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.

“Empathy and Sympathy” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy.” 2 Timothy 1:4

These two words are often confused and misused. They differ subtly in their emotional meaning.

“Constantly Praying” by: Pastor Fred Snider

“I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers.” 2 Timothy 1:3

Year after year, I am more and more convinced that not only are many things not as they appear, they also are not as clear as I think I hear. Daily I must use every ounce of sensitive perception possible to figure out what is really going on and to determine the difference between appearance and reality. This is not ever totally accurate all the time, but it has saved me a boatload of misunderstanding. As sure as we must understand the context of people’s lives before concluding what they think or feel; even after they have spoken or written, texted, tweeted or posted, we must also study Scripture in context and prayerfully, without concluding too quickly. For example, when Paul is writing from a dungeon at this point, he is thankful despite his circumstances, reflective of his heritage, remembering his forefathers and still trying to serve the Lord writing letters though he is locked up. He is not bragging about his spirituality, he is coping and surviving. He says he is constantly remembering and praying, night and day, because he is isolated right now, not just under house arrest. Soon he will be beheaded by Nero and he is reminiscing and speaking from heartfelt tenderness, affection and sincerity. He is not only The Apostle Paul, he is also just a man who is doing the best he can to serve the Lord in the context of his real life and what he has been through, what he will do today and what he still has to face.

Devotion by Church Council Member, Hank Botts

"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" I John 3:1a

I was recently privileged to witness my youngest daughter, Bekah’s high school graduation. I’m very proud of her, not only for that accomplishment, but also because of the wonderful young woman she has become. I was also blessed that my mom, Nell, and stepdad, Joe, got to come out from North Carolina for the graduation. I don’t get to see them as often as I’d like, so it was very special to be able to spend some time with them.

“Follow the Money” Covenant Series

“Whatever your treasure is, there your heart and thoughts will also be.” Matthew 6:21

You know the crime-solver advice of, “Follow the money.” It is true. If you want to know what is at the bottom of almost everything, just follow the money. Most of us claim to be poorer and “broker” than we really are. We like to compare ourselves to the few percent of people in this world who have more than we do and not to the overwhelming majority who have far less. We are blessed, fortunate, ungrateful and spoiled for the most part. In reality, only a few million people have more than me, while billions have less. We equivocate luxury and richness all the time. We could do a lot of soul searching about our stuff and resources. Some live within their means and seem to have more while others have more and can’t make ends meet. But, indeed where our heart and thoughts are, there goes the treasure, or the money. I have heard it said that whatever you think most about, that’s your God. Scary huh? Two things I want to say. Be more generous and also be a better steward. Here is a thought. If you were a better steward, could you be more generous? I could. Not easy to do; especially if you include time and talent with your treasure. I keep reminding myself to keep my heart and thoughts in the right place so I don’t have to follow the money.