Gracious FatherGenesis 21

GOD OF GRACEEphesians 1:3-7 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in

Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, … to the praise of his

glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his

grace

Nehemiah 9:17 They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you

performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. But you are a God ready

to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and

did not forsake them.

GOD OF GRACE

John 3:16-18 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the

world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but

whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the

name of the only Son of God.

Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own

doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for

good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

ELECTIONGenesis 21:1-7 The LORD visited Sarah as he had

said, and the LORD did to Sarah as he had promised. And Sarah conceived and bore

Abraham a son in his old age at the time of which God had spoken to him.

Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded

him.

Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, “God

has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” And she said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old

age.”

REJECTIONGenesis 21:17-20 And God heard the voice of the

boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you,

Hagar?

Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a

great nation.”

Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. And God was

with the boy, and he grew up.

John liked life. John liked to run.

John liked to preach.

Then came October, 2008. It wasn’t the flu. Who knew?

77 days is a long time to spend in the hospital.

18 months is a long time to not eat. But, God wasn’t done yet.

John’s back. Food tastes really good.

Preaching does too.

And running? Well, he’s still working on that.

JOHN & JOANNA STUMBO

Outgoing acting DS CMA NWNewly elected President of CMA

RESTORATION

Genesis 21:22-24 At that time Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army said to Abraham, “God is with you in all that you do. Now

therefore swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with

me or with my descendants or with my posterity, but as I have dealt kindly with you, so you will deal with me and with the land where

you have sojourned.” And Abraham said, “I will swear.”