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Thought for the Week
by Pastor Norman Burger, Jr.
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Yes, There Are Angels
Are not all angels ministering spirits, sent to serve those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14)
There were maybe eight of them, all looking concerned, checking lab reports, talking about vital signs, and planning treatment options. They were University of Michigan doctors, specialists, and nurses at the Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor. And they were hovering over one very sick, very weak infant named Daniel.
That reminds me of another Daniel. He was very old, not very young. But he also was in big trouble. He, too, was facing possible death. In fact, he was facing all but certain death, deposited, as he was, in a den of hungry lions. The idea was to put Daniel in there to kill him. By the Persian king’s decree, that was the fate for anyone who dared to worship any god but the king. Now the king was no god, he was just another man- as flawed as any of us. Daniel just couldn’t worship him- especially to the neglect of the one true God he considered his best Friend and Savior. So he worshiped the Lord, got caught in the act, and was thrown into a den of death.
But Daniel was not alone in that lion’s den. Hovering around him were heavenly experts at providing supernatural care- angels. They did not let those lions near Daniel. You can read about it in Daniel 6.
Yes, there are angels. Yes, there are guardian angels. In fact, their chief role is guarding us. They watch over us constantly and especially in times of trouble. They keep bad things from happening to us. They do more for us than we will ever realize here on earth. And one day they will escort us to heaven. That doesn’t mean that bad things will never happen to us. God is big enough and wise enough to use bad things for good in our lives or in the lives of others. For example, it is hardship that often drives a person to seek God and find in Jesus Christ the greatest truth- that God loves us, forgives our sins, and promises us eternal life. Oh- and never abandons us in our troubles, but cares for us through his holy angels 24-7. As Hebrews 1:14 reminds us, angels are ministering spirits, and the ones they minister to are those who will inherit salvation through faith in Jesus.
God cares for you. You are not alone. Jesus, your Savior is with you. So are his holy angels. You are safe- forever.
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JOIN US FOR WORSHIP:
Sunday: 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
Monday: 7:00 p.m.
(Please take note: There will be NO Monday Evening Services from February 15-April 5, due to Lent.
Please join us for our Lenten worship services
on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. during this time)
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TODAY'S GRACE MOMENT
2/8/10: Set Me Free: It's Congenital
Our church’s gospel choir once played for a conference involving the hard of hearing. A woman told me through an interpreter that she had “heard” music for the first time in her life—we sing and play pretty loud, and by standing up and leaning on a wall, she could “feel” our songs through the wall’s vibration.
Which do you suppose is worse—to be congenitally deaf or to lose your hearing later in life? Is it better to have known light and color at least for a little before blindness sets in, or is it better never to know what you’re missing?
Here’s the worst fear of all: to dread that a congenital disability is a punishment from God. “As [Jesus] went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’” Jesus’ reply brings heartfelt comfort to all who fear that a disability is a punishment: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, . . . but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life” (John 9:1-3).
What an honor it is to be a canvas on which our God can paint a beautiful picture! How much more joyful our lives can be when we are willing to let God use us as we are, broken and limping, blind and deaf, for his agenda of human spiritual rescue.
Complete restoration of our bodies will come later.
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Time of Grace Ministries
This daily "Grace Moment" is provided by Pastor Mark Jeske. If you would like more information or would like "Grace Moments" e-mailed to you daily, please click on the link.
Time of Grace is an outreach media ministry that was founded in 2001 by a small group of committed, focused Christians. The sole mission of this non-profit organization has always been to share the good news of Jesus Christ with as many people as possible through the most advanced technology available.
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Please join us for our:
2010 Mid-Week
Lenten Services
Wednesdays @ 7:00 p.m.
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"We Preach Christ Crucified"
“We Preach Christ Crucified,” taken from the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:23-24, uses texts from the New Testament Epistles to teach us about the events and people involved in the Passion History. “We preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God”
Ash Wednesday, February 17
“The Foolish Wisdom of the Cross”
Based on: 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
Pastor Norman Burger, Jr. -
Shepherd of the Hills Evangelical Lutheran Church
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