David's Mighty Men

I'm having a nice cup of coffee reading my Bible this morning, and I've just read about David and his mighty men. They are listed in II Samuel chapter 23. The last man mentioned is Uriah the Hittite, the slain husband of Bathsheba. These are amazing men to say the least. Where do you get men of this quality? The Bible tells us in I Samuel 22:2--"And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men." Well... I guess we too can qualify to become mighty men. They were just common ordinary men who followed David who followed a great God. As David grew, they grew. The secret to becoming what God wants us to become is to NEVER stop growing!! The mighty Oak becomes the great tree because it keeps growing. Some Christian grow to a point and then start going backwards. They are faithful to everything and then faithful to very few things. This is not forward progress and you never become the mighty men God wants us to become. Decide to jump into what God is doing, and keep doing it twenty years later. Keep growing and we all can become mighty men and women in God's sight. Join me again for another cup of coffee and some Bible reading. Pastor Mutchler

"We are just the worms..."

I have already had one cup of coffee and I'm on my second. I'm reading this morning in Isaiah. I'm reading chapters 32 through 52. This gets me through the Bible every two months. So many good things! Isa. 33:17 says "Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty.." I'm looking forward to that day. Death has no fear for a Christian. Eternity in Heaven with our Savior awaits us! Here's a verse I've never noticed: Isa. 34:16 says: "Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read:" It is almost like God is telling us to read His Word. He speaks to me each time I read it. For several chapters we see the story of Hezekiah and how God delieverd him from the great army coming against him, and then we see how he showed the wealth of his kingdom to another King who would later come to get all his wealth. We see his sickness unto death and God's mercy in granting him 15 more years. God is so good to us. As I came to Isa. 41, I'm reminded why it is my favorite in all of Isaiah and perhaps the Old Testament. Verse 10 says: "Fear thou not", Verse 13 says: "Fear not; I will help thee"; and verse 14 says: "Fear not, thou worm Jacob... I will help thee". Twenty-five years ago, I was praying about starting a church in Oregon. A state I had never been in, nor within 1,500 miles of, and yet God was leading me to take my family to this state to start a church. I had started a church with 15 people in Arkansas and God had blessed, but I had never started a church with nothing. I guess you could say I was leary and afraid to do so. One day, I remember it so well, I was reading this chapter and God spoke to me so clearly that I should not fear and that He would help me. My job was to trust Him and the direction He had given for my life. The phrase that spoke so powerfully to me was "Fear not, thou worm Jacob... I will help thee." A worm is exactly how I felt about myself. Totally inadequate, completely unable, almost nothing, just a worm... but God can even use worms for His glory!! Perhaps you feel totally insignificant today... just like a worm... but fear not, God will help you!! Remind yourself today that it is God that does the work so that He gets the glory... we are just the worms that are told to trust Him. Hope you have a great day, I'm going to get one more cup of coffee. See you tomorrow.
Pastor Mike Mutchler pastor@grandviewcares.com