Outreach Center Network News Letter
February 2019
In this issue:
I am with you - A Devotion
A Little Humor
Beautiful Bible Verses for Valentine's Day
A True Friend
Final thoughts
Each article will begin with ###. You may move to the next article by searching for this.
### I am with you
Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you.”
Joshua had just been placed by God as the head of the Israelites at the death of Moses. Just think about it. God asked Joshua to lead the million people. He was asked by God to lead them across the Jordan River, to fight and defeat the Canaanites in the land. That’s a lot to ask. I’m sure Joshua was frightened. A new land; fighting battles.
As we start this new year of 2019 we have battles in front of us as well. There can be a lot that can frighten us. As you think about this year what are some of those battles?
Ask for responses.
People may say: health issues; landlord; lack of money; family.
Back to Joshua. God told him: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you.”
The reason Joshua could be strong and courageous; the reason Joshua did not need to feel terrified or afraid, is the promise God said to him: “for the Lord your God will be with you.” for the Lord your God will be with you. God makes this promise to us as well.
As we consider this New Year and all that it holds, we can and should remember this promise: “for the Lord your God will be with you.”
When Jesus, the Son of God, the innocent Jesus, let himself be bound, beaten and crucified, it was our sins, guilt and punishment that he took. Jesus removed the wall of sin that separated us from God. God has made a promise to you: "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. I will be with you. “He carries this out no matter what the circumstances. For it was when we were in prison, the prison of our sins, fear and guilt that he came, released us from our bonds and opened the door. He now welcomes us into his eternal home.
This promise by our God is repeated in many places in the Bible. In Hebrews 13:5-6 God promises again; Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." 6 So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"
For the Lord your God will be with you. That means in all circumstances of 2019.
Pastor Dave
### A Little Humor
Why should you send your sweetie a valentine?
Because you always heart the one you love!
Visit to Grandma
A grandmother is giving directions to her grown grandson who is coming to visit with his wife:
"You come to the front door of the apartment complex. I am in apartment 14T. There is a big panel at the front door. With your elbow push button 14T. I will buzz you in. Come inside, the elevator is on the right. Get in, and with your elbow hit 14. When you get out I am on the left. With your elbow, hit my doorbell."
"Grandma, that sounds easy, but why am I hitting all these buttons with my elbow?"
"You're coming empty handed?"
### Beautiful Bible Verses for Valentine's Day - Love Scriptures
Taken from the Centerpiece, the February 2018 newsletter of the
Pittsburgh Lutheran Center for the Blind
Valentine's Day can create a variety of emotions for different people. For some it creates great satisfaction celebrating the love you have between you and your friends & family. For others it can cause feelings of loneliness. Whether you are single or in a relationship, let these Bible verses encourage you to celebrate, for God has unconditional and indescribable love for us.
1. "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." 1 John 4:8
2. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
3. "And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." Colossians 3:14
4. "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends." John 15:13
5. "So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her." Genesis 29:20
6. "Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4
7. "To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." Mark 12:33
8. "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good." Romans 12:9
9. "Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth". 1 John 3:18
10. "We love because he first loved us." 1 John 4:19
### A True Friend
(This was sent to me by Kevin at the South Daytona Outreach Center”
Friends; they love you,
But they're not your lover
They care for you,
But they're not from your family
They're ready to share your pain,
But they're not your blood relation.
They are ... FRIENDS!!!!!
A true friend...
Scolds like a DAD...
Cares like a MOM...
Teases like a SISTER...
Irritates like a BROTHER...
And finally loves you more than a LOVER.
### Final Thoughts
In upcoming issues we can and will look at many of the same topics as well as others. If you have questions, thoughts or suggestions, please send them to me or post them on the blind ministry email list.
Pastor Dave