This Is My Story Everyone loves a good story! Whether it’s a fictitious tale from the pages of a

novel, or an anecdote from memory of days gone by, or a cinematic portrayal on the big screen--no matter the format or the venue, everyone loves a good story.

A good story can connect you to the lives and the plight of others. A good story can explain complex historical events, figures and situations which impact us still today. A good story can teach wisdom and convey moral lessons. A good story can ignite the imagination of a curious child, comfort the distressed, inspire action and start a movement, and simply offer an escape from both the complex stress as well as the monotony of life.

Everyone loves a good story, yes, but everyone HAS a good story to tell, too! It’s the classic tale of good versus evil; a love story of a Bridegroom for His wayward bride; an epic saga full of twists and turns, betrayal and redemption, tragedy and comedy. And, to top it all off, it ends “happily ever after!” It’s the story of the love of God in Christ, and His plan of salvation for us! It’s a story for you and about you. It’s a story that needs to be told, again, and again, and again.

Throughout this series we will explore the assigned readings for each week to see the story God has been writing since the beginning of time. Each week we will hear our Savior telling us, “This is My story!” As we learn more about the story we are written into we can gladly say, “This is MY story!” The better we know this story, the more boldly we can tell it to others, including them in the telling so they, too, can say, “This is my story!”

We invite you to join us each week, too! Daily devotional books like this one will be provided each week in an effort to connect the Sunday messages with your daily life. The devotions have all been written by either lay members or ministry staff of Holy Trinity.

The Sunday devotional offers a review of the Scriptures and message from that day’s worship service, allowing opportunity to further reflect on the sermon. The rest of the week offers a daily Scripture passage with a few thoughts to consider.

And, if you miss a Sunday, you can always find our services and sermons online at www.holytrinityedmond.org/sermons.

Here are the weekly themes as we consider This Is My Story :

May 10, 2020: God: The Author Almighty | Acts 6:1-9, 7:2a, 51-60

May 17, 2020: Your Character “Ark” | 1 Peter 3:13-22

May 24, 2020: When the Plot Thickens: | 1 Peter 4:1-7, 12-19; 5:6-11 Conflict, Climax, Conclusions

May 31, 2020: Telling God’s Story, | Acts 2:1-21 Telling YOUR story

Telling God’s Story, Telling YOUR Story Sunday Sermon Review

May 31, 2020

Throughout this series, we’ve focused on God’s story. He is the Author, we are

characters in a greater narrative, living the plot before us. It is God’s story. And

yet, by grace, we can claim this story as our own. “God is at work for me! God

has written this story for me!” And now, He calls us to be storytellers with Him.

Just as the Holy Spirit filled the Apostles on Pentecost, so He fills each of us

with the faith to believe in Jesus and to bear witness to the good story of

salvation in Christ. We all have a story to tell. It’s the story of who you are, your

experiences which have shaped your viewpoints, your joys and sorrows, your

heritage, where you’ve been and where you’re headed.

You have a story, detailing how God took an imperfect, undeserving, “poor,

miserable sinner” like you, and made you His own dear child, redeemed You with

the blood of Christ, and who still provides for you in unimaginable ways. You

have a story to tell about the Author who has stepped into the pages of history

time and time again on behalf of creation. You have a story which boldly

professes, “I believe in God the Father Almighty...in Jesus Christ His only Son,

our Lord...and in the Holy Spirit.” You have a story with a happy ending, for your

name has been written in a new book--the Book of Life--not with pen or pencil,

but with the blood of Christ.

You have a story...it’s time to tell it!

Reflecting on Today’s Sermon:

1. At what point was I confronted with the Law?

2. What comfort did the Gospel bring?

3. What story/phrase/teaching stuck out to me?

4. What did I learn about God from this sermon?

5. In response to the Word of God, I will…

Pray: Holy Spirit, You are powerfully at work in the pages of Scripture, telling the glorious story of salvation in Christ. By Your gracious enabling, You have given to me faith to believe in Jesus as Lord and to live as a redeemed child of God. You call Your Church to proclaim the mighty works of God, and to tell the story of Your grace. Grant me the boldness to be Your witness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

You Are Good, O Lord By Betsy Allie

Monday, June 1, 2020

Psalm 25:4-7: Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, O Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O Lord. (NIV)

The first part of this passage has long been one of my favorites because I think one of the best things I can ask of God is for Him to show me the way I should go. Being taught is also a familiar and happy idea because we all spend most of the first part of our lives learning and following our mothers, our fathers, our teachers, our older brothers and sisters. “Show me!” was a plea often heard in my family. We wanted to know how to do it right! I remember when my niece was four, she realized that the world was made up of people who could read and people who couldn’t. When she asked her mother why she couldn’t read, her mother told her it was because she hadn’t been to school yet. Barely missing a beat she said, “Then let’s go!”

It’s good to ask God for education in His ways, His paths, His truths, not because doing so will win us any special treatment or favor, but because He is our Savior, and there is no higher or better knowledge we could request. We want to live out our gratitude.

As I’ve gotten older, though, I have found myself clinging to the latter part of this passage: “Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O Lord.”

I don’t know about you, but I have memories of sins and rebellious things I did when I was young, and some of them can still cause regret and uneasiness. So I pray fervently that God will not remember them.

But wait! God has already promised that He will not remember the sins of His people, the forgiven. Scripture contains at least four specific promises – in Jeremiah, twice in Isaiah, and in Hebrews – that He will remember our sins “no more”. When we are forgiven the slate was wiped clean, and each time we repent of the sins we still commit, it’s wiped clean again. These verses remind us again of God’s great mercy and love. He loves us so much He’s given us a whole new story: fresh and clean and full of His grace!

Pray: Thank You, Father, for Your goodness and mercy to me. Help me to rebuke Satan when he comes reminding me of past sins. And help me live each day of my new, clean life for as long as I live, telling my new story to everyone around me. Please help me to be a joyful learner of Your ways for the rest of my life. In Jesus’ holy and precious name. Amen.

The Eternal Love Story By John Grunow

Tuesday June 2, 2020

Numbers 11:25: Then the Lord descended in the cloud and spoke to him. He

took some of the Spirit who was on Moses and placed the Spirit on the seventy

elders. As the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they never did it again.

God’s story reached a climax when Jesus defeated death and sin through His

own death and resurrection. After that, Jesus left the earth and returned to the

Father. It appeared that His story had come to an abrupt end. But we know that

did not happen because God wrote a new chapter as He formed His Church.

Throughout His story the Father has been developing a storyline that is now

revealed in the Church. He has been preparing a love gift for the Son and that

love gift is a bride for Jesus, a bride who would love Him forever. The Church is

the bride and, as a believer, you have been chosen by God to be a part of that

love gift for Jesus. Now your story is intertwined with His story forever!

How can the Church be prepared as Jesus’ bride? An Old Testament

flashback in Numbers and a fast-forward to Acts give us a clue. In the verses

preceding our text the Israelites have been grumbling about food. Moses is at a

loss how to deal with them. He was only one man. He could not possibly interact

personally with each of the two million Israelites he led so God showed in a

special way how He would amplify the proclamation of His word. He had given

Moses the Spirit, enabling him to lead God’s people, and now He took of that

Spirit and it “rested” on the 70 elders. As that happened, the 70 elders were

empowered by the Spirit to speak clearly (prophesy) about what God had done.

In a similar way, Jesus was only one man, limited by time and space, and He

could not personally interact with every person who would believe. As a man, He

was empowered by the Spirit of God to do what He did. God took of that Spirit

and sent the Spirit at Pentecost to “rest” on the believers. The Spirit empowered

the apostles to speak clearly about what Jesus had done. It is the Spirit who

prepares the bride for Jesus.

As a believer that same Spirit “rests” on you. He instructs you in the ways of

Jesus and shapes your character to be more like Him. He empowers you to

speak clearly about what God is doing in your life. He is preparing you to be part

of that wonderful love gift for Jesus and you will love Him forever!

Pray: Lord God, thank You for including us in Your Church, Your love gift for

Jesus. Thank You for giving us Your Spirit to prepare us to love Him forever. In

Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

What Does This Mean? By Myrna Lou Meyer

Wednesday, June 3, 2020

Acts 2:8-12 : “Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Capadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya and Cyrene, visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” (NIV)

It’s probable that relatively few of us are bilingual, able to read, speak, and understand a language other than English. Perhaps we’ve wished or even tried to learn a foreign tongue, but difficulties arose.

Growing up on a Kansas farm, I remember looking forward to visits from my favorite uncle. Uncle Bert lived in Chicago, and he sometimes came to help my father with wheat harvest. Evenings were spent playing cards and visiting. Whenever the stories or jokes were something little ears should not hear, my parents and Uncle Bert switched to German. I was completely left out!

Years later, many of my fourth-grade students in Guymon spoke only Spanish at home. When their parents came in for conferences, I often asked my students to translate, and they did a good job. At least I think so! I will never know what the Spanish conversation (scolding or praise!) was about, though facial expressions gave hints. But for all practical purposes, I was again left out.

Meanwhile, back to our scripture verses. Visitors in Jerusalem probably did not expect to hear their native languages very often. But on Pentecost, by the power of the Holy Spirit, they did! And they were amazed at this totally unbelievable event. They were not left out; they could understand perfectly.

How do we hear God’s messages to us today? We can read the Word of God in many translations—everything from the King James Version to The Voice and The Message. Because of various technologies, we can use radio, television, computer, even telephone to hear the Word. Recordings and Braille books are available for those with special needs. And we hear God’s Word through our pastors and teachers. Language is not a problem—nor was it on Pentecost Day!

Let us remind ourselves—even challenge ourselves!—to take advantage of the Word that is available to us in so many ways. By the power of the Holy Spirit, we will learn more about our amazing God and His love for us. Then we will be able to share His love with others.

Pray: Thank You, Lord, for the faith that You have given to me. Give me a hunger for Your Word, and help me to continue learning about You so that I can share this gift of faith with the people around me. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Undeserved Gift By Kyle and Nikki Young Thursday, June 4, 2020

Acts 2:21 : Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

As I sat down to write this with my wife, I realized that I had chosen my birthday for this devotional completely by accident. So, I began to think back on special birthday moments throughout my life.

Probably the best thing about my birthday is that it never occurred during the school year. Many times, my family would be traveling to visit family or to just get away. The negative to my birthday’s calendar placement is that in Oklahoma it is storm season. We spent many of my birthdays standing out in the yard, staring at the darkened sky, watching the ominous clouds form, and waiting to see if we would be venturing to my grandparents’ house to jump into the cellar. Many of my birthdays were a “hail” of a good time.

So many wonderful memories with family and friends, but usually one thinks upon birthday gifts. Not that I’m ungrateful, but I had difficulty remembering any singular gift. I received a number of them but they were ultimately temporary pleasures that I outgrew or became bored with. Even though I may have even requested many of those gifts, none, that I remember, had any lasting effect.

Looking back through my older, grumpier eyes I have often questioned the concept of the birthday gift. “You lived another year, here’s a cake.” What did we accomplish? The parents of young children deserve a prize to keep them alive on a yearly basis, but the children themselves? A life given, not achieved, is celebrated for being sustained by others that saw value in it. The birthday boy or girl just reaps the benefits of the works of those that nurtured it.

In Peter’s Pentecostal sermon he reminds the Hebrews of a gift promised long ago, that was prophesied by Joel. We have been promised salvation; an everlasting life that we cannot achieve but only receive. A life given to us from the Father, by the Son, and through the Holy Spirit. Through the Spirit we “call upon the Lord,” literally a cry from the heart, imploring mercy. Our call for salvation is heard by God and is freely, graciously, and undeservedly given. Every day we should celebrate our birth into God’s family.

So, from me to all of my brothers and sisters in Christ: Happy Birthday!

Pray: Heavenly Father we call upon You to save us and You respond with the gifts of mercy and salvation. Help us share these gifts with all of Your children, especially those who haven’t opened theirs yet. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Ambassadors for Christ By Angie Niemeyer

Friday, June 5, 2020

2 Corinthians 5:20: Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is

making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to

God.”

Given this is election year, I am sure that many of you, like me, have received

political campaign phone calls, where representatives are seeking your support

for their candidate. However, given that it is 2020, it’s no longer just phone calls,

post cards and letters requesting support, but also text messages. Over the past

few months, I would guess that I have received around 5-7 text messages from

multiple political candidate representatives seeking support for a certain

candidate. These messages have been received from multiple political parties,

for a couple different elections to be held later this year. To be honest, I am not

opposed to receiving the text message and would even say that I prefer that

method over a phone call from a phone number I don’t recognize.

The Miriam Webster Dictionary defines the word ambassador as an “official

envoy” especially: a diplomatic agent of the highest rank accredited to a foreign

government or sovereign as the resident representative of his or her own

government or sovereign or appointed for a special and often temporary

diplomatic assignment. Or as an authorized representative or an unofficial

representative.

The senders of these messages or callers are ambassadors. They have been

assigned a duty to represent the candidate to persuade you and me to cast our

vote for their candidate during the elections.

Paul is pointing out the honor that Christians have been given. Although,

ambassadors are not the same as they were in Paul’s day, they still exist and

have a purpose. God has called us and appointed us to plead on Christ’s behalf.

Calling others and pointing them to Christ. It is such an honor to have this

assignment. He provides opportunities for us daily to connect with others to tell

His story. Our mission and our purpose is to tell others about Him and what He

has done for us.

Pray: Heavenly Father, thank You for calling us to be Your ambassadors. Guide

our thoughts, our words and our actions to be pleasing to You and serve the

purpose You have given us, so that others may be reconciled with You. Amen!

Sequel in the Making By Don and Paulette Owens

Saturday, June 6, 2020

John 7: 37-39: …On the last and most important day of the festival, Jesus stood

up and cried out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. The one who

believes in me, as the Scripture has said, will have streams of living water flow

from deep within him.” He said this about the Spirit. Those who believed in Jesus

were going to receive the Spirit, for the Spirit had not yet been given because

Jesus had not yet been glorified.

At this point in the narrative, Jesus was well aware that His death was coming,

but also that it wouldn’t have the results the chief priests and Pharisees desired.

They were hoping to kill the one “leading the Jews astray.” But Jesus knows “the

rest of the story!”

Jesus knows He will suffer and die a horrible death on the cross, forsaken by

His Father, yes, but also that He will rise again on the third day victorious! He

knows His death will bring salvation to all who believe in Him. He knows His free

act of returning to the Father will allow the Holy Spirit to come to humanity,

enabling us to believe in Him.

What does the Holy Spirit do for us? He makes us holy, bringing us to faith in

Christ through the Gospel and gives the blessings of redemption. This is

sanctification in the wider sense which includes everything the Holy Spirit does in

us. (see I Cor. 6:11) The Holy Spirit also sanctified us in the true faith, that is He

has by faith in Christ renewed our hearts so we can now overcome sin and do

the good works prepared for us. (see Eph. 2:10) Lastly, the Holy Spirit will, by the

Gospel, keep us in the true faith. (see 1 Peter 1:5)

Through the work of the Holy Spirit, God’s story is repeated on a smaller scale

over and over. Even this pandemic serves a purpose in God’s story. Hearts are

being renewed by the Holy Spirit as people look for the saving grace of God and

the peace that passes all understanding. God is using the fear of the pandemic

to turn new hearts to Him whether by the use of social media, satellites in the

Middle East where many are turning to the “Jesus, the God of Hope,” or causing

us to re-evaluate our own faith walk and increase our study of God’s Word and

our prayer time. Worship is different but still inspired by the Holy Spirit and we

are reaching out in new and different ways to bring the Gospel to people. Thanks

be to God for the gift of the Holy Spirit who continues to act in our lives everyday.

Pray: Heavenly Father, Thank You for loving us! Jesus, thank You for Your

death and resurrection. Thank You for the gift of Your Holy Spirit who sanctifies

us. Help us to listen to His voice and His promptings and to serve You in all we

think, say and do. In Your holy precious name we pray. Amen.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.