FEAR NOT! -DEUTERONOMY 20:1-9 KEY VERSE: "And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his heart" (Deuteronomy 20:8). On Saturday the 28th day of May 2005, the British Guardian newspaper reported an almost unbelievable story. According to reports, two Japanese men, who were both in their 80s, had said they were soldiers of the Second World War, and had been hiding on the Island of Mindanao, which is 600 miles from Manila, in the Philippines. They had deserted their division who were fiercely devastated by the United States’ forces. They had since remained in the jungle and mountains possibly unaware that the war had ended 60 years earlier. They also feared being court-martialled for possible desertion if they showed their faces again. Desertion is a serious crime in the military, usually punishable by death.

OPEN HEAVENS 2017 A FRUIT-BEARING TREE? – Sunday April 23rd 2017 Memorise : Every branch in me that beareth not fruit the taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. John 15:2 Read:  Luke 13:6-9 (King James Version) 6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 7 Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? 8 And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: 9 And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down. Bible in one year:  Number 14-15, Jeremiah 18:19-19:9, Hymn: Sing hymn 13 MESSAGE Fruit-bearing is a necessity for every child of God. When the Scripture in Deuteronomy 7:14 says none shall be barren, this promise

The Shout of Victory Oclap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph (Psalm 47:1). Our opening verse is talking about the shout of victory. Some people shout out of fear, but in Christianity we shout in victory. We shout unto the Lord with the voice of triumph. It’s like the shout the children of Israel gave in conquering Jericho. As they journeyed to the Promised Land, they got to Jericho, but the city was shut with thick and imposing walls (Joshua 6:1). The Lord, however, gave Joshua the strategy to conquer Jericho. It was the “shout strategy”: “…And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him ” (Joshua 6:2-5). When the people did as the Lord instructed, the walls came down flat (Joshua 6:20). Some people don’t unders

The Shrinking Piano Jennifer Benson Schuldt Philippians 1:1–11 He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  Philippians 1:6 For three consecutive years, my son participated in a piano recital. The last year he played, I watched him mount the steps and set up his music. He played two songs and then sat down next to me and whispered, “Mom, this year the piano was smaller.” I said, “No, it’s the same piano you played last year. You’re bigger! You’ve grown.” Spiritual growth, like physical growth, often happens slowly over time. It is an ongoing process that involves becoming more like Jesus, and it happens as we are transformed through the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2). When the Holy Spirit is at work in us, we may become aware of sin in our lives. Wanting to honor God, we make an effort to change. Sometimes we experience success, but at other times, we try and fail. If it seems like nothing changes, we get discouraged. We may eq