Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.
to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.
who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.
who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.
who made the great lights — His love endures forever.
the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.
the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.
to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt His love endures forever.
and brought Israel out from among them His love endures forever.
with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; His love endures forever.
to him who divided the Red Sea asunder His love endures forever.
and brought Israel through the midst of it, His love endures forever.
but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea; His love endures forever.
to him who led his people through the desert, His love endures forever.
who struck down great kings, His love endures forever.
and killed mighty kings — His love endures forever.
Sihon king of the Amorites His love endures forever.
and Og king of Bashan — His love endures forever.
and gave their land as an inheritance, His love endures forever.
an inheritance to his servant Israel; His love endures forever.
to the One who remembered us in our low estate His love endures forever.
and freed us from our enemies, His love endures forever.
and who gives food to every creature. His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.
The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
The Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.
Over the centuries, the Church has understood this to mean that there is only one God. This one God has not only existed from all eternity. He is the one Being who must exist. We also profess our faith in God as Creator of all things visible and invisible. To create means to bring something into existence something out of nothing. In creating, God begins with nothing. Creation, therefore, is Almighty Love, because all the benefits of creation are gained by the creatures, and not by the Creator.
The world is not eternal. The opening words of the Scripture declare, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). And Christ tells the heavenly Father, “You loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24).
Needless to say, God was not obliged to create the world. He was not constrained by anything within Himself or by anything outside of Himself. His only motive for creation was to share something of Himself with the thing he would create.
With this in mind we can understand why the Psalmist put together this chorus of creation by our heavenly Father in Psalm 136 to show how great and eternal is his love for us:
Psalm 136 - Part 1
The Father loved us so much he gave us new life by giving us a way for salvation.
Ephesians 1:3-14 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace. 13b Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.
On Sept. 10, 2010, Brian and Erin (pregnant with their first child) were traveling through Washington to visit family when a vehicle began weaving wildly, headed right for them. Brian swerved to ensure that he would take the worst of the hit as the vehicle slammed into them. He was killed instantly. Had he not made that decision, the collision would have been head-on, likely resulting in the deaths of Brian, Erin and their unborn child. But, instead, Erin and baby are okay, and the baby is now 8 months old. Brian Wood may never hold his baby, but there's no doubt that baby will know the hero who gave it life.
Psalm 136 - Part 2
The Father loved us so much he gave us new hope and the certainty of his love forever.
My name is Mike - His name was Brian, and he was a student at the small high school I attended. Brian was a special education student who was constantly searching for love and attention, but it usually came for the wrong reasons. Students who wanted to have some “fun” would ask, “Brian, are you the Incredible Hulk?” He would then run down the halls roaring and flexing. He was the joke of the school and was “entertainment” for those who watched. Brian, who was looking for acceptance, didn’t realize that they were laughing at him and not with him. One day I couldn’t take it anymore. I told the other students that I had had enough of their game and to knock it off. “Aw, come on, Mike!” We are just having fun. Who do you think you are anyway?”
The teasing didn’t stop for long, but Brian latched onto me that day. I had stuck up for him, and now he was my buddy. Thoughts of “What will people think of you if you are friends with Brian,” swirled in my head, but I forced them out as I realized that God wanted me to treat this young man as I would want to be treated.
Later that week I invited Brian over to my house to play video games. Pretty soon he started asking me questions like, “Hey Mike. Where do you go to church?” I would politely answer his questions, then turn my concentration back to the video games. He kept asking why I was different from some of the kids at school. Finally my future wife, Kristi, who was my high school sweetheart at the time, pulled me aside and said, “Michael, he needs to talk. How about you go down to your room where you can talk privately?”
As soon as we arrived in my room, Brian asked again, “Hey, Mike. How come you’re not like some of the other kids at school?” I knew I needed to tell him about the difference that God had made in my life. I got out my Bible and shared John 3:16 and some verses in Romans with him. I explained that God loved him just the way he was and that He had sent Jesus down to earth to die on a cross, rise from the dead, and make it possible for everyone, to spend eternity in heaven if they believed. I didn’t know if he was comprehending what I was telling him, but when I finished explaining, I asked Brian if he wanted to pray with me. He said he would like that.
We prayed together “God, I know I am a sinner, and that even if I were the only person on earth, You still would have sent Your Son down to die on the cross for me and take my place. I accept the gift of salvation that You offer, and I ask that You come into my heart and take control. Thank you, Lord. Amen.”
I looked at him and said, “Brian, if you meant those words you just prayed, where is Jesus right now?”
He pointed to his heart and said, “He’s in here now.”
Then he did something I will never forget as long as I live. Brian hugged the Bible to his chest, lay down on the bed and let the tears flow down the side of his cheeks. When I cry, my sobbing is very loud, but Brian’s was unearthly silent as the emotions he’d held inside let loose. Then he said to me, “Mike, do you know that the love that God has for me must be like the love a husband has for his wife?” I was floored.
Here was someone who had trouble comprehending things in school, but had now understood one of eternity’s great truths. I knew now that he understood what I had shared with him.
He lay there for another five minutes or so as the salty drops continued to flow. I still remember the incredible feeling I had at that moment knowing that God still works miracles in everyday life.
It was about a week later that everything came into perspective for me. It was then that Brian really opened up to me. He explained that his dad had left him and his mom when he was five years old. As Brian stood on the porch that day, his dad told him he was leaving because he couldn’t deal with having a son like him anymore. Then he walked out of Brian’s life and was never seen again… Brian told me that he had been looking for his dad ever since. Now I knew why the tears kept flowing that day in my bedroom. His search was over. He found what he had been looking for since he was five years old.
Psalm 136 - Part 3
Conclusion
Have you ever wished your life was like a video game? In a game, it never really matters if the car you're driving as fast as you can spins out of control or if the character you're laying gets decimated some other way. With the push of a button, the character springs back to life, and you can start over. No harm done and life just goes on.
We all know that real life is different. Reckless behavior has real consequences. True life story of another man: He says, “Growing up, I made a lot of mistakes I wish I could erase. I didn't always make the right choices. (Actually, I rarely made the right choices.) I hurt a lot of people. One of them was my dad. I told him a long time ago I was sorry for causing him so much grief during those tumultuous teenage years and beyond.
I'm sure he spent many sleepless nights wondering what in the world he was going to do with me, because I was out of control and would not listen to reason.
In my mind, I knew best. I wanted to be independent. I wanted my own way, and if I didn't get it, there was hell to pay.
I left for college with the intention of never looking back, happy to be on my own, away from all that arguing. Away at college, I lived like I wanted to, and all I had to show for it was heartache and regret. A few years into it, I came to recognize that I didn't have all the answers, but I didn't know how to change, and I was desperately unhappy.
This was pretty evident to some of my classmates, who invited me to hang out with them and eventually to visit their church. I have no doubt that this was what my father had been praying for, because that interaction with my Christian classmates changed my life forever. When they embraced me, I was able to watch how they lived, and before long, I wanted to be like them. When they told me that God is a loving, forgiving father who would accept me, I was able to wholeheartedly believe this and embrace God as such.
Why? My dad is a loving, forgiving father.
No matter how much my behavior must have disappointed him (and I know it did), he let me know that he loved me regardless — just as I was right then, right in the middle of my mess. None of the mistakes mattered. He had loved me before I ever made the first mistake, loved me through it all and would actually never stop loving me.
Because of how he has allowed God to change him throughout the years, my father has been able to emulate the trustworthy character of God. And that has enabled me to trust that just as my dad loves me unconditionally and won't walk away when I let him down, God — a loving, faithful father — is just as trustworthy.
Invitation
Have you put your trust in the one who is worthy? Your heavenly father through his Son Jesus? As a father, is your love a characteristic of your life that your children find trustworthy? If yes – keep it up – if not – start this moment / past failures are over and done, live a loving trustworthy life from this moment on.
From the Heart,
Pastor Jeff Cooper
From the Heart,
Pastor Jeff Cooper
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