The Master of Restoration “In that day I will restore David’s fallen shelter– I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins– and will rebuild it as it used to be.” “Amos 9:11” I knew a couple who bought an older house that they planned to live in. The rooms were simple and in need of a few repairs. When some sheetrock had to be removed they discovered the…Keep Reading

We Have Gleaned – What Witness Are We Leaving for Others As she got up to glean, Boaz gave orders to his men, “Let her gather among the sheaves and don’t reprimand her. Even pull out some stalks for her from the bundles and leave them for her to pick up, and don’t rebuke her.” “Ruth 2:15-16” Like Ruth, many of us have benefited from gleaning. It may not have…Keep Reading

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. “Attempting Righteousness without Love” When I was a pastor, I preached forty-seven years the Love of God, and I would do it all over again. “God is Love,” and he highlighted that truth with John 3:16. Some have…Keep Reading

Rev. Nate and Julie Ware JOY “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” Psalm 16:11 Photo: Nate used this illustration yesterday while delivering a sermon on Joy. After Church when we were gathering things to take to the car . . . He’s looking around for his joy illustration. When he didn’t…Keep Reading

No Entitlement in the Kingdom “The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.” Matthew 25:8 Once I stopped to buy gasoline at a convenience store. I went in to prepay, and as I started back out to the car there was a truck at the pump on the other side. He was stretching the hose around the pump and was…Keep Reading

Rev. Nate and Julie Ware Obedience and Miracles Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” Mark 10:27 In Webster’s Dictionary it describes Miracles as an extraordinary event, manifesting divine intervention in human affairs or as the healing miracles, described in the Gospels or an extremely outstanding or unusual event, thing, or accomplishment. Most of us think…Keep Reading

Rev. Nate and Julie Ware Love and Discipline “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” “2 Timothy 1:7” A few days ago after writing and checking and rechecking for errors, this paragraph kept speaking: “Love without Discipline” is not good. So, “Discipline” must walk hand in hand with “Love”. It is discipline that helps us guard against the blocks,…Keep Reading

Trust; Fear Not “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God, whose word I praise– in God I trust and am not afraid.” “Psalm 56:3-4” “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God, whose word I praise– in God I trust and am not afraid.” Psalm 56:3-4 The words of this Psalm are a confession that God’s people do get afraid. They…Keep Reading

Rev. Nate and Julie Ware OUR RELATIONSHIP TO GOD: OUR WITNESS “Judge not, that you be not judged.” MATTHEW 7:1 The average healthy human scalp grows about 100,000 hairs, each from a follicle buried beneath the skin. Each hair grows about half an inch a month. Normally you lose 50 to 100 scalp hairs per day. This moon grew as it was zoomed in . . . God works with…Keep Reading

PRIORITY OF CONSCIENCE Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall. “1 Corinthians 8:13” We live in a world where values and cultures butt heads like mountain goats. What I feel is sin for me may not be considered sin by another Christian. (Now sin is sin, there is…Keep Reading

Rev. Nate and Julie Ware PACK YOUR BAGS . . . “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” “1 Peter 1:13” Life has often been described as a journey. Certainly, a major part of navigation through a person’s life is that of “belief, hope and preparation”. We try to…Keep Reading

Philippians 3:13 “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.” “GETTING ON DOWN THE ROAD” The journey could have been short, perhaps a few weeks; but it took forty years. God was leading them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He supplied their every need; but it was never enough for their “we want more and better”…Keep Reading