16 Thus says the Lord of hosts: "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. 17 They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, 'It shall be well with you'; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, 'No disaster shall come upon you.'"
18 For who among them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see and to hear his word,
or who has paid attention to his word and listened?
19 Behold, the storm of the Lord!
Wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished
the intents of his heart.
In the latter days you will understand it clearly.
21 "I did not send the prophets,
yet they ran;
I did not speak to them,
yet they prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,
then they would have proclaimed my words to my people,
and they would have turned them from their evil way,
and from the evil of their deeds.
23 "Am I a God at hand, declares the Lord, and not a God far away? 24 Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the Lord. 25 I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, 'I have dreamed, I have dreamed!' 26 How long shall there be lies in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart, 27 who think to make my people forget my name by their dreams that they tell one another, even as their fathers forgot my name for Baal? 28 Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let him who has my word speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat? declares the Lord. 29 Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?
Let's face it, we don't like bad news. We don't like to hear, nor do we like to give it. It usually causes us stress, pain, and grief. At the same time, bad news needs to be told.
Think of the family who lost a loved one in the war. What if no one ever told them that their loved one had died. They'd just be left wondering. What happens when you sin against someone, but instead of that person coming to you and telling you your sin, they give you the silent treatment or the cold shoulder, or worse yet, they leave all together? Is that better?
Or, on a lighter note, what if you went to the bathroom in the morning and got some toilet paper stuck to your shoe, but no one told you, and you walked around all day seeing tons of people? Wouldn't you have wanted the first person who saw you to tell you that you had toilet paper on your shoe, as embarrassing as it may have been?
Certainly, it is much more pleasant to hear good news. It is much nicer when you hear things that are pleasant for your ears. But will those pleasant things really help you when you have something going wrong in your life or need to be confronted with your sin so that you can repent?
There were many false prophets who spoke lies to the people telling them that everything was ok when it wasn't, and the nation crumbled. Jeremiah was speaking the truth as God gave it to him, and they hated him, exiled him, and several times threw him in prison.
You may not be liked when you speak the truth in love, but your conscience will be clear and you will know that you love the person you spoke to. Even better, when you speak the truth of God's love, it never returns to him void. It always does the purpose for which he sent it from your mouth.
So we are called as Christians to speak the truth! It is not acting in love when we hide the necessary truth from a person. It is to no good end when we keep from speaking the truth in love to those who need to hear it.
Stand firm and steadfast in God's Word, even when it's not popular. Live in the truth of God's Word!
Prayer: Lord, help me to hear your word of truth when I need it, even when it hurts, and help me to speak your word of truth with love to those who need it, even when it is uncomfortable, awkward, or painful, so Your truth may be heard. Amen.
__________________________________________________________________________________
CALENDAR
Tues- Quilting 9-2; Open houses for school in Warrenton; First day of school in Montgomery County
Thurs-First day of School in Warrenton and Wright City; Little Lambs Orientation house 8:30-11
Sat- Gun Club Outing at Whetstone Conservation Area 9-noon; Worship 5pm
Sun- worship 8:30; Sunday school 9:45; Worship 11; Elders meeting noon
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
WORSHIP WORKERS FOR THIS COMING WEEKEND:
Acolyte- 8:30- John Pezold 11- Dawn Sherman
Ushers- Allan Dreyer, Lew Feldkamp, Kent Jacobsmeyer, Paul Klover
Altar- Set up- Don Hance; Clean Up- Joanne Hachtel
Elders- Sat- Dave Winter; 8:30- Don Turnure; 11- Jim Rahn
Greeters- 8:30- Dave and Hope Tinnin; 11- Joan Sexton
Lay Readers- Sat- Marcia Sevier 8:30- Lois Boeger; 11- Jim Rahn
Piano- Sat- Barb Dreyer
Projectionists: Sat- Fisher; 8:30- Schaumberg
________________________________________________________________________________
YESTERDAY'S QUIZ: What were Hananiah's, Mishael's, and Azariah's names changed to by the chief official?
Here's some things to know for the meeting:
1. Kent Jacobsmeyer has 2 master plans to present and discuss the potential course of action and timeline in moving forward.
2. Elmer Wind will not be attending Thursday's meeting, I believe we need to make some decisions independent of his guidance to make sure we are going in the correct direction.
3. Kent is excited about the master plans that we have been given to look at, if we need an additional meeting with Elmer he would be available next week.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
https://youtu.be/XQ6yMJvtFsI
Directions to the range: DO NOT follow the signs to Whetstone Creek. If you follow the signs, you will not go to the firearms range. From Warrenton take I-70 to the Williamsburg exit. At the top of the ramp turn right and head north into Williamsburg. At the first stop sign go straight (Sign will tell you to turn left to go to Whetstone Creek CA - do not turn left). At the second stop sign go straight. Road will turn to gravel as you leave Williamsburg. Once road turns to gravel it is approximately 2.3 miles to the range on the right. Parking lot is before the range.
Here's how it works:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.