Psalm 51 - Humbly Relying

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God will not despise. Psalm 51:17

What else do I have to offer God? I know what lurks inside of me. I know that even my best things are tainted and spoiled by sin. There is nothing about me that God should want me. But God is merciful. He sees my brokenness and comes to save me from it. He does not despise our brokenness, but acts because of it and because of his great love.

Lord God, keep me humbly turning to you. I have nothing to offer you, but you offer me everything. You forgive my sins. You clothe me with righteousness. You save me. You even use me in my life to accomplish your work. Keep me humbly relying on and turning to you. Amen.

Psalm 1 - Rooted, resilient, and fruitful

That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields it fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither - whatever they do prosper. Psalm 1:3

The one who meditates on the Word of God is rooted and will not be blown by the wind. They are resilient, standing firm in the tough times and in the rich times. They are fruitful since they draw strength and nourishment from the roots, which are drawing from the power of the Word.

Lord God, this year, root me in you and in your Word. Root me so that I stand firm no matter how the winds blow. Give me a resilience that flourishes even when times are tough. Make me fruitful, Spirit, as I draw strength from you. Amen.

#SOAP #verseoftheday

January Reading Plan

January Reading Plan 

Three years ago, we launched a three-year plan to read through the Scriptures. That was a lofty and noble goal. I’m glad we did it. One of the challenges to this was the length of the plan. It was hard to bring new people into the plan and to breathe new life into it. This year, our reading plans will be in shorter bursts with opportunities to keep inviting people into the journey with it. Feel free to join the plans or not. Feel free to participate as you choose. It is always the prayer that you will grow in your faith. God promises that that will happen as you hear, read, and meditate (think about) this Word. To that end, we’ll start our year off with a week of - what I will call – the core psalms. Psalm 1, Psalm 51, Psalm 90-91, Psalm 103, and Psalm 139. There are certainly other psalms that are worthy of knowing. Aren’t they all? Yet, if you take in these, you will have a powerful grasp of who God is, who you are, and who you are to him. Enjoy!

1/1/2024 – Psalm 1

1/2/2024 – Psalm 51

1/3/2024 – Psalm 90-91 (read them as a pair!)

1/4/2024 – Psalm 103

1/5/2024 – Psalm 130

1/6/2024 – Psalm 139

 

On Sundays, you will be invited to read and meditate on the sermon text for that Sunday.

For the rest of the month, we’ll spend time in Colossians and Ephesians. These two letters from Paul to do things: They help us know Christ and his supremacy. Notice in Colossians how often Paul speaks about the completeness and superiority of Christ and his gospel to anything and everything. There is nothing and no one greater. Notice in Ephesians how powerful Christ is for the church.

 

1/7/2024 – Nehemiah 1

1/8/2024 – Colossians 1:1-14

1/9/2024 – Colossians 1:13-23

1/10/2024 – Colossians 1:24-2:5

1/11/2024 – Colossians 2:6-15

1/12/2024 – Colossians 2:16-23

1/13/2024 – Colossians 3:1-17

 

1/14/2024 – Nehemiah 2

1/15/2024 – Colossians 3:18-4:1

1/16/2024 – Colossians 4:1-6

1/17/2024 – Colossians 4:7-18

1/18/2024 – Ephesians 1:1-4

1/19/2024 – Ephesians 1:4-6

1/20/2024 – Ephesians 1:7-10


1/21/2024 – Nehemiah 3-4

1/22/2024 – Ephesians 1:11-23

1/23/2024 – Ephesians 2:1-13

1/24/2024 – Ephesians 2:14-22

1/25/2024 – Ephesians 3:1-20

1/26/2024 - Ephesians 4:1-13

1/27/2024 – Ephesians 4:14-5:2


1/28/2024 – Nehemiah 5

1/29/2024 – Ephesians 4:30-5:2

1/30/2024 – Ephesians 5:1-20

1/31/2024 – Ephesians 5:20-33

2/1/2024 – Ephesians 6:1-9

2/2/2024 – Ephesians 6:10-24

A Declaration for 2024

Dear family,

I want to declare something to you. More than that, I want to declare something about you. I want you to know it. I want it to seep into the deepest corners of your mind and heart. I want the truth of this declaration and this pronouncement to create such hope in you that you live like never before. I want to declare this to you:

You are loved and sent.

You are loved by God, your dear Father in heaven. He knew you before you were born. He created you marvelously in your mother’s womb and has formed and fashioned you to this very day. He has arranged your life so that you would know his love and so that you would go with his love. He has loved you in the biggest way by sending his Son. He continues to love you daily by providing and protecting you in so many ways.

His Son, Jesus, also loved you. He left his home in heaven to take your place both by his living and by his death. He took your place both by his rising and by his ascending. He loved you and died so that you would be forgiven. Still, he loves you and intercedes for you before the Father’s throne. Still, he loves you by ruling at God’s right hand for your benefit. Still, he loves you by sending his Spirit.

Yes, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father and the Son send to you, also loves you. He loves you, making you holy by water and the Word. He loves you by strengthening your faith through bread and wine, by making you one with God and with all of God’s holy people. He loves you by keeping you in this faith and by dwelling within you. You are most certainly loved.

And you are sent. You are sent by this God to be his masterpiece in this world, to do works of service which he prepared in advance that you should live your life in them. You are sent by God to be his voice in the world, to be a mask of God for his work in the world. You are the way by which God most often accomplishes his purpose in the world. You are loved. And you are sent!

You are loved and sent.

But how can I know this? How can you know that this is true? The Scriptures give us the accounting of how God did love you and send you into the world. They testify of our God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – and how he loves and sends. The Bible tells us about the identity and purpose of our God: He is the God who loves and sends. He is the God who loves indiscriminately, graciously, and even abundantly. He is the God who sends us with purpose into our lives.

Moreover, those same Scriptures speak to us about you and who you are. For if God is a God who loves, then he must have an object of that love – you, me, us! If God is a God who gives purpose, then he must have an object of his purpose giving – you, me, us! Yes, the Scriptures speak to us about you – your identity, your purpose, and your life.

It is my prayer that you will get to know God better this year. It is my prayer that you would get to know his identity and purpose better. He is the Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier. It is my prayer that this little journal will help you to know your identity and purpose more clearly and more dearly. You are loved and sent.

That’s why we’ve put together the SOAP journals and a Bible reading plan. If you’d like to learn more about this tool, get looped into reading plans, and get encouragement in your Bible reading, please join our SOAP group. A sign-up button is below (and above!).

It is my prayer that you will grow up into Christ and grow together with your fellow believers.

We are most certainly his.

Pastor Nate