August 2026 Newsletter

Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.

Matthew 20:28

Quotes of the month

We should always look upon ourselves as God’s servants, placed in God’s world, to do His work; and accordingly labor faithfully for Him: not with a desire to grow rich and great, but to glorify God, and do all the good we possibly can.

David Brainerd, 1718 – 1747, American Missionary

If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don’t like, it is not the Gospel you believe, but yourself.

Saint Augustine

I awakened to the gentle whisper of God’s unfailing faithfulness.

Daily Bread of Life Website

The Sabbath is not a burden to bear - it is a grace to embrace.

Charlie Kirk

Earth is only a temporary residence. You won’t be here long, so don’t get too attached.

Rick Warren

If you don’t surrender to Christ, you surrender to chaos.

E. Stanley Jones

And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.

Psalm 50:14

This is a promise indeed!

by Charles Spurgeon

Here is an urgent situation: “the day of trouble.” It is dark at noon on such a day. And every hour seems blacker than the one that came before it. Then this promise is in

season. It is written for the cloudy day.

Here is the gracious advice: “Call upon me.” We ought not to need the exhortation. It should be our constant habit all day and every day. What a mercy to have the freedom to call on God. What wisdom to make good use of it. How foolish to go running about to men. The Lord invites us to lay our cases before Him, and surely we should not hesitate to do so.

Here is reassuring encouragement: “I will deliver you.” Whatever the trouble may be, the Lord makes no exceptions, but promises full, sure, happy deliverance. He Himself will work out our deliverance by His own hand. We believe it, and the Lord honors faith.

Here is an ultimate result: “You shall glorify Me.” Ah, that we will do most abundantly. When He has delivered us, we will loudly praise Him. And since He is sure to do so, let us begin to glorify Him at once.

Jeremiah 33:3

Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

Notes on Jeremiah 685-616 B.C.

by Frank Paul

Jeremiah emphasizes the destiny of every man is determined by his conformity or lack of conformity to God and His plan.

For you harkened upon Jerusalem and Judah and they heard you not. They are lost in their iniquities and have forgotten the Lord; the same Lord that led them out of the land of Egypt when they were in bondage. Oh, how Jeremiah cried and begged God’s people to return to Him, to put away all their false gods and come back to the one who created them. Oh, my Jeremiah, the pain and heartache you felt as your words, the words which the Lord instructed you to say, fell upon deaf ears. Who are these ridiculously stubborn people who refuse to listen to Jeremiah. They are acting like spoiled children.

Are we today in 2026 not behaving similarly. Jeremiah is gone, but his words are still with us. Perhaps we need to re-read Jeremiah in our Bibles to feel again his suffering and to be reminded that the Lord only has so much patience and then out comes His wrath.

Do we somehow think we’re immune from God’s punishment; that could be fatal, fatal for our physical bodies and fatal for our souls. We need to listen to the prophets of old, they had a direct link to our Lord. The same Lord that wants all His children today in our present time to listen to Him.

Would it be so bad to put away our false gods. Okay, so maybe we don’t idolize golden calves, but have we replaced the calf with lust, money, selfishness, et cetera. Do we care for the poor and the widowed, as the Lord’s Son Jesus instructed us? Have we turned our attention to all the social media platforms out there more than reading the Bible? We must catch ourselves and catch ourselves soon.

Jeremiah 12:10, “pastors have destroyed my vineyard.” Today’s pastors are perverting the Word to appease the masses.

12:17, “but if they will not obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation, saith the Lord.” Do we think God doesn’t mean what He says, that would be another grave mistake. Ever wonder why we don’t listen; it’s easier not to.

22:29, “O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the Lord.” The same cry goes out today. Please, listen to God and follow His commandments.

23:24, “Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him?”  We can’t hide our sins from God; He sees it all. Ouch, that hurts. I’m ashamed of my behavior just by typing this. Examine yourself. Be honest. And do something about it.

Questions about The Sermon on the Mount

by Frank Paul

It has been puzzling for many Scripture readers, myself included until I did the research, what Jesus really meant in Matthew 7:6.

“Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.”

At first read this almost sounds contradictory to what Jesus was teaching everyone. His message was to be shared with Jews and Gentiles. Yet here He seems to be saying withhold telling people who are not worthy about His words. Are any of us worthy?

Sometimes when we finally “get it,” we want to tell everyone. Hey, this Jesus person really is the Way, The Truth, and the Life. Hey, listen to this, listen to me and I’ll tell you about this great new discovery I have found.

I believe here Jesus is instructing us to use discernment and discretion. Not everyone is ready to hear His words, much less understand them.

Ever been annoyed when the Jehovah Witnesses come banging on your door; sometimes it’s just too much, it becomes more of a turnoff than being helpful. If we try to ram our newfound feelings down the dog’s throat or feed it to the pigs, they’re liable to spit it back out and chase us away. People are on their own spiritual journey in life and may not be ready to absorb the Good News, or even want to hear it. All we can do sometimes is just plant the seed and move on.

Although Jesus’ words seem a little odd with dogs and pigs, He gets His point across. Yes, love Me; yes, tell others about Me; just be careful you’re not wasting your words on those who truly couldn’t care less. Jesus will find them when their time is right.

(Editor’s note: I know I have used this quote before, but the more I read it, the more it hits home. If you begin to live as this quote suggests, my, my how the worry and anxiety fade away)

When you fully comprehend that there is more to life than just here and now, and you realize that life is just preparation for eternity, you will begin to live differently. You will start living in light of eternity, and that will color how you handle every relationship, task, and circumstance.

Suddenly many activities, goals, and even problems that seem so important will appear trivial, petty, and unworthy of your attention. The closer you live to God, the smaller everything else appears.

Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life

God-Centered Focus

by Alistair Begg

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me, you can do nothing.

John 15:5

Amateur photographers often don’t know what they’re focusing on. They know what they think they’re focusing on – but then the pictures end up containing blurry faces and

buildings askew. Then they may look at their work and respond, “This isn’t what I was pointing at.” But the fact of the matter is, the photos reveal exactly where and how the lens was positioned.

In life’s highs and lows – and every moment in between – the way you and I react to circumstances reveals the angle of our camera lens, the focus of our hearts and minds. The challenge for believers, then, is to live with a focus that is centered on God.

Jesus made it very clear that in order for us to embrace a God-centered focus, we must first understand who we are without Him. In fact, Jesus explained to His disciples that apart from Him they could do nothing; after all, “in him all things hold together” (Colossian 1:17). Our need for Jesus is not partial; it is total. None of us can even breathe without God’s enabling. How can we think of taking credit for any work that He’s done through us? We are absolutely impoverished without divine help.

This principle runs throughout the entire Bible. Moses, chosen by God to lead the Israelite people out of bondage and slavery, was adamant that he couldn’t do the job unless God was with him – and he was right (Exodus 3:11-12). Amos was a keeper of fig trees and a shepherd; he had nothing to contribute to the ministry when God appointed him as a prophet (Amos 7:14-15). Daniel, likewise, with his amazing ability to interpret dreams, was quick to give every bit of credit to God (Daniel 2:26-28). Each of these men recognized his utter dependency on God. In fact, no one in Scripture who achieved great things for God did so without relying wholly on God. For their ability to do the work they were called to do, they looked up rather than looking in.

As Christians called to live with a God-centered focus, we must not ascribe too much attention to ourselves or our abilities, for in doing so, we may very well obscure God’s grace and power in our lives. In Christ, we ought not to boast in our abilities or seek any opportunity to draw attention to ourselves. Instead, we should merely wish to be known as servants of the living God, to be useful in His service as He works in us according to His good purpose, and to point away from ourselves and to Him in all we do and say.

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