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Today we are talking about overcoming challenges, and looking at the life of David, who as a young boy faced a lion and a bear, and then a giant. I know you are bold and courageous, and whatever God has put in your heart you will be able to accomplish. Do you know that remembering yesterday’s victories gives you courage for tomorrow’s challenges? I don’t know how often you think about it, but confidence comes when you remember success. I want you to think about something that you are really good at. David was a guy in the Bible who did just that. He was facing a real giant, and instead of being fearful, running away, and being defeated, he faced the giant head on, and then took his head off! He had confidence in God because he had seen God help him in the past. He said, I come to you in the name of the Lord, and I’ve faced a lion and a bear and they were no big deal, and neither are you. I’m sure there was some fear that tried to creep into David’s mind, but he faced the giant with confidence, and won battle. How can that help you? You can do the same thing. Remember when God has helped you before, and believe that you will do well again! Remembering past victories gives you confidence that more victories are in sight for you!

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How often do you take a moment and just thank God for being faithful to you? We should make it a daily habit. I was having a “can’t figure out what is going on with my laptop” moment this morning, and was disgruntled, frustrated, and a little bit snippy because I couldn’t get it to do what I needed it to do. In a moment like now, I’m not thinking of God’s faithfulness, or how much joy God has brought to my life. My mind is way far from that. But thanking God for His faithfulness is where it ought to be. I have a great computer, thank God, I have a mind that is sharp (computers and most things technical are a bit of a mystery to me!), and a house that is comfortable, kids that love me even when I snip at them, and a very blessed life. This little blip on my computer screen is a very minor difficulty. A habit is something that we do over and over again, in fact, we do it so much that it becomes a natural response. Can we make our natural response in those frustrating moments, a time for gratitude instead? We can when we mix our natural with God’s super….We can live supernaturally, our response doesn’t have to be like the world’s response. So next time, I’ll do better. I’m speaking words of blessing over my blessed, wonderful, helpful, useful, efficient computer! I hope you’ll speak words of blessing over difficulties in your life too.

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Can you imagine what it would be like to be Samson from the Bible? His choices led to his captivity and his final days were filled with regret. He did some foolish things that he was paying for. If you know the story well, after being tempted and teased by Delilah, Samson had given the secret of his strength away. He was led away by his capturers, was blinded and put in prison to rot. The secret he was hiding was that never since his birth had his hair ever been cut. While the prison guards thought he was rotting away, His hair was growing back day by day. Although he certainly had a past, he had known and had served God before in his life. His last great act of heroism came with his own demise. While the party went on, he was brought out for entertainment. During his imprisonment, his strength had returned and he toppled the structure where the party was happening, and many evil lives were destroyed. Even if we feel we have wasted our lives up to this point, today, things can turn around for you. Bad choices don’t have to determine our tomorrow. We can make good choices today. Broken dreams can become dreams coming true when we determine to do what is right despite our present circumstances. Our choices today will affect tomorrow. Let’s do the right thing now! Obedience to God’s Word always puts us on the pathway to God’s protection and provision.

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Have you noticed in your car how much smaller the rear view mirror is than your front window? It would be really hard to drive looking in the rear view mirror. In fact, our pace would be much slower, and if you went for any great distance, you would get a pain in the neck! God didn’t create us to live in the past! What the rear view mirror is designed to do is to see who is coming up from behind you! Sometimes while driving, we need to be aware that someone behind us is not slowing down, or that they are trying to pass us. Rear view mirrors can give us needed insight and information when we are backing up. They can also be a glimpse of the past…..the good, the bad and the ugly! Being a positive, glass half full kind of person, most of my past memories are good. I unconsciously forget anything bad. Lots of people dwell in, live in, and dwell on the past, so much that they miss the present. And many people only remember the worst instead of remembering how God brought them out and blessed them in the process. We shouldn’t live in yesterday by looking in the rear view mirror. We remember past victories, but we live in the present, fully aware, fully conscious, awake and alive to what God wants to do in and through us TODAY. So be encouraged, your past does not determine your future! While little glimpses every once in a while in your rear view mirror can keep you headed the right direction, your future is much bigger and brighter than your past ever was!

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Amazing Grace Fellowship began with a group of 13 people and our family of 4 at the time, who were committed to building a great church that is reaching the lost, building the body of Christ, and preparing people for ministry, 25 years ago , on May 15, 1988. The ministry mission statement of Helping People and Training People to Help Others encompasses the vision of Amazing Grace. We not only wanted to serve, we wanted to teach and train people to be well equipped to serve others. AGF is here to make a difference! The first 5 ½ years, AGF met at the Y. We were a church on the move! That meant everything was moved in and out each week. The current property on Eastland was purchased and AGF was built at the current location in 1993. The prime property of 60 acres across the street from the church was purchased in 1999 and developed to incorporate and the Master Plan of a large facility for all of Amazing Grace Fellowship’s outreaches including a Bible School and a educational facility on 40 acres. A large addition with a Children’s Wing, a Fellowship Wing, and a Large Youth Church was finished in 2006. The flags of many nations fly in the AGF sanctuary as a reminder of our mandate, not only locally, but to the nations of the world as well. AGF media features the weekly TV show called REAL LIFE on the CBS station KMVT each Sunday Morning at 9:00 AM. KAGF at 105.5 FM is our radio outreach and features teaching and music, 24 hours a day. Great teaching from world- renowned ministries are offered each day, with local daily programming from my husband, Pastor Lynn Schaal, and 4 times a day with me sharing your dailyeword.

It is encouraging to be involved with something that you know God has birthed and anointed. He wants people to know Him, to be found in Him, to grow in Him and to produce fruit for Him. Each individual life matters, and that is what ministry is all about. To be a part of encouraging the body of Christ through this local church for 24 years, is not just a mile marker, it is a living testimony to the goodness of God. Thanks for helping us celebrate Amazing Grace Fellowship’s 25th birthday!

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As a staff, we decided on a theme for our 25th anniversary celebration during the month of May and these words seemed right, “Greater Things Are Yet To Come.” We know that God has great things for our city, our valley, our state and our nation. We are glancing back with joy and pressing forward with anticipation. We have had an outstanding line up of speakers each weekend in May, and Pastor Mark Boer from Life Church Boise will be speaking this Sunday. Looking back to small beginnings keeps you grounded, and it is a great confidence builder. Celebrating past victories gives you the courage to conquer tomorrow’s challenges. Be encouraged today that your future looks bright! Greater Things are YET TO COME

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Do you make it a habit to speak blessings over the people who have influenced, taught or helped you in your past? It shouldn’t be hard to remember people in your life who have mentored you, given you wisdom and direction, discipled you , or pastored you. We all have people in our lives who have made an effort to help us grow…in God, in parenting, in education, in our vocation, or just in living life! Have you taken time to thank God for them, and speak blessing over them? Let’s not take those important people for granted! You are who you are because of them! The word blessing comes from the Greek words eulogia, a compound word of eu and logos. Eu means good and describes something that is wonderful or very pleasurable! The Greek word logos is the English word for words. To speak a blessing is to speak wonderful, pleasurable words about or to someone. As you remember the past, why not do something in the present, maybe even today, to show your appreciation. Words are powerful! Remember that the power of life and death is in the tongue. Speak life words! Today, why not, encourage someone you know with some pleasurable words of blessing.

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How well do you serve? Have you ever been asked that question before? To be a server, a bonus is having the heart of a servant. It is not just expecting things to be done for you, but finding ways to do things for others. People who do great things in life, don’t just think about themselves. They find ways to help people along the way. Great inventions come because someone wants to make life easier for someone else….that is a heart to serve. Things get taken care of around your house, because someone has a heart to serve. If it is not you, someone has probably asked you to serve, you know by …. emptying the dishwasher, putting shoes away, taking out the trash, helping cook or clean up after dinner, or helping with the laundry. Those are normal things that have to be done regularly, or chaos happens. All of these things take someone with a heart to serve to get the job done.

So how does it apply to you? Here’s how. If you develop a heart to serve, life gets to be a whole lot more fun. Not only do you have time to enjoy the good things of life without clutter all around, you get the sense of accomplishment that you have done something to help someone else. Serving others is really what it means to minister to someone. You think that a minister is someone who preaches every Sunday and gives you the Word of God. Well the word minister really means to help. And by helping and serving others, you are doing something amazing….you get to minister to someone’s life. That’s pretty cool. We are so thankful for the heart of a servant in the people who have loved and served in our church all through the years. As we celebrate 25 years this month, we know it is because of people who have selflessly given and served through the years, that AGF has accomplished what we have for the kingdom of God. Blessings and love to you all.

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As believing women, we can walk strong and change our world! So many women around the world do not know the freedoms we know. They are confined, restricted, and bound because of gender. Jesus came to break down walls, and bring freedom as it says in Eph 2:14. God has empowered us to walk strong in the power of His might. Whether you are a man or a woman, don’t ever let anyone underestimate you, and most definitely, never underestimate yourself. When we are strong individually, we can even be stronger as a team. Men and women together can make a difference in our world. Let’s be team mates, not opponents! We have a common goal! Let’s fight for each other, and not against each other!
As we conclude this week think about this:
Women should not feel tolerated, they should be celebrated
They shouldn’t feel shame, they should be honored.
They shouldn’t feel worthless, they should feel valued and cherished.
Let’s make sure future generations of women know who they are in Christ, and feel empowered to do what God has called them to do!

Ps 68:11-12 RSV and the Amplified– The Lord gives the word of power, and the women who bear and publish the news are a great host. God has given His Word, and as women, we are strong enough, bold enough and passionate enough to just believe it and then be doer of the Word. We are a great host! Huge numbers of women are bearing and publishing the Good news! Let’s be empowered to affect eternity!

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We are continuing to talk about how great women are, and here are a few great women you may or may not have heard about:
Irene Selderowa – in Poland during WW2, smuggled 2500 children to safety from a Warsaw ghetto – she died recently at 99 years of age…..she saw herself like anyone else. She knew there was a need and did something about it.

Ginger Behrman – served as a pastor’s wife for many years, and in her retirement years travels the world ministering and giving of herself to the most needy of the world. In the process she raised 5 awesome kids who with their mates are all serving in full time ministry.

Ruth Baker – served along side her husband in the Philippines as a Bible School administrator and missionary. She remained there even after her husband’s death and impacted thousands of Filipinos who now serve in full time ministry around the world. Her son is also a pastor

Suzy Beer – She is a godly woman who raised 3 kids with a love for God, a love for the body of Christ and a love for the world. She loves and gives in her church, in her neighborhood and in her family. She speaks up for those without a voice, and has always had a heart for the elderly, the disabled, and the disadvantaged, and has answered the call to be a woman of prayer. She is my mom!

These women remind me of the Proverbs 31 woman. She was outstanding…..
Managing a household
A great business woman
Hard worker
Profit maker
Dressed family in fine clothes
Strong and dignified
Great sense of humor
Full of wisdom
Never lazy
Children call her blessed!
Her husband had the communities respect!
I know you have women in your life who have many of these awesome qualities. Make sure they know how much you admire and love them today!

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Women are teachers: they teach and train by their actions what is GOOD. The older women are instructed to teach the younger women, is exactly what it says in Titus 2:3. It is the older women’s responsibility to teach the younger women to love, to demonstrate self control, to walk in purity, to show kindness, and how to respect their husbands.
Purity and modesty are almost forgotten words in our society, but I love the tee shirt I saw on a young girl recently, that said, “Modest is Hottest” It does say in I Tim 2:9 – for women to dress modestly. Girls often are learning the wrong lesson from the media, so moms and Godly women need to be the teachers of godliness with modesty. Look to the world and you’ll learn a lesson in what not to wear! As Christian women, we should dress our best for God, for our mate and for our family. It lets them know you understand your value. You deserve to be treated well, and to look nice, and to have good self esteem. When you look good, you feel good! So dress your best – for success! Be excellent, and care enough to look your best! When godly women do that, we are the best teachers around. Younger ladies are watching. We can look smart and stylish, and be a great example for the younger generations.

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