Author Archives: chadzaucha

Happy Friday, everyone.  Hope your weekend is exactly what you need it to be.  Busy day around here tomorrow:  Operation Blessing food distribution and church grounds work day in the morning, final sermon prep in the afternoon, and Upper Room prayer ministry in the evening.  If you are in the neighborhood, come on by.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Exodus 4:1-5:21; Matthew 18:1-22; Psalm 22:19-31;
Proverbs 5:15-21.

Exodus 4:13 (NIV)
But Moses said, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.”

Been there?  Are you there right now?  What if God honored Moses’ request.  Think of all that Moses would have missed.  Most importantly, think of all of the experiences with God Moses would have missed.  What is God sending you to do?  Will you embrace this call and bask in His presence and His provision?

Cleo is off to a great start. She slept in a crate last night with minimal whining. But boy can that dog snore. I am getting a little jealous of all the attention that Christy is giving to her. We would like to give her a new name.  Any suggestions?

Here is today’s Bible reading: Exodus 2:11-3:22&: Matthew 17:10-27; Psalm 22:1-18; Proverbs 5:7-14.

Matthew 17:14-20 (NIV)
When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. [15] “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. [16] I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”
[17] “O unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” [18] Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment.
[19] Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
[20] He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

I would have made a great disciple – not because I am a man of great faith, but because I struggle with faith. The disciples were with Jesus day in and day out, and yet they struggled to believe. But, Jesus didn’t give up on them, and He is not giving up on you or me.  He is daily testing and growing our faith.  And one of these days, He is going to use our faith to move mountains. I pray that day comes very soon.

We finish our first book (Genesis) together today!  Great job.  I keep hearing good reports all around from people who are doing the reading and hearing from God. 

Here is today’s Bible reading; Genesis 50:1-Exodus 2:10; Matthew 16:13-17:9; Psalm 21:1-13; Proverbs 5:1-6.

Matthew 16:18-19 (NIV) 
    And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. [19] I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

It is so amazing to me that no matter how much we human beings get in God’s way and threaten to mess up this thing call The Church, she marches on.  Satan does all he can to sabotage the ministry of The Church–yet, she marches on.  We quickly learn that our understanding of the true nature of The Church is far too small.  The Church isn’t something we attend on Sundays.  The Church is how God moves in the world and accomplishes His infinite purposes.  Those purposes will not fail.   Have you found your place in The Church?  What is your level of commitment to Christ’s Church?

Cleo is a 10 month old Pug visiting our home to see if she is a good fit with the family.  We have to decide tomorrow if she stays or goes.  Hmm….

We are going to “test drive” a 10 month old Pug at our house tonight to see if she is a good fit for our family.  We’ll see…

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Genesis 48:1-49:33; Matthew 15:29-16:12; Psalm 20:1-9; Proverbs 4:20-27.

Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)
Above all else, guard your heart,
for it is the wellspring of life.

Our hearts are such a tender, precious treasure from God.  I believe they are a key element to what it means to be created in God’s image.  Through our hearts, God has given to us the capacity to know Him.  Yet, how careless we can be with these delicate instruments.  We expose them to the sinful influences of the world and hide them from God.  We immerse them in trivial pursuits and neglect the eternal.  They become idols of self-worship and completely miss the purpose of God-worship for which they were created.  Our carelessness leaves them dirty, bruised, calloused, and scarred.  Yet, God in is mercy stands ready to heal–to restore them to be the tender instruments of love they were intended to be.  Would you let Him heal your wounded heart today, and purpose with His help to guard this precious treasure above all else?

Here is today’s Bible Reading:  Genesis 46:1-47:31; Matthew 15:1-28; Psalm 19:1-14; Proverbs 4:14-19.

Psalm 19:7-11 (NIV)
The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
[8] The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
[9] The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever.
The ordinances of the Lord are sure
and altogether righteous.
[10] They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.
[11] By them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.

One of the good things about trials in this life is that the Word of God comes alive during those times in a way that it is different than when you are cruising along comfortably.  Rather than time in the Word being a discipline, it is a treat.  Rather than being something you feel obligated to do, it is something you can’t wait to do.  It becomes your lifeline.  And it does not disappoint.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Genesis 44:1-45:28; Matthew 14:13-36; Psalm 18:37-50; Proverbs 4:11-13.

Genesis 45:7-8 (NLT)
God has sent me here to keep you and your families alive so that you will become a great nation. [8] Yes, it was God who sent me here, not you! And he has made me a counselor to Pharaoh—manager of his entire household and ruler over all Egypt.

God did it.  God had Joseph thrown into a pit, sold into slavery, falsely accused, thrown into prison, able to interpret dreams, and elevated to ruler of Egypt.  There was a good purpose in it all.  Though I’m sure it was often difficult for Joseph to see the good in what God was doing.  Now he is able to look back and see how the pieces fit.  Someday we will be able to look back and see how all the events of our lives work together for good as well.  In the meantime, will we trust God the way Joseph did?

Three weeks in the books for 2012.  Great work everybody.  If you get behind, just pick up where we are today.  Whatever you do, don’t quit.  God has too much blessing in store for you.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Genesis 42:18-43:34; Matthew 13:47-14:12; Psalm 18:16-36; Proverbs 4:7-10.

Genesis 43:8-10 (NIV)
Then Judah said to Israel his father, “Send the boy along with me and we will go at once, so that we and you and our children may live and not die. [9] I myself will guarantee his safety; you can hold me personally responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him here before you, I will bear the blame before you all my life. [10] As it is, if we had not delayed, we could have gone and returned twice.”

I appreciate Judah’s initiative and sense of personal responsibility.  He didn’t wait for someone else to step up.  He took it upon himself.  In this instance, he demonstrated some solid leadership qualities.

It is cloudy today, temps in the low ’60s, and rain in the forecast for tomorrow.  Will winter ever end?

Here is today’s Bible Reading:  Genesis 41:17-42:17; Matthew 13:24-46; Psalm 18:1-15; Proverbs 4:1-6

Proverbs 4:6 (NIV)
Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you;
love her, and she will watch over you.

Who is the wisest person you know?  What makes them wise?  It has been said more than once that our culture is rich in knowledge and poor in wisdom.  How can we turn that tide?  How can we raise wise children and not just kids who know a bunch of stuff?

There is a guy here at the church today looking for some financial assistance.  He volunteered to help with chores or anything we might need help with and is working crazy hard on cleaning up some leaves.  His work ethic has ministered to me today.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Genesis 39:1-41:16; Matthew 12:46-13:23; Psalm 17:1-15; Proverbs 3:33-35.

Genesis 39:2-4 (NIV)
The Lord was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. [3] When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, [4] Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.

Joseph had “it.”  “It” was not great intelligence, great physical prowess, or great wealth (Joseph was a slave after all).  “It” was the Presence of God.  The Presence of God made such a tangible difference in the life of Joseph that people recognized that there was something special about him.  Do people see it in me?  Do they see it in you?  May the Presence of God fill our lives to overflowing.