CONNECTED Adventist

1 Samuel 8: 6-9

6 But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”

The Proverbs 31 Woman doesn't call any old man her husband. She has for herself a man who ALSO lives up to the Proverbs 31 standard!

Some Christians were spared any damage from the cyclone that was forecast to hit Australia last week. But other Christians weren't. So was it God's favour? His mercy? His judgement? Or maybe it wasn't any of that...

Women are often the ones accused as being seductive, tempting and flirtatious. And they can be. What troubles me when I'm with people discussing lust and temptation is that most of the conversation is about how women are responsible for the temptation men experience and indirectly labeled as the source of the men's lust. The conversation seldomly is about men. Men's power to resit. Men's power to surrender to purity and holiness. Men's ability to take every thought captive. Men's freedom from the carnal heart. The conversations, the Bible studies and the sermons are rarely ALL about men and the power of the Gospel.

I'm promoting all of yous to Saints- Redeemed by the Lamb! You've graduated from school of condemnation and darkness and are walking in the credentials of Jesus' glory and His righteousness! Don't leave the Good News on the bookshelf life. Pull out the Good news and claim it's promises and victory for yourself- EVERY.DAY.

2024 was a bit of a blur. Honestly, by the end of the year I felt so disappointed with the lack of direction and purpose I had. But hey- 2025 here we come!!

Church hurt is a things. But I think we need to use better vocabulary to label what we experienced and what we're trying to define.

As church members how do we show up for our local Pastor when they "fall from grace"? The heartbreaking reality is that if the way we support "fallen" church members is any gauge- then pick up your stone of preference and hold back on the grace. The Lentz's family story was a two edged sword for me. The betrayal and forgiveness this family has experienced and embraced, is much deeper than Carl's infidelity. The scars they'll carry are from more than cheating- it's also from rejection and abandonment from those they called family.