’d given birth to was exceptional, anointed by God to do a particular work. By faith, scripture tells Jochebed weaved a basket, insulated it with papyrus grass, covered it in tar, and sent it down the Nile River. “When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank.” –Exodus 2:3.

Phew. Now what?

What great courage! As a mom, she must have had a million “terrifying thoughts” and “what ifs” running through her mind. She must have been horrified! But Jochebed had faith in God!

Jochebed’s story is one of grace and faith! Of how she trusted in the One she knew held the plan for her life and her sons! “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.” –Jer 29:11-12.

How long have you been in your challenge?

Sometimes, not even a month into the challenge, we start wondering, murmuring, and complaining.

There is a Scripture that many believers quote: “Be still and know that I AM God” –Psalm 46:10.

However, often, when push comes to shove, our minds stray, and, as many of God’s people did in those dark days of Israel, we begin to wonder what is happening to us and we say things like:

Was it really God’s promise?

Do I deserve God’s grace?

I am not good enough, etc.

We must be aware and hold tight to the fact, the Truth. God’s time and promises are perfect.

God often waits to fulfill His plan for our lives until we are ready because He has appointed and written its time according to His plan. God does not align with our plans. We must align with His. Like Jochebed, we need faith to deliver whatever promise God has put inside of us.

But it is the Lord who destines, the Lord who brings to pass, and the Lord alone who gets the glory in the end.

Even though four hundred years of God having been silent had gone before them, this couple still held tight to their faith in their God. Jochebed went through intense hardship, as did her husband. They had to hide their baby; they could lose their lives for not obeying the king, but they chose instead to obey God and hold onto the promise.

They believed God was on their side and He would somehow bring victory to this situation. They believed God was still in control. They had a promise, they held onto the promise, and they trusted the God who made the promise.

Do you know your promise? How do you hold onto your promise without wavering?

In Jochebed’s case, God used a heathen princess, a woman with a mother’s instinct, to nurture, care, and love Jochebed’s baby as only a mother can. God precisely positioned Pharaoh’s daughter at the right place at the right time to find Moses’ basket floating in the river; Miriam, Moses’ sister, was also at the right place at the right time. “Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.

 Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said.” –Exodus 2:3-6.

This Egyptian princess, now stepmom, pays the biological mother to nurture her baby. “Then his sister asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” “Yes, go,” she answered. So the girl went and got the baby’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed him.” –Exodus 2:7-9.

How awesome is our God!

When we choose to be still, know that He is God, and partner with His plan, God works out every detail.

We must have the kind of faith Jochebed had:

A) A FAITH THAT STANDS TRIALS

B) A FAITH THAT HAS A STRONG FOUNDATION

C) A FAITH THAT MUST BE EXERCISED AND GROW

D) A FAITH THAT GOD RESPONDS TO

E) A FAITH THAT GOD REWARDS

When it gets hard, don’t give up! Stand the trial. Stand on Christ’s foundation. Read God’s Word, serve in your local church, and have a community of believers to help you grow, a community that will encourage you in times of trouble—brothers and sisters who remind you that God answers prayers. And that God will bring your reward at the right time, His time.

Father, in the name of Jesus, Increase our faith in you. Bring us deeper and closer to you. Give us unwavering faith. A faith that stands the test of time and connects us to you so that we will not look to the left or the right. A faith that leads us to the well that is deeper than us. We love You and thank You for the gifts of faith and grace, in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.” –1 John 4:9. If you have not asked Jesus into your life as Lord and Savior, follow the faithful example of Jochebed today and do it now.

Repent! The King Is Coming.

June 8, 2024 /

MaryEllen Montville

“Just as [in His love] He chose us in Christ [actually selected us for Himself as His own] before the foundation of the world, so that we would be holy [that is, consecrated, set apart for Him, purpose-driven] and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined and lovingly planned for us to be adopted to Himself as [His own] children through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the kind intention and good pleasure of His will—.” –Ephesians 1:4-5.

Sporadically, over the past months, my team and I have shared teachings focusing on sin, sinning, and our need to repent. I believe God’s Holy Spirit birthed each of these teachings to remind us all of the effects and repercussions of sin and our need to repent daily. All to lead us to Truth—The Truth—His name, Jesus. “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” –John 14:6.

So today, to bring these peppered teachings on sin full circle, to offer hope, and to prayerfully guide those whom Jesus is calling to follow Him into the fullness of Truth, where God’s Love and plan for such a Love has always existed—in Jesus. Through Scripture, we’ll witness that somewhere in the “eternal past,” God knew you; equally, He created you to fit purposefully and uniquely into the grand tapestry of His eternal plan.

God’s Inerrant Word speaks of the time “before the foundation of the world.” When all that existed—was Yahweh: “The Uncreated, Self-Existent One.”

That place where you, me, and everything in the seen and unseen worlds began. In God.

As finite beings, we recognize the abovementioned time as the eternal past or time everlasting. “Before the mountains were born Or before You had given birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are [the eternal] God.” –Psalm 90:2.

Notice that this Old Testament Scripture says of God, “You are,” present tense. Yet it also gives evidence of God’s eternal existence with its; “Before You had given birth to the earth and the world…”  

And in Revelation 1:8, God says of Himself. “I am the Alpha and the Omega [the Beginning and the End],” says the Lord God, “Who is [existing forever] and Who was [continually existing in the past] and Who is to come, the Almighty [the Omnipotent, the Ruler of all].”

Brothers and sisters, I took pains to lay a sure foundation for God’s irrefutable, eternal existence for the primary reason of re-minding and confirming for you that you were indeed chosen in Jesus. Sealed untouchable in Christ—who is God and was with God before the foundation of the world; your eternal destiny secured in Jesus—for Jesus, in the everlasting past.

You are chosen, set apart, sealed in Christ, unlike those creations God foreknew and gave the same opportunity to grab hold of, cherish, and accept His free Gift of Love, yet they rejected Him.

And so you are not that one, friend, one who will reject Jesus; I’ll pause here a moment to remind you that the Author of Life, Christ Jesus, is extending His Hand of forgiveness and Life to you.

Continuing, listen to how the Apostle Paul explains our being chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. “For those whom He foreknew [and loved and chose beforehand], He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son [and ultimately share in His complete sanctification], so that He would be the firstborn [the most beloved and honored] among many believers.” –Romans 8:29.

Scripture is clear, friend: there is no middle ground to stand safely upon. Either we’re all in, or we’re out. Unimaginably, God Himself has afforded us this unfathomable freedom of choice. Now, it’s up to us to choose wisely because God has made His choice clear: we choose Him, surrendering our will freely in exchange for His. “And just as Moses in the desert lifted up the brass replica of a venomous snake on a pole for all the people to see and be healed,  so the Son of Man is ready to be lifted up, so that those who truly believe in him will not perish but be given eternal life. For here is the way God loved the world—he gave his only, unique Son as a gift. So now everyone who believes in him will never perish but experience everlasting life.” –John 3:14-16.

Yet God is patient, knowing the hearts of each of His creations.

Perhaps, to build our faith in Him,  Jesus allows us to believe that He has forgotten us for a time—that He doesn’t see our great need for His strength and intervention to come swiftly and pull us out from the thick mire we’ve been wallowing in for so long that we’ve made our mess our home. Falsely believing there is nothing more for us than the crippling consequences of our sinful choices. “The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” –2 Peter 3:9.

Friend, the enemy of your soul, would like nothing more than for you to falsely believe that where you find yourself now is as good as it gets.

Please, don’t fall for his lies!

You were not created for sin; to live in sin. You, dear friend, were lovingly and purposefully created in the Image and Likeness of God—for God—to be loved and protected, cherished by God as a precious child of God. Scripture makes clear: “God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”  

This Scripture alone demonstrates the Truth of Jesus’ Words shared with His doubters—those supposed wisest men of their time who stood poised to kill Him for making the assertion “I and the Father are one.” –John 10:30.

By Jesus saying this, these Jewish priests and scholars understood just enough to realize Jesus was claiming to be God—and they could not abide by what they assumed was a blasphemous claim. So, in hardening their hearts, these so-called wise men rejected Jesus—and sought to kill Him and anyone or anything associated with Him.

Sadly, not much has changed since then. “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.” –John 10:33.

Jesus’ heart for His chosen people is Love.

In the eternal past I’ve spoken of today, the fullness of the Father’s love was continually poured out on His Son—Righteous, Holy, and Pure. According to God’s Inerrant Word, He is The Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. “And all the inhabitants of the earth will fall down in adoration and pay him homage, everyone whose name has not been recorded in the Book of Life of the Lamb that was slain [in sacrifice] from the foundation of the world.” –Revelation 13:8.

This verse not only testifies to the Truth of God’s plan to save mankind somewhere in eternity past, before Adam and Eve or God’s earth were ever created, but equally, it makes clear God foreknew those who would reject His offer: His free Gift of salvation: His only Son’s Life given in exchange for theirs.

My prayer for you, for us all, today is this: that you are not like those who, being wise according to the world’s standards, become so like those so-called wise men before you that you reject Jesus, Savior of the world, to your eternal peril.

Although no sin is acceptable before our Holy God, Jesus Himself assures us there is one unpardonable sin—rejecting God’s Holy Spirit.

And since His Holy Spirit is God, those who reject Him reject the Triune God Himself. “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.” –Matthew 12:30-32.

Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand!

Jesus proclaimed it. As did John the Baptist. And though not popular nor feel-good, now, concerning the deadly wages of sin, in obedience to the leading of God’s Holy Spirit, so too have me and my team. Friends, Jesus loves you. He is patiently waiting for you to accept His Love and forgiveness. If you haven’t done this, what are you waiting for? “Heaven’s kingdom is about to appear—so you’d better keep turning away from evil and turn back to God!”–Matthew 3:2.

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