John 1:35-42 John’s Disciples Follow Jesus

By Rod Lindemann|2019-06-27T06:00:30-05:00June 27th, 2019|Living God's Word|

Living God’s Word

John 1:35-42 John’s Disciples Follow Jesus
³⁵The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. ³⁶When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
³⁷When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. ³⁸Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
³⁹“Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
⁴⁰Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. ⁴¹The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). ⁴²And he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).

Living God’s Word:
The opportunity to be an example or leader to others has its benefits. It is affirming when people depend upon us or look to us for help. But if we have led someone to faith in Jesus Christ, the time will come when they must follow Jesus beyond the influence of our relationship with them. Both mentor and disciple grow when the time for release arrives. John allowed his disciples to follow Jesus and in that act sealed his obedience to God. The disciples did follow Jesus, demonstrating that they had benefited from John’s teaching. In our relationship with other Christians, we must keep a healthy balance between dependence and independence. Mentors are helpful, but they cannot replace Jesus in our lives. We must also encourage those who follow us to keep their eyes on Christ.

Who is your mentor in faith? Have you taken the time to say thanks for their time and investment into your life?

Words to Live By:
When Jesus calls the first disciples, He reveals Himself to be the Messiah—the Son of God and Son of Man—the way to heaven. Today, people may still question Jesus’ invitation to follow Him. Yet, Jesus overcomes unbelief through the Gospel testimony and graciously opens the way to heaven through His Word.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank you for calling us to be Your followers. As others helped us in the early stages of our faith, enable us to encourage others to desire to know You more and to give their lives to You. Amen.

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John 1:29-34 John Testifies About Jesus

By Rod Lindemann|2019-06-26T04:56:22-05:00June 26th, 2019|Living God's Word|

Living God’s Word

John 1:29-34 John Testifies About Jesus
²⁹The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ ³¹I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”

³²Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. ³³And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”

Living God’s Word:
Today, all around us, people are looking for someone to give them security in an insecure world. God has called us to point them to Christ and show them how Christ satisfies their need. The people we encounter must hear it first from us, we are God’s instruments of mercy and grace. We cannot pass on to others what we do not possess and confess ourselves. It should be our hearts desire to introduce others to Jesus.
Who do you know in your life should you be sharing your faith in Christ? Let God lead as you take a bold step today in sharing your faith journey.

Words to Live By:
John the Baptist testifies that Jesus is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world—the very Son of God, on whom the Holy Spirit rested at His Baptism. Today, the Lord gives His Spirit in Holy Baptism. To regard Christian Baptism as a symbolic act is to despise a precious treasure. In Baptism, Jesus Christ has taken away our sin, and the Spirit daily assures us of His merciful goodness toward us.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, send Your Spirit with Your gracious pardon, and silence my accusing conscience. Open my heart to share the Good News of Your salvation with others You place in my life. Amen.

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John 1:19-28 John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah

By Rod Lindemann|2019-06-25T05:00:11-05:00June 25th, 2019|Living God's Word|

Living God’s Word

John 1:19-28 John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah
19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders h in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”
21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”
He said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”
23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’ ” m
24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Living God’s Word:
Whenever you are tempted to feel indispensable, remember John the Baptist. The fact that God uses us to do his work is no excuse for pride. God does not need us or have to keep us around. So we should make the most of the time we have. John remained a loud “voice in the wilderness” right up until his death. His sacrifice presents us with a question: Was a shortened life too high a price to pay for hearing God say, “Well done, good and faithful servant”?
Are you willing to speak boldly about your faith and the Good News of Jesus?

Words to Live By:
John testifies to Jewish leaders asking, “Who are you?” that he is not the Christ but was sent to prepare the way for Him. As a faithful servant, John sets an example of humility and reverence for us. Ironically, the One whose sandal John was unworthy to untie became the Suffering Servant, who bore all our sins.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, You alone can prepare a royal highway in my heart, that I may receive You in unwavering humility and joy. May I never question who You are in my life. Amen.

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Less Anxiety – More Peace

By Rod Lindemann|2019-04-12T04:52:30-05:00April 12th, 2019|JourneyMen Email, Living God's Word|

JourneyMen,

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. –Philippians 4:6-7

We are going to continue our journey with the goal to “worry less and live more.” We recently explored the impact that rejoicing in the Lord and letting our gentleness, or Christ-likeness, be evident to all has on us. We also explored the importance or knowing and remembering that “the Lord is near,” always. Today we are going to explore the challenge of not being anxious, but instead being at peace. Do you want to be less anxious? Do you want to have more peace? I am going to guess that most of you would like to be less anxious. I am also guessing that most of you would like to have more peace. If so, then today’s scripture reading is for you, and me! Are you ready for less anxiety and more peace?

Today’s scripture reading contains a lot of advice and direction and I thought about several possible starting points. I decided to follow the guidance from a song in “The Sound of Music,” which was my mom’s favorite movie of all time. The song and verse that came to mind is “Let’s start at the very beginning. A very good place to start.” In our case we are not going to start with our abc’s as they did in the song. Instead, we are going to start with “Do not be anxious about anything.” Well that was easy, right? We are just not going to be anxious about anything! Problem solved! Correct?

Unfortunately, in life, as we struggle with anxiety, which often ties into worry, we know that just not doing it is not that easy. It is kind of like trying to stop eating ice cream if you really like ice cream. You say to yourself, I am not going to eat ice cream. Maybe for a while you are successful. Eventually, the day and time will come when you give in and once again eat ice cream. Soon, you are eating more ice cream than you did before you tried to stop eating ice cream! Now this example doesn’t have to be ice cream, so you can fill in the blank with whatever else you have unsuccessfully tried to stop doing on your own. Can any of you relate? If your answer is no, then you may also need to take a lie detectors test!

Fortunately, our advice from Philippians doesn’t stop with just telling us to stop being anxious, about anything! It provides us with more insight and advice. We are to “by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Which prompts an important question. Do we do this? Do we ALWAYS come to our Almighty God in prayer and petition, and present our requests to Him, about anything and everything? Do we also come to God, with thanksgiving? If not, than this contributes greatly to why we struggle with being anxious and end up worrying more instead of worrying less. Do you think you can stop being anxious on your own? I know I thought I could stop eating sweets including ice cream on my own, but have found over the years, that on my own I end up failing. How about you? Do you need God’s help?

God knows we need his help, but he also wants our effort in the process. The scripture starts with “Do not be anxious about anything.” We have a role in not being anxious. We are also not asked to stop being anxious on our own. In fact, we can’t stop being anxious on our own. We need God’s power and help, and He wants us to come to Him, daily and ongoing, through prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, presenting our requests to Him in everything, including our anxiety. I know that was a run on sentence, but it needed to be said! Our only chance to truly win our battle with anxiety and worry is through God! On our own, we are going to eat the ice cream (fill in the blank), or become anxious, again.

Continuing on in Philippians, we are told that God has more advice and good news for us. Not only does God want to help eliminate our anxiety and worry, He wants to replace it with “the peace of God.” This is an amazing gift of peace that can only come from God. This “peace of God” transcends all understanding and guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. When we receive the gift of “the peace of God,” we are able to replace anxiety with peace in our hearts and minds, and worry less! This also results in our ability to “live more!”

In summary, remember and live the advice given to us in Philippians 4:6-7. Do not be anxious about anything, but instead present your requests to God for His help. When we do this, God will guard our hearts and minds, and give us His peace.

Dear Lord,

Thank You for giving us the ability to come to You in prayer and petition. We come to You today, asking for Your help with our challenge of too much anxiety and not enough peace. Help us to rely on You for anything and everything, always!

In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

In closing, please pray daily for Timothy Lutheran Church, JourneyMen, and your walk with Christ.

Your brother in Christ, Dave Smith

Questions for Self-Examination:

1) What is the difference between anxiety and peace?

2) What do you do in your life to try and eliminate or reduce anxiety?

3) What can God do for your anxiety, and peace?

4) Moving forward, how can you become less anxious, and more at peace?

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1 Peter 1:13-25 Be Holy

By Rod Lindemann|2019-02-20T04:59:40-06:00February 20th, 2019|JourneyMen Email, Living God's Word|

1 Peter 1:13-25 Be Holy
¹³Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. ¹⁴As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. ¹⁵But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; ¹⁶for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” ^w
¹⁷Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. ¹⁸For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. ²⁰He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. ²¹Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
²²Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. ²³For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. ²⁴For,
“All people are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
²⁵ but the word of the Lord endures forever.”

Living God’s Word:
Christ was revealed for our sake, to reassure us and to stabilize our faith. In our daily life, we constantly “check out” other people to see where we stand. We worry about how others regard us.
A wife wonders whether or not her husband still loves her, or if he loves his work or something else more. A child wonders if she is loved when her father is too busy to spend time with her. A young man wonders about his date, and the wonder escalates as dating grows serious.
Do you ever wonder about God? What does he think of you?
If so, look at the evidence: God sent his Son for you and raised his Son as sure evidence that you are loved. “Checking out” this relationship gives you every reason for hope and faith.

Words to Live By:
Even before creation, God knew that mankind would fall into sin, reject His ways, live only for themselves, and lead lives that result in death and alienation from Him. In His love, before the world was made, He determined to send His Son, the unblemished Lamb, to be our sacrifice. Now through His Word, He calls us to life and sets us apart to His glory and for the service of our neighbor. God shows us our value: He was willing to send His Son for us. Now He calls us to share the Savior with others.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for the gift of Your Gospel, that through Your Son we are born again, forgiven, and given life everlasting. May we rightly praise You for Your infinite mercy. Amen

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2 Timothy 4:1-8 Turning Back to Forgiveness

By Rod Lindemann|2019-02-16T11:01:33-06:00February 16th, 2019|Living God's Word|

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Living God’s Word:
As he neared the end of his life, Paul could confidently say that he had been faithful to his call. Thus he faced death calmly, knowing that he would be rewarded by Christ. Is your life preparing you for death? Do you share Paul’s confident expectation of meeting Christ? The good news is that the heavenly reward is not just for giants of the faith, like Paul, but for all who are eagerly looking forward to Jesus’ second coming. Paul gave these words to encourage Timothy, and us, that no matter how difficult the fight seems—keep fighting. When we are with Jesus Christ, we will discover that it was all worth it.

Words to Live By:
Faced with the thought of his imminent death, Paul impresses upon Timothy the importance of carrying on where Paul will leave off, preaching the Word faithfully. We should not judge our pastors’ preaching on whether they say the things we personally like to hear. We should judge preaching instead on God’s Word. God’s Word sometimes cuts like a knife when it exposes our sin. But after the Law comes the Gospel of peace, binding up the wounds inflicted by the Law with the sweet Gospel, which proclaims Christ’s forgiveness for all our sins..

Prayer:
Make me an ever-ready hearer of Your Word, O Lord. Do not let me seek preaching that satisfies my sinful desires, but give me preaching that will continually return me to the forgiveness You have given me through Your Son. Amen.

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JourneyMen Event and Bible Study Update

By Rod Lindemann|2022-04-12T09:02:37-05:00February 16th, 2019|JourneyMen Email, Living God's Word|

Take the Lead Event

Do you Walk the Walk, then Talk the Talk? Christians sometimes perform in reverse order. The Bible speaks to how we, as Christian men, are to live our lives in our daily walk of life. Jesus is bold about how we are to go and share with others wheat He has done. Jesus didn’t come to us to be served, rather he came to serve us. We to are called to do more than just lip sync. We are called to action.
Join us for an awesome BBQ meal to kick off the evening, followed by Bible study, a faith story and worship music. It’s an evening to reenergize you faith and put it into action. READ MORE

Thursday, March 14 at 6:30 PM

Registration & Information for Take the Lead – CLICK HERE

Men’s Overnight Retreat
Heit’s Point Lutheran Camp

God was on the move in the beginning creating all and then leading man to move with Him, sometimes even as a cloud. God was on the move when he raised Jesus back to life, and gave us His promised Holy Spirit to help sustain and guide us, daily. God was on the move giving us His Word, and continues to be on the move today through His living scriptures, speaking to us as we read and hear them. God is on the move in us, impacting our daily life, even when we don’t recognize or acknowledge it. God is on the move! The key question is, ARE YOU? Is God not only working in you, but also through you? Are you on the move, with God? If you are on the move with God, then keep moving! If you are not, then Now is the time to move, with God! READ MORE

April 26-27, 2019 –

Registration & Information for Men’s Overnight Retreat – CLICK HERE

Thursday Men’s Bible Study

Book of James
Led by Pastor Mark Wenger
7pm -8pm (2nd and 4th Thursday’s) – Due to Valentine Day, this class will meet this Thursday in room 102
Room 302, R.D. Mize Campus

Saturday Morning Men’s Bible Study

“When God’s Spirit Moves”
Led by Jon Kraft and David Escobar,
8am – 9am,
Room 501, R.D. Mize Campus

Tuesday Morning Bible Study

Men’s Devo – Life Application Study
Led by various leaders
6:30am-7:30am
Wyatt Rd. Campus (Next to the coffee machine!)

Living God’s Word

Living God’s Word

Living God’s Word

JourneyMen,

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. –Philippians 4:6-7

In summary, remember and live the advice given to us in Philippians 4:6-7. Do not be anxious about anything, but instead present your requests to God for His help. When we do this, God will guard our hearts and minds, and give us His peace.

Dear Lord,

Thank You for giving us the ability to come to You in prayer and petition. We come to You today, asking for Your help with our challenge of too much anxiety and not enough peace. Help us to rely on You for anything and everything, always!

In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

In closing, please pray daily for Timothy Lutheran Church, JourneyMen, and your walk with Christ.

Your brother in Christ, Dave Smith

Questions for Self-Examination:

1) What is the difference between anxiety and peace?

2) What do you do in your life to try and eliminate or reduce anxiety?

3) What can God do for your anxiety, and peace?

4) Moving forward, how can you become less anxious, and more at peace?

Take the Lead Event

Men’s Overnight Retreat
Heit’s Point Lutheran Camp

Thursday Men’s Bible Study

Saturday Morning Men’s Bible Study

Tuesday Morning Bible Study

Save The Dates

Upcoming events to mark on your calendar…

June 2019

John 1:35-42 John’s Disciples Follow Jesus

Living God’s Word

John 1:29-34 John Testifies About Jesus

Living God’s Word

John 1:19-28 John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah

Living God’s Word

April 2019

Less Anxiety – More Peace

JourneyMen,

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. –Philippians 4:6-7

In summary, remember and live the advice given to us in Philippians 4:6-7. Do not be anxious about anything, but instead present your requests to God for His help. When we do this, God will guard our hearts and minds, and give us His peace.

Dear Lord,

Thank You for giving us the ability to come to You in prayer and petition. We come to You today, asking for Your help with our challenge of too much anxiety and not enough peace. Help us to rely on You for anything and everything, always!

In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

In closing, please pray daily for Timothy Lutheran Church, JourneyMen, and your walk with Christ.

Your brother in Christ, Dave Smith

Questions for Self-Examination:

1) What is the difference between anxiety and peace?

2) What do you do in your life to try and eliminate or reduce anxiety?

3) What can God do for your anxiety, and peace?

4) Moving forward, how can you become less anxious, and more at peace?

February 2019

1 Peter 1:13-25 Be Holy

2 Timothy 4:1-8 Turning Back to Forgiveness

JourneyMen Event and Bible Study Update

Take the Lead Event

Men’s Overnight Retreat Heit’s Point Lutheran Camp

Thursday Men’s Bible Study

Saturday Morning Men’s Bible Study

Tuesday Morning Bible Study

Save The Dates

Upcoming events to mark on your calendar…

Men’s Overnight Retreat
Heit’s Point Lutheran Camp