Community Church Ministry

Back to school community outreach at Village Green. Thanks be to God for a beautiful evening!
Special thanks to Tim Smith, FCBA, Calvary Baptist Church, and Lakeview Baptist Church for their donation of book bags and school supplies!

Fireworks

Did you go see fireworks on July 4th? We do, but we didn't have to drive to get there. Every year, folks in the neighborhood shoot off fireworks in their yards. They put on a good show of their pyrotechnic abilities.
Last year, on the morning after, as I walked through the neighborhood, I could see charred remnants from the night before.
If I had a match with me, could I have relit them and expect to see a dazzling show like the night before? Obviously not.
Fireworks don't last. They "do their job" and are gone.
I'm thankful that some things last forever.
Chuck Swindoll said:
"Do you realize there are only two eternal things on earth today? Only two: people and God's Word. Everything else will ultimately be burned up—everything else. Kind of sets your priorities straight, doesn't it?"
God's word will endure forever.
“But the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word which was preached to you.”
‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭1:25‬ ‭
His word will surely accomplish His purpose.
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return there without watering the earth And making it bear and sprout, And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”
‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭55:10-11‬ ‭
People are eternal as well. Our lives may be short, but our souls live on forever.
Jesus explained it this way:
“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’ “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭25‬:‭31‬-‭46‬ ‭
God's word is eternal, unchanging.
Our soul is eternal. How blessed would it be to spend eternity with God! It's possible by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Chuck Swindoll sums it up:
"Only two things last forever—and I'm committed to both. How about you?"
*** For more information about Community Church Ministry, please contact me.

Not Perfect

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭23‬ ‭

Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki was in a slump. He wasn’t hitting well. This led the manager to bench Suzuki for a few games.
Shortstop Dansby Swanson thought that Seiya was being too hard on himself.
“I think the biggest thing is learning how to give yourself grace for not being perfect. That can be hard.”
We definitely are "imperfect" people. The Bible says: “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭23‬ ‭
The good news is that God didn't leave us in that state. He sent Jesus Christ His Son to save us: "Being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭24‬-‭26‬ ‭
That's the best news of all! Christ came to save us.
God knows we are not perfect Even after we come to Him for salvation, we will still sin at times.
“If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭8‬-‭9‬ ‭
We can't do this Christian life by ourselves!
Remember to abide in the Vine.
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.”
‭‭John‬ ‭15‬:‭4‬ ‭
So, don't be so hard on yourself. Realize His grace is sufficient to cover all our "imperfections."