I'll Be Home for Christmas

Is it really possible to "make ourselves at home" in a place that's not our home? Surely it's easier in some places than others, but truly feeling at home doesn't happen for me unless I'm...home.

Home is where I'm most myself, most at peace and most comfortable. Home is where I am refreshed and energized. Home holds routine, order and traditions. When I'm away from home,  I long to be there. And Christmas anywhere other than home, just doesn't feel quite right!

I have so enjoyed being home in Covington, KY, this weekend celebrating my Savior and reconnecting with friends and family. Today at my "home" church, the message was brought by a man whom I've known since childhood. He's a chaplain in the airforce and is leaving today, probably as I type this, for a 6 month deployment in Kuwait. He spoke today of our lives being like a deployment. He said that our "deployment" has a purpose, a time frame, and a return home. I found particularly interesting the statement he made that he "did not know a single officer who fell in love with their place of deployment so much that they didn't want to return home."

Have we Christians forgotten that this world is not our home and gotten too comfortable to the point we'd rather stay here? Have we forgotten that we, too, have a purpose for being here, a time frame already ordained by God and the sweet promise of our Heavenly Home when we've fulfilled our mission? Or are we allowing the things of this world to distract us from our purpose and to forget that our days here are numbered?

The Israelites wandered in the desert living in tents for more years than I've lived, and yet I can identify with the restlessness and frustration that accompanies being unsettled. They became discontented to the point that even slavery in Egypt seemed more appealing than the years of pitching tents and packing them up again. It seemed that the land God had promised would never be given to them. They longed to be able to call a place "home."

Simon Peter reminds us in 2 Peter that this world is not our home, and yet that many of us live as if it is. I love the way he uses the word "tent" in 2 Peter 1:13-14.

 ¹³ I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, ¹⁴ because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.

May we remember that this world is really just a deployment, that we're just pitching our tents here for a moment. May we not get too attached to our temporary residence. May the promise of a return trip "Home" compell us to carry out our mission.

It is with heavy hearts today that we recognize a life well-lived, a "deployment" successfully completed by our dear Mr. Jim Hostetter. I couldn't help but to think of him all weekend, and especially today. He is Home. And what better place to be for Christmas? What a joy to know that someday I, too, will be "Home for Christmas!"

~Rebecca Phillips~

Remember When

I took one of those silly quizzes on facebook recently. It was called "What Christmas Song are You?" (I said it was silly!) Turns out I'm "The Christmas Song," better known as "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire." The explanation goes on to say that I love old-fashioned things and nostalgia and all that. Well, yes! It is Christmas, right? Don't most of us turn nostalgic at Christmas?

I was going through my Christmas cards (I do love getting Christmas cards--the real kind that come inside an envelope and appear in my mailbox this time of year--my actual mailbox, out by the road.) and it is remarkable how many of them feature scenes from the past or very rural settings. Julie Baumgardner's column in Sunday's paper is headlined, "Take a holiday trip down memory lane." More nostalgia.

I have some wonderful Christmas memories: standing up to say my lines in the church Christmas program, shopping for my mom and dad with money they gave me, trudging through the snow to see what the neighbors got for Christmas. Thinking about the past may seem unrealistic and impractical to some, but it's not all bad. God commanded his people, in fact, to remember. He even had them set up stones to bring to mind the things he had done for them so that they could pass along to their children the stories of his faithfulness.

Deuteronomy 32:7 says, "Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: ask thy father, and he will show thee. . ." The psalmist, in Psalm 77:11, records "I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy works of old." There are times when recalling God's past goodness increases our faith and helps us through a difficult day.

This week will be a wonderful time to remember past years and good times with friends and family. It will also be an opportunity for most of us to make more sweet memories. Let's remember, too, that there are around us people who might require help creating good times to store up for the future. With God's help, we can be the hands and feet of Jesus to spread love and cheer where it is most needed this Christmas.

-Sherry Poff

A Sweet Smelling Aroma

I was thawing out my frozen body by the fireplace a few nights ago when I suddenly found myself back at my Grandma and Grandpa Britton's house on Chamberlain Ave. The smell of the fire and the tiny wooden manger scene on the mantle triggered the nostalgic childhood memories and brought tears of joy to my eyes as I thought about my godly heritage and the wonderful Christmases I spent in that house.

I'm sure you're familiar with the flashbacks brought on by various aromas. Holiday scents are wafting through many of our homes these days making us long for the "golden days of yore". Our olfactory nerves are working overtime connecting us to many memories of the holiday season.

It gets me to thinking about the verses in Scripture that talk about our sacrifices being a sweet-smelling aroma to the Lord. I wonder if His sense of smell carries Him back to the precious memories of our obedience and sacrifice. I sure hope they aren't smells that cause Him to cringe or turn up his nose.

Ephesians 5:1-2 says, "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."

These verses are sandwiched between lists of sins and behaviors that are opposite of love and sacrifice. They are full of selfish ambitions and self-serving actions.

As we etch new holiday memories into our lives this Christmas, may they be full of the wonderful smells and aromas that please the Lord. Let's take out the rotten garbage of materialism and selfishness and fill God's nostrils with the freshly-baked-banana-bread scent of sacrifice.

~Rebecca Phillips~

The Shepherd "IS"

“The Lord is my shepherd…(Psalm 23).” I love this passage of Scripture. I quote it to my son each night at bed time. The “IS” impacts me right now more that it does him.

My most recent time of quoting verse 4, “I will fear no evil...” came on a Sunday morning. I was sitting in Sunday school class enjoying an excellent lesson when I realized that I had left a pan of rice cooking on the stove at home. I panicked! I dashed out of class heading for home (about a 15 minute drive). Fearing the worst, my mind was racing and fear was taking over. In my mind I could see flames shooting from my house. I planned that I would get home, run in the house and call 911. My plan was laid as to how to deal with my house fire. While I was hurrying home, I kept quoting verse 4, “I will fear no evil...”

Upon arriving home, things were calm on the outside. Slowly entering, I was just sure smoke would meet me. Much to my joy and surprise, no smoke detectors were blaring and no smoke smell. As I approached the stove, I opened the lid of the pan. A cloud of steam, not smoke came out. The rice had cooked for an hour and a half! It had not burned or even scorched. At that moment, I dropped to my knees, crying and thanking God for His watch care over this frazzled, absentminded mother. The Shepherd had been there watching over me and my home. He "IS" so kind and so patient.

As we ate our rice for lunch that day, I was reminded that the Shepherd "IS" always there leading me, causing me to “...fear no evil...”

~Lynell McMillan~

Branch Living

I was sitting in Sunday School this week when I had one of those moments--have you had them?--when life just seems so sweet, it brings tears to the eyes. I don't know exactly what brings it on, but this happens to me now and then--driving down the road and spotting that little maple that grows up out of the ditch and turns a brilliant red every fall . . . sitting on the back steps in early summer chatting with Larry, who is working in the yard . . . sitting in Sunday School looking at the first chapter of John and listening to Rodney talk about Old Testament prophecies.

Sometimes life itself is just incredibly sweet.

In my prayer time this morning, I was expressing my gratitude to God for a number of things I really do love and appreciate: soft sheets, warm water, plenty of food. But then it occurred to me that I was completely taken up with my physical comfort. It's not wrong to be grateful for comfort; James tells us that "every good gift . . . is from above." To be only concerned with the physical, however, is to miss the deeper, richer gifts that God gives.


So I began to concentrate on the non-physical blessings of God: the love of family, good times with friends, but deeper than that, the satisfaction--the joy--of praying to the God of the universe. Part of our Sunday School discussion this week concerned John's witness of Jesus after he had seen the Holy Spirit descending on Him. We discussed the way we are able sometimes to sense a fellowship with other Christians even before we know them well, and someone mentioned that, unlike Old Testament believers, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us. What an amazing thing! I am so grateful that God lives in me, that I am part of His life.

Jesus said to the disciples, "I am the vine; you are the branches" (John 15). His life--His pure, perfect life-- is flowing in you and me, giving us the power we need to make every day a day of praise and thanksgiving.

--Sherry Poff

A Little Goes a Long Way

On the heels of Mission's Conference heading into a week where "giving thanks" is the theme, I believe you'll find inspiring the note below from our beloved, Karen Myrick.

In October, I went on a trip that changed me forever.  Haiti was something I was not prepared for. The poverty, the orphans, the trash, the needy, but mostly the joyfulness of the people there pierced my soul. It's difficult to see and experience things and go back home and  be able to explain for people to really understand. 
I will be able to share some of my experiences Sunday night, January 9th, in the service. I'm excited to have Ken Ivins come with me to present  AMG International's role in helping such needy people physically and spiritually. It's amazing that so little can make such a HUGE difference in people's lives. I never want to forget what I saw, and I can't wait to return.

~Karen Myrick~

My Life as a Slideshow

What a blessing to see what God is doing across the world through the Grace Baptist Church missionaries! After watching the slideshows this week, not only did I have to buy more purse packs of Kleenex, but I also got to thinking...If I had to present a slideshow of my life to hundreds of people every four years, what would that look like? Do I have a story to tell? Do I have statistics to share? Do I have a ministry to get others excited about? Are there people I would include as "success" stories or prayer requests? Would I be brave enough to ask prayer for the very real struggles I face? Would I be able to tell about future plans and ideas for reaching the "people group" I'm surrounded by? Could I, in just a few slides in a few minutes, clearly and articulately present my part in God's big plan? Would people see Christ in my life? Would people's emotions be touched? Would people be motivated and encouraged by what God is doing in and through me? Would people be moved to pray or give because they believed my life calling was worth their time and money?

This little Sunday school song, complete with our little chant at the end has gone through my head all week as well:  "Be a missionary every day. Tell the world that Jesus is the Way. Be it in a town or country or a busy avenue, Africa or Asia, the task is up to you. So be a missionary every day. Tell the world that Jesus is the Way. The Lord is soon returning. There is no time to lose. So, be a missionary-God's own emissary. Be a missionary today! Let's Go! All the way to Mexico. Take a train and go to Spain. Kiss your Aunts and go to France!"

In our town of East Brainerd, on our busy corner of Shallowford and Jenkins, are we telling people that Jesus is the Way (John 14:6)? On your street, in your neighborhood, at your apartment complex, in your dorm are you God's own emissary (Acts 1:8)? Are you using your time, talents and ideas to reach your community? This week we saw pictures of Bible studies being conducted in villages and neighborhoods. We saw strangers being invited into homes for cooking classes. We saw children playing games and learning English as a second language. We saw God's Word being preached and taught in many different settings. We saw creative evangelism in the workplace. The common thread - people, like us, serving God with the talents, abilities and gifts He gave them, creatively reaching the lost for Christ.

I walk away from the missions' conference with a sense of encouragment that I'm doing what God has called me to do, yet with the anticipation that He has more coming my way.
I also walk away challenged to be ready to share what He's doing with people like you, my church family, who pray for me and hold me accountable!

~Rebecca Phillips~

No Time for Fear

Have you ever noticed how often in scripture, God is telling someone not to be afraid? Sometimes, as with Jeremiah, He Himself speaks the words. At other times, He uses angels to offer reassurance and encouragement. These days, He uses people like Ken Rudolph.

As I sat listening to the excellent message on Sunday evening, I was enthralled once again with the image of David standing up to Goliath. He had behind him the experiences of victory over the lion and the bear. He had the memory of countless nights in the open, marveling in the vastness of the sky and the greatness of God. How good God is to give us this story and many others to show us that He is greater than all our fears.

Sometimes our fears seem legitimate. We face disease or debt. We have problems that we know are bigger than us, that we cannot solve on our own. Other fears are more nebulous--fear of failure or of loneliness, of saying too much or not enough, of having the wrong motives despite an earnest heart.

I remember sitting outside one of the mission houses in Togo several summers ago, wrapped in fear. Strangely, perhaps, I did not fear the possibility of malaria or dysentery, of green mambas or tarantulas. Those things were out of my control, I figured. The fears plaguing me that day were the nebulous type--the ones that creep out in the darkness and take away sleep, that pop up unexpectedly and get in the way of work, the ones we think we should be able to fix.

On this early morning, as I listened to the rising song of some unfamiliar bird and contemplated the tall gray trunks of African trees, God reminded me of a wonderful truth: II Timothy 1:7--"God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love and of a sound mind." I cannot tell you everything that verse meant to me that morning, but I have held onto it tenaciously, and I return to it today.

I cannot be everything I want to be. I will disappoint and I will fail. But God gives me power and love and a sound mind. Through Him, I can love others and do what must be done. There is no time for fear.

--Sherry Poff

Hallowed is His Name

On this Halloween weekend, I hesistate to mention that I've read (and quite enjoyed) the entire Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. However, to illustrate my thought for today, I will mention just one little part. 

Throughout the series, it is evident that the wizard world lives in such fear and awe of the evil Lord Voldemort that they dare not even speak his name. Only when absolutely necessary, he is referred to as "you-know-who." To speak his name would be disrespectful, wrong and worthy of extreme consequences.

Now stick with me here. In the context of what I am writing I'm sure you will see that I am in NO WAY equating the evil villain of a fictional series to our awesome, holy God. It is the attitude of reverence I want to address, and I find something similar when studying the names of God.

The Israelites in post-exilic times considered the name Yahweh so sacred that it was not pronounced. Instead they substituted Adonai. By the 6th and 7th centuries the vowels of Adonai were combined with the consonants YHWH to remind the synagogue reader to pronounce the sacred name as Adonai. From this came the artificial word Jehovah. They were so careful not to speak such a precious, holy name. The name Yahweh was hallowed as it was the name by which they related personally to God. It was the name God Himself gave Moses at his "burning bush" experience.

It puts into new perspective the command written in Exodus 20:7 "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name." Is the mention of His Name so precious to you that hearing it misused turns your stomach? Do you cringe when you hear His name said flippantly or as an expression of frustration or anger? I must admit, I haven't always cringed as I've fallen victim to desensitivity, but after my own "burning bush" experiences with my God over the past couple of years, His Name has become so precious to me that upon hearing God's name in these ways I sometimes find myself gasping like my mother.

Yesterday, on Halloween Sunday, the college praise team led us in singing the words "Yahweh, Yahweh, Holy is Your Name." I struggled to hold my conservatively-Baptist-trained hands to my side as I thought about the Name above all Names and the oh-so-personal and intimate moments I've shared with my Creator God. He is Yawheh!

"Our Father, which art in Heaven HALLOWED be thy Name." - Matt. 6:9

~Rebecca Phillips~

How Rich and Pure

The weather this past week has been gorgeous. I know, I know! It's been unusually warm for October, and we could use some rain. But I was out of school for a week and completely enjoyed being able to sit outside to read and mark papers. I delighted in afternoon strolls to look at the leaves and late flowers. There are still some little yellow butterflies that flit around the morning glories on my back fence. (Cloudless Sulfur, they're called). I even picked a few late tomatoes--so sweet this time of year.

On Sunday morning when Holly and Kevin played "The Love of God" so beautifully, I opened the hymnal to read along. The third verse says this: Could we with ink the ocean fill and were the skies of parchment made, were every stalk on earth a quill and every man a scribe by trade, to write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry; nor could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from sky to sky. (Frederick M. Lehman)

I pictured that blue, blue sky I've enjoyed this week. In my mind, one of the tall trees became the quill that the song speaks of (not exactly a stalk, but that's what came to mind anyway). I remembered the ocean that I enjoyed with my family back in May. It's so vast, so incredibly enormous, that to imagine it being ink and then running dry before the love of God could be explained boggles the mind.
I realize that the words to this song are not on the level of scripture, but they do speak a truth. John said it this way: "There are many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written." (21:25)

God's love was made flesh when Jesus walked the earth, and he reveals his love and beauty to us every day in the sunshine, the rain, and the moonlight. Praise him!

--Sherry Poff

God Changes People

Crime. Addiction. Sin. Devastation. Death. These words characterize the lives of the precious women that Loretta Mattheiss and I get to spend time with once a week. Yes, I said precious. Because, in spite of the sinful choices they've made, the crimes they've committed, the familiy members they've hurt and the consequences they still face, these women are women like us and they're in love with the Lord and His Word!
To my right sits a woman who has destroyed her mind with drugs. Her oldest child is in jail for committing crime. Her younger children live with her mother, whose health and low income add to the stresses of rearing her daughter's children. To my left sits a woman on house arrest whose husband is in jail for crimes they committed together. Their oldest children have been adopted by families they may never know. Their youngest is being raised by grandparents. To her left sits a lady whose past 30 years have been lived in prostitution and poverty. Her family is scattered and scarred. An empty seat represents the women who have come into the program at the Regeneration House and have failed to complete it, and have likely walked back into the lives they came from. However, another empty seat represents the women who've come into the Regeneration program and have graduated into lives that are truly "regenerated!"
The three women I mentioned are well on their way to Regeneration. The first lady is full of passion when she talks about what she's learning in the Word. I envision her leading Bible studies in the very near future. Her prayers flow with adoration to her God! She consistently asks prayer for her mother and acknowledges that her mother is doing the job that she shirked for her sinful lifestyle. The second lady writes everything we talk about in letters to her husband. She prays for the children she has given up for adoption and for their adoptive families to be saved. I envision her and her husband counseling families one day. The third lady has surprised me the most in her spiritual growth. The first week she was there, it was evident she did not want to be. She had a bad attitude and "asked prayer" for the girls in the house to mind their own business when we took prayer requests. This week, when the study was coming to a close, she commented that it goes by so fast now. She used to think it dragged on and on, but now her hunger for the Word can hardly be satisfied in the short hour we meet. She is the most grateful person I have ever met. Her prayers are filled with thanksgiving to the Lord, and when sharing prayer requests now, she lists the things she is thankful for first. She continues to pray for the ladies in the house to be unified and loves them as sisters.
I don't know why it surprises me that God can change people's lives in such a short amount of time. These women remind me that nothing is impossible for God, and no one is unreachable.
I know I didn't share verses of Scripture with you in writing this. But I'm sure many passages come to mind as we reflect on Who God is and how He works to change people. I'd love it if you'd comment with the verses that you think about while reading.


~Rebecca Phillips

A Morsel of Bread in Thine Hand

He called to her, and said, “Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.” 1 Kings 17:11

The widow woman objected to Elijah’s request, her resources were almost gone. Her plans were to make a cake for her and her son and then die. We are familiar with this story - How

God took her meager amount and multiplied it to supply the needs of her, her son, and Elijah.

Our lives are like the widow woman, God asks us to give Him what is in our hand.

For many years my desire for children made me so consumed with that desire that I could not see what was in my hand.

It is so easy to get sidetracked by the enemy into thinking God has not blessed me like someone else. What if the widow had told Elijah to go somewhere else, perhaps to someone with more food, a bigger, nicer house; you name it. The enemy tries to convince us that what God has placed in our hands is not as valuable as what someone else has in their hand.

God wants what is in our hand, whatever He has given us. It may be something only for this season of life. Maybe what you have in your hand is to be an encourager through a note or a phone call. Perhaps it is a meal to someone going through a difficult time. Your morsel of bread may be the care of your children, or an elderly parent. God makes no mistakes, His way is always perfect. Looking back I am so grateful for the way He worked in my life, those long fifteen years. He was in the process of preparing me for what He has for me right now.

Whenever we are out in the public, repeatedly the phrase is said, “You have your hands full.”

Yes, my hands are full. God has blessed us with three children! We have a four year old and four month old twins. Full hands indeed, God’s timing is perfect. He knows how and when to take the morsel of bread from your hand and give you the desire of your heart...full hands!

Trust him with whatever small tedious thing He has given you for today. Watch and see what he can do with it for eternity if you only trust Him.

~Lynell McMillan~

New Every Morning

I've been working on Philippians chapter two recently. That's a passage that God has used at notable times in my past to speak to me about specific things. There was the time in college when I was grudgingly helping my roommate with a time-consuming task. As I waited for her to complete an errand, I decided to read my little New Testament. The first verse my eyes fell on was Philippians 2:14, "Do all things without murmurings and disputings."

On another day, I was feeling overwhelmed with the task at hand and feared that I would not be able to do all that was required of me. That's when I underlined Philippians 2:13, "It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." I knew then that I could indeed accomplish whatever it was that God meant for me to do.

This week, driving to school--a great time, by the way, to meditate on scripture-- I went over the chapter again on the hills and curves of Bill Reed Road. In this section of scripture, Paul is encouraging the Philippians to work together in Christian love. As a method of helping them adopt the proper attitude of humility, he reminds them of some of the benefits of a Christian life: "consolation in Christ ,. . . comfort of love, . . . fellowship of the Spirit, . . . affection and mercy."

As I mentally reviewed these four blessings, I remembered when I had seen them in my life: finding just the right word of guidance in Scripture, experiencing unexplained comfort at a funeral, enjoying laughter around the table at Wednesday night Bible study, breathing a sigh of relief when my Christian boss told me, "We can cut you some slack this time." (You can all join me in asking God to bless that good man.)

Scripture never grows old. Like God's mercy, it is new every morning.  Living in a community where God's word is our common belief  means that we often discover God speaking to us and meeting our needs through His people. Whatever problems I face today, there is help and comfort to be found, sometimes in very familiar places.

--Sherry Poff

God Teaches Me In Themes

I'm a theme person. Always have been. Always will be. I just love it when things tie together perfectly. I think I got the bug from my mother who has planned over 100 banquets, retreats, conferences, etc. for her church women-all themed, never a one repeated! (The other bug I got from my mother-doing something no one's ever done!) We have shared many a phone conversation where I have added to her banquet ideas or she has added to my theme unit lessons in teaching. It doesn't seem to matter whose event is being planned, give us a theme and we could go on for hours!
So it thrills my soul that the Lover of My Soul teaches me in themes. This week, the Body.
I'm taking a course for my Masters' Degree, and my required reading this week took me to Church - history of, purpose of, responsibilities of-you get the idea. In the midst of all the reading, an idea I've heard countless times in my churched background seemed to be highlighted-"as parts of the Body, we belong to each other, we need each other and we affect each other."
Then, on Monday morning as I sipped my coffee, I read Sherry's illustration of how that plays out in our own church!
Little did I realize that less than 12 hours later I would be getting stitches and a tetanus shot leaving my left arm and hand immobile. Have you ever tried to wash your hair with one hand? Have you ever tried to type a blog with one hand? I hadn't either until it was necessary this week! I never realized how much I needed my left hand! I'm just thankful it wasn't my right hand!!
Then it hit me...A THEME! Woohoo! Of course, this sent me into a torrential brainstorm of all the possible analogies one could imagine, much like my mother and I have done over banquet themes. And then, of course, it hit me that this lesson had been handcrafted for me (no pun intended). As a great teacher does, my Teacher taught and retaught the lesson using a variety of learning styles. I read about the Body from a theology book, then read Sherry's illustration of how it works in our church body, and then experienced it first hand (or should I say, left hand?)
Are you experiencing a theme in your life? Please share...

~Rebecca Phillips~

Members of One Body

On a recent Sunday morning at Grace, we experienced one of those delightfully unplanned but memorable moments. It was just a little accident that was quickly cleaned up, but it provided an object lesson that I keep thinking about.

Dan Dilts had gotten up to make an announcement about a Wednesday evening class. In his excitement, he knocked over the cup of water that sits on the podium for the pastor to sip when he gets a dry throat or a tickle during the sermon. Everyone laughed, Dan sat down, and to a casual observer, that might have been the end of the story. However, during the prayer that followed Dan's announcement, I opened my eyes and raised my head just enough to see Matt Houts with a handful of paper towels swabbing the carpet and wiping down the side of the podium. After prayer, while the offering plates were passed, Leigh Smith delivered a fresh cup of water to the pastor, who set it back in its now dry place.

Don't you love it?! This is the way the body of Christ is supposed to work. Each person does his or her part, and the service continues. No one asks for special recognition or praise, but just does what needs to be done. It's the same thing that happens when a family works around and beside one another to cook a meal or when a group of athletes operates as if they share a brain in their several bodies. The experience is sweet harmony and the results are delicious or victorious, as the case may be.

On that Sunday morning, Pastor Euler mentioned the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He remarked on how the problem in "one little place" had disrupted the whole ecosystem of the gulf. It was a passing remark in a discussion about a different topic, but it fit right in with the water spill in my mind and illustrated for me how badly things go astray when some part of the system isn't working correctly.

The apostle Paul has a lot to say about the body of Christ. In First Corinthians 12, he reminds Christians that we each have a role to fulfill. "For as the body is one, and has many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ." I so enjoy being part of the body of Christ on earth, and especially love the body at Grace. I want to remember to do my part so that everything works as it should. Let us pray for one another and look for ways to "care one for another" in the body.

Welcome to Cup of Grace!

If you're like me, a cup of coffee in the morning just doesn't always do the trick. And the additional to-go tumbler guzzled on the way out my door usually just makes my nerves slightly more jumpy and my trips to the Ladies' Room more frequent! Maybe you're not a coffee drinker. Your "legal addictive stimulant" may be tea, hot cocoa or a Diet Dr. Pepper (with lime, of course). Whatever liquid you may choose to help get your day going, may I suggest a cup of Grace to go with it? Or for those braves souls...as a replacement?  

Job, our hero of faith in suffering, says in Job 23:12b, "...I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food." I don't know about you, but I look forward to breakfast and coffee! Not only do I enjoy it, but I need something to eat in the morning, and I crave the comfort of my coffee. Until I read this verse, I don't know that I would have used the word "treasured," but I can admittedly say now that I treasure my morning food and I find my coffee necessary! I could be running ten minutes late, but that's never too late to grab my to-go tumbler and a piece of toast to eat in the car! Why, then, is it too late to open the Word of my precious Savior to see what He has to satisfy me that morning?

Cup of Grace is designed to bring you weekly encouragement in the Word, not as a substitute for your own meditation in the Word, but as a supplement to your personal pursuit of your relationship with God. We also desire to add accountability within our church body. So go grab your favorite mug, fill it with your favorite drink, then read, be encouraged, laugh, cry (and please post comments) alongside the ladies of Grace Baptist Church.

And the best part is, you don't even have to get out of your pj's first!



~Rebecca Phillips~