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Friday, January 24, 2025B Sectionindianapolisrecorder.comCONTACT US: Monday-Friday 8:30 AM - 5:30 PMOffice: (317) 591-5050 | easternstarchurch.orgROCK CITY MONDAYSAges 12-18 | Main Campus5-8 PM | Registration requiredNOONDAY BIBLE STUDYMain CampusWednesdays | NoonFAMILY WORD NIGHTMain Campus | Wednesdays7 PM | Classes for everyoneJOIN US FORROCK FRESH MARKET HOURS: Monday - Friday 8 AM - 6 PMSaturday and Sunday 11 AM - 4 PMSenior Pastor Jeffrey A. Johnson, Sr. & Lady Sharon A. JohnsonONE CHURCHTHREE LOCATIONSFishers Campus: ........................9:15 AMCooper Road Campus: ...............10:45 AMMain Campus: ............................12:15 PMVisit our website or ESC App and click Watch Live.%u2022 Live stream Sunday services at 9:15 AM, 10:45 AM & 12:15 PM%u2022 Sermons on demand anytime%u2022 Sermon Rebroadcasts: Thursdays at 7 PM and Saturdays at 11 AMTo give, click the GIVE button on our website. Download via Google Play, Windows Phone, and Apple App Store.TUNE IN Life-changing broadcasts available via:WTLC-AM 1310/92.7 FM (Radio) SermonsTuesday, Wednesday, Thursday at 9:15 AMAPPLE TV, ROKU, AMAZONConnect for live stream or on demandFishers Campus8850 E. 106th St. Fishers, INCooper Road Campus5805 Cooper Rd. Indpls, INMain Campus5750 E. 30th St. Indpls, INONE CHURCH THREE LOCATIONSFriendship Missionary Baptist Church1302 North GoodletIndianapolis, Indiana 46222Pastor, Rev. Ronald Covington Sr.Sunday Morning ServiceFulfillment Hour (Sunday School) 9:30a-10:30areMorning Worship 10:45WednesdaysMorning Prayer Meeting & Bible Study, 9:30 a.m.Prayer & Praise on Purpose/Bible Study, 6:30p.m.ORDER OF SERVICEPleasant Union Missionary Baptist Church1202 Eugene St. Indpls, Indiana 46208phone 925-4382 fax 283-5615Sunday Worship10:50 amSunday School9:15 amMonday Morning Prayer6:00amWed. Bible Study12:00 noon & 7:00pmThurs. Family Living7:00pmFri. Victory Over Addictions7:00pmPastor Nello A. Holman and First Lady Kay HolmanVisit our website!www.indyrecorder.comVisit our website!Bible Word Search Answers on B4By PRESTON ADAMS%u201cAsk, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.%u201d (Matthew 7:7 ESV)Many of us carry hopes, dreams and perhaps even some doubts about what lies ahead. But Jesus%u2019 words in Matthew 7:7 remind us that breaking barriers and stepping boldly into God%u2019s promises requires bold faith.I want to encourage you to enter 2025 with a spirit of audacity %u2014 asking, seeking and knocking with bold faith. These actions aren%u2019t passive; they%u2019re active and persistent, rooted in trust that God hears, answers and opens doors.Matthew 7:7 is part of Jesus%u2019 larger teaching in the Sermon on the Mount. Here, Jesus teaches His followers how to live in a way that reflects God%u2019s righteousness and grace. This verse focuses on prayer and the believer%u2019s relationship with God. It reveals God%u2019s openness to respond to our needs. Jesus instructs us to actively deploy three action steps: ask, seek, knock. The word ask represents humble dependence on God. We come to God as a child comes to a loving parent. Seek involves effort and persistence in pursuing God%u2019s will. To knock implies persistence, as if knocking on a closed door until it is opened.Asking, seek- ing, and knocking require bold faith. Hebrews 11:6 reminds us that %u201cwithout faith it is impossible to please Him [God].%u201d Sometimes God%u2019s answers are immediate, but other times they require waiting. In both cases, God works for our good. When doors seem closed, remember that God may be preparing something greater than we can imagine.Here%u2019s how we can apply Jesus%u2019 teachings in 2025. First, ask boldly. Bring your needs, dreams, and desires before God with confidence. Start the year with intentional, bold prayers for yourself, your family and your community.Next, seek diligently. Pursue God%u2019s will with focus. Seek God%u2019s Word for direction, clarity and strength. Psalm 119:105 states: %u201cYour word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.%u201d Commit to a daily habit of Bible study and worship in 2025.Finally, knock persistently. Don%u2019t give up when answers or opportunities seem delayed. Persistence in faith breaks down barriers. Galatians 6:9 exhorts us to remember this: %u201cAnd let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.%u201d Create a prayer journal to track how God opens doors as you continue knocking.In closing, trust that God%u2019s plans for you are good, even when they look different from our own plans. Jeremiah 29:11 is our eternal word of encouragement: %u201cFor I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.%u201dAs we move into 2025, remember that breaking barriers requires bold faith. Ask with confidence, seek with diligence and knock with persistence. God is faithful to answer, guide and open doors in His perfect timing. I challenge you to write down one prayer request, one area of your life where you%u2019re seeking God and one closed door you%u2019re knocking on. Commit these to prayer every day for the next 30 days and watch how God moves.Closing Prayer: %u201cLord, thank You for the promise that when we ask, seek, and knock, You respond. Help us to enter 2025 with bold faith, trusting You to break every barrier. In Jesus%u2019 name, Amen.%u201dDr. Preston T. Adams, III is the founding and senior pastor of Amazing Grace Christian Church in Indianapolis. He can be found on X at @DrPrestonTAdams.Breaking Barriers: Bold Faith!ask, seek, knockBIBLE TRIVIA By Wilson Casey ---1. Is the book of Ezra (KJV) in the Old or New Testament or neither?2. From Proverbs 29, %u201cBut whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be ...%u201d? Made whole, Blessed, Safe, Wise3. What does God want us to keep as the apple of our eye? His law, Brotherly love, Faithfulness, Righteousness4. Upon which mountain did Balaam build seven altars? Olives, Sinai, Pisgah, Carmel5. What did David do to Goliath once he slew him? Stole his armor, Robbed him, Cut off his head, Buried him6. Which is known as the %u201cFirst Book of the Kings%u201d? Judges, 1 Kings, 1 Samuel, 1 ChroniclesANSWERS: 1) Old, 2) Safe, 3) His law, 4) Pisgah, 5) Cut off his head, 6) 1 SamuelSharpen your understanding of scripture with Wilson Casey%u2019s latest book, %u201cTest Your Bible Knowledge,%u201d available in bookstores and online.(c) 2025 King Features Synd., Inc.Getty Images