Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

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Romans 15

Bearing Others’ Burdens
1-2 Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, "How can I help?"
3-6That's exactly what Jesus did. He didn't make it easy for himself by avoiding people's troubles, but waded right in and helped out. "I took on the troubles of the troubled," is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it's written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we'll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!
7-13So reach out and welcome one another to God's glory. Jesus did it; now you do it! Jesus, staying true to God's purposes, reached out in a special way to the Jewish insiders so that the old ancestral promises would come true for them. As a result, the non-Jewish outsiders have been able to experience mercy and to show appreciation to God. Just think of all the Scriptures that will come true in what we do! For instance: Then I'll join outsiders in a hymn-sing; I'll sing to your name!And this one: Outsiders and insiders, rejoice together!And again: People of all nations, celebrate God! All colors and races, give hearty praise!And Isaiah's word: There's the root of our ancestor Jesse, breaking through the earth and growing tree tall, Tall enough for everyone everywhere to see and take hope!Oh! May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!
14-16 Personally, I've been completely satisfied with who you are and what you are doing. You seem to me to be well-motivated and well-instructed, quite capable of guiding and advising one another.
So, my dear friends, don't take my rather bold and blunt language as criticism. It's not criticism. I'm simply underlining how very much I need your help in carrying out this highly focused assignment God gave me, this priestly and gospel work of serving the spiritual needs of the non-Jewish outsiders so they can be presented as an acceptable offering to God, made whole and holy by God's Holy Spirit.
17-21Looking back over what has been accomplished and what I have observed, I must say I am most pleased—in the context of Jesus, I'd even say proud, but only in that context. I have no interest in giving you a chatty account of my adventures, only the wondrously powerful and transformingly present words and deeds of Christ in me that triggered a believing response among the outsiders. In such ways I have trailblazed a preaching of the Message of Jesus all the way from Jerusalem far into northwestern Greece. This has all been pioneer work, bringing the Message only into those places where Jesus was not yet known and worshiped. My text has been, Those who were never told of him— they'll see him! Those who've never heard of him— they'll get the message!
22-24And that's why it has taken me so long to finally get around to coming to you. But now that there is no more pioneering work to be done in these parts, and since I have looked forward to seeing you for many years, I'm planning my visit. I'm headed for Spain, and expect to stop off on the way to enjoy a good visit with you, and eventually have you send me off with God's blessing.
25-29First, though, I'm going to Jerusalem to deliver a relief offering to the followers of Jesus there. The Greeks—all the way from the Macedonians in the north to the Achaians in the south—decided they wanted to take up a collection for the poor among the believers in Jerusalem. They were happy to do this, but it was also their duty. Seeing that they got in on all the spiritual gifts that flowed out of the Jerusalem community so generously, it is only right that they do what they can to relieve their poverty. As soon as I have done this—personally handed over this "fruit basket"—I'm off to Spain, with a stopover with you in Rome. My hope is that my visit with you is going to be one of Christ's more extravagant blessings.
30-33I have one request, dear friends: Pray for me. Pray strenuously with and for me—to God the Father, through the power of our Master Jesus, through the love of the Spirit—that I will be delivered from the lions' den of unbelievers in Judea. Pray also that my relief offering to the Jerusalem believers will be accepted in the spirit in which it is given. Then, God willing, I'll be on my way to you with a light and eager heart, looking forward to being refreshed by your company. God's peace be with all of you. Oh, yes!

~ Lena’s Journalin’~
The other day I was thinking about how within myself I’ve come to this wall many many times of being tired of serving, of being asked to do more, or of being given lowly tasks, when after many years of service and tasks, should I be more of a boss, than a laborer. I’m just being honest here, of deep inner workings that have arisen over the years. Be it serving in nursery(whether I feel the call to or not) , work at church, church cleaning, serving at picnics, helping others with whatever, or a choir member, etc., there are always opportunities for “service” in the House of the Lord. Anyway, I was thinking about the nature of God being that of a servant- Jesus washed the disciple’s feet and said you act like this too. Then there’s the nature of evil, that once said, “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High God…” The ascension ministry of pride rises up and tries to take another’s place. Tries to vie for a position, get somewhere in stature, rather than just being and serving. Being we are sons of God and are at war with the forces of evil, I conquer over that prideful spirit when I serve. I now plan to serve forever, for in service I defeat the spirit of pride in my life and I take the weapon out of the enemy’s hand that was set out by satan to hurt God. I’ll have no part in exalting self, because that is the spirit of evil, to exalt one’s self. I exalt Thee, not me.
Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, "How can I help?"
So I need strength to go on, to what? Stature? Or service? Which is more for God? Which is more for me? Am I here for self satisfaction or Godly service? This is a good self examination question to ask of one’s self as often as necessary. Many of us thought when we got saved it was for our personal benefit. Our salvation is the very promise God was looking to have fulfilled, that He’d have children and that His children would walk in truth. We are the heartbeat of God and His messengers to a lost world. Will that benefit us? Yes, it does, but the benefits were not “for” us by design and intent, They were/are for Him, and the execution of His will.
I had a conversation recently with someone who was angry at the thought of anyone perishing. They felt God is a loving God and would not destroy anyone. One point that came up was that God is everywhere and even people in remote places can know Him. In reading Roman’s 1 I believe that to be true also. The person had pointed out that people can find Him in nature and even if they call Him by another name, it is possibly only because of their not knowing how to define Him, but they quite possibly acknowledge Him as God, with whatever name they know to use. Romans 1 says, the creation knows the Creator through His awesome works, they are evidence that He lives. I noticed Paul uses this as a basis of His preaching. He says something like, “that god you have called such and such and so and so, I know His real name.” Once a person finds the Creator God, they must be introduced to His beloved Son, for there is only One Way to the Father-hood ministry of creation, and that is through the knowing of Christ.
Without Christ, I may know a Creator God, but I am not a child of God, nor is he my Father. There is only One way to the Father God, through Jesus the Son. Jesus made that way, all must pass that way in life. Jesus was the firstborn of many like Him, who would come after Him, for all who believe in Him. Knowing about the Creator does not save us, won’t ever save us unless that leads us to know the Son. So that person in the remote jungle that calls Creator, Sun God or whatever, must have a preacher come and introduce him to Jesus the Son and thus that person can be saved and become a child of God. Being a child of creation is not enough to save us, children of creation need a Savior, who is Christ.
Time to announce that good news. No matter how good or wholesome or in tuned with nature a person is, they cannot be saved and have God as Father, except through Christ Jesus. He is the Way, the Truth, The Life! One Way Jesus! Time to make Jesus Lord.
Time to ask the question of the day…..

Daily Meditation/Recital/Question
Ask myself daily: “What Page Am I On?”