(by Pastor Norman)
As Christians who believe in Christ and have made Him Lord and master of our lives (Rom 10:9-10) God has an amazing, abundant, blessed life for us (John 10:10b), shining as a light for Christ (Phil 2:15), His ambassadors on this earth (2 Cor 5:20). The Holy Spirit can transform us to be more like our Saviour (2 Cor 3:18; Gal 5:22-23) and at the end of our life or race on earth, we will receive the crown of life, eternal life in heaven with Christ (James 1:12). In the gospel of John 17:6-8 Jesus, at the end of His ministry on earth said, “I have glorified You on earth, I have finished the work which You have given Me to do” (John 17:4; NKJV). Paul the apostle wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim 4:7; NKJV). I trust we will all be able to say the same. However, satan comes to, “steal, and to kill and to destroy” (John 10:10; NKJV), to prevent us from finishing our race for Christ. To be victorious over satan’s attacks we need to stand fast on God’s word (Phil 2:16), do things God’s way (Matt 11:28), press into Him (Phil 3:12), keep our focus on Christ and resist the devil so he runs from us (James 4:7). “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Christ” (Phil 1:6; NKJV). God enables us to run and finish the race, look to Him, trust Him and cooperate. He will not fail you but meet you at life’s end with, “Well done good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your lord” (Matt 25:23; NKJV).
(by pastor Jean)
When you read the news these days you could easily get very depressed and fearful and then combine that with your own challenges and trials that you might be going through and it would be easy to lose your peace. When we find ourselves getting overwhelmed with these types of emotions it means we are meditating more on the fearful things than we are on what God has to say. I don’t say that in a condemning or judgmental way because we are all guilty of that at times. But what exactly does God have to say? For one thing, He bequeathed His peace to us, “I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart. And the gift I give is a gift the world cannot give so don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27; NLT). One of the names of God is Jehovah Shalom, the Lord is peace (Judges 6:24). Shalom means completeness, soundness, welfare, peace with God and man, nothing missing, nothing broken. Jesus Himself is called the Prince of Peace (Isa 9:6). If you have accepted Jesus into your heart that peace is what you carry on the inside of you. Jesus said that we could cast our burdens on Him (Matt 11:28). The apostle Paul said to, “be anxious for nothing” (Phil 4:6). If you find yourself feeling troubled or fearful start reading, meditating and confessing all the scriptures you can find on peace. Get your focus back on the Prince of Peace; take anxious thoughts captive and replace them with God’s word. You might have to do this over and over each day but keep at it, the victory is yours (John 16:33).
(by pastor Norman)
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork” (Ps 19:1; NKJV). “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14; NKJV). What is this glory of God the Father and as manifested in Jesus? The glory of God is His splendour, beauty, radiance, perfection, greatness, wisdom, majesty, love, compassion, grace and power to use but a few words. Jesus demonstrated God’s glory on earth in His grace, love, compassion, wisdom and miracles. If people are sensitive enough to God, they will see His glory in all of His creation (Rom 1:2-0, Is 6:3). When I am in the Rocky Mountains, by a northern lake in Saskatchewan or on the seashore in an unspoiled area, I always sense the amazing creative power, glory and presence of God. In many places throughout the Bible the writers acknowledge the glory of God, praising and honoring Him (E.g. Ps 86:12, Rom 11:36). We should do the same. Jesus said to God the Father, “I have glorified You on earth, I have finished the work You have given me to do” (John 17:4; NKJV). As we focus on the glory of the Lord in His word, we will be changed to be more and more like Him (2 Cor 3:18). All we do should glorify God (2 Thess 1:12) not ourselves; all glory and honour is God’s alone (Ps 115:1, Isa 42:8).
(by pastor Jean)
“Kind words are as honey, sweet to the soul and healthy for the body” (Prov 16:24; NLT). This is reiterated in Proverbs 15:4 where it says that “A gentle tongue (with its healing power) is a tree of life” (AMPC). We see from these 2 verses that a kind word from someone can actually bring health to the body. (See also Proverbs 12:18). There is nothing like a kind word to encourage you and lift your spirits. Proverbs 12:25 tells us that anxiety will weigh us down but a kind word will cheer us up (NIV). It does not require much energy on our part; it is largely making the decision to be led by the spirit rather than our flesh (Gal 5:16). The virtuous woman of Proverbs 31 is a good example of this, “on her tongue is the law of kindness” (Prov 31:26; AMPC). She had obviously made it a habit to speak kindly because it had become a law for her. The apostle Paul also stressed the importance of kind words as he said that our speech should be gracious and “an encouragement to others” (Eph 4:29), Col 4:6). Like love, speaking kind words is a choice. I always remember what my mother used to say, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all!” That is scriptural! I encourage you to look for opportunities today to say something kind and encouraging today, even something as simple as “your hair looks nice” might just make all the difference in someone’s day!
(by pastor Norman)
“Obey My voice and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you” (Jer 7:23; NKJV). God says to obey Him according to all His commands, not just some, or just according to those we agree with, then things will go well for us. We are called to not just read but to do all that the word directs us to do, if we don’t then we are fooling ourselves to think we are practicing the Christian faith (James 1:22). Jesus said quite simply, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15; NKJV) and in keeping these commandments we will be immersed in His love (John 15:10). If we hear God’s word and obey it, we will be blessed (Luke 11:28) and eat the best the land produces (Isa 1:19). Noah built an ark on dry land in obedience to God and survived the flood (Heb 11:7). Abraham left his home in obedience to God with no idea where he was going and through him God established His people, Israel (Heb 11:8). Jesus was obedient to the point of death (Phil 2:8) so that we could be forgiven and restored to relationship with God. Obedience to God is to walk in love (2 John 1:6), humility (Micah 6:8), dying to self and taking up our cross daily (Matt 16:24). We are to follow Christ, completely compliant to His will, His ways and His word in faith, fearing nothing. God calls us to deny the flesh and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:25) so that we enjoy His fullness of life serving the kingdom.