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Uschi's Corner

Bi-weekly Devotionals auf Deutsch and English to encourage you.

Philippians 4:8

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Fix your thoughts – Paul certainly knew about the danger of truant thoughts. 

His past as a persecutor of Christians, his current opponents, his own weakness, his immense spiritual responsibility for others, etc. could make him fix his thoughts on anything else. But, as assumingly every one of us, he also knew how quickly uncontrolled thoughts begin to run wild and spin around fleshly ideas of self-pity, pride or else. Paul’s impressive collection of “soul-protecting thoughts” (v8) is framed by the idea of the “heart-and-mind-transcending peace of God” (v7) and the request to apply what Paul has preached (v9). 

Fix your thoughts – because if not, as Paul warns, – the believers will reduce the effects of God’ peace in their hearts and minds: neither feeling sheltered nor compelled to put Paul’s faith lessons into practice.  

Fix your thoughts – and don’t fear any ‘mental space problems’ – our mind provides enough space to host at the same many different thoughts. Fixing your thoughts this way won’t hinder you from concentrating on work, developing ideas or preparing for exams. 

Fix all your thoughts – and ask yourself what God would say to your daily thoughts.

Fix all your thoughts – and keep them fixed! Develop a system that keeps you adopting Paul’s seven soul-protecting thoughts. Believe me, it won’t take long until you discover how God will use your willingness for His purposes!

Philipper 4,8

Und zum Schluss, liebe Brüder und Schwestern: „Denkt über das nach, was wahrhaftig ist, was ehrbar, was gerecht, was rein, was liebenswert, was einen guten Ruf hat, sei es eine Tugend, sei es ein Lob.

Denkt darüber nach – Paulus kannte sicherlich die Gefahr abschweifender Gedanken. 

Seine Vergangenheit als Christenverfolger, seine aktuellen Gegner, seine eigene Schwachheit, seine immense geistliche Verantwortung für andere, etc. hätten ihn dazu verleiten können, über alles Mögliche nachzudenken. Aber, wie vermutlich jeder von uns, wusste Paulus auch, wie schnell unkontrollierte Gedanken sich verselbständigen und anfangen, um fleischliche Ideen von Selbstmitleid, Stolz oder Ähnlichem zu kreisen. Seine beeindruckende Sammlung von „seelenbewahrenden Gedanken“ (V8) ist eingerahmt von der Idee des „Herz-und-Sinn-übersteigenden Friedens von Gott“ (V7) und der Aufforderung, anzuwenden, was er gepredigt hat. (V9)

Denkt darüber nach – denn, wenn nicht, so warnt Paulus, werden die Gläubigen die Auswirkungen des Friedens Gottes für ihre Herzen und Sinne reduzieren: sie werden sich weder geborgen fühlen, noch dazu veranlasst, die Glaubenslektionen von Paulus in die Tat umzusetzen. 

Denk darüber nach – und mach dir keine Sorgen um ‚mentale Platzprobleme‘ – unser Verstand bietet genug Raum, um gleichzeitig viele verschiedene Gedanken zu beherbergen. Die Gedanken auf diese Weise auszurichten, wird dich nicht daran hindern, konzentriert zu arbeiten, Ideen zu entwickeln oder für Prüfungen zu lernen. 

Denk über all das nach – und frage dich, was Gott wohl zu deinen täglichen Gedanken sagen würde. 

Denk über all das nach – und bleib dran! Entwickle ein System, das dir hilft, die sieben „seelenbewahrenden Gedanken“ von Paulus zu übernehmen. Glaub mir, es wird nicht lange dauern, bis du entdeckst, wie Gott deine Bereitschaft für Seine Ziele einsetzt!

Bible Reading Plan

Join us as we read through the Bible in 2025. This year we will be joining with our sister church Fellowship Potsdam to read the Bible together. You can join at any time! 

Have you ever closed your Bible and thought, "What did I just read?" This 365-day chronological plan corresponds to the Bible Recap, designed to help you read, understand, and love the Bible! Daily recaps are available in podcast, video, and book form, where Tara-Leigh Cobble highlights and summarizes each day's Bible reading in an easy-to-understand way.

Once you have set up an account on Bible.com, you can request to join the group. Our group administrator will let you into the group so you can study along with others in our church over the year.

Devotionals

Recommendations for daily encouragement.

Gold Medallion Award winner Experiencing God Day-By-Day is based on Henry Blackaby’s multi-million selling Experiencing God book and Bible study. Brimming with insight and seasoned with grace, this 365-day devotional reader helps to start a daily routine by focusing the mind on the divine presence in each life. Whether selected as a thoughtful gift or as a personal resource, this book will inspire great changes while sustaining the essential habit of turning to God on a daily basis. 

This bestselling devotional by author Paul David Tripp offers daily encouragement through 365 gospel-centered meditations aimed at helping readers trust God and rely on his grace each and every day. 

This encouraging book by author Paul David Tripp offers 366 readings, adapted to help teenagers trust God and rely on his grace each and every day. 

Trusted and treasured for over a decade, The Jesus Storybook Bible has been introducing children to God’s wonderful story, and the Savior at the center of that story. With over 6 million copies sold, The Jesus Storybook Bible is the quintessential book for parents, grandparents, pastors, and anyone else who wants to share God’s Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love with children.

Commentaries

Please find here commentaries we would recommend for daily study.

For 300 years, Matthew Henry’s Commentary has been a favorite of teachers, preachers, and laypeople. His rich exposition and useful applications are perfect for devotional reading and sermon help. This edition features modern, easy-to-read print and J. B. Williams’s extensive 1828 account of Henry’s life and writings.

From Genesis to Revelation, Matthew Henry successfully combines practical application, devotional insight, and scholarship on the entire Bible. Henry has profound insights on the content, message, and nature of God’s divine revelation.

For decades, the New Bible Commentary has set the standard for works of its kind. Now in this up-to-date fourth edition, the New Bible Commentary is positioned to maintain its standing as the leading one-volume commentary on the whole Bible well into the 21st century.

Unlock the profound wisdom of Scripture with Charles H. Spurgeon’s Whole Bible Commentary: A Comprehensive Guide to Scripture with Insights from the Prince of Preachers (Grapevine Edition). This timeless work brings together Spurgeon’s unparalleled depth of knowledge, illuminating the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.

A Masterpiece of Biblical Exposition
Widely regarded as one of history’s greatest preachers, Charles H. Spurgeon offers a thorough exploration of Scripture, blending theological insight with practical application. Each passage is thoughtfully explained, bringing the Word of God to life for readers of all backgrounds.

Digital Resources

Recommendations for study and sharing the gospel.

Logos is a software developed for studying the Bible. They have different plans that give you access to extensive digital resources for study. Plans start at 100 Euro for a year.

We h​ave access to an extensive digital library with over 20,000 discipleship videos for kids, youth, and adults! This is available to every member and regular attender at CrossWay for free. Set up your profile today!

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