If you died today, where would you go? If you're an atheist, your answer would be fairly simple, "In the ground". If you are an agnostic, then it is a little more complicated, you're aren't really sure. If you are a Christian, that is a believer in Christ Jesus, you are certain of your destiny, it is eternity with Christ in Heaven. “For we know that if our earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made by hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed, in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, since in fact after putting it on, we will not be found naked. For indeed, we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:1-4‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.4.NASB2020 “Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— for we walk by faith, not by sight— but we are of good courage and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:6-8‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.6-8.NASB2020 “For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that those who live would no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose on their behalf.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:14-15‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.14-15.NASB2020 “Therefore from now on we recognize no one by the flesh; even though we have known Christ by the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their wrongdoings against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:16-19‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.16-19.NASB2020 “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:20-21‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬ https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.20-21.NASB2020

An encounter with God will change your entire perspective on life. Paul Karanick had realized that he was going to die and there was nothing that he could do about it. Before he gave up, he just wanted to get a glance of his wife and daughter one more time - just a simple wave goodbye. James 1:3 (NASB) knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

Message by: Pastor Paul Karanick Several times before the death of Jesus, He had told his disciples that this will happen. There is a reference to this fact in Matthew 16. Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭21‬-‭23‬ ‭NASB From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” The Women's Reaction Once the Realized the Tone was Empty Luke 24:1-7 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing; and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” Mark 16:6-8 But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’ ” And he *said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. They went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. John 20:1-2 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and *said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” The Disciples Responses On the Way to Emmaus Luke 24:28-31 And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going farther. But they urged Him, saying, “Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.” So He went in to stay with them. When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. Thomas Has Some Demands John 20:26-29 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus *came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He *said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus *said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.” Peter's Ego and Shame John 21:14-17 This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead. So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus *said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He *said to him, “Tend My lambs.” He *said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He *said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” He *said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus *said to him, “Tend My sheep. ' Stephen Enters Heaven Acts 7:54-56 'But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; Now when they heard this, they were infuriated, and they began gnashing their teeth at him. and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” ' Peter is Flogged Acts 5:40-42 They followed his advice; and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and then released them. So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and preaching the good news of Jesus as the Christ.

Lawrence didn't know much about Elephants but he was determined to save them from being killed. This herd of elephants seemed to be a danger to the locals, but instead of having them killed, Lawrence made it his mission to keep that from happening. Lawrence had a passion for saving animals and he dedicated his life to doing so. He gave everything he had to fulfill his life's mission. His wife followed his dream and together they purchased a piece of land to be used as a refuge for wildlife. This is a great example for how Jesus wants us to not only be saved, but to lead others to salvation as well. As Christians, we should have a deep passion for reaching the lost without excuse. From the Bible: Now large crowds were going along with Him, and He turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who are watching it will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This person began to build, and was not able to finish!’ Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to face the one coming against him with twenty thousand? Otherwise, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and requests terms of peace. So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions. ‭‭Luke‬ ‭14‬:‭25‬-‭33‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

Keela was unable to find purpose in this life. Keela had to take care of her mom from a very young age. Her dad was out of the picture until about age 7 and he turned out to be very abusive. Before age nine, Keela had already attempted suicide. Feeling ashamed, fearful and no purpose for living, the end for Keela seemed to be inevitable. But, then she was invited to a birthday party and her life was thrown into a tail-spin of change. So it was a surprise when a friend told me that I didn't have to be. Sitting criss-cross-apple-sauce on the ground, at a birthday party of all places, a beloved group of friends told me a story that changed my life, that so catastrophically wrecked my way of thinking that I rose up from the ashes as a new person. I asked them about heaven, more specifically if I would ever see my mom there. That got us talking, and all of a sudden, these nine-and-ten-year-old girls huddled around me and told me exactly what my heart had been longing to hear. They told me that God loves me. Like, really loves me. They told me that my sins had separated me from God (Isaiah 59:2) and that's why I felt trapped in a hopeless world, doing things that I knew were wrong. They told me that this sin kept me from God, who wanted me to be with Him. But then they told me that Jesus loved me so much that He died on a cross to take away the punishment for all the stupid crap that I had done (John 3:16). They told me that because of His death, I can have a relationship with the God of the universe and live with Him for all eternity in Heaven (John 14:6). They told me that God created me with a purpose, for a reason, to be His (1 Peter 2:9). They told me that He will never leave me (Hebrews 13:5). They told me that with Him, there is nothing to fear (Isaiah 41:10). Sitting there in that moment, I felt something in me that I had never felt before. A rightness. Hope. Hope. See her story on Instagram @keelahope

Pastor receives letter from prison from a man that had cheated the church out of money 14 years prior.

1 KINGS 17 Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of Another reading is Tishbe in Gileadthe settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall certainly be neither dew nor rain during these years, except by my word.” 2 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 3 “Go away from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is Lit facingeast of the Jordan. 4 And it shall be that you will drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to provide food for you there.” 5 So he went and did everything according to the word of the Lord, for he went and lived by the brook Cherith, which is Lit facingeast of the Jordan. 6 And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he would drink from the brook. 7 But it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land. 8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there; behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide food for you.” 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath, and when he came to the entrance of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and he called to her and said, “Please get me a little water in a Lit vesselcup, so that I may drink.” 11 As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand.” 12 But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have no food, only a handful of flour in the Lit pitcherbowl and a little oil in the jar; and behold, I am gathering Lit twoa few sticks so that I may go in and prepare it for me and my son, so that we may I.e., have their last mealeat it and die.” 13 However, Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go, do as you have said. Just make me a little bread loaf from Lit thereit first and bring it out to me, and afterward you may make one for yourself and for your son. 14 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘The Lit pitcherbowl of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil become empty, until the day that the Lord provides rain on the face of the earth.’ ” 15 So she went and did everything in accordance with the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The Lit pitcherbowl of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil become empty, in accordance with the word of the Lord which He spoke through Elijah. Elijah Raises the Widow’s Son 17 Now it happened after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his Lit illnesscondition became very grave, until at the end Lit breath was not left in himhe was no longer breathing. 18 So she said to Elijah, “Lit What to me and to you, an ancient idiomWhy is my business any of yours, you man of God? Yet you have come to me to bring my wrongdoing to remembrance, and to put my son to death!” 19 But he said to her, “Give me your son.” Then he took him from her Lit breastarms and carried him up to the upstairs room where he was living, and laid him on his own bed. 20 And he called to the Lord and said, “Lord, my God, have You also brought catastrophe upon the widow with whom I am Lit sojourningstaying, by causing her son to die?” 21 Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times, and called to the Lord and said, “Lord, my God, please, let this boy’s life return Lit upon his inward partto him.” 22 And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah, and the life of the boy returned Lit upon his inward partto him and he revived. 23 Elijah then took the boy and brought him down from the upstairs room into the house and gave him to his mother; and Elijah said, “See, your son is alive.” 24 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

Praying for each other is a great gift that God has given us. Prayer is a direct conversation with God that we can do continually. Many times we worry about our family and friends who are going through life's battles. We often feel helpless in these situations. As a true believer in Jesus Christ, God's gift of prayer is more powerful than many of us have imagined. In all things, pray, trust God and follow His direction. 'So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he *said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. When he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They kept saying, “It is his angel.” But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” Then he left and went to another place. ' Acts 12:5-17 https://my.bible.com/bible/100/ACT.12.5-17

Christians are called to live a different life than the rest of the world. Christ gave us a great example to live by, yet we see many Christians living their life extremely different than the one that Christ set before us. The Bible tells us that we become a new creation once we become followers of Jesus Christ, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come" (2 Corinthians 5:17, NASB). As Christians, we live a new life in Christ, much different from our life prior to Christ. Even our anger changes, it no longer turns evil and hateful. We begin to love on a different level, a love that we can only experience through Jesus Christ. The Bible says that we no longer live in darkness, a.k.a. sin; but rather, we live in Light a.k.a. righteousness. Like Christ. John actually writes that if we say we are following Christ, yet hate our brother, then we lie! That is pretty straight forward. We cannot continue to live a sinful life and be a Christian. I believe the term in the Bible describes it best...a hypocrite...a person pretending to be something they are not. 1) Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12, NASB) 2) So Jesus said to them, “For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.” These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and hid Himself from them. (John 12:35-36, NASB) 3) This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. (1 John 1:5-7, NASB) 4) The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes. (1 John 2:9-11, NASB) 5) Be angry , and yet do not sin ; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity. (Ephesians 4:26-27, NASB)

Terry, his uncle Larry, and his cousin Ted are heading to a 4 thousand acre ranch to go turkey hunting. A fire (Oklahoma 2018) almost spoils their plans, but it is at least 50 miles away, so the expedition continues. Ande, Terry's wife, is concerned about the fire and calls to make sure that the men are doing OK. Terry assures her it is all well just as the phone loses connection. He was able to send her a few pictures of the blue sky and the open ranch to confirm their safety. However, things change quickly as the fire heads straight for them in such a short time. Bible Scriptures: ACTS 1:8 ...but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. 1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? Titus 3:3-6 For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior John 16:5-11 But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.