In Ruth's story found in the Old Testament, her commitment to Naomi had its share of difficulties and sadness, but because of Ruth's commitment to stick by her mother-in-law's side, she saw the victory and blessing found in God. While obedience is the key to God's blessings, it also requires commitment to persevere through the difficulties. We must see that we stay on the Potter's Wheel, believing that any of the pain of change as God shapes us is for our healing and benefit in the end. For as it says in Psalm 126, "those who sow in tears shall

The clay doesn't decide how the potter will shape it, but it is the desire of the potter that shapes the clay. We are the clay and God is the potter. And when we make the choice to stay on the potter's wheel, God will shape us to be who we are truly meant to be since He desires His best for us.

Please listen to Pastor Carl's sermon about the importance of our submission to God's desire to shape who we are, for He knows better than we do.

Our hearts are built very much like a house, with many separate rooms and chambers. And spiritually speaking, we have many rooms in our hearts as well — some rooms we don't mind showing to one another and other rooms we keep locked up.When Jesus comes in our lives, He wants to be invited into every part of our heart. And when we have to open the door to the messy rooms of our hearts, He doesn't condemn us — He wants to help us clean up! Although it might cause temporary pain, we must be willing to let our

Sometimes we can spend much time trying to categorize God's work, but when He demonstrates His power through the gifts of the Holy Spirit, they are all miraculous. Whether its a supernatural act, healing, a word of knowledge, we can keep it simple by confessing that all of God's work is a miracle.

Often God is waiting for us to step forward and choose to be a part of His plan before we can see His power manifested in our lives and the lives of others. We can ask to see miracles from Him, but often God waits for us to participate so He can perform them through us and bless us even more!

Being a member of Christ's church isn't about sitting in a building, but it means that you are actively involved in what God is doing. God gives us all natural abilities, but they are nothing unless He sets us apart to do His work by the power of the Holy Spirit. We can then partner with God and do something greater than we could ever do on our own.

In the time of Israel's captivity in Babylon, God still allowed His people to prosper and be blessed. And we have the same provision in our own lives: although our circumstances may never be perfect, we can still have joy in the Lord and receive His blessings. But it requires us to have wisdom, humility, and hope in God alone. Please listen to our guest speaker and Elim Fellowship President Chris Ball as he shares about God's promises to stretch out the curtains of our lives.

We can observe three types of faith throughout the Scriptures. There is Saving Faith, when God draws us with the Gospel and we respond by believing in Him; there is Scriptural Faith, when the Holy Spirit produces through the reading His word; and the Gift of Faith, when the Holy Spirit moves on our behalf and we simply have the ability to believe.

We could play it safe and simply just accept Jesus in our lives and do nothing else. But wouldn't it be greater to get to Heaven with stories to share of how God was faithful each time we stepped out in His name? The same Spirit that was in Jesus's disciples lives in us today, and God is blessed when we believe in Him and follow His leading.