“YOU DECIDE”

"Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." 2 Corinthians 9:7

Giving is an extremely sensitive subject. So much so that I titled this devotional "You Decide" instead of "Giving" or "Cheerful Giving". This is such a rich verse for me. God has been blessing Grace Harbor Church and School beyond measure in recent months, so the timing of this writing is not related to any need. In my life at this time, I am learning much about giving, especially about generosity. It seems I am being freed up to give lately on a level that I have not experienced before. I must share with you because it is blessing me so much, I just have to share. As I reread this particular verse I think I am understanding why. Let me give it to you in a few bullet points.

• My heart for Him is leading me.

"SO BIG" by: Church Council Member, Gabrielle Botts

"Your unfailing love, Oh LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths." Psalm 36:5-6

I love these verses! They show me just how BIG our God is. God is outside of everything in this world that we can see, and everything we can imagine. How often do we try to box God in to what we think He's like, or try to figure God out with our finite minds? It's impossible! Mull over these two small (but mighty!) verses and think about God's infinite love for us.

“A Good Soldier” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs, he wants to please his commanding officer.” 2 Timothy 2:3-4

My commander in chief is Jesus Christ. He is my commanding officer. My deepest desire is to please Him. Sometimes that entails enduring hardship and I should do that like a good soldier, without whining, without sniveling, or complaining. I should do my duty, follow my orders, and conduct myself in such a way as to represent who I am serving. I should stay out of this world’s affairs. At least to the degree that I become part of it more than I am part of His Kingdom work. I cannot sign in and out of my commitment to Christ. I have not been drafted, I enlisted. I signed up for a lifelong tour of duty. When I was bought by the blood of Christ, I relinquished my rights to do as I pleased without consideration of my commander. I know this language sounds so serious. So is our commitment to Christ. Or at least it should be.

“Be Strong” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” 2 Timothy 2-1-2

When we slow down the study of Scripture, even when we are making it into a devotional, there is so much that can be learned. Paul is so tenderhearted and personal with Timothy. Calls him son and encourages him to be strong. Strong in the grace of Christ Jesus. Wow, that is deeper strength. He then tells Timothy to teach the things that he has taught to many. Not every word he has ever said in passing, but the things he has preached when sharing the gospel. These things we should entrust to others who can then teach them to others. Teachers of the Word should teach others so they can teach. Sharers of the gospel should share with others so they can share. Lovers of the Word should share that love with others so they in turn can share the love of The Word with others. This is how the gospel is spread. This is how we remain strong. Teach, share and spread His Word, by His grace and also by His Word. God used many to entrust His Word to me. Pastors, authors, mentors and friends have entrusted truth to me and I now share it with you, so you will share it with others. Encourage others to be strong. The things of the faith that we share together as the family of God, these things now share with everyone.

“A Refreshing Friend in Christ” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not shamed of my chains. On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the lord on the day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.” 2 Timothy 1:16-18

There are some especially refreshing people in our lives. They often add help and hope. As a matter of fact they are a wonderful blessing at just the right time.

“Being Deserted” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.” 2 Timothy 1:15

I never say always. Although I must admit that hyperbole is sometimes effective. Similarly, “Nobody likes me”, can be understood to be a bit of an exaggeration. Obviously not everybody in Asia deserted Paul. By desertion he is not referring necessarily to physical desertion but a desertion in the faith. In upcoming verses he refers to others that were an amazing blessing to him. But for the sake of effect here he states that the whole ministry in Asia has deserted the faith. At least it felt like it. I know this feeling. At times in my ministry over the years I have felt that awful feeling. In my youth ministry, or even when pastoring a church, or simply a big plan was going down the tubes and I felt like all was lost and that the whole ministry was at risk or seemingly doomed. Although not completely true, in some cases it was the beginning of the end of what we hoped would be. I think we can all relate. That being said, Paul specifically mentions Phygelus and Hermogenes, and guaranteed they did desert him, probably in every way imaginable. This too is painful in the work of the Lord. When individuals leave the ministry it is hard to swallow. Necessary sometimes but nonetheless not easy to face or bear. Imagine how this feels when you are in prison as Paul was. He couldn’t do a thing about it. Prior to mass communication or any social media, Paul could only express his angst in a slow moving letter. This was no doubt cause for a lot of sleepless nights and tears. He took this desertion personally. I am sure he went through a lot of soul searching and replaying of the events that changed the ministry in Asia. How sad. But, the gospel is in the hand of the Lord ultimately, and Paul knows this. Though he shares this difficult personal downturn in his life, he rebounds to faith in coming verses. This is how real life is. We have these times of very harsh reality accompanied with spates of a sense of failure. Indeed not easy. But, when serving the Lord, you roll with it. Because He is in charge and He has the plan and He is able, even when people desert you and it feels like maybe everybody has. Our reliance must remain in the Lord and Him alone. Regardless of our circumstance, He is still on the throne.

“Guard me Holy Spirit” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you- guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.” 2 Timothy 1:14

Ok, can we please stop asking whether the Holy Spirit is a person and whether or not He lives in us? I think this passage makes that obvious. Paul is pretty clear here that we need to be on guard and that infers that we are under attack. The reality of spiritual warfare in our lives is grossly under-taught. We really should put more emphasis on the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The deposit spoken of here is our promise of salvation, and our enemy, the devil, seeks to steal our joy and His purpose in this earthly life. We have been entrusted by God through Christ and sealed by the Holy Spirit into an eternal relationship with our Creator that has already begun now. So the spiritual warfare is here and now. We must be very careful not to be overcome by this world. Our nature is corrupted and even once we come to Christ we are still weak. Only through Him and with the help of the Holy Spirit can we resist the attacks of satan. The best way for this guarding to take place is to be ever-conscious of the battle. Also, often think and speak to the fact that the Holy Spirit is in us. If I remain constantly aware of the Holy Spirit in me I think I will be better guarded. First, value what is deposited in me then protect it with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is not enough just to believe in God or to know Jesus. We must appropriate the empowering of the Holy Spirit. Be aware of His work in us. Familiarize ourselves with His protection and power, His revealing of His Word and His gifting of us. We have much to learn about this facet of our spiritual development. Seek with me to learn more of the work of the Holy Spirit.

"The Pattern" Devotion by Pastor Fred Snider

“What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 1:13

Paul is such an amazing teacher. Here he is so tactful in encouraging discipleship by suggesting adherence to his teaching and understanding of the gospel, but making sure to also season that with faith and love in Christ Jesus. The human tendency to become legalistic is so strong. We are attracted to a desire to have everything be so exact so we can judge. Of course at the other end of the spectrum is the desire to not have anything exact so we can do exactly how we please. Oh how to find balance.

HAS AMERICA TURNED IT’S BACK ON GOD? by: Church Council Member, Ron Hodge

On July 7, I received the following email from Franklin Graham:
On June 26, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states. “This is a defining moment for our nation”. Sin not only reigns but is now celebrated. Even the White House was proudly illuminated with rainbow colors the night of the ruling! This is a slap in the face of every Christian and it is only the tip of the iceberg. The rainbow is a promise from God, not a description of a lifestyle. “Long before our government came into existence, marriage was created by Almighty God—the One who created man and woman. He is clear about the definition of marriage in His Holy Word: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24, ESV).

In the New Testament, Jesus reiterated God’s definition of marriage: “From the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife’” (Mark 10:6–7).
The court did not define marriage, and therefore it is not entitled to redefine it.

“SUFFERING WITHOUT SHAME”

"That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day." 2 Timothy 1:12

This is one of my very favorite verses, some of which is quoted as the chorus in a hymn from my youth that brings back quite a few memories. Paul is suffering not only because he is imprisoned, it is also just honestly difficult to represent the faith constantly or consistently. He doesn't want his imprisonment to discourage anyone, yet he wants to be real about his faith and circumstances. So he is not ashamed of his predicament because he is serving the Lord even though in chains. His words that explain why are simply beautiful. Let me list a few observations about how Paul turns his tough situation into a blessing.

1. What he knows trumps how he feels.

GOD'S TRACK RECORD by: Suzanne Teuben, Director High School Ministry

"So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” Genesis 22:14

This verse comes from the story of God testing Abraham in his faithfulness to God. God asked Abraham to take his son up to the mountains and sacrifice his one and only son, Isaac. I encourage you to read the whole chapter and notice that Moses does not mention how Abraham was feeling or what He was thinking as Isaac carried the wood he was about to be burned on. It seems like a cruel test to me but I think more than anything it shows the faith of a humble servant of the Lord and his complete trust in the Lord, no matter how crazy the request.

“Appointed”

“And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.” 2 Timothy 1:11

So personal for Paul to share this. The gospel, which is our hope and our calling, is central to our faith too. Paul knew he had been chosen, appointed by God for a specific purpose. We can know this too. No, God isn’t still appointing Apostles, but He is calling disciples. Apostles are those who have seen Him and were set apart specifically to initiate the spread of the gospel after Jesus ascended. Disciples are His followers ever since. For over two thousand years people have been responding to God’s call upon their lives. I have been called and so have you. I am confident that God has specific plans for your life that can be discovered through prayer, study of His word, serving Him and empowerment from the Holy Spirit. We all have at least one gift to serve Him with. There are lists of gifts in Paul’s letters, but I believe He Himself would want to reveal to you, through seeking Him earnestly, or being mentored or setting aside a season to deepen your faith and pursuing His heart for you. Maybe your biggest question may be… “What if He wants me to do something I don’t want to do?” I would say to you that is probably the enemy dissuading you before you even know what He has in mind.
I once said to Him sincerely… “Whatever, wherever!” So I am here until He says differently.

God’s Dwelling Place #10 by: Suzanne Teuben, Director of High School Ministry

“In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.” Ephesians 2:21-22

So where is the tabernacle now, the place where God chooses to dwell and bring glory to His name? The answer is found in the verse above: you and me as followers of Christ! In my opinion, the Holy Spirit is often underrated and under-appreciated. Let’s recall the words of Jesus recorded in John 16:7, “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you: but if I go, I will send Him to you.” Jesus told His disciples that it was a good thing for Him to leave this earth. How could it possibly be a good thing for Jesus to leave their presence? Because He was sending someone in His place, the Holy Spirit. Jesus was fully God and fully human in His incarnate body, whereas the Holy Spirit is fully God and without the constraints of a physical body. The Holy Spirit is capable of being with you and me 24/7, despite any physical distance between us.

“Death Destroyed”

“This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” 2 Timothy 1:10

Strange devotional title huh? How can death be destroyed when we so often think of it as our destruction? Living forever or eternal life, here referred to as immortality, is such an unfathomable gift from God. We indeed are going to live forever, all of us, believers or not. The body goes through a physical death, but our souls live forever, one place or the other. Aha, there is the grace, the gospel and the good news. God’s plan has been for redemption since before time. Jesus coming to earth in the flesh is the beginning of His victory over death. On the cross when He becomes the atonement, or perfect sacrifice, for sin, Jesus conquers death, utterly destroys its power by His resurrection. Death is disempowered because He proves that, like He, it is not the end of us. He replaced death with life. In essence, we go from having a death sentence to having an eternal life gift; unless, of course, you don’t accept that gift thereby choosing an eternal death sentence. Jesus shines a revealing light on our fate and His wonderful plan for us. That is good news. Breathe deep. Let that soak in. We are not only gonna be O.K., we are gonna be O.K. forever.

Gods Dwelling Place #9 by: Suzanne Teuben, Director of High School Ministry

“He [God] cuts off every branch [Christ followers] in me [Jesus] that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” John 15:2

The function of pruning a plant is so that it can continue to grow and produce more fruit. For those of us who don’t garden, I asked my grandma to break this down for us. First, you cut off the dead branches that don’t leaf because you can tell early on that they were never going to bear fruit. There are also times when you have to cut off rapidly growing branches because they are sucking life from the rest of the plant. An example of this might be doing good things for the kingdom but doing them with selfish motives. In both cases, those two branches will not bear fruit and are cut off of the vine. Then, there are times when you prune a healthy branch causing it to send up two healthy shoots from where it was pruned, subsequently making it bear even more fruit. At the end of the day, the branches must be useful and God will prune them until He feels they are fit for His service.

"The Purpose of Grace" by: Pastor Fred Snider

“God has saved us and called us to a holy life – not because of anything we have done, but because of His own purpose and grace.” 2 Timothy 1:9

I can’t save myself or anyone else for that matter. He, Jesus, saved me. Only Jesus saves. We need salvation and we are lost without it. Our only hope is in Him. He paid the price for our sin and has the right to command us to live holy lives. He will help us with that high calling, but we must connect to His purpose for us. He has saved us for a purpose by His grace. I can’t gain my salvation, nor can I justify myself in any way, shape, or form. I am noting just now that I am jumping back and forth between “I” and “we”. Probably because I am so aware of my own gratefulness for my salvation and my need to have a purpose of grace, at the same time, wanting that for us all so that we can be of one heart and one accord. It is vital to both the Body of Christ and us as individuals to help one another to promote personal and corporate holiness. The holy life is not the “holier than thou life.” It is the conscientious life of commitment to Jesus.

"UNASHAMED" by: Pastor Fred Snider

“So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord or ashamed of me as a prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.” 2 Timothy 1:8

“So” begs the question what. So what? Let me answer with some “since” responses.

• Since He put the fire in you.

• Since He hung and died and bore our shame.

“No Wallflowers” By Pastor Fred Snider

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7

To keep the flame of faith ablaze in us, Paul calls us to boldness. He says we should not be timid. Too many believers are not bold, ever. We tend to avoid opportunity to share our faith. For fear of being over- zealous, we are never zealous. Our spirit is equipped to reach out of us and be loving, powerful, and disciplined. As followers of Christ we must take risks when sharing our faith. Risks that take us out of our comfort zone. Some of us never get out of our comfortable zone, much less our comfortable zone. Easiest way to do this is just to be loving. Love is so contagious. The world will indeed know we are Christians by our love, our love of Him, each other, and everyone. We should also witness with power. The power of His Word, (Gotta know it to share it though) and the power of His Spirit. Just let God speak through you by asking Him to use you. The third way to be bold is to be an example. Self-discipline is most effective when we refuse to gossip or be negative or moody. We must discipline ourselves to take down our weaknesses and allow our strengths to shine through. Don’t be timid today; be bold with love, power, and self-discipline.

“Fan the Flame” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame, the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.” 2 Timothy 1:6

Paul saw and knew something special in Timothy. He knew of the great faith of his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice and now it was in Timothy; a passion for the Lord that God could use to further the Kingdom. So he encourages Timothy to “fan into flame” or “keep the fire burning” that is in him. Evidently Paul, at some point, had laid hands on Timothy and prayed specifically for this gift to be set on fire within him. We know that fire takes three elements… spark, oxygen and fuel. You can’t have fire without all three. Once the spark meets the fuel and oxygen is added, you get fire. The analogy is simple. We are the fuel, the will of God is the spark, and the Holy Spirit is the oxygen. We should not quench this fire in us, the fire that all believers have, but we must also keep the embers alive. For myself, I fan this flame with an ongoing conversation with God, an open heart to everything that is of Him, and a vigilance to make sure that I do not allow my laziness, disobedience or pride to quench God’s fire. I have to fan the flame by reading His Word, serving, witnessing, praying and fellow-shipping with other believers.

“Spiritual Heritage” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois, and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you.” 2 Timothy 1:5

What an amazing blessing it is to see sincere faith passed from generation to generation. I have always marveled at families who pass on the mantle of ministry or servant-hood. Truly an encouraging wonder to see. These words of compassion surely touched Timothy’s heart. This is this very personal passage in our Bible to remind us to pass on the faith and to acknowledge when it is apparent in the families of the Body of Christ.