Finding My Way Back Home
Dear Cornerstone Family, God’s mercy reminds us there is always a way back to our heavenly Father. In Luke 15 Jesus tells us a story of two sons. The youngest demands his inheritance early, so he can go and live “outside” of the rules of his father. In Luke 15:13-16 (NLT2) we read, “A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.” I don’t know [...]
Transformed By Trouble
Dear Cornerstone Family, In 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 (NLT) Paul writes, “We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul had been through many ups and downs in the ministry, but he realized how important relationships are. He took the time to pray and to give thanks for each of his relationships in the ministry. Three qualities stood out in this group of church people: their faithful work, loving deeds, and enduring hope in Jesus. These are the qualities I see at Cornerstone Church of Poway. I love every person that makes up our church family! Along with the current tragedies in our community, this week has been a difficult week for [...]
Mercy Forgives
Dear Cornerstone Family, If we can be honest, we all struggle with the topic of forgiveness. Who do we forgive? How often do we forgive? When we forgive others, are we giving them a license to continue to hurt us? Forgiveness. We all want it. When we blow it, we all want to be forgiven by God, but when we have been wronged by someone, we want justice. The same mercy that saves us also teaches us to forgive others. In Colossians 3:12-13 (NLT) we read, “Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” The reason why there is so much hurt and conflict in the world is because [...]
It’s A New Day Of Mercy
Dear Cornerstone Family, Happy Easter! I am so excited about this Sunday as we celebrate Easter together! There will be fun for the whole family! Our kids will be celebrating with an Easter Egg hunt, games, and learning about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As adults, we will begin a brand-new series called, The Miracle Of Mercy. God’s number one characteristic throughout the Bible is mercy. His mercy heals broken hearts, reconciles relationships, restores forgotten dreams, and refreshes tired souls. It’s the cure to every insecurity, worry, and fear. In Romans 4:25 (NLT2) we read, “[Jesus] was handed over to die because of our sins, and He was raised to life to make us right with God.” God didn’t overlook our sins. He had Jesus pay for our sins. To value God’s mercy, I must understand the cost of the cross. If I truly understand mercy, I [...]
Stand Firm With Prayer
Dear Cornerstone Family, This Sunday we will wrap up our series to Stand Firm in God’s power! Paul closes out his letter to the Ephesians by asking them to be persistent in prayer and to pray for him to speak boldly about Jesus. My first thought was, “Paul, you are bold! You are in prison because of sharing the good news about Jesus.” But then I realized that he was human and in prison. Just like you and me, Paul must have struggled with the reality of pain and discomfort. Most people pray. We pray about financial needs, physical needs, relationships, our wants, and desires. There is nothing wrong about praying for our needs, but isn’t prayer to be more than just asking for our personal needs? When we look at the prayers of the early church in Acts, we see that they prayed bold prayers. Instead of praying for [...]
Stand Firm With The Word
Dear Cornerstone Family, The Bible warns us about people taking the Word of God out of context or watering it down to salve their conscience. But we must become students of the Word of God and followers who apply it in our everyday lives. We believe this will result in strong families, a healthy church and a blessing to our community. Maturity doesn’t mean you’re perfect, but rather a lifelong pursuit of growth. Maturity is not a destination, but a commitment to apply God’s Word in our daily lives. In Mark 4:14-20 Jesus gives a parable about the Word of God. In this passage, Jesus teaches us how important it is to take God’s Word into our hearts and apply it in our lives. Jesus said, “The farmer plants seed by taking God’s word to others. The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message, only [...]
Stand Firm With Salvation
Dear Cornerstone Family, Do you ever struggle with discouraging thoughts? Feelings of shame? Fear of what might happen? Doubts about your relationship with God? How did I know? This is how Satan attacks us. He can’t make us do anything, but he often can get in our head and throw arrows shame, fear and doubts. In Ephesians 6:17, the Apostle Paul tells us to stand firm by taking “the helmet of salvation.” The helmet was an essential piece of armor because it protected the head. One of the most important abilities a soldier had was the ability to think and make plans. Spiritually speaking, our thoughts control our ability to focus on what is most important and to keep progressing forward. The enemy cannot make us do anything, but he can distract us with thoughts of shame, fear, and doubts. To stand firm with the helmet of salvation, we must [...]
Stand Firm With The Gospel
Dear Cornerstone Family, Our remember verse this series, Ephesians 6:10-11 (NIV) teaches, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.” Because our battle is spiritual, we must fight with spiritual weapons to stand firm with God’s armor. Join us this Sunday as we learn how God’s truth helps us stand firm in our lives. Following Jesus, Pastor Ed Turley Cornerstone Church of Poway P.S. Check out our new mobile-friendly website! www.CornerstonePoway.com UPCOMING EVENTS Women’s Retreat: Ladies, Sunday is the last day to sign up for the Women’s Retreat. Come relax in God’s presence, enjoy delicious food and fellowship in the beautiful surroundings of Murrieta Hot Springs. Cost: May 3-5th $200.00 & Saturday only May 4th $125.00. Visit the Women's Retreat table in the courtyard or contact: Karen Turley 858.442.0557 [...]
Stand Firm With The Truth
Dear Cornerstone Family, Ephesians 6:10-11 (NIV) teaches, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.” Because our battle is spiritual, we must fight with spiritual weapons to stand firm with God’s armor. Join us this Sunday as we begin the new sermon series: Stand Firm. Following Jesus, Pastor Ed Turley Cornerstone Church of Poway P.S. Check out our new mobile-friendly website! www.CornerstonePoway.com UPCOMING EVENTS Women’s Breakfast: Ladies, you are invited to a Women's Breakfast with awesome food, engaging fellowship and to raise money for Women's Retreat financial assistance this year. Join us Saturday, Mar. 9, 9-11:00 am in the café. Suggested donation $5. More information is at the Women's Ministry table in the courtyard or contact karen.turley@ceoexpress.com. Blood Drive: Cornerstone, in collaboration with local Girl Scouts Troop 2210 and [...]
Battle For Our Parent’s Honor
Dear Cornerstone Family, It seems our culture shows little respect or honor towards our elderly. Sitcoms and Facebook are filled with disrespectful sceneries and comments, especially towards parents. We need to teach our children about honor while they are young. Could this lack of honor to our parents be the foundation of why there are so much disrespect and dishonor in the world? Ephesians 6:1-3 (NLT2) teaches us, “Honor your father and mother.” This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, “things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth.” Paul reminds us to honor our parents throughout our lives. This is one of the Ten Commandments. If we want the next generation to learn what honor means, then we need to set an example by demonstrating honor to our parents. Sometimes we take our parents [...]