Matthew 13: 31-35; The Parable of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Musstard bushes are sturdy little things. They are not really very big, and living there in the Holy Land is not an easy thing for them because there is not always a high supply of water. And yet these bushes, from these tiny seeds are able to thrive and survive under some of the harshest conditions. Faith is the same way. We do not always have a good water supply. That is to say, it is not always easy for us to survive, but we do. We survive, we carry on, we are able to continue on our journey of faith because of the love and spirit of Jesus in our lives. The mustard bush is strong, able to withstand a lot of things. Our faith is the same way. Because of our faith, we can continue on through life and our journey of faith. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 13: 24-30; The Parable of the Weeds

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Wheat needs to be strong. With weeds planted nearby the wheat needs to put forth more effort in order to survive. Weeds take the sunlight, they take the water, they take over the good soil. As such, the wheat needs to be stronger in order to still grow. There are weeds among us. There are those who want to hurt us, who want to keep us from growing. Rather than allowing them to choke the life out of us we need to be stronger in our faith. We need to continue to grow in our faith and in our service. Though this is hard because of the actions of others, we need to remain strong in times of struggle. In doing so we honor and glorify God and we serve as witnesses to those around us. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 13: 1-23; The Parable of the Sower

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Which surface are we going to be? Are we going to hear Jesus' words and forget about them ten minutes later? Are we going to hear Jesus' words and keep it to ourselves? Are we going to hear Jesus' words and allow others to trample on them? Or are we going to hear Jesus' words and allow them to grow that others may hear the words and come to believe? It seems pretty clear what Jesus wants from us. And it seems pretty clear what is the best for the rest of the world. Let us be the good soil. Let us hear Jesus' words, accept them, allow them to take over our lives, and share them with others. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 12: 46-50; Jesus' Mother and Brothers

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

We are all brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ. Isn't that a nice thing to be able to say, 'I am Jesus' brother or sister.' We are able to say that if we follow the example and will of Jesus. Jesus tells us as much right here. If we follow the commandments he has given us, if we continue his ministry in this world we are named as brothers and sisters in Christ. That alone should be inspiration enough for us to follow Jesus. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Sunday Scripture and Sermon for August 30, 2009

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Scripture passage for this Sunday is from 1 Thessalonians 4: 1-12, in which Paul instructs the Thessalonians on how they are to live their lives. The sermon is titled 'More Than Words' and will focus on how we are called to testify using more than our words. I hope to see you all on Sunday. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 12: 38-45; The Sign of Jonah

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Are we Pharisees? Do we come to Jesus and demand a sign as proof for Jesus' claims about himself and the promises he has made? There are signs all around us. God still moves and acts in the world. God may not always be flashy, performing the kind of miracles we find in the Scriptures, but miracles to happen. We need to keep our eyes open that we may see how God is moving in the world. We should not come to Jesus demanding a sign, for the signs of Jesus' love and power are evident all around us. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Pastor Josh on WORD FM

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

I have recently been given an invitation to appear as a guest on WORD FM (101.5). I will be participating in the talk show hosted by John Hall and Kathy Emmons this coming Friday, August 28, 2009 at 4:40 p.m. If you are interested please tune in, and be sure to share this with other folks you know. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 12: 22-37; Jesus and Beelzebub

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined. I wonder what Jesus would think about the hundreds of denominations that exist today, especially in light of the petty things over which we, as Christians, sometimes disagree. Jesus says these words here to defeat the notion that he is somehow aligned with Beelzebub. However, I think they apply to us as well. I feel confident in saying God is none too pleased with the splits that exist in the church right now. We all need to work harder to work together. We are all called to the same ministry, to the same service, to worship the same God. A kingdom divided against itself will be ruined. We need to heed those words from our Lord. We need to begin to break down some of the walls that separate us. It begins with finding common ground. We all like Jesus. If we start there then maybe, just maybe, if we work hard, and truly love each other, enough, everything else will fall into place. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 12: 15-21; God's Chosen Servant

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Some of these words might apply to all of us. We are all God's chosen servant, and God is happy to have called us into his service. Serving God is not just for Jesus, and it is not just for Jesus' original 12 disciples. Serving God is for all of us; we are all supposed to go forth and make disciples of all nations; we are all supposed to visit the sick and those who are in prison, clothe the naked, feed the hugry, give drink to the thirsty. We are all called into childhood; we are all called into servanthood. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 12: 1-14; Lord of the Sabbath

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Doing good to others supersedes everything else in the world. Above all else we are called to do good things to/for our neighbors. Throughout his ministry Jesus does just that, he helps those who are in need of help. Whether it is someone with a withered hand or someone who is on the verge of being stoned to death Jesus always reaches out in compassion. In all things we should imitate Jesus. Jesus reaches out in compassion to all those in need; Jesus does good for those who are suffering. Should we not do the same? Should we not also reach out in compassion and love to those around us? Yes. In all things we should do good unto others. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 11: 25-30; Rest for the Weary

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Rest. That is one of the better promises we have from Jesus. Faith is hard. The journey of faith has hills, pot-holes, rocks, trees, sharp turns, etc. All of which make it very hard for us sometimes to stay on our path, to keep going on our journey. Jesus gives us rest. Jesus helps us as we try to run uphill. He picks us up when we trip over a pot-hole or a rock. He supports us when we bump our heads on the low hanging limbs. The journey of faith is hard, but Jesus is there to make it a little easier. Jesus is there to give us some much needed rest. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 11: 20-24; Woe on Unrepentant Cities

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Confession and repentance are important aspects to a journey of faith. Yes, we are saved. Yes, our sins are no more. But that does not mean we do not need to confess, and it does not mean we do not need to live a holy life. God has called us to live a certain way, and Jesus tells us here the dangers of living outside of that call. We are saved. That is good news for us. But we are still supposed to do everything Jesus has taught us. We are still called to repentance and holiness. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Sunday Scripture and Sermon for August 23, 2009

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Scripture this Sunday comes from Thessalonians 3: 6-13, in which Paul lifts up the church in Thessalonica for their faith and work. The sermon is titled 'Meanwhile' and will focus on what we need to be doing to prepare for the coming of Jesus. I hope to see you all on Sunday. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 11: 1-19; Jesus and John the Baptist

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

"The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor." These words apply just as much to us as they do to the people around Jesus. Because of Jesus our eyes are opened to the love and power of God. Jesus has made it possible for us to walk with God in the kingdom of heaven. Through Jesus we have been brought back into right relationship with God, for we have been healed of the illness of sin. Jesus has raised from the dead through his death on the cross. And we have heard the good news of Jesus coming to us. When Jesus speaks in the Scriptures, he is speaking to us. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 10: 1-42; Jesus Sends Out the Twelve

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the Earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." Following Jesus sometimes means we become divided from the rest of the world. Following Jesus requires sacrifice and, in some cases, suffering. Being a disciple is hard. This is what Jesus means here. He knows that there are those in the world who will hate us because of the name we preach. Jesus knows the cross we carry, for he carried it himself. Jesus knows how hard it all is because he has lived it himself. He knows the kind of opposition and suffering we will face because he has endured that himself. Jesus can help us, if we let him. Jesus can, and will, guide us through what he has called us to do. Jesus knows what lies ahead, and he wants to help us get through that. He warns us here what to expect, and offers help as we prepare for it. Heed his words, in both cases. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 9: 35-38; The Workers Are Few

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Harvesting is hard work. Those corn fields we see now are just about ready to be worked. It takes a lot of people and work to do that. Jesus knows how hard this is. Getting people to believe in Jesus is not as easy as we might hope. Jesus recognizes the trouble we may run into when we are trying to win people for Jesus. We know the same thing. We know how hard it sometimes can be to share the good news with those around us. This means we have to work extra hard. We cannot give up thinking it is too hard, there are not enough people to help, etc. Spreading the gospel is hard work, but that just means we should be more diligent in our efforts. With half the workers and twice the work we should work four times as hard to bring people to a life of faith in Jesus Christ. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 9: 27-34; Jesus Heals the Blind and the Mute

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

We are all blind and mute. We do not always see Jesus for who he really is, and because of that are unable, and unwilling, to tell others about him. One of the prayers we should be praying regularly is for Jesus to open our eyes that we may see him. We have seen what Jesus can do, we have heard his words coming to us. Now we just need to open our eyes that we may see the real Jesus. After that we need to unstop our mouths, that we would tell all those around us the good news of Jesus Christ. The name and good news of Jesus needs to preached to the world, and it is up to us to do that. Our blindness and muteness need to be healed, that we can see who Jesus really is and tell the world about him. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 9: 18-26; A Dead Girl and a Sick Woman

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The woman who touches Jesus' cloak is a woman of great faith. She knows that if she simply touches Jesus' cloak she will be healed of her illness. She does not need Jesus to touch her, she does not need Jesus to say any miraculous words. The only thing she needs is to touch Jesus' cloak and she will be healed. What would our lives look like if we had that kind of faith? If we were that reliant on Jesus, how would we live? If our faith was so strong that we knew we only had to touch Jesus' cloak to be healed, what would that be like? We need to have that reliance, that dependence. Yes, we can do a lot for ourselves with the advances of modern technology. But we need to remember that we need Jesus in our lives: for healing, for strength, for guidance. We also need to recognize the fact that Jesus will give us what we need. The woman in this passage knows she needs Jesus. And she also knows that she will be healed by him. We need to have that kind of reliance and faith. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 9: 14-17; Jesus Questioned About Fasting

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Celebrate the presence of Jesus! Of course we are not going to fast. Why would we? This is true, of course, for the disciples, for Jesus is with them. But it is also true for us. We have the presence of the Lord in our lives each and every day. We have that salvation, that eternal life from him. Why would we fast, why would we mourn? We could find reasons, I am sure, to fast and mourn. There are things in our lives that weigh us down and make us sad and angry. In those times we want to fast and mourn. In those times, remember Jesus. Yes, Jesus died. But he also rose again. And after that he ascended, where he still lives now. Jesus is with us. We have reason to celebrate. We celebrate for his presence in our lives and for the blessings we have through him. Celebrate Jesus! God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 9: 9-13; The Calling of Matthew

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The 'sinners' and the tax collectors are the lowest of the low. They are the groups of people no one else wants to be around. In fact, one could get in a lot of trouble if caught in the presence as one such as these. However, here we find Jesus inviting 'these people' into his circle. He calls Levi, a tax collector, into his service, who goes on to be a very faithful disciple. No one is too bad to be used by Jesus. Some of you may think that you are not good enough. You may think you have sinned to much; you may think you are not a good speaker; you may think you are not strong enough. In response to that I point you to this passage. Jesus calls and uses Levi for great things, even though he is a tax collector. If Jesus can use him, he can use any of us. We need to be open to being used by Jesus. We need to let go of what we think are our shortcomings, and have that willingness to follow Jesus and be used by Him. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 9: 1-8; Jesus Heals a Paralytic

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

It is entirely possible that this young man is paralyzed by the guilt he feels because of his sin. Jesus says to this young man, 'Take heart, son. Your sins are forgiven.' With those words in mind, rather than words of healing, it is very likely that what weighs this man down is his own sense of guilt and failure. Those feelings are so strong he is unable to move because of them. Jesus tells the man his sins are forgiven. We need to keep this story in our minds. We are forgiven. Jesus has freed us not only from the punishment from sin, he has freed us from the guilt we feel because of that sin. We no longer have to feel guilty because of what we have done. We are forgiven, our since are no more. The guilt we feel is unnecessary. We are allowed to simply rest in our salvation. Do not feel guilty, Jesus has taken away your sin. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Sunday Scripture and Sermon for August 16, 2009

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Scripture passage for this Sunday is from 1 Thessalonians 2: 1-9, in which Paul recounts some of his work as a missionary of the gospel. The sermon is titled 'Work Like That,' and will focus on the kinds of things we need to keep in mind as we share the good news of Jesus with those around us. I hope to see you all on Sunday. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 8: 28-34; The Healing of Two Demon-possessed Men

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Even the demons, the powers of evil know who Jesus is. That certainly is a mark against the rest of the world which sometimes fails to recognize the Son of God. In today's world it is sometimes hard to identify the true Jesus. We think we have everything else all figured out, we think we know who Jesus is. We need to keep ourselves open to who Jesus is. We need to open our eyes, that we may see him; open our ears, that we may feel him; open our hearts, that we would feel him. In all things we need to make sure we truly know who Jesus is and what Jesus wants for us in our lives. We figure that out by reading the Scriptures. The Bible tells us all we need to know about Jesus. Read those holy words and get to know Jesus. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 8: 23-27; Jesus Calms the Storm

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The disciples find themselves in the midst of a storm. The water is raging around them, the boat is sinking a little, they think they are going to die. Where is Jesus? Asleep in the back of the boat. While the disciples are one death's doorstep Jesus is resting. The disciples, somewhat understandably upset, wake Jesus up and he calms the storm. This is one of those stories from the Bible that translates perfectly into our modern lives. We sometimes find ourselves in a storm. The water rages around us, we are sinking, we think we might not make it. In those times we sometimes feel like we are alone, like Jesus has abandoned us. But if we only open our eyes we will see him. Jesus has never left us. He is with us in the boat. If we simply have faith in him, and believe in his power and love, he will calm the storms we face in our lives. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 8: 18-22; The Cost of Following Jesus

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sacrifice is the key word here. The disciples, when Jesus calls them drop everything they have to follow him. They leave behind their families (Peter is married, remember), their homes, and their source of income. There is a cost to following Jesus: giving up some of those things that are important to us, those things that get in the way of our being committed disciples. It is hard to follow Jesus. What makes it hard is that we have to give up so much to follow him. There is good news, though. We are blessed, rewarded for our faith. Following Jesus is hard, but it is worth the sacrifice. When we follow Jesus, we follow him to the kingdom of heaven; we follow him to salvation; we follow him to eternal life. There is a cost to following Jesus, but the price is worth it. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 8: 14-17; Jesus Heals Many

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus always finds the time. I have always taken the scene involving Jesus at Peter's house as Jesus' attempt to take a little break and get some rest. In other words, Jesus is tired from all the work he has been doing. He is entitled to take a little break. However, he does not take a little break. Instead, "he casts out all the demons and heals all the sick." Jesus never turns anyone away. He always heals, he always helps. No matter how tired he feels he is always there to help. There is a lesson in there for us. We sometimes use our faitgue and/or our busy schedules as an excuse to not help, to not do ministry. Remember Jesus, and the way he always helps those who are in need. No matter hwo tired or busy we are we need to make sure we are always helping those who are in need. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 8: 5-13; The Faith of the Centurion

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

We need to believe in what Jesus can do for us, otherwise Jesus will be able to do nothing. It is because of his faith that the centurion receives healing on behalf of his servant. He does not pay Jesus, he does not do anything worthy of this act of love, but because he has faith that Jesus can heal his servant receives healing. We need to have faith in what Jesus can do. If we do, great things will happen for us. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 8: 1-4; The Man With Leprosy

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus' compassion never ceases to amaze me. He heals this man suffering from leprosy because he loves this man. Jesus is not a show-off, he does not perform his miracles for his fame and glory. Jesus heals people because he loves them. It really is that simple. Jesus' love for this man is strong enough that Jesus, as Matthew tells us, is willing to lay his hands on this man and make him clean. Amazing love. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 7: 15-23; A Tree and Its Fruit

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sadly, there are those in the world who would like to lead us astray or even harm us. We need to be alert for such people. We will know them by the way they act, the way they talk, etc. We will be aware of false prophets by the words they speak. In all of this we need to make sure we are centered on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. He will not lead us astray, he will hot harm us, he will not give us empty words. Keep your eyes and your focus on him and he will lead you by right paths. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Evening Worship August 9, 2009

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

This Sunday we will be having an evening worship service at 7:00 p.m. Music will be led by Dan Lutes and John McCarty. Please join us for this moving, Spirit-filled, worship service. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Sunday Scripture and Sermon for August 9, 2009

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Scripture passage for this Sunday is from 1 Thessalonians 1: 2-10, in which Paul blesses the Thessalonians for their faith. The sermon is titled 'Unstoppable' and will focus on how God's word, as well as true faith, cannot be stopped. I hope to see you all on Sunday. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 7: 13-14; The Narrow and Wide Gates

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus never promises an easy journey. In fact here, Jesus encourages us to journey on the narrow path. On the narrow path there are sharp turns, long falls on either side, and when there are rocks in the path there is nowhere to go to avoid them. However, at the end of the narrow path there is a kingdom waiting for us. And if we stay on the narrow path we will be granted entrance to that kingdom. The path itself may be hard, but the destination is well worth it. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 7: 7-12; Ask, Seek, Knock

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

All of this is contingent upon our faith. When we ask God for something in prayer we need to have faith that that thing for which we ask will come to us. Faith is a necessary part of prayer. We need to believe in God, and we need to believe in his faithfulness. We need to have faith that our prayers will be answered or they will not be. When Jesus went to his hometown he could not perform any miracles for the people because they did not believe. The same is true for us; if we have faith that God will answer us and give us what we need then he will. We need to have faith in the power of prayer, and the one to whom we pray. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 7: 1-6; Judging Others

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

To be sure, we need to help others in journey of faith. Sometimes this means that we tell others when they are doing something wrong. But we cannot do that if we are not living a faithul life ourselves. If we are not living a faithful life then our idea about what a faithful life is is going to be tainted. We will not know, because of our own sin and shortcoming, what holiness is, so we will not be able to help others in their attempt to live a holy life. We are directed to help others in their journey of faith, but we need to make sure we are in good shape first. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 6: 25-34; Do Not Worry

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

God is our maker, he is our creator, he has, and will continue, to provide for our every need. We are not supposed to worry about such things. Rather, we are supposed to trust in God, our maker, that he will provide for us all we need. This is not always easy, because we often think we need more than what we have, or are given. However, we need to move from those thoughts into a thought process that tells us God will take care of us. Trust in him and do not worry. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 6: 19-24; Treasures in Heaven

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

There is a reward waiting for us when our time here is done. That is why Jesus came, to make sure we would be blessed when our earthly life is finished. Though no one really knows exactly what heaven is going to be like we can know that it is a place of perfect peace and joy. That is the place that is waiting for us. Our lives should be filled joy and peace knowing there is a such a place waiting for us. We may not always have a perfect life here, but thanks to Jesus our treasure is waiting for us in heaven. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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Matthew 6: 16-18; Fasting

Grace and peace to you from our Lord Jesus Christ.

God is always watching. That is good news for us, for it means that God always knows what we are facing. God can help us in times of difficulty because he knows what we are going through. When we struggle and ask God for help he does not simply make something up off the top of his head. God knows what is happening in our lives, he knows what we are facing, he can help us in times of difficulty. God loves us enough to know what is going on in our lives, he loves us enough to help us through hard times. God bless you.

Pastor Josh
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