35 So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember
the great reward it brings you! 36 Patient endurance is what you
need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will
receive all that he has promised.
37 “For in just a little while,
the Coming One will come and not delay.
38 And my righteous ones will live by faith.
But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”
39 But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own
destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.
Numbers 13:25-33 and 14:1-9
25 After exploring the land for forty days, the men returned 26 to
Moses, Aaron, and the whole community of Israel at Kadesh in
the wilderness of Paran. They reported to the whole community
what they had seen and showed them the fruit they had taken
from the land. 27 This was their report to Moses: “We entered the
land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country—a
land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it
produces. 28 But the people living there are powerful, and their
towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there, the
descendants of Anak! 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev, and the
Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country. The
Canaanites live along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and
along the Jordan Valley.”
30 But Caleb tried to quiet the people as they stood before Moses.
“Let’s go at once to take the land,” he said. “We can certainly
31 But the other men who had explored the land with him
disagreed. “We can’t go up against them! They are stronger than
we are!” 32 So they spread this bad report about the land among
the Israelites: “The land we traveled through and explored will
devour anyone who goes to live there. All the people we saw
were huge. 33 We even saw giants there, the descendants of
Anak. Next to them we felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they
14 1 Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they
cried all night. 2 Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest
against Moses and Aaron. “If only we had died in Egypt, or even
here in the wilderness!” they complained. 3 “Why is the Lord taking
us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our
little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us
to return to Egypt?” 4 Then they plotted among themselves, “Let’s
choose a new leader and go back to Egypt!”
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground before the
whole community of Israel. 6 Two of the men who had explored
the land, Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, tore
their clothing. 7 They said to all the people of Israel, “The land we
traveled through and explored is a wonderful land! 8 And if the
Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us safely into that land and
give it to us. It is a rich land flowing with milk and honey. 9 Do not
rebel against the Lord, and don’t be afraid of the people of the
land. They are only helpless prey to us! They have no protection,
but the Lord is with us! Don’t be afraid of them!”
1 Send your grain across the seas,
and in time, profits will flow back to you.
2 But divide your investments among many places,
for you do not know what risks might lie ahead.
3 When clouds are heavy, the rains come down.
Whether a tree falls north or south, it stays where it falls.
4 Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant.
If they watch every cloud, they never harvest.
5 Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the
mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you
cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.
6 Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for
you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or
14 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have
faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save
anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food
or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay
warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food
or clothing. What good does that do?
17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good
deeds, it is dead and useless.
18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others
have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if
you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good
8 Then the Lord said to Elijah, 9 “Go and live in the village of
Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there
10 So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the
village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her,
“Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?” 11 As she was
going to get it, he called to her, “Bring me a bite of bread, too.”
12 But she said, “I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a
single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of
flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I
was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my
13 But Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just
what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use
what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. 14 For this
is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be
flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the
Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!”
15 So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family
continued to eat for many days. 16 There was always enough flour
and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised
1 Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in
his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia. 2 They
are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But
they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich
3 For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford,
but far more. And they did it of their own free will. 4 They begged
us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the
believers in Jerusalem. 5 They even did more than we had hoped,
for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us,
just as God wanted them to do.
6 So we have urged Titus, who encouraged your giving in the first
place, to return to you and encourage you to finish this ministry of
giving. 7 Since you excel in so many ways—in your faith, your
gifted speakers, your knowledge, your enthusiasm, and your love
from us—I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving.
8 I am not commanding you to do this. But I am testing how
genuine your love is by comparing it with the eagerness of the
9 You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though
he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his
poverty he could make you rich.
10 Here is my advice: It would be good for you to finish what you
started a year ago. Last year you were the first who wanted to
give, and you were the first to begin doing it. 11 Now you should
finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the
beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to
what you have. 12 Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it
eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t
have. 13 Of course, I don’t mean your giving should make life easy
for others and hard for yourselves. I only mean that there should
be some equality. 14 Right now you have plenty and can help
those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share
with you when you need it. In this way, things will be equal. 15 As
“Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over,
and those who gathered only a little had enough.”
10 How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again. I
know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn’t
have the chance to help me. 11 Not that I was ever in need, for I
have learned how to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know
how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned
the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full
stomach or empty, with plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything
through Christ, who gives me strength. 14 Even so, you have done
well to share with me in my present difficulty.
15 As you know, you Philippians were the only ones who gave me
financial help when I first brought you the Good News and then
traveled on from Macedonia. No other church did this. 16 Even
when I was in Thessalonica you sent help more than once. 17 I
don’t say this because I want a gift from you. Rather, I want you to
receive a reward for your kindness.
18 At the moment I have all I need—and more! I am generously
supplied with the gifts you sent me with Epaphroditus. They are a
sweet-smelling sacrifice that is acceptable and pleasing to God.
19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your
needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in
20 Now all glory to God our Father forever and ever! Amen.
15 “Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between life and
death, between prosperity and disaster. 16 For I command you this
day to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands,
decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this,
you will live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you
and the land you are about to enter and occupy.
17 “But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you
are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, 18 then I warn
you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a
long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.
19 “Today I have given you the choice between life and death,
between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to
witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so
that you and your descendants might live! 20 You can make this
choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing
yourself firmly to him. This [a] is the key to your life. And if you love
and obey the Lord, you will live long in the land the Lord swore to
give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
14 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of
a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and
entrusted his money to them while he was gone. 15 He gave five
bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of
silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then
16 “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest
the money and earned five more. 17 The servant with two bags of
silver also went to work and earned two more. 18 But the servant
who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and
19 “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called
them to give an account of how they had used his money. 20 The
servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came
forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags
of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’
21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful
servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so
now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate
22 “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came
forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to
invest, and I have earned two more.’
23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You
have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give
you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’
24 “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said,
‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you
didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. 25 I was afraid
I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your
26 “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you
knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t
cultivate, 27 why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least
I could have gotten some interest on it.’
28 “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it
to the one with the ten bags of silver. 29 To those who use well
what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have
an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little
they have will be taken away. 30 Now throw this useless servant
into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of
16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives.
Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing
psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful
hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of
the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Exodus 3:1-12
1 One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law,
Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness
and came to Sinai, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of
the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a
bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was
engulfed in flames, it didn’t burn up. 3 “This is amazing,” Moses
said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go see it.”
4 When the Lord saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God
called to him from the middle of the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
“Here I am!” Moses replied.
5 “Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your
sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. 6 I am the God of
your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God
of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he covered his face because
he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of
my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of
their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I
have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians
and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious
land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the
Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites
now live. 9 Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me,
and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. 10 Now
go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people
Israel out of Egypt.”
11 But Moses protested to God, “Who am I to appear before
Pharaoh? Who am I to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt?”
12 God answered, “I will be with you. And this is your sign that I am
the one who has sent you: When you have brought the people out
of Egypt, you will worship God at this very mountain.”
Exodus 4:1-5
1 But Moses protested again, “What if they won’t believe me or
listen to me? What if they say, ‘The Lord never appeared to you’?”
2 Then the Lord asked him, “What is that in your hand?”
“A shepherd’s staff,” Moses replied.
3 “Throw it down on the ground,” the Lord told him. So Moses
threw down the staff, and it turned into a snake! Moses jumped
back.
4 Then the Lord told him, “Reach out and grab its tail.” So Moses
reached out and grabbed it, and it turned back into a shepherd’s
staff in his hand.
5 “Perform this sign,” the Lord told him. “Then they will believe that
the Lord, the God of their ancestors—the God of Abraham, the
God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—really has appeared to you.”
Matthew 14:13-21
13 As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote
area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and
followed on foot from many towns. 14 Jesus saw the huge crowd
as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them
and healed their sick.
15 That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a
remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away
so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.”
16 But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.”
17 “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they
answered.
18 “Bring them here,” he said. 19 Then he told the people to sit down
on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up
toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into
pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the
people. 20 They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the
disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers. 21 About 5,000
men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!
Ephesians 3:14-21
14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the
Father, 15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16 I
pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower
you with inner strength through his Spirit. 17 Then Christ will make
his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow
down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have
the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide,
how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you
experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand
fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life
and power that comes from God.
20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at
work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or
think. 21 Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all
generations forever and ever! Amen.
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our
merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in
all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are
troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!
14 But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to
lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to
spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet
perfume. 15 Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God.
But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being
saved and by those who are perishing.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
Our weekly connection with each other - fellowship through food, faith, and fun.
Food at 5:00 p.m., bible study and conversation at 6:00 p.m.
All are welcome to join us.
