The power of prayer and praise

We shouldn’t allow circumstances determine when we pray or when we praise, and we should be serious about serving the Lord.

”After this, the Moabites, and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat. Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi). Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him. Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the Lord in the front of the new courtyard and said: “Lord, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. Our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.’ “But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord. Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly. He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’ ” Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the Lord. Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice. Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: “Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever.” As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another. When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also articles of value—more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it. On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berakah, where they praised the Lord. This is why it is called the Valley of Berakah to this day.“

2 Chronicles 20:1-26

”I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak his praises.“

Psalms 34:1

”No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.“

Hebrews 12:11

”And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.“

Romans 8:28

Christ didn’t die to make you happy but he died to make you holy. -Chuck Colson

”You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!“

Isaiah 26:3

”But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me. If you keep to my path, I will reveal to you the salvation of God.”“

Psalms 50:23

”Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name.“

Hebrews 13:15

https://www.bible.com/events/49221868

Church of the Nazarene – East Rock

The Untold Jesus Stories- That you would believe

There is a difference in belief about Jesus, and believing in Him as Lord and savior.

Today we begin a new teaching series called “The Untold Jesus Stories.”

Throughout this series we will be looking into stories that are not, literally “untold,” but some of the lesser known or lesser understood accounts that we find in the gospels.

This series will simply focus on some stories that perhaps we haven’t paused to consider very often before.

Paul wrote to Timothy with the instruction: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Our “untold” or lesser-known story today is found in John 20:30-31

John 20:30-31

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Jesus has been crucified, buried, and resurrected and is now appearing to his disciples in his resurrected and glorious body. After the famous appearing to “Doubting” Thomas and in turn, Thomas’ declaration of Jesus as Lord, we find this seemingly obscure little note.

After these two verses, John goes on to finish telling the story of the disciples going back to Galilee to fish. That’s where Jesus asks Peter 3 times if he loves him. Then Jesus commissions Peter into ministry with the simple words “Feed my sheep.”

With such an amazing story before and after these two verses, it’s easy to see why we read right by it. But why did John add this in? Why did he think it was important to interrupt the story with these two almost throwaway verses?

John 20:30

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.

It’s generally recognize that John has included 7 specific signs in his gospel.

John has captured these amazing stories of Jesus. Displays of his supernatural power, of his Lordship, and His authority over death. These weren’t just magic tricks to draw a crowd, these signs literally revealed who Jesus really was. The messiah savior, the Son of God.

In our text today, John says: “Look, there’s a lot more than this, folks. Jesus did MANY more things which I haven’t recorded here.”

John 20:31

But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

This little obscure verse at the end of Johns letter makes it perfectly clear why he wrote- That we might believe in Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, and know eternal life.

John doesn’t say “I have written these things so that you may believe Jesus was 5’ 11” with olive skin, brown hair, and dark brown eyes.”

John didn’t say: “I wrote so that you would have the historical facts you need to debate your atheist co-workers.” “I wrote these things so that you would have the perfect theology and be able to debate with the church down the street about who is right.” John didn’t even say “I wrote so that you would believe Jesus exists.” No… that’s not it.

He very specifically states that he wrote down these signs and stories so that we would believe in Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God.

There is a difference between a knowledge or awareness of Jesus, and a belief in Jesus as Messiah and Lord. And the difference is a matter of life and death.

Mark 6:2-6

When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing? Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith. Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village.

People that knew all the facts about Jesus, had heard the stories about his miracles, his teaching, they faced a choice- Would they move from knowing about him, as the boy next door, James and Joseph’s brother- would they be willing to move beyond knowing about him to embracing him as their Lord and savior? Would they receive Jesus as their Messiah, their savior, and Lord?

Scripture says: And they took offense at him.

Because they were unwilling to receive Jesus as Lord, they missed out on the blessing and life that he offered.

Friends, to receive the Life Jesus came to give, to receive the life that John wrote about- we must believe in Jesus as LORD.

That’s the belief John is talking about in our primary text. Nothing less than that.

Do you believe in Jesus? Not facts about him, not stories, not theologies, do you believe that He alone is Lord of your life?

You have a choice today.

You can go on knowing about Jesus and miss it.

Or

You can go on knowing him as your Lord and Savior, experiencing life in Jesus.

The apostle John says, “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

Are you experiencing life in Jesus? Are you ready to go from knowing about him- to knowing him as Lord?

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

God is inviting us to step out in faith to plant a Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community. Join us on the journey!

Check out the link below for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org Thank you for your partnership in building the Kingdom of Christ as you impact others!

Giving

All In

“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’“

Mathew 7:21-23

My fear is that we don’t know the God that we worship

”And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.“

Romans 12:1

To know Jesus is to worship him. and to worship him means, I lay down my life. It’s not about me. It’s not about what I want. It’s my whole life as a sacrifice to him. In view of the incredible price he paid for me and I’m going give my life to him and I’m going to offer my life as a living sacrifice.

It’s not about me it’s about knowing Jesus.

Today we are completing our four-week series called, Healing Fractured Relationships.

Today, I’ll focus on two cousins who attack our relationships: Mistrust and suspicion.

I especially like to read Psalm 146:3-9 in the Message translation,

Don’t put your life in the hands of experts who know nothing of life, of salvation life. Mere humans don’t have what it takes; when they die, their projects die with them. Instead, get help from the God of Jacob, put your hope in GOD and know real blessing! GOD made sky and soil, sea and all the fish in it. He always does what he says— he defends the wronged, he feeds the hungry. GOD frees prisoners— he gives sight to the blind, he lifts up the fallen. GOD loves good people, protects strangers,

takes the side of orphans and widows, but makes short work of the wicked.

1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 says, 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

7 tips to building trusting relationships:

1. Love is patient.

What does it mean to say ‘Love is patient?’

It suggests that love doesn’t give up on people or situations when they

become challenging or testing.

2. Be kind to all people.

3. Use your words to represent Jesus well.

4. Control your temper.

5. Forgive.

6. Rejoice with others.

7. Trust God in all situations.

https://www.bible.com/events/49215060

Church of the Nazarene – Harrisonburg

Healing Fractured Relationships, Part 3: Rejection

No one can ever reject you as powerfully as God accepts you.

Welcome to our journey into a series we are calling “Healing Fractured Relationships”. Together we are seeking the Lord’s wisdom and guidance for our relationships: all relationships. Why? Because all relationships matter.

Whoever those people are that matter most to you, that’s who we are talking about today and in the weeks to come. And most specifically, we are talking about relationships in our lives that are hurting.

Each week, as we talk about relationships, we will talk about specific tools that can help us. God’s Word has truth for us, tools for us, regarding our relationships, especially those that are hurting.

Every single person knows something of today’s topic: rejection.

If you were to call to mind a time when you were rejected, there is probably still an ache associated with that.

But take heart, early on in your Bibles, not far from the very beginning, is one of the most profound cases of rejection in history.

It’s the story of a man named Joseph.

Genesis 37:17-28

“They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’ ” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dreams.” When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. “Let’s not take his life,” he said. “Don’t shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe he was wearing— and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it. As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt. Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed. So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery and fabricate a lie to tell their father Joseph was killed by a wild animal.

Chapter 37 concludes with one final farewell note.

“Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard.”

Rejected. Sent away unwanted. For Joseph’s brothers, this rejection seemed final.

But rejection was not final for Joseph, because man’s rejection does not equal God’s rejection.

It’s important to acknowledge what we are experiencing physically, mentally and emotionally when we feel rejection.

Data suggests that our brains interpret rejection like we would actual physical pain. Our bodies are hardwired to respond to rejection.

But with the pain of rejection, researchers have found that the pain is ‘re-lived’ over and over. The body and brain can respond multiple times over and over in a similar way as that emotional pain is experienced again and again. Rejection, quite literally, hurts.

It can cause our minds to fill with negative emotions, like guilt or shame.

We have thoughts like:

‘I’m not worthy’

‘I’m broken or flawed. No one could love me.’

‘I always mess up. I’m never enough.’

We have to acknowledge these negative thoughts and emotions, but if we get stuck there then we are often blinded to God’s truth.

Somewhere in the life of Joseph, he made a difficult but life-changing decision. We don’t know exactly when, but it’s clear somewhere along the way he decided to trust God in the midst of his hurt.

The hurt and pain of a rejection so unthinkable was real for him, but in spite of that, he chose to trust God’s promises.

Genesis 41:39-40

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.”

Genesis 50:15-21

When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?” So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions before he died: ‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.’ Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept. His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. “We are your slaves,” they said. But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.

Joseph’s life could have been so much different, right?

Rejection could have ruled him, instead, redemption did.

Jesus Himself understood what it was to be rejected.

Isaiah 53:1-3

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

God has a way of turning rejection into redemption.Jesus, the rejected one, is now in the glory of Heaven, with you on His mind.

One of the reasons the story of Joseph is one of the most significant in the Old Testament: in this life, the rejectors don’t get the last word.

“Every ounce of rejection you have faced was God grabbing your shoulders, positioning you into the proper direction, and moving you forward.”

Amy Klutinoty

The bottom line:

No one on can ever reject you as powerfully as God accepts you.

Verses for further study/reflection:

1 Peter 2:4

Psalm 34:17-20

John 15:18

Psalm 27:10

Psalm 94:14

Isaiah 53:3

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

God is inviting us to step out in faith to plant a Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community. Join us on the journey!

Check out the link below for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org Thank you for your partnership in building the Kingdom of Christ as you impact others!

Giving