If you knew I was an expert on something and you were my close friend, would you go to a total stranger and ask them instead of asking me? If you did, not only would you be hurting our relationship, but you'd also be getting poor instruction. We live in a world where God is evident in everything good that we see if we only look intently, yet many look elsewhere for guidance about the very world and people He created. Christians who do this hurt their relationship with a God who loves them, and are led astray by what the Bible calls "blind guides." Seeking information from horoscopes, spiritists and other mediums is evil in God's eyes which makes it bad enough. What makes it worse is that in the end, those who seek this type of advice and counsel begin to blame God and government for all the problems in the world. What's more, they become blind to the very light they once knew. "When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their god? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king [government] and their God. Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness." Isaiah 8:19-22  Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

Are you being pressured to become sexually active? Many young people write me about these types of issues, and down to a one the person who's always concerned about it is the female. Men, once they have the opportunity to become sexually active, can typically only think about one thing--the next time they can have sex! God's plan is a simple one. Do not have sexual relations outside of the covenant of marriage. Females are often gifted with giving personalities, and men are quite often quite willing to provide the "but I love you" pressure or the "we'll be married one day" pressure to help convince the fairer sex to give in. Applying the pressure is sin, falling for the pressure is sin, and ANY sexual impurity is sin. I can't put it much plainer. But, if you've gone down this road, God's plan is equally simple and He is always forgiving if we do things HIS way. First, STOP today, agree with God that you've sinned and confess it to Him, THEN, remain pure until you are married. And... since we're on the topic, any man who says he loves you but is unwilling to sacrifice for you (and for God) is a liar. His love is only for himself. "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry." Colossians 3:5 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

Recently, I spent some time chatting with a young woman who was regretting getting herself into a sexual situation with a young man. Although she felt bad about allowing him to do something she really didn't want to do, she confessed, "I just didn't know how to say 'no' to him." I sadly told her that situations like this were bound to happen again and again if she didn't learn to stand her ground. Not being able to say "no" could honestly have been a death sentence before she knew it because of the things she'd wind up saying "yes" to. Then I was reminded of a quote from a leadership conference I once attended that tried to help executives prioritize things better. The quote from author and leadership guru, Stephen Covey, goes like this: The way to say "no" to something is to have a bigger "yes" burning inside of you. The "yes" my young friend needed was a simple one: "Yes, Jesus!" "I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him" Phillippians 3:7b-9a  Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

I've often told ministers who were down because they were forced to work extra jobs that it was fine to do that as necessary, "Hey, even Paul had a job making tents," I would say. There's even a name that's passed around Christian circles for a pastor's other work. The second job is called a "tent making job." Although I was correct about it being OK for the pastor or minister to have another job, I recently revisited the Scripture about Paul's tent making and noticed that I had missed something. Paul only made tents until there was sufficient help to relieve him of those duties. After that, he was able to devote himself more fully to what the Lord had called him to do. Not everyone is called to preach and to teach, but everyone is called to help forward the cause of the gospel of Christ. One is not necessarily more important than the other. In fact, for the majority of us preaching sermons will not be our calling. Instead, our calling is often to support our local church financially so that those called to serve there can devote themselves to their work. "Paul went to see them [fellow believers Aquila & Prescilla], and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them. Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks. When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ." Acts 18:2b-5 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

If you know much of anything about Christianity, you'll know that God has revealed Himself to humankind as a "triune being", meaning that He has three parts, each separate, but each one very much God. And, even though they are separate, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are also all one. Kind of like a whole family of "Smith's" would all be one as Smiths, but would also all be separate. Now, unlike the Smith's, can you imagine for a moment that three parts of the same perfect and holy God would have disagreements? Idiotic, I know! Then imagine for a moment how idiotic it must seem to God when WE, all parts of the same body (the body of Christ) have divisions and disagreements with one another and are not only happy to do it, but proud of it. Ridiculous as it sounds, if you look at any church you'll find divisions, and very few are founded on anything more serious than who took the other person's parking spot! Analyze your relationships in your church or youth group. If there are broken relationships, do your best to fix them. If you've done your best, then God knows you're on solid ground. If not, make another attempt. Divisions are not something that honors God and we need to do everything we can to stop them, or to fix them as necessary. "In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extend I believe it." 1 Corinthians 11:17-18 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

Imagine for a moment that Jesus walked into the room you're in right now and looked right at you. Immediately, you feel like He's looking right into your deepest, darkest secrets and understanding every motivation of your heart, both good and bad. You don't know what to think, but you know there's no use to hide the truth--you are evil inside and you know it. The only hope is to drop the pretense and simply accept the hand that Jesus is now offering. He offers it in spite of what He knows about your soul. As you take His hand, He doesn't care about your sin any longer; He died for that sin too! "Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?'" John 4:28-29 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." Matthew 10:34 Those of the Jewish faith had (and still have) a serious problem with Jesus. Not only did He rock their religious establishment, but they were looking for a different kind of savior. They interpreted Scriptures that indicated the Messiah would come to destroy their enemies as proof that no "passivist" could be their long-awaited Messiah. Even though He sometimes talked about destruction of their enemies, He seemingly did nothing! Where was the sword? Where were the mass graves filled with Israel's enemies? Although there are some fringe groups who believe otherwise, true Christians (like the Christ they follow) do not need to kill or mock those who don't believe like they do. We are not like governments around the world who put those of other faiths to death. We live in and among many who think and believe differently than us. We don't drive airplanes into buildings to kill many and intimidate others. None of us are called to machine-gun others because of their faith! We are called to use a different type of sword. It's the one that Jesus brought that remains largely unnoticed by an unbelieving world. Oh, His enemies will fall by the sword alright, but not by one made of steel! They will fall by the sword He left for us to read, study, and become experts at yielding! Honestly, have you picked up your sword lately? "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Ephesians 6:17 "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." Hebrews 4:12-13 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

God is able to do far more than we could ever ask for or imagine. He does everything by his power that is working in us. (Ephesians 3:20) Friends, Last month, I hesitated to include all four sticky note stories at the bottom of my newsletter—I had a moment of panic. What if next month is slower and I don’t have any stories to share?! But y’all… last month’s newsletter highlighted the overwhelming number of people in the Dayton area who need help—and then God showed up in a big way. In addition to regular funding, we received another generous donation specifically designated for Harvest Helps, allowing us to serve even more people! What a blessing it was to write down their names, fill out their sticky notes for my wall, and tell them, “Jesus loves you.” Aaron reminded me there would always be people who need help and people who want to help. It was a timely reminder to stay the course! Please join me in praying for this month’s Harvest Helps recipients and ask God to continue pouring out His blessings on the Dayton area. Right now, we’re working to meet needs related to transportation, housing, clothing, and food. Hopefully, those are the names I’ll be sharing with you next month! Some More Sticky Notes: Ms V - Received clothing needed for her grandson Miss L - Trafficking survivor who needed a bus pass and clothing Ms B - Received a car payment and a grocery order Mr A - Received some personal hygiene items Unknown - Received clothing to meet an immediate need Blessings, Elizabeth Kilby