The Peace of Christmas

“Suddenly the angel was joined by a vast host of others, the armies of heaven,

praising God and saying; Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth, Peace, Goodwill toward men.”

Luke 2:14.

Hey Girls!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! It’s my favorite time of the year. I enjoy all the special activities, events and traditions of the Christmas season. I love the Christmas lights, the shopping, the wrapping of gifts, and baking Christmas cookies every year. Let the celebration begin! But, if Jesus wouldn’t have been born, there wouldn’t really be a reason to celebrate Christmas. Have you ever considered that? 

Let’s not forget the best part of Christmas is the good news of great joy - pointing to the Savior of the world. Love came down at Christmas. Jesus, the prince of peace, was born.  And a few unnamed shepherds in a nearby field were among the first to hear this great news! Plus - the greatest birth announcement ever given - was sung by a host of heavenly angels praising God and saying - “Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth, Peace, Goodwill toward men.” Wouldn’t you love to see and hear that display in the heavenlies?

God’s plan for ‘peace on earth’ started by sending His Son, Jesus. The angel’s song wasn’t a proclamation for world peace among nations, nor peace between neighbors. Although we would love to see the reality of this peace, it won’t happen until the second coming of Jesus. That day can’t come soon enough! What the angels were singing about, is the peace that would come to those who have placed their faith in Jesus. Although, the message of Christmas peace is for ALL mankind, in order for Jesus to BE our peace – we must place our faith in Him. We can have ‘peace with God’ because of our relationship with Jesus Christ. That’s good news! And, it’s because of our relationship with Christ, that we can choose to live in peace with one another and experience the peace He alone can give.

Below is a ‘A Christmas Prayer’ by Robert Louis Stevenson. May the peace of Christmas be yours this holiday season and don’t forget to pass it on… 

Loving Father,

Help us remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels,

The gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wise men. 

Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the world.

Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting.  

Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.

May the Christmas morning make us happy to be Thy children,

And Christmas evening bring us to our beds.

With grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus’ sake. Amen

 Merry Christmas, Karen

Grateful Season

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Sisters in Christ,

Fall is upon us, the time we celebrate the changing colors of the landscape, the harvest of crops, and Thanksgiving. It's the best time of year to consider all the things we are grateful for.  In Hawaii, we might not be able to see the visual changes of the season, but we can still trust and know that it is Fall.

            Thanksgiving is a time we reflect on our many reasons to be grateful.  God calls us as Christians to not just give thanks at Thanksgiving, but to “give thanks in all circumstances”.  We might think we should be thankful only for the good things, things like our family, our health, our successes, our friends. But we know that God doesn’t say be thankful in the good things, again He says, “Give thanks in all circumstances”.

            Just like we sometimes can’t see the changing colors to show that Fall is upon us, we might not always see the things God is doing, or the ways we can or should be truly grateful. In Luke 7:36-50, we see a woman holding firm to her reasons for gratitude, a woman who saw God in the flesh and had her life changed, forever.  There were no outward indicators of what changes were happening in her heart and life.  In fact, even the religious people around her called her a “sinner” that Jesus should be weary of.

            This woman knew and believed that a new season was upon her; a season of change and the hope of a new life and purpose in Christ.  She believed and trusted in the changes that Jesus was working in her life, and as a result, she poured out her tears on His feet in gratitude.  Though the room around her smeared her name and pointed out her past, this woman clung to the feet of the One who forgave her much, the one who allowed her to love much. She gave thanks in all circumstances and poured out her life savings in gratitude on the feet of the King of her life.

            I pray that we hold fast to Jesus’ working in our lives, whether it is obvious or seemingly unseen.  Let’s encourage our Sisters around us to give thanks to the One who has forgiven us of so much, to hold firm to our faith in Christ Jesus, and to live in God’s will for us.  We can give thanks always and in all things to God, as we trust that Jesus is moving in our lives in every season.

 In His grace,

Jaime Angel

Maintain Your Life with God

“But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith,

praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God,

looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Jude 1:20-21

Hey Girls!

 I love these words of wisdom from Jude! Four simple instructions to help us maintain our life in Christ in the troubling days and months ahead. Plus, these 2 verses above can be turned into a heartfelt prayer for yourself and others! Oh, how we need prayer… I’ve been a Christian for a long time. It would seem that after years of practicing my Christian faith - the outcome would be an easier life as I grow older. You’ve heard the saying, ‘practice makes perfect’! But that isn’t what I am experiencing at all. Life seems harder now than when I first believed. How about you? I have been challenged daily regarding my heart attitudes. Everywhere you turn, there is dis-unity and division. So much drama in the world right now.

 Yet according to scripture, everything is falling into place. So thankful our Lord in heaven, is sovereign over all. That even means the KingJ. Proverbs 21:1, “The Kings heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” Knowing this fact reminds us to pray confidently for kings in authority, realizing God can and does direct their hearts and decisions. We also can pray for our own hearts and the gals we are praying for this month. 

“But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith,

praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God,

looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Jude 1:20-21

1). Building my faith - Dear Lord, help me grow in my faith. I desire a hunger and a love for Your Word that is undeniable. Stir that hunger and love in me, so I choose to read Your Words daily and hide Your treasures in my heart. Strengthen me to remain under pressure when trials come my way. I am dependent upon Your power to keep me keeping on. I yield to the work of Your hands. Please transform that hard place into a beautiful diamond. May I sparkle and shine for You…

2). Praying in the Spirit – Dear Lord, help me to be led by the Spirit of God when I pray…

3). Keeping myself in the love of Jesus – Dear Lord, may I abide in your love today, keeping myself in a place where You are able to bless me. Grant me wisdom + discernment to guard my steps and keep me in Your love…

4). Anticipate Christ’s return – Dear Lord, I am waiting for Your great mercy and hope of eternal life forever and ever with You. Soon and very soon we are going to see our King Jesus! Help me to wait expectantly for Your soon return. Open my heart to share the love of Jesus with others in need of Your amazing grace…

In Jesus name, Amen.

Blessings, Karen

Best Start

“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house

and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” Mark 1:35

Sisters in Christ,

How do you get your day started? Remember that jingle, “The best part of waking up, is Folgers in your cup”?  I love to start my day with a good, strong cup of coffee, and most days I can’t hold a conversation until I’ve got a bit of caffeine in my system.  In Jesus’ days on earth, thank goodness coffee wasn’t the first thing he was seeking in the morning! 

Jesus rose before the day started and went to meet with His Father in prayer. He sought time with the Lord before any other interactions or movements in his daily routine, and He made prayer time the most important part of His day.  In Psalm 5:3 it says, “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.” Our Intercessor, Jesus, shows us what it looks like to live a power-filled, Spirit-directed, God-focused life.  It is a day that begins saturated in prayer and time spent alone with God.         

For some of us, that might be an intimidating thought depending on how we view God.  Jesus taught us to talk to God as “Our Father in Heaven” (Matthew 6:9) and portrayed in John 17 how much He, Himself is praying for us.  If you’re ever daunted about praying to the God of the universe, remember that Jesus said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30).  We can look to the ministry of Jesus and know the heart of the Father through His life. The more we see and learn about the God of all creation through His Word (John 1:1-3), the more we can trust Him with our hearts, our needs, and our every day.  Jesus was surrounded by all the needs and chaos of the crowds around Him, and before the sun had even risen, He entrusted everything in prayer with His Father.

Even as each new day begins in a cloud of darkness, we can look to the Light of the world (John 8:12) to bring in the new morning’s mercies. Let’s follow Jesus’ example and start our day in the best way possible, by meeting in prayer with the Lord who sees our every need and delights to care for those who cry out to Him (Psalm 18:19, Psalm 147:11).  If you’re unsure of what to pray for or how to pray, look to Matthew 6:9-13 and John 17 as Jesus’ instruction and example.  May your days be refreshed by the best start to the day: time with Jesus!

 In His grace,

Jaime Angel

A Prayer of Thanksgiving

“We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers,

remembering before our God and Father your work of faith

and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3

Hey Girls!

I wanted to say thank you for being involved in this prayer ministry and I do pray for you! Although I can’t say I constantly pray for you as Paul claimed for the Thessalonian church, each month when we prepare the H2P letters to mail out and place the names on each letter, I say a prayer then. I’m so thankful God placed Mike and me here at NSCF. It’s exciting to share in all the great things Our Lord has accomplished through the body of Christ here in a little town called Haleiwa.

Last month marked the 39th year that my husband has been serving as senior pastor. That also means that I have been a pastor’s wife for that long, too. So crazy! It’s a role that I never would have wanted or imagined for my life.  But I absolutely love it! Never in my wildest dreams would I have believed we could live this God-sized plan, loving God and loving others, while enjoying life to its fullest. My heart is full of gratitude to the Lord for His generous grace poured out in all of our lives. And I am blessed and thankful for the believers in our church body that we call Ohana.

 I thank God for the work of faith I can clearly see in action, among the people at NSCF. As you know, ministry doesn’t just magically happen! Without each person using their God-given spiritual gifts, our church wouldn’t be the same. Your participation is essential! And your work and your labor of love is much appreciated and doesn’t go unnoticed. That being said, we are always in need of more servants as the Lord continues to send new people to our church community. You can find great joy and much fulfillment in serving others by finding your place in the body of Christ. What a blessing it is to work hand in hand sharing the good news of the Gospel to our community and to those far beyond. Your steadfastness of hope in Jesus is what keeps you pressing onward and we give God all the praise for the great things He is doing in our midst.

 Do you have an answered prayer, a shout of praise, or a word of encouragement? Has the Lord used this prayer ministry in your life? Please let us know! We are having a Women’s Gathering to celebrate the great things God is doing! Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works. God has been so faithful in each of our lives. All praise and glory to Him!

 God bless you, Karen

Do Not Fear

“Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Luke 5:4

Sisters in Christ,

Can you believe we’re halfway through the year already? I’m thinking everyone has pretty much gotten their routines and schedules down by this point of the year, and things may be running pretty much as expected.  As we keep doing what we’re used to, it can be easy to get on cruise control and not stray from our “normal” plans.

In Luke 5:1-3, we see Jesus enlist the help of some fishermen in the middle of their normal workday, and then in their boat, He teaches the crowds of people that have come to hear the word of God.  These fishermen were along for the ride and probably listened in to Jesus’ teachings, because we see that as Jesus finished speaking, He asked Simon Peter to “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch”. 

The guys already washed their nets and were done for the day, and yet Jesus was asking them to go out again, this time into deep water. Deep water, where things are dark and unknown. Jesus calls His disciples out to the deep waters…to places that aren’t in our element, are out of our control, or are bigger than we can imagine. These unknowns can be intimidating and scary. But it’s in these waters we grow in faith.

Peter’s initial response was to say, “But we’ve been doing this all night and caught nothing!” They were tired, caught nothing, and frankly they had probably conceded that they’d be going home empty-handed. Sometimes we can get so caught up in thinking, “I’ve done this all night!” Or “I’ve prayed for this for so long, it’s just not going to happen”… “It’s fine and not meant to be.”  Simon Peter could’ve been so afraid to end up without a catch again, but instead he replied, “But at Your word, I will…” (Luke 5:5). When God speaks to and leads us, we can trust and have faith that He will remain faithful, even when it seems we’ve been waiting for a missed catch. 

In verses 6-7 we see that when they listened to and obeyed Jesus, their nets were so overflowing that other boats came to help because of the abundance of fish! Others saw God’s goodness through Peter’s obedience, and they were in awe; it was the haul of their lives! One of my favorite parts here is that as they stand in awe of Jesus, He reminds them “Do not fear…” Do not fear the unknown, do not fear the waiting, do not fear trying again, do not fear all that Jesus has for you…because Jesus had a plan for their new normal: “…from now on, you’ll be catching men.” And at that they left everything and followed Him.

 Let’s keep pushing forward in prayer and not fear or grow weary as we follow Him. May we hear from and obey Him and may the overflow of His goodness in our lives impact those around us while we stand in awe of our faithful Lord Jesus.

 In His grace, Jaime Angel

The Fragrance of Prayer Lingers

“Let my prayer be set before You as incense,

the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” Psalm 141:2

Hey Girls!

Have you ever wondered what happens to your prayers after you pray them? Did you know your prayers are stored in heaven in golden bowls? Your prayers aren’t tossed aside, thrown away, or forgotten. They are important to God. Take a look at Rev. 5:8 and you’ll see! The heavenly scene John is describing in Revelation chapter 5 is his vision of the heavenly throne room. He sees a sealed scroll in God’s hand, and the Lamb of God, which is Jesus. He is the only one worthy to open the scroll. He saw the Lamb of God, taking the scroll into His hand then, “the 4 living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, (is this where we get harps in heaven?), and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people”. Incense symbolizes the prayers that we offer up to God. It’s a sweet-smelling aroma and offering to God.

In the Old Testament, incense was offered up daily by the priests in the Tabernacle, the Temple, and also just outside the Most Holy Place where God dwelt. Incense was a wonderful fragrance that was pleasing to the Lord and it was offered continuously. When the priest burned incense at the altar, you can be sure that his family and friends knew it, for he carried the fragrance of incense with him wherever he went. I know from first-hand experience about incense. I worked in an incense factory back in my high school days. It was so much fun working with all the different scents. The aroma from the incense was so strong it seeped into my pores and was almost impossible to wash off.

God takes delight in our prayers. It’s as if when we pray, our prayers are collectively gathered together into golden bowls full of incense, and carried to the very throne of God in heaven. Our prayers rise up as a fragrance heaven bound. WOW! Not only that, if you and I are taking time daily to meet the Lord in prayer, others will know it, because our lives will smell of His fragrance. May our prayers be a sweet aroma to the Lord.

 God bless you - Karen

The Heart of God

“I love the Lord because He hears my prayers and answers them.

Because He bends down and listens, I will pray as long as I breathe!” Psalm 116:1-2

 Hey Girls!

 Have you ever thought about how God hears your prayers? I’m glad that He doesn’t hear my prayer, my calling out to Him, the way I sometimes hear the calls on my cell phone. I can push accept or decline …. Right? This verse declares that God hears our prayers. He listens in order to understand and give us an answer. And the most amazing thing to me in this verse is that He BENDS down to LISTEN…

 What a wonderful picture of the heart of God displaying His tender love and concern for what we have to say. He bends down so He can draw near, to come close. Amazing! The God of the universe, who we call Father, the one who paints the skies with His brilliant colors each and every day, has time for you and me! He doesn’t hit the decline button! He gladly accepts your calling out to Him. Remember that truth the next time you feel overwhelmed and discouraged and your God seems far away.

 Your Father in heaven promises in James 4:8, ‘draw near to God and He will draw near to you’. What assurance and love that promise brings. He will always take time to draw near and listen when we take time to talk to Him.

 Why not fill in the blank with reasons why you love the Lord?

I, love the Lord because_______________________________________

 May you be reminded of His love for you, His child, this day. And may you be able to say, because of your love for Him, that you will pray to Your Father as long as you can breatheJ

 “Evening + morning + noon I will pray + cry out loud and He shall hear my voice.” Psalm 55:17

 God bless you, Karen

Battle Cry

 “Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth.” Psalm 100:1

Sisters in Christ,

 April is here, and the spring showers have brought so many changes, both through the wild flooding but also through the new growth and life that comes after such devastation.  Psalm 100 is a beautiful thanksgiving to the Lord, as an exhortation to all mankind to praise God.  In these verses, we are encouraged to serve the Lord with gladness, to come before Him with joyful singing, and to know that He is God. But did you know that this Psalm starts on the battlefield?

The Hebrew word for “shout” in Psalm 100:1 is rûwaʻ, (roo-ah'); and it’s meaning is to split the ears (with sound), i.e. shout (for alarm or joy): blow an alarm, cry, make a joyful noise, triumph. The Hebrew-Greek Keyword Study Bible describes rûwaʻ this way: “In the old testament, shouting often took place just before a people or army rushed into battle against opposition; sometimes the war cry became the very signal used to commence engagement with the enemy. Many times the shout was a cry of joy, often in response to the Lord’s creating or delivering activity on behalf of His people. In several other instances, the shout expressed triumph and victory over a foe, and occasionally mourning.

This rûwaʻ is the same word used as the Israelites trusted in the God of Abraham to bring the walls of Jericho down (Joshua 6:5,10,16,20).  It is the same word used in Numbers 10:9 “And when you go to war in your land against the enemy who attacks you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, so that you will be thought of by the LORD your God and be saved from your enemies”. It is the word that was used as the people praised God when the foundations of God’s temple were laid in Ezra 3:11, and it is the same word used to declare the victory of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ, in Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is righteous and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Our own psalms in life will have battles, but when we “Shout joyfully to the LORD”, we are then able to declare that both the battle and the victory are the Lord’s, and not our own. Shouting joyfully to the Lord reminds us and the enemy around us that we are His people, and that the Lord Himself is God, good and faithful to all generations, with everlasting kindness.  In the midst of the ensuing battles, we can raise the battle cry, the alarm to remember to stand fast in the Lord, and the proclamation of the victory we have in Christ. May we pray this battle cry over our sisters this month and stand firm in the Lord’s faithful victory.

In His Grace, Jaime Angel

He Shall Sustain You

In a moment of desperation and discouragement, King David prayed:

“Oh, that I had wings like a dove!

For then I would fly away and be at rest.” Psalm 55:6

Hey Girls,

In the pressure of the moment, have you ever wanted to run away from the hassles and stresses of life? Yep, I have! Sounds like a good solution when you’re exhausted and tired of dealing with mountains of problems with no solutions in sight. We can all relate to feelings of frustration and discouragement. I like King David’s honesty in expressing that he wanted to fly away from the conflict in order to find rest. I, too, at times would like to make a run for it.

Flying to an outer island to find rest sounds like a good plan doesn’t it? Even a staycation has a great ring to it these days. But we know that we can’t run away from life’s conflicts and problems. When we do, our problems seem to find us at our new location! Remember what happened to Jonah? He didn’t get very far, did he? Although Jonah’s assignment was difficult for him, he didn’t find peace until He obeyed God’s call and finished the task before him.

God wants to cause growth and maturity in our character. He uses the difficult times we encounter to do just that. But He also desires for us to realize and experience that He will sustain us in the midst of the difficulty. The answer isn’t found in running away. The answer is found in committing your problems to God and allowing Him to sustain you in the midst of it all.

When you find yourself in a difficult situation, pray as David did later on in this Psalm. In verse 22 David prayed, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.” Once you have gone through the trial, you will be able to comfort others with the same comfort you have experienced from the Lord.

God bless you, Karen

Because He First Loved Us

“And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31

Sisters in Christ,

What is love? It says in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 that “love is patient and kind, it doesn’t envy or boast ... love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things … love never ends.” We see in Colossians 3:14 that above all else, we should “put on love” because love binds everything together in perfect harmony. Over and over in the scriptures love is found to cover all offenses (Pro 10:12), to be the fulfilling of the law (Rom 13:10), and to ultimately point to the One who is Love.

In every instance of love in the Bible, we can see the character of our Almighty God because God is love (1 Joh 4:16). Love is from God (1 Joh 4:7-8) and when we love, it shows a greater knowledge of this Lord of all Creation.  These biblical descriptions of love reveal more and more of who our God is, and how great a love He has shown to us through Jesus (Joh 3:16-17).

 Jesus, the Son of God, gave Himself up for sinners like us: undeserving, ungrateful, unaware (Rom 5:8, Eph 5:25, Luk 6:35). He exemplified the greatest love as He laid down His perfect life for us (Joh 3:16, Joh 15:13), bore our sin and shame on the cross, and covered a multitude of sins (1 Pet 4:8) so that we might, by His great love, be made alive in Christ, saved by grace, and called children of God (Eph 2:4-5, 1 Joh 3:1).

 Let us pray for one another this month to know the love that we have been so graciously given through Jesus. Let’s ask the Lord to help us love Him with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Pray that He would pour out His love into and through us as we love our neighbors like Jesus, sacrificially and in deed and truth (1 Joh 3:16-18).

 Jesus says in John 14:21 “Whoever has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me.” It can be tempting to make a checklist of “to-do’s” as we strive to follow the most important commandments in Mark 12:29-31, but we must always remember that it is Jesus that first loved us and gave Himself as a ransom for many.  We love because He first loved us (1 Joh 4:19).  In every opportunity, we can love fully and completely because God has poured that love out on us, and He continues to show us how to love through His Word, His Spirit’s leading, and by placing us around “neighbors” that need to be shown the love of God.  His love changes everything.

In His Grace, Jaime Angel

A Prayer to Keep God First in 2021

Aloha Girls,

Happy New Year! I’m so thankful for the promise and hope of another new year. We can look ahead to 2021 with faith, hope and expectancy. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us “for I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Below is a heartfelt prayer I came across at Christianity.com and I pass it onto you to pray for yourself, your family and your friends…

Dear God, thank you that You make all things new. Thank you for all that You've allowed into our lives this past year, the good along with the hard things, which have reminded us how much we need You and rely on Your presence filling us every single day.

We pray for Your Spirit to lead us each step of this New Year. We ask that You will guide our decisions and turn our hearts to deeply desire You above all else. We ask that You will open doors needing to be opened and close the ones needing to be shut tight. We ask that You would help us release our grip on the things to which you’ve said “no,” “not yet,” or “wait”. We ask for help to pursue You first, above every dream and desire You’ve put within our hearts.

We ask for Your wisdom, for Your strength and power to be constantly present within us. We pray You would make us strong and courageous for the road ahead. Give us ability beyond what we feel able, let Your gifts flow freely through us, so that You would be honored by our lives, and others would be drawn to You. We pray that You’d keep us far from the snares and traps of temptations. That You would whisper in our ear when we need to run and whisper in our heart when we need to stand our ground.

We pray for Your protection over our families and friends. We ask for Your hand to cover us and keep us distanced from the evil intent of the enemy; that You would be a barrier to surround us, that we’d be safe in Your hands. We pray that You would give us discernment and insight beyond our years, to understand Your will, hear Your voice, and know Your ways. Amen. - Debbie McDaniel

Happy New Year! Karen