Final Ponderings of 2013

Here I sit on my first eve of the new year in Brandon Manitoba.  It has been an exciting year with a lot of change.  Not all easy but God has been very good to us.  So I have been pondering a lot.  One thing that has been on my radar lately is how we seem to have lost so many boundaries in our modern culture.  I am certainly not talking about "rules" but rather the boundaries of "respect" for others and the value of Biblical Truth.  I hear a lot lately about the importance of "tolerance" and "unity" though these are not new themes the lack of important principles to guide the discussions seem to be lacking.

For example when I read language from the new Pope about how we need to learn to co-exist with Muslims because they are really peaceful and worship the same god as us, I shake my head and can't believe how lacking in understanding he is about Islam.  I know people who have converted from Islam to Christianity and they will tell me that Islam is not at its core peaceful, it is rooted in fear and power.  The god Islam proclaims is not the same God that the Bible talks about.  Christians are Trinitarian, Jesus is not a teacher or prophet, He is one of the 3 members of the Trinity and as such is God, Islam does not believe this.  Yet in a drive to gather political unity and support the Pope seems to lack Biblical guidance on such things.

Another example is how people responded in the past year to different issues that have risen regarding homosexuality and Christianity.  It may be true that some people have expressed what is Biblical Truth in a way that was hurtful and harsh but what has been lacking is proper respect for others no matter how different they are than you.  I believe we are called to have a basic respect for others.  I have people who I call friends who have identified themselves to me as "gay" or "bi", this should not cause me to treat them any different than the friends that I have that have identified themselves to me as "alcoholic" or "adulterer".  I do not have to agree with people in order to treat them with respect.  I have friends who are Muslim, Catholic, Pentecostal, Baptist, Atheist, etc... I do not have to agree with them to respect them as people.  Walking with others who are different from you with respect actually brings opportunity for us in a caring manner to share our Faith.  

Yet in all of this people who have a special agenda like to call for "tolerance" but not for "respect".  We are told to put aside what we believe because Christianity and Biblical Truth might offend people.  Yet true respect and tolerance would say everyone should believe what they believe and not be offended that someone believes different.  I do not expect people who are not Biblical Christians to believe like me, I expect that they will choose lifestyles and religions etc... that are nothing like my belief.  This is actually what the Bible describes, the lost are lost and do not expect them to act and believe like the found.  People get really offended because the Bible describes them as lost or dead in sin but if you don't believe the Bible then why should it matter to you.  So we have the people of the World describing "tolerance" as the absence of Biblical Christianity.

So if you are like me and desire to live as a Biblical Christian, then I will encourage you to boldly live your belief but do so with respect for others.  The Love we are to show others is to be rooted in the "fruit" of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  So let us seek to embody the fruit that the Spirit of God brings into our life.

Happy New Year - let's walk through 2014 Together.

If you have things you would like  to hear my thoughts about in 2014 just drop me an e-mail and I will see if I can accommodate you.

Pastor Bruce
pastorffbc@mymts.net

Truly Love one another? What does it mean?

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."  -  John 13:34-35 (ESV)

We receive very direct teaching from Jesus here in John 13.  We are to Love one another like Jesus loved His disciples.  So what does this mean though for us today in practical terms?  How should we now live in this command?

The first thing I want to say is that Jesus had spent 3 years with His disciples.  He had spent his days and nights with them.  He had walked with them and taught them.  He had encouraged them and admonished them.  Jesus lead them and challenged them in their thinking and behavior.  Jesus pointed them toward the Father and His glory.  Jesus served them and sacrificed for them, eventually giving Himself up fully for them in His great sacrifice on the Cross.

If we are to truly love others like Jesus loved His disciples then we must first know Jesus.  If you do not know the source and learn from Him about how to love then you will not get this concept at all.  If we leave it at the simple statement of love one another then we will leave it to the person to decide what it really means.  Jesus instructs us that He is the example for how His followers are to treat "one another" and that how we treat one another is a testimony to His work in our life.

So I guess I am saying that we need to set our minds in a certain direction if we are to be obedient to Jesus instruction here.

1. The first is know Jesus.  Get to know Jesus according to the Bible.  This is first a personal relationship with Jesus as the Lord of your life.  The relationship begins when you repent of your sin and accept forgiveness through His name.  Read and understand who He is and what he did here during His walk on the planet.  See how He treated His followers.
   
2. The next is to embrace the hard changes of our natural attitudes, behaviors and responses, so that we more and more follow Jesus and His ways.  Jesus died and paid the price for your sin not only so that you can be with Him in Heaven eternally but also so that you can live a transformed life here on Earth serving Him.  If you, like me, have certain natural tendencies then you need to fight them and not give in to the lies of this world that tell you that who you are naturally in personality etc... cannot be changed.  Jesus calls us to be like Him, not to be like ourselves.  This is a hard road but it is the calling of the Christian.
   
3. Understand that Jesus entire relationship and all that He did with His followers, He did showing proper Love toward them.  When Jesus corrected them it was out of Love.  When Jesus challenged them and their thinking it was out of Love.  Truly loving one another like Jesus is not just about warm fuzzy encouragement.  Sure encouragement is nice and needed it is not the fullness of Jesus Love for them.  We must be prepared to become transparent and honest with our fellow believers, not to judge them harshly but so that we may truly walk together in our Faith.  We must be prepared to correct and challenge people in what they believe, we need to do it in a proper way and use the Bible to show the Truth but we must not feel that somehow these things bring division.  Division is already here and all around us just look at a family that is not honest and full of Truth, they are common to see, spouses fear what their counterpart will think of them if they were really transparent and open, parents and children seeking to fit the right mold instead of embracing true relationships.  Unity is found in real relationships, loving Christ centered, Biblical relationships, which must be whole and balanced.
4. The Love Jesus gave to His followers was conditionally unconditional.  What I mean by that is that Jesus treated His followers with this Love because they were "His Followers".  So Jesus unconditionally loves His followers the condition of being a part of that Love is that you become one of His followers.  So we learn from this that we are to love one another Like our Lord loves us.  We are to love other followers of Jesus selflessly and fully.  The world would tell you that some people need to earn the right to be loved by you because they have hurt you, they have let you down.  Jesus followers are imperfect and lacking in their ability to perfectly show love to Jesus.  We are flawed, it is no excuse for our bad behavior but we recognize we do not love our Lord like He loves us, yet it is this command we are given.  So while we see in ourselves a lack of proper love for Jesus and thank Him for loving us anyway, which is good for us to know.  Yet, we tend to think it horrible that other believers do not show us proper love all the time.  We get offended and defensive because someone else hurt us, yet we miss the opportunity to forgive and show grace, like Jesus shows us.  
5. We need to put away our excuses.  There is no excuse for our bad behavior toward other believers.  There is no excuse for the behavior of others either.  Almost all our mis-treatment and hurt of other believers is sin.  We are to see our sin condition and not only ask God to forgive us, but also the brothers and sisters we have hurt we need to seek to repair those relationships.  We need to seek to change our behavior, the natural person is not a good thing, it is where we have inherited our sin condition and as such it is founded on selfishness and pride.  We must understand that the lie in our culture of "that is who I am" is no excuse for our sin.  
6. See the Truth.  When you feel hurt by another believer, look at what has happened and prayerfully consider what the Truth of the matter is.  Consider if there is an element of the message you received that you need to accept.  We understand that even in the middle of a difficult conflict, there will most likely be some Truth we must embrace for us to grow.  The other person acting in a way that would seem to deny this charge to love one another needs to be overlooked to a degree because we who are conscious of this instruction must seek to follow it even in difficulty.
7. Deal with sin.  Deal with your sin.  First, before you seek to persecute someone for their poor behavior, do business with God on your sin, on your attitudes and behaviors.  Yes we still need to confront others in their sin, it is also and instruction we are to follow from the Bible.  But we need to be careful on how we do this.  The reason we need to check ourselves first is because we need to walk with humility as we approach others with correction.  If we instead approach them with a sense of self righteous pride then we will find ourselves contributing to the sin of the situation with our own.  We will become gasoline on the fire if we approach a fellow believer without a humble heart.  Our desire should be not to "correct" the other person so that they think or act like us, but rather we are to bring them to a Biblical restore point where we find ourselves re-focused on our Lord Jesus and find the unity He gives us.  
8. Cast off the things that would divide.  This is not about core Biblical teaching, but rather about the things which are not Biblical but may cause friction and irritation in the relationships.  Think of it this way, if you have Biblical grounds for what you see in someone else, then talk to them about the teaching you find in the Bible.  If your issue with someone else is not rooted in a Biblical Truth, then you may still need to talk about it, but you need to consider first if this is something that you need to cast off instead.  If I am upset, bothered or hurt because of a behavior or decision in your life that has no Biblical reason to be considered as sin then it should send off a flare inside me that maybe my expectation has more to do with what pleases me than what pleases God.  I had someone once very upset with me about my teaching on men and women and leadership in the Church.  They felt my views presented women as "second class" and they were noticeably upset about it.  After hearing from them for a bit, what I was being told was that my belief and the presentation of it was hurting the body and that I needed to change my view so that the body would be healthier and so that I would not be promoting bigotry.  I had to respond to this, but I could tell the person was hurting and upset.  I responded with a few passages of the Bible that talk directly about gender roles in leadership in the Church and calmly stated that no matter what view I hold that I hope that we use the Bible as the source for our beliefs and behaviors.  I had to explain that the instruction God gives us is for us to receive and act upon even if it does not "fit" our current cultures beliefs.  I explained that over the years my wife, whom I respect greatly as a student of the Word, has re-enforced to me the importance of the Biblical teaching on these matters.  We need to embrace what the Bible says, not add to it our own extras and not take away from it because it is easier for us.  This person needed to look at the Word of God and not our culture for how things should be, then seek to follow it and seek the assistance of fellow believers to walk with you in following God's Word.

This topic could go on and on because there is so much teaching in the Bible about how we are to treat each other.  I know that I have much growing yet to do in this area.  I am convinced that it is essential to a healthy faith life, that we learn and grow in how we love one another in the way Jesus taught us through the Bible.  I urge us all to grow in maturity of faith through the embracing of Biblical teaching, so that as we encounter other believers we may walk with greater grace and love for them because we understand more and more the Grace and Love we have received from God.

Let us walk together to be more and more the people God designed us to be.

Pastor Bruce

Obedience is Worship

Over the last few weeks I have been troubled.  Troubled by the ideas that some have presented me about the importance of worship.  I find myself quick to agree with them because the most important thing in our life should be to honor and glorify God.  Yet still I am troubled.  But I am troubled because of the way worship is defined.  Often people mean singing, music, prayer and some might include testimonies, scripture reading and preaching.  And I agree that all of this should be done in and as a part of our worship, yet I find it still lacking.

So here is where I have been brought to, here is where I find myself standing.  Obedience must be the deepest definition of what we are to do to worship, honor, glorify God.  Obedience would have us sing, play instruments, read the Bible, pray, testify, preach, etc...  but also should include everything Jesus directed us to do.  So if I set my focus on creating a "worship experience" I believe that I am missing the most important things.  In a worship through obedience we find ourselves worshiping when we are the husbands and fathers we are instructed to be in the Bible.  We find ourselves worshiping when we go and make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them all that Jesus commanded.  We find ourselves worshiping when we help people in need.  We find ourselves worshiping when we walk through life seeking to live with humility as we reflect the love and care of Jesus to this lost and dying world.  When we embrace a belief that for true worship our obedience is required, then our outlook about what is important for worship changes.

I can worship God where ever, whenever, with or with out, because worship begins with how I respond to God with an attitude of thanksgiving.

So I will remind myself to put my feelings aside, realizing that the emotions will come and go, but my obedience is not negotiable and is to be worship.

As for you, study, ponder and pray and ask yourself this question "What is it that I need in order to worship God properly?"  ...  My answer was Obedience

Pastor Bruce

Do we fear God?

The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. (Proverbs 8:13 ESV)

According to this passage wisdom should bring us to this place where we fear God properly.  The description here is that the fear of God is the hatred of evil.  Ponder that for a moment.  

When you look at your life and the world around you, do you hate evil? Or do we just try to not do evil? Or do we try and stay away or abstain from evil? What does it mean to hate evil anway? 

To hate evil should mean that evil causes us to be enraged.  Evil should cause us to be upset and even angry, not in a way that dishonours God, but in a way that burns with the righteousness that we find in Jesus.  Our hate of evil is not to be a negative anger that identifies us and makes us look like the very thing we detest.  Rather this hate is to be an intense passion for righteousness and the Glory of God.  

We hate evil because as a Christian Jesus, God the Son Himself, by the power of the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in us.  So the very things that God hates, we should hate.  This indwelling of us is how we are to be continually challenged to grow, to cast off things that draw us away from God, to repent of our sin, to seek righteousness in life, to hate sin, etc...  

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1 ESV)

Christians are no longer enemies of God, rather through the person and work of Jesus we are at peace with God.  The reality is that there is no neutral zone with God, we are either at peace with Him or at war with Him.  So if we are at peace with God then we are to begin to think and see things His way.  So we should not tolerate evil, certainly it should not be tolerated within those who claim to be followers of God.  So what is God's response to sin?  

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23 ESV)

Sin, evil in the sight of God, earns a penalty of eternal death.  But God is full of love, grace, mercy and so much more and so we have been given an answer for sin, to stop evil.  Only God can put an end to evil.

For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:7, 8 ESV)

The sinfulness of humanity is evil and people who love sin instead of God exist as evil people.  As those in Christ Jesus, we are to love God, fear God, hate sin, despise evil, and in the instruction we have received we are to show the love God has shown to us to those who are known as His enemies. This is why a proper fear of God should bring about the message of the Gospel. 

So if you fear God, hate evil, share the solution in the Gospel and live the example showing that you are at peace with God and as such pursue righteousness and detest evil.  Our hate of evil is to be shown most in our desire to see people rescued from the evil we see.

Pastor Bruce

The approval & acceptance of man

The desire that we have to be accepted is nothing new.  We have been seeking the approval of others since the disease of sin began in humanity.  As people we naturally seek to be liked and want the approval of others.  Yet so very often we do so while we disregard the most important acceptance and approval that exists, being accepted by God.

Here we have the example of this in the book of John, nothing new but plainly stated.  So often today people tell of how they need not be open to talk about Jesus and what He has done for them, because their life will show it.  I pray that is true for them, but most often this is used as an excuse by those who fear what people will do if they are open about their Faith.  In many ways this is a rather "faithless" reality for many.  

John 12:42, 43 ESV

"Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God."

http://bible.com/59/jhn.12.42.esv

We are not only to live a changed life because of Jesus but also we are to identify with Him first and not concern ourselves with the reality that the world will reject us.  Let us not be rejected because of our humanity, nor accepted because of it.  Rather let us be conformed to the image of our Lord Jesus and walk in fellowship with Him no matter what others think.

Will you identify yourself today with Jesus?

Pastor Bruce

The best thing you can do ...

Today I read a rather popular statement "the best gift a father can give his children is to love their mother", I think I have used similar statements in sermons and counselling etc...  It is posted around the web in a variety of forms and what I posted here is my version.  How wrong I have been to say such a thing.

You see this is not a true statement, though well intended it is not true.  The Truth is that the most important thing in a persons life should be their love for God, their relationship with the Almighty, their life as a disciple of Jesus.  So instead I think my sayings and teaching will be more like this...

The best gift a man can give to his wife is to love, honor  fear, respect, know, follow and submit to God through the person and work of Jesus, the one who is his Savior and Lord.  This is the best gift a man can give to his wife, children, friends, neighbors, co-workers, employers, business, community, Church, country, etc...

If a person walks and lives as a disciple of Jesus then they will follow His teaching and the instruction found in the Bible.  They will then treat people properly and manage their time and energy better.  We will never be perfect at it, if we could be then we would not need Jesus.  Instead Jesus through His perfection has enabled us to live desiring to follow Him and be like Him, recognizing our failures and repenting of them a swe continue forward.

Your life is to be wholly and completely submitted to Jesus. You are to live for Him and you are to be directed by His Word so that you can grow and mature to be the person that God has designed you to be.  

Let us be people who follow God and His Word, and not depart from it to create our own ways.

Lord help me to be the man you designed me to be so that I can follow you with a greater degree of humility and obedience.  I pray that my life as directed by You will have a positive imprint on those who are around me.  Thank you Lord for transforming me by the Grace given through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Amen

Pastor Bruce

Missions, Discipleship, Evangelism, prayer, Living, ... what is it? Most Christians are confused.

There has been a lot of talk lately about the needs for missions, discipleship, evangelism, prayer, Christian living and so much more.  Many are confused and end up focusing on one thing and missing the beauty of how God gave us His instruction in His Word.  ALL of our lives are to be lives and work together for His glory.  

We are commanded by Jesus in Matthew 28 to go and make disciples, teaching them all that He commanded.  Jesus taught how to live, how to share the Gospel, how to make disciples, how to live, how to pray.  All of it is meant to fit together.  As we learn and grow we are to take all the God teaches us and use it to train others.  God does not want us to learn and grow as His disciples to our own end but rather for His purposes and those purposes are stated clearly in His Word.   

So we are to pray, prayer is one of the primary parts of our faith.  This in union with the Bible is how we commune with God, we are to do this alone and with other believers.  As we pray and seek God through His Word then we are to also serve Him.  We serve Him by following His commands like go and make disciples which begins with the word "go" meaning as you go through your life.  So we live out our faith and as we do we seek to share the Gospel (evangelism) and as people respond we are to teach them or help them to grow as disciples of Jesus.  This all to be so that where ever we go it can continue.  What we teach others about Jesus is for them to become stronger in their faith and to share with others.  Replication is a core part of Christianity and we must have this mindset in what we do.

So we commune with God so we can server Him to His glory out of His power to bring others into relationship with Him so that they can learn and grow to do the same.   A cycle of reproduction, the Church is to be living and growing through God's people being active in this mission.

So let us get radical.  Let's make better decisions.  Let's make kingdom minded decisions.  Maybe one less holiday or a less expensive car or wait on new appliances and instead be on mission.  That mission may be in your neighborhood, city, province, country or across the world and we need to make sure we keep our resources (time, talents and Treasure) freed up to be used by God.  Yes we need to use all of what God has given us for His glory.  These are hard words for me and I pray that God would continue to be patient with me as I mature in the process of making my desires, my wants, my time, my priorities, my resources, my life all fully submitted to the Lord Jesus to be used for His mission.

Pastor Bruce

Education, who is responsible?

Too many times lately I am hearing about things that cause real concern in our world today.  Some are about wars, bombings, shootings and such violence.  But some are the more subtle acts in politics and changes in law and policing.   One of the areas of concern is education.

It seems that in today's culture there has been a big mistake made.  Education is seen as the responsibility of the "state", the country or region you reside in is seen as the one in charge of educating your children.  The challenge in this environment has been the growing idea that this also means that as a parent you have no choice and no control in the area of your child's education.  We have heard recently of families being taken to court because they decided to home educate, families that had their children removed from the home because they refused to send them to the state run schools.  

Society is heading down a scary road, not only for Christians but for all of us.  The ideals being followed to bring us to this place where the government is in charge of your child and their education is against the idea of family and investing in your own children.  It is also against the idea of true learning.

First I want to address the reality of family.  Whether you are a Christian or not, your children are a gift given to you to raise and invest in so that they are prepared for life and can be ready to live and contribute to society in a positive way.  I believe it is the parent's responsibility to ensure that this is happening.  I also believe that the parent may choose different forms of education and tools that assist in the process.  What works for one child and family may not work for another.  The State should be available to help the family if needed but not to enforce their particular program of learning as the "best" way or "only way".  This is the government getting involved too much in a matter that is for families to deal with.

Second I want to address learning itself.  We know from looking at history and at societies where the government's prescribed schools and curriculum were enforced by law.  That what happened was a set back to true learning.  That in these situations learning was stifled because there were certain topics that were not to be taught and there other topics that were taught and they were incorrect but it was what you were being told to believe.  True learning happens when we teach the younger generation to ask questions and to look for the answers.  We share what we have learn't along the way but not because we cannot learn more and have different perspectives.  Learning needs freedom for it to flourish.  Governments have never assisted in moving true learning forward by enforcing their "views" on the people.  The times and places where society has had a relaxed control on education is where learning flourishes.

By the way I have been known as extremely conservative at times.  I am no hippy and not into some crazy world view where we need no government.  But when I see trends that concern me then I need to speak out.  So do you.  Do you want the government to tell your children what to believe?  Do you want your freedom to train your children in the way that works best for them to be taken away?  Do you want to ensure that there is freedom to talk and discuss thoughts, ideas, issues, theories etc... without being shut down for fear that these things might go against the "state" schools?

I think that in areas like education and religion the government should stay out of as much as possible.  there are other areas too but today's point is education.  Governments of the world, offer to help people with a service, encourage learning and training to be a lifestyle but keep your distance and drop the "enforcement" model.

Let's appreciate the freedom we still have in Canada, at least for today.

Pastor Bruce

what to do when tech fails?

What do you do when your technology fails?  Well I hope you continue on as best as you can.  Like at our Church FFBC in Brandon, the last few weeks the internet drops out often.  Now the techs are looking at it this week and hopefully it gets fixed.  But as the problem has been present it caused us to not have video feeds or recordings of the last few Sunday sermons.  Whether it is your internet, your IPAD, Laptop, Projector or Sound Board, if your technology dies your message must continue on.  The message is much greater than the technology we use.

God will use the message and like the many generations of Christians who preached and taught without such technology we too must be prepared to minister without them.  The message of the Gospel, the teaching of God's Word is not to be held back by our "program" crashing.

So all that being said for those of you who missed Church in the last few months we do have a link for you to access the audio files if you would like them.  I will post this same info in a few other places as we do not have the Church website updated yet with the files.

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0Bz69ajNSG55pRk1FV0ZXdkNrMXM&usp=sharing

It should be sorted in folders of year, then month and then the files should be named in dates on which they were recorded.

Lets us seek to grow together and not be restrained by our modern technology or lack of it.

Pastor Bruce

Why digital Bibles are so important.

I read a post earlier in a popular publication that while it seemed ok with the embracing of the Bible in digital format (iPad,e-reader,android,pc, mp3, etc...), the author felt that there were some rather large issues with such formats being used from the pulpit during preaching.  I was taken back.  The idea that we could think that a bound paper with leather outer was more "holy" is not only ridiculous but it is rather close to idolatry.  

The hard reality is that the originals were not bound paper with leather exterior and they also were not digital.  We have been blessed and are happy that for so many generations we have had true ability to have printed and bound Bibles.  But the format of that process is not Holy.  Just like the move forward to print the Bible in such a way was key to getting the Word of God into the hands of everyday people it was also a huge improvement for the Clergy.  The ability to study and preach for the Word greatly increased.  As with any new medium or format there are dangers, like those who would print what looks like a Bible and yet it was changed to fit their beliefs and not truly God's Word.

The new movement of digital media needs to be embraced properly. We should be thankful that we can get the Word of God into so many hands so quickly now.  If Pastors refuse to use the new media because they want things to appear more Holy then they will send a message (intentional or not) that the printed and bound is superior to the digital and this is not true.  God's Word is His Word in whatever format it is printed in.  Of course I am talking here about medium and format not particular translation, that would be a different topic.

So I encourage you to embrace Ethernet Bible apps out there and to encourage their use.  Do not allow yourself to be distracted by games or texting when it is time for the Word.  This is the same as not being distracted by a football game on the radio or writing notes to a friend or doing a crossword  when it is supposed to be time for the Word.  The principle is the same, so use new technology but do not allow it to overtake you.

Remember in the same way your digital format is not better than printed material.  On such things there is no law so each one must follow their conscience and seek to honour God while they show Grace to their brothers and sisters.

Press on in obedience

Pastor Bruce

Warning! The Philosophy of Man

I have been pondering this topic for a while and felt it necessary to record my thoughts.  I mentioned it in part during last Sunday service.  Anyway I hope that you will patiently read my pondering here.

I have to confess that at different times in my life I held to certain man made philosophies.  I once was an extreme conservative, now I am not.  I once identified myself as a Baptist when asked about religion, I no longer do.  I used to label myself as an Arminian in my theology, then as a Calvinist, then as an Augustinian, but now I do not ascribe to any of these.  I used to follow humanistic concepts, but I see them now clearly as broken and have left them behind. 

I am in no way perfect in my beliefs but I have grown in my conviction that man driven and made labels for my beliefs are actually contrary to what I believe.  Let me explain.  I firmly believe that Jesus is the center of all things.  That He is also to be the center of my beliefs, values, philosophy and actions.  His Word, the Bible is my source and guide for learning, growing, teaching, inspiration and so much more.  It is on this foundation that I find myself sitting.  I firmly believe that those who claim to have submitted their life to Jesus as their Lord and Savior, are to have this same conviction.  So if people want to know my "religion", I am a follower of Jesus or a Christian.  If they ask what I do for work, I am a Pastor at a Baptist Church.  But no longer am I defined as a "baptist" but as a Christian.  If the Baptists began to follow some crazy false doctrine then I would no longer be a part of that group but I will always be a part of Christ.  

My Theology in similar fashion is Biblical meaning based on the Bible.  Not Baptist, Calvanistic, Reformed, or whatever other designations that might be more common.  I refuse to even use the label of "systematic" in regards to my Theology due to the connection that this word has with the idea of subscribing to a particular man defined theological system.  Instead I firmly believe we are to follow proper systematic methods of study so that we learn the proper context and meaning of the Bible.  However the Bible itself is our guiding document for Faith and practice not just a resource book for us to use to back up our own documents.  

Why do I say all of this?  Because I have found that even some of the scholars that I greatly respect have at times fallen to points of belief that they include as doctrinal truth and yet they do not have proper Biblical basis for such a point.  They may have a verse or two that they have been told supports this point because it is a part of their denomination's systematic theology.  The problem is that sometimes people fall to what we call "proof texting".  This is a process where people state a belief and then find some verses that seem to back it up.  Instead we should study the Bible as a whole and accept the obvious teachings taken from the author's intent and original context.  Then as we study and God opens our minds to His Truth our doctrine should change more and more to fit His Word.  

So the problem is that if I proclaim a particular system of belief other than the Bible then I am in danger of declaring a man developed set of statements as being what I believe, instead of those statements helping me to be challenged in what I believe so that I get into the Word and know what I am supposed to believe by It's teaching.  It is not wrong to write out our beliefs and statements.  But they are not to be our primary identifier.  Not only are we in danger of placing our statements about Scripture but we also can cause division in the Church.  Sure I think it is ok to have division over doctrine but we should not cause it by our man made philosophies and statements.  Instead let us study the Word of God together and if some refuse the Word then we pray that God would open their mind and heart to His Truth and that if we lack understanding on the matter that God would open our minds to better understand His Truth.

In short form I am saying that we should not answer people's questions of doctrine with canned statements from Calvin, Luther, Piper, Wesley, Origen or any other person. Rather we should direct people to God's Word and help them learn how to study the Scripture taking in the obvious and hard Truth that it has.  Too often people will jump around from verse to verse to prove their belief.  I know that there may be instances where this is valid.  But often it comes with avoiding other verses that seem to give a different answer and this is not how we are to treat God's Word.  The Bible was written in large sections we call books and letters.  It is meant to be understood within the context of the whole not just verse at a time but as God gave it.  Also keeping in mind that we are not to use His word to fit our purposes but rather our purposes are to shaped by His Word.

Anyway I could go on and on and I am not sure if more would really be of value here.  If anyone wants to talk or chat about this with some specifics feel free to message me and we can do that.  

Stand with your gaze centered on Jesus firmly on His Word.

Pastor Bruce

Walk as you have been made

Here is a little video I made today ... just sharing my heart and how God has challenged me.

Let us walk together

Pastor Bruce

How to handle criticism and correction.

Criticism and correction are two very hard things to receive.  Often we find ourselves on the defensive in either of these situations.  In fact some people fail to understand the difference between the two and do not know how to handle or respond to them.   It is on my heart today to share some of what God has taught me over the years on these issues.

The Critic ...  Often people in ministry especially seem to encounter this person.  They never seem to be happy with you, they find fault it seems in everything.  So often we tend to write such people off as those who just do not like or support us.  We describe them as difficult, complainers, antagonistic and negative.  They tend to be painted with a brush that places them in a camp of people who have no value to add and only cause problems or issues.   I am not going to say that there is no truth in any of that sentiment but I have come to realize that often people are mis-understood and the more they are mis-understood and they feel that no one is listening to them, they fall into a pattern of trying to be heard.  Often this pattern comes across as very negative and harsh.  Sure there are some that truly are just against us for some reason but many people labeled that way I think are unjustly labeled because of our lack of dealing with things properly.

When we interact with someone perceived as the Critic, we need to take some time to hear them, even if they are upset and we think they are totally off base.  They need to be heard and we need to listen to them for the nuggets of Truth rooted in what they are saying.  Even if someone has poor delivery of the information, there may be some Truth to it.  So we are first to listen to them.

Second we are to ponder what they are saying and truly ask ourselves and God if this is true and if it is then how am I to respond and if it is not how am I to respond.  We must take some time and not respond in a reactive defensive way.  If there is even a small amount of Truth present in the message we have received we need to acknowledge that and express what we intend to do about it.  The portions of the message that we believe are not valid need to be exposed as such, but in as loving and gracious a way as possible.

Third we must pray for the person who has brought this forward, that God would give them proper insight, patience and grace for others and that they would seek to honor God and learn how to interact with others in a healthy way.

The Correcter ... When we receive correction it is important that we not confuse it with criticism.  Too often people feel threatened by even loving and gentle correction and respond poorly.  Biblical Correction is always to be done in love and with grace for the person being corrected.  It is to follow much prayer and study to ensure that the correction is given properly.  When we receive this type of correction we need to respond positively with repentance and a desire to move in a fresh direction.  If you believe that the correction is not based on Truth and is incorrect then you must not get upset and defensive but rather you must expose any lies or mis-representations and proclaim Truth in return with grace and love for the other person.  Make sure you are walking in humility to receive correction properly, or we can sometimes place ourselves in a sinful prideful state by setting out our arguments of defense and winning over our corrector to see our side even if we are in the wrong.  Correction can come not because of our lack of Truth or Logic but because we may have a delivery that causes hurt or division with others.  So we must be even more receptive to correction in a healthy way so we can grow and not continue to hurt others.

Just like criticism can be unfounded so can correction, but both need to be dealt with properly.  I know this blog is not exhaustive on these matters and I do not consider myself an expert.  Rather I have had to learn a lot of these things the hard way, because I was critical, because I was prideful and did not receive correction well.  God can work in your life as He has in mine and crush a heart of stone and replace it with a heart of tender flesh.  

Keep short accounts with each other and walk in love.  Extend forgiveness for the wrongs done and the hurts caused.  If God has saved you and your accuser as well, then the same Spirit resides in you both and is grieved when we fail to show humility, grace and love toward one another.

Let us walk together

Pastor Bruce

No Other Gospel

I have been pondering the Gospel and the mission of the Church a lot lately. Today is no different.

Galatians 1:6-10 (ESV)

⁶ I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— ⁷ not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. ⁸ But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. ⁹ As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.¹⁰ For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

The true message of the Gospel of Jesus is of the utmost importance.  I have found so many that talk of the gospel but when you hear their "gospel" you find that it is lacking.  A troubling thing.  At what point is a partial gospel message no longer the gospel at all?

As a ponder this I find myself humbled because I am certain that at times I have not given the most complete gospel message.  Yet I find myself continually challenged to improve my understanding and presentation of the Gospel.  Recently I was challenged by a man who said I talked too much about sin and that Jesus never declared anyone a sinner.  Some people would have just disregarded this person, but I will be pondering this in my heart and increasing my study on the subject to ensure that my teaching and presentation are accurate.  

What about you?  How is your Gospel message and understanding?  Does the Gospel you know and share include the following?

• An understanding that God exists
• That God is the creator of all
• That God exists as 3 persons in perfect unity
• That God the Son came to earth as the man Jesus
• That Jesus was fully God and fully human
• That Jesus lived a sinless life
• that Jesus willingly gave himself up to suffer and die for our sin on a cross
• That Jesus sacrifice is the only way to have our sin and its penalty removed from us.
• The penalty for sin is death and eternal separation from God in a place of suffering called Hell or the Lake of Fire
• That Jesus rose from the grave after 3 days
• That Jesus has been given all authority to judge
• That Jesus the judge also has the ability to save
• Salvation is when we recognize our sinfulness and repent of our sin, accepting Jesus and His sacrifice as payment for our sin and making Jesus our lord.
• Jesus will declare salvation for all who truly follow Him
• Those who accept this gift of salvation by the Grace of God through Faith in Jesus are secured by Jesus and indwelt by the Holy Spirit.
• We who receive Salvation are to live in obedience to Jesus and His Word (The Bible) 
• Our primary Goal in this life as a follower of Jesus is to Glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.
• As we go through this life we are to grow in our faith as a disciple, living and speaking so that others would also come to know our Savior and Lord, Jesus.

I know that this is not an exhaustive list but consider what happens when significant Biblical Truth is not being understood when a "gospel" is being shared.  I have heard people talk of how you can be a Christian and an Atheist, that following the teaching and life example of Jesus makes you a Christian and has nothing to do with believing God.  This of course is a total lie and is so very far from the Truth.  I have heard people talk of God as love, and of course Love is one of God's key attributes as taught in the Bible.  Yet often a message is given that God is love but no balance of our sin and God's justice, showing that Jesus is the answer.  A God is love, accept Jesus as your friend and go to heaven message is not a full Gospel.  Some have been told a message that included a lot of talk about God and His Holiness, our sinful state and how our behavior must become pleasing to God.  Yet the Bible teaches that our behavior will never please God, only through the saving Grace of Jesus will we ever be in a place where God is pleased with us.  We live an obedient life not to please God more, but because we are to live submitted to Him and to give Him honor, our lives are not our own.

Anyway I could go on and on but I ask you to consider embracing a True and Full Gospel.  If you want to learn more about the Gospel try out this video.
http://youtu.be/-nhgIV16piw

Pastor Bruce

The true gospel of Jesus Christ - by Paul Washer (playlist)

The importance of the Gospel, the True Gospel as found in the Bible.  I urge everyone to view this video clip and consider what brother Paul Washer has to say.  This is a matter of highest importance.  I care about you and want you to know that there is a good God who cares as well.

Pastor Bruce

Should Church have a strategy? or just a Biblical model?

I have been taking in some info again lately on Church leadership etc...  and one thing that has come up is that the Church needs to do more than just pray, the leaders need to do more than just read their Bibles and such talk then ends with an encouragement towards strategic planning.  Yet I am not convinced.  Sure I agree with the logic of failing to plan is planning to fail, but maybe the modern Church movements are to concerned with their model upgrades, strategic planning and visionary goal setting.  Not that it is wrong to move forward but I believe we are not spending enough time in taking the "Church" back to the Biblical model.

The Bible gives us plain teaching about the operating principles for the Church.  Read the New Testament starting with Acts and look for how the Church did things, how leadership was trained up, how leaders were put in place, how the Church grew and was established and how multiplication of Churches occurred.  You can see a pretty clear pattern of principles for the Church to operate by.  Our Mission has not changed, we are to go and make disciples, baptising them and training them.  The process of going through life and taking the testimony of the Gospel of Jesus with us is still to be how we live.  The Church is to expand because we take the message of the Gospel to the lost world around us and as people respond to Jesus we form new local Church communities.  In these new Church communities we train and equip the new believers until they are ready to move forward in an autonomous and yet interdependent way as a part of the greater Mission of the Kingdom.

So here is what I see taught plainly in the Bible as a strategy for the Church.  If you are starting as a Church planter like the early Apostles, then begin by loving the community around you enough to share the Truth of a Biblical Gospel of repentance found in Jesus.  Then take the new believers and begin to train them and baptise them and continue to train them so that they would be true Disciples of Jesus.  Part of this training is to get everyone to serve with their gifts and abilities, to grow as leaders and to know how to go and make more Disciples of Jesus.  This should lead to more Churches being established.  Proper Biblical strategy replicates roles as well as abilities, we should not fear that we are training someone to take our role, we should enjoy that reality.  

If you are starting in an existing Church situation then you have a harder job.  You need to begin by helping your current Church get on board with the Biblical mission we have been given by our Lord Jesus.    Then follow the same principles as above but they should be happening out of the team in your current Church, instead of the lone or small Church planting team.

The Biblical model allows for big Churches and small Churches but whether big or small, they are all to be "replicating" Churches.  No Church should set a strategy based on a singular high calibre leader, rather the high calibre leader needs to do the hard work of replicating their ministry in others who are called to join them in it.  Then as the Church grows it will be ready to replicate.  Too many large Churches today have embraced a model that allows for the glorification of people by seeking to create larger and larger audiences for them to talk to or sing to etc...  These types of paradigms create an attitude that it is better to listen to this particular person and so we will add another thousand seats to grow, or we will add three more satellite locations to grow.  Instead they should be preparing other leaders to grow where new work is needed.  This way the model can be replicated easily also it is a better fit for the way the Bible teaches us to grow Churches.

Believe me it can be a struggle, but more and more I am convinced that it is the road I must stay on.  I must seek at all costs to follow the Biblical model.  You can choose to join me in this, not by moving here and joining FFBC (although you are welcome) but by making a commitment to be Biblical as much as you can be and to be a part of helping your local Church to do the same.

Let us walk together

Pastor Bruce

Life is Precious

I am sitting and pondering life, how precious a gift that it is.  Yet so often we see and hear about people throwing lives away in an instant.  Bombings, shootings, abortions, wars the horror of daily happenings in the world today and yet we can become de-sensitized.  

Every life should be treated with value and respect.  Not because of some law or humanistic perspective.  But we should seek to protect life because life is a gift from God.  Even when someone does such horrible things to destroy other lives we must weigh very carefully if we are to take their life away.  The destruction of a life is a very serious thing.

Yet I sometimes find myself feeling as though there are too many lives being taken without any justice being dished out.  Justice is not vengeance it is actually how we attempt to love the rest of the population by protecting them.  I believe that men especially were created with a purpose to protect those who are most vulnerable.  Part of that protection is the serving of justice.

I want to call on Christian men everywhere to be those who will not stand by and allow these horrors to continue.  WE need to get involved.  If you have been a witness to a crime, you need to report it.  If you see a life being endangered then you need to attempt to save it.  If you need to jump on a gunman or grab a bomb and run away from a crowd, then do it.  Christian men know where they will be for eternity, many others around them may not be ready to face God, we are ready to meet our Lord.

I do not advocate a politically motivated Church movement but a gospel oriented one instead.  Yet I do believe that each of us has a responsibility to be active in making a change.  However you need to do that as a an individual as long as it is within the laws we are under and not against the Bible, then please say your piece and make a difference.  If we are horrified by a bombing or a shooting, why are we so silent about the thousands of children slaughtered daily around the world by abortions of convenience.  Life is a gift from God and it is precious.  Taking a vulnerable and defenseless life in a pre-meditated way is considered murder.  

We need justice to be enacted  to protect those who cannot protect themselves.

Men let us be who we were created to be.  Men who love and follow God.  Men who love and care for their families.  Men who speak Truth and proclaim the Gospel.  Men who stand up for Justice and protect the oppressed and the vulnerable.  Men who are warriors at heart.  Men who refuse to live in fear of people or this world but do have a healthy fear of God.

Pastor Bruce

Politics politics politics

As I sit here drinking a coffee waiting to meet someone I find myself immersed whether I like it or not in a conversation regarding politics. Not that I took part but rather the coffee shop I was in had been overtaken with the volume of a few guys in suits trying to sort out the latest political issues, the kind of discussion that used to draw me in but now like most if the room I have a huge distaste for.

Guys in suits, the establishment, too often Christians have sought to solve societies issues through such people. Yet it is a waste of time. People need Jesus not political agendas. Politicians included, they need The Lord in their lives.

Now the suits have left and a relaxed atmosphere has once again appeared. Interesting how people in suits with politics on their brains can increase the stress level in a room an decrease the level of community at the same time.

I find myself being reminded that I am here on mission for the King of Kings and not to be overly concerned with the politics of man. Sure we all have a responsibility to vote and be familiar with the issues but it should not overtake my life or a room that I am in, at least because of me.

Stand for Truth, live your Faith, be on mission for The Lord.

Pastor Bruce

What about sin?

So what about sin?  "Sin is not problem for me because I was forgiven by Jesus"  ...  I have received this response from so many.  There is an element of truth in that response and yet there is so much missing.

Often I hear people talking about the sins of others, the sins of society and proclaiming a need fro a renewed righteousness. Yet we fail so often to talk enough about the reality of our own sin.  Our own weak and pride-filled nature that seeks its own way daily.  I know that I struggle daily with sin.  My humanity is still here. Sure Jesus has shown victory over sin, death and hell, but even though I am forgiven it does not mean I never sin.

I really believe that we need to embrace a deep sense of humility, repenting of our sin and embracing the Lordship of Jesus in our life.  This should not be a one time event.  Salvation is a one time event, Baptism is a one time event, but daily Christian living is to strive for humility and repent of our sinful attitudes and actions as we seek to live in obedience to our Lord Jesus.

Sin is around us everyday, the world is a messed up place and it is because humanity runs on a nature bent towarpridefilledds sin.  People cannot help themselves, sin is natural to us.  Jesus is our only answer for sin.  His forgiveness of our sin is once and for all.  Yet while we are still walking on this earth we will not live in perfection.  We need to repent of our own self.  When we live in sinful ways it is because we have taken the reigns, taken control.  When we are in control then sin is at the front of things.  When we live in submission to Jesus, then He is in control and He is operating in and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Righteous living cannot happen because of me, but it can happen because of Jesus living in and through me.  

Deal with your sin, seek to live under the Lordship of Jesus, walk with humility in obedience to Him.  Do not hide your messes of life and pretend that life is perfect, this is pride and it is a sin.  Honesty is required, Integrity needs to be your decision, Transparency is to be a lifestyle.

Let us walk together

Pastor Bruce

What to wear ... or not?

Clothing, fashion, what is modest? Proper?  I just read an article in a popular Christian magazine that spent many pages on this issue with some decent thought but I really feel still missed part of the Biblical importance of the discussion.  So here I throw out my thoughts.

As I read the Bible and review verses and passages about what people are to wear, I am finding most of them fit into one of the following 3 categories.  God specifically instructed, used to illustrate a teaching and examples to re-enforce a principle.  I will give you a quick summary of each to help you know what I am talking about.

God specifically instructed the people of Israel about the clothing required for the priests.  This was not some principle or illustration (though you may find some as well) but a specific requirement for the priests, NOT OPTIONAL.  

The Bible uses clothing to illustrate a teaching, such as being clothed in righteousness or holiness.  

The Bible uses examples of specific clothing, dress, jewellery  etc...  to re-enforce a principle being taught.  A great example of this would be the teachings from the Apostle Paul regarding what to NOT wear during worship like gold and braided hair etc...

What the Bible does not teach anywhere is that the world's view of "formal" dress code is inherently spiritual.  In fact what we wear does say a lot and has meaning but I would suggest that we are called to not embrace the world's view of this.  Instead we are to first seek out what honours God and gives Him glory in what we wear.

So here goes, this is what I believe is a Biblical stance for Christians on how to dress.

• Always we are to publicly display modesty, dressing in a way to draw inappropriate attention to our bodies is not healthy for our Christian walk or testimony to the world.
• Always we are to present ourselves in a way that fits with our desire to walk in humility.  Jesus wants us to glorify Him and not ourselves, we are not to focus on building ourselves up by being the most fashionable person around.

• The above 2 points apply to all of us all the time including when we go to Church.

• We should seek to dress in a manner that shows proper respect for others, but only in so much as it is for the benefit of the Gospel and the glory of God.  Not so that we just gain more friends or "brownie points" with those in authority.
• When we are at an event, including Church services, we should attempt to dress in a manner that does not draw special attention to ourselves, keeping in mind that the above points still stand.  So to wear a suit and tie when you are visiting a small rural African Church might make you stand out more than your skin colour does and give the wrong example of what is important.  In the same way visiting an inner-city Church that has a high level of un-employed attenders might not be the best place to wear your latest Armoni suit.  However when you go to the typical old school country Church you may want to dress up a little more and wear a suit.  This is for the benefit of the Body of Christ so that we are not a distraction in worship.
• We need to not sit in our "glory days of old" and believe that our favourite style of clothing is "more pleasing to God".  May we never be these people.  This is full of horrible pride.  Jesus did not wear our clothing style, the apostles did not either, do we think our clothes make us better than them?  Our styles should and will change and this is fine and should be expected, not frowned upon.  As long as we are following Biblical teaching on modesty and loving God and others, then the style does not matter.

God is never going to be impressed by what I wear.  If others are impressed by what I wear then maybe I am too much the focus.  If others are horrified by what I wear then maybe I am allowing myself to be too much of a focus.  We must seek to make how we dress a secondary issue.  It should not matter so much that it took 8 blog pages to try and sort it out.  

God is our focus, people are where we find our ministry, Love is our method, the Gospel is our tool, prayer is our fuel, the Spirit is our guide, the Word is our teacher, Worship is to be life-long and our lives are to give glory to Jesus.

Let's not allow the formal / informal agendas to distract us from what is truly important.

Pastor Bruce 

Are you "bent" towards "lent"?

Every year there seems to be a growing trend of evangelical Christian believers celebrating "lent" in some form.  I have found it very interesting and I am sure that a few of you have as well.  As a child I can remember being told that only the "Catholics" practiced "lent" and that it was not for us.  Ever since that time I have been aware and listening as people who are not "catholic" celebrate "lent".  If you want to know about "lent" then feel free to use this link to wikipedia about it.

The concept of denying yourself as a part of your Christian Faith is found in many places in the Bible.  We could take the time today to go through them all but we wont.  Please feel free to do your own study on that.  Instead I want to talk about why as a Christian I would fast or deny myself for a period of time.

We are to understand that the Bible clearly teaches that our works will never save us, they will never clean us up enough for God to be pleased with us.  My works, whether they be of activity or sacrifice will not erase my sin.  Only Jesus and His completed work can provide salvation, freedom, cleansing from sin, placing us into God's family being reconciled to Him forever.  So "lent" or any other fasting and denial will not save us, in full or in part.

So what then?  Why should we fast?  We should fast and pray and deny ourselves at times because we need to put aside our humanity.  We need to keep our selfish, sinful, flesh in check.  By doing this we also use such time to with greater intent and clarity focus on God.  This type of fasting and prayer is for the Christian, we are to draw near to God in part by challenging our flesh.  Fasting and self denial is part of how we train our physical self to greater appreciate our Lord.  But then we must also set a strong focus on the Word of God, the Bible is our main tool for the Christian's mind to be renewed in the process.  And the third thing is prayer, we must "commune" with the Father, spend time in communication with Him, this is good for our Soul.  None of this is to improve our standing with God, but should be driven by our desire to have a healthy relationship with God.

So...  "lent" ... are you "bent" towards "lent".  I hope you are not.  Mostly because of the root of the practice is found in trying to please God and prepare ourselves by purification, to celebrate Easter.  Christians are not to fast to please God and we cannot physically prepare ourselves for Easter.  However to take time to fast and pray and camp in the Bible, is good practice as we seek obedience to our Lord and Master.  So my stance is that if you do "lent" then please keep evaluating why you are doing so and do not let yourself be deceived and drawn into a works based salvation.

May we live in a greater understanding every day of the sufficiency of the work of Jesus on our behalf.

Pastor Bruce

Learning to Love

It can be very hard having to learn from your own sermons, maybe it is that way because I tend to be harder on myself at times than on others.  But here I am finding myself struggling to live out the love that I have received from God and others in a proper way.  

We are still getting the new house in order and are very busy.  We are all tired and at times I find myself "grumpy" and "irritated" which usually means that my tone of voice and sharp answers can be hurtful towards others.  My mind swirls with comments about how everyone else needs to start to understand me and my situation better.  Then the Holy Spirit reminds me that life does not revolve around me.  Conviction sets in and my heart becomes repentant for my selfishness.  Apologies are given with hugs and some tears at times.  

Learning to love is a hard road filled with mistakes.  But if we learn to listen to the correction of the Spirit and repentantly apologize, we can repair damage a lot quicker and learn to love more effectively.  I am thankful because the Lord Jesus has given me a wonderful wife and family that forgive me often.  

Stress and busy times are no excuse to hurt others.  May we all grow together with grace for one another as we forgive each other so that we can better love one another and glorify God with our lives.

Let us walk together.

Pastor Bruce