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Hear the devotional here: http://bit.ly/3jRvBCB
18 That's what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others' sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all - was put to death and then made alive - to bring us to God. 19 He went and proclaimed God's salvation to earlier generations who ended up in the prison of judgment 20 because they wouldn't listen. You know, even though God waited patiently all the days that Noah built his ship, only a few were saved then, eight to be exact - saved from the water by the water. 21 The waters of baptism do that for you, not by washing away dirt from your skin but by presenting you through Jesus' resurrection before God with a clear conscience. 22 Jesus has the last word on everything and everyone, from angels to armies. He's standing right alongside God, and what he says goes. (1 Peter 3:18-22 The Message)
Happy Tuesday, dear ConCafe Family. I trust this finds you warm and safe. I know some who have been without electricity in their homes for many hours. Our daughter Carli and our neighborhood in Seguin has not had power since about 4:35 am. Please pray that by the time you read this they will once again have warmth from the electricity that they so desperately need. Nellie and I are in Houston and we have been enjoying the warmth of central heat while outside it is too cold for native Texans! Please pray for the needs of your community and church, dear Friend, and for any personal needs you may have as well.
I failed to mention that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and this coming Sunday is Lent 1. Tomorrow, weather permitting in this area, some churches will have an Ash Wednesday worship service; where we will be reminded of our mortality and ashes from the burnt palms of Palm Sunday will adorn our foreheads as a reminder of what scripture says, "We are from dust and to dust we shall return." Our Lenten journey reminds of all Christ Jesus suffered and endured for our sake on Good Friday and to further our celebration of what Resurrection Sunday (Easter) means to us as believers.
Hear this important reminder; Christ Jesus, in all that He did, he did it for me, Eradio Valverde. I was on His mind and in His heart with every blow, every insult, every lash of the whip, and every nail; such was His love for me. And guess what, you, dear Friend, you were too! Jesus, the Righteous One died for the unrighteous (that's us again!); "He went through it all - was put to death and then made alive - to put us to God." Jesus even, as the ancient Apostle's Creed declares, descended into hell and shared the gospel there "to earlier generations who ended up in the prison of judgment." Every soul, every body, matters to God; even though in the days of Noah, as patient as God was, only eight were saved from the waters of that great flood. Though God did use water as a way to clean our souls before God in removing our sins. And here the powerful word: Jesus has the last word on everything and everyone, from angels to armies. He's standing right alongside God, and what He says, goes." Amen and amen!
As we begin our forty day journey, may we walk with Him leading and sometimes, supporting us, meaning holding us up when we feel faint or weak. Jesus even carries us when we do fall. Why? Because we matter to God! And God wants His Son to have the last word on you and me! Why waste this journey when we can have the times of our lives as we walk with Him?
PRAYER: Loving God, lift my soul as I pray. Father, You have examined me and you know my faults and weaknesses; forgive us our sins, and remind us that You forget our sins as well. We're not that good as we sometimes let sin haunt us and taunt us; but that is not Your voice, it is the voice of he who is already defeated, and he knows it; Satan. Let us walk past the negative and into the positve; away from darkness and into the light; this is our prayer and it will be our journey! In Christ Jesus we pray, amen!
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Live a light life that glows radiant and helps others find their way in the Lord!
Receive my prayers of blessing and joy,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
