100% of April Profits to go to Boston Marathon Victims

To support the victims of the senseless tragedy that took place at the Boston Marathon, The Montgomery Lake High book series will donate 100% of its profits made during the month of April to the New England Patriots Boston Marathon relief fund. The Krafts will match 100% of the donations made (up to $100,000). So that means 200% of MLH’s profit rate will go to the victims! Books can be purchased online through Barnes & Noble or Amazon. #prayforboston http://www.montgomerylakehigh.com/

United We Stand – Boston Strong

 

Words from the Cross: A Good Friday Message

When Jesus cried out “my God my God why have you forsaken me” he was reacting to something he had never before experienced. He was experiencing separation from His Father. He was feeling the weight of sin and bearing sin’s consequence.

You see, sin separates man from God. It causes walls to go up between us and Him. It puts distance between His thoughts and ours, His will and ours. Jesus led a sinless life—never once had sin caused even an inch of separation to exist between him and God. But at the cross, all the sins of humanity were placed upon his shoulders. He wore our sin—all of it. For the first time in his life, His perfect communion with the Father was severed,

He was the lamb led to a slaughter that the prophet Isaiah spoke of 700 years prior. He became the sacrifice required to atone for the sins of humanity. He became the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy for the new covenant. There would no longer be a need for animal sacrifices in the Temple, because Jesus’ innocent shed blood was payment in full for all of our sins.

When Jesus cried out “My God…” he was experiencing the darkness that we as believers in Christ will never know. He was experiencing the wrath of God, so that we will never have to. We have the promise from God that He will never leave us or forsake us. That promise is ours because Jesus was willing to be forsaken. One of my favorite worship songs says, “I’m forgiven because you were forsaken. I’m accepted, you were condemned. I’m alive and well, your spirit is within me, because you died and rose again. Amazing love, how can it be, that you my King would die for me?”

Well we are told that it was for the joy set before him that Jesus endured the cross. Do you know what that joy was? Eternity with you and me, in perfect union with God in heaven. That truly is amazing love.

Separation from God caused Jesus to cry out loud from the cross. At this thought, I have to ask myself, how do I react when I sense distance between me and God. Do I notice? While I will never be forsaken by God, I can choose by my actions to walk away from him, step out of his will for me, or shut Him out from parts of my life. Often we do these things without ever realizing that we have mis-stepped. For me, I often realize it when I sense in my spirit a lack of peace—when I cannot sense His voice. When this happens, I know that it is time for me to stop and evaluate my life. What am I valuing? Am I walking in step with my God or have I allowed unconfessed sin to put distance between me and My Father?

The other day, one of my students and I were talking about the distance from God that Jesus experienced on the cross. We talked about how Jesus was always so close to God that he immediately noticed the disconnect. I correlated it to when someone you love and spend quality time with goes away from you. You notice it. Life feels different without them. You feel, on some level, alone, barren, exposed, and feeble. It is because that person impacted your every day life. So if God is truly the Lord of my life, I should feel those same emotions when I step away from Him. I can honestly say that is probably one of the greatest gifts we have—the ability to sense His presence. Because in knowing what it feels like to be with Him, we can recognize when we are walking apart from Him. The lack of fulfillment, joy, and peace that we feel apart from God is like an internal alarm system, letting us know that we have, in some way, stepped away from God’s best for us. Because of this alarm, we can stop in our tracks and turn back to God. He will run to meet us! Truly, again, AMAZING LOVE.

News: Guest Appearance

Stacy will be speaking to the confirmation class at St. Francis in Weymouth on Tuesday evening. She will be sharing about her book series (www.montgomerylakehigh.com) and sharing parts of her own personal testimony. 

 

Created for a Purpose

Whether it’s time, energy, mental energy, money, skills, or love – our resources are best spent where they will be valued. Life is too short to waste time “casting pearls before swine.” Every one of us is full of potential, special talents, and the ability to brighten another’s day. Don’t let anyone make you feel like you are not valuable. The flaw is in their inability to detect your worth and/or see your potential. You were created for a special purpose and you are precious in the eyes of God.

Capitalism is the American Way

What is wrong with the northeast?!! John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, and our other founding fathers must be rolling over in their graves. The states that had so much to do with the birth of America–a country founded upon Capitalism & faith in God–have completely lost sight of what makes America the land of opportunity & the land of the free. Socialism breeds laziness and punishes good work ethic. Capitalism provides freedom and opportunity, rewarding hard work. The Patriots did not fight for our freedom from England so we could have a socialist president. Voting for Romney/Ryan demonstrates having respect for our roots, our heritage, our veterans, and our flag. Info on the formation of our country:http://voices.yahoo.com/america-nation-built-upon-religion-2805521.html?cat=37

Words for August 9th

Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. – Psalm 57:1

Psalm 57 deals with the mercy of God. Hiding from Saul, David was camped out in a cave at En-Gedi, near the Dead Sea. When Saul made his way into the same cave, not knowing David was already there, David’s men were jubilant. “This is your opportunity to wipe Saul out!” they said. But David wouldn’t do that. Instead, he merely cut a piece of cloth from Saul’s skirt – more than likely from the hem of the garment, which would have spoken of Saul’s pedigree and position. You see, in Bible days, knots were tied to the hems of garments in such a way that they signified a man’s family, tribe, and position. Thus, by cutting the garment of Saul, David, in a sense, was cutting off Saul’s position. Later, we are told, David’s heart smote him, for he knew he must not touch the Lord’s anointed (1 Samuel 24:5).

Maybe there’s someone chasing you down, hurling spears in your direction, trying to wipe you out, treating you unfairly or cruelly. Here’s what you need to remember: that person is anointed by the Lord to work His purposes in your life, to make you into the man or woman He desires you to be in order that you might rule with Him more effectively. If I retaliate and throw spears back, I’m missing the point, missing what God is doing in my life. The Lord knows. He’ll remove Saul in due season. But in the meantime, any given person or situation in your life could be the very instrument God is using to make you into a better person than you otherwise would be. And David understood this.

In clipping Saul’s garment, David knew that he had missed God’s best. So he asks the Lord to be merciful to him. “Blessed are the merciful,” Jesus said, “for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7). David had shown mercy in not lopping off Saul’s head. Thus he could ask for mercy to be shown to him.

In Luke 6, Jesus talks about the importance of mercy . . .

But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. Luke 6:35-38

“Give, and it shall be given unto you.” Jesus isn’t talking about money. He’s talking about mercy. Every one of us is in need of mercy. We all drop the ball. We all fall short. God has been merciful to us – but we need mercy from each other as well. Therefore, if you want to receive mercy in your hour of difficulty, be merciful to others.

When people were spitting on Him, hurling curses at Him, Jesus didn’t pray, “Father, forgive them when they realize what they’ve done and repent of it.” No, He prayed, “Father, forgive them even now because they don’t understand what they’re doing” (see Luke 23:34).

That’s always the way it is. When people are mean-spirited and throwing spears, it’s because they don’t see the big picture, the Biblical perspective. That is why we need to do what Jesus did. We don’t need to be vengeful, we need to be merciful. We don’t need to throw spears back at them. We need to pray for them.

This Daily Devotional is an excerpt from the book “Footsteps of the Flock” by Pastor Jon. “Footsteps of the Flock” is a collection of 365 short devotions from the Old Testament books of Joshua through Malachi. If you would like your own copy of “Footsteps of the Flock” you may visit the online SearchLight Store

And the winner is…

Congratulations Tara! Thank you to everyone who participated in the Boston Sports/Montgomery Lake High promotion!

Join us in the fight against teen substance abuse and bullying!

Brought to you by the Montgomery Lake High book series in partnership with Green Nation, Boston Bruins Nation, Patriots Nation, Boston Sports Memorabilia, and New England Social Network Advertising. Promotion running until 11:59pm on 5/27/12. Plain text: Here’s the deal… Teen drug abuse is on the rise—especially in the Boston area.  So…We are on a mission to reach the troubled youth. You can help us! How? Purchase a book for as low as $5.99 and give it to a teen you know. And… As a thank you, we will put your name in a drawing to win a free Boston sports jersey of your choice!

A Preview of Montgomery Lake High #3: The Aftermath

It sounded like a train coming toward him, but there was not a train in sight. A flash of light shot through the room—the capsule. Was this a time warp? Or, perhaps, a flashback?  Running—more running without getting anywhere. “No, Chantal! Stop!” he screamed. His words froze in the air.

She could not hear him. Time was running out. She was running toward the staircase with her long auburn hair flowing into Jason’s face. Watching, he knew that she was not going to make it before the trembling began. She fell over before he could reach her. Once again, he had let her down.

The light flickered, and he struggled to remain standing. He reached the stairs, but did not stop by Chantal’s side. The door ahead looked like a castle wall—a barricade. The other side held the destruction. The other side possessed the danger. This door—his enemy—was keeping them safe.

“Jason, don’t!” Cathy’s voice cried out. She did not sound like his fifteen year old girlfriend; she sounded like a hissing demon.

He latched onto the doorknob as it transformed into a vault. It looked like his locker. His mind was blank. I can make this right, he thought. He pressed his hand to the door. It was a glacier. Water began trickling through his fingertips. He felt completely alone. A crackling sound above caught his attention. Wake up, Jason! He screamed at himself. Wake up before you see him. Not again. In an instant, Andy’s pale face appeared through the water. Jason’s heart pounded. “Trade places with me!” Jason pleaded as he reached out toward Andy. There was a crash, and then Andy was gone.

Breathing heavily, with sweat dripping down his forehead, Jason shot his large blue eyes wide open. “Again? Really?” he said aloud in the stillness of his dark bedroom. He brought his hand to his chest and breathed in deeply. He turned toward his alarm clock. Three thirty-three a.m. It had been three weeks since the storm had struck Montgomery, since Andy had slipped into a coma, and since Jason had realized that he was living in a cloud of darkness.

Help Fight Teen Drug Abuse & Bullying: Spread the Word!

Brought to you by the Montgomery Lake High book series in partnership with Green Nation, Boston Bruins Nation, Patriots Nation, Boston Sports Memorabilia, and New England Social Network Advertising. Promotion running until 5/25/12.