March Community Church Ministry Newsletter “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.”Exodus 14:15 It was a crucial moment. The children of Israel had left Egypt, and Pharaoh’s army was in hot pursuit. To make things worse, the Red Sea was in the way. The children of Israel complained to Moses, and he cried out to God. God’s answer was quick and direct:“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.”Exodus 14:15 It was a call to faith and action. The children of Israel obeyed, and God did His part. Boy did He ever!Hint: the parting of the Red Sea…We live in troubling times but God hasn’t changed. He wants us to walk by faith, and trust Him for miracles. Community Church Ministry is moving forward by faith! Easter Sunday is April 17th.LORD willing, Community Church Ministry is doing Easter egg hunts in 11 communities in Rome, starting in late March. Here’s what is needed: Your prayers for…
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Think ~ “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.”
Ephesians 4:29
Aretha Franklin, in the song “Think”, famously sang these words:
“You better think (think)
Think about what you’re trying to do to me…”
With apologies to the Queen of Soul, I’m going to replace the word DO with the word SAY.
“You better think (think)
Think about what you’re trying to SAY to me…”
In other words, we need to
“Think before we speak.”
I found a helpful acrostic on LinkedIn this morning.
THINK
T- is it true?
H- is it helpful?
I- is it inspiring?
N- is it necessary?
K- is it kind?
I’m probably not going to remember every word of the acrostic, but I will remember the principle of it. (I did write it down and I plan on using it as a bookmark.)
So, when I’m upset and tempted to say something unkind, I will take a deep breath and… THINK.
Let’s agree with David, who prayed:
“Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.”
“Do not say, “Why is it that the former days were better than these?” For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this.”
Ecclesiastes 7:10
Do you find yourself thinking about the “good old days?” Wishing that things were like they were before?
I think we all do that from time to time. We look at the past with “rose-colored glasses.” In other words, we intentionally forget the bad things.
Billy Joel, in the song “Keeping the Faith,” sang:
“‘Cause the good ole days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.”
The children of Israel were missing the “good old days.” Things were getting hard in the wilderness, so they started complaining to Moses.
“The sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
Exodus 16:3
What they chose to forget was that they were in slavery in Egypt. Back then, they cried out to God for deliverance, because the bondage was difficult and cruel.
They also forgot God’s recent miracles. Hint: parting of the Red Sea, and deliverance from Pharaoh’s army.
It’s ok to think about the past, on occasion. Just don’t live there…
One good thing to remember from the past is God’s blessings, healing, and answered prayer!
