Vanns Lake Baptist Church

06/07/2026

06/03/2026

June 3, 2026
Overcoming Inadequacy
We all feel inadequate at times, but triumph is possible when we focus on Christ.

2 Corinthians 2:14-17
At some point, we all face feelings of inadequacy. In today’s passage, Paul asks a question that expresses this common struggle: “Who is adequate for these things?” (v. 16). Even this great apostle understood what it means to feel insufficient.
Have you ever sensed God calling you to serve Him in a way that pushed you outside your comfort zone? Perhaps you hesitated because you didn’t feel qualified. If so, you may have missed an opportunity to see the Lord work powerfully through your weakness.
Feeling inadequate isn’t sin—it’s being honest about our limitations. However, using inadequacy as an excuse to avoid obedience is another matter.
When the Lord challenges you beyond your abilities, you face a choice: Will you focus on Christ and move forward in faith, or focus on yourself and withdraw in defeat?
God would never ask you to do something without empowering you to accomplish it. He doesn’t require perfection—just obedience. Each step of faithfulness is a victory, and you’ll discover what the psalmist knew: “Come and see the works of God, who is awesome in His deeds” (Ps. 66:5).

06/01/2026

June 1, 2026
Our Protector
No matter what dangers lie ahead, our strong and faithful God will guide us to safety.

Psalm 121:1-3
Psalm 121 describes the safety that is found in the Lord. Today and tomorrow, we’ll look at several verses to better understand how we are truly secure in God.
“I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord”(vv. 1-2). When this psalm was written, robbers hid in the mountains, waiting for travelers to become their unsuspecting victims. Not only that, but wild animals also posed a threat.
Our lives can be like mountainous territory. Do you wonder what dangers lurk in the future? Thankfully, the Lord is our helper; He is able to protect us, regardless of what lies ahead. He knows everything and has all the power necessary to rescue us.
“He will not allow your foot to slip” (v. 3). God has provided everything we need in order to avoid sin. The Holy Spirit directs and empowers us, and the Word lights our path. Yet at times, we choose to sin. Even then, He upholds us, enabling us to walk in His way.
These opening verses focus on the Lord’s ability to protect us. Whether trouble originates with others, external circumstances, or our own sin, we can find ourselves in danger and at risk. Thankfully, we have a loving Father who leads us to safety.

05/29/2026

Fight the Good Mental Fight
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Scripture Reading — Romans 7:14-25
I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin. . . . �Romans 7:22-23
It is hard to overstate how much our minds are like battlefields. This is true for all believers in Christ, including the apostle Paul, who describes his own struggles in our text for today.
In this passage Paul says that one set of thoughts in his mind is turned toward God and aims to do good. The other set of thoughts, however, is turned toward evil and wants to sin. Paul thanks God in Christ that he is indeed saved. But in the very next verse he recognizes that he is still of two minds; he is a slave to God’s law at the same time that he is a slave to sin. In verse 24 Paul seems to despair of living in this sort of spiritual duplicity. “What a wretched man I am!” he says.
In this way Paul expresses the frustrating way the Christian life goes—we are pulled one way and tugged the other by opposing powers within us. Though we are truly and irrevocably saved through the blood of Jesus Christ, we are at the same time slaves to our sinful old selves.
Thus we are in constant battle. Who will rule our heart and mind today? Who will rule our thinking about our work, marriage, or politics? The inner thoughts that we barely even notice may really be spiritual combat.
Though the battle rages on, we can ultimately say, with Paul, “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

05/27/2026

There is no Wednesday night service tonight and this coming sunday services we do not have due to it being our 5th Sunday

05/26/2026

May 26, 2026
The Exalted Lord
One day you'll see Christ exalted in glory, and you will join all heaven in worshipping the Lamb of God.

Revelation 1:9-18
The book of Revelationcontains some of the richest descriptions of our Lord that Scripture offers. We love imagining Him as the baby in the manger and recognize the importance of His death and resurrection, but the story doesn’t end there.
John was given a dramatic vision of the exalted Lord as He is now, in heaven. The apostle had shared intimate friendship with Christ on earth, but the sight of his Lord in this glorified state overwhelmed him—he fell at Jesus’ feet as though dead (Rev. 1:17).
Jesus is portrayed as the Lord of His church, which is represented by the seven lampstands surrounding Him. He protectively watches over them and calls them to faithfulness.
A few chapters later, Jesus is revealed as the Lamb of God. He is the One who sacrificed Himself on our behalf, His blood purchasing redemption for people from every tribe and nation, making them citizens of His kingdom. All heaven erupts into praise and worship (Rev. 5:6-13).
If you believe in Christ, these chapters describe your future. Picture yourself standing before Jesus, the exalted Lord of His church, and then joining all heaven in worshipping Him as the Lamb of God.

05/22/2026

Never Stop Praying!�
Scripture Reading — 1 Samuel 12:19-25
“Far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you.” �1 Samuel 12:23
When I was in my twenties and going through some hard times, I asked my mother to pray for me. She said, “Do you mean, in addition to the prayers that began before your birth and have not ceased to this day?” I hadn’t realized that my mom prayed so fervently for me, and that was humbling.
Samuel prayed persistently for God’s people, and we do well to follow that example.
Are you a persistent and fervent pray-er? I can’t think of anything we can do that is more pleasing to God and useful to others than prayer.
Silent, or internal, prayer is a miracle brought about by the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Through the voice of the Spirit, who comes to live within us, our thoughts are heard by the triune God. We can think with and talk to God about anything, at any time, and in any place. Through our thoughts we can connect with the most powerful being in the universe, who loves us more than any other. We don’t even need an introduction; God already knows us intimately.
If you are looking for a dialogue with God, turn to Scripture, read a few verses, and pray whatever comes to mind. Any fears, worries, and wrongs you have done can be laid at God’s feet and forgotten.
Samuel and my mother were fervent and faithful pray-ers. Knowing that God loves us so much, how can we not pray?