It was a cold, dark, rainy night in Oslo, Norway. We had come to the country to preach and visit with our friends, the Tilleys. Laura, our daughter born with Downs Syndrome, was in her room and we checked on her periodically to make sure all was well. Somehow in between our checks, she left her room, went downstairs, and left the house. We didn’t hear her. After searching the house and all the places she might hide, we went outside. She was not in sight. My heart sank. How were we to find her? Was she safe? My next thought was to pray for divine intervention. We called the police to ask if anyone had seen her. It seems that someone had just called in and reported a little girl walking along the side of the road.

Brother Tilley and my husband hurriedly drove to the place where she was last seen. She was more than a mile from the house. They found her and brought her home. She was wet and trembling with cold. I drew a bath for her to help her warm up. As I prepared her to get in the bathtub, I said, “I am so glad we found you. Thank you, Jesus, for saving Laura!” Surprisingly she said. “Yes, thank you, Jesus.” Laura is nonverbal and to hear her make a complete sentence was amazing. But the amazement was not over, for as she spoke, I turned around and there stood an angel. As I thanked him for keeping Laura safe, he saluted me accepting my thanks and walked off. I will never forget that night for in that moment the supernatural realm opened to me.

I relate this story so that you might understand that the unseen realm of the supernatural is very near us. I think sometimes we have a picture in our minds that Heaven, the spiritual realm of God, is way out there past outer space. This picture creates a barrier and sets God far from us. We do know that the Holy Spirit dwells within us, but we pray and act as though He is far away. This kind of limited and narrow thinking hinders our prayer and faith.

A song comes to mind: “He’s as Close as the Mention of His Name.” He is near, and we realize that when we develop a prayer life that sensitizes our spirits to His presence. When we develop a relationship with God through prayer, we enter a place where the working of the Spirit in and around us becomes the normal and not the unusual. God opens our spiritual eyes to see, and our spiritual ears to hear. Dreams and visions can come readily to us as we mature in the Spirit.

The Bible gives us many instances when the spiritual world was revealed to men and women. Samson’s mother received an angelic visitation announcing the birth of her son. We see Elisha and his servant surrounded by armies. The servant, fearing for their lives, brought the news to Elisha. He simply prayed asking God to open his servant’s eyes. That thin veil that separates the material world from the spiritual world parted and the servant saw the armies of the Lord surrounding them.

In the New Testament, I think of Jesus at His baptism. The heavens opened and a voice proclaimed who He was. There is also the time when Jesus appeared in the room with His disciples; He asked Thomas to touch His riven side and the nail prints in His hands. As Thomas touched the side and hands of Jesus, the veil parted and Thomas cried, “My Lord and my God!”

God draws near to us and opens the door to the supernatural as we hunger for Him and seek Him with great desire.

What can you do differently today to be with Jesus? Do you need to adjust your calendar to include daily prayer? How can you grow in spiritual awareness that the supernatural realm is near? The answer is to spend much time in the presence of the Lord where faith is nurtured and relationship with God established. By the authority of His name, we then can announce the good news of the gospel with miracles and signs following.

However, even with the occurrence of great miracles, walking in intimate relationship with Jesus is the greatest miracle of all. The songwriter sums it up with these words: “Just to walk with Him means everything to me. Just to feel His hand and know He’s leading me.” To walk with Him in the unseen realm is the joy of prayer.

- Cheryl Craft and husband, George, served forty-five years as UPCI missionaries in the European/Middle Eastern region. They are now retired and continuing ministry in Christ Temple, Glendale, Arizona. Cheryl has written a book on prayer, Drawing Near to God, available in English, Serbian, and German languages.

I once heard the following story, and I wanted to share it with you:

A pastor had purchased a piece of property in the country, where he had placed some sheep. When he bought the small flock, a few goats were “thrown in” by the seller. At the time, the pastor thought this was a kind gesture, but he soon realized why the goats were free.

In the middle of his property, he fenced off an area and put-up shelter with food and water for his flock. One morning, he came to check on them and found they had all broken through the fence and were grazing beyond its perimeters. He found the breach, repaired it, and then managed to get them all back inside.

The next day the animals were out again: not that far away, just a few feet outside the fence. He thought to himself that there must be something that they wanted or possibly needed, so he enlarged the border of the fence just enough to include the area where the sheep and goats had been grazing. He said to himself, “Now you will be happy. This is what you wanted!”

When he came back the following day, they were again outside the fence: not that far away, but just beyond the bounds that he THOUGHT would make them happy. He repaired the breach and once more herded them all back inside, only to come back another day and find them outside!

He enlarged the fence yet once more, saying, “O.K., this is where you want to be. The fence is now big enough to accommodate your desire.” But the next day, they were outside the fence again! Through this process, he realized that it was the goats that were the real instigators of these “breakouts” and understood why they had been given to him for free!

The property where he kept his flock was surrounded by a fence and dirt roads. The fence surrounding the property obviously had little ability to keep the sheep and goats in, and the pastor got frustrated and tired of the animals constantly getting out. He figured there would be nothing appealing in the road for them to eat and would, therefore, they would probably be safe enough. So, he removed the inner fence completely. His attitude was, “All right, go ahead and have the whole field! I’ll let them do whatever they want. I know they can get through the main fence, but why would they want to?? They’ll be alright!”

Early one morning, he received a phone call from a neighboring farmer. He said, “Preacher, you had better come down here. You’ve really got a mess on your hands. A pack of wild dogs came through last night, and they’ve slaughtered your flock.”

When the pastor arrived at the scene, he found every sheep and goat dead. Their stomachs and throats had been ripped out, and their carnage was gruesome. The dogs didn’t even eat them; they just killed the flock in blood lust and left them while they yipped and yapped their way.

As the pastor stood there in the midst of the blood and gore, looking at the slaughtered flock, the Lord gave him these words…

“Fences are not just to keep things in; they also to keep some things out.”

I remember a season of my life where I had some serious bitterness towards the virtuous woman.

Does that sound wrong?

Perhaps it was.

She just seemed too good to be true… And my competitive nature demanded that I figure out how it was possible to be THAT good…

That good at running her household.

That good at leading those around her.

That good at creating an enterprise.

That good at being a wife.

That good at being a mother.

That good at being a friend.

That good at keeping her mouth closed and only speaking kindness.

I mean really?!

How could she be that good.

All.

The.

Time.

And so my life quest became to be like her.

The Bible praised her so adamantly that an entire chapter was devoted to her

greatness… How could I aim for anything less?

Verse 29 literally says “Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou EXCELLEST them all.”

She is the best of the best.

She is what every lady yearns to be.

She is the epitome of excellence in womanhood…and yet… her qualities feel…

Dare I say it.

They feel unattainable.

I remember a time so clearly in my late 20s when I was completely feeling overwhelmed by the tasks before me. Being a pastor‘s wife, working cleaning houses, having two young children, trying to do music ministry and other ministries, trying to keep myself healthy, fit, and in my right mind, etc. It just felt like too much.

Jesus and I had a conversation… as we often do… in which I expressed to him my frustration with this proverbs 31 lady and His praise for her.

In prayer, I began to pour out my annoyances (which is the place you should pour out your annoyances… and not to other people… but that’s another topic for another day). 😉

I poured out my frustration at how capable she was and how good she was at things, how everyone loved her, how she had all these wonderful traits that left me feeling defeated.

How could I ever be THAT good?!

As I was whining, I literally said to God “I mean really, The Bible says that "her candle goeth not out by night" and a couple versus before it says that "she rises also while it is yet night". Does she not even sleep? Is that what you expect for me? Not to even sleep?!

I immediately felt God check me in my spirit and so I went quiet to listen to what he wanted to say.

It was in that moment that God helped me to understand that while the virtuous woman was all of those things…

She was industrious.

She stayed up late. She got up early.

She made clothing.

She bought fields.

She entertained people.

She was a constant blessing to her family.

And more…

While she was all of those things. That didn’t means that she did all of those things in the same day!

NOT in a single day!

She was all of those things in an ENTIRE LIFETIME.

Not in a single day.

Not in a single week.

Not even in a single year.

In a lifetime.

Wherever you are today, take heart in the fact that you do not have to be everything in the same day. In truth, you literally cannot be.

God only gave you 24 hours in the day.

And he created you with a need for sleep and a need for rest from your labor. If God had wanted you to work constantly, he would not have created you with the need for rest.

But, He also created you to work diligently 6-days a week; to build, to grow, to give, to learn, and to walk daily with Him.

One step at a time.

One day at a time.

Aiming for something that you may spend a lifetime on.

Use those hours wisely. Redeem the time.

Keep pressing and trying and working.

But we should also give ourselves grace.

Rome wasn’t built in a day.

And the virtuous woman wasn’t commended of all her attributes in a day.

Some things take a lifetime.

Keep working.

Keep pressing.

Become the virtuous person who slowly but surely “masters” every area of their life and spirit in worship unto God.

- Jackie Dornbach

The founding fathers of this country fought and died for the freedoms that we enjoy today. The brave men and women of our nation's military have fought to protect those freedoms. We must never forget the sacrifices that were made, and we must not take for granted the freedoms that we have.

In the same vein, the disciples and the early church fought and died for the truth to be spread to everyone. The modern pioneers of the Apostolic faith made it their mission to restore what had been somewhat forgotten. The battles that they fought paved the way for the truth and revelation that we know today. We still have our own battles to fight. We still have victories to be won, but we are further today because of what others did before us.

We are currently living in a world where we know freedom and "rights" are fragile. As we celebrate our freedom as a country, let us also take a moment to also celebrate the freedom and victory that we have in Jesus.

- Noah & Calandra James

Looking in a mirror is not my favorite activity. I often find myself rerouting my path when a mirror lies ahead. Often times, in the world of “selfies” I think I am alone. But actually, we are all like that - just maybe the mirror we commonly avoid is not the physical mirror, but the mirror of self-reflection.

I read a book once and the part of the book I never forgot was when the author was talking about how she was self-reflecting and realized that she wasn’t the most intelligent person in the room, she wasn’t the funniest person in the room, she wasn’t the prettiest person in the room, she wasn’t the most talented person in the room; But she could always be the most competent person in the room and she could always be counted on to take care of everything and I really got that. That resonated with me. I pride myself on competence. Sometimes, I think I worry about coming to the end of things and have others think, “Tiffany was stupid. Literally, she was a fool again.” I just don’t want to be incompetent.

I was sharing this thought recently with a friend and she promptly stopped me. She said she didn’t think it was good for me to ruminate or relate to the thoughts from this book. She said, "You are not any one thing. I do not want you to think you are any one thing. You are not only competent - you are all the things. You are exactly who and what you need to be. You are everything through God. Literally, you are everything you need to be."

I will not ever forget that. What I was talking to my friend about was not about any actual deep-rooted or conceived insecurity. Yet, she recognized how damaging my ruminating on this thought from this book was. And, she put on her gardening gloves and pulled out my problem by it’s root.

You know you can remove weeds out of other peoples hearts and minds with your own words and your own hands? Everybody needs to hear that they are valued and loved and important and accepted. Everybody needs somebody to call out the greatness in them. Everybody needs to be reminded who they are and how you feel about them. Everybody has their own darkness. Everybody has their own thing that they struggle with. Sometimes the voice of the enemy tries to speak words of self-hate and defeat into our minds. But “Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4). Sometimes God’s voice is hard to hear above the noise of the busyness of life, our own inner voice and the voice of the enemy. Sometimes the voice of Jesus sounds like the voice of “your people”. The voice of a friend saying, “Let’s put a pin in this negative thought.” The voice of your people speaking life and reminding you of how great and unique God made you.

It’s a beautiful life we have been given. A beautiful Church we belong to. Full of beautiful people we get to encounter whose hearts we get to touch. Be present. Handle with care. Remind them who they are. Remember who you are. Let’s keep being sensitive to His spirit. Let’s keep moving in the direction that He has called us. Let’s hold up our shields of faith in defending our church family. And thank you to each one of you at Refuge Church - Your voices so often sound a lot like the voice of Jesus.

- Tiffany Condren

Numbers 13:16 These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua.

Moses changed Joshua’s name from Oshea (salvation) to Ya-Hoshea (the LORD is my salvation). The Law giver (Moses) pointed out that WE aren’t our own source of salvation, but the LORD is our salvation. The Law points us to Christ in the same manner as Moses pointed to Joshua who the real salvation was. Oshea never conquers Canaan, but Ya-Hosea can! Whatever is going on in your life, recognize that GOD is your salvation and through Christ you can do all things because He is the never-ending source of all strength.

- Pastor Bill Foster

Do you or your family have holiday traditions?

I remember as a little girl my mom would get my sister and I all dressed up for Easter and take us to our great grandparents house. The whole family would arrive, cousins would play, family would sit and feast on a meal together, and of course it would not be complete without the egg hunt for the kids.

Throughout the Easter season, it's easy to get caught up in all the activities this holiday brings. It's important to take time yourself, with your family, or both to reflect what Easter is really about...the Resurrection! He is Risen!

"In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you. And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word. And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshiped him." 

Matthew 28:1-9

- Sarah Chester

There is an old saying: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” The first time I heard this was in reference to a project I was included on with a group of individuals who all had strong opinions about a particular research project. Everyone had big ideas about gathering information, putting together a project, and getting to an end goal. Everyone was cordial and listening to each other but whenever an argument or idea was presented it was slanted towards a somewhat selfish agenda. "I'll just leave the group and do it on my own” was the underlying threat of each individual. When the situation appeared to be breaking down someone pulled out this quote that I mentioned above and allowed for a fresh perspective. 

Living for God and being part of a church community can present similar challenges as that research group. We all want to go at our own pace and can get frustrated when we feel like someone is dragging down that pace. We can also get frustrated with people who might be pushing the pace a little more than we are comfortable with. It is important we remember the words of Ecclesiastes 9:11 that remind us the race is not to the swift or the strong but rather as Matthew 24:13 says: they that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved. 

When we travel this road together and give thought to those traveling with us, we will find that we can all endure and go further together!

- Pastor Chad Condren

We all have our zone, where things are just how we want them to be. But sometimes we have to step out of our comfort zones to move forward into the next chapter of our lives.

For some it might be switching jobs, moving to a new city, a new house, or meeting new people. Right now we are all about to step out of our comfort zones as we begin to share space. The building that many have called home becomes someone else's space that we are just borrowing. During this time we will no doubt all face challenges and be forced out of our zones in one way or another, but this discomfort is necessary in order for us to get to the next chapter that God has for us.

Every chapter of life is marked by discomfort. Learning to ride a bike, going off to college, starting a business are all examples where people step out of their comfort zones to reach a new goal in life. During this time we must remember that God is directing our steps and that we are all facing this together.

- Noah James

January is a month for new things! A time for new beginnings. The first month of a new year! I love this time of year because it's a needed time for fresh starts. It is an opportunity to refresh and renew.

Sure, spring isn't here yet. Winter is dragging on or maybe even just getting started. There are some days with gloomy grey skies, but the new year presents us with an opportunity for a new starting line! A clean slate! 

What do you have planned for the new year? What do you intend to be and do for Christ? You may have heard this famous line: “Goals are dreams with work boots on.” If you have dreams for this year, what are your plans to see them come to fruition?

Certainly, God is going to bless your efforts, but don’t just leave everything to God. Read that last line again. That does not sound like a line a pastor would say! 

You need to read it in its context! Of course, I believe in putting everything in God’s hands and trusting our past, present, and future to Him. However, I think sometimes we can use God as a “cop-out.” 

At some point…

• If we want to know God, we need to pray.

• If we want to lose weight, we need to watch what we eat.

• If we want to get stronger, we need to exercise.

• If we want to provide for our family, we need to work.

• If we want a different job, we need to prepare our resume and apply.

• If we want to get smarter, we may need to go back to school.

• If we want friends, we must show ourselves friendly (yep, this one is biblical).

God ordains our steps, but in order for Him to do so, we have to be in motion (steps don’t happen by laying around). I can’t believe I am going to do this, but I am going to quote Christian artist TobyMac in his song Til the Day I Die: 

You say you doin' work, but you're asking where the couch at

How you doin' work when you asking where the couch at?

God is not a crutch, you can use Him when you wanna

You only look to heaven when you goin' through some drama

And when they goin' through some problems and that's the only time they call Him

I guess I don't understand that life, wonder why?

Cause' I'm all in

Til the day I die

I might not agree with TobyMac on everything, but he sure does a good job capturing the mainstream Christian attitude with that stanza! I want to be “all in” for Jesus this year! I don’t want to do it halfway and just holler at Him when I need Him for a specific situation.

God has incredible things in store for you this year. He wants to use your life in a powerful way. He wants to use you to make disciples for His kingdom. He wants to know you more. He wants to perform signs, wonders, and miracles through you!

Get up and put work boots on those dreams! Come up with some goals! Let’s not just sit around telling people, “I am giving my situation to God,” and then just sitting around and doing nothing. 

What could a supernatural God do with a willing vessel this year?

What do you say we find out?

- Pastor Gary Dornbach

Merry Christmas! I get such a giddy feeling when this time of year comes around. However, it’s so easy to get wrapped up (pun intended)  in the rush of the season. I think we can all agree, that while Christmas is one of the busiest times of the year, we tend to stay busy all year round. It’s so important to take care of yourself and those around you, but in this world where such heavy focus is placed on “self-care” and “me time” mentalities, can we forget what sacrifice looks like?

Jesus had moments that He was emotionally and physically exhausted and the Bible tells us He wanted to get away (Matt. 14:13). He wanted some “self-care”, some “me time” and while He did take those moments, He also showed us that busyness can be a blessing. Perhaps, you feel exhausted and worn-thin, you’ve been working for The Kingdom at a breakneck pace. I encourage you to embrace that busyness, Jesus focused on compassion in the midst of His busyness (Matt 14:14) and I believe we should strive to do the same.

Jesus exemplified that we should take time to recharge and unplug by getting away but He never let busyness take Him from His calling. He didn’t allow busyness to rob Him of joy, power or making a difference. He sacrificed time and gave of Himself to minister to the world. Don’t despise your busyness, treat it as the sacrifice that it is for God. Take care of yourself but keep your eyes open for those that can be blessed by your busyness.

- Abigail Pottker

1st Thessalonians 5:18 says "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

The month of November always reminds me of the reality that we all have something to be thankful for. It is the month where I am reminded to be mindful of the things that I am thankful for.

We are left with a question each time this season comes. "What are you thankful for?", we should have already asked ourselves that question every month previous to November but November asks everyone no matter who you are, what are you thankful for? 

Instead of asking what you are thankful for I ask this question: what are you making people thankful for? Are you being the light of the world, the salt of the earth? Jesus told us to be the light not to hide it under a bushel. Our actions show love and compassion amid intolerance, depression, anxiety, and loneliness. 

Reach out to that neighbor who is alone during the holiday season. Call the loved one who is dealing with a loss this season. Invite a friend to Thanksgiving dinner. Tell those around you how grateful you are for them in your life. These are things we do in order to help share the love of Christ. 

Find the things that God has blessed you with and give thanks to the king of kings for all that he has done for you. Look for the little things to be thankful for and find the little moments to pause and take reverence for the goodness of God. 

I pray that this season will be a blessing to you and to your family. That you find many things to be thankful for and take the time to create lasting memories with the ones God has placed in your life. Most of all I pray you take the time to allow the love of Jesus to embrace you and keep you in his lovingkindness.

- Rev. James Chester