Something to think about.

“You can choose to believe anything you want, but you cannot choose the consequences of that belief.” Rick Warren

Pastor's Corner

for Sunday January 31st
Faithful even unto death.
I have shared this with you before but perhaps it will be helpful to read it again. It was written by a young pastor in Zimbabwe Africa. It was found among his papers after he gave his life for Jesus. (Taken from the book The Signature of Jesus, Brennan Manning) “I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have the Holy Spirit’s power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His and I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.
My past is redeemed. My present makes sense. My future is secure. I'm done and finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.
I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, or first, or tops, or recognized, or praised, or rewarded. I live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, uplifted by prayer, and labor by Holy Spirit power.
My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal is heaven. My road may be narrow, my way rough, my companions few, but my guide is reliable and my mission is clear.
I will not be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed.
I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice or hesitate in the presence of the adversary. I will not negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.
I won't give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ.
I am a disciple of Jesus. I must give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He does come for His own, He'll have no problems recognizing me...my banner will be clear: I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed.”
I hope this inspired you as it did me.
Pastor Don.

Something to think about.

I’m not who I want to be; I’m not who I’m going to be. But thank God I’m not who I used to be. (2 Cor. 5:17)

Pastor's Corner

for Sunday January 24th
“From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” (Psalm 61:2)
The thing I love most about King David is his transparency. David was the greatest king Israel ever had and yet David was always conscious of his weaknesses and his need for God. David had killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands; he was a warrior who had fought many battles. He was a man among men. But David’s strength and confidence was not in himself but in the “rock that is higher than I.”
In a world where an earthquake can come without any warning and in that moment turn your world upside down; in that moment change your life so radically that it will never be the same again, we need a rock upon which we can stand, a “rock that is higher than I”. Rocks don’t move; they don’t change. They’re solid and enduring. Mountains are made of rocks and seem to transcend time. You may know of some big things in your life but mountains are bigger. They outlive all change yet remain unchanged themselves. They whether all storms and at the same time provide shelter from storms. Mountains typify for us the essence of stability and endurance; of consistency and dependability.
That is what God was for David. No matter how fierce the storm He is a shelter in the storm. No matter how much is collapsing around us, He is unmoved, consistent and dependable.
We will survive the storms of life by going to “the rock that is higher than I.”
Pastor Don.

Something to think about.

We shouldn't use God to solve our problems. We should see our problems as an opportunity to find God. (Larry Crabb)

Pastor's Corner

for Sunday 17th January
Some thoughts on Haiti
Are you struggling with questions about God in the light of the earthquake in Haiti? Are you confused as to how a good God could allow such a tragedy to fall on a country already struggling for survival? Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and therefore the least equipped to cope with a disaster of this magnitude. How this country will recover from this tragedy we can only speculate. However, the earthquake in Haiti is a reminder to us that we live in a fallen world. God brought judgment on this world when our first parents, Adam and Eve, sinned. Ever since then all of creation has been groaning under the weight of God’s judgment against sin and longs for the day when God will bring in the New Creation. Until then earthquakes will happen and disasters will fall upon mankind. All of this reminds us that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the only real message of hope. Only through the gospel do we come to understand that although God judges sin He loves the sinner. We know that Jesus loves the Haitian people because of the cross. God declares, the He so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) Since God loves the people of Haiti He would have us, His children, show them His love in tangible ways by helping to alleviate their suffering, bind up the wounded, comfort the grieving and share the gospel with them. Everything about the tragedy in Haiti points to our need (theirs and ours) for redemption. May God grant the people of Haiti a new openness to the gospel of Jesus Christ and in bringing many to salvation God will be glorified.
Pastor Don.

Something to think about.

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
(Albert Einstein) Someone put it this way, “If you always do what you’ve always done you’ll always get what you’ve always got”. Is it time to change?

Pastor's Corner

for Sunday January 10th
I am so blessed
Many are facing hard times right now so I would like to share this story with you. Claude and his wife lived with their 6 children in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Times were hard and his work as a carpenter had dwindled to almost nothing and now the washing machine had broken down. So Claude ran a wanted ad in the paper for a used washing machine. The next day the phone rang, someone had a used washing machine for sale.. When Claude arrived at the home he noticed they had all the things he wished for his family. Feeling sorry for himself, Claude began complaining about how expensive it was to raise 6 children; on top of having to buy another washing machine, all six children needed new shoes. The woman of the house ran out of the room crying. Her husband explained that they had only one child who had been paralyzed from birth and he had never needed a pair of shoes. When Claude got home, he picked up the worn-out shoes – worn out from skipping rope; kicking rocks; and jumping puddles – and kneeling by his bed he gave thanks to God for the worn-out shoes of his six healthy children. I know, it’s probably not a true story but it does remind us that there are many hidden blessings all around us. For example: dirty dishes remind us we have been spared the pain of hunger; dirty laundry reminds us we have been spared the indignity of nakedness; unmade beds remind us that we didn’t have to sleep on the street as many do in our city; worn-out shoes remind us of healthy bodies. What we often see as hardship is really evidence of God’s blessing in our lives. “Be joyful always… give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess. 5:16-18)
Pastor Don