14
Mar '15
Present In Praise
14
Mar '15
There are people who need a miracle, a breakthrough, restoration
Ezra 3:10-11 recalls, “When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, the priests stood in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise the LORD, according to the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the LORD.
*Praise works best at the start, before the miracle, before the breakthrough, before the restoration. It sets the stage for our Almighty God to act on our behalf; that is why we sing songs of praise at the start of our services.
Ps 100:12 says, Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
As I read this I began to think about WOW Church. …the phrases, “when the builders laid the foundation ” and “praise works best at the start ” jumped out at me.
God, The builder of WOW Church has spent the last year laying the foundation for this work He had planned in Bowersville Ohio! We began this walk of faith and obedience praising God for His promise of provision, for accomplishing the things He has shown and spoken to us by His Spirit.
God has BIG plans for this community. He desires to show Himself strong. We have seen some great things but He has SO much more to do. He needs YOU to enter His gates with thanksgiving – His courts with praise! Thanksgiving for what He has done and praise in anticipation of what He is preparing to do. God needs your hands, your feet, your voice to accomplish His plans and purpose for WOW Church.
It’s time to Plug in. Put your hands to something. Use the gifts and talents God has given you to bring His love, compassion, and grace to those who are hurting and in need.
There are people who need a miracle, a breakthrough, restoration. ..maybe you need one too. Praise!!! Our Almighty God becomes present in the praise of His people. (Psalms 22:3)
On Sunday morning when worship starts forget about everything and everyone else and focus on praise. Better yet, begin your praise every morning as soon as your eyes open.
Do you want to see God move in our services, in your life, and in our community? It all begins with praise. That is what sets the stage for God to move. Let’s enter His courts with praise in expectation of His glory and prepare to be blown away by the faithfulness of our God.
*Release, Revive, Repair, Rebuild from Brian Houston
15
Feb '15
BREAK FREE!!
15
Feb '15
We are talking a lot about revival right now. I believe if we truly want to see God move in revival services, if we desire to see a move of God in our church and in our community we have to begin with ourselves. We have to take honest inventory of ourselves and allow God to break down barriers, and replace the idols we have set in our lives. Yes, I said idols. We have allowed other things to take the place that God should have in our lives. We have allowed those things to become more important that He. The Bible says God is a jealous God. Deuteronomy 4:24, 5:9, 6:15, and Exodus 34:14. God desires to have first place in our lives. We, Church, need to get back to our “first love”. Where is that passion, that fire, that longing for God?
In Brian’s Houston’s devotional, “Release, Revive, Repair, and Rebuild” he says, “It’s time to break free from bondages in circumstances, relationships, finance, addictions or health. It’s time for deliverance into an overcoming life. Don’t settle for brokenness – Jesus came to heal the broken, to release us from everything that weighs us down.
Jesus paid the price for us to have an abundant life! (John 10:10) He came to set us free! (John 8:36) He came to heal us! (Psalm 107:20) He has made us Victorious! (Romans 8:37, 1 Corinthians 15:57)
I want to see God move. I want to see Him set people free. Let’s prepare our hearts, let’s get our expectations out there and enter His gates with thanksgiving, His courts with praise. Let’s empty ourselves of ourselves and allow the Holy Spirit to fill us up with Him!!
It is time for the church to get preoccupied with the things of God, to become intensely prayerful, to attend God’s house more frequently to fellowship and worship, to develop a hunger for the Word of God, to develop a passion for the lost! Why? Because a dead church will never fulfil the Great Commission to invade the world with the life-saving Gospel.
Let’s purpose to fulfill the call of God for us to be a light in the world, the salt of the earth. Let’s allow God to change us from the inside out…beginning today!
03
Feb '15
“Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him….” – 2 Corinthians 5:9
03
Feb '15
Is Christ’s love Compelling you?
by Pastor Karen
As I was reading this week, this scripture stood out to me. Our Aim, our goal and our motive in this life AND in the next is to be well pleasing to God. The message says, “Cheerfully pleasing God is the main thing”.
What pleases God? The obvious answer that comes to mind is FAITH – Hebrews 11:6… Without faith, it is impossible to please Him, but in the context of my main text, 2 Corinthians 5, I see something more.
We know that Jesus did only the Father’s will (John 5:19; 6:38, Matthew 26:39). In John 5:30 Jesus said, “…for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.” If we are going to please God we need to do what Jesus did.
2 Corinthians 5:10 says we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive according to what he has done. In the context of this passage Paul is talking about sharing the Gospel! Vs. 11 says we work hard to persuade others, the Living Bible says, we work so hard to win others. So we know that Paul and his team were, but are WE working hard to persuade others? Are we trying hard to win others?
According to Paul, Christ’s love controlled him – he was compelled and driven by desire to always put what was best for others ahead of his own needs. He made others his top priority so he could prepare them to stand before Christ one day.
Does Christ’s love in our lives compel us to share the Gospel with the lost? We are no longer to live for ourselves but to allow God’s love (agape) to flow through us and motivate us. This desire to win others is to be the reason we do everything we do. He tells us (vs. 16) that from now on we do not evaluate people from the flesh, what they have or what they look like. We do not view them in terms of natural value. Now we look inside – we see what God sees, someone who is valuable and precious, someone whom God loved so much He gave the best He had. We see a person who Jesus wants to give a fresh start.
Come on church. We are Ambassadors for Christ. It is our mission to tell everyone what Christ has done for them, what He desires to continue to do for them and how very much He loves them. Let’s get started!!!