Tuesday, May 25, 2021

WEDNESDAY'S WORD - PRETENDING - Sadell Bradley - 5/26/2021


WEDNESDAY'S WORD
PRETENDING
5/26/2021
"One way of paying tribute to my parents was 'bearing witness' as the Quakers do—writing down everything that was happening instead of turning my back on it and pretending that it was all great." - Roz Chest American Cartoonist
Yesterday, I reposted a quote on social media that seemed to strike a nerve. It said, "You couldn't heal, because you kept pretending you weren't hurt." To my surprise, it was shared by 244 people. I guess a lot of my Facebook friends have become accustomed to, or are great at PRETENDING— speaking or acting so as to make it appear that something is the case when in fact, it is not. Or engaging in a game or fantasy that involves supposing something that is not the case to be so, or giving the appearance of feeling or possessing (an emotion or quality). To pretend means something or someone is not really what is represented; it's a game or a deception. In this instance, many came to the realization that they were in truth wounded, broken, or injured—while portraying to the world that they were ok. I believe we often greet one another in insincere and disingenuous ways. We ask, "How are you?" and we quickly and matter-of-factly answer, "Fine, how are you?" When sometimes we really want to say... "I'm devastated, discouraged, disappointed, and ready to give up. Will you please help me?!"
I attended a Quaker School from 1st through 12th grades. They have a principle called The Testimony of Integrity or The Testimony of Truth—that one should 'bear witness' by being truthful in one's dealings with God, self, and others. It includes frankness of speech, personal wholeness, honesty, fairness, and just dealings. Quakers believe that Christ-followers are not only to tell the truth but live it out and apply it to all situations. Some take this practice so seriously that they refuse to become actors or actresses because it involves pretending to be someone else—which they believe is not integrity but deception. I'm not going that far, but Paul exhorts us in Colossians 3:9-10, "Don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like Him." In Ephesians 4:15 he declares that "speaking the truth in love" is a sign of maturity. We have grown to be more like Christ. The first person we must speak truth to is ourselves. It can feel easier and more familiar to pretend...but it's more godly and righteous for us to be truthful about who, what, and where we really are.

WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY
HALL OF FAITH
ABRAHAM & ISAAC
TONIGHT, 7:00 pm EST
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Wednesday, May 19, 2021

The Warehouse Church, OTR - SAVE THE DATE - SUNDAY June 6th 1pm LAUNCH PARTY in WASHINGTON PARK

 


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SUNDAY JUNE 6, 2021 1pm at Washington Park

The official Launch of The Warehouse Church, OTR (Over-The-Rhine) is on Sunday, June 6th at 1 pm in Washington Park which is located at 1230 Elm Street, Cincinnati OH 45202. The Church is right across the street from the park. Maybe you've watched us online, you've read about what we're doing, or perhaps you've attended a Virtual Night of Worship. Now you can come out and celebrate in person with us! Hear an inspiring Word. Worship with our awesome praise band, and party with DJ Apryl Reign. Tour our building. Bring your kids! the Cincinnati Circus and Twisted Balloons will be there. Let's celebrate Jesus and all He's done and will do in our City! See you there!

Wednesday, May 12, 2021

WEDNESDAY'S WORD - ALTAR - Sadell Bradley 5/12/2021


WEDNESDAY'S WORD
ALTAR
5/12/2021
"At the centre of Christianity is community; we are gathered by the Lord around the altar." -Timothy Radcliffe
My Heart's Desire
Virtual Worship Experience
SUNDAY, 7:30 pm EST

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ALTAR is a word whose meaning depends on the context. We get married at the altar. Some have served as altar boys or girls. In many churches altar calls, the powerful and life-changing time where people kneel in humility to pray, confess sin, or dedicate themselves to God...has sadly been removed. An ALTAR is a flat-topped block used as the focus of a religious ritual, especially for making sacrifices to a deity. The figurative phrase 'to sacrifice on the altar of" means to make someone or something suffer in the interests of someone else. We used to sing the hymn, "Is your all on the altar of sacrifice laid? Your heart, does the Spirit control? You can only be blessed, and find peace and sweet rest, as you give Him your body and soul." Now we sing the modern song, "O Come to the Altar, the Father's arms are open wide. Forgiveness was bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ." Both expressions about what occurs at the altar for Christ-followers are true. Where Priests used to sacrifice animals to atone for the sins of the people, "God's will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time." (Hebrews.10:10) Therefore, I urge you brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God- this is your true and proper worship. (Romans 12:1) We too often forget what a painful, humbling, yet loving, priceless, and committed place an altar is. At certain points in their journey the patriarchs were told to build an altar: at times of personal sacrifice, to appreciate God's Divine intervention, or to establish that a certain place belonged to Him alone. We don't build literal altars anymore but, when was that last time you knelt in gratitude, worship, or humility and made an altar to the Lord?

WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY
HALL OF FAITH
SARAH
TONIGHT, 7:00 pm EST
@warehouseOTR
live.thewarehousechurch.org

Tuesday, May 4, 2021

WEDNESDAY'S WORD - PRESERVE - Sadell Bradley 5/5/2021

 

WEDNESDAY'S WORD
PRESERVE
5/5/2021
"If the highest aim of a captain were to preserve his ship, he would keep it in port forever." -Thomas Aquinas
When I was 8 years old, I won a City-wide speakers contest sponsored by the African-American Baptist Churches in Philadelphia. That year, we memorized and recited Psalm 121, which has become one of my life verses. It reminds me that all of my help comes from the LORD and that He is responsible to keep and cover me. (vs. 2-6) I love the ending verses, "The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore." (vs. 7-8) Psalm 121 taught me that no matter the evil, distress, injury, adversity, or calamity— the LORD would PRESERVE me. This Hebrew word, shamar means to keep, watch, or attend to. It has the idea of God as a bodyguard, a gatekeeper, or a sentry, whose job it is to carefully watch over, protect and defend my soul: which includes my life, my mind, my emotions, and my choices. There are also a number of places in Scripture where the phrase "going out and coming in" refers to leadership. (Numb 27:17; 1 Sam 18:16; 2 Chron 1:10) God is preserving the ins and outs of my leadership forever. In English, PRESERVE has a similar meaning: to maintain or keep alive; to keep safe from harm or injury. The number of times I have been kept from dangers seen and unseen, or preserved within trying circumstances resulting from my own or other's decisions, cannot be counted.
WE ARE PRESERVATIVES FOR THE CULTURE
In Matthew 5:13-14, Jesus describes His followers as preservatives—the salt of the earth, and the light of the world. PRESERVE also means to treat in order to prevent decomposition or decay. In addition to its flavor-enhancing properties, salt is a preservative. Theologian Deitrich Bonhoeffer said, "The disciples are the highest good, the supreme value which the earth possesses, for without them it cannot live. They are the salt that sustains the earth, for their sake the world exists..."Ye are the salt." Jesus does not say, "You must be the salt, or you have the salt..." It is not for the disciples to decide whether they will be the salt of the earth, for they are so whether they like it or not, they have been made salt by the call they have received." Though we are not all-powerful, or all-knowing like God, our operation is similar to the extent that we are to care for and keep watch over this world and to help to preserve its inhabitants from evil and wickedness. Creation waits eagerly for the sons of God to be revealed. (Rom. 8:19) Have you been staying in the port trying to preserve yourself instead of preserving this world? Get salty!
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WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY
HALL OF FAITH
NOAH
TONIGHT, 7:00 pm EST
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WEDNESDAY'S WORD - IMMANUEL - Sadell Bradley - 12/25/2024

  WEDNESDAY'S WORD IMMANUEL 12/25/2024 "By the light of nature we see God as a God above us, by the light of the law we see Him as ...