What's Your Mindset?

 

Have you ever met someone who seemed to enjoy being sick or being a victim? I have, and I admit I really don’t understand it. In 2016, I learned I had breast cancer. It made me mad (and a little scared) more than anything else. Determined to not be a victim, I began looking for ways to better care for myself – for ways to take charge of my health and not wait for death to take me. Others helped me a great deal (Cheryl Howe for one). It helped that I already had an interest in health-related topics too.

Clearly, people are different in how they approach life challenges. It appears to boil down to mindset. There are at least 2 types of mindsets: Fixed and Growth.

A fixed mindset is when a person does not believe there is anything they can do to control or change their situation. They are resigned to it and feel powerless. They are stuck.

A growth mindset is when a person believes they can grow and change and improve their situation with effort and hard work. These people don’t just “throw in the towel.” They take action. Success is there for those willing to work for it. Success might look different than first imagined, but there is still much that can be attained.

We form our mindsets from our culture, experiences, values, disposition, relationships, among other things. The way you think, feel, and behave impacts success and failure in life. Some time reflecting on these can be beneficial to one who is curious about what mindset they have.

To change our mindset to something more positive, we must first see the need for changing it. Maybe we’re stuck because we have not considered that there are viable possibilities we have not considered to improve our situation. For example, I was not happy about having a double mastectomy, but before and after my surgery, I got some acupuncture to help with the healing process. I also drank tons of healing vegetables via juicing and took lifegiving supplements. Others I know have gotten bariatric oxygen treatments after surgery. I did everything possible to heal quickly, because I believed it was possible to support my body through my actions. Guess what? I healed very nicely and had no complications, which I later learned was unusual. A growth mindset is a wonderful thing! (I didn’t know to call it that at the time.)

What does a biblical mindset look like? God is the giver of all truth and wisdom, so He should be consulted. Talk about thinking “outside the box”! Scripture focuses on mind renewal. In opposition to our natural inclinations, we don’t live for the present, but for the eternal. Cultivating gratitude and joy results in abundant life. Let’s not forget faith (God can do the impossible} and courage (He is with us in tough times – even persecution). We turn our minds to the Spirit and let Him lead us instead of going our own way. Also counterintuitive, God commands us to love our enemies and serve others. Contentment with what God has provided gives us rest and satisfaction.

Our minds must be transformed to include these things as we become more Christ-minded. It happens over time and in small, often indistinguishable, increments as we read and meditate on the Word and choose a growth mindset. We can be changed! PTL! By aligning ourselves with God’s Word, He builds truth, purity, excellence, and beauty within us.

There is some work that needs to be done in me. May God’s Word do its (sometimes painful) work in me! What’s your mindset? Is is a growth mindset or are you stuck? Is your mindset biblical? Developing a biblical mindset is a lifelong quest, but sometimes we can look back and see how far we have come. Let’s grow together in the New Year!

joyce hague

The Christmas Story in an Unlikely Place

 

When you think of reading the Christmas story, you most likely think of Luke 2. You may also turn to the gospel of Matthew to read more about Joseph and the wise men. Passages preached in Christmas messages also include the prophets, particularly Isaiah and Micah. Additionally, I have always loved Galatians 4:4-7 in the context of the Christmas story which relays how God sent Christ to be born in the “fulness of time.” However, one place we do not typically go to for the Christmas story is the book of Revelation. Yet it is there, in this unlikely place, told in an unusual way and pointing to a great reality. Let’s take a look.
            Revelation 12:1-6 goes like this: “And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.”

            Revelation is a book that describes John’s symbolic visions, pointing to things yet to come. As the ESV Study Bible notes, it “unveils the spiritual war in which the church is engaged: the cosmic conflict between God and his Christ on the one hand, and Satan and his evil allies on the other.” Its purpose is not for the believer to be able to “decode” every piece of symbolism or for the church to argue for years to come about its timeline and what to take literally. Its main message is simple: Christ will return as conquering king and will judge the world. And the church, in the meantime, can stay encouraged by this truth, persevering despite hardship until that day comes.

            So, with this in mind, look back to the above telling of the Christmas story. The pregnant woman could specifically refer to Mary or more generally to the Israelite nation into which Jesus would be born. The descriptive words (sun, moon, 12 stars) point to Israel. Meanwhile, the red dragon, Satan himself, with the descriptors that show power, is seeking to do what he can to prevent this child’s coming into the world. His goal is to devour that child. What methods does he employ? The one that stands out clearly to me is when Herod has all the young boys in Bethlehem killed in an effort to eliminate any rivals to his throne. But we can think back even further to the Old Testament: Pharaoh’s attempt to have the Hebrew male babies killed in Egypt, the famines, and the captivities. Satan did not want this child to be born.

            This passage in Revelation then skips straight from the birth of the Christ child to his being “caught up to God and his throne.” In other words, Satan could not stop him. God protected Christ’s life while he was on earth so he could submit to the Father’s plan, dying on the cross for the sins of man so we could now be right with God through faith in Him. I love this shortened version of the Christmas story because it does what Revelation sets out to do: It shows the cosmic battle that continues today that will not be won by Satan. He was not able to stop Jesus, and he will not be able to stop Jesus’s church. The rest of Revelation repeatedly bears this out in a variety of ways. The same Jesus who was born in Bethlehem will return, though this time not as a baby but as a conquering king (Rev. 19:11-16).

            I think it’s appropriate that at Christmas time, we don’t just focus on Jesus’s first coming as a baby, but we remember that we are in a time of waiting for Jesus’s second coming. And thus, we heed the message of Revelation: We are in a battle, so let’s fight well and let’s persevere. And above all, let’s keep our eyes fixed on the sky, knowing that the victory already belongs to God and to His Christ, and that one day Jesus will return, put an end to all that is wicked and broken, and take us home.

-- Amy O’Rear

More Than Coffee and Doughnuts

 

One of my favorite times of the week is the fellowship half-hour between services on Sunday. I like to get back to the fellowship hall in time to finish my coffee, but I also want to take my time and talk to people along the way. It’s a great time to really look at people as you pass, ask them how they’re doing, and take time to listen.

Once you get to the large room with coffee and doughnuts, listening is going to be hard. There is a variety of ages and even languages to enjoy. There is lots of conversation, laughter, and music, but that’s ok because it’s a joy to watch folks interacting with each other and to hear little snippets of talk: Well, here you are . . . That was beautiful! . . . How have you been? . . . I’ll just have one doughnut.

These are not monumental conversations, but they are meaningful just the same because they allow us to share moments of our lives with others. A smile or a pat on the back can sometimes communicate care and concern as well as an extended conversation.

I love to watch the children sitting together sharing secrets or hiding under the table munching snacks. They are learning that church is a warm and friendly place and that the people there love them.

I am so grateful our staff developed this plan for Sundays. I know it’s a lot of work for several people. I see them week after week, picking up and sorting things out, but they are helping to make possible the admonition found in scripture to “exhort one another” (Hebrews 3:13), to “comfort each other and edify one another” (I Thess. 5:11).

Certainly we carry out these admonitions in other ways as well. I hope you are involved with a small group and that you take the opportunity to connect with a class during the discipleship hour. Over the years, some of my best church relationships have been forged in these kinds of groups, and I love bonding over God’s deep truths.

The fellowship time is a way to get to know different people or to reconnect with longtime friends. So if you aren’t in the habit of moseying back to the fellowship hall, give it a try. If you make it a point to show up every Sunday, you already know--It’s more than coffee and doughnuts.

--Sherry Poff

That's Not Fair!

 

One of my kids was running out of sweatpants that fit. The skinny waist, growing legs problem where nothing will stay up or it looks like they’re wearing capris. So off to Old Navy we went. All 3 kids were in the store with me, and while we were specifically looking for pants for one, we found 2 items on sale for another as well. We did look for sale items for the third child, but nothing was found in the right size and there weren’t any specific needs in the moment anyway. 

          On the walk to the cash register, through the aisles, and out the door there was a stream of “that’s not fair’s!” I cannot actually tell you how many times I hear that phrase. I’m never surprised by it. There’s a natural sin-nature “that’s not fair-ness” in all of us! I want to take each moment it arises to teach a correct biblical worldview of fairness. Most of the time, however, my in-the-moment response often is, “You’re right, it’s not and neither is life.” *Insert eye roll at such a mom-answer.

           It is true that because we live in a broken world, full of sinful people, life here will always be unfair. It is important that my children learn the reality of this truth so that they can reasonably respond to it in their futures.

          It is also the case that in our complaints of “that’s not fair,” they are coming out of us because we are wallowing in selfishness, pride, comparison, and jealousy. None of these things is good or pleasing to the Lord, either. So having a shift of perspective, finding the things we are thankful for, realizing it’s not actually all about us, will benefit our hearts greatly.

         God is just. He is good and fair always at all times. He does not change his standards from one person to another. He offers freedom from sin to every human. His truth is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The way to a full relationship with Him and forgiveness from sin is the same for every person.

From our perspective, we could say that some of His gracious and good gifts are unfair in the sense that we do not deserve them! We do not deserve Jesus’ rescue on the cross. We cannot earn any part of the close relationship God offers us. It is not fair that even in our daily sin we are offered hope eternal with Jesus! 

It is my desire that over time my kids will learn the reality of a fallen world and the fulfillment of a just and fair God. I pray they will learn to imitate their Savior and strive to treat their neighbors with fairness and love. And when they fail or others fail them, I hope they take the steps to repent and restore and forgive. I pray these things as I pray for God’s help with this problem in my own heart. And when I get caught up in some self pity and consider my life less fair than the next person’s, may the Spirit prompt me to have that perspective shift, preaching the gospel to myself and thinking well and kindly of others.

--Sandy Gromacki

 

Scripture and Song

 A few days ago a dear friend cried on the phone.  She was discouraged about life in general, depressed about her health, her relationships, her living conditions, her future.  She felt she just could not go on.  All of us experience depression to some degree in our lives. I had advice for her, honed by bouts of depression in my own life--Scripture and song.  Read, memorize, listen to Scripture, especially in the Psalms.  Listen to music; sing it yourself.

At one point in the darkest time of my life, I went through the book of Psalms and marked every Psalm that spoke to my situation.  Then I recorded those Psalms on a CD.  Each evening when I headed for bed I started that CD playing next to my bed.  I quoted with the CD and the Scripture went deeper into my heart.  I called that CD my sleeping pill.  My distress lessened by the night. Going to sleep became easier as I transferred my focus.  God truly became my Rock, my Fortress, my Hiding Place.

During that same dark period a CD from Damaris Carbaugh became my tranquilizer, along with a collection of Praise hymns.  As I drove to work in the morning I sang along, often with tears streaming down my cheeks. Sometimes I would choose a topic, joy, love, heaven, and so on. I would think of every song on that topic I could, and I would sing each song as it came to mind.  By the time I got to work I would be ready to face the day.

So I shared with my friend. I suggested scripture and song. I sent her a text with Psalm 118:24, "This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it."  Her response: "I cannot hear that verse without singing it."  That's the whole point!

So the last couple of days I have been looking up verses for her, all from the Psalms.  I am only listing references because I want her to look them up.  I'm going to list these for you.  Perhaps they will be what you need, perhaps not.  But hopefully they will encourage you to search the Scripture and the hymnbook.

Here are the ones I have listed for my friend.  All are from the Psalms.

               5:11                             6:2                    9:1-2

            18:2                            18:4-6                27:14

            30:2                            30:56                  31:24    

            33:21-22                     34:1-3                 34:18

            38:9                            40:1-3                  42:8

            59:16-17                    106:1                    107:26-31

           113:1-3                        119:28                   119:50

           121                              139:17-18            145:17-18

           147:3                         150:6

 Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.  Praise ye the Lord.

These are the verses I have chosen for my friend who is depressed and grieving.  They may not be the ones that you need, but I hope they will be just what my friend needs.

Scripture and Song.  The song I come back to when I am feeling low, is "Does Jesus Care?"

 
Does Jesus care when my heart is pained                                                         
Too deeply for mirth and song? 
When the burdens press
and the cares distress
And the way grows weary and long?                                                                           

Oh, yes He cares, I know He cares
His heart is touched with my grief.
When the days are weary,
The long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.

                --Faith Himes Lamb

What Should I Choose?!

 

Have you ever stressed about making the right decision? I stress about this all the time, even over small things. What is the right meal to order? Which would be the right book to read next? Which is the right bit of housework that I should get done tonight? Sometimes, it seems like there can only be one right decision, but they all look like they could be good, and I begin to spiral. What ends up happening is that I don’t make a decision, wait until someone else makes the decision, or rush to choose something because I’m running out of time. This way of thinking has a lot to do with my perfectionist tendencies, but they also stem from an incorrect view of God’s will.

Last month, I wrote about good fruit beliefs and bad fruit beliefs and how it is important to weed out the beliefs that produce bad fruit. One of the bad fruit beliefs I garnered from my childhood church attendance is that living in God’s will requires always making the right decision based on the promptings of the Holy Spirit. In every decision, great or small, I must follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit. If I choose incorrectly, I am living outside of God’s will. Getting back in God’s will is then very difficult and takes a lot of work.

While it sounds super spiritual, this belief certainly results in bad fruit. In my life, that has looked like unnecessary fear and anxiety that I will make the wrong decision. I am a chronic overthinker and have difficulty relaxing or going with the flow if I think something is not quite “right.” I must constantly remind myself that making a wrong decision is not the end of the world and in many cases, there are many good decisions that could be made.

A few years ago, there was a great show on NBC called Ordinary Joe that was unfortunately cancelled after one season. The show focused on the life of Joe Kimbreau and how his life would have looked if he made one of three different decisions following graduation. There are three different timelines in which Joe is a nurse, police officer, or rockstar. At the beginning, you may think that one of the timelines was the “right” path to take because things seem to be going better, but as the story goes on, you see that each timeline has its own unique joys and challenges. There’s not a clear “right” path. It all contains the ups and downs of life.

I remember when I first started college and had not yet declared my major. I had narrowed it down to a few, but I stressed so much about which path I should take and which was the “right” one. I didn’t have a job I had wanted to do since childhood. I was overwhelmed by the possibilities and scared that one decision could ruin my life. I finally declared as an English Literature major at the beginning of my sophomore year, and I can confidently say that I love where that path has taken me. I love the job I have and the people I get to work with. But you know what? I could probably say the same thing if I had chosen a different major. I don’t believe a different choice would have been wrong. It would have just been different.

So what does living in God’s will actually mean? When God’s will is discussed in Scripture, it is more about our behavior than the decisions we make. In 1 Thessalonians, Paul writes, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thess. 4:3 ESV). He goes on to give examples of actions to take and abstain from in order to live and grow in sanctification. As you go about your week, I urge you (and myself!) to stress less about making the “right decision.” Focus instead on living a life of sanctification, allowing God to mold our hearts and minds to be more like Him.

--Concetta Swann

Healing Comes

Over many years, I have worked with children and teens as a Social Worker. Most of these young people have seen counselors, sometimes for long stretches of time. For some, counseling is beneficial, for others not so much.

I have wondered why the difference and have begun to notice traits in those who find it helpful and in those who don’t.

The successful are transparent about who they are and how they feel. They participate. They don’t just say what the counselor wants to hear. They listen and are willing to try new things. Essentially, they do the homework.

Unsuccessful clients expect a quick fix or might attend their sessions inconsistently for various reasons. They refuse responsibility for their behaviors and attitudes that contribute to their problems and often blame others.

These attitudes, negative or positive, also apply in our personal walk with Christ. He is the Wonderful Counselor after all. Will He be successful in bringing about lasting change in our hearts? Crawford Loritts said, “Jesus meets us in our transparency.” Being transparent requires humility and courage. To find healing in our lives, we must be willing to face and confess our sin and failures. We all have blind spots that deceive us into believing we don’t need to make any changes, but Jesus is positioned to heal us when we uncover bitterness and unforgiveness and ingratitude and maybe even unkindness in our hearts. He can change us into something much sweeter and more lovely when those things come to light and we seek His forgiveness – when we acknowledge that we have sinned. Meditating on His Word helps keep His commandments before us. We do things His way, not our own, and try new things instead of clinging to our old patterns.  It’s a lifelong process with no quick fixes and requires consistency in keeping our appointments with Him.

In Psalm 139 David said, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”

Yes, that can be a little scary, a little unsettling. But I want His healing. Don’t you?

joyce hague

The Gospel Truth

 

Two books I’m currently reading, a date on the calendar, my son’s school project, and the Bible lesson I taught on Sunday evening from Acts have all come together with one powerful truth: Salvation is through faith alone in Christ alone. We all know this; we have accepted this truth and rest in it, yet it is good still to be reminded of the beauty of it and not take for granted that we have been taught this powerful gospel message.

In Bullies and Saints, author John Dickson begins his book on the good and the bad in church history by writing about the Crusades in the Middle Ages. In 637, Jerusalem was taken by Muslim armies. Over 400 years later, in 1095, Pope Urban called for a crusade to fight the Muslims and reclaim Jerusalem. He stated the following, “Whoever for devotion alone, not to gain honour or money, goes to Jerusalem to liberate the Church of God can substitute this journey for all penance” (5). In other words, whoever would go fight this battle would be saved and have their sins forgiven. More crusades followed, and in preparation for the fifth crusade in 1213, Pope Innocent “promised ‘full forgiveness of sins’ for all who, with a contrite heart, participated in the venture” (14). Can you imagine living during that time? You’re longing for salvation, to be accepted by a holy God, and you are told that if you fight a battle hundreds of miles from home, you will be saved from your sins. No wonder men (and even children!) lined up to fight.

I’m also reading a biography of Empress Maria Theresa who ruled over Austria, Hungary, and the Bohemian lands in the mid-1700s. She was a devout Catholic and was very concerned about the eternal salvation of her husband and children (one of whom was Marie Antoinette).  Maria Theresa found consolation in the fact that when her twelve-year-old daughter lay dying from smallpox, this daughter “did penance for three quarters of an hour, with a scrupulousness, regret, and devotion that brought her confessor to tears” (675, Maria Theresa: The Habsburg Empress in Her Time). In contrast, when Maria Theresa’s husband died of a heart attack, there was no time for him to speak to a confessor and take the Eucharist before he died. She was thus very concerned about his eternal soul, finding comfort in the fact that he had been at Mass that morning. However, she still established a group of ladies in the city in which her husband died who would pray for his soul in perpetuity (698).

Thankfully, amidst these false teachings about salvation, God had preserved a remnant who would teach the true gospel. In the 1500s (after the Crusades and before Maria Theresa), there was a large revival – a movement across Europe back to the truth of the gospel news: Salvation is by faith alone through grace alone in Christ alone. We call this time the Reformation. October 31, 1517 is often seen as the day when it really got started – when Martin Luther nailed a set of statements, known as the 95 Theses, on a church door in Wittenberg. These statements argued against the false teachings of the Catholic Church, stating that salvation came from God and not through other means. My son Stephen is currently working on a project in which he has to research the contributions of nine of the reformers. Because of them and others (including women!), the gospel message gained ground throughout the lands of Europe and eventually came to America with the Pilgrims.

On Sunday night, my Bible study group looked at Acts 9 – the story of the conversion of Paul. Paul’s salvation did not include fighting in a battle declared salvific by a pope or confessing regularly to a priest and being sure to take the Eucharist before his death. No, an encounter with Christ was enough to cause him to place his faith in Him. Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans what it takes to be saved: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Praise God!

--Amy O’Rear

Good Fruit, Bad Fruit

 

We’ve all heard the adage, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” It’s a clever, rhyming way to encourage the regular consumption of fruits and veggies for our health. My fiancé, Andrew, takes this seriously. He absolutely LOVES apples and buys multiple bags during his grocery trips to make sure he doesn’t run out. For his recent birthday, Andrew’s parents got him a bag of apples from a local orchard. They were pretty apples, and Andrew was excited to try them. But he was incredibly disappointed when they turned out to be bad. They weren’t bitter or visibly rotten, but the texture was wrong, and the flavor was bland. 

 

Andrew enjoys apples, loves his parents, and dislikes wasting food. But none of that stopped those apples from ending up in the trash. They weren’t worth eating because they didn’t measure up to what an apple is supposed to be. 

 

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus explains the importance of fruit in recognizing the quality of a tree:

 

“You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16-20 NASB). 

The quality of the fruit is indicative of the quality of the tree. Bad fruit like Andrew’s apples indicates a bad tree, while good fruit indicates a good tree. So too does the fruit indicate the quality of a belief system. This can be a little more obvious when the beliefs are significantly different from what the Bible teaches. These kinds of beliefs are rotten apples, easily spotted if one examines the fruit. But there are some bad fruits that are harder to spot.

The church I grew up in before Grace held some pretty legalistic beliefs. There was a heavy emphasis on rules and doing things the only right way. While there was an outward denial of the prosperity gospel, it was certainly implied that doing all the right things in the right way would result in a “blessed” and prosperous life. The fruit of those teachings in my life has been a tendency to rely on good works to be accepted. It has taken years of unraveling to begin to understand the gospel as a truly free gift independent of my own efforts. I still struggle to give myself grace when things don’t turn out perfect, and I continually have to remind myself not to judge others based on small differences.

This is the kind of belief that takes the truth and twists it just a little bit. It may look nice and shiny on the outside, but it doesn’t measure up. It’s a bad tree that results in bad fruit. I don’t believe that the people at that church had bad intentions, and I still care for them. But that should not prevent me from examining and removing the bad beliefs from my life.

What are the good and bad fruits you see in your life? If you see bad fruit, I encourage you to examine where it came from. Is there a belief or teaching you need to unravel and replace with a tree that bears good fruit?

 

--Concetta Swann

Chain of Obedience

I am thankful for the messages our church has been able to hear the past couple of weeks as we think about the work God HAS done and IS DOING across the globe. If you missed either of these messages on October 12 or 19, I would encourage you to go back and listen on our church Youtube page!

          Last Sunday was one of our special Joint Service Sundays where our church gathers English and Spanish families together and we have a translated message, sing in two languages and share pews with our brothers and sisters of differing heart languages.

          Pastor Darwin Blandon spoke in Spanish with a translator and shared his personal testimony. He shared about how a graduate of Tennessee Temple heard the call of the Lord, studied Spanish in Costa Rica and then traveled to Nicaragua to where Pastor Darwin was born. Long story short this man set up tents and shared the gospel. Through this, the Blandon family came to know the Lord, and from the age of 3, Pastor Darwin was a part of a Christian home.

          As things became more and more hostile and dangerous in his home country, Darwin’s parents sent him with this missionary to try and escape the wars and go to America. Through an amazing story of how God moved, Darwin was sent through.

          God led him to begin a Spanish ministry in Chattanooga with just 3 starting members. He was faithful to the Lord and remained in that ministry for decades as he continues today and has impacted hundreds and had a growing church.

          His point was in looking back at the trail of faithfulness in that Temple missionary. He was obedient to the Lord, went to the country of Nicaragua and step by step, families and individuals were impacted. Now hundreds are hearing the gospel and growing in faith in the Spanish community here in our home city.

          He also shared a train of missionaries, Sunday school teachers, coaches and individuals who started back hundreds of years ago. Some stories were not flashy or   very notable and involved reaching out to a single young man in a shoe store and spending time building a specific relationship. That train followed down person to person, generation to generation and landed in the life of Billy Graham. A man who impacted MILLIONS of people for the gospel and glory of Christ.

          Those individuals hundreds of years ago had no idea. Nor did they get to witness. But God used their faithfulness to Him step by step, year by year and look at what the Lord has done.

          I look at our own Grace Kids and wonder, “which ones will be the next fiery blaze for the Lord to their own generation?” “Who of these will step in obedience to the Lord and follow His command to spread the gospel to those around them?”

          You and I may never know. Are we okay with that? Do we trust God with that? Can we step back and let our name become smaller while God’s becomes greater? And what a call! How important is the faithfulness of our Sunday school teachers, our coaches, our teachers, our mentors, our choir leaders, our friends! What God can do with the faithfulness of His people is humbling.

          So we marvel at what God has done, the stories He has marked in a chain of events that no one knew from moment to moment until we get to look from the outside and proclaim God’s power and glory. And we hope for the future, that God will continue to use His church and His children to bring honor to His name and generations of followers to Himself.

 

--Sandy Gromacki 

No "B" Team!

Didn't you love Sunday morning's message? In addition to the wonderful testimony of our speaker, Pastor Blandon, we heard the amazing chain of events that led to the salvation of Billy Graham. And that statement about apple seeds! If you missed it, you must ask someone. 

That message, with its emphasis on each of us seeking to learn and do God's will to spread the Gospel, fits perfectly with this post from Lynda Shenefield from about four years ago. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Truly, God makes no mistakes. May we each be ready for the work he has for us to do. --SP

A bit over 30 years ago, (almost 35 now! SP) Michael Loftis, then a member of our church, and his two brothers were invited to visit some of the “closed” countries in Eastern Europe to provide music for meetings at churches. There was always a risk, for both the locals and out-of-country visitors, of drawing the notice or wrath of local government officials.  The trio sang and played instruments, which was a great “draw” for the services, and was very well received.

At some point on the trip, they were made aware that another group had initially been engaged for the task but had backed out, resulting in the Loftis brothers’ invitation to come instead. They jokingly began to call themselves “The B Team.” When their host asked the meaning of the term and understood it, he burst into enthusiastic objection. “No, no! YOU are the ones the Lord has brought to us! YOU are supposed to be here. There is no B Team!”

There is no B Team. That statement has profoundly affected me for all these years. So many times we begin a course of action or make a decision feeling certain God is the One Who has brought it about. Yet at some point we begin to think that someone else could do better or we are not capable and we should not be in this business. We don’t seem to be able to see the whole picture or understand the reasons for things. We feel like second best, or third or fourth. But if God has directed us here, we are not second best. We are the ones the Lord has appointed for this time, this place, this business. Trust Him. There is no B Team.

--Lynda Shenefield

. . . All the Time!

 Looking through my Bible study notebook recently, I came across a passage dated March 2011: I want to remember that God is good, and his love is true even when I face unhappiness. God is good not only when everything is lovely and warm but also when the situation is ugly and cold.

When I am sitting warm and cozy in my clean white bed, plenty of food in my stomach and surrounded by loving family, it’s easy to sense God’s care. I think of Carol Pappas, battling cancer, and of people I don’t know dealing with the aftermath of an airport bomb. God is no less good to them. Can they see it? Can I?

It’s been more than fourteen years since I wrote those words. I can’t recall the airport bombing incident, but I sure do remember Carol Pappas. I know many of you do, too. For new members to Grace, Carol was Andy’s precious, charming British wife. She had such a sweet spirit, and everyone loved her. She left us later that year, but I feel sure she is somewhere praising God today. Now we know other dear people who are facing illness. That fact of life does not go away. And there are other tragedies of life—shootings, floods, wars. So many things to cause fear and doubt. Is it still true that God is good? Does he still love us now, in 2025, with the current troubles? Of course he is. Yes, he does.

I still have Sunday morning’s song running through my head: “Great is our God; Sing with me, how great is our God!” We looked together at Psalm 96:4—“Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised.” A few days ago, I read in a devotional book the wonderful promise that we are “protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this [we] greatly rejoice even though now for a little while [we] have been distressed through various trials” (I Peter 1:5-6).

Indeed, God is good and trustworthy. My notebook passage from fourteen years ago ends with the following:

I’m not asking for trouble or looking for grief, but when it comes—as it surely will—I pray I will remember God’s love and mercy and keep trusting him.

This is my prayer for all of us. Let us rejoice in the good times, and also rejoice in the difficult times, for God is still good.

--Sherry Poff

Two Funerals

 

                                             Photo credit: Istock/Marek Stefunko

Last Sunday I watched most of Charlie Kirk’s funeral which was several hours long. It was an unusual event, but Charlie was an unusual man. It seemed to be part political rally, part revival service. Several contemporary Christian artists honored the Lord in music. Speaker after speaker addressed the audience, and several explained the gospel. One even invited people to stand if they wanted to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Charlie’s wife, Erika, voiced forgiveness towards her husband’s murderer. Thousands of people attended in person with thousands more attending virtually. I have never seen anything like it.

Then, the next day, on Monday, I attended the funeral of a godly woman, Linda Ludington, who used to be my supervisor at the Tennessee Baptist Children’s Homes when I was very young. Linda taught me so many things about social work! She was a joy! She was funny and smart – like genius smart. She knew just what to say to people when difficult topics had to be discussed. She spoke up when it was needed but also listened well. She had dementia when she died and had been ill for quite a while. I suppose maybe she was “out of circulation” because only about 25 people attended her funeral. I found her funeral to be a beautiful tribute as well as inspiring. Linda’s niece invited us to join her in singing several praise songs to honor Linda’s Savior as she strummed her guitar. While competing with noisy geese from a nearby duck pond, her witty nephew presented the gospel and honored Linda for the faithful, godly life she had lived.

Reflecting on and comparing these two funerals, I considered how one was extremely large while the other quite small. One person’s circle of influence was much larger than the other’s. One was very public, while the other private. But both funerals glorified God. People praised His Name. People at both funerals spoke clearly of Christ’s sacrifice for our sin. Both deceased honored God with their lives.

We little people have hope. We don’t have to be famous or wealthy or powerful. The smallest among us can honor God with our lives. Everyone has a circle of influence. It might be small, but if that’s what God has called you to, shine brightly in that role. Be a light – you don’t have to be a blinding spotlight. The light of a match can still illuminate a room.

 

“This little light of mine…”

 

joyce hague

 

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/hixson-tn/linda-ludington-12521419

 

Emboldened by the Spirit

 

Chapters 3 and 4 of Acts tell a fascinating story. Peter speaks words of healing to a lame man lying at an entrance to the temple court known as Beautiful Gate. This poor man hasn’t even asked for healing; he’s simply asking for money. Yet Peter speaks healing in the name of Jesus, and the man gets up, leaping and praising God. The watching crowd is filled with amazement. Peter takes this opportunity to explain to the crowd that this man has been healed not by his power, but by the same Jesus whom they disowned and killed. He calls the crowd to repent so that “times of refreshing” will come. He speaks of Jesus’s return when the final restoration will take place.

In response to this miracle and message, Peter and John are arrested and brought before the Jewish council led by Annas, the former high priest, and Caiaphas, the current high priest. Here is where the story gets especially interesting, considering that this Jewish council consists of the same men before whom Jesus had stood in the hours before His crucifixion not many months before. Annas and Caiaphas are also mentioned by name the night of Jesus’s betrayal as Christ was led before each of them, and Caiaphas sent him on to Pilate. And we all know what Peter was doing during those early morning hours while Jesus stood trial before these men. He was adamantly denying having ever known Jesus. In fact, he was so afraid of being associated with Jesus that he lied about his connection with Christ to a lowly servant girl.

Now, fast forward once again to this story in Acts – this is the same city, the same high priest, and the same council that had condemned Jesus. Yet this is not the same Peter who had denied Christ. While he is the same man in a physical sense, he has undergone a transformation, a change. The one who had cowered before a servant girl now stands with boldness before the council who can very well seek to put him to death as they did Christ. Referring to the healing of the lame man, the council asks Peter, “By what power did you do this miracle?”  And this time, Peter does not shirk the question. He boldly speaks of Christ, the cornerstone, whom they’d rejected and even killed.  The council is now stuck between a rock and a hard place. They can’t deny that a miracle has occurred, but they don’t want to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah. They also fear the crowd who saw the miracle take place, so they decide to just tell Peter and John to keep quiet about Jesus. And here is the apostles’ response: “We cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” Peter and John will no longer deny Christ; they are willing to die for Him. They will not be silenced.

As we look at this story, we may ask: what made the difference? For one, they had seen the resurrected Christ. They now understood more fully what they had not understood while Jesus lived among them. But there is another important part to this that affects us profoundly. Acts 4:8 tells us that as Peter stood before the council, he was filled with the Holy Spirit. As a result of the indwelling Spirit, Peter was emboldened and spoke words of truth regarding Christ.

            Sisters, we have the same Holy Spirit in us. We can experience that same boldness in sharing our faith and in speaking of Christ and His Word. In Luke 21:12-15, Jesus told his disciples not to worry ahead of time about what to say when they stood before those who would throw them in prison or persecute them. He would give them the wisdom and the words to say when that time came. Peter and John experienced the truth of this help that day before the council. Though we will most likely not stand before councils or persecutors, surely the same Holy Spirit can give us words and wisdom when we stand before neighbors and co-workers. May we too, as those filled with the Holy Spirit, be bold and look for opportunities to talk of our Savior.

--Amy O'Rear

God's Eternal Word

 

A couple of different conversations have me thinking about grief this week. Certainly there are so many upsetting events in the world, we might all be grieving to some degree. But it’s the very specific and personal griefs that can be especially hard to deal with—even to talk about.

My slow journey through Psalms brought me to Psalm 119 this summer. As I reviewed my notes recently, I saw that I had starred related ideas in a couple of passages. In verses 17-24, the psalmist feels alienated and lonely. He feels he doesn’t belong and that others hold him in contempt. His antidote for this near-despair is to seek God’s favor and to find refuge in his word. His prayer in these verses is for the LORD to reveal the word to him so that he may find guidance and comfort.

The next section of Psalm 119, verses 25-32, continue the pattern. In verse 25, the speaker says his soul “cleaves to the dust.” He is in despair as we may all be from time to time. Sometimes we can’t help feeling sad or discouraged. But then his prayer to God is for the word to make a change in his life: “Revive me according to thy word.” God answers his request through the truth and beauty of scripture.

When the speaker’s “soul weeps because of grief,” he chooses to turn to God in prayer and to look to his word for strength. In verse 30, he says, “I have chosen the faithful way.” He has acted by placing God’s law before his eyes. Then in verse 31, instead of dust, he is cleaving to God’s word, his testimonies. He is then confident that God will “enlarge [his] heart”—give him capacity to withstand his circumstances and maybe even be better for his struggle.

 The human condition is universal across time and space. Everyone has times of despair and loneliness brought on by a variety of circumstances, but God’s truth is the universal cure for our ills. Of course, there are many factors that affect our feelings or attitudes, and I am not suggesting that merely reading a Bible verse will make everything better.  But there is no problem that cannot be eased to some degree by trusting God’s word. My goal—and, I hope, yours—is to take time each day to both read and meditate on scripture. We need to not just read a quick verse and a short commentary, although that might be a place to start. We need to sit with the truth and let it change us, memorize some passages that we can ponder in quiet moments.

Earlier this summer, Psalm 103 got me through some dental work without panicking, and there have been numerous nights I have drifted off to sleep with precious phrases on replay in my head. I don’t know what grief or pain is troubling you, but I pray you find comfort and rest in God’s eternal word.

 

--Sherry Poff 

Image Bearers

 

On Friday I had the opportunity to attend The Chattanooga Autism Conference with some others from Grace. We sat through sessions learning about autism from the perspective of teachers, parents and those who have autism themselves. There were about 700 people there and many different presenters. I’m grateful to have been able to spend the day thinking about the unique and special ways God has created these people and to learn more about how to come alongside and connect with people with autism.

As I have walked this role as Elementary Director the past few years at Grace Baptist Church I have both been dragged along and have also sat back and watched God orchestrate our Image Bearers (special needs) ministry. I say this both ways because there have been some days when I have felt so far in over my head that I have pushed back against what God had in store for us. This was when He graciously just dragged me along. There was no stopping the growth and learning and family He had planned.

But I have also sat back in awe as God has kick started a desire and passion and heart for the kids that come through the church doors to belong, be loved, be welcomed, and have a safe place. I have watched countless of our church members who work with children learn alongside myself. Cheryl Winget and Donna Patrick organized a whole training a year and a half ago on children with learning support needs. Other teachers have brainstormed and planned on how to include families with kids who are so very special and just need some extra support.

We have several amazing families who are a part of our church family and have children on the autism spectrum. We have kids who come to Awana and VBS who are outside of our immediate church family and are a part of our community who are beginning to trust us to care for their kids with special needs. Do we have it all figured out? Absolutely not. But has God been so evidently leading us this whole time? Yes and Amen.

At the conference, there was so much information to take in. Tips and supports shared. One piece that really stuck with me was the importance of and desire for connection. A man who wasn’t diagnosed with autism until he was in his 40s talked about the difficulties of the lack of support he had as a child. An audience member asked him, when looking back, what help and support did he wish he had received (particularly from teachers). His answer was, “I wish they took the time to get to know me.”

Don’t we all want that? We have a desire to be known! God built into us a need for relationship. And while we may think, communicate, and see the world differently, what an impact of love we can make on someone’s life just to take the time to know them. It is so fulfilling and a gift of hope when we think about how known we are by our Creator God. We can point others to Him when we show an offering of care in someone else’s life.

Tonight at Awana, one of our Image Bearer kids was having a hard time entering his classroom. I walked outside the room with him with this reminder to find out what it was that he wanted to communicate and what was important to him. Crayons. It was crayons. He wanted black and grey ones specifically. So we got him situated so that he could color and listen to his teacher at the same time. And when I tell you the art that came out of that little boy… talk about being a creative image bearer.

As I express my joy in seeing where God has led us the past few years and offer the hope of things still to come, I leave you with this challenge: What offering of connection have you made recently? Who have you shown your desire to know? How have you listened to the desires and interests of someone’s heart? You may be amazed how God uses that encouragement in their life. You may also be amazed at how He uses it in your own.

-Sandy Gromacki

GARDENING

         This is perfect gardening weather, cool and even partly cloudy.  The ground is still somewhat damp from all the rain we have had.  That makes the weeds easier to pull up by the roots.  I have taken several loads of weeds to the back of the lot where I dump them.

        When my five year old grandson came to go on the Longest Yard Sale, his first question was did I have a job he could do to earn some money to spend on the yard sale.  I didn't hesitate--take the pile of weeds in the front around to the back and dump them.  I have another pile of weeds he could take now, if only he were here.

        While I weed, I have lots of time to think, and God has lots of time to work on me.  This last spell He started talking to me about forgiveness and my relationship with one particular person.  Oh, there's no open break.  In fact, I don't know that this person even realizes that I've held resentment and anger about some of her actions.  So it isn't possible for me to walk up to her and say, "I forgive you."  Yet in order for me to have peace with God and with myself, I must forgive.

        Our pastor has just preached through Ephesians 4 which includes verse 32, "forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you."  That's one of the first verses I taught my children to say.  If I could teach my children to forgive, I need to forgive as well, even when no one else knows I need to forgive.   

        Christ has forgiven me; I must forgive.  I did business with God while I pulled the weeds.  But then I thought of another root that I wanted to pull immediately so the root could not take hold and go deep.  It's the root of bitterness mentioned in Hebrews 12:15, "Don't let a root of bitterness spring up to defile you."  Unforgiveness can be that root of bitterness.

    So as I'm pulling up my weeds by the roots, let me urge you to pull up yours.  Forgive as He forgave us.  

                                                            Faith Himes Lamb

Ask for Help

 

I am not the greatest at asking for help. There are a variety of reasons for this. I can be a bit particular about how things should be done, so it is often easier for me to just do it myself than take the time to explain how I think it should be done. I struggle with the idea of someone else doing something I care about and then it not turning out how I envisioned. I also don’t want to bother people with things I could just do myself. They have their own lives going on, and I don’t want to add on to someone else’s stress. Asking for help is a show of vulnerability, and it can be so hard to open up like that.

 

About a month ago, a coworker and I were catching up about all the things going on at work and in our personal lives. I told her that it just felt like a lot. We’ve got a new database system at work, and I’m currently writing training program for others to learn it. Dad’s surgery was coming up, and on top of that, I’m planning a wedding. (Little did I know that more was coming.) My coworker looked at me and said, “Concetta, you have a community of people who want to help you. If you want me to help with decorating for the wedding, just ask, and I will be happy to do it. You have so many people in your life who would be willing to help. You just have to ask.” Her words kept coming to mind over the next day; it was like God was nudging me to get over myself and ask for help. So the next day, I asked for help in putting together the power point for the training. And then God just kept giving me opportunities to ask for help. 

 

Prior to Dad’s surgery, we discussed whether or not we would need help with meals. With Mom unable to drive and Dad not allowed to drive for a week post-surgery, Alyssa and I would be the ones running errands and getting the things needed. We were planning on trading off staying with them to help however we could while also still working. Alyssa pushed for getting help with meals, and I was nominated to ask Pastor for help with a meal train. I cannot fully express how much help that meal train turned out to be. 

 

Five days after Dad’s surgery, Grandma went to the ER via ambulance for significant confusion and high blood pressure. I rushed out of work, picked up Mom, and drove to the hospital. They discharged her not long after we arrived, but we weren’t convinced everything was all good. We picked up some supplies from Grandma’s apartment and brought her back to Mom and Dad’s to keep an eye on her. The next day when I asked her about lunch, Grandma began slurring her words. We jumped into action, loaded her in the car, and sped back to the ER.

 

The next couple days were filled with a lot of hospital waiting, driving through torrential rain, talking with doctors and nurses, driving Dad to a post-op appointment, and just generally trying to stay sane in the midst of it all. In those moments when eating was just for survival, that meal train was a lifesaver. So was all the other help that people provided: picking up and transporting needed supplies, taking care of dogs, picking up the slack at work. I got a lot of practice asking for help that week.

 

We often talk about “bearing one another’s burdens,” and I have come to understand that it is an essential part of community. When we help each other out, we are stronger. But I think we can be pretty good at helping other people when they’re in need while not allowing ourselves to receive help. We make all kinds of excuses about why other people deserve our help but how we can do things for ourselves just fine. If we are to bear each other’s burdens though, we must also allow our burdens to be borne. We must lay aside the perfectionism, people pleasing, and prideful hearts that keep us from allowing others to show Christ’s love by offering help. Of course there needs to be a balance here. We should not swing to selfishness or stop offering our help to others. But simply opening oneself up to be helped is not selfish. It is vulnerable, perhaps more honest than we want to be about our own shortcomings.

 

We still have a lot going on in our family. Grandma’s brain is healing following three mini strokes, and she can no longer live by herself. Dad is continuing to recover from his surgery, and things at work continue to be busy as the school year starts. Of course, I am still planning for a wedding and married life beyond. And I still have the urge to just try and do it all myself. This learning to ask for help thing isn’t a simple switch in my brain, which is probably why God keeps giving me opportunities to practice. So I write this primarily as a reminder to myself—a reminder of how important community is, how only vulnerability can lead to truly knowing one another, and how beautiful it can be when the body of Christ cares for each other.

 

--Concetta Swann

 

Rabbit Trails

 

I love to follow rabbit trails. I feel free when I meander along behind curiosity. The key word here is meander. It’s natural and unforced. There is no agenda, score to keep, or checkmark to check. It often starts as a small question or musing. 

Presently, I am reading the young reader’s Viking Quest series by Lois Walfrid Johnson. These charming books have introduced me to the North Sea and the mountains of Norway. I have never had a desire to travel to Norway, but my interest is now piqued, because I followed a rabbit trail. I wanted to have a better visual of the setting for these stories, so I used YouTube to look up Norway and the North Sea. One video led to another, so I have been learning fascinating things about this beautiful part of the world. At the back of each book, the author lists resources to further explore. I’ll likely look at some of those. Those of you who homeschool may already be used to rambling down rabbit trails. Children (people) learn so much when they explore ideas that interest them without external pressure to do so. Do I have a need to know about Norway? Not really. I just found it interesting. And that’s reason enough.

 I don’t know where I learned to follow rabbit trails, but I’ve done it a long time. My husband loves learning, so he probably influenced me. The internet has made it so easy too with videos, articles, and book suggestions. You can go a long way on one trail if you desire or veer off in another interesting direction.

God has taught me so many things when I allow myself to follow rabbit trails when reading Scripture. Questions pop into my mind, and instead of strictly adhering to a reading plan, I allow myself to leisurely wander off schedule and pursue that path to see where it might lead. (I also love pictures of literal pathways. You will often see them on my Facebook page when we go hiking or biking. I’m always curious as to where a path might lead.) I love when I have plenty of time to do this and to talk to God along the way. My excitement about what I am learning spills over onto other people, and they too learn a few things.

Have you learned to wander? It’s fun! As the saying goes, “All those who wander are not lost.”

I’d love to hear about what you’re learning or any paths you have explored!

joyce hague