John Markum

What I want to say to The Awakening this morning:

Good morning church!

I want to share just a few things with you that were on my heart this morning…

  1. First of all, you are amazingly gifted, loved, and equipped to accomplish everything that God has called you to today. Walk in victory! You are more than a conqueror through Him who loves you! Romans 8:37
  2. We are continuing our series, “Relationships: Mothers, Brothers, and Others” this Saturday by talking about love – just in time for Valentine’s Day. Make it a point to be there this week, and bring a guest with you! We have special gifts for each of our first time guests.
  3. We are having Connecting Point next week, Feb. 19th, immediately after our worship time. Connecting Point is about 30 minutes long, and we provide some food and drinks, and give you an opportunity to learn more about our church family and how you can be a part of what God is doing here.
  4. Take the time to get connected to a ministry! Serve somewhere. Be a part of what God is doing here so that people far from God may be awakened with life in Christ! Mark “Serve somewhere” on the back of your connection card this Saturday and we’ll talk to you about finding a place to serve.
  5. Our website is changing and is a work in progress. It is almost complete, but please be patient as it is under some development. We do still encourage you to check it out, and direct others to the website to learn more about our Saturday night service in the meantime.  qcawakening.com
  6. We still have opportunities for some of you to go on a Missions Trip to Wichita, KS with us this summer (June 5-10). If you would like to consider going on this trip, be sure to grab an information packet this Saturday, and ask me any questions about the trip after the service in the foyer. We will need commitments soon!
  7. Be in prayer for what God is doing in our church! This Saturday, I will take a little bit of time to share with you how God has been leading our senior pastor, staff, and myself, and how that affects our church. I’m very excited to bring this to you, and I am praying now that you will be there to hear it first hand.

Your pastor loves you! I pray for you everyday. I hope that today includes God’s greatest blessings, and opportunities for you to experience His faithfulness like never before. I can’t wait to worship with you again on Saturday!

Blessings,

Pastor John

God isn’t Angry

As a follower of Christ, there have been times where I felt like I was a huge disappointment… to God, my family, myself. “How could God ever bless my life? I mean, look at me! He must be so angry at me. I wouldn’t blame Him. I’m angry at ‘me’ too.”

I’m so grateful that God tells us in Isaiah 55, “So high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways, and my thoughts above your thoughts.” God doesn’t look at us the same way we look at each other, or even ourselves. As followers of Jesus we will fall, but we are never out for the count because “the Lord upholds us with His hand.” In 1 John 1 and 2, the Apostle John writes to other brothers and sisters in Christ and challenges them to live to the potential that God has placed in them. He tells us to “walk in the light as He is in the light.” But he acknowledges that we will occasionally fail, and in 1 John 1:9 gives us the answer to our sin as followers of Jesus, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from every wickedness.” James tells us that if we will “draw near to God” He will “draw near to you.” God has already poured His anger on His Son Jesus Christ, for our sin. We are free from God’s righteous anger. Because of Jesus, we now have access to God and His love, mercy, forgiveness, and healing.

I can be at my best with God in a matter of minutes when I come to Him for forgiveness and healing. We don’t have to live in fear of the anger of God. We just need to focus on being in a right relationship with the One who took the wrath of God on Himself for us. By doing this, we will “be in the light, as He is in the light.”

Blessings,

John

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