“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” — James 1:5 (NIV) Dear Friends, “If any of you lacks wisdom…” One of the greatest temptations in life is to believe we can handle everything ourselves. When challenges come — financial stress, family struggles, uncertainty about the future, or simply the weight of daily responsibilities — our first instinct is often to worry, react, or try to force solutions in our own strength. Yet Scripture continually reminds us that God calls His people to approach life differently: prayerfully and humbly. At Harvest Youth Ministries, we see this every day. The young people and families we serve are often carrying burdens much heavier than anyone realizes. Some are searching for direction. Others are hurting deeply. Many simply need someone willing to stop, listen, pray, and point them back to the hope found in Christ. Real ministry happens when we slow down enough to seek God’s wisdom before our own, trusting that He is faithful to guide us through every challenge we face .As a ministry, we are continually learning to approach every challenge the same way — prayerfully and humbly. Whether we are helping a struggling family through Harvest Helps, mentoring young people, operating Harvest House, or simply listening to someone who feels forgotten, we know that lasting change comes from the Lord. We may not always know the next step, but we trust the One who does. Your prayers, encouragement, and financial support make that ministry possible. Because of faithful friends like you, we are able to continue serving young people throughout our community with compassion, practical help, and the message of the Gospel. Thank you for standing with us as we continue to trust the Lord - not just for answers, but for the wisdom and humility to follow wherever He leads. Blessings in Christ, Pastor Jim Kilby

When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” (John 11:4) Friends, Have you ever prayed for a truck? It may sound a little silly written out on paper, but the truck sitting over at the thrift store may very well be the most prayed-over truck in the city. As the thrift store grew and our ability to receive donations increased, the need for a larger, reliable truck became immediate. We were limping along with an older, smaller box truck, but it just wasn’t enough anymore. We prayed, searched, and waited. Then came the truck we now affectionately call Lazarus. This truck truly was an answer to prayer. Its larger size made estate clean-outs much easier and allowed us to condense neighborhood pickups into one day instead of several. It was also far more reliable—which, as the wife of the person driving the truck, mattered a lot to me! Then one day, Aaron went out to start the truck for pickups and heard a loud KNOCK… and then nothing. Now, I don’t know much about engines, but I know enough to know that kind of sound is never good. For the next few months, we rented trucks from U-Haul to keep donation pickups going. God continued to provide what we needed, but rentals cost the ministry extra money and added even more moving pieces to an already busy season. After months of staring at what had essentially become a very large billboard in the parking lot, Aaron decided to try starting the truck one more time, just to see what would happen. Wouldn’t you know it? It started right up. Not only did it start, but the engine runs even better than before. So now, this once-dead truck is lovingly referred to as Lazarus, because it reminds us that God can bring anything back to life. One of the sayings we live by around here is: “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.” We work hard to steward the resources God provides as wisely as possible, and having a truck that runs and is ready to go out into the community is not something we take for granted. So today, we’re praising God for this prayed-over truck, for His provision, His timing, and His faithfulness in even the small things. Sometimes ministry looks like sermons and big moments, and sometimes it looks like a truck starting when it shouldn’t. Either way, we’re thankful for the reminder that God is still working, still providing, and still bringing dead things back to life. CELEBRATIONS!!! Ms D is a mom with a small child who received rent help. Harvest was able to partner with mom and another organization to pay April & May’s rent. Ms A and Mr J both received bus passes. They are homeless and staying with friends while actively pursuing employment. These bus passes will help them get to interviews and find a job in the area! Blessings, Elizabeth Kilby

"Then he said to them all: 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.'" Luke 9:23 Sometimes when I read the Scripture references where Jesus says, "Follow me," I get the picture I'm supposed to be like one of those people who walked around the hills of modern day Israel and listened to His teaching. The accurate picture He intended is undoubtedly quite different, since He tells us to first "Deny ourselves and pick up our cross." Denying one's self seems hard enough, but do we really have to pick up a burden that huge and walk around with it on our shoulders? And if that's not bad enough, He then adds, "daily" to the command! Can't we even take a break Jesus? This is too hard? Denying ourselves and then carrying our cross means that we are being led to a place where we will be crucified. We don't want to die... and that is specifically the problem. We hold too firmly to the things of this life and forget that they are in danger of keeping us from our Lord Jesus eternally! Here's the next sentence from Jesus' own mouth: "For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it." Luke 9:24 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

After I'd been in the workforce for about ten years, we had an amazing thing introduced to us. The "PC" as we would learn to call it was sure to revolutionize our lives. After a few years of awkwardly learning to work with the earliest programs, "Windows" came along and again things were revolutionized. The Internet finally brought the whole world together as connecting geographically separated offices and peoples had never been easier. And then I was introduced to a new use for the Internet. Without warning one day I opened an e-mail attachment from a co-worker to find a picture of a nude woman in a pornographic pose. Quite an interesting thing to send me since he knew I was a Christian and a minister. Since those days I've sat with countless men as they confessed their struggles with pornography, most finding it on the Internet. The e-mails I've received on the issue are also countless, but they don't just come from men. Women, too, are finding themselves addicted to pornography and other fantasies. So I ask you, if this is your struggle, what would Jesus have you do? "Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell." Jesus of Nazareth (Matthew 18:7-9) I don't generally recommend killing anything, but if this is your struggle it may be time for you to kill your computer. Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

When I was a young boy, my mother's two favorite sayings seemed to be, "Brush your teeth" and "Did you wash your hands?" No doubt she was trying to teach good hygiene and to keep me from getting unneeded sicknesses, but it's a good thing for her I was too young to find or understand this verse! Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, "Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!" Jesus replied, "And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?...You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: " 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' " Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen and understand. What goes into a man's mouth does not make him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him 'unclean.' " Matthew 15:1-11 Oh, yea... I just remembered another of my mother's favorite sayings. I think it was "Watch your mouth!" Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

"During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission." Hebrews 5:7 When Jesus prayed it involved emotion, reverence for the Father, and obedience to His will. When we pray, He's our example. Our Heavenly Father wants to have a deeply personal relationship with each of us. He wants us to know Him intimately, and... He wants us to submit our lives to Him. For this reason, the Holy Spirit is here... waiting to help us pray. Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

Throughout Scripture God demonstrates His hatred for our sin. Yet, through the way we live our lives we often show we can tolerate at least a little sin. We don't hate it. In fact, we often enjoy it. Unfortunately, sin always grows up and devastates the unrepentant sinner. Here's an ancient example of God's people disobeying "just a little" that is still causing wars and costing souls today! I wonder, how far will our sins ripple through time as they touch the lives of others? "The angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, 'I brought you up out of Egypt and let you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, "I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars." Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.'" Judges 2:1-3 Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate

Many people tell me they just don't know much about God. They've "believed" in Him, they'll admit... but frankly, they've never had any real encounter. It's God's fault in the minds of the spiritually blind. "Hey, He's God... if He wanted to show Himself He could easily do so!" they might cry. But the truth is that God did show Himself to us. Jesus was (and is) God, the perfect representation of our Heavenly Father. The Spirit of God (yea, the "Third Person" in that whole "Triune God" thing) now testifies to who God is. If we're honest, we have as much information about, and, as much of God as we choose to allow to seep into our hearts. Sure, it's all about growing in faith, but our hearts are the place where that either grows or is assassinated by our fleshly desires. God is like a flood that will trickle into every nook and cranny of our lives, but the odd thing about it is that He leaves us with the keys to the floodgates. That's what some call "choice"... and what each of us will eventually call either what allowed redemption to flood into our sinful existences, or the fateful decision that eternally forbids we ever enter His presence. Then he touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you"; and their sight was restored." Matthew 9:29-30a  Pastor Jim Kilby Your donation spreads good news! www.harvestyouth.org/donate