Swan Quarter Baptist Church

09/06/2026

09/05/2026

Reservations need to be made by September 10th. See Jimmy if you are interested.

We’d love for the men of your church to be part of this special service. Be sure to sign up by September 19th.

**Please help us spread the word and encourage others to participate.**

09/04/2026

Daily Devotional —Let Faith Make Your Weakness Strong

"Who by faith conquered kingdoms... quenched the power of fire, escaped the mouths of the sword, were made powerful out of weakness, became strong in war, and put to flight foreign armies." Hebrews 11:33a-34 BLB

I had an incredible comment given to me last week by someone I respect very much. She said, "Misty, you walk this fine line between being highly sensitive but with a 'let's get it together' attitude. That is not easy."

No, it's not easy. It's a high wire—of grace.

I navigate lands of destruction, picking up weaknesses and saying "Get up, I could use you." There will be no weakness left behind in God's Kingdom!

I don't know what a warrior in Biblical times really looked like but I can demonstrate a twenty-first century one fairly well and it always points back to God. I have carried around one of the greatest weaknesses known to man and that's grief—a life filled with it.

My life was broken from the beginning and there is no part of it that grief has not touched. So what do you do when your life has been burned down to a pile of ashes?

You trade those ashes in for beauty by giving them to the Lord. He will do what no one else can or even will. People are quick to drop what doesn't suit them or feels uncomfortable. Grieving people get cast off like lepers in society. I have lived on the outskirts of life while being fed manna in the wilderness. God never once abandoned me there—He strengthened my weaknesses there.

He will do that for you too and it's all done by faith in Him. You've got to know your Maker in order to become strong at the broken places. That means you have to make time for Him and set everything else aside.

Want to shut the mouth of a lion? Then spend time with God learning who He is by feasting on His Word. How does one increase in faith? Romans 10:17: "So faith comes from hearing the message, and the message that is heard is what Christ spoke." It's the Good News unlike the bad news of this world.

Get to know Jesus by studying the gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In the Bible it's called the Red Letters—every word that Jesus spoke to us concerning His message. It's how I navigated the wilderness of grief—by following the Red Letters.

Learning to familiarize yourself with what Jesus said and did will help you when you are faced with anything in life. You will know what to do and how to respond. You won't lose your hope because you will come to understand the anchor of your soul is: Jesus. He is the One who walked on water and was raised from the dead. He lives and is coming back again.

In the meantime, I've been called to help pick up the pieces of shattered lives. I'm here to help in the restoration process that God wants to do in other's lives if they will let Him. Even if your sorrow feels untamed, angry, and ugly—like a crocodile waiting in the waters—I’m not afraid to step in. God gives me the strength to handle the fight.

Faith is going to take you where you never thought you'd go and it's going to get you through things you never saw coming. God is going to take what broke you and make you more than you ever could be because of it.

Press into the Lord and His great love. He is here and He cares!

Be blessed!
—Servant Misty

09/03/2026

Daily Devotional — Taking Jesus to the Dead Place in Your Life

"Then Jesus told them plainly, 'Lazarus has died, but I'm glad that I wasn't there so that you can grow in faith. Let's go to Lazarus.'" John 11:14-15 GWT

As I sat down with the Word of God and took my first sips of coffee, I recalled the story of Lazarus. Both sisters confronted Jesus with the same sentence: "Lord, if you had only been here my brother would not have died" (see John 11:21,32).

"Yeah, Lord, if you would only have been here my world wouldn't have died," I thought to myself as the tears started to form—again.

I suddenly remembered when the Centurion's servant was gravely ill and Jesus simply sent the word of healing before the man wound up in the grave. Why didn't He do that for Lazarus, whom He dearly loved? And why was Jesus 'angry' (disturbed) when He finally did show up four days later and seeing everybody crying?

"You could have sent the healing, Lord. You could have stopped death from stealing life away. If you would have only been here, Lord, my life wouldn't have been shattered into irretrievable pieces." The tears keep pouring out faster now as I write.

But then it hit me. I suddenly realized why Jesus was angry. After all, the sisters had called for the Lord to come because He was the answer to their prayer—only He had the power to stop death. When He finally arrived—four days later—it was way past stopping death from stealing. Death had not only stolen, it had destroyed.

But then God showed up.

He came when called even when the timing didn't seem right. He showed up for Lazarus when it all felt too late. But He did it this way so they would finally believe He was the Son of God—the God of the impossible.

Instead of rejoicing when Jesus arrived, He was met with accusations. If God almighty showed up face-to-face with you right now, how would you respond? Would you tell Him that He doesn't have the power to do anything for you now because it's too late? Or would you rejoice because He showed up and He has the power to change it all around?

Jesus wept. He got past this momentary sting of accusations trying to undermine His authority. He forgave quickly and took charge of the situation like the sisters asked Him to. Four days in a grave is nothing to the Lord. When the stone was rolled away and Lazarus stepped forth in obedience—with his grave clothes still on—even the smell of death was erased!

The stench of what death took from you is being eliminated right now. God is working the dead place in your life for His glory and you need to meet Him there.

Ask Jesus to come and go with you to the dead place in your life. You know the place—where you've built a memorial to honor the dead.

God is asking you to honor Him and believe that what you thought was dead has only been asleep (see John 11:11). And now it's time to wake them up.

Now is the time to bring God glory in all the earth! We serve the God of the impossible—the God who brings dead things back to life and makes all things new. Nothing is ever lost or gone in the hands of God.

Won't you take Him there today—to the dead place? And when He shows up, don't accuse. Rejoice instead because life has entered into where death once was!

Be blessed!
—Servant Misty

09/02/2026

Daily Devotional —Letting Go of Lesser Things

​"You were taught to change the way you were living. The person you used to be will ruin you through desires that deceive you." (Ephesians 4:22 GWT)

​There is one thing that can change the course of your life from setbacks to living in victory: accountability.

​Many people do not wish to be held accountable for anything. This is a problem because responsibility requires accountability.
​Have you ever met someone who wants zero responsibility? We see it all the time—people dodging commitment, shifting blame, or walking away when things get hard.

But here’s the truth: you can’t step into what God has for you while running from responsibility, and you can’t handle responsibility well without accountability.

​As we desire things and come into possession of them, this comes with a responsibility. In order to successfully navigate your responsibility, you need to find accountability.

​Where do you find that?

​You should look at who else possesses similar responsibilities and is successful with them. Then ask them for help.

​This sounds reasonable enough but herein lies the problem: it's pride and too much focus on one's self. We are driven and governed by our feelings and oftentimes 'I don't want to,' is the loudest voice we listen to.

​Just because you got saved doesn't mean this voice goes silent. Many times it's handed a loudspeaker and it is all you can do to find the noise-cancelling headphones.

​You have choices to make—big ones and small ones. However, if you make one big solid choice and opt for accountability, all of the lesser things will fall behind that big choice—you won't even have to worry about those.

​I used to be accountable to my parents. Then one day, I got saved and became accountable to God. The Lord sent me a Helper in the Holy Spirit, and He also surrounded me with earthly helpers in my family. Marriage, parenting, and household relationships aren't just responsibilities to manage—they are God's built-in system of mutual accountability. We hold each other up, sharpen one another, and protect each other from falling back into lesser things.

​Here is the takeaway, when you wake up and realize what is really important in life—those are your true responsibilities. Love them and be accountable to God for them for help with it all.

​This is God's will for you: to whom much is given, much is demanded. Start taking great care of what God has placed in your hands to be responsible for and invest in it. You will soon realize what the lesser things of life are—those things that try to drag you back into doing irresponsible things.

​There is no love found in irresponsibility.

​Be blessed!
—Servant Misty

09/01/2026

Daily Devotional — What Does Your Life Teach

​"Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you." (1 Timothy 4:16 NLT)

​Little eyes stared back at me in church the other day. They were slightly anxious, inquisitive, hopeful, and worried. "What will we be learning today?" one of my students asked. He is a little minister in the making. "I have no idea because I am not your teacher today," I replied. A small groan of dismay came out of him that touched my heart.

​If only everyone had a heart to learn what God wants to teach them. I love all of my students because each of them is entirely unique and special in my eyes, just as we are to the Lord. You are special to Him even when you don't feel like you are.

​Your life matters more than you realize because it speaks—and eyes are paying attention. When eyes are fixed, hearing begins. What is your life saying?

​My little devoted student has seen Jesus in my life. After fixing his eyes on what was taught, he heard the Lord and was given understanding. The theological insight this child spoke back to me surpassed adults four times his age. I could have handed him a Bible and sat down to learn—because we can always learn, even from a child whose heart is attentive to God.

​That kind of purity shows us what to look for in our own lives. Who are you allowing to speak into your heart?

​Be careful who you listen to; not everybody carries a voice of truth. Some people should never have a say in your direction because their words build on lies, and their lives reflect that.

​Take a careful inventory of the voices around you and set healthy boundaries on who gets a say. This doesn't mean discarding people or treating them as unimportant—every life matters to God. Rather, it means fine-tuning your ear to those whose lives actually reflect His Word. Their lives reflect love and light, helping you see where you're going more clearly in a dark world.

​Be blessed!
—Servant Misty

08/31/2026

Daily Devotional — Time For A Change

​"Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye. Then he said, 'You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good! Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord?'" (Acts 13:9-10 NLT)

​This brief encounter between Paul and the sorcerer marked a quiet but profound shift in leadership. Barnabas initially set out as the leader of the missionary team to Asia Minor, with Saul by his side. But after this showdown, a subtle detail in Scripture changes: Paul's name begins to appear first. Barnabas recognized the shift in authority, stepped back, and let Paul take the lead.

​This wasn't a sudden name change as we typically think of it. The Apostle Paul had always carried both names—Saul within the Jewish community, and Paul within the Greco-Roman world. Though he began his journey as a devout Jewish leader, God made it clear after his conversion that he was called to reach the Gentiles.

​That calling came into sharp focus in Paphos. When the local governor requested to hear the Gospel, the missionary team was opposed by Elymas, a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet. But the battle was over before it truly began. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Paul looked the sorcerer in the eye and spoke with divine authority, temporarily blinding Elymas. Astounded by the power of God, the governor came to faith on the spot.

​In that single moment, Paul stepped fully into the calling God had been preparing him for all along.

​Sometimes, we need a defining moment like that, too.

​It is time for the church to step up with that same Holy Spirit boldness—to look opposition in the eye, break free from spiritual bo***ges, and point seeking hearts directly to the truth. I have watched the Lord work over the years to reset His church, calling us back to living fully equipped in His power.

​Walking in that kind of authority requires intentional seeking and complete surrender. Why settle for simply surviving when God invites us into a life of thriving?

​Maybe a change in your own life—big or small—is what it takes to step away from old habits and say, "I'm done with what used to bind me." Shifting from self-serving living to serving the Lord changes everything. Jesus Christ is the One who makes a way where there seems to be no way, empowering us to overcome every obstacle that interferes with His work.

​I know who I belong to. So did Paul. And you can, too. Embrace God today, step into the change He has for you, and watch Him work.

​Be blessed!
—Servant Misty

08/28/2026

Daily Devotional — Your Responsibility

"We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the LORD, about his power and his mighty wonders." Psalm 78:4 NLT

Four days after teaching the greatest sermonette of my life, so far, to kids ages 4 through 10, I got feedback from the parents of my favorite little talker. You know, the one I adore.

They were going to text me but I received feedback face-to-face instead, which was even better. With wisdom, they asked their daughter to please demonstrate what she had learned from me. And she laid it out brilliantly for them. She slayed!

Even though I had to correct her three times for talking before I was even halfway done teaching, miraculously she taught my entire lesson from start to finish—she left nothing out.

My jaw dropped. Her parents reminded me that children are like sponges and are listening and learning even when it appears as if they are not.

I'm not sure when we lose this sponge superpower but I wish we could all seize it again. I still have a lot to learn. I should ask her to teach me the lesson because I know I will see something new and learn through the eyes of a child.

This keeps life fresh, honestly. Parents are sitting on a mountain of wealth with a rich return on investment in their children. Sadly, some don't see it and become too preoccupied with other things they deem more important.

Nothing has challenged my teaching skills more than this young crew! Do you know how hard it is to teach the word of God to adults who don't want to listen? How about to a four year old sitting next to a nine year old, surrounded by things way more interesting than me?

It's a big mountain but I will not be intimidated.

I've learned that teaching can be daunting, but I wanted to see lives changed. When I set about teaching a decade ago only to adults, I learned that having expectations quickly leads to disappointment—followed by discouragement. I had to rethink everything—including my motivation.

Then God gave me children—sort of. I became a 'parent' to more than I realize. Now I teach to all and let it go. I trust God to take it from there, as it's His word in those who receive it.

I often pray for encouragement and it always comes. But I never expected any encouragement from my Sunday School class only four days later. I was thinking maybe four to forty years later but not certainly a few days.

I'm going to have some very skilled sword wielders as the Lord has promised me. Patience is a virtue and a necessary one at that.

Remember that your children are your now to enjoy and invest in. Pray good things for them and a return on your investment. As hard as this is, children are not necessarily your future because God is your future. Your children are a blessing and are the greatest wealth you could have and you should enjoy it.

Invest in them by teaching them who God is. I will give you my best for them as I give you my best!

Be blessed!
—Servant Misty

08/27/2026

Daily Devotional — The Power of God's Presence

"And the LORD answered, 'My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.'" Exodus 33:14 BSB

A familiar face sat down in a chair facing me at work. I could tell there was something bothering her when she asked me to please clean her eyeglasses that weren't even dirty.

As I thoroughly wiped down her glasses, the stillness of God's Presence came upon me. This is not some cataclysmic event where the atmosphere changes and earthquakes occur. Though that can happen, this was a comforting space God was creating to do something powerful just for her.

As she smiled and thanked me for cleaning her glasses, she suddenly and firmly grabbed my left hand and met my eyes. I stared back. I took my right hand grabbed the top of her hand holding mine not breaking my gaze. Then she took her other hand and put it on top of all our hands never breaking her gaze.

There was silence as I waited. The tears formed as she took a hard breath in and they rolled down her cheeks as she exhaled the words "I just ran into the person that betrayed me 6 years ago and we have never spoken all this time."

I stayed silent and never lost my grip or my gaze as she went on to say "I have never said that out loud before and acknowledged the pain of what happened to me."

My heart knows the pain of 'Judas' well. But Jesus knows even better.

I quickly went above myself and to the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit for help. Only one thing has the power to break the bo***ge of betrayal in a person's life: it's forgiveness.

The chains couldn't be broken off of her and the prison doors set free, until the truth of this Scripture found in James 5:16 occurred:
"Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results."

Listen, when we hold onto pain and refuse to let it go by turning it over and over around in our heads, we sin. How do I know that this is a sin? Because sin robs and destroys. It produces death. It stole 6 years of peace from this woman and if she hadn't confessed it, her life would have been robbed of all of the glorious days God had planned for her.

So she confessed the truth of what was holding her captive to me—a woman who prays to Almighty God! And I listened. I let the Lord speak loving truth into her soul and she was made well.

There is no condemnation in Jesus Christ. I never pointed out any fault. I simply gave her the truth of God's love and forgiveness. I fed her soul like a friend would do.

Little did I know I would be the one to es**rt her out of 'prison' that day. But as she got up to leave she prophetically said a word over my life: "God has placed you here for a reason to powerfully minister to others in need."

I felt that.

As the Lord's Presence scaled back, I also felt drained. Physically speaking, whatever happens in the body causes a change in it. All I did was sit there, but when it was over it felt like I had climbed a portion of a mountain— after only a 10 minute conversation!

She was not the only person I helped that day. She was the first in my morning. By the end of the day, I can barely form sentences sometimes. If you see me out toward the end of the day—yeah, I'm tired and sometimes I'm awkward—but I still have the Holy Spirit fruit left to give.

Miraculously, the fruit does not run out even when I feel like a tree picked clean. God has a way of reminding me where my help really comes from and it's never anything I can muster up myself. He shows up when I step back and just let Him do what only He can do by the power of His Presence.

Don't miss out on this opportunity to let God use you to create a safe space for a person to confess the truth that will set them free.

Be blessed!
—Servant Misty