homefront monthly: responsibility vol. 2 iss. 7

8/3/2019 HomeFront Monthly: Responsibility Vol. 2 Iss. 7

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IllustrationbyAnneBerry

M O N T H L Y

A FAMILY RESOURCE VOL. 2, ISSUE 7

F A M I L Y F O O D T I M E

G A M E T I M E

C R E A T E

B L E S S I N G

G O D S W O R D

God hasentrusted

me with thethings andpeople aroundme that He

has created.

respon

sibility

ENVIRONMENT


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2010 David C. Cook. All rights reserved.

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ENVIRONMENT

RESPONSIBILITYBeore you begin exploring this months edition, take some time to set

aside your previous ideas about responsibility. While most o us associatethat word with the burdens in our lives, the responsibilities that God hascharged us with are exciting and lie giving!

Open your mind and your heart to what He has toshow you about taking responsibility in the kingdomHe has entrusted to you.

THIS MONTH, as we ocus on creating anenvironment o RESPONSIBILITY within our amiliesand explore the responsibilities God has charged us

with, we recognize that it covers a variety o areas.First, this concept o responsibility captures the ideathat God has entrusted His kingdom to us! Next ittakes a look at our ability to take ownership or ourlie, gits, and resources beore God. In addition, ouramilies must be challenged to take responsibilityor our brothers and sisters in Christ, as well as orthose who are spiritually lost. Our hope is that theHoly Spirit would use this environment to encourage

each member o your amily to be nurtured withina kingdom-minded worldview. As you explore thevarious acets o Christ-centered responsibility thismonth, we pray you will experience God in ways thatwill lead you to celebrate the responsibilities that He

has entrusted you with.

VERSES OF THE MONTH

Memorizing Scripture can be an incredible practiceto engage in as a amily. But words in and othemselves will not necessarily transorm us; it isGods Spirit in these words that transorms. We

come to know God more when we are willing toopen our hearts, receive His Holy Spirit, read HisWord, and memorize it. Have un with these versesand think o creative ways to invite your amily to

open up to God as they commit these verses tomemory.

May the ws f my muth an

the meitatin f my heat be

pleasing in yu sight, O Lord,my Rck an my Reeeme.

Psalm 19:14

Nby shul seek his wn

g, but the g f thes.

1 Corinthians 10:24

MICHELLE ANTHONY

FAMILY MINISTRY ARCHITECTthe Tru Team | Costa Mesa, CA

ELEMENTARY

PRES/KINDER


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byNatalieVenneri

FAMILY FOOD TIMERecipeOne o the most vivid memories I have o the holidays is eating my momsice cream cake. I knew that when our cul-de-sac planned to have a potluck,

my mom was always the one in charge o bringing an ice cream cake.I remember sitting in the kitchen with her as she whipped the dessert together, layer by layer. As the yearspassed, she gave me some o the responsibilities o helping her make it. The process started out with crushingthe cookies, then adding the ice cream, and spreading the whipped topping over it. Eventually, I could make thewhole thing on my own. Now, when I go to potlucks with amily and riends, I am the one who is responsible

to bring the ice cream cake. Each time I make the cake, it brings me right back to those times spent with mymom in the kitchen watching and learning, layer by layer.

Winte Mint Ice Ceam Cake (SERVES 69)Prep Time: 15 min. Cook Time: Freeze or 3060 min.

1 package cream lled chocolate sandwich cookies

1 quart mint chocolate chip ice cream, slightly sotened

1 (8 oz.) container rozen whipped topping, thawed

1. Open the package o cookies, dump them ontoa clean counter, set six whole cookies aside oruse later, and split the remaining quantity in hal.

2. In a large plastic bag, crush one hal o thecookies and place in the bottom o an 8 x 8cake pan. This will be the crust on the bottom.

3. With a spatula, spread hal o the sotenedmint chocolate chip ice cream over the crushedcookie crust.

4. With a spatula, spread hal o the whipped toppingover the top o mint chocolate chip ice cream.

5. In a large plastic bag, crush the remaining halo the cookies, and spread them over the layero whipped topping.

6. With a spatula, spread the remainder o the

mint chocolate chip ice cream over the crushedcookies.

7. With a spatula, spread the remaining whippedtopping over the top o the mint chocolate chipice cream.

8. Place the six whole cookies on top o the nallayer o whipped topping or decoration.

9. Place the cake in the reezer or 30 min.1 hr. toharden the ice cream and whipped topping. Witha knie, cut square pieces (like a cake), and serverozen. Enjoy!


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byDebbieGuinn

Cook with your kids

As you gather around the table, share with oneanother the ways you have seen how God has gitedeach amily member.

For instance: God has entrusted you with the gito being able to orgive quickly. Or God has given youthe git o speaking truth into others lives. You caneven talk about how God has given a amily memberthe git o being a beautiul dancer or an artist. Dontstop at just one.

Sitting down to have a amily meal is one o thebest things you can do or your kids and a greatway to bond as a amily.

Conversation

Starters

I you are caught between fnding time to prepare mealsand spending quality time with your children, try cookingwith them. Children enjoy helping and oten are morewilling to eat oods they help prepare. Its important thatyou give kitchen tasks appropriate or your childrens ages.

Two Year OldsHave them bring ingredients rom one place toanother, wipe tabletops, tear lettuce or greens, break

caulifower, play with utensils.

Three Year Olds

Can do all that two year olds can, plus wrap potatoesin oil or baking, pour liquids, mix ingredients, shakeliquids in a covered container, spread sot spreads,

and put things in the trash.

Four Year OldsCan do all that two and three year olds can, plus orm round shapes with dough, cut parsley or green

onions with dull scissors, mash bananas with a ork,and set the table.

Five to Six Year Olds

Can do all that two, three, and our year olds can, plus measure ingredients, cut with a blunt knie, anduse an eggbeater.

Elementary Age ChildrenCan do all that the preschool age children do, plus assemble sandwiches, read recipe directions to you, roll

dough, grate cheese, crack and beat eggs, and more.

Middle and High SchoolInvolve them in meal planning, shopping, and evencompletely preparing the meal or your amily night.

Be creative with the things you see in the lives oyour children, and listen as they share the gits theyperceive God has given you. When you are nished,ask each other, How are you using your git(s) tohonor God? Then remind your children that Godis the One who gave us our gits. Share with themhow He has entrusted us to use our gits or Hispurposes.


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YOUNGER GAMES

JengaFor the younger ones, a simple game o Jenga is agreat way to show them that every choice they makeaects another persons move.

Setup

One player puts the Jenga blocks into the loadingtray in crisscrossing layers o three. Once the blocksare set, he turns the tray upright and moves the trayaway, leaving only the stacked blocks.

Order

The player who stacked the blocks is rst, with playollowing clockwise.

Object

Each player must pull a wooden block rom a rowbelow the top row and replace it on the top o thetower in the opposite direction o the blocks on top.He may only use one hand. Play continues until one

player causes the tower to all. The last player to haveplaced a block on top successully is the winner.

Timing

A players turn ends 10 seconds ater he has placeda piece or as soon as the next player goes.

Considerations

Players may touch blocks to test how loose they are,

but i not selected must be put back in place. In addition,players must not stack a new layer on top withoutcompleting the previous layer o three pieces.

OLDER GAMES

House o CardsFor the older ones, Jenga can work as well! An activitythat might take a little more time and eort is buildinga house out o cards together. Remind your childrenthat they need to think careully about each movethey make, and the slightest movement can ruin thewhole thing! Here are some simple instructions onhow to get started.

Clear a level, sturdy surface to begin buildingyour house.

Pick a new deck of cards to work with.

Choose 2 cards from the deck.

Put them about 2 inches from each other. Thispair will orm the base o your house.

Lean the 2 cards towards each other making anupside down V or a teepee shape.

Position another upside down V next to the rstone with about 1 centimeter o space betweenthem. Continue building teepees or upside downVs on the ground level as wide as you want tomake the base o your house.

Lay a card horizontally on top of the 2 points.

Build more upside down Vs on top of the

horizontal card. Continue building around and up as high as your

imagination and your cards can go.

Use this game time toinstill in your children howeverything they do in theirlives impacts something

or someone else!

byLaurenFrancis

GAME TIME


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STORYTELLINGWho are you infuencing?A childhood next-door neighbor ound my brothers and me on Facebook.She had grown up with my younger brothers and had moved away during

her high school years. She brought us up to speed on how she and herhusband were living in North Carolina, and then began to share how her liewas transormed by Christ.

as she shared, she began to thank

my amily and me or how we lived

out Christ in ront o her throughout

the years. As I read this email, I was

blown away by how God used us to transorm the

lie o this neighbor.

Whether we speak the gospel or simply live it out,Christ has given us the responsibility to make himknown and to share His love with those around us.

The ollowing is a true and truly amazing story:

In 1858, Mr. Kimbell, a Sunday schoolteacher, prayed with one of his students (ashoe salesman) to become a Christian. Thesalesman, Dwight L. Moody, became a greatevangelist. In 1879 Moody was sharing thegood news of Jesus and a young man, F. B.Meyer, met Christ; this young man becamezealous for preaching the good news. While

preaching on an American college campus, F. B.

Meyer brought a student, J. Wilbur Chapman,to Christ. Chapman later employed an ex-baseball player, Billy Sunday, to do evangelisticwork. Billy Sunday became one of the greatestChristian preachers and evangelists in the early1900s. Once after Billy Sunday preached inCharlotte, a group of local business-men were

so enthusiastic, they decided to bring anotherman, Mordecai Hamm, to preach. In that revivalmeeting a young man, Billy Graham, yielded hislife to Christ. Billy Graham has since preachedto more people in person than any person in

the world. And so, the story goes on and on. Itall started with a faithful Sunday school teacher:Mr. Kimbell. Few people will ever know his namebut, in reality, look at how many people this one

mans witness has affected.

As a parent, imagine what God might do throughyour witness to your children. Think or a moment:

byKitRae

Have you ever shared your aith story with yourchildren?

THIS WEEK,TELL YOUR KIDS

THE STORYABOUT HOW

YOU CAME

TO FAITH.

WHO TOLDYOU ABOUTCHRIST. HOWDID CHRIST

CAPTURE YOUR

HEART? SHARE

WITH THEMHOW YOU CAME

TO KNOW HIM.


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byLaurenFrancis

GODS WORDSaul to PaulAnyone amiliar with the New Testament probably knows who Paul is. Hewas a radical, passionate, and compelling preacher o the gospel. Until the

day he died, he made it his lie mission to point people to Christ

no matterthe cost. But it is oten easy to orget exactly how bad it was or Paul beorehe was converted to Christ on the road to Damascus.

In Acts 8:3, it says, As or Saul, he made havoc o thechurch, entering every house, and dragging o menand women, committing them to prison. In Saulscrusade against the Christians, he did not spareeven the women or children. Also, Saul stood by andwatched as the rst martyr, Stephen, was stoned

to death or proclaiming the name o Jesus Christ.

The Scriptures say thatSaul gave consent or hisdeath.

This word consent canbe translated to the Greekidea o suneudokeo,

which means, to approveor be pleased with. Simplystated, Saul took pleasurein the persecution oChristians. He wasruthless and passionate

or his cause.

We see Sauls passionin the act that he and hiscompanions took a 130-mile journey to Damascusrom Jerusalem. Thatjourney would have takenSaul and his companionssix days to complete. Saulwas so serious about wiping out all the ollowers o

Christ that he was willing to travel the country to do so.

As Saul traveled the road to Damascus, Jesusappeared to him in a mysterious and miraculous way.Saul was immediately conronted with the Personhe had been persecuting. Surprisingly, Saul knewthis right away. In Acts 9:5, Saul asked Jesus, Whoare you Lord? Ater this moment, these questions

become the core o Sauls (Pauls) lieseekingJesus plan or his lie, and encouraging others to dothe same.

Although it was Jesus Himsel who transormedSaul, He included a man named Ananias in theprocess. Ananias was an ordinary man who simplyresponded to God. God entrusted Ananias withSauls transormation in the physical sensethroughthe laying o hands and baptism in the Holy Spirit.

Saul (now reerred toas Paul) was blessedby God as he beganhis ministry. Though hewas obviously a gitedspeaker and passionatepreacher, he would

not even be allowed topreach in the synagoguei he were not recognizedas a respected Jewishman. As a young man,Paul studied under the

great rabbi Gamalieland was also knownin his community as a

Jewish scholar. Godhad given him theJewish knowledge andtheological backgroundto grant him the platormor ministry to Jews. Even

so, when Jesus talked to Ananias in his vision, Hesaid, Go! This man [Paul] is my chosen instrument

to carry my name beore the Gentiles and their

kings and beore the people o Israel (Acts:9:15).So God entrusted Paul with sharing the gospel toJews, but also to the Gentilesa group which hadnot yet been reached out to.

Three years ater his conversion, Paul was able tojoin the disciples. However, even they were araid o

his past and were reluctant to believe he had beentransormed. I it had not been or Barnabus, another

PAU IS A GREAT

EXAMPE OF SOMEONE

WHO USED HIS

GIFTS, ABILITIES AND

TALENTS IN A HUMBLE

MANNER TO FURTHER

GODS KINGDOM. HE

REIED ON GOD TO GET

HIM THROUGH EVERY

TRIA IN HIS IFE.


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vessel the Lord used in Pauls lie, the disciples would

not have accepted him. Without Barnabas, Paul wouldnot have had the support he needed to continue withhis journey.

When Jesus told Paul on the road to Damascus

that he would suer or His name, there is no wayPaul could know at the time what that would actuallyentail. In 2 Corinthians, chapter 11, we nd out some

o what that meant. Paul gave an extensive list o allthe things that he had endured or the sake o Christ:beatings, shipwrecks, bandits, hunger and thirst, to

name a ew. But in chapter 12, Paul made it known

that he did not highlight these things to boast, butto show his weakness. His ability to persevere wassomething that he could not have done on his own.He understood that it required him to surrender toutter dependence on God.

Paul is a great example o someone who used hisgits, abilities, and talents in a humble manner to urther

Gods kingdom. He relied on God to get him throughevery trial in his lie. His lie was an incredible testamentto the transorming and empowering Spirit o God. Godentrusted Paul with much. Because o this, Paul let apowerul legacy that points us to the knowledge that ourLord is a God who gives His people the responsibilityto show others who He is and the strength to ollowthrough on the task.

HEAR IT

Read Philippians 3:711 with your children. Beoreyou read it, let the kids know that the author o thispassage was the same Paul who killed Christians, butit was written ater Jesus had changed him. Ater youread this, ask: In light o everything you know now

about Paul and the course o his lie, how do youthink his words, thoughts, actions, etc., were dierentrom his words beore he became a Christian? Howdo you think his words, thoughts, and actions werethe samei.e., how did God use Pauls personality tospread the gospel? How does it make you eel to knowthat Jesus can change someones heart so ully?

DO IT

In the Create section o this months issue, you willhave a tangible way to discover who was responsibleor your aith. Praise God together that He takesour hearts, transorms them, and then sends us outto spread His gospel! He can use anyone o us,regardless o where we are in our lives. Seek comortand encouragement in that act this month.


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CREATEFaith Family TreeOne o the best conversations Ive had with my parents came rom askingquestions about how they came to know the Lord. Neither o my parents

was raised in Christian homes, and they didnt start going to church untilater my younger sister was born.Both o my parents say that God used one couplein particular to guide and mentor them through theirquestions and concerns. To this day, my parents arestill amazed at the grace God showed them by bringingthis couple into their lives to share His Word with them.Shortly ater my mom was saved, she shared thegospel story with both my sister and I and we madethe decision to ask Jesus into our lives as well. It is soamazing how God uses His people to bring even more

to Him.One o the greatest responsibilities we have as

believers it to share Gods Word with the peopleHe has placed around us. What better way orkids to see how their words can be used to urtherthe Gospels than to see all the people that havehad a part in their aith story. This month, sit down

with your kids, and share your salvation story withthem. Have them get on the phone and ask theirgrandparents to tell them their stories. See how ar

byKaylaAdams

back your aith amily tree goes. As you trace backthe line, have your kids ll in the blanks o the aithamily tree, on the next page, so they can see howmany people have played a role in impacting theirlives. I you are the rst generation o believers inyour amily, like my parents, remind your childrenthat they will be at the top o the aith amily treeor uture generations.

CREATE IS A TIME TOENGAGE YOUR FAMILY

IN A COLLABORATIVE

RESPONSE TO HEARINGGODS TRUTH.


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My Faith Family Tree

SHARED WITH

SHARED WITH

SHARED WITH

SHARED WITH

SHARED WITH

(full name)


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byDebbieGuinn

WORSHIPGits and TalentsIn Pauls letter to the Romans, he tells us that we all have been givendierent gits rom God. He reminds us that it is our responsibility to use

those gits wisely and to work together with one mission in mind.Just as each o us has one body with manymembers, and these members do not all have thesame unction, so in Christ we who are many ormone body, and each member belongs to all theothers. We have dierent gits, according to thegrace given us. I a mans git is prophesying, let

him use it in proportion to his aith. I it is serving,let him serve; i it is teaching, let him teach; i it isencouraging, let him encourage; i it is contributingto the needs o others, let him give generously; i it isleadership, let him govern diligently; i it is showingmercy, let him do it cheerully. Romans 12:48

Our gits and talents can be dierent but

complementary; the way we each worship can bedierent but harmonious as well. Take some time todiscuss some o the tangible ways you can worshipGod using the gits He has given to each amilymember. It might be that someone has a great voiceand would like to sing a worship song. Anothermight love to paint or draw and would like to paint

a beautiul picture to God. And still another mightdecide to serve a amily member or neighbor byhelping with a need.

Use this time as a way to help each other discover

the gits that God has given you. Ater discussingand discovering what gits everyone has been givenrom God and how they might want to use thesegits to worship Him, play your avorite worship CDand gather any supplies needed to encourage eachperson to worship God in their own unique way.

Ater some time has gone by, have everyonecome back together, and discuss how each person

worshipped God. Close your worship time by prayingtogether and thanking God that He has uniquely gitedeach o you. Ask Him to help you be responsible withthe gits He has entrusted you with. Pray the HolySpirit will help guide you to discern who in your liemight be spiritually lost. Pray or power rom the HolySpirit to help you tell them about Jesus.

WE OFTEN THINK OF WORSHIP ASSINGING, BUT WE CAN WORSHIP GOD

IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS:

PRAYER, SILENCE, ART, DANCE, GIVING,

SHARING, AND THANKSGIVING

JUST TO NAME A FEW. MAKE PLANS

FOR YOUR FAMILY WORSHIP TIME, BUTPREPARE YOURSELF TO HOLD THESEPLANS LOOSELY IF THE HOLY SPIRIT

LEADS YOU IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION.


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TRADITIONS & PRAYERPopsicle Stick PrayerPraying or others is a very important part o our responsibility as Christians!For this months prayer time, try this un activity with your amily. As youexplore this prayer exercise, consider making it a tradition in your amily.Use this activity to encourage and guide even the littlest amily member tobe praying or other people. Get a bag of craft sticks.

Get a coffee mug or some other sort of container that you can place on your dining table.

Have your family decorate the craft sticks so that one end is colored and the other end is not.

Write the names of people in your lives (family members, family friends, friends from the neighborhood, peopleat work, etc.) on one side o the stick, and place all the completed sticks, colored end up, into the mug.

Whenever you pray as a familymealtime, bedtime, etc., have each member choose a stick rom the mug.

Pray for those people by name! Ask God to help them, heal them, or even just to be with them. Encouragethe older kids to truly let the Spirit guide their prayers. Encourage them to listen or what they may be hearingrom God!

Once you have prayed for someone, make sure that you place the stick back into the mug with thecolored end acing down. When all the sticks are acing down, you know its time to fip them over andstart again!

Add more sticks to the mug as needed. The more, the merrier!

byLaurenFrancis

A tradition is the

handing down ostatements, belies,legends, or customs romgeneration to generation.

What traditions are inplace or your amily?

What would you liketo pass down to the

next generation? It isalways un to create new

traditions with eachgeneration.


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MARRIAGEIn some ways, my husband and I are incredibly similar. We share the sameheart or Jesus, we strive ater the same things in lie, we laugh at the samedumb jokes, and we both have the same idea o the perect date (dinner by

the beach, then home or a great talk by the outdoor re pit).

But, in other ways we are very dierent. Imscatterbrained and lose things all the time. Myhusband is the ultimate list maker and is alwayson top o things. I am a total extrovert; Casey is anintrovert. I share openly and honestly all o who I am,but sometimes orget to make space to really listen

to others. My caring husband is a generous listener,but has to work to open up and share vulnerableparts o himsel.

As Im sure you can imagine, our dierences havecaused confict in our marriage. I wish I could tell youthat when we got married we immediately thought,Wow! We really complement each other with our

dierent gits. But we didnt. Instead, we spent artoo much time trying to change each other. Whenour dierent personalities bumped up against eachother, we both had a tendency to try to make theother person more like us. Many ghts have beenstarted because one o us said something like, Whycant you be more like me? or Why do you do it thatway? Why cant you do it my way?

As we both have continued to submit our marriageto the Lord, He has reminded us that we have bothbeen given dierent gits. Dierent gits imaginethat. Casey has been created dierently than me.

In the environment o RESPONSIBILITY, I am

reminded that none o us are called to be like anotherpersonrather, we are responsible or using ourindividual gits and the lie that we have been given.So, to truly love my husband is to empower him to behimsel.

The best git I can give my husband is not to tryto help him be more like meit is to give him the

reedom to take responsibility or the lie and gits Godhas uniquely given him. And when I actually let go ocontrol, and give him the space to do this, I nd thathis gits are pretty great. Actually, they ll in my holesperectly. I we each take responsibility or using ourown gits and encourage the other person to do thesametogether, we are ar more complete.

This month, when youre out on a date or, maybe,when you can grab a little alone time ater the kids are

in bed, spend some time doing the ollowing things asa couple:

1. Share what gits each o you eel like God hasgiven you.

2. Share the unique gits each o you notice in eachother.

3. Ask each other, How can I empower you to takeresponsibility or your lie and gits? Really listento the answer you hear!

4. Spend some time praying or each other. Pray

God will give each o you the courage to take

responsibility or your gits and give each o youthe love and grace to encourage each other touse your individual gits.

byLauraWeber


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BLESSINGOthers FirstThis month give your child abenediction or blessing beorebedtime.

As your children are blessed, tell them that theyhave the opportunity to also be a blessing to others.Encourage them to reely share with others the joyand love they have received rom God.

While giving the blessing, encourage your children tohold their hands in ront o them, palms up. This postureis meant to symbolize a willingness o heart to respond

to Gods Holy Spirit and receive what God has or them.Invite them to remain in this posture as you bless them.As you read the ollowing Scripture, encourage them tolisten closely to the words. Read it slowly.

Do nothing out o selshambition or vain conceit, butin humility consider othersbetter than yourselves. Eacho you should look not only to

your own interests, but alsoto the interests o others.Philippians 2:34

byDebbieGuinn

HomeFront Weekly: Dont forget to grab your HomeFront Weekly: A resource to getparents and kids talking about Gods Word together.

CHRISTIANS ARE OFTEN

OFFERED A BLESSING AT THE

END OF A CHURCH SERVICE AS

ABENEDICTION. THE WORD

BENEDICTION LITERALLY MEANS,

GOOD SPEAKINGAND IS MOST

OFTEN TRANSLATED BLESSING.

NUMBERS 6:2226 RECORDS THE

LORD INSTRUCTING MOSES TO

BLESS THE PEOPLE WITH THESE

WORDS,THE LORD BLESS YOU

AND KEEP YOU; THE LORD MAKE

HIS FACE SHINE UPON YOU AND

BE GRACIOUS TO YOU; THE LORD

TURN HIS FACE TOWARD YOU AND

GIVE YOU PEACE.

BLESS


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Whats Happening in YourFAITH COMMUNITY?

homefront monthly: responsibility vol. 2 iss. 7

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