Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Message from Jim Wolfe, High School Teacher

In preparing for this devotional I happened to remember when I was a teen the times sitting out on the large porch of my aunts country home when we visited in the summer. Most of the time there would be several of us kids out playing and the adults solving all the problems of the world on that porch. Sometimes when I was alone, just sitting there by myself, I could hear and see the glory of God’s nature in the fields and woods around their house. As I think of today’s times, it seems that everyone is so "busy" these days. Long gone are the days when we sat on the porch during the setting sun, listening to the sounds of nature, and solving all the problems of the world.

Some people might thing we are better off now than we were then. I don't know. We seem to have lost the ability to appreciate nature, which is sometimes tough to do in the city.

The following is a poem I came across on the internet that sort of follows this theme. Appreciate what God has given us while we can! It is titled “The Music of Nature”

Have you ever watched kids
On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain
Slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

You better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.

The music won't last.
Do you run through each day
On the fly?
When you ask "How are you?"
Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done,
Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
Running through your head?

You'd better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.

The music won't last.
Ever told your child,
We'll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste,
Not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch,
Let a good friendship die

'Cause you never had time
To call and say "Hi"?

You'd better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift....
Thrown away.

Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music my friends
Before the song is over.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Message from Jan Wolfe, Art Teacher

Psalm 15 ESV
15 O Lord, who shall sojourn in your vent?
Who shall dwell on your holy hill?
2 He who walks blamelessly and does what is right
and speaks truth in his heart;
3 who does not slander with his tongue
and does no evil to his neighbor,
nor takes up a reproach against his friend;
4 in whose eyes a vile person is despised,
but who honors those who fear the Lord;
who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 who does not put out his money at interest
and does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things shall never be moved.

As we enter another round of elections, I am always amazed at the politicians, who want to run for a high office, and then have their past ‘sins’ come to light. In the light, the would be politicians, try to explain their ‘sins’ away, try to cover them up, blame someone else, and get even deeper into the lies of their lives. Eventually these would be politicians end up fading away.
As I read Psalm 15, it occurred to me that if politicians wanted to live a life that would be transparent under scrutiny, just following this Psalm would make it easy. We need to pray for those running for offices at all levels. Pray that those who are eligible to live on God’s “Holy Hill” are the ones elected to live on the political ‘hill’.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Message from Carol Stines, International Director

I have been so blessed by many hymns and Christian choruses. In fact, I have even chosen some songs for my funeral already and, on my tombstone I want this section from a song …
Why should I gain from His Reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom.

We often sing songs and do not really think about what we are saying or promising or confessing or believing. I urge us to really think about the meaning and internalize it. Sometimes at home I’ll sing a song many times. It often takes about the 3rd time through before I really start to comprehend all that I’m singing and see how to make it personal.

How about the song:
The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows
The more that I love him, more love He bestows
Each day is like Heaven, my heart overflows
The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows.

How about:
I’ll never know how much it cost
To see my sins upon that cross

Recently this has meant a lot:
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow
Because He lives, all fear is gone
Because I know who holds the future
And, life is worth the living just because He lives.

I’ll end with this one:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His mercy and grace

Monday, February 13, 2012

Message from Dan Stauffer, JH/SH Math Teacher

"What do you have that God hasn't given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?" 1 Corinthian 4:7

I like verses like this that set me straight on who I am. How prone I can be to boasting in the "great" things I have accomplished! This attitude can make me frustrated or impatient with others, because the focus is on me, and naturally I'm not too sure about you and the way you do things. When I boast in myself, I say through my words and actions that I'm relying on my own strength rather than on who Jesus is and what he has done for me. I need to remind myself that the one whom I always should be exalting is God.

There is, indeed, a good kind of boasting. It is boasting in God. In fact, we can never exaggerate the greatness of God, because he is infinitely greater than all we could ever imagine or describe. When we boast in the Lord, we say through our words and actions that we're relying on Jesus and on what he has done for us rather than on our own strength. We take the focus off ourselves, and we see every good thing in our lives as a gift from him. We realize we have done nothing to earn or deserve the favor of God, but he has chosen to love us (in spite of who we are). Jesus loves us, this we know. What a wonderful God we serve!

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Message from Jamie Ross, Kindergarten Teacher

The Kitchen Sink

“In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Thessalonians 5:18
“To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1

Four and a half years ago, my husband and I were enjoying an Easter sunrise service at the Grand Canyon. When we arrived home, later that afternoon, we walked into a house flood. Three and a half inches of standing water flooded the entire 800 square feet of our home. A pipe had broken. Our house was built in the early fifties. Our home owners insurance would pay for another flood, storage for 3 months and new flooring throughout our home. They wouldn’t pay for bringing our home up to code compliance with new wiring & plumbing. My husband touched one of the pipes in the exposed wall and it fell apart in his hands. So, as you can probably relate, we were on the pay as you go plan.

First we piped and wired up to code compliance. Then we purchased beautiful flooring from Habitat for Humanity & Construction Lots. Two years later, we had a lovely completed bathroom. Our kitchen had a lovely floor, a card table, oven and refrigerator. Our dishes were stored in crates on the floor. We washed our dishes in the bathroom sink and for really big jobs, we used the bathtub.

The kitchen had always been a place of comfort, counseling and fellowship. I asked God; many times to instantaneously provide us with kitchen cabinets and a sink. Nothing happened. My favorite holiday: Thanksgiving would roll around year after year & I would rinse the family turkey in the bathtub.

I was having a pity party & no one came. I realized that I have so much to be thankful for. There are people who walk many miles to get water that isn’t even sanitary.

Christmas 2011 rolled around & I have a beautiful kitchen. My dishes are off of the floor and stored inside beautiful cabinets. I have a lovely, old fashioned washtub sink. I can rinse the family turkey in it. It’s not only big enough for that, I can give my 5 month old grand son, Ryan a bath in it. I could even give my almost 4 year old grand daughter, Hailey a bath in it, although I know that she would not be okay with that.

I even have a dishwasher. I’ve never in my entire life had a dishwasher. I stand amazed in my beautiful kitchen, watching this dishwasher doing my work for me.

What a blessing!!!!!!!!!!! God is so good!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Every thing in His time, for whatever reason. I’ve learned patience, trust & thankfulness!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Message from Michele Reyman, Cafeteria Manager

Growing believers

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it,but GOD made it grow.
1 Corinthians 3:6

God gives each of us gifts and talents. Some of us are seed planters, making an initial contact with a person, perhaps giving them their first contact with a Christian. Another person is the one who waters. This person has a longer contact with the unbeliever, gently watering the seed that was planted, waiting for the water to settle, then watering again. Each of us must do our job and we must work as a team for a seed to be planted. However, it is not any of our responsibility to make the seed grow- only God can do that. If we each do our jobs, He will do the rest.

( One minute Devotions For Women by Carolyn Larsen )

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Message from Janet Preston, Bookkeeper

God’s Plan, Not Ours

Everybody was wrong about the Ark of the Covenant (an item in the tabernacle that represented the throne of God). After losing a battle to the Philistines, Israel sent messengers to Shiloh to ask that the ark be hauled to Ebenezer, the site of their army camp.

When the ark arrived, the Israelites celebrated so loudly the enemy heard them all the way over in Aphek. The ark’s arrival caused the Philistines to fear and the Israelites to have courage.

They were both wrong. The Israelites took the ark into battle and were again clobbered by the Philistines, who captured the ark. Another mistake. The Philistines got sick and their false gods were destroyed.
We can understand the Philistines’ error—they were idol-worshipers. But the Israelites should have known better. They failed to consult God about using the ark. While they knew that the ark was earlier carried in battle (Josh. 6), they didn’t consider that God’s plan, not the ark’s involvement, allowed Israel to defeat Jericho.

No matter our resources, we will fail unless we use them according to God’s plan. Let’s study the Word, pray for God’s direction, and trust His leading (Ps. 91:2) before we step out in any venture of faith.

From Our Daily Bread 2/2/12

Monday, February 6, 2012

Message from Jennifer Pellish, High School Teacher

Taken from TODAY IN THE WORD

Colossians 1:15-17 reads, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

Keith Getty and Stuart Townsend penned the popular modern hymn, “In Christ Alone.” In its second verse, this hymn reflects on the wonder of the Incarnation: “In Christ alone / Who took on flesh / Fullness of God in helpless babe! / This gift of love and righteousness / Scorned by the ones He came to save. / Till on that cross as Jesus died / The wrath of God was satisfied / For ev’ry sin on Him was laid / Here in the death of Christ I live.”

Paul, too, exalted the full deity and humanity of Christ. Colossians 1:15–20 is often considered the climax of this epistle because of its doctrinal and poetic qualities. Paul might be quoting an existing hymn, but it’s also possible he composed the hymn or poem himself. In any case, he asserted that Christ “is the image of the invisible God” (v. 15). This means that although God is a spirit and cannot be seen, Christ became human and made it literally possible to see God. This is also a way of saying that Christ is fully God. Hebrews 1:3 similarly affirms, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”

Christ is also “the firstborn over all creation.” “Firstborn” is a positional metaphor—that is, it doesn’t mean the Son of God began His life at a certain point in time (He’s eternal!), but rather indicates His position as ruler over the created world. This interpretation is confirmed and expanded in the next verse, where we learn that “in him all things were created” (v. 16). Christ’s relation to creation is not only one of authority, but also one of authorship. He spoke it into being and continually sustains it (cf. John 1:14). His preeminence covers the entire created realm, including supernatural beings, a truth that will be applied specifically in chapter two against the false teachings spread in Colossae (2:18–19). In summary, Paul wrote: “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (v. 17). Or as one commentator put it, “Things make sense only when Christ is kept at the center.”

Today’s passage takes us back to Genesis 1 with fresh eyes. Since Christ is the creator and ruler over all creation, then He is the One to whom we as stewards of creation must give account (Gen. 1:28–30). He made it all, and He will make it all new (Rev. 21:5). It can be invigorating and convicting to realize that He is the One holding everything together, that He stands at the beginning and end of history as its Alpha and Omega, and that in Him we actually see God.

Friday, February 3, 2012

Message from Kristin Ornoski, Development Office

Be Still

“Be still,” I hear Him softly say.
“Be still, lay all aside.”
He who made the universe stoops down,
and gathers up my cares.

“Be still,” He chides again.
His work begins within my weary soul.
“Be patient. In quiet stay.
Listen to me.”

Though pressed on every side,
I clear my heart and mind.
In timid voice and heart,
I lift to Him my praise.

How quiet, His presence.
How healing, His words.
In hushed awe, I listen.
I savor each one.

My will, He bends.
My heart, He sweeps clean.
My strength, He renews.
My soul, He fills to overflowing.

He teaches through His word.
I heed what He tells me.
I stand and give Him praise.
Together we go forth to serve.

Anita Corrine Donihue

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Message from Judy Nunez, Administrative Assistant

When recently thinking about God’s provision for us as individuals and as a school the following devotion from Our Daily Bread brought a reminder of how we can always trust Him…

What we see of God’s provisions teaches us to trust Him for what we cannot see of His purposes.

Surprised By God
Ruth 2:17-23

If Naomi had dreamed about returning to her former home prosperous and successful, entering Bethlehem would have been a nightmare. While living in a foreign land, she had lost her husband and two sons and returned with only her daughter-in-law Ruth and a heart full of sorrow. “Do not call me Naomi {pleasant}; call me Mara {bitter},” she told her former neighbors, “for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me” (Ruth 1:20).
But this wasn’t the end of the story. When the discouraged Naomi saw God’s hand in Ruth’s life, she said, “The Lord…has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!”(2:20). What appeared to be a dead-end had become a doorway for these two women who had lost so much.

The Old Testament book of Ruth is a wonderful story. The brief narrative is infused with an amazing sweetness and grace as “the Lord” is mentioned time after time.
Through Naomi and Ruth, we are reminded that God works in surprising ways to make His love known and to accomplish His purposes –even during difficult times.
God’s surprises continue so we can take heart. He has not stopped showing His kindness to you and me. ---David McCasland

He whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best –
Lovingly, it’s part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest. ---Berg