God Can Use You

Have you ever thought God can use you? You are just a young person in the United States of the world, but he can still use you! He has the hairs of your head numbered (Matthew 10:30). He knows all about you, and He loves you!

Look at the last four commandments of the ten Commandments in the Bible:

Thou shalt not kill.                                                                                           

Thou shalt not commit adultery.                                                                     

Thou shalt not steal.                                                                               

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.    

When you honor these or any of the other commandments, God is using you. Others are watching what you do, especially if you have told God you believe in him. No kidding, non-believers are watching what you do and are ready to criticize you. Or, if they are thinking about becoming a believer, they want to know how believers act on a daily basis.

Some events in my life where God has used others are as described here:

                I asked God after I had dated a few men when I was single (dating didn’t turn out to be much fun), to send a gentleman to me if there was someone who would want to have me in their life.

                God used my son to golf with Melissa who needed a room for 2 months and put him in my back yard when she said that. He pointed to my house.

                 God used Melissa after she stayed with me for 2 months. She got married and invited me.

                God used Art and Sue Blackman who lived next door to Bryce Hastings in St. Louis. They invited Bryce to their son’s wedding at the Lincoln Country Club.

                God used Lincoln Blackman because he married Melissa.

                I asked God to help me invite my guests to my 80th birthday party. 

You never know when you are going to be used by God. Everyone who came to the party had such an enjoyable time and saw so many friends they hadn’t seen in a long time. God added several people to my mind to invite. That is just what I wanted when I prayed to Him for help making the guest list. I wanted it to be fun for everyone.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for listening to my requests and responding in ways that were much better than I imagined when I asked. Bryce has been a wonderful blessing for me the last 30 years of my life and we celebrated 24 years of marriage. Thank you Lord for bringing him from St. Louis to Lincoln. Help all my children and grandchildren be used by you in some way. Let them know when their prayers are being answered. Amen.

Sandra Hilsabeck

Sing to the Lord

Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praises to our God on the lyre. Psalm 147:7

Give Thanks to the Lord

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy is everlasting. Psalm 107:1 

God's Creation

And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good. Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. Genesis 1:9-11

In early September of this year, Steve and I spent a couple of days at our family cabin in the mountains outside of Denver. The cabin has been in the family for 62 years and is at 9,000 ft. I have wonderful memories of all those years.

As I was sitting on a large rock watching Steve on a ladder staining a section of the cabin, I started looking at the ground around me and all the trees (aspen, pine, etc.) I picked up small white quartz rocks from the ground and put them in a small bag. I then found and put in my bag small pinecones. The squirrels had not eaten all the seeds out of the cones. I then found an aspen tree with a few yellow leaves. This showed that fall was coming. Those leaves went into the bag. I brought my bag home with my treasures and have shared with others. I will keep these special objects to remind me of the cabin and part of God's creation.

This experience showed me to look always and see God's creation. God's creation is all around us and everywhere I go. Open our eyes and see it all the time. Thank God for the skies, waters, mountains, trees, flowers, rocks, and people.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for creation and remind us to see and be thankful. Amen.

Susan Taylor (reprinted from 2019)

Praise in Music

 Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. James 5:13

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Colossians 3:16

Music brings us together to share our joy and sorrow, to comfort us, to rouse our spirits, to celebrate, and to stir up memories. When we get together with friends of the same “era,” reminiscing about favorite tunes and lyrics tightens the bonds among us. I know a family of musicians who take their guitars and keyboards whenever they gather. Every family reunion is ended with a bittersweet singing of Edelweiss - “May the Lord, mighty God, bless and keep us forever.”

Although solos can be beautiful, the community created when a group of musicians perform is a unique experience. Just like athletes who feel a surge of energy when their team successfully defeats an opponent, choir and orchestra members feel their spirits soar when the climax of the finale is perfect. Individuals who previously had no connection come together to achieve a mutual goal.

Sacred music holds a special place in worship. Everyone has a specific hymn that is meaningful to them. When the initial notes rise from the piano or organ, the warmth of the familiar words and melody comfort us; we join in heartily and create a community of believers sending the message to God. Cantatas and oratorios pull us into the story they are telling. The opening chorus of Beethoven’s “Messiah” can send your heart beating in anticipation of the soaring solos and choruses to come. Whether it’s a traditional hymn written by John Wesley, a stirring gospel or spiritual, or a praise song sung with guitar accompaniment, the shared experience of joining with a congregation to sing affirms our membership in a community with shared beliefs.

A study reported in the Journal of Religion, Spirituality and Aging, found that adults who participated in religious music activities had a greater sense of purpose and meaning in life as well as reduced evidence of anxiety and depression than others who were not involved in spiritual music. Along with the spiritual benefits of music, it can improve our learning, concentration, memory, mental fitness, and reduce pain. The benefits of music affect people of all ages.  Involving and encouraging young children and teens to join a community of music lovers exposes them to the same benefits.

Prayer: Dear God, make us aware of opportunities to sing praise to you. As we join with the community of your believers, let us sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in our hearts to you. Amen 

Carol McClain (reprinted from 2024)

Responding to a Call from God

 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,

    before you were born I set you apart;

    I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” 

“Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.

Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” Jeremiah 1:4-10 

The call of God comes in mysterious ways! I think of a movie, “Field of Dreams,” in which Ray is called upon to build a baseball field in the middle of an Iowa cornfield at the peak of the farm crisis. The risk is that Ray will lose his house and farm. The word comes to Ray by way of a simple whisper to “Build it and they will come.” Or another to “Ease his pain.” Ray had to build the field! 

Additionally, Ray had to go find a writer who had written an article about one of the ball players. That journey was wrought with all kinds of adventure as well.  But Ray faithfully heeded the call and did what had to be done. On this journey, they pick up a young ball player who was meant to be part of this game as well.

Upon their return, they find the ball field completed and legendary players out in the field or at bat! Eventually, everyone is on board with the whole intent of the field, even those who were the “naysayers.” The climax is when Ray sees his own dad in the field and plays catch with him.

Cathy and I were at the Field of Dreams and found it to be a very meaningful experience to see the sight of dreams. A family was playing ball and I even went to bat, two strikes and a base hit!

This experience is of the profound impact and ultimate authority that the call of God can have on us. Ray had to build that ball field! Jeremiah had to respond to the call of God to be a prophet to Israel. The good news is that we have this unshakable call given to us – without excuse!  God will help us and give what we need to do that call in Jesus’ name!

Prayer: O God, let us listen and dare to trust that You have called us for something to do. What will it be? How will we know it’s Your call? Help us to listen, sense the direction of Your Spirit, and dare to say yes, without excuse, through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Rev. Dr. John J. Duling

Our Daily Bread

Give us this day our daily bread Matthew 6:11    

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed it and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." Matthew 26:26 

This week I set out to bake several loaves of bread in my bread machines. This is something I really enjoy from choosing the recipe from my multiple bread machine cookbooks, to putting the ingredients together, to smelling the wonderful aroma of fresh baking bread. Even better is giving them away to family and friends and people I barely know who need a bread hug.

In this process I realized the miracle of bread. How can so many variations of ingredients come out as wonderful bread? How do they all come together in the right consistency? What does yeast do? Why do they need salt and sugar?  I contemplated the thousands of years people of all different cultures have made versions of bread readily accepting the miracle that an edible result would happen. I remembered how the Jews fled Egypt and their bondage so quickly that their bread did not have time to rise and how they continue to recall and include this in their Passover celebrations after all these years. Even Satan tempted a fasting Jesus in the wilderness saying, "You can make these stones turn into bread".

I am sure a scientist could explain to me the chemical and biological reactions that take place during the making of bread, but I still find wonder in the miracle that makes it come out as bread. God has truly blessed us with the miracle of bread in our everyday lives. From our toast in the morning, the sandwich at lunch, and the rolls at special holidays together, this is a miracle we take for granted. Even at the last supper, Christ compared the breaking of bread to the breaking of his body and we celebrate after all these years his words along with bread during communion. 

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we praise you for your loving us so much that you give us the miracle of bread to nourish our bodies as well as our souls. As we pray "Give us this day our daily bread", help us remember your daily miracles around us and be grateful for all you have provided. Amen.

Nancy Hall