Give Thanks

“Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!  

Serve the LORD with gladness! 

Come into his presence with singing!  

Know that the LORD, he is God!  

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.  

Enter his gates with thanksgiving, 

and his courts with praise! 

Give thanks to him; bless his name!  

For the LORD is good; 

his steadfast love endures forever, 

and his faithfulness to all generations.”

~Psalm 100

Happy Thanksgiving!

One Adoptee's Miracle Story

Over the past three weeks, we’ve taken a close look at God’s heart for the orphan, our responsibility to care for them, and ways in which one can get involved.  So to close out this wonderful series on adoption and orphan care, I would like to share my testimony of God’s faithfulness and bear witness to the power adoption has to transform the life of an orphaned child.

Adopted as Sons and Daughters

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.  And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’  So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”   ~ Galatians 4:4-7

This is the message of the gospel in a nutshell, that God sent His Son to redeem us so that we might become sons and daughters of the Most High God.  Wow!  What love!  What care!  What compassion!  Our response to such amazing love should be like the Apostle John who wrote,

“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!”

Bring Christmas to Children Around the World

Over the past week and a half, we have been studying God’s heart for the fatherless, and how we, His children, can provide care and love in Jesus’ name.  Now as the Christmas season approaches, one great way to give a little something to a child in need is through Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan’s Purse.  While the receivers of these festively wrapped shoe boxes are not necessarily orphans, they are children in poverty with many needs.  So showing them the love of Christ and giving them possibly their very first Christmas gift ever, opens the door of their hearts to the gospel.

To Receive or Reject

In John 12, Jesus was wrapping up His ministry because, as we studied last week, His hour had come in which to truly glorify the Father.  His words, as recorded in verse forty-eighty, were part of a final appeal to the Jewish populous.  Jesus knew that He was heading toward the cross, and therefore, was making one last effort to make people understand who He was and why He had come.   But the question is, do we understand?  Like the Jews of early A.D., we have walked with Jesus throughout His ministry, as we’ve studied the gospel of John.  We’ve watched as Jesus turned water into wine, healed the sick, fed the thousands, made the blind see, and declared that He is the I AM.  Therefore, Jesus’ words in John 12:48 apply to us also.  Have we received or rejected Christ’s words?  Or as literally translated from the Greek, have we taken hold of the teachings and signs Jesus performed or have we disesteemed or brought to naught the things that He said and did while on earth?

We Love Because He First Loved Us

Today is Orphan Sunday—the one day a year when members of the church rise up to spread orphan awareness and ways to care for them. Orphans are not statistics.  They’re not merely by-products of war, famine, tragedy, or disaster.  They are children, created in the image of God and loved by Him, but are the victims of man’s heartbreaking brokenness.

The Least of These

As we discovered in our last Adoption/Orphan Care post, we have been given a divine mandate to care for orphans in their distress.  It is not the responsibility of humanitarian agencies, governments, or institutions, but Christ’s Church, as a whole and as individuals.  It is not something for someone else to do; it is a task WE must do.

Father, Glorify Your Name!

Is your soul weary or troubled?  Are you in the midst of or approaching a difficult journey and don’t know how to go on?  Does your heart want to cry “Save me from this trial!”?  Well, I have encouraging news for you, you are not alone!  Our Savior, Jesus Christ the perfect Son of God, also faced heartache and unrest on the journey to the cross.  In John chapter twelve, we get a glimpse of His inner turmoil and how He managed to continue on the road placed before Him.  So let’s study and learn from our Lord’s perfect example.

Father to the Fatherless

November is orphan awareness month, and Sunday, November 8th is Orphan Sunday.  So starting today, we’re going to take a break from our Who is God? Study and instead focus on discovering God’s heart for the fatherless and needy.