Join us as we read through Psalm 13. Everyone has a choice in life. You are either living for you, for the world, or for God. We have to choose that, not just one time as a child, but every single day.

Cell phones and computers are, by now, baked into our society. We use these devices for many things, but one use of this technology is communication. Letters, words, and phrases are chained together to communicate thoughts, concepts, and intent via text, voice, video, etc. For better or worse, we rely on this for daily life. But what happens if these technologies stop working? Most conversation would stop, essentially cutting us off from many friends and family, and leaving us feeling quite alone. One beautiful thing about our Lord, is that He embeds within the human soul all the technology we would ever need to communicate with Him, that is prayer. And if we are in Christ, the reception never faults. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

Decisions... some make them quickly, decisively, and with purpose. Others take their time; they are more slow and methodical, or maybe just indecisive by nature. We make decisions every day. Some are small, and we think that likely, they do not mean much. Others are of a larger caliber with even larger consequences. There is one type of decision though, that transcends all human types and personalities. It impacts even the smallest of decisions and its consequences are enormous. That is, who do we trust?

Join us as we read through Psalm 10. Sometimes in life, we question where is God. Through this psalm, we see that God is here and that we need Him in every aspect of our lives.

The thought that man was not an accidental evolution of primordial stardust, but instead an intricately designed creation of God is amazing. Add to that, this Creator Jehovah God cares for man intimately and is genuinely interested in his life and eternity - just incredible!

The Wonder of wonders, O how could it be? That God became flesh and was given for me! The Almighty came down and walked among men. The Wonder of wonders, He died for my sin.

People judge. We often judge. And we know the Lord judges. "Judgment" as it seems is a fabric weaved into our society and even the whole of life. The difference between how Christians judge and how unbelievers judge should be vastly different in fairness, equity, and reason. Perhaps though, the primary difference should be the fact that we judge ourselves accurately and fairly first so that, when we must judge others, we may judge with clear hearts and minds, and giving grace upon grace when sharing the truth.

Song credit: Safe in the Arms of Jesus by Michael O'Brien

All the "what-ifs" of life can most certainly haunt us. Time is also unforgiving and moves on no matter what. As per cause & effect, we make decisions and then often feel the consequences of those decisions, and sometimes those are quite painful. Hopelessness, despair, and grief have plagued mankind since the fall and we have all had tastes of these unsavory characters in our own ways. So what do we do? Should we analyze, process, over-process, and dwell? Or should we perhaps turn to the Lord?

God's love is enormous, beautiful, and magnificently deep. However, it doesn't change the fact that he hates sin and punishes those who choose to live and die apart from Him. "There is no such thing as 'abstract evil' except in dictionaries and philosophy books" (Wiersbe). The church today must wrestle with these uncomfortable truths, always being faithful to Scripture and to the Lord who authored it. When it has all been said and done, may we be compassionate towards the lost but ultimately loyal to Christ no matter the cost.

Last week, our church stopped for a moment and just breathed in prayer and spent time with each other in the Spirit of the Almighty God - and what a beautiful experience it was. This week, we jump back into the Psalms as King David also reaches out in desperate prayer of reflection on his currently negative situation. Obviously, we today, also have difficult and trying times and experiences. It matters what we run to for comfort and who we trust during these seasons. May David's words be an example for us all as we navigate this thing called life.

Let's pause. Together. In this place. Sometimes, we continue to go on while we actually need to stop. We often add more noise when we crucially need silence. We look horizontally for answers when we should be fervently seeking help from above. So that is what we are doing today... pausing and praying for ourselves, this church, our friends, and the world. Let the people of this church and this community genuinely be able to call Hope Church Mill Creek a house of prayer.