Hide and Seek

Be Not Afraid by Greg Olsen

Mommy, Why is God so sad?

What makes you think He is sad?

Most people think He is always happy, but sometimes I see Him crying.

Why do you think He is crying?

Cause there are so many of His children that are hurting!

He doesn't want anyone to hurt. He just wants to take everyone in His

arms and tell them it's going to be okay. He wants everyone to know

how much He loves them...but He's still sad sometimes.

How come?

Because a lot of people don't know He cares.

He can see them and hear them but they can't see or hear Him.

Why?

I think because they hurt too much and they're afraid He isn't real.

What do you think we could do to help?

Maybe if we told them to not be afraid, they would be able to

be brave and look for Him... and you know what?

What?

They would find Him!

How can you be so sure?

Because He doesn't ever hide from us.

You know how we play Hide and Seek and one person hides and the other person seeks?

Well God, He wants us to find Him and so He never ever hides and He always,

always would rather be "it."

How do you know?

Because when we say, Okay, we are going to hide and who is going to look for us?

He always says, "I am."

Meditation for Dedication

This is a beautiful excerpt from the book God Guides by Mary Geegh sent in by Vicki Kelly. May it bless you as you receive the truths contained within it's lyrical prose.

Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit, control me this day, in all I think and do and say - every second along my way. Help me to change for the better and not decay. Help me to repent - to be born anew - so that I may see and turn to Thee, and as a child be - that I may enter into Thy kingdom and live - deny myself, and learn to give.

It was for me that Thou didn’t endure the shame, suffer and die, and rise - that I might laugh instead of cry - that I might sing instead of sigh, that I might love instead of fear, care instead of hate, trust in God instead of worry, walk in the Light instead of Night. Be king, gentle instead of mean. On Thy Holy Spirit let me lean.

Help me to cast the beam out of my own eye, to take up my cross daily, and follow Thee - humbly, lovingly, gaily.

Let Thy Truth make me free: hate-free, fear-free, greed-free. Within my heart and eyes make and keep me pure and true. Lord, use me then to bring Thy cure. Make me a channel of Thy Love, Joy, Peace, and Righteousness.

His answer comes to the “listening man” determined to know and obey God’s plan. “Everyone shall be taught by God.” “God-Control” - that is true Education. “Obedience is the Key.”

My Task: To do God’s Will - to forgive and not complain. Relax instead of strain. Be patient instead of mad; Rejoice and be exceedingly glad. To take up my cross, crucify self and pride, - Let God be my guide.

Christ did not die in vain. He arose - Risen indeed! To supply each soul’s deep need by His Holy Spirit - The Father’s Gift. Accept this Gift of God, and Him who speaks; You’ll never thirst again for that pet-scheme or indulgent dream, stained with guilt, fear, pride and strife -He gives you Power to have New Life. He in you shall conquer.

Be of good cheer - don’t fear - Let Him have control of your heart, body, mind, and soul. Be ye perfect as your Father in Heaven. Listen to Him. Hear Him, Obey Him.“If you love Me, keep my commandments.”

“Deny yourself, take up your cross daily, follow Me.”

“Abide in Me, My words in you, ask what you will, it shall be done.”

“Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness, all the other things shall be added onto

unto you.”

Follow Him up the Hill of Calvary. Behold the Light!

The Abundant Life; the world set free from hate, fear, and greed - men, women, children - God- inspired! God-controlled. The Cross of Christ gives New Birth. His Holy Spirit gives New Life to ALL on earth.

The Government shall be upon His shoulders:

The Crucified risen Lord - born indeed - to save and govern and guide you and me and the whole world with Victory over sin and need.

Lord Jesus, Holy Ghost, make us Thine. “By They Spirit armed and led and skilled - to obey Thy Plan till it be fulfilled.” Thy Redeeming Love for all Thy world. Victory! Victory! Lord, to Thee.

Prayer for the Sheep by Andrea Baine

Matthew 9:36 NIV

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Is my life what you had in mind?

I feel I'm fallin' behind... on the outside I look fine,

My heart is dark as wine,

I look to You, to pull me through

the quicksand of my life... I look to you...to pull me through...

Be the Shepherd of my soul, Shepherd of my soul,

Be the Shepherd of my soul.

Lyrics by Grand Prize

Prayer: Cause us, Heavenly Father, to listen for Your voice. Cause us to reach out to other sheep who need a kind gesture, or a friend. Cause us to yearn for and allow You to be the Shepherd of our souls, to give You full access without our pride putting up a wall; show us where we are trying to hold the rod and staff ourselves and trying to shepherd ourselves or allowing anything else but You to do it, and tear it down Father. Thank You that the battles are Yours LORD, if we will just let You. Thank You for doing it all for us because of Your tender mercies, compassion, and lovingkindness toward us. Thank You that we are Your righteousness by the precious blood of Your precious Son, and in that, we rest. We love You LORD!

1 Peter 2:24-25 NIV

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

Amen.

And All That's In Between

"In between the casually spoken excess and the rare void of silence is a place where our well-intended words strike a chord and hit the mark."

Heavenly Father,

When we break the sacredness of silence that we so often take for granted...may our words be worth waiting for and may they be life-giving to the hearer.

Forgive us for the times we speak and neglect to just listen.

Forgive us for the times we speak because we want people to hear us.

Forgive us for the times we speak before we should have...or didn't speak when we should have.

May we be content when no one is listening...no one is calling...no one is responding...but You.

May we be comfortable in other's silences...in the awkward moments...and in the spaces left unfilled and communication left unanswered.

May we realize our speech and our hearing are gifts from You that awaken us to the world around us and yet desensitize us to it at the same time.

May what we choose to listen to and what we speak out, both be things that honor You.

May what we do and how we live speak louder than words ever could.

Let us not defile our hearing nor waste our words...but rather let us fine-tune our hearing and spare our words so that we listen more and talk less.

And with that being said....

Thank You and Amen, LORD!

And I'll stand in awe of You, Jesus
Yes, I'll stand in awe of You
And I'll let my words be few
Jesus, I am so in love with You

Lyrics from "Let My Words Be Few" by Phillips, Craig and Dean

A Valentine Prayer

Cant stop now, I've traveled so far
To change this lonely life...

I wanna know what love is
I want you to show me
I wanna feel what love is

 I know you can show me...
Lyrics by Foreigner

Father God,
Make us mindful of covenants. Whether it be our relationship with You LORD, our spouse, our children, our relatives, our co-workers or our friends...make us mindful of agreements we've entered into and promised with our hearts to keep.
As Valentine's Day approaches, impress upon our hearts "what love is."
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.

Love is not an emotion, it is a choice. Love covers a multitude of sins but it is never the excuse for them.

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. Love does not count up wrongs that have been done. Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices over the truth. Love patiently accepts all things. It always trusts, always hopes, and always endures. Love never ends.

1st Corinthians 13:4-8

Love is not always easy but true love is always sacrificial. Love cannot lie. Love does not desire, crave or need. Love is the greatest gift because it gives itself.

Love looks like a shepherd, feels as intense as a gale
force wind or as soft and gentle as a lamb, tastes like honey
and sounds like a symphony. Love is not safe, it often
hurts like the other place...but if you let it, it heals and
it whispers peace, it calms the storm, it protects,
defends and it saves lives. Love is that powerful.

Love is when God transcends through our flesh.
Love is His heart overtaking ours.
Devotion is our hearts always desiring it to be so.

~Gina Higgins

To all prayer warriors and members at Riverside,
Below is some e-mails I have recently recieved from Philip in Uganda. As you can see from these, he is under constant and strong attack. The enemy does not want us to be successful in God's plan with these children. My response of encouragement to Philip and a prayer for him follows after the his emails. Please read these and enter into this battle in whatever way the Lord leads.
God Bless
John

Fw: please pray for usHello everyone: dear friends, helpers and partners in heart!

Sunday, January 18 I have been watching God at work in us today. I listened to a sermon last night by Matt Chandler called Divine Love. It is a message based on Luke's account of the sermon on the mount. We all know that we are to love our enemies. Most of us, however, don't have any real enemies in the flesh. We have imagined ones like our siblings or spouses and maybe a boss or irritating coworker. But - we usually don't have anyone set on hurting us or destroying our work. Here in Uganda life is different. I have compared it in the past to the old west. The law and authority can be and usually is bought or at times engages in extortion. It is often not the rule of law but the rule of money. This morning I preached about radical love. I made reference to our experience last Sunday night with the village security man. (I continue to learn more about that issue which centers around the fact that our children are not from here and everyone thinks I am a walking bank.) We all have struggled with how to respond to this challenge (the kids told me today about 3 more random visits this week). Our last memory verse was Romans 8:28. One of the kids, came up to me the other night after all the verses were quoted and repeated that verse to me personally. It was like I was watching God put His hand on a child and direct them to me. I asked what that was for and she shrugged her shoulders as if to say, “I don't know, but you do”. I ate breakfast with the kids (consisting of porridge made with corn flour and small 2” diameter fried cakes). I watched them help each other get ready for church and give me extra fried cakes. While they continued the random quoting of scripture, God woke me up. Ephesians 6! Satan had been trying to derail this ingestion of God's word. As long as we are just doing the social thing – there is not much opposition. Don't get me wrong, the feeding and general welfare of orphans is part of the scriptural mandate – but not the focus. The opposition comes when we do spiritual feeding and training. This is humbling. To be personally responsible for the spiritual well-being of a hundred children. Wow! I have to die and let Him direct me carefully or I lose attention to the real issue.

Thursday, January 22 The challenges have exhausted all of us – so glad our strength is in Him! Financial struggles this week and now our own health. Today, Susan (our director and my right hand helper) was rushed to the hospital in severe abdominal pain. After spending the day on IV's and several injections she went to her mothers' to rest. I arrived at home about 8pm with the girls in the truck and started having pain in my lower back on the right. In only 10 min. I was on the floor and the girls were in tears praying. Susan and her mother came with the car and Ibra helped me get in. On the way I started having pain like I have never known. I was in tears, hoping to die. When we got to the clinic, the doctor gave me two shots and started testing my blood. No malaria or anything else was apparent. After an hour – I felt ok, just very tired. I am home now and Ibra is staying the night across from me. Jessica is watching over Susan. Pray for all our strength and courage. Jessica, our cook and caretaker for the girls; Mohammed and Falida our security man and his wife who cooks as well; Moses, my security man; Ibra, indispensable helper to me and Susan; Esther, my house keeper and helper with the girls; and Susan, our organizer, buyer, and my right hand. God is our provider and healer – Praise His Name! Right now - we need help - it is January and Christmas always takes a toll on giving. Thanks so much for your help in the past and - as God directs - even now.Blessings to all Phil

My response and prayer for Philip:

Philip,
Brother, You are walking on the straight and narrow path of the Kingdom. Our prayers are more and more feverent for your welfare and the battles that are raging around you. Know that you are loved and that we are aware of your struggles. How true is it that so many of Jesus' Words are not relevant to us, because we do not live in places where the enemy's attacks are so unrestrained in physical realm. Philip, know that I am posting this email on the Riverside website and sending out the clarion call of response to our entire community. God Bless.
Sincerely
John


Dear Father God,
We call out for deliverance and protection from the attacks of the enemy against your plans for these children in Uganda. We call down blessing from heaven upon Philip and his team (your team) who are doing your will. Bless them with comfort. Bless them with peace. Bless them with your presence. Bless them with the joy of your Love. Bless them with the continuous filling of your Holy Spirit. Bless them with divine protection. Place a hedge of angels encamped around them, that even their enemies will know that there are more with you than they are against you. Bless Philip with the knowledge that he is not alone, but that all of the saints stand with him and pray for the manifestation of God's will to be done. We call down blessings upon all of these children who you have chosen to be your children. Bless Philip with a taste of the portion of heaven that his faithfulness is bringing not only to these children, not only to Uganda, but to the entire world! May the Truth of your purpose and your plan be as sweet as the sweetest honey on Philip's lips as he speaks your Word. May the fullest of the life which flows from these Words find deep root in their hearts. We know that generations and generations to come are being set free from death by Philip's obedience to your heart. Thank you Jesus for only you bring true life. Amen. Amen

Open Our Hearts to the Ten Commandments

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Holy Lord, we come to you with a spirit of thanksgiving and a desire for renewal in our obedience. We know that we are not perfect, as a community or as individuals, but that we can be made perfect in You, only through the gift of your grace. We thank you that the leadership of this community is dedicated to being real and to stepping out in faith when you ask. As we begin to refresh ourselves with the guidance you gave us through your Holy Commandments, help to open our hearts and our ears to you. We ask that we would not hear and memorize the words, Lord, but also your heart for us through them. We beg that you would pour out your Holy Spirit to show the freedom that comes in obedience to you. Please, Father, convict us in your love so that we might grow closer to the people and the community you created us to be.

Amen

~ Anonymous

 

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” Philippians 4:8

Community Prayer 1/16 "Flowing Milk"

We gathered at the Crossroads and lifted up area

churches, schools and people in the community that

God placed on our hearts.

We prayed specifically for those in need of healing

from mental illness & physical illness.

We lifted up Pastors and leaders for increased anointing,

wisdom and discernment; for them not to grow weary

and to receive supernatural strength. We prayed covering

over them and their families that no weapon formed

against them would prosper.

We lifted up the body of the church to have God's

heart for one another and encourage one another.

We specifically prayed for Smithson Valley High School

and for revival to begin among the young; for it to have a retroactive

effect; for there to be an outpouring of the Spirit and for the faith of the

young believers, teachers and administration to be "activated" so that they will rise up in courage and boldness against darkness and the ways of the world that lead to death. We prayed protection over all the kids; that they would all feel the love of God envelope their hearts and for signs, wonders and miracles to occur revealing Jesus to them that He might be known.

One person saw a pitcher pouring out milk and was reminded later of a scripture

about flowing water and it was the Joel scripture below...we all felt like this was God's heart today.

Please come join us on Friday's at 10 a.m. at the Crossroads building.

      And it will come to pass in that day 
      That the mountains shall drip with new wine, 
      The hills shall flow with milk, 
      And all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water; 
      A fountain shall flow from the house of the LORD 
      And water the Valley of Acacias.

Joel 3:18 NKJV