My Utmost For His Highest

My Utmost For His Highest

Posted by Ashley Hoover

Am I convinced by Christ?

August 30th

Notwithstanding in this rejoice not . . ., but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven. Luke 10:19, 20.

Jesus Christ says, in effect, Don’t rejoice in successful service, but rejoice
because you are rightly related to Me. The snare in Christian work is to rejoice
in successful service, to rejoice in the fact that God has used you. You never
can measure what God will do through you if you are rightly related to Jesus
Christ. Keep your relationship right with Him, then whatever circumstances you
are in, and whoever you meet day by day, He is pouring rivers of living water
through you, and it is of His mercy that He does not let you know it. When once
you are rightly related to God by salvation and sanctification, remember that
wherever you are, you are put there by God; and by the reaction of your life on
the circumstances around you, you will fulfil God’s purpose, as long as you keep
in the light as God is in the light.
The tendency to-day is to put the
emphasis on service. Beware of the people who make usefulness their ground of
appeal. If you make usefulness the test, then Jesus Christ was the greatest
failure that ever lived. The lodestar of the saint is God Himself, not estimated
usefulness. It is the work that God does through us that counts, not what we do
for Him. All that Our Lord heeds in a man’s life is the relationship of worth to
His Father. Jesus is bringing many sons to glory.

Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest : Selections for the year (August 30). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.

Back to School Bash

Back to School Bash

Posted by Ashley Hoover

Hi Everyone!
We will be having a Back to School Bash tonight to help kick off the Good News Club season. It's just an informational kind of meeting where we'll share about the curiculum for this year, the songs, some game ideas and things like that. Our first one last week went well even though not many club leaders were present. We have another one on the 25th. I get to go over the songs and review games. :) Thanks for your prayers!

One Way

One Way

Posted by Ashley Hoover

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 14:6

This summer the 5-Day Club lessons have had the theme of “One Way.” There is only one way to get to Heaven and that is by believing in Jesus Christ as your Savior.
The world tries to tell us that it really doesn’t matter what you believe because all roads lead to Heaven. Just believe something and you’re okay. On top of that you can’t say anyone else is wrong in what they believe because well, that’s just not nice.
What the world says is a lie and it has been so encouraging this summer to see youth and adults reaching out to the children in their communities boldly sharing the Gospel with them. Now is the time to share the truth with children and lead them down the right road, the one way there is to have eternal life.

Which way are you pointing the children in your community, neighborhood, church or family?

5-Day Club

5-Day Club

Posted by Ashley Hoover

I realized I didn't get a post up beforehand...well, I actually kind of forgot this was coming up until the day it started but we had a club this week. It was only three days because of schedule conflicts but it was a lot of fun. Monday night we had I think three kids after a half hour had gone by which made it a short club. Tuesday we brought a bounce house with use which attrached attention and more children trickled in as time went on. Last night at one point there were 15 kids but most of the night we had 13. They were asking a lot of questions like, what is the difference between Christians and Catholics, what does it mean to sell your soul to the Devil and things like that. They were really thinking about the Gospel we shared and I wish we could have gone the whole week. I think all of them signed up for the Mailbox Club so that will be a great way for them to continue learning about God. Two boys trusted in Christ as their Savior and I know in many others God is working in their hearts and minds. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. They are making a difference in children's lives for eternity!

High Seas Expedition Day 4

High Seas Expedition Day 4

Posted by Ashley Hoover

Thursday night our story was when Peter & John met the lame man and he was healed. Acts 3:1-4:12. This man had been crippled since he was born and couldn’t walk. When he saw Peter & John he asked them for money, a very logical request since he couldn’t work to earn any to live on. Money he thought would make his life better. Peter & John had a different thought. They didn’t give the man money, instead they asked God to heal him and He did. The man instantly could walk and he went around praising God at how He had changed his life. Everyone who saw him knew was an amazing change had taken place. The main point of this lesson was that God’s word is life-changing. It made me think, how many people are in the world searching for something to make their life better. There are countless self help books, people look to work, money, fame, etc. to have a good life. Unfortunately many of them don’t know that those things will not make your life better in the grand scheme of things. Sure maybe they will for a while but eventually they will not be enough and you’ll look for more. Those of us who know Christ know the only thing that can truly change their life is a relationship with God. Meeting people’s physical needs is not a bad thing but it needs to be balanced with meeting their more important spiritual need. None of us will have anything at the end anyway except our relationship (or lack thereof) with Christ. Don’t keep it to yourself, share Him with others so they can clearly see the change in your life.


Salty was our buddy. To steer a ship you use the steering wheel he’s holding and you can change directions. God’s Word is like that in our lives, it changes us and takes us in the right direction, away from sin and toward Christ-likeness. God’s Word is life-changing.

High Seas Expedition Day 3

High Seas Expedition Day 3

Posted by Ashley Hoover

Wednesday night we continued learning about Paul after the shipwreck and discovered he was bit by snake in Acts 28. Paul was gathering wood for the fire when the viper sensing the heat bit him. Presumably this snake was poisonous because the islanders thought he was going to drop dead like they’d seen it happen before. They theme for this lesson was that God’s Word is surprising. Paul was probably surprised by the snake and wasn’t expecting it. The islanders certainly weren’t expecting that Paul would live and yet God kept him safe and he didn’t even get a little sick. God often does things in our lives that are surprising. The way He answers our prayers or blesses us when we don’t expect it are at times very surprising. I know in my life I’ve seen God work in ways I never would have imagined or had the courage to ask for but He often does “more than we can ask or imagine.” (Eph 3:20) I never imagined I’d be working with CEF full time when I first got involved six years ago. I didn’t know how God would provide the finances I would need to do ministry full time. I had no idea I’d end up going to Honduras out of all the places in the world and yet God has continued to guide in my life in ways that never cease to amaze me. I often thank Him for the privilege I have every day to live out my little part in His grand story. Take some time today to think about your life and the times God has done something surprising. Did you thank Him for the way He worked or is working to perfect you? How He is guiding your life? If not, stop and do it, He deserves it. Just be amazed at what He does all the time, we often miss it.

Wink was our buddy. He’s holding the periscope to remind us that as we look at our life or the Bible sometimes we are surprised by what God does. Look closely and you might be too.

Make your Daddy look good

Make your Daddy look good

Posted by Ashley Hoover

"Your daddy is standing in a swimming pool out a little bit from the edge. You are, let’s say, three years old and standing on the edge of the pool. Daddy holds out his arms to you and says, “Jump, I’ll catch you. I promise.” Now, how do you make your daddy look good at that moment? Answer: trust him and jump. Have faith in him and jump. That makes him look strong and wise and loving. But if you won’t jump, if you shake your head and run away from the edge, you make your daddy look bad. It looks like you are saying, “he can’t catch me” or “he won’t catch me” or “it’s not a good idea to do what he tells me to do.” And all three of those make your dad look bad. But you don’t want to make God look bad. So you trust him. Then you make him look good–which he really is. And that is what we mean when we say, “Faith glorifies God” or “Faith gives God glory.” It makes him look as good as he really is. So trusting God is really important. And the harder it seems for him to fulfill his promise, the better he looks when you trust him. Suppose that you are at the deep end of a pool by the diving board. You are four years old and can’t swim, and your daddy is at the other end of the pool. Suddenly a big, mean dog crawls under the fence and shows his teeth and growls at you and starts coming toward you to bite you. You crawl up on the diving board and walk toward the end to get away from him. The dog puts his front paws up on the diving board. Just then, your daddy sees what’s happening and calls out, “Johnny, jump in the water. I’ll get you.” Now, you have never jumped from one meter high and you can’t swim and your daddy is not underneath you and this water is way over your head. How do you make your daddy look good in that moment? You jump. And almost as soon as you hit the water, you feel his hands under your arms and he treads water holding you safely while someone chases the dog away. Then he takes you to the side of the pool. We give glory to God when we trust him to do what he has promised to do–especially when all human possibilities are exhausted. Faith glorifies God. That is why God planned for faith to be the way we are justified." — John Piper

High Seas Expedition Day 2

High Seas Expedition Day 2

Posted by Ashley Hoover

The second night we talked about Paul being shipwrecked from the account in Acts chapter 27. The main teaching point for this story was that God’s Word is comforting. Even in the midst of tough times and storms in our life God’s Word is an anchor that we can hold to and count on. Through it we can find comfort in all our troubles. Even in the middle of a huge storm Paul was able to not be afraid because of God’s Word. Sometimes we look to other things in hard times to find comfort like friends, hobbies, other books, maybe even church. Where we should really turn is to God’s Word because it is full of promises for us and we can find great comfort in it. Next time you face a tough situation in your life turn to the Bible, it has all the comfort and answers you need and is your anchor in the storm.

Our buddy was Marina. The anchor helps us remember that the Bible is our anchor during stormy times and we can always turn to it for comfort. (A good reason to memorize Scripture as well so it's always with you when you need it!)

A Walk in the Park

A Walk in the Park

Posted by Ashley Hoover

Since I had a little free time this weekend I decided to go out to a park I run in sometimes and take some photos for fun. Enjoy!

High Seas Expedition Day 1

High Seas Expedition Day 1

Posted by Ashley Hoover

So this week I thought we'd take a look at the topics we covered during the VBS last week and some things I took away from the theme and stories each night.

On the first night we looked at the story of Peter in prison and learned that God’s Word is true.
Acts 12:1-19 is where this account is found in the Bible.

Peter had been put in jail for telling others about Christ. After King Herod realized that killing James made the Jews happy he evidently thought he was on to something to boost his popularity and had Peter arrested as well. It says in verse five that “the church was earnestly praying to God for him.” There were many people gathered together to pray for Peter’s release and while they had good intentions I believe, I find it interesting that they did not seem to believe that what were asking for (Peter’s release) would happen. In answer to their prayers God sent an angel that lead Peter out of prison unnoticed by the soldiers guarding him and Peter went to the house where they were all gathered after realizing what had happened. When he knocked a servant girl named Rhoda came to see who it was. Finding out it was Peter she was so excited she forgot to open the door and went to tell everyone else. This is interesting to me because I don’t know how old Rhoda was but it would seem she was young, maybe younger than anyone else there praying and she knew God had answered their prayer to rescue Peter from prison. The adults who prayed so hard and long told her she was out of her mind to think Peter was actually there at the door. They didn't believe God had answered. I’m not sure how after seeing Christ do miracles they would have had that reaction but they did.

The children learned through this story that God’s Word is true and we can trust in His promises. I also considered the fact that when we pray, we should pray believing that what we ask for God can bring about. To have that childlike faith is something I think God desires in all those who believe in Him. As we get older I think we can complicate matters a lot. Listening to children pray in their sincere, simple way always is challenging to me. James 1:6-8 says, “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.” I want to believe when I pray and not have my mind made up about what the outcome will be because God just might have something miraculous in store if we have faith.

Scully was our buddy this night. Each child got one of these little guys and collected them as the week went on to help them remember what we talked about. He’s holding a compass to help remind the children that God’s Word is true and will always point them in the right direction. The Bible is the only map that is always true and has the right directions for life.