December 30, 2018
New Year’s Sunday
The Real “Advent”ure
Begins
Psalm 148
Luke 2:41-49 (The
Voice)
John 3:16; 5:24
(NLT)
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NLT)
Colossians 2:13-14
(NLT)
Romans 8:1,3-4 (NLT)
Matthew 7:21-23
(NIV)
“The Real Adventure Begins-The Rubber Hits the Road”
Let us pray… (Pray for the Spirits
illumination and God to be heard)
A
reading from the Gospel of Luke found in Chapter 2 verses 41-49. Listen to and
for the Word of God for you and me…co-sojourners…on this Adventure of Hope,
Love, Joy and Peace…of Faith…
Read scripture from the
Voice Bible translation…
Good
Morning. Here we are at the end of the year again. Happy New Year a little
early. May the New Year bring you nothing but good and in those bad time may it
bring you peace, hope, you and faith in knowing you never walk alone. At this
time of year, I find myself looking over the past year. Looking at my ups and downs,
trying to see God’s hand on it all. It brings me hope for the New Year knowing
I have a faithful God and if He did it once, He will do it again.
Have I followed God’s
calling in my life? Have I said yes when should have and no when He told me to?
Have I done my best to live as Christ would have me? Have I followed the
Shepherd, no matter the cost? Have I been the hands, feet, love, voice hope of
Jesus to the world around me? Have I gone forth and done likewise? Are
just a few questions I have asked myself in the past few weeks as I have taken
time to contemplate my life and calling. I have also asked what do I want to
bring into the next year? What message am I calling to live out…to share with
those around me?
One
thing I want to bring into the New Year is the attitude of the boy Jesus…
49 Why did you need to look for Me?
Didn’t you know that I must be working for My Father?
I
want to be about my Fathers work…working for God and following the path He has
clearly set before me…It only gets
unclear when I try to see too far ahead. As long as I am looking at what is
right before me it is much clearer…another thing to bring into the New Year…let
God worry about down the road…I am to concentrate and not miss the present
adventure…
When
we look to the future and moving forward for God, it can seem scary. Look at
the world around us. It can be scary to move forward with all that is going on.
Our human nature is to shrink back under the weight of it and to stay in our
comfort zone… But we are meant to stay in our comfort zone. We are called to go
in Jesus’ Name.
One
thing WE are called to share is the Good News of Jesus Christ. WE are to bring
that message to everyone, everywhere. We are to be living testimonies to God’s
grace, hope and salvation. I have been thinking to myself…How are you doing
with that Ruth…are you living what you are preaching?
John
3:16 tells us:
16 “For this is how God loved the world:
He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him
will not perish but have eternal life.
Am
I taking that Good News to all of those around me or am I being selective with
who I am sharing with?
Am
I sharing Colossians 2:13-14…
13 You were dead because of your sins and
because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with
Christ, for he forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the
record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross.
With
those who around me that still sit in darkness?
I
am glad that when we believe that we are able to be with God and have eternal
life…
Romans
8:1-4 New Living Translation (NLT)
Life in the Spirit
8 So now there is no condemnation for
those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you
belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you
from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The
law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful
nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body
like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s
control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He
did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for
us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.
John
5:24 New Living Translation (NLT)
24 “I tell you the truth, those who
listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They
will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death
into life.
But
as I have been contemplating this New Year of faith God brought me to a piece
of Scripture that made me stop in my tracks. A piece of Scripture that He wants
me to hold onto and be the litmus test for my journey of faith in 2019. A
scripture that I think all who believe need to contemplate…
Matthew
7:21-23 New International Version (NIV)
True and False Disciples
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord,
Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of
my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on
that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive
out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then
I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
As
I stated in the beginning…” When we look to
the future and moving forward for God, it can seem scary. Look at the world
around us. It can be scary to move forward with all that is going on. Our human
nature is to shrink back under the weight of it and to stay in our comfort zone…
But we are meant to stay in our comfort zone. We are called to go in Jesus’
Name.”
My
question for myself is…ok I may go in Jesus Name, but do I know Him…more important…does
He know me? I believe this is a question that all who believe should be asking themselves.
Are we counting on our works or our relationship with Jesus for eternal life?
I
would invite you to join me this year to contemplate that question. The answer
will be different for each of us, but my prayer is that we all will hear well
done my good and faithful servant verses the alternative. We are entering into
a New Year…and who knows if Jesus is coming back this year or not. But are you
willing to take that chance?
Amen
-----------------
January 13, 2019
our flesh changed
January 13, 2019
here in the river
January 13, 2019
the sky split open - 2
January 13, 2019
at the Jordan River
January 13, 2019
life changed forever
January 13, 2019
standing in the Jordan River
first 2 stanzas – https://twitter.com/raymondafoss/status/1084536799727362055
second 2 stanzas – https://twitter.com/raymondafoss/status/1084537346073288705
January 13, 2019
marked by my love - 3
January 13, 2019
A Water Mark
January 13, 2019
drenched in the water
January 13, 2019
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Baptism of the Lord Sunday
We are Known by the Water:
Called To Life Anew
Psalm 29
Mark 1:4-11 (The Message)
and sermon, “A Water Mark”
video
text
by Pastor Ruth
Foss
sermon blog
8AM Live
meditation
blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
Children’s Message
by Pastor Ruth
Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten,
ME
January 13,
2019
&
January 13, 2019
Christ made us righteous
January 13, 2019
Christ knows your pain
January 13, 2019
through that Spirit
January 13, 2019
by that grace we receive
January 13,
2019
8AM Live
&
January 8, 2019
we must shine Christ’s light
January 8, 2019
Arise, Shine
Isaiah 60:1
January 8, 2019
We are the light bearers
January 8, 2019
we are called by the light
January 8, 2019
we are called to joy
January 8, 2019
we are known by the light
edited/merged January 7, 2019
I am called Beloved – v2
edited/merged January 7, 2019
I am known by Jesus – v2
stanzas one and two – https://twitter.com/raymondafoss/status/1082248789790986240
third and fourth stanzas – https://twitter.com/raymondafoss/status/1082249062668267520
January 7, 2019
when they found the Christ
January 7, 2019
they followed a star
January 7, 2019
they were filled with joy
January 6, 2019
I am called Beloved
January 6, 2019
I am known by Jesus
January 6, 2019
may God be heard
January 6, 2019
God’s eternal purpose
January 6, 2019
Wise Men, Magi
January 6, 2019
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Epiphany of the Lord Sunday
Epiphany Sunday
Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14
Matthew 2:1-12 (NLT)
Matthew 2:6
-
Micah 5:2
-
2 Samuel 5:2
Isaiah 60:1 (NIV)
Ephesians 3:10-11
and sermon, “Oh,,, Now I Get It”
video
text
by Pastor Ruth
Foss
sermon blog
8AM Live
meditation
blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
Children’s Message
by Pastor Ruth
Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten,
ME
January 6,
2019
&
January 10, 2019
not as the world loves
January 10, 2018
Pastor Ruth’s 8AM Live
8AM Live
&
edited January 5, 2019
Are we standing on grace – v3
edited January 5, 2019
Are we counting on our works – v2
merged January 4, 2019
Are we standing on grace – v2
first 2 stanzas - https://twitter.com/raymondafoss/status/1081161948484513793
second 2 stanzas - https://twitter.com/raymondafoss/status/1081162212809547776
January 4, 2019
Are we standing on grace
January 4, 2019
Are we counting on our works
edited January 4, 2019
Do I know Him – v2
January 4, 2019
Do I know Him – v1
edited January 4, 2019
Does Christ know me – v2
January 3, 2019
Does Christ know me
January 3, 2019
looking forward - 2
January 3, 2019
Pastor Ruth’s 8AM Live
victors, conquerors, in and through
our risen Lord, Jesus Christ
&
January 3, 2019
my repost on Facebook
January 3, 2019
my repost on Twitter
January 3, 2019
"If we live as Jesus taught us, and in harmony
with what we proclaim, our witness will bear fruit."
Pope Francis 1/3/19 7:30am
Pope Francis 1/3/19 7:30am
&
January 2, 2019
Pastor Ruth’s 8AM Live
all about grace, the unmerited gift of God
&
edited January 3, 2019
Get behind me, Satan - 2
edited January 3, 2019
Away from me, Evil
January 3, 2019
Away from me, you sinners
January 3, 2019
I never knew you
Matthew 7:21-23
January 3, 2019
those who listen
John 5:24
merged January 2, 2019
Christ became mortal – v2
January 2, 2019
Christ took on the mantle
January 2, 2019
Christ became mortal
January 2, 2019
Am I sharing
January 1, 2019
are you living the gospel
January 1, 2019
we are called to go
edited January 1, 2019
may I be about my Father’s work – v2
edited January 1, 2019
maybe not as young as Jesus – v2
edited January 1, 2019
I must focus – v2
January 1, 2019
I must focus
January 1, 2019
may I be about my Father’s work
edited January 1, 2019
it is what we do – v2
January 1, 2019
it is what we do
post 12/31/19 on Children of the Light Facebook page
post 12/31/18 on Children of the Light Facebook page
&
January 1, 2019
maybe not as young as Jesus
January 1, 2019
working for God
January 1, 2019
may we filter every thought
edited January 1, 2019
enter in Spirit – v4
(shortened to fit with labels on Twitter)
edited January 1, 2019
enter in Spirit – v3
edited January 1, 2019
enter in Spirit – v2
January 1, 2019
Pastor Ruth’s 8AM Live
&
New Year’s Day
&
December 31, 2018
right before me
December 31, 2018
staring at the calendar
New Year’s Eve Day
&
December 30, 2018
Have I used the power
December 30, 2018
no matter the cost
December 30, 2018
Have I followed the Shepherd
December 30, 2018
Have I done my best
December 30, 2018
reflecting on the year - 2
December 30, 2018
enter in Spirit
December 30, 2018
we come here
December 30, 2018
we will be glad in this day
December 30, 2018
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
New Year’s Sunday
The Real “Advent”ure Begins
Greeting, Announcements, singing Happy 90th
Birthday to Jean Tarr, Opening Prayer
(The opening prayer was inspiration for first 3 poems)
Psalm 148
Luke 2:41-49
(The Voice)
John 3:16; 5:24 (NLT)
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NLT)
Colossians 2:13-14 (NLT)
Romans 8:1,3-4 (NLT)
Matthew 7:21-23
(NIV)
and sermon, “The Real Adventure Begins – The Rubber Hits
the Road”
video
text
by Pastor Ruth
Foss
sermon blog
8AM Live
meditation
blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
Children’s
Message
by Pastor Ruth
Foss
Stetson
Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten,
ME
December 30,
2018
All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted
by Raymond A. Foss, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014,
2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. All rights are reserved. Contact me at Ray
Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for
usage. See all 48,440 of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com
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