THOUGHTS TO PONDER

3 REASONS WHY YOU NEED JESUS....

Jesus loves you! He desires to have a relationship with you, and to give you a life full of joy and purpose. Why do you need Him in your life?

1. Because you have a past. You can't go back, but He can. The Bible says, "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8). He can walk into those places of sin and failure, wipe the slate clean, and give you a new beginning.

2. Because you need a friend. Jesus knows the worst about you, yet He believes the best. Why? Because He sees you not as you are, but as you will be when He gets through with you. What a friend!

3. Because He holds the future. Who else are you going to trust? In His hands you are safe and secure --today, tomorrow, and for all eternity. His Word says. "For I know the plans I have for you...plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen" (Jeremiah 29:11-13 TLB).

If you'd like to begin a personal relationship with Jesus today, please pray this prayer :

Lord Jesus, I invite You into my life. I believe You died for me and that Your blood pays for my sins and provides me with the gift of eternal life. By faith I receive that gift, and I acknowledge You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.

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In prayer we can open up, unclench, and let God sweep into our lives with the river of his kingdom and wash away all the things that we’re clinging to so tightly—things that we’d be better off without if only we’d let God re-shape our thinking as we come to him in prayer.

See, this is the thing about prayer: it changes us. Yes, it also opens the door for God's kingdom to be at work in our lives and for God to do things that he wouldn't otherwise do because he doesn't want to force himself on us. But the main point of prayer is to let God change us so that we will be in line with the will of God.

God will give us a whole new perspective and way to think about things if only we will start the process of really letting him in. This is the only way we can have increasing levels of peace and true life in the midst of our everyday circumstances. “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace” (Romans 8:5-6).

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" Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. " Matthew 11:28-30

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"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. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:16-17

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" Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. " 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

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" Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. " 1 Peter 4:8

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Jesus said " I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. " John 14:6

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Jesus said " If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. " John 8:32

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" But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. " Matthew 6:33

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" With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God. " Mark 10:27

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" No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. " 1 Corinthians 10:13

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" When tempted, no one should say, 'God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. " James 1:13-15

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" Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple. " 1 Corinthians 3:16-17

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 " Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."Matthew 6:19-21

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NOT ALONE
by John Fischer

There is hardly any human need stronger than the need to belong. We were created this way. Every one of us came out of a womb screaming for warmth, companionship, and someone else’s heartbeat. We were rudely ripped out of that idyllic existence and thrust into a cold, impersonal, and lonely world. No wonder babies cry. And the rest of our lives are spent trying to find that intimacy again. Everyone knows what this was because everyone had the same experience once being so close to another that a heartbeat was a constant companion and everyone knows that reuniting with others is a part of our common purpose in life. No man is an island.

 Jesus prayed, My prayer for all of them [his disciples and us] is that they will be one, just as you and I are one, Father that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me. (John 17:21)

 We were made to be together. We often think only in terms of our own spiritual lives and forget the fact that God is saving a people to come together for his glory. Salvation is not just an individual matter; it’s a group effort. It is when the Church functions as a whole that we give evidence to who we really are the Body of Christ. That’s the Body of Christ, not the individual of Christ. No one can reflect, alone, who God made us to be. His will is expressed in all of us together. Together we are the Bride of Christ. (My grammar checker doesn’t like that last sentence because this concept challenges even our language. Since when is bride plural? I am not the Bride; you are not the Bride. We are only the Bride in completion with all other believers in history and in the world. This is all part of God’s plan to bring us back together where we can hear each other’s heartbeat and experience the oneness that Jesus has with the Father. Jesus prayed that we would be all wrapped together in our oneness us in Christ and Christ in the Father. I can’t really fathom this; I only know it’s very warm and intimate in there.

 So what does this mean for you and me today? It means we are not alone. We know where we belong. We need to give priority to our relationships with other believers because who we are depends on it. There is no such thing as individual spiritual growth. Check your calendar; arrange some lunches, and invite some neighbors over. Time put into people is time committed to God and his purposes.

Let's do this together, what do you say?

Press on and look up.

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IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A CHURCH TO BE PART OF OR JUST TO VISIT BECAUSE YOU NEED SPIRITUAL ENCOURAGEMENT AND GUIDANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CHECK OUR CHURCH'S WEBSITE OR GO TO THE ADDRESS BELOW :

www.hillcrestassembly.org

HILLCREST ASSEMBLY
6750 State Highway 303 NE
Bremerton, WA 98311
(Across from Walmart in East Bremerton)
Tel. No. : (360) 692-1555
Email    : info@hillcrest.ws