I Am Seen by Alesha Sinks

We sat in a the living room, scattered on couches and kitchen chairs and higher up counter stools, worshipping. As the last notes of the song hung on, our pastor invited us to worship God by proclaiming His name.

In the stillness that followed, His Names rang out from different lips.

Healer

Mighty to Save

Yahweh

Redeemer

The Lamb Who Was Slain

God With Us

Wonderful Counselor

One name jumped out at me, and I think it did the same for many others, because a murmur of worship and agreement ran through the room.

The God Who Sees Me

It was as if a breath of air that had been held inside me for too long rushed out all at once.

The God Who Sees Me

The God Who Sees Me

The God Who Sees Me

He sees me. He sees my heart. He sees my struggles and my pain. He sees my joy and my passion. He sees my desires and my longings. He sees my light and my darkness. He sees my mind and the battles fought within it.

He sees me.

HE SEES ME, AND STILL, HE LOVES ME.

And isn’t that the very deepest longing and desire of my heart? Isn’t that the thing that drives much of my stress and anxiety? Isn’t that the thing that informs so many of my choices and actions? The desire to be fully and completely known and understood. To simultaneously be completely known and completely accepted.

Isn’t that what I am constantly working toward in my marriage and in my friendships, and yet is always illusively out of grasp?

Because as humans, for all our trying, we will never be able to fully and perfectly comprehend every aspect of another person. We can never be perfectly known and comprehended because we don’t even know and understand our own selves well enough to help another understand us completely.

But God.

But God is not another human. He is not equal to us in understanding of ourselves. He is beyond that. He is our creator.

HE UNDERSTANDS US IN A WAY THAT WE CANNOT EVEN UNDERSTAND OURSELVES.

He fashioned us with purpose and uniqueness and intention and beauty, and sometimes it seems as though our whole lives are taken up with uncovering that how that purpose is to be lived out in the practicality of the day-to-day.

I looked up this name of God today.

El Roi - The God Who Sees Me

And I found that this name for God is only used once in the Bible. It was used by Hagar, Sarai’s maidservant, when she ran away.

God saw her in her affliction from Sarai. He saw her in her hardness of heart toward Sarai. He saw her in her desperation. He saw her in her humanity.

And He didn’t give her an easy out. He told her to go back, to go back to her harsh mistress and submit. He told her to go back, knowing that much later she would be sent away. He told her to go back her place of shame and mistreatment. He told her to go back to slavery and servitude.

BUT HE ALSO TOLD HER THAT HE HAD HEARD HER, AND THAT HE HAD A PLAN FOR HER AND HER SON.

And her response was this.

"So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, 'You are a God of seeing,' for she said, 'Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.’”

Genesis 13:16

She did not even know His name, but she knew that He had seen her. That He had deeply seen and understood her. Something in her brief interaction with God convinced her to obey. Convinced her that He was good. Convinced her that she was deeply seen and understood. Convinced her that she was protected.

And she obeyed.

She went back to the place of her hurt. She went back to the place of her disgrace. She went back to the place that would require her ultimate submission and sacrifice.

She went back because she knew that He saw her. He knew her. He heard her. He loved her. He was looking after her.

What places would I go unafraid if I realized how deeply He knows me?

How fully He sees me?

How faithfully He hears me?

How wholly He looks after me?

How completely He loves me?

HE IS THE GOD WHO SEES ME.

I want to let that truth sit deeply in me. I want it to push into the deep places of my heart and mind. I want it reshape my heart and my actions. I want it to inform my every thought and desire.

I want to live from the understanding that He is The God Who Sees Me.

Introducing Nieves and Karen!

We are thrilled to be introducing the Vargas Rodriguez family: Nieves, Karen, and their 2 beautiful children. Nieves is the son of Pastor Luis Vargas—Pastor Luis is the pastor of the church in Bachiniva, Mexico where we have visited as a church while serving at the House of Blessing Orphanage. Nieves and Karen have been serving Jesus at their home church in the small town of Bachiniva as well as serving along with Jason Sanchez at the orphanage in Bachiniva. Several members of Redemption Church have been able to meet and become acquainted with this sweet family on our missions trips to Mexico over the last several years.

On our most recent trip, Pastor Daniel and his family were able to reconnect with Nieves and Karen and learn of their new calling to pastor a small church several hours from Bachiniva in the Sierra Madres mountains. They are taking a huge step of faith in leaving their families and home in Bachiniva to follow God’s calling for them to minister to the community there.

We are now partnering with Nieves and Karen through prayer as well as financial support for their family and ministry. Please take the time to read this brief update from Pastor Nieves below, and join us in praying for their protection, provision, and to be used greatly by Jesus in this new season!

Letter from Pastor Nieves:

On October 21st of 2016, the Lord spoke to my wife and I telling us that we were to follow his leading to take over a small church located in the town of San Juanito. San Juanito is a town of 10,500 people that is located on one of the highest points of the Sierra Madre Mountains of Chihuahua. Since November of last year, we have been drying from our home in Bachiniva to San Juanito every weekend to minister to the church and community. After many trips of hauling much needed stuff to San Juanito, praise the Lord! He has one again faithfully provided and set things in order for us to move up indefinitely to San Juanito. So on Saturday, April 22nd, we packed up the last of our stuff and set out to San Juanito. We are very encouraged and excited since we have a place to stay and will be able to engage even more in ministry! Although leaving our house, family, church, and commodities behind is a little scary, it cannot compare to the joy or excitement of serving Jesus. Despite our fears and anxieties, we are more than confident hat all things will work out for good and most importantly for the honor and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we enter this new phase in our lives, we are in need of much prayer for protection and guidance. We are extremely encouraged and excited to continue in this adventure of faith.

In Jesus, 

The Vargas Rodriguez family

Church Family Picnic | PHOTO ESSAY

CONVERSATIONS | with Pastor Pilgrim Benham

Do you long for closer and deeper friendships in your life? Where does this desire come from? “The importance of friendship is that God has created us to be relational people,” says Pastor Pilgrim. Pastors and friends, Daniel Williams and Pilgrim Benham talk about their own friendship, the awkwardness of new friendships and how to get past superficial friendships to more meaningful ones. What are some practical ways you can start pursuing godly friendships in your life? God works through community to form relationships through mutual encouragement, challenging one another and speaking the truth in love. There is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24

A Great Partnership | The House of Blessing

Many of you have read about the House of Blessing (HOB) Orphanage either in posts from our past church missions trips, blogs from the orphanage director, Jason Sanchez, or in our e-bulletins. Redemption Church has worked closely with HOB since it was founded nearly 5 years ago. Jason and his wife, Jackie, moved to Bachiniva, Mexico with their daughter Ayantu in 2012 to build and start an orphanage in the mountains. They have been faithful to serve and care for up to 19 children at a time and have seen God do amazing things in the lives of these children, their families, and the community there. We have taken 3 missions trip as a church to visit and serve at the orphanage as well as sponsoring them monthly. To learn more about the House of Blessing Orphanage, CLICK HERE.

We are thrilled to be sending our first short-term missionary to serve at the House of Blessing orphanage for a 3-month internship beginning in June! Meet Julie Ruse!

Julie has been a part of Redemption Church since Summer of 2016, and she has had a desire to serve at an orphanage for some time. The Lord has been directing and leading Julie to commit to a short-term mission to serve the staff and children at the House of Blessing. She will serve as one of the female staff at the orphanage helping to care for the girls, help them with getting ready for school, homework, cleaning and laundry (which is a BIG job when there are so many children!), various special projects, and wherever else the Lord allows.

We would love you to join us in praying for Julie as she prepares to drive across the country in May to see her family in Colorado then heads south of the border in June! She would love to have your prayers for safety, health, spiritual protection and encouragement, and for the Lord to use her in wonderful ways while she is there!

Would you also consider donating to help provide the necessary funds for Julie to serve in this special way? This is a great opportunity to participate in what God wants to do at the House of Blessing through Julie’s time there, and we want as many people as possible to be able to take part in what God is doing!

You can CLICK HERE to make a one-time donation toward her living cost while she is in Mexico or send a check (with “Julie” in the Memo) to:

Redemption Church Delray Beach

PO Box 832039 335 East Linton Blvd.

Delray Beach, FL 33483

You can read an excerpt from Julie’s support letter below as well! 

Excerpt from Julie’s support letter:

    Through a series of miraculous events, God has paved a way for me to go to Mexico this summer (June, July and August) to live/ serve at the House of Blessing orphanage in Bachiniva. The orphanage was started by an American family almost five years ago, and today they (along with staff and volunteers) care for 15 children. You can learn more at thehouseofblessing.org. My wonderful church, Redemption Church of Delray Beach, has been helping support the orphanage financially and has sent short term mission teams, but I will be the first “intern” they’ve directly supported. Basically I’ll be joining everyday life there: helping kids get ready for school, doing hair, cleaning, laundry (they do about 20 loads per week), and generally loving on people in Jesus’ name. 

    Internet will be available so I’ll be keeping ya’ll updated on happenings and prayer requests through facebook. My mailing address will be 7101 N Mesa St #283, El Paso, TX 79912.  If interested in supporting me financially, you can give online or by mail. (SEE LINKS AND INFO IN BLOG ABOVE) Thanks for the impact each of you have already made on my life. I’m excited for what lies ahead and to witness God’s mighty hand. 

Peace and blessings,

Julie

Why Do You Worship Jesus? (2017 Easter Video)

We had a wonderful time celebrating our Risen Savior with everyone today! We wanted to shared the special video we played during our Easter service today featuring many members of Redemption Church sharing why THEY have chosen to worship Jesus! We are excited for all the things God continues to do in our hearts as we pursue and proclaim Him together.

EASTER | A Gateway For The Gospel of Jesus by Daniel Williams

Easter is a pretty big deal. And not just for Christians!

Easter is an extremely popular holiday around the world—I recently read an article from CNN called “Easter By The Numbers” which talked about how Easter has become such a big deal specifically in the United States. In 2015, Americans planned to purchase 180 million eggs for dying and decorating and planned to spend approximately $16.4 billion dollars on the holiday. The same article stated that 50.8% of Americans planned to attend an Easter Service over the holiday weekend that same year. It is easy to see that Easter is a big deal not only in our country, but all around the word—and I want to remind you that this a good thing!

Easter provides Christians a unique opportunity.

Some people criticize this national holiday and say it is too commercialized and has become a tradition without substance and meaning. The idea that people relate Easter to the Easter bunny instead of Jesus causes some to write it off completely as a pagan holiday. And while I agree it has become a secular tradition for many, I still consider Easter to be a wonderful and important holiday because the message of JESUS has the power to save!

The tradition of remembering and proclaiming the death and burial of the resurrection of Jesus is a good thing for our nation whether they want to accept it or not. And the gospel of Jesus is not only good for those who have never heard this wonderful message, but for those who have already believed and are following Jesus. The Apostle Peter said in 2 Peter 1:12 “Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have.” We should be remembering and proclaiming the gospel in our churches all year long, but God has also granted to us a national holiday to celebrate Jesus being alive! 

If we have a chance to remember and proclaim the gospel of Jesus to people who may attend our churches because it is Easter, this is good news! This holiday gives us an opportunity where more people are open and interested in attending a church service where the focus is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus! What a wonderful opportunity to share how Jesus gives hope, life and joy to everyone who believes and follows Him. This gospel message has the power to save everyone who calls upon Jesus as Savior and Lord, including those who may not understand the full significance of the Easter Holiday! And we have the opportunity to tell them!

Romans 10:9 “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

People need to hear that Jesus is ALIVE!

Because Jesus is alive, we can trust His word. For He proclaimed many times that He would die and rise again (Mark 8:31; 9:30-32; 10:33-34) proving to us that what He says is truthful and all His promises are for sure. Because Jesus is alive, we know that our sins are truly forgiven by the work on the cross, that the Holy Spirit dwells with us and that God has the power to raise us up as well. (Romans 8:11; 1 Cor 15:49)

I like what theologian Leon Morris said about the resurrection of Jesus, “The cross is the victory, the resurrection is the triumph…The resurrection is the public display of the victory, the triumph of the crucified one.” The resurrection was to be the sign that demonstrated Jesus as the one whom He claimed to be and proves to us that He conquered sin and death (Matt 12:39-40; 1 Cor 15:55-56). So because Jesus is alive now we can know that He is God, we can have life in Him and know that He worthy of our praise!

So, let’s celebrate our RISEN Savior!

We don’t need a national holiday to remember that Jesus rose again, but what a wonderful opportunity to celebrate! Remember, that many people around us still have never heard the Gospel preached, so let’s take every opportunity we can to be inviting people to our Easter services and proclaim this wonderful news to everyone we know. Let’s not miss out on the wonderful holiday that we get to remember and profess that Jesus is alive. And because Jesus is alive, He is able to saves us from our sin and makes us spiritually alive! Praise God! We can all find hope, satisfaction and joy as we worship Jesus as our God. This national holiday is an important one to celebrate. So let’s enjoy Easter and remember and proclaim that Jesus is alive!

-Pastor Daniel

When God Says "Wait" by Andre Amirato

I would like to consider with you one response we might receive from the Lord when we pray and what impact our reaction can have on our lives. It can be a real struggle to even open up to the Lord, but even greater change can occur when we listen to his voice and act accordingly.

Read Psalm 27:7-14

When we seek the Lord, we need to be open to listen. He speaks, we follow, we continue to search him, and he continues to reveal to us. Sometimes he prevents us from ruining ourselves, sometimes he guides us to victory and may even specify the individual steps to take, but sometimes he doesn’t speak. The above mentioned Psalm isn’t just a prayer to the Lord, rather it is a cry, begging the Lord for revelation. It demonstrates the anguish of uncertainty as verse 9 cites, “Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger…” (ESV)

In the previous responses, we are charged with obedience and humility. This passage demands that we give the Lord our patience and trust. The level of faithfulness required when we desperately need an answer and are not receiving one is challenging. We must remember that the Lord has gifted us with reason and logic. It is not wrong to move in the direction that we understand as best, but this is not always possible. There may be times where we simply lack the capacity to reach into the abilities that the Lord has given us due to our inadequacies. We are not called to sit idly, and when in complete lack, confused and desperate, the Psalmist does not acquiesce into fear. The Psalmist waits, but also searches.

This particular response is especially important because our attitudes in these moments can sow something significant in our lives. Before a farmer is able to reap the fruits of his labor, he must first find the appropriate seeds, plow the ground in the right places, and sow at the appropriate time. The farmer nurtures his seeds and gives them attention. He comes to this patch of soil, where he cannot see growth, cannot see what is occurring beneath, but the farmer continues to give the necessary amount of water and fertilizer. He needs that fruit to sustain himself, but knows that should he reach into the soil preemptively, there will be nothing there but a half grown seed. A bit more time and work and fruit will come that then provides for sustenance and new seeds for another harvest.

Our souls hunger for the Lord and our physical beings depend upon this nourishment to reap fruit. We cry to the Lord. In our moments of need we are tried, our hunger and desperation grows and our physical bodies are unsure if the fruit will be enough to pay the bills, to put food on the table, to get the grade, to bring our families to Christ, to allow us to know the Lord more, to provide us with whatever it may be that our spirits are shouting for. We are challenged in our wait and it is frightening because as we wait, our needs do not wither. To wait is to have faith that our God is greater than our needs, our real and challenging needs. 

The Psalmist presents his needs to the Lord. He cries out, leaves his anguish before the Lord and seeks. He seeks and leaves what he can before the Lord’s feet, he seeks and leaves more. The Psalmist seeks and declares victory in his surrender to the Lord in verse 13: “I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!”  He is calling us to seek and to leave our needs before him continuously. Whether we are able to leave everything at his feet or must learn to let go little by little, he strengthens us to continue to do so.

Waiting in the Lord can be frustrating and scary. Our doubts grow and are constantly gripping us, so we must continue to lay them before the Lord. We fight off our fears and continue to seek. As we seek, we are sacrificing more and more of ourselves to the Lord. Waiting in the Lord is a unique opportunity to be cherished, for the needs may be great, but our Lord is greater and will demonstrate Himself as faithful every time.

EASTER FOCUS | SOCIAL MEDIA

Every week between now and Easter Sunday, we are focusing on a specific way we can be involved what God wants to do in people's lives this Easter! This week our focus is SOCIAL MEDIA! As Easter Sunday approaches, we want to encourage you to start sharing Redemption Church posts on your Facebook, instagram, and twitter pages! Share our invite videos and statuses on your pages as a way of letting people know about our upcoming Easter service! Also, every time you LIKE a post from Redemption Church, everyone on your news feed will see what you’ve liked! So LIKE and SHARE all you can, and keep praying for God to do great things in people’s lives this Easter! You find us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram by searching REDEMPTIONDB.

If You Love Jesus, You Must Love People by Esteban Valenzuela

God is all about people and relationship.

His institutions that include the church, marriage, and family…guess what? They’re all about people. Ministry, both inside and outside of the church…yup…also about people. Life guarantees that challenging situations and difficult people will often come our way. We won’t ever be able to fully insulate ourselves from these factors, unless you want to live in some remote place, like Alaska. If, however, you find yourself wanting to live life with some sense of normalcy, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that you’re probably going to be with and around people. 

As a parent, I have such a fierce love for my kids. I want the best for them and tend to worry about them here, in the now, but also about their health and safety in the future. In a sense, I see them as extensions of myself. Out there in life, exposed, there is great potential that I/they will experience life and feel pain. Sometimes it feels like a giant risk having kids. Risking my own sanity and my own emotions, as my very being is so tightly knit together in their existence. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.

It’s risky to trust people. 

It seems like a gamble to get out there and trust people with your heart and your friendship and to navigate this life and all the social and communal institutions that we potentially face. But it’s part of God’s plan. To be with Him. To be with others. To engage in relationship, fellowship, and community. When God asked Solomon what he would ask of Him, Solomon’s response was for wisdom and knowledge. This was in direct correlation with his relationship to his people, Israel, as their king. 

There won’t ever be a time or season when we are done with instruction in God’s Word. We learn some things, and then life throws new challenges, situations, and new people at us and we need to learn more. This is where God uses the church, pastors, and the Christian community to impact individual lives and whole communities so powerfully. A faithful expression of God’s church is going to have an emphasis on the most important training and equipping source…God’s Word. So, enter the community, get the big picture, and get into the game. Even if it seems risky. Understand that love, relationship, and community are a huge part of everyday life. Understand this is where the devil will often try to wage his war and bring division and a break in relationships. Let God’s Word train you, equip you, and dwell richly within you. Learn, affirm, and confirm to others the truth of His Word, and then encourage them to get in the game, too. Get to that place where the miracle of the Gospel is working something amazing in you, and help others to get there, too. 

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is radical! It’s all about Him! Somehow, He has engaged us in His mission…

Romans 12:14-21 say this: “Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all! Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18 Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord. Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads. Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.” 

In life and ministry Jesus Himself is the grand prize and the supreme goal. And He is all about people. 

Are we living in peace as much as it depends on us? It can be a challenging, messy, swampy relational world everywhere you go. If we claim to be His, this should lead us ask how we think about and act toward each of the precious people He has put into our lives and the various situations we face. Are we being faithful?  Like Solomon, we need wisdom. He’s got the blueprints for a life triumphant and victorious. So, be instructed. Allow Him to guide, direct, and equip you. He doesn’t simply desire us in heaven, but He desires for us to be fruitful and victorious here on earth!