35 Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (ESV)

The Son of God shed tears. Jesus Christ, who was the only one able to die for our sins and provide a way of salvation showed great emotion. I don’t take enough time to properly consider Jesus, the man. However, I believe this verse must be a part of that consideration of Jesus as a man. Many commentaries suggest that according to the original language this was a time of silent tears, not loud sobbing or wailing. Jesus was moved to tears by the grief of the moment of the death of Lazarus.

Most of us likely know that today’s verse is the shortest in all of scripture, but it is certainly not the least. What can we learn from the shortest verse? I think we could spend a significant amount of time unpacking this verse and allowing God to teach us something new from it. Take some time to reflect on this verse today. Why did Jesus weep? What other emotions and feelings do you think were present in the life of Jesus? I think he also experienced feelings of joy and happiness, just like us. Let’s all take time today and this week to dig into the Word and see if what else we learn about Jesus, the man who walked this earth and was like us in every human way, yet was without sin, and also died and rose again to save us from our sins.

By: Marcus Steury

"For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.” Proverbs 1:32-33

New years has always been a time of expected change and new beginnings, whether it’s a new gym membership or new plans for a job. It also makes a good time for Christians to evaluate the past year and see how their walk with Christ has been going over all. This is something we need to do much more often than once a year, but New Years is a good time to look at the past year as a whole. It’s easy for us to fall into complacency with our day to day jobs and activities and forget how important it truly is to live for our Creator! Complacency is such a dangerous and easy thing for us to tend to fall into at times. This happens to me too often, but I am thankful for God’s “wake up calls” to me and how they always find a way to help me refocus on Him who matters. Take this new year as a time of reevaluation. Allow Christ to reveal things to you that you may have been missing throughout the year. 

By: Pastor Kevin Troyer

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil. (Proverbs 4:25-27 ESV)

What lies ahead for you in 2022? Do you have a vision or goal of where you want to be next year at this point? Are you “pondering the path of your feet” so that “your ways will be sure?” Are you so sure of the correct path that you are able to refrain from swerving “to the right or to the left?” 

With all of the uncertainty in the world it might seem presumptuous or even arrogant to tell someone, “I’m confident in my plans for this next year. I’ve got a path to traverse and I will stick to it.” However, the path of truth for each of us is outlined in Scripture and if we are dedicated to it, God will take care of all the situations that arise in our lives throughout the next year. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 states “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (ESV). I hope that each one of us will have our paths straightened by God this year. But the prerequisite to these beautifully straight walkways is that we trust His ways instead of our own silly ideas, and that we recognize who He is and all He’s done for us. 

So… Do you know the path to take this next year or are you fearfully fretting about all of the things that might potentially go wrong for you? My hope and prayer is that each one of us can use these last few days of 2021 to seek the Lord and His plan for next year. That we would choose to turn our feet “away from evil” and be single-minded in our pursuit of Jesus and His holiness.

By: Pastor Jay Mast