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March 2024

March 21, 2024
in Church, Discipleship, DTOTD
by Brendon
0 Comments

The Lord ______ with _______

” The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master.”  – Gen. 39:2

 

Recently, life has been busy. It has been filled with meetings, appointments, sick kids, deadlines, new things, old things, sports, school stuff, homework, cleaning, laundry and so much more. Sound familiar? We all have seasons of life when it just seems out of control. What do I do next? What can I check off my to-do list? Where do I have to get the kids to? Which practice is tonight? And my favorite, how the heck am I supposed to get all of this together when there is so much to do? 

 

As a life group, we have been working through a study of the book of Genesis. If you have not read Genesis in a while or maybe at all, you should! The stories that we are reading and the way that life began, is fascinating. However, there are some stories that stick out more than some. Some of the stories that we read in Genesis are: 

 

Creation

Adam and Eve

The Fall 

Noah 

The Tower of Babel 

Abram / Abraham and Sarai / Sarah 

Isaac and Rebekah 

Jacob and Esau 

Jacob’s 12 sons 

 

The one that is sticking out the most, is the story of Joseph. Did you know that Joseph’s story is one of the longest recorded story in the Bible? There is almost 15 chapters dedicated to Joseph’s story. It is not one that is easy to read. It is filled with ups and downs and twists and turns and dreams and prophecy and scandal and betrayal and death and famine and grace. 

 

Joseph was the second youngest son of Jacob, also known as Israel. He was the son born from Rachel which was Jacob’s favorite. So automatically there was a jealousy and anger towards Joseph from his brothers. But Joseph doesn’t help himself. When Joseph was 16, he tells his brothers about a dream that he has about how when in a field, Joseph and his brothers had sheaves of wheat in the fields and his sheaf stood up and the brothers gathered around his and bowed down to his sheaf. The brothers didn’t like that too much…But then Joseph tells his brothers and his father another dream….the second dream was that the sun and moon and 11 stars were bowing down to him. Again, brothers didn’t like it at all, but Joseph’s father was also a little perplexed by it. 

 

We see Joseph’s brothers get even angrier when Joseph receives a coat of many colors from their Father. Joseph’s brothers have enough. They go out to take the flocks out and have them graze. Joseph is sent by Israel to find his brothers and deliver a report back. The brothers have a different plan. They plan to kill Joseph. So not only does Joseph not have his brothers affection, they want to get him out the picture entirely. Unbeknownst to Joseph, when he finally catches up with his brothers, they have a plan to throw him in a cistern and leave him for dead. However, there was grace shown to him and instead of leaving him for dead, the brothers decide to sell Joseph to some traders and he made his way to Egypt where Joseph would eventually be sold to Potiphar. The brothers went back after killing a sheep and covering the coat of many colors in the blood of the sheep. 

The we read in Genesis 39, an interesting statement: 

” The Lord was with Joseph…..” 

Kind of hard to beleive that statement after everything that Joseph has already gone through in his life. Even after this statement is made, we see that Joseph is put in charge of his masters home, but because he is described as handsome in appearance, his masters wife try to force herself on him. It didn’t work. But because she claimed and blamed Joseph for coming after her, his master threw Joseph into prison. In prison, Joseph is seen as responsible and respectable, to the point where he was put in charge of all of the inmates. 

 

Still, Joseph ends up showing that he can perceive and interpret dreams. He does so for one that serve Pharaoh at the time. Joseph ends up being put as second in command in all of Egypt. So the Lord was with Joseph and it showed in how Joseph was seen and loved and trusted. 

 

The crazy part of Joseph’s story is at the end when there is a famine in the land and his brothers come to Egypt to buy food that Joseph was able to save for during the 7 year famine that was interpreted from Pharaoh’s dream. Not only do we see Joseph’s brothers fall before him just like in his dreams when he was 16, we see that Joseph shows grace and love and care for his brothers by sending word to their Father that he is alive and he wants the entire clan to come and live in Egypt. 

 

So what is so important about Joseph’s story? 

 

In the midst of Joseph’s life, the Lord was WITH Joseph. 

 

It is super hard to truly understand and really grasp, but in the midst of our up’s and downs and moutains and valleys and successes and failures…….the Lord IS with YOU. 

 

Whether we know it or not. Whether we can feel it or not. Whether we can see it or not. Whether we believe it or not. 

 

The Lord DESIRES to be WITH YOU. 

 

He is not distant. He is not absent. He is not waiting for the right time. He is not waiting for you to clean yourself up. He is not waiting for you to figure it out. 

 

You do not make God hesitate. 

You do not cause God to doubt. 

You do not cause God to not save you. 

 

God shows from the very beginning of time, that HE WANTS TO BE WITH YOU. 

 

WE see it as truth when we read in the Revelation of John: 

” Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and first earth had passed away……And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying ” Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell WITH them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be WITH THEM as their God.”  – Rev. 21: 1,3 

 

When you face seasons of busyness, know this: The Lord IS WITH YOU. 

 

Keep putting one foot in front of the other and walk with confidence knowing that God desires to be with and IS with you. 

 

It is up to us to live in God’s presence however that may look for you. 

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March 13, 2024
in Alleviation of Poverty, Local, Outreach, Serve Teams, The Sharing Shed
by cefiggins
1 Comment

More of A Blessing To Me: Guest Blog by Bernice Bundren

Several months ago I started volunteering at the Sharing Shed with our Harvester crew once a month. All I knew about this place in O’Fallon was that it provided free furniture and household items to those in need. The first day I walked in, I was quite surprised at what I saw. My thoughts were more of people rummaging through items that they might need and hopefully it would be good quality items. Was I ever wrong!
There is a room that looks more like a boutique for household items…everything someone would need to get started. Some shelves have neatly placed matching plates, bowls, and cups. A section with everything that’s needed for the bathroom and bedrooms with sheet sets and quilts separated for Twin, Queen, and King beds. There’s another section for a baby’s needs. All the donations they receive have to be sorted and cleaned. I could go on and on about the plethora of items. What I love is to see are the faces of the clients that we help when they walk into this beautifully displayed room. I believe they get a real feeling of being treated with dignity and respect when they see how much effort has been put into creating this space.
That was just the household items…then we take them into the furniture warehouse – couches, love seats, recliners, mattresses, dining and kitchen tables and chairs, bedroom sets! Again, every item has to be in good condition and cleaned before it goes on the floor warehouse. What is amazing is that all the items they receive are donated.
What I love about this time of helping is just seeing what joy it has given to so many who probably had felt things were hopeless until they walk in this door and we start packing up their U-Haul with items they picked out themselves!
One of the most heartbreaking but precious moments was when a grandmother was with her 8 or 9 yo grandson who had just lost his mom to drugs. Grandma was taking him into her home. Grandma picked out some of their needed items but all he wanted was a picture of a little angel going up to heaven. There were many tears shed over this.
Quite often, I have felt it has been more of a blessing to me just to know there is a place like The Sharing Shed that provides an amazing ministry to so many people in need.
Bernice Bundren
If you would like more information about regularly serving with The Sharing Shed Crew consider joining us at the Come & See The Sharing Shed event on Saturday, March 16 from 9-11 a.m. RSVP here. 

Bernice Bundren is a Harvester Christian. Bernice can be seen expressing her love of Christ through service at The Sharing Shed, Discover Harvester, Guest Services, School Outreach, local nursing homes, Life Group Leader, and wherever else God calls her.

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March 7, 2024
in Discipleship, DTOTD, HCC
by Brendon
0 Comments

Baptism

 

” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the Apostles, ” Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “repent and be baptized every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”    – Acts 2: 37-39

 

There are lots of thoughts about Baptism out there. Some good, some bad and some are just confusing. 

 

Here at Harvester Christian Church, we think a lot about Baptism. The act of baptism, the heart behind baptism, the symbolic nature of baptism, and most importantly, the relationship you are growing as you are baptized by immersion in the baptistry. Here are Harvester Christian Church we believe that God created all. He is the good and beautiful creator who created human beings. But we as humans fell into sin when Adam and Eve ate the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden. When that happened, we as humans created a chasm between us and God. Forever severing the once perfect and close-knit relationship that God intended to have with his creation. We see in Genesis that God desires to walk with his creation as he did in the cool of the day in the Garden. Because of our decision to eat of the apple and the tempter being successful at pulling us away, we enter in to a life that is inherently sinful and yet inherently good all at the same time. The reason it is inherently good, is because along the way of His creation, God decided to send a rescuer, a healer, a mighty one, a redeemer, a sanctifier, a savior. Yes, life is good because God sent his one and only son Jesus, to the earth, coming in the form of a baby and living a perfect life for all to see and emulate. 

 

You see, Jesus came in a time of conquest, confusion, losing, hardship and maybe most of all, Jesus came in a time where Hope and Love were needed. Jesus came in the time of an empire that was striving to be the biggest and best in the world. Jesus came in a time when people were falling left and right into temptation and slavery and financial hardship. But Jesus came and brought hope, he brought a light in what seemed like a very dark world for those that heard the message that Jesus was preaching. 

 

Baptism is a way that we get to show others where we are on our journey with Jesus. When the disciples in Acts 2 preached at Pentecost, baptism what the immediate next step for anyone who believed the message of Jesus. It still reigns true today! Baptism is our outward expression and acceptance of Jesus as our Lord and Savior as we repent for our sins, confess Jesus as Lord and then we are immersed in the water and come out of the water a new creation in Jesus. The act of baptism is symbolic of Jesus dying on the cross, being buried in the tomb and then rising again. With Baptism, we are dying to our old self, being cleansed by the water or buried in the water and coming out of the water a new creation just as Jesus came out of the tomb as a new creation! 

 

The Apostle Paul writes it this way: 

 

” Do you no know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were burried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”    – Romans 6:3 & 4

 

” I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me……..For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” Galatians 2:20 & Galatians 3:27

 

if you would like to look more at Harvester Christian Church’s stance on baptism, click this link – Discover Harvester – 

 

Another great resource for you might be this video, that Pastor Doyle Roth filmed on HCC’s stance of Baptism: 

 

 

If you are ready to get baptized, let us know! We as a church would love to come alongside you and celebrate this decision! You can let us know by filling this form out: 

      – Baptism Form – 

 

If you have other questions or would simply like to talk to someone more about Baptism and what it might mean for you, feel free to reach out to us anytime! You can fill out a questionare over at harvester.cc or you could email our Next Steps Director here – bfoulke@harvester.cc  – 

 

Some might be wondering, ‘ well I was baptized as an infant or my parents had me sprinkled as a child ‘ All of those are amazing things! The fact that your parents were wanting you to be baptized and known by Jesus is something we will celebrate all day long! At Harvester, we believe that baptism is a choice that you as an individual would make for your relationship with Jesus. It doesn’t mean that what your parents did for you were wrong or bad, but the decision to be baptized may not have been yours. To continue growing in your relationship with Jesus, we would encourage you to read scripture, think and pray about it and ask as many questions as you would like! The journey with Jesus is not one that is simple or easy. It is a lifelong process of allowing God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit form you in a way that is not culturally normal. Baptism is one of the major steps in that journey of following Jesus that can represent the start of walking with Jesus for the rest of your days. 

 

We hope that this post and the video are helpful to you on your journey learning what Jesus is calling you towards and how Jesus wants to free you not just from your sin and shame, but free you into a new life and a new creation that bring glory to God the Father through what He will do in your life and through your life. 

 

Praying for you. 

 

 

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From the HCC Outreach Team:

Thanks so much for stopping by the Harvester Christian Church Outreach Team’s blog! We hope you find this resource helpful, insightful and encouraging as we strive to Unleash the Hope of Jesus back into our world!

This resource belongs to Harvester Christian Church in St. Charles, Mo.