Mission

Dahlonega, GA

In His Service

Confession And Thanksgiving http://www.youtube .com/watch... Nehemiah 9:32-37 (New International Version) 32 "Now therefore, O our God, the great, mighty and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes—the hardship that has come upon us, upon our kings and leaders, upon our priests and prophets, upon our fathers and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today. 33 In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. 34 Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the warnings you gave them. 35 Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you or turn from their evil ways. 36 "But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces. 37 Because of our sins, its abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress. New International Version (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica They have not served You ... in the many good things that You gave them.—Nehemiah 9:35 During a Sunday worship service, our congregation said this prayer of confession in unison:“Gracious God, like many believers before us, we complain when things do not go our way. We want abundance of everything rather than what is sufficient to sustain us. We would rather be elsewhere than where we are at the moment. We would rather have the gifts You give to others than what You provide for us. We would rather have You serve us than serve You. Forgive our lack of gratitude for what You give.” Abundance is no guarantee of gratefulness or thanksgiving. Prosperity may even turn our hearts away from the Lord. When a group of Jewish exiles returned from Babylon with Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, they gathered to confess their sins and those of their fathers. They prayed:“Neither our kings nor our princes, our priests nor our fathers, have kept Your law .... For they have not served You in their kingdom, or in the many good things that You gave them, or in the large and rich land which You set before them, nor did they turn from their wicked works”(Neh. 9:34-35). Confession is a powerful prelude to a prayer of thanks-giving. Obedience is the Amen.— David C. McCasland Lord, before we come to ask Your blessing On this special day we call Thanksgiving, We would bow to You, our sins confessing, Then we’ll lift our praise in grateful living.—Hess Confession opens the door to thanksgiving. http://www.youtube .com/watch...  (Thursday Nov 26 | post #59)

Clayton, GA

In His Sevice

Confession And Thanksgiving http://www.youtube .com/watch?v=eDpp_ YdXnqs Nehemiah 9:32-37 (New International Version) 32 "Now therefore, O our God, the great, mighty and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes—the hardship that has come upon us, upon our kings and leaders, upon our priests and prophets, upon our fathers and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today. 33 In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. 34 Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the warnings you gave them. 35 Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you or turn from their evil ways. 36 "But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces. 37 Because of our sins, its abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress. New International Version (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica They have not served You . . . in the many good things that You gave them. —Nehemiah 9:35 During a Sunday worship service, our congregation said this prayer of confession in unison: “Gracious God, like many believers before us, we complain when things do not go our way. We want abundance of everything rather than what is sufficient to sustain us. We would rather be elsewhere than where we are at the moment. We would rather have the gifts You give to others than what You provide for us. We would rather have You serve us than serve You. Forgive our lack of gratitude for what You give.” Abundance is no guarantee of gratefulness or thanksgiving. Prosperity may even turn our hearts away from the Lord. When a group of Jewish exiles returned from Babylon with Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, they gathered to confess their sins and those of their fathers. They prayed: “Neither our kings nor our princes, our priests nor our fathers, have kept Your law . . . . For they have not served You in their kingdom, or in the many good things that You gave them, or in the large and rich land which You set before them, nor did they turn from their wicked works” (Neh. 9:34-35). Confession is a powerful prelude to a prayer of thanks-giving. Obedience is the Amen. — David C. McCasland Lord, before we come to ask Your blessing On this special day we call Thanksgiving, We would bow to You, our sins confessing, Then we’ll lift our praise in grateful living. —Hess Confession opens the door to thanksgiving. http://www.youtube .com/watch?v=9qMqO v7Rtqg  (Thursday Nov 26 | post #73)

Blairsville, GA

Daily Devotion Sharing

November 25, 2009 What A Ride! http://www.youtube .com/watch... 1 Thessalonians 1 1Paul, Silas[a] and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you.[b] Thanksgiving for the Thessalonians' Faith 2We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. 3We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. 6You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. 7And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. 8The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, 9for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. Footnotes: a.1 Thessalonians 1:1 Greek Silvanus, a variant of Silas b.1 Thessalonians 1:1 Some early manuscripts you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ New International Version (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica The word of the Lord has sounded forth ... in every place.—1 Thessalonians 1:8 Francis Asbury rode 6,000 miles a year on horseback for nearly half a century. Despite ill health, he drove himself tirelessly. He sustained himself with venison jerky—a food that wouldn’t spoil during his extended travels. Asbury is remembered for introducing the Methodist “circuit-riding preacher” as an effective way to capture the American frontier for Christ. Planting new churches in remote areas was central to his approach. At the close of Asbury’s ministry, he had recruited over 700 traveling preachers. In 1771, when Asbury arrived in the colonies, there were only about 600 Methodists in America. Forty-five years later, there were 200,000! In many ways, Asbury’s strategy for planting churches reflects the approach of the apostle Paul. To the church he had planted in Thessalonica, Paul wrote:“From you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place”(1 Thess. 1:8; see Acts 17:1-10). The days of the “circuit-riding preacher” have come and gone. But each of us has a “frontier” where friends, relatives, and neighbors are our mission field. Can you think of someone today who needs to hear the good news?— Dennis Fisher Lord, lay some soul upon my heart, And love that soul through me; And may I nobly do my part To win that soul for Thee.—Tucker Those who love Christ have a love for the lost. http://www.youtube .com/watch...  (Wednesday Nov 25 | post #87)