Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. Acts 14:17.
Sin has marred earth’s beauty; on all things may be seen traces of the work of evil. Yet much that is beautiful remains. Nature testifies that One infinite in power, great in goodness, mercy, and love, created the earth, and filled it with life and gladness. Even in their blighted state, all things reveal the handiwork of the great Master Artist. Wherever we turn, we may hear the voice of God, and see evidences of His goodness.
From the solemn roll of the deep-toned thunder and old ocean’s ceaseless roar, to the glad songs that make the forests vocal with melody, nature’s ten thousand voices speak His praise. In earth, and sea, and sky, with their marvelous tint and color, varying in gorgeous contrast or blended in harmony, we behold His glory. The everlasting hills tell us of His power. The trees that wave their green banners in the sunlight, and the flowers in their delicate beauty, point to their Creator. The living green that carpets the brown earth tells of God’s care for the humblest of His creatures.
The caves of the sea and the depths of the earth reveal His treasures. He who placed the pearls in the ocean and the amethyst and chrysolite among the rocks, is a lover of the beautiful.—The Ministry of Healing, 410-412.
The God of heaven is constantly at work. It is by His power that vegetation is caused to flourish, that every leaf appears, and every flower blooms. Every drop of rain or flake of snow, every spire of grass, every leaf and flower and shrub, testifies of God. These little things so common around us teach the lesson that … nothing is too small for His attention.—Testimonies for the Church 8:260.
With God at Dawn p. 14
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for these dear ones she has not been able to see her husband. pray that Dewey can keep from getting covid. -19 pray for her as well thank you . My friend Christine contacted it while in the hospital last week. so now they put her in the nursing home she has cancer liver and pancreatic she just turned 78 Christmas day. M.
—-Please pray for Pastor Lacson who had open heart surgery yesterday. Emerson
—-My son Lee and two college friends are traveling home today. Pls pray for safe travel. Donnell
—-I am on my way to visit a relative who is terminally ill. It is a 4 hour trip one way and through Dallas. Please pray for traveling mercies. Jean
—-There are multiple demons in my house and we seriously need prayer! Connie
—-Please pray for BRIAN P. HE IS SERIOUSELY SICK AND ADMITED IN THE HOSPITAL AND ISOLATED AS PER YESTERDAY UPDATE, NO BODY EVEN HIS WIFE ALLOWED TO SEE HIM. Daniel
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Dear Friends,
We do not have cable because most things on regular TV are not worth watching. We do, however, have a Roku hooked up to our television. On it we enjoy watching nature webcams, creation programs, and sermons.
On one of the sermons we watched, the evangelist called a young boy of about eight to the platform. The evangelist handed him a dollar bill. The boy reached out, took it gladly, and thanked the man. The evangelist then told the boy he could go back to his seat. Clutching his dollar, the boy happily obeyed.
Then the man told the audience that he had tried to use adults for this illustration but they always stood there looking at him skeptically and asked, “What’s the catch?”
We, too, can reach out and grasp the Great Gift of Salvation as did that little boy. We do not need to be skeptical. It is ours for the asking. When the Philippian jailer asked, ” Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Paul and Silas answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts 16:30, 31 Was this belief a mere mental assent? No! True belief is a wholehearted belief that changes the life.
Yes, salvation is a free gift, yet it costs us everything. Jesus explains, “the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” Matt 13:44-46
Isaiah urges, “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” Isa 55:6,7 Paul adds, “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Heb 11:6
May we give diligence to make our calling and election sure. (1 Peter 1:10) May we allow nothing to hinder us from obtaining the Gift of Salvation. May we seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; for we have the promise that if we do, all these things shall be added unto us. (Matt 6:33)
Rose

Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. John 5:39.
The study book of the highest value is that which contains the instruction of Christ, the Teacher of teachers.—Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 389.
The words of the living God are the highest of all education.—Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 381.
The Author of nature is the Author of the Bible. Creation and Christianity have one God. God is revealed in nature, and God is revealed in His Word. In clear rays the light shines from the sacred page, showing us the living God, as represented in the laws of His government, in the creation of the world, in the heavens that He has garnished. His power is to be recognized as the only means of redeeming the world from the degrading superstitions that are so dishonoring to God and man….
When the Bible is made the guide and counselor, it exerts an ennobling influence upon the mind. Its study more than any other will refine and elevate. It will enlarge the mind of the candid student, endowing it with new impulses and fresh vigor. It will give greater efficiency to the faculties by bringing them in contact with grand, far-reaching truths…. Let the Bible be received as the food of the soul, the best and most effectual means of purifying and strengthening the intellect.—Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 395, 396.
In God’s Word only do we behold the power that laid the foundations of the earth, and that stretched out the heavens…. In the Word of God the mind finds subjects for the deepest thought, the loftiest aspirations. Here we may hold communion with patriarchs and prophets, and listen to the voice of the Eternal as He speaks with men.—Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 52.
With God at Dawn p. 10
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Prayer Requests
—-Pray for my friend and her family. Her nephew wants to do her harm although she is nice to them. Rosemary
—-Please pray that Ron will pass his test on Monday. Rose
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Dear Friends,
Before I retired, I worked in the court system. I really liked my job as it had a lot of variety both in the defendants we processed and also in the types of crimes, so I didn’t get bored. Often the defendants that came into our office complained that they have to wait for an interview. They did not feel that they should have to be inconvenienced. They seemed to think that they were getting picked on and did not consider the inconvenience and heartaches that they had caused others.
One time we had a defendant come in whose type of case took longer than some others, so she had a longer wait. The longer she waited, the more upset she became. As she saw defendants who had come in to the office after her, leave before her, she complained louder and longer. She was very annoying.
When her turn came for her interview, however, her whole demeanor changed. She was polite and cooperative to the court service officer. As soon as she left his presence, however, she changed back into the her old self and proclaimed that the whole thing was stupid. I am sure we all know people like that, who are nice in front of others but quite the opposite at home.
That’s what sin does. It muddles our thinking. It makes us selfish and self-centered, so that we do not consider that we have done wrong or made others’ lives unpleasant. Sin takes away our care and concern for others. We become like the Pharisees who appeared righteous to the common people but behind closed doors they were full of iniquity. Yet, their eyes were blinded to that fact. They considered themselves better and more deserving of all good things than were the common people.
Even though they fooled the people, they could not fool the Judge of all the earth. Jesus rebuked them over and over again. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? . . . . Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.” Matt 23:13-38
We read of those men who lived so long ago and feel that we could never be as they, yet how often the sin in our own lives muddles our thinking, makes us selfish, causes us to have a form of godliness, but not allow the Holy Spirit to change us from within.
Let us come to Jesus for the cleansing that we so much need. (1 John 1:9-2:3 Let us remember that the Great Judge of the Universe is watching all that we do, all that we think, and all that we say.
Rose

Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:25.
God’s appointments and grants in our behalf are without limit. The throne of grace is itself the highest attraction, because occupied by One who permits us to call Him Father. But God did not deem the principle of salvation complete while invested only with His own love. By His appointment He has placed at His altar an Advocate clothed with our nature. As our Intercessor, His office-work is to introduce us to God as His sons and daughters. Christ intercedes in behalf of those who have received Him. To them He gives power, by virtue of His own merits, to become members of the royal family, children of the heavenly King. And the Father demonstrates His infinite love for Christ, who paid our ransom with His blood, by receiving and welcoming Christ’s friends as His friends. He is satisfied with the atonement made. He is glorified by the incarnation, the life, death, and mediation of His Son.
No sooner does the child of God approach the mercy-seat than he becomes the client of the great Advocate. At his first utterance of penitence and appeal for pardon, Christ espouses his case, and makes it His own, presenting the supplication before the Father as His own request.
As Christ intercedes in our behalf, the Father lays open all the treasures of His grace for our appropriation, to be enjoyed and to be communicated to others….
God desires His obedient children to claim His blessing, and to come before Him with praise and thanksgiving. God is the Fountain of life and power.—Testimonies for the Church 6:363, 364.
With God at Dawn p. 8
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Prayer Requests
—-Asking prayers for my daughter who had a minor case of Covid but now has been having migraines. Also asking prayers for myself. I have been having issues with tenderness in my throat for almost two months. Asking for complete healing. John
—-Please continue to pray for my one and only brother who is in the ventilator fighting against covid19. Specifically for his heart and lungs. Helen
—-My daughter tested positive for Covid and I am 78 with diabetes she is my caretaker— I am scared! Please pray! Ann

This year’s devotional will be With God at Dawn by E G White and published by the Review and Herald Publishing Association

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. Matthew 10:8.
Those who walk in the narrow way must follow the directions of the Guidebook. Thus only can they reach the gates of the City of God….
God has put men and women in possession of precious gifts. To different ones He has given different gifts. Not all have the same strength of character or the same depth of knowledge. But each one is to use his gifts in the Master’s service, however small this gift may seem to be. The faithful steward trades wisely on the goods entrusted to him.
The endowments of mind and body are to be carefully guarded. Our gifts are not to be weakened by self-indulgence. Every power is to be carefully preserved, that it may always be ready for instant use. No part of the physical organism is to be weakened by misuse. Each part, however small, has an influence on the whole. The abuse of one nerve or muscle lessens the usefulness of the whole body. Those for whom Christ has given His life should bring their habits and practices into conformity to His will.
God’s Word declares, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:20). But God does not desire the death of anyone. At infinite cost He provided for man a second probation. He “so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Should not those to whom the light of truth for this time has come place themselves in close connection with God, using their capabilities to advance the work of soul saving? Should not the one who possesses an understanding of the Scriptures impart the knowledge given him to those who know not the truth?
Upon every believer in present truth rests the responsibility of working for sinners. God points them to their special work—the proclamation of the third angel’s message. They are to show their appreciation of God’s great gift by consecrating themselves to the work for which Christ gave His life. They are to be stewards of the grace of God, dispensing to others the blessings bestowed on them.
e who has found comfort in the Word of God is to share this comfort with others. Thus only can he continue to receive comfort.—Manuscript 147, December 31, 1903, “The Narrow Way.”
The Upward Look p. 379
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for a dear dear friend deep in a custody battle. I can’t give specifics, but I know God will be the victor and I ask for your prayers for the children especially. Tanya
—-The doctor called and dad pulled out his feeding tube again and ended up puncturing his lung. They are giving him oxygen to see if the lung puncture will heal in his on. If that does not work then they will have to give him a chest tube to help drain the air from his lungs. Also since he keeps pulling out his feeding tube and he cant swallow food on his own they might need to put the tube in his stomach for him to get nutrition. This is crazy. Please continue to pray for him. Tony
—-Please pray for Andy who has an important meeting. Also pray for David’s mind and emotions. Buck
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Dear Friends,
On this last day of 2020, many will reflect upon the happenings of the year and what a crazy year it has been. Even the most careless among us will take a few moments to ponder what changes this year has brought. However, there will also be those cherished memories that we will never forget. There will be pleasant remembrances of victories won. As we think back over the year, we can also see the many times we have failed our Loving Redeemer. We will have many regrets, many sorrows, much pain.
This coming year does not have to be a repeat of the past for us spiritually even though some of the mandates of 2020 will be continuing in 2021. Praise God, we can have a new start in our personal life! Paul tells of a “beginning again” that can be ours. “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.” Phil 3:12-16
John tells us the way to a new start. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.” 1 John 1:9-2:6
“The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.” Ps 103:8-14The Great Forgiver of Sins promises to heal our backsliding and to love us freely. (Hosea 14:4) “As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die?” “When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.” Eze 33:11,14-16
Let us break off our sins by righteousness and our iniquities by showing mercy to those around us. Let us pray as did David, “Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.” Ps 51:9-13 Let us exclaim as did Isaiah, “Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back. For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day.” Isa 38:17-19
Rose