Bethel Church Louisville IL

09/10/2026

Proverbs 17:22
New Living Translation
22 A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.

There are a lot of us that are walking around with broken spirits. The things that life has thrown at us have begun to weigh us down and we simply have a hard time getting them off our minds. God does not want us to live this way. He wants us to live a life that is full of laughter and joy.

Find that friend that makes you smile. Spend time with them and just laugh. Then you will find that everything else doesn’t look quite as bad as it did before.

Laugh a little today. You will be glad you did.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

09/09/2026

Psalm 90:14
New Life Version
14 Fill us in the morning with Your loving-kindness. Let us sing for joy and be glad all our days.

How’s your joy? Christians should be full of joy, but the reality is that many times we are less joyful than others. I am not exactly sure why we wouldn’t want to be joyful because our sins are forgiven and we are bound for Heaven. That should be enough for us to be full of joy. However, we believe that since we are believers we are entitled to an easy life and when we don’t get it, we lose our joy. God never promised anything easy, but He did promise that He would be there for us through good times and bad.

Ask God today to fill you with His loving-kindness. Remember that He is with you, good times or bad. Fill yourself with the joy only He can give you and let it spill over on those around you.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

09/08/2026

Psalm 90:17
New Life Version
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us. And make the work of our hands stand strong. Yes, make the work of our hands stand strong.

How do you prepare for your day? We usually shower, brush our teeth, fix our hair and so on. We do everything we can to make sure that we look our best. Many people are coffee drinkers, and it is not best to even talk with them until they have had their cup of coffee. There are many ways that we prepare ourselves to get ready for our workday.

How many of us pray to get ready for our day? What is it that we pray for? Do you pray for God to help you become the best version of yourself you can be? Do you pray to be the best example you can be to others?

Begin your day by asking God to be the best you that you can be. Ask Him to help you be an example for Him to others. When you begin your day this way, you can never go wrong!

Be safe and have a great day.

James

09/07/2026

Hebrews 4:9
There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God;

Today is Labor Day. A day set aside to rest from our work, so spend some time resting.

Be safe and have a great day.

James.

09/06/2026

09/06/2026

Psalm 119:18
New International Version
18 Open my eyes that I may see
wonderful things in your law.

As you prepare yourself for worship this morning ask God to prepare your heart. Ask Him to open your eyes to His word because every one of us could use more of His teaching. Too often we come to church on Sunday unprepared to receive anything but let’s be different today. Ask God to show you what you need to hear. Be prepared.

Bethel service begins at 9:30am. We would love for you to join us.

See you there.

James

09/05/2026

John 1:38a
New King James Version
38 Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?”

We read these words when John the Baptist sees Jesus and acknowledges Him. And two of John’s followers started following Jesus. Jesus notices them and asks them this question...”What do you seek”? This is something we should be asking ourselves…What do we seek? We should be seeking Jesus because He can fulfill all of our needs.

However many of us look in so many other places to fulfill our needs. If that is you today, seek Jesus. He is waiting and He can do things for you that nobody else can. Only He can fulfill all of your needs.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

09/04/2026

Isaiah 35:3-4
New International Reader's Version
3 Strengthen the hands of those who are weak.
Help those whose knees give way.
4 Say to those whose hearts are afraid,
“Be strong and do not fear.
Your God will come.
He will pay your enemies back.
He will come to save you.”

For anyone that needs to hear these words today, let this be your reminder that God is able to give you strength to continue, even when you don’t feel like it. We sometimes concern ourselves with things of the future and we let our fear take over our lives. Just remember that God is in control. Also, we may not have real enemies in the way that this context is meant, but we do often come across people that will do their best to steal our joy. God will not let that happen.

If this is you today, pray and ask God for His help.

When you become tired and weak…focus on God. When you feel afraid…give it to God. When you feel attacked…let God fight the battle.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

09/03/2026

Proverbs 28:20a
“A faithful person will be richly blessed.”

Copied from Christianity.com

What is faithfulness?
Some days faithfulness looks impressive. Most days? It looks like doing the dishes again.
Showing up for work again.
Caring for someone again.
Praying again.
Serving again.
Trying again.
Proverbs 28:20 reminds us:
“A faithful person will be richly blessed.”
We live in a culture obsessed with quick results, but God places tremendous value on faithfulness.
We are all tired and weary and it can be so hard to keep going. As believers though, that is what we do. We keep going. Remain faithful.
You may not see what your ordinary obedience is building yet.
Keep showing up.

Be safe and have a great day.

James

Learn all about the beliefs, facts, history and origin of Christianity. Featuring thousands of questionis and answers to help you understand the Bible and live a faith-filled life.

09/02/2026

Proverbs 4:23
New Living Translation
23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

As Christians we are to allow the teachings of Jesus to be the most important things in our lives. We are to let them be the baseline of everything we do, but do we really live that way? If someone were to spend time with you, how long would it take for them to find what is important to you? Do we allow our heart to become filled with Jesus, or with things of this world?

Spend time reading scripture and talking with Jesus so you fill your heart with the BEST thing so that when things come to you then you can keep your heart pure. When you fill your heart with Jesus, nothing else matters because He is the BEST thing.

Let Jesus determine your steps.

Be safe and have a great day.

James