A Life-Changing Passage: Some of the greatest spiritual wisdom, and one of the most important passages in all Scripture, carrying a definite sense of urgency, is the call of consecration and devotion of our lives to Christ, found in Romans chapter 12:1-2: The verses below are taken from the NAS and Amplified Bibles.
“I strongly appeal to you, in view of all the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies, presenting all your members and faculties as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted and consecrated), and well-pleasing to God, which is your reasonable, rational, and intelligent service of worship. Do not be conformed to this world (to this age, it’s ways and culture), but be transformed, changed, by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the perfect will of God.”
Are you and I able to do this? Make a decisive dedication of our entire selves? And realize this is a reasonable, normal and intelligent decision that every Christian needs to make, not some extreme, radical one? To be careful to not love the ways of this world? It isn’t easy, this call. But it is so worthwhile, discovering in the process what the perfect will of God is. Could there be anything more important to find out?
Picture below is why I go on mission trips. Notice the wand made out of a stick.
Prayer Needs This Week…
- Steve Young, who left this morning for northern Thailand and Bangladesh
- Tru and Shari Yamamoto and Linda Ungerland – dental team leaving Thursday for Cambodia and Laos
- Helena Hwang who gave birth to Baby Annalisa this morning
- And the Peru team. See below…
The Expedition: Pray for the team of 54 high schoolers/youth leaders leaving for Peru this coming Friday, led by Pastor Sam. They will be going to a small village called Ucayali on the Amazon River and will live on a houseboat for 10 days. The people there have their own dialect so it will be difficult to communicate but there will be people from an organization called Lifetree Adventures who will assist. Ministry opportunities include building a church, doing children and adult ministries, and interacting with the people in the village. It will be a taxing trip due to the vast amount of traveling time. The youth will definitely be pushed to their limits – physically, spiritually, and mentally. Pray for a safe, healthy and fruitful time. Start praying now that all loose ends will be tied up before leaving. Thanks you.
February 12-21st! Peru Trip
Samuel Ellis
Billy Bohn
Taylor Shipley
Kathryn Hornibrook
Ethan Matott
Stefani Matott
Ryah Arthur
Aria Arthur
Dominque Willette
Joshua French
Sally Ellis
Mark Ellis
Eden Young
Anna Madigan
Joey Colladay
Carson Mitchell
Peter Weiland
Vicky Erazo
Christian Marron
Alli Hinmon
Hunter Johnson
Grace Wellsfry
Sarah Thurin
Julien Thurin
Catherine Clarey
Ryan Meisberger
Sidney Williams-Goldberg
Tamara Houalla
Maya Clemons
Tessa Mansour
Caleb James Hardy
Frankie Cotinola
Gianna Cancellieri
Thomas Gregory
Mia Brisker
Claire Knill
Gordon Pike
Eliana Arthur
Katie Moore
Parker Simpson
Abigail Raether
Carmen Nichols
Colton Bryant
Cayla Henderson
Samantha May
Shiloah Hunter
Jack Parker
Stella LoFranco
Josh Rubow
Morgan Franklin
Morea Arthur
Shane Auguis
Drew Jonus
Isabel Mansour
A Proverb: “Your greatest call in life is not what you are called to do, but what you are called to be.”
And Another: “If someone says something mean about you, live your life so no one believes it.”
Pastor Jay