What the title implies is that there are times, like recently for me, when I get faked out of my expectation of God’s faithfulness.  I’m not saying that I forget God is faithful.  I’m saying His faithfulness stops becoming my expectation.  God’s faithfulness becomes a theological fact only.  And therefore, I find myself back to the place of DUTY.  Now duty is a good thing BUT it’s not the best thing.  Duty says “Do what you must to do the right thing.”  (There are obviously worse things in life!)  But I believe God desires to take us further in our faith.  God says, “He that cometh to God MUST BELIEVE that He is, and THAT HE IS A REWARDER OF THEM WHO DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM.”  Notice the Expectant Faith that is attached to a walk with God.

     Are you in a place of dutifully serving God or are you expectantly serving God???  Do you KNOW God is going to do a work or are you in a place of faithless service?  Believe.  Believe that you are in Christ.  Believe that all of the fullness of the Godhead bodily is in Christ.  Believe that all power in heaven and in earth is given to Him.  Believe that WHAT IS TRUE OF CHRIST IS TRUE OF YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE IN CHRIST.  He will use YOU!  But you must believe and know and rest in that fact.  He will reward your service in Christ.   

I was just reminded of a wonderful promise from Isaiah 54. It ends with verse 17 which states: “… This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.” Take some time and think on this!

Isa 54:1 Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

Isa 54:2 Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

Isa 54:3 For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

Isa 54:4 Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more.

Isa 54:5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

Isa 54:6 For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.

Isa 54:7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

Isa 54:8 In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

Isa 54:9 For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.

Isa 54:10 For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.

Isa 54:11 O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.

Isa 54:12 And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.

Isa 54:13 And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

Isa 54:14 In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.

Isa 54:15 Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.

Isa 54:16 Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

Isa 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

On Sunday I told everyone that there was no Worship Wednesday tomorrow night but I lied!!!  There is.  Bring a friend and enjoy time in God’s Presence as a community.  This is a great escape from your responsibilities and trials and tribulations.  Praise Him for Who He is.  Live your position in Christ.  As you do, you will quickly find your condition beginning to change.  This is a great way to flip the enemy “the bird.”

Tuesday - Way of the Master

Wednesday - Worship Wednesday 7pm at the Point

Friday - Next Level Study at UMKC.  See Andy Castro and/or the Coleman’s for more info.

Sunday at 8 am! - Come to prayer in the Upper Room of the Point.

Sunday at 9 am! - Jeff Adams’ Vision Update at the Main Service.  Come hear what God is doing in our Body.

Other items:

– We are looking for more college folks to get involved in church-wide Connections at the Information Counter once a month during the early service.  Email Deb Neufeld for more info at dneufeld@kcbt.org.

- March 29th is cleaning day at the Park.  We want to get a large group out to the park for a few hours to help prepare for our ministry to our community through our youth baseball/softball league.

– We are looking for Youth League coaches and umpires to make an investment in the next generation.  See Amy Meador for details.

– ASCEND is coming to UMKC on April 3rd.  It is a worship service at Pearson Hall and will include the various Christian groups on campus.  Some of our own students will be playing in the band.  This is a great opportunity for us to engage with other believers.

     I was reading from Proverbs 15 this morning and focused on verse 19:  “The way of the slothful man is as an hedge of thorns:  but the way of the righteous is made plain.”  This verse states that the slothful individual, the person who is slow to move and get to work, the lazy person, has much obstructing the work before them.  Because they haven’t been diligent but have put off their work, their work has built up to become even more work.  It quickly becomes very confusing where to begin because the work now has become overwhelming.  It is like the individual who hasn’t been studying all semester but finds themselves a few days away from the final exam trying to get ready for it. 

     The life of the slothful is an unsure, often confusing life.  Contrast this life with the second half of this verse:  “… but the way of the righteous is made plain.”  When in doubt, move forward.  When in doubt, MOVE!  Pursue God!  Meet with Him.  Then do your school work.  Get up earlier than usual if you need to.  There is nothing like building your day on the foundation of time spent with God.  There is nothing like completing your tasks for the day having honored the Lord with your hard work.  And each day builds on the one before it.  The proverb states that the way of the righteous individual is made clear.  

     And notice something else…  Notice how the slothful individual is contrasted with the righteous individual.  It isn’t the slothful person contrasted with the diligent person.  But that is the implication!  The righteous individual must be diligent or else they wouldn’t be considered righteous.  Paul told Timothy to study to show himself approved unto God, workman who doesn’t need to be ashamed (2 Timothy 2:15).  It is interesting that Paul brings up how Timothy is to study.  Timothy is supposed to be laboring in the Word or else he runs the risk of being ashamed before the Lord. 

     Are you honoring the Lord with this day’s due diligence???  Is “diligence” a word that describes you in your pursuit of God and in your school work? 

Tuesday - Way of the Master training in the upper room of the Point at 7 pm.

Wednesday - H.S. Home Groups and Jr. H “Sold Out” in various locations.

Friday - Next Level Study at UMKC.  See Andy Castro and/or the Coleman’s for more info.

Sunday at 8 am! - Come to prayer in the Upper Room of the Point. 

Other items:

– We are looking for more college folks to get involved in church-wide Connections at the Information Counter once a month during the early service.  Email Deb Neufeld for more info at dneufeld@kcbt.org. 

- March 29th is cleaning day at the Park.  We want to get a large group out to the park for a few hours to help prepare for our ministry to our community through our youth baseball/softball league. 

– March 30th is our church-wide vision conference.  We are asking our students to make it a point to hear what Pastor Jeff Adams is getting from the Lord for our Body.  That means coming to the 9:00 am main service before coming to the Point. 

– We are looking for Youth League coaches and umpires to make an investment in the next generation.  See Amy Meador for details.

– ASCEND is coming to UMKC on April 3rd.  It is a worship service at Pearson Hall and will include the various Christian groups on campus.  Some of our own students will be playing in the band.  This is a great opportunity for us to engage with other believers. 

     I don’t know how many times I have told the Lord that I needed more grace…  I can remember numerous times when that prayer has flowed out of my heart into the heavens.  “God, I need grace!”  In the College reading this morning we read Romans 5 among other things.  Romans 5 is a great passage that teaches us about the cycle of life…  The first part of this chapter states “…knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience experience; and experience hope:”  Each of those elements builds on the one before it.  And it doesn’t just happen once in our lives.  It is a continual cycle.  What does Romans 5 teach us about grace?  And what of this statement of needing more grace???        

     Consider…  We do need more grace.  And the only way for God to create this in us is by stretching us.  David prayed, “God enlarge my heart.”  God is doing that very thing in the lives of His children.  The cycle of life spoken of in Romans 5 is a cycle of growth.  Never forget that God is all about preparing you.  He is building things into your life right now to prep you for what is coming, not only in this life, but into eternity.

     The beginning of Romans 5 tells us that we have ”access by faith into this grace…”  In other words, to get the grace you need to employ your faith.  That’s the point of many of our trials…  More growth requires More grace which requires More trials which requires More faith!  Growth requires you to believe God’s hand in your difficulties and count/believe Him to be faithful.  As you experience His faithfulness you grow in your faith and therefore in that grace!

     Some verses resonated with me this morning.  I’m encouraged because of what the Lord is doing among us and because I sense His chastening hand is being lifted.  - I hope I’m right in that.  God knows.

     Psalms 90:14-17  “O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.  Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherewith we have seen evil.  Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children.  And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us:  and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.”

     There comes a point when God’s hand of correction/preparation has had its effect and you are ready to move to a place of blessing.  It is necessary that the preparation gets done or else you will be incapable of both handling and maintaining the blessing God has for you.  Struggle and suffering are necessary elements to being used of the Lord.  Someone once said, “God cannot use a man greatly until He has wounded him deeply.”  - But praise God it isn’t just about the suffering.  The suffering is just there to help us get to where God really wants us to be.

     The moral of the story is this:  Don’t allow yourself to get discouraged when it seems like key elements of your life are crumbling around you.  It is necessary for God to perform His work in you.  God has a purpose in it and plan for which He is preparing you. 

     P.S.  Question:  When does the butt whoopin’ get over?  Answer:  When you are able to rest there in peace.

Tuesday - Way of the Master training in the upper room of the Point at 7 pm.

Wednesday - H.S. Home Groups and Jr. H “Sold Out” in various locations.

Friday - Next Level Study at UMKC.  See Andy Castro and/or the Coleman’s for more info.

Other items:

– We are looking for more college folks to get involved in church-wide Connections at the Information Counter once a month during the early service.  Email Deb Neufeld for more info at dneufeld@kcbt.org. 

– The Food Drive is in full swing.  You can pick up paper bags to fill with can goods today and March 16.

– March 30th is our church-wide vision conference.  We are asking our students to make it a point to hear what Pastor Jeff Adams is getting from the Lord for our Body.

– We are looking for Youth League coaches and umpires to make an investment in the next generation.  See Amy Meador for details.

– ASCEND is coming to UMKC on April 3rd.  It is a worship service at Pearson Hall and will include the various Christian groups on campus.  Some of our own students will be playing in the band.  This is a great opportunity for us to engage with other believers.