I loved the first and second ones and I’m 100% sure the 3rd will be just as awesome if not better! Be excited for that bushy haired squirrel and my favorite sloth Sid. It’s going to be awesome.

 P.S. some interesting chicken facts I came across:

• There are four places in the United States with the word “chicken” in their name. Chicken, Alaska; Chicken Bristle, in Illinois and Kentucky; and Chicken Town, Pennsylvania.

 • The greatest number of yolks in one chicken egg is nine

• The record for laying the most eggs: seven in one day

 • Chickens can cross breed with turkeys. The result is called a ‘Turkin

 ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵ he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, ⁶ to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. ⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, ⁸which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹ making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

 ¹¹In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, ¹²so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. ¹³In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

 ¹⁵For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, ¹⁶I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, ¹⁷that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, ¹⁸ having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might ²⁰that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. ²²And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, ²³ which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

–
In Christ,
Jesse Sherk

Hebrews 11:1 – “Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see.”

Last Saturday, our soccer team had to come to school by 7:30 am to drive an hour for an early morning game. Before we left, the coach asked some of the players to get water from the trainers office. I walked in and tried to open the door to the office. It was locked. So I walked past it deciding to aimlessly wander. As I walked past the trainers door the coach said,

“the doors right here.”

“It’s locked.” I said

 He just looked at me strangely and said, “Well good thing the coach has got the keys.”

Then he unlocked it, and I followed him through the door feeling like an idiot. Once we got back on the bus, I couldn’t stop thinking of what had just happened in the school. I felt so dumb and I wondered why, when the coach had asked me to do something, and when I saw he was right next to me, I didn’t automatically assume he would unlock the door, making sure I could do what he had asked of me.

Then I started thinking, sometimes I treat God like that. He asks me to do something or presents an opportunity for me, and I try, by myself, to do what He wants me to do. Or I try to make the opportunity happen for me, and then, when it doesn’t work, when the door is locked, I give up. I assume that I didn’t hear Him right, or that the opportunity is just too hard to obtain. But in the process, I forget the most important thing of all. He holds the keys. He puts something on my heart that He wants me to do, and He is willing and able to help me accomplish it. In fact, He wants me to rely on Him. He does not want me to try to act on my own strength. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

 But in my forgetfulness, I don’t ask him to unlock the doors He’s directed me to. I rely on myself to try to make things happen. Then I fail, and feel unsure of what God wants of me. When the whole time, He just wants me to ask Him to unlock the doors He’s told me to go through. He wants me to trust in Him with all my heart, that He will provide the way for me to do His will, but all too often I lean on my own understanding and on my own strength.

 When you know God is leading you to a new opportunity, when He is asking you to go through another door, pursue His will with all you have. But in doing so, remember the most important thing… God holds the keys. And those doors that seem impossible to open, God’s got those keys too. As God directs your paths, and leads you up to many unknown doors, may you remember that the one who holds all the keys is right there with you, waiting for you to ask Him to unlock the doors.

~Corey

“I’m trying so hard,
To stop trying so hard,
Just let You be who You are,
Lord who You are in me.”

Sometimes we try to hard to be better Christians and should just surrender all we do to Him and let Him guide us. Sometimes we need to get out of the way for God to work in us.

Bryan Rhoads

The Dodgeball Tournament is not this weekend but the next. Make sure you invite your friends because it is going to be awesome!!!!!

- Josh Adams

I had one of these experiences last year and have been thinking about it a lot lately…I thought I’d share it with you.

The Background.
I was in Ireland for Spring break with a good friend of mine. I had been so excited for the trip for months…it was a dream come true for me to travel internationally like that. I was in the midst of dealing with a lot of things: finishing up school, getting ready to graduate college, and worrying about where/how I’d end up—wondering what God had planned for me. I was questioning his work. There were so many facets of my life that needed to be wrapped up that he was crowded out by my concerns of the day. I didn’t feel that I could see or feel his hand or his presence. I found myself (foolishly) doubting his sovereignty.

The Experience.
We had just taken a red-eye flight from Newark, NJ, to GalwayInternational Airport in Ireland. I had slept 15 minutes (maybe) in 30+ hours and was running on adrenaline. I had just gotten a stamp in my passport! I was pumped.
Our first stop was the Cliffs of Moher; towering cliffs on the west coast (facing the US) of Ireland. My friend and I climbed to the top and peered over the edge…I was in absolute awe.
I started crying: I felt God’s power in the wind whipping around me, I saw his love in blessing me with the trip, I was beholding his awesome and perfect creation, and I felt his presence, holding me up. I had never felt all those things at once before. I couldn’t stop smiling through my tears and I knew that God was there with me…present in a perfect moment. Not just here, in the present, but I was confident in his sovereignty—for now, for my past, and for ALWAYS.

Looking Back.
Whenever I find myself in doubt or feeling discouraged, I take out photos of me at the top of those Cliffs and I am back there again. Cradled in his arms, in full confidence of his plan, and in awe of his power. I know I will never be the same again.

Check out these verses that comforted me in my hard time…Isaiah 41.9-10 & Lamentations 3:19-33.

Have you had an experience where your life was changed? I’d love to hear it!
~Courtney Adams