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  • July 4, 2025

    July 4, 2025
    2025/07/04
    Daily Dose of Hope Happy 4th of July everyone! It is our prayer that God bless America and that we will never take for granted the freedom and many blessings we enjoy in this great nation. Matthew 21:28–46 Jesus tells a story: A dad says, “Go work the field, boys.” Son #1: “Nope.” Then later... shows up sweating. Son #2: “Yes, sir!” Then... disappears like socks in a dryer. Which one obeyed? The one who actually did something. Catch this: God’s not impressed with your churchy “yes” if your life says “no.” Talk is cheap. Action? That’s where the faith grows. Stone Cold Truth: Jesus Doesn’t Do Fake Next, Jesus drops a parable about a vineyard (again). God plants it, hires folks to care for it, sends people to check on it… The tenants beat the messengers, kill the heir (which represents… Jesus), and think they’ll get away with it. Spoiler: They don’t. This is a wake-up call for anyone playing landlord with God’s stuff, your life, your time, your talents. It all belongs to Him. Steward it. Don’t steal it. " The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone." (Matthew 21:42) Don’t toss Jesus out of your plans, He’s the only foundation worth building on. Here are some practical truths: • Be the sweaty son. Even if your start was slow, finish strong. • Faith is more than a bumper sticker. Obedience is louder than opinions. • You’re not the owner of the vineyard. Just the manager. Use it well. • Don’t reject the Stone. If Jesus isn’t the center, the whole thing cracks. This might be funny but trust me, it´s true: If saying “yes” was all it took, gym memberships would make us all fit, and Bible apps would make us saints. But showing up daily, faithfully, that’s what changes things. Prayer: Lord, help me obey with more than my lips. Let my life say “yes” where my pride once said “no.” Keep me grounded in Christ, the Cornerstone. And make my life a vineyard that gives You glory. Amen. Challenge: • Say “yes” to God and follow through. Make the call. Send the text. Serve the need. • Ask: Where have I said “yes” to Jesus but acted “no”? Repent and reset. • Identify a place in your life where Christ isn’t the Cornerstone, just yet. The Daily Dose of Hope is a devotional intended to provide context and reflection to the New Hope Church Bible Reading Plan. It’s our goal to read the Bible in a year together as a family of faith. Five days a week we read. Two days a week we either rest or catch up. Reading the Bible is the number one way to grow in our walk with Jesus. We have to know God’s Word to live God’s Word. Now for our Daily Dose of Hope… https://www.findnewhope.com
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    4 分
  • July 3, 2025

    July 3, 2025
    2025/07/03
    Daily Dose of Hope Matthew 21:1–27 Jesus Enters Like a King… on a Donkey? Let’s be honest, no one writes a heroic movie scene with the hero riding on a donkey. But that’s exactly how Jesus enters Jerusalem. No stallion. No sword. Just humble power. But, why? Because Jesus isn’t here to impress; He’s here to redeem. He doesn’t need a parade, He is the parade. "See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey…” (Mattew. 21:5) Real Power doesn’t shout. It serves. Do you want to be great? Grab a towel, not a title. Show up in the quiet moments. Say yes to the donkey path. Then we have the Curious Case of the Fig Tree Fail. Jesus rolls up to a leafy fig tree, it looks promising but bears no fruit. What does He do? He curses it. What’s going on here? It’s a parable in real time: Lots of leaves, no fruit = a life that looks good but lacks the goods. Jesus doesn’t just want leafy Christians; He wants fruitful ones. The kind that produces love, grace, patience, kindness, generosity… you know, actual evidence that He's alive in us. Fruit check! Are you all leaves or is there fruit under there? Then Jesus walks into the Temple courts and starts flipping tables. Why? Because God’s house was being used as a market instead of a mission. He doesn’t play with fake religion. He doesn’t tolerate holy-looking hustle. He wants a house of prayer, not a room of profit. Let’s be a church that flips comfort for calling. Let’s be people who trade profit for prayer, and flash for fruit. Here are some takeaways (or “Hope Nuggets”) • Ride donkeys, not drama. Humility carries the King. • Flip what’s fake. Jesus did. So can you. • Don’t just look good. Be good. Leafy isn’t fruitful. • Faith isn’t a temple tour, it’s a table-turning lifestyle. Prayer of the Day Lord, teach me to walk humbly and serve faithfully. Flip the tables in my life that don’t honor You. Grow real fruit in me, not just leafy fluff. And help me follow You, even when it means riding a donkey. Amen. Today: • Do something humble, quiet, unseen, for someone else. • Identify one “table” in your life that needs flipping (attitude, habit, distraction). • Bear fruit: Say sorry, forgive, give generously, love well, be the real deal. Tomorrow: • More Hope. More Jesus. Less drama. The Daily Dose of Hope is a devotional intended to provide context and reflection to the New Hope Church Bible Reading Plan. It’s our goal to read the Bible in a year together as a family of faith. Five days a week we read. Two days a week we either rest or catch up. Reading the Bible is the number one way to grow in our walk with Jesus. We have to know God’s Word to live God’s Word. Now for our Daily Dose of Hope… https://www.findnewhope.com
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    4 分
  • June 30, 2025; Matthew 19

    June 30, 2025; Matthew 19
    2025/06/30
    Daily Dose of Hope June 30, 2025 Scripture - Matthew 19 Prayer: Holy God, We come before you with humility and expectation as we start a new week. Thank you for another morning, another day, another chance to be a change agent in our world, your world. Guide us, Lord. Guide our words, actions, and thoughts. We want to be more like you. Help us see others as you see them. We love you. Amen. Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, a Deep Dive into the Gospels and Acts. Today, we dive into Matthew 19. Jesus and his disciples have begun to make the journey to Judea; they are heading to Jerusalem. And Jesus is using this time to teach about what it means to follow him. Jesus is turning everything upside down in his teachings: to follow him means renouncing the things that the world values. In this chapter, we see Jesus touch on how following him will affect how we behave in the most fundamental parts of our lives. He starts by teaching on divorce, making the point that marriage is not simply a contract, but it’s a creation of God and both men and women are equal partners in the marriage. The Pharisees are trying to “test” Jesus, meaning they ask a leading question designed to trap him into saying something that will discredit his public reputation. They ask whether a man can legally divorce his wife for any reason at all, and this was actually a specific debate that was happening among first century Jewish rabbis. In Deuteronomy, the law allows a man to divorce his wife if he finds some “indecency” or “something offensive” in her. That’s a bit vague. Something offensive could include gaining weight during pregnancy or finding someone more attractive. And while the different rabbis argued over this, the bottom line was that men could divorce women for basically anything. But, not shocking, women did not have the same rights. Now, the Pharisees want Jesus to enter this specific debate. He’s God and he can see through their words. Jesus goes back to God’s original intent on marriage, in the Garden but before the fall. The two become one. It’s a strong and intimate bond. Thus, there isn’t an easy or painless way for this bond to be broken. It’s going to cause tremendous pain. God’s will is for marriage to continue without this breakage. Jesus is basically saying that, in God’s Kingdom, marriage is a covenant between the man, the woman, and God. It’s a sacred commitment that can’t be flippantly broken. Please know that by making this argument, Jesus was protecting women. They were the ones hurt by the previous arrangement. Jesus goes on to teach about children–parents were bringing children to him to be blessed and the disciples scolded them. Jesus intervenes and says to let the little children come to me and then makes this stunning point that we all must become like little children to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. This is a point that Jesus repeatedly makes! Children, in those days, weren’t seen as having any value. But Jesus places tremendous value on them. Jesus’ point is that to follow him, we have to become like little children–vulnerable, powerless, needing someone else to provide safety and sustenance. Again, he is turning things upside down. Then, we come to the last portion of the chapter. This will seem familiar, as we also covered this story in Mark. A man comes up to Jesus and asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus says, “Well, you need to follow all the commandments.” He then lists out the various commandments and the man simply says, “Yes, I’ve done all those things since I was a boy.” Then, Jesus looks at the man and says that to be perfect, he must go and sell everything he owns and give it all to the poor. The text says that the man’s face fell. He went away sad because he had great wealth. This is the irony. The children who possess nothing are not told that the kingdom of God is theirs; yet this man who possesses everything still lacks something! Only when he sells all he has—only when he becomes like a vulnerable child—will he possess everything. But he isn’t willing to do that. He decides to walk away from Jesus. The man wasn’t expecting to have to make that kind of sacrifice. He had no idea following Jesus would be so hard. The disciples are really confused by this. At that time, most people believed that being wealthy was a sign of God’s blessing. Here, Jesus is saying that this man has to sell everything and give it to the poor. And that’s when Jesus says the really, really hard thing...It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. And the disciples ask “then who possibly can be saved?” Jesus says, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” I don’t know about you but I find it very unsettling to ...
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    9 分
  • June 27, 2025; Matthew 18:21-35

    June 27, 2025; Matthew 18:21-35
    2025/06/27

    Daily Dose of Hope

    June 27, 2025

    Scripture – Matthew 18:21-35

    Prayer: Holy God, Thank you for your incredible mercy. Your compassion is never-ending and your love is powerful. We are overflowing with gratitude. Help us demonstrate this same compassion and love toward others. May we become people of grace and see people through your eyes. In Your Name, Amen.

    Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, a Deep Dive into the Gospels and Acts. I just want to remind you all of our amazing worship night tonight at 7:30pm AND our special guest on Sunday. Dr. David Wilkinson is giving the message in the English-speaking service. He is a PhD in both astrophysics and theology and his life’s work has centered on the intersection between the Christian faith and science. After the 9:30 service, he has also agreed to a Q&A in the social hall, where a pancake and sausage brunch will be available by donation. All donations will go to the Residing Hope Children’s Home.

    Today is part two of Matthew 18. Here we have this very uncomfortable parable on forgiveness. Peter wants to know how far should forgiveness be extended. I mean, Jesus had just offered this conflict mediation model for churches to ensure that justice is upheld. But what about mercy? Jesus’ answer is really fascinating. He basically is saying, “Stop keeping count!”

    Let’s talk a bit about the parable itself. A servant owes his master a huge sum of money, something like 10,000 bags of gold. The servant was facing both imprisonment and the sale of his family to compensate for the debt. He goes to the master and asks for mercy. The readers are totally surprised – the master shows tremendous compassion and mercy. He totally forgives the huge debt. Unheard of and an act of extravagant compassion.

    That same servant then goes demanding payment of a debt that a fellow servant owes him. This isn’t a big debt, but something smaller and more manageable. When the fellow servant asks for more time, the forgiven servant refuses, denies compassion, and has the poor guy thrown in prison.

    Seeing the injustice of all of this, there are whistleblowers that see what happens and let the master know. The master is enraged and reinstates the man’s debt. How could he fail to show compassion after such great compassion was shown to him. He is imprisoned and tortured.

    While the ending is really horrific, Jesus is once again making a point. Forgiveness is critical and yet it is very hard. If we look at the whole of Matthew 18, we see the need of both holding people accountable and offering extravagant compassion and forgiveness. How do we even begin to reconcile this as a church? Upon doing research on this topic, one scholar suggested that the most powerful and instructive model is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in post-apartheid South Africa, guided by Bishop Desmond Tutu. Reconciliation entails both the offer of forgiveness and the naming and acceptance of responsibility for wrongful, wounding conduct. This approach to mercy and justice is congruent with Jesus’ call in Matthew 18 as a whole: while the faith community prioritizes grace and mercy, it also holds its members accountable for what they do to others.

    But what else might Jesus be saying in this parable? Pay compassion forward. God has been extraordinarily compassionate toward us. He gave his Son for us, so we might live abundantly now and in the future. Our sins are forgiven, our slate has been wiped clean. We owe Him a debt of gratitude. And yet, here we see what that looks like in a practical way. Show mercy, demonstrate compassion, love well, and forgive.

    Blessings,

    Pastor Vicki
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    5 分
  • June 26, 2025; Matthew 18:1-20

    June 26, 2025; Matthew 18:1-20
    2025/06/26
    Daily Dose of Hope June 26, 2025 Scripture – Matthew 18:1-20 Prayer: Lord Jesus, We rejoice in you. We praise your name. You are the Alpha and the Omega, the one who was, and is, and is to come. We cannot possibly express our gratitude in words. You have offered us mercy but you have also given us freedom. Thank you for that. Help us live like free people. Help us demonstrate your love and grace to others who cross our path. Help us see people through your eyes. We love you, Lord. Amen. Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, a Deep Dive into the Gospels and Acts. Happy Thursday! I want you to mark your calendars for the New Hope worship night, which is tomorrow at 7:30pm in the sanctuary. This will be time of amazing praise and worship, as well as prayer and commissioning of the Ireland young adult mission team. Hope to see you there! Today, we are diving into Matthew 18, the first twenty verses. The text starts with the disciples asking who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus totally redirects this! He gets the focus off the disciples and their own need for honor and puts it on the most vulnerable in their community. Children at that time had no status, little value, and zero control over their lives. Something like half of all children died before reaching adulthood. Knowing all of that, Jesus tells his disciples that the one who becomes humble and “weak” like this child will be the greatest in the Kingdom. In fact, unless they become like vulnerable little children, they won’t even be able to enter the Kingdom. This is the total opposite of the honor and status that the disciples were wanting. What is Jesus doing here? He is placing the most powerless members of their society at the center. Welcoming vulnerable children means welcoming Jesus. And Jesus says that there are few fates worse than harming them or causing them to sin. Then, Jesus says that there are many things in this world that can cause others to stumble. Human beings take advantage of one another. The powerful abuse the powerless. But Jesus’ warning here is pretty strong. Woe to the person who harms those who are weak and powerless, such as children. His language then echoes the Sermon on the Mount. It’s better to gouge out an eye or cut off a limb than to allow those things to cause you to sin and harm a powerless one. As I reread this, I couldn’t help but think about all the children that are harmed. Around the globe, something like three million children are trafficked each year, forced into forced labor, sexual exploitation, or child marriage. In the United States, for which it is easier to get data, roughly 20,000 children are trafficked each year. Almost 600,000 children in the U.S. experience abuse and/or neglect every year. While the situation is certainly complicated, children aren’t being protected. And then there are other groups who are highly vulnerable, such as the elderly, the desperately poor, and the homeless. This is pretty strong teaching here and it gives us practical examples of how to live in Christian community, solidly grounded in Jesus. We are to set aside power, protect the vulnerable and those the rest of society neglects, and search for the lost sheep (as we read in the next portion of Scripture). Jesus is all about protecting those who can’t protect themselves and seeking out those who are lost. The question is – are we? I worry that we often focus on things that just aren’t that important. We worry about ourselves. We worry about inward-focused things in the church. We don’t lay aside power. We aren’t humble. What would it take for us to become like little children? What would it take for us to really live in the way of Jesus? The last portion of Scripture we are covering today is what we might call Jesus’ conflict mediation model. If someone sins against you, you go directly to that person and try to resolve it. You don’t immediately pick up your phone and share your frustration with your closest friends. You don’t post something rude on social media. You don’t decide to quit the church. You actually go to that person and have the hard conversation. Most of the time that works. But if that doesn’t work, Jesus has more wisdom to share. Go find some other trusted believers and bring them in to help resolve the dispute. That should certainly take care of things but just in case it doesn’t, take it to the church. Do keep in mind that these were pretty small house churches so taking a dispute to the church would have looked differently than it does today. Today, it probably would mean bringing it to the pastor or some church leaders, but ONLY after you have done the other steps. We use this model in our own leadership teams here at New Hope. While it may not always be someone sinning against us, it could be a ...
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    8 分
  • June 25, 2025; Matthew 17

    June 25, 2025; Matthew 17
    2025/06/25
    Daily Dose of Hope June 25, 2025 Scripture – Matthew 17 Prayer: Almighty God, As we move into our Wednesday, we pray that today will be a day that we see glimpses of your glory. We need you, we yearn for you. Lord, help us set aside our distractions and settle our scattered thoughts so we can focus on you and you alone. In the next few moments of silence, Lord, hear our prayers... In Your Name, Amen. Welcome back, everyone, to the Daily Dose of Hope, a deep dive into the Gospels and Acts. Just a reminder, it’s Wednesday so that means it’s Recharge night! Come join us, if you are local, at 6:30pm in the Garage, which is on the New Hope campus, on the Moon Ave. side. We will have worship, fellowship, prayer, and small community. It is a wonderful time and I hope to see you there. Today, we are diving into Matthew 17. Scripture says that Jesus took Peter, James, and John to the top of this mountain, most likely Mt. Hermon because it was close to Caesarea Phillipi, where they just were. Matthew writes that Jesus was transfigured before him. His clothes became a dazzling white, and his face was a bright as the sun. Now, put yourself in the position of these three men. They had only know the flesh and blood Jesus. We know Jesus as risen Lord and Savior. I think we would expect him to wear dazzling white robes and be all shiny and glorious. But they didn’t. Right before their very eyes, they get a glimpse of Jesus’ glory that was unexpected and they had never seen before. Jesus was radiating the very presence of God and they got to see it. And then the Scripture continues–Moses and Elijah appeared before them and they were talking to Jesus. We don’t quite know why Moses and Elijah appear on the mountain with Jesus except that they were two Old Testament figures that anticipated the coming of Jesus, the final prophet to come and deliver God’s people once and for all. Their work, their ministries, are basically fulfilled by the person of Jesus. They are servants of God but they weren’t God. Jesus, on the other hand, is God and the disciples get a glimpse of that right here. Peter struggles to simply rest in the presence of God’s glory. He doesn’t know what to do so he says, “let’s set up three shelters–one for you, Jesus, and one for Moses and Elijah.” Now, Peter is referring to the festival of booths or tabernacles which faithful Jews participating in every year. They make structures in their yards as a sign of when God will tabernacle with his people. So, this might seem like a weird thing for Peter to say to us but it wasn’t too off the wall. He is like, “umm...I think God is tabernacling with us and we need to make the shelters.” He is kind of panicky. It seemed like a good thought at the time. What Peter doesn’t quite understand yet is that before his eyes God’s dwelling with humanity is present, for Jesus is the new tabernacle of God dwelling with humanity. The shelters aren’t needed. God is present with his people through Jesus Christ. That’s all pretty amazing but the mountaintop experience isn’t done yet. There is a cloud that appears and covers them–remember the presence and glory of God appeared in a cloud in the tabernacle and throughout the Old Testament. And here is the presence of God appearing before them and the voice of God says “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him.” Jesus is clearly set apart from Moses and Elijah, only he is God’s Son, the one to be listened to. The one who reflects God’s glory and presence. There is something about mountain-top transfigurative experiences – times in which we get a glimpse of the glory and presence of God in our lives. I’m hoping you have each had some kind of mountaintop experience in your walk with Jesus, times in which the veil was removed, you’ve gotten a taste of the presence of God. These are times in which we are confronted with God’s power and it can’t help but change us. You realize that Jesus wasn’t just a good, wise man who walked the earth 2000 years ago but rather was God himself, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Now, we have to decide, what are we going to do with this? Have you had a mountaintop experience? They can happen in a lot of different ways, in many different kinds of places. A miracle, a conference, the Walk to Emmaus, a trip to Israel, in the midst of a tragedy or an epiphany, a literal trek up a mountain. An encounter with the living God can happen in a myriad of different ways but it is always life-changing. I was reflecting on the importance of mountain-top experiences. They sustain us when we come down from the mountain. We can’t stay on the mountaintop. Real life happens on the bottom of the mountain. What happens when Jesus and the disciples come to the bottom of the mountain? Well, some good stuff–teaching, healings, miracles, but also bad stuff–rejection, betrayal, crucifixion. It’s our time on ...
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    12 分