Pastor Lorne continued his series on being a Disciple of Christ by reminding us of the importance of the Word of God.
We need a daily time with God’s word so when we come across situations where we need answers, the Word will already be in our hearts to fall back on. As we study the Word, the Holy Spirit will bring Scriptures to our memory and tell us how to react in situations.
We really need to live the Word of God. John 1:1 says, ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’ And a bit further in v14, ‘And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, theglory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.’ Pastor Lorne says every time he reads the word, he thinks he understands it but the greatness of God overwhelms him. He said his interpretation is that the word of God is Jesus. We know Jesus through the Bible. Pastor Lorne said he knows us because he can actually see us and talk to us. But Jesus isn’t here in the physical form. No man has seen God, but we can know him through his Word. As a disciple of Christ, we need his Word deep down in our hearts.
Pastor Lorne said he knows people don’t have time to read several chapters every day, but he finds even 1 or 2 verses of Scripture helps. Found in the church foyer, the Daily Bread is a nice free little booklet which shows a daily Bible reading and a story to start your day. Pastor Lorne says during the day as he’s doing whatever he needs to do, he’ll remember the story or Scripture in the Daily Bread. In other words, it sticks with him throughout the day. Or, if he turns to his Bible after something has happened, he’ll usually find a verse that will relate to the same circumstance.
Everyone has daily rituals like brushing their hair and teeth, showering, maybe shaving. You take time for what is important to you. Part of that ritual should be to make time for the Lord and let His word speak to your heart at the same time every day. God’s heart is His word, the Bible. It’s teaches us and is the light to lead our path. Just a little bit of time spent in the word. Pastor Lorne said you will be surprised how accurate the Spirit of God knows your life and what you’re going through and he’ll have the right Scripture for you in your particular situation.
Pastor Lorne reminded us of his visit to Hungary. He said he met a German who did whatever he needed to become a farrier including university courses. Then, for on job training, he lived with a Master farrier for 2 yrs and went out with him for calls and whatever situations demanded a farrier. He even had to dig the Master farrier’s potatoes when required.
To Pastor Lorne, that paints a picture of how we as a Disciples of Christ, should follow Him daily and see how He handles(ed) each situation. Sometimes in our life we have to dig the potatoes even if it has nothing to do with our calling. Maybe God brings it into our lives for balance.
The way we follow Christ and see how He dealt with situations is through his Word. There are 66 books in the Bible written by 40 authors and they all have the same theme. So many years and they all point to Christ:
- Psalm 119:89 says, ‘Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.’
- Isaiah 40:8 says, ‘The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of our God stands forever."
- Mattt 24:35 ‘Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.’
No matter what else is going on in the world, the word of God stands true and will be there forever.
The word of god is inspired. 2 Tim 3:16 & 17 says, ‘All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.’
The Word of God shows examples of right from wrong and it shows the path. It shows how to love and trust and even the proper way to rebuke – a touchy subject which Pastor Lorne said he doesn’t like doing too much. He said if you were to go to him and say something, he wouldn’t like it but, if you go to him with the word of god and say, “Look what you’re doing”, Pastor Lorne has to take it because it’s what the word of god says to do.
The Word of God is used for correcting. A teacher corrects and uses a reference. So, when someone corrects us with the word of god, they are following a reference.
The Word of God is used in training righteousness – as a disciple of Christ, we get to know His Word, it will make our lives easier because we have a reference to fall back on – a clear idea of what we have to do.
The Word of God is powerful. Rom 1:16 says, ‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek (Gentile).’ The Word of God is so powerful, it can change lives and make a difference. Pastor Lorne could spend his time with us and start off on some analogy or motivational speech but there’s no power in that. The Word of God has the power of God. When you believe in the power of God and it’s in your heart and you live it, there’s a power in your heart. Pastor Lorne can motivate us but he is totally powerless to change our situations. But the Bible says the Word of God gives correction, and when we come to Christ, the Word of God gives us the power to change whatever situation we are in at that time.
Make sure your life has the Word of God in it. You don’t need to be a great theologian with 6 or 7 yrs in seminary. Just spend 5 mins every morning in Scripture and let God speak to you. Your faith will build up. Heb 4:12 says, ‘For the Word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.’ Isn’t that good news? The living God is living and active and it gives power to go through any problems you may have.
Pastor Lorne wants to encourage you to get some of the Word of God into your heart. He wants to emphasize there are 66 books and lots of chapters and Psalm 119 is daunting. Bbut you know what it says in Psalm 119:105 – ‘Thy Word is a lamp under my path and a light unto my path.’
Pastor Lorne remembers being at camp and the kids would play tricks on the counselors. He said they would check to see if any kids were hiding in the bushes and as he walked in the dark, he felt a wire where the kids had placed it across the path so he was able to step over it. Let Christ light your path in life so you know where to go and what to do.
Quite often the Word of God won’t show the end, but far enough to see a bit, then a bit more as your go forward, just like car lights when you’re driving at night and your car lights shine in the dark and light up the distance ahead, a bit at a time.
Pastor Lorne wants to encourage you to look in the Word of God even if it’s only for one verse so you have it in your mind throughout the day.
If you'd like to take to Pastor Lorne please email.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Be a Disciple: Pray
Scriptures: Matt:14-13-14, Luke 18:1, Luke 18:10-14, John 17
Ashlee sang a lingering, worshipful song written by her
brother, Josh. Jessica accompanied her on the piano. Ashlee flies out of Regina on Wed, May 13th but won’t arrive home in Australia until Friday. Please pray for her safe arrival.
Pastor Lorne wanted to continue his message about being a being disciple of Christ. He said it’s one thing to accept Christ as our Savior to escape spending an eternity it hell, but it’s another thing entirely to be a disciple of Christ and a real follower.
The definition of a disciple is: someone who follows the teachings of someone else. So, to be a disciple of Christ, you must follow his example.
Pastor Lorne reminded us of a church that was ‘a mile wide and an inch deep’. It translates into a big church with lots of things happening, but the people aren’t really disciples of Christ. And when the pastor left, the church fell apart.
For you to become a real disciple of Christ, you must first have an experience with God. We must take Him into ourselves and take on the characteristics of Christ before we can be real disciple of Him.
Pastor Lorne said Christ was motivated to heal the sick, feed the hungry, cast out demons, and bring people back to life because he had compassion for the people who wept over them.
But another big part of Christ’s life was that he spent a lot of time in prayer.
Pastor Lorne mentioned his own life. When he was growing up, prayer never appealed to him. He was too busy to spend time on his knees as there was always other things to do. Of course, he’d always pray when he got into a bind. As he grew older, he found one of the best times of the day is when he spends time in prayer and gets away to the Lord. Usually early in the morning because it makes the day go better, but sometimes late at night so he can think about the next day. He goes to the Lord in prayer and leaves it with Him and everything comes into perspective and he can manage things better.
Turn your attention to how Jesus dealt with prayer. To Pastor Lorne, it stood out that Jesus was the Son of God because He:
- fed 5,000 men plus women and children on one little boy’s lunch
- healed the sick
- cast out demons
- conquered death
- commanded the weather to obey Him, and it did
Pastor Lorne commented it would really be something to have the ability to direct the weather. Except, we’d all want something different and it would never work.
But why would Jesus need to pray?
In Matt 14:13, Jesus hears about the death of his cousin, John the Baptist, and goes off by himself to pray. But, he’s not there very long before the crowds discover him. V14 says, ‘When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.” Pastor Lorne said he would have thought Jesus would be on a high after performing these great miracles, but He sent the crowd home, and his disciples on ahead, and He went up a mountain and prayed. If Jesus did that when He was in mourning, how much more do we need to develop a life of prayer – to develop a relationship with him – and become a true disciple of Christ?
You don’t need to take 6 hrs of your day and spend it in prayer. Work, families and the world keep us busy. We don’t have time to spend hours in prayer. But, if you can work it out to have just 5 mins somewhere in your life, it will make a great difference. Christ did that – He took time to pray after his greatest triumphs.
People say the greatest time of temptation is when they see a great power performed. So, find a little place and make some time in your busy life. Maybe while you’re driving to work even. Or, maybe while you’re working in the kitchen. It doesn’t matter where, but have that relationship with Him. It’s very important to just take a few mins to pray and seek His face. Pastor Lorne said it’s a great thing to pray together, but it’s just as important to pray alone.
Luke 18:1 says “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” This is the story of the judge who didn’t care about anybody but the lady kept coming and asking for help. This women continued to come so finally the judge said he’d find out what and take care of it so she wouldn’t bother him anymore. Thank goodness God isn’t like that. We can keep going back over and over and He never gets tired of listening to us.
In Luke 18:10-14, two men go up to the temple to pray. Jesus gives us this example that when we go before Him, we need to open all the rooms in our house. Maybe you have a room in your house that you’re not using and keep shoving stuff in it and keep the door closed from company to hide the junk. Pastor Lorne believes when we go before Christ, we need t open all the rooms of our house. Like the tax collector – he didn’t show just the nice kitchen and shiny sink or dining and living rooms with nice furniture – he opened his house and said, Lord, this is it.
We need to come before God and open up our lives to Him. Come before the Lord in prayer. Christ wants us to show him everything. We are human and sinners and need His grace to come in and be a part of our lives. You know what the bible says – all our righteousness is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) because our righteousness is in Christ. We need to come before God with an open heart.
John 17 is a complete chapter of prayers that Jesus prayed. He prayed for Himself, for His disciples and He prayed for the believers. Pastor Lorne said he noticed some interesting things in this chapter of Jesus:
- v10 “All I have is yours and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them.” Pastor Lorne said that’s quite a statement. Jesus acknowledged that His followers and disciples brought glory to Him. As true disciple of Christ, our lives would bring glory to God. We might think we’re failures and mess everything up, but we can bring glory to Christ in our lives.
- v24-26 – this is Jesus’ prayer for you and me. It’s one of the prayers for the father to his son. The love God had for his Son. Jesus is praying that you and I, as children of God, will have that love in our heart. He is in you and me in his Holy Spirit in our hearts and our lives.
Pastor Lorne asked us to forgive him but he had another grandfather story: He said his young granddaughter stays overnight sometimes. And he’ll get up early and be reading and doing his devotions and she’ll come downstairs, climb into his lap, and tell him her dreams and other little things important to her heart. Little special times of talking. No one else, no toys, just talk. He said he thought of how we can come to God, crawl on his lap, tell him our dreams and disappointments and they may not make sense to anyone else but to you and your heavenly father. He wants to hear what you have to say.
And the way we can do it is in the avenue of prayer. Even though we feel weak and helpless to change our situations, when you come before God, you have the resources that created heaven and earth.
Pastor Lorne wants to encourage each one of you as a follower to pray. That time you spend in prayer is important to just talk to Him and He’ll talk, listen and encourage you. Just like a grandchild will share, share your little things with God. We need someone to listen without judgment or suggestion. Your heavenly father is that person. Have that time to talk with God and share what’s in your heart.
If you would like to speak to Pastor Lorne about this, please email .
.
Ashlee sang a lingering, worshipful song written by her
brother, Josh. Jessica accompanied her on the piano. Ashlee flies out of Regina on Wed, May 13th but won’t arrive home in Australia until Friday. Please pray for her safe arrival.Pastor Lorne wanted to continue his message about being a being disciple of Christ. He said it’s one thing to accept Christ as our Savior to escape spending an eternity it hell, but it’s another thing entirely to be a disciple of Christ and a real follower.
The definition of a disciple is: someone who follows the teachings of someone else. So, to be a disciple of Christ, you must follow his example.
Pastor Lorne reminded us of a church that was ‘a mile wide and an inch deep’. It translates into a big church with lots of things happening, but the people aren’t really disciples of Christ. And when the pastor left, the church fell apart.
For you to become a real disciple of Christ, you must first have an experience with God. We must take Him into ourselves and take on the characteristics of Christ before we can be real disciple of Him.
Pastor Lorne said Christ was motivated to heal the sick, feed the hungry, cast out demons, and bring people back to life because he had compassion for the people who wept over them.
But another big part of Christ’s life was that he spent a lot of time in prayer.
Pastor Lorne mentioned his own life. When he was growing up, prayer never appealed to him. He was too busy to spend time on his knees as there was always other things to do. Of course, he’d always pray when he got into a bind. As he grew older, he found one of the best times of the day is when he spends time in prayer and gets away to the Lord. Usually early in the morning because it makes the day go better, but sometimes late at night so he can think about the next day. He goes to the Lord in prayer and leaves it with Him and everything comes into perspective and he can manage things better.
Turn your attention to how Jesus dealt with prayer. To Pastor Lorne, it stood out that Jesus was the Son of God because He:
- fed 5,000 men plus women and children on one little boy’s lunch
- healed the sick
- cast out demons
- conquered death
- commanded the weather to obey Him, and it did
Pastor Lorne commented it would really be something to have the ability to direct the weather. Except, we’d all want something different and it would never work.
But why would Jesus need to pray?
In Matt 14:13, Jesus hears about the death of his cousin, John the Baptist, and goes off by himself to pray. But, he’s not there very long before the crowds discover him. V14 says, ‘When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.” Pastor Lorne said he would have thought Jesus would be on a high after performing these great miracles, but He sent the crowd home, and his disciples on ahead, and He went up a mountain and prayed. If Jesus did that when He was in mourning, how much more do we need to develop a life of prayer – to develop a relationship with him – and become a true disciple of Christ?
You don’t need to take 6 hrs of your day and spend it in prayer. Work, families and the world keep us busy. We don’t have time to spend hours in prayer. But, if you can work it out to have just 5 mins somewhere in your life, it will make a great difference. Christ did that – He took time to pray after his greatest triumphs.
People say the greatest time of temptation is when they see a great power performed. So, find a little place and make some time in your busy life. Maybe while you’re driving to work even. Or, maybe while you’re working in the kitchen. It doesn’t matter where, but have that relationship with Him. It’s very important to just take a few mins to pray and seek His face. Pastor Lorne said it’s a great thing to pray together, but it’s just as important to pray alone.
Luke 18:1 says “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” This is the story of the judge who didn’t care about anybody but the lady kept coming and asking for help. This women continued to come so finally the judge said he’d find out what and take care of it so she wouldn’t bother him anymore. Thank goodness God isn’t like that. We can keep going back over and over and He never gets tired of listening to us.
In Luke 18:10-14, two men go up to the temple to pray. Jesus gives us this example that when we go before Him, we need to open all the rooms in our house. Maybe you have a room in your house that you’re not using and keep shoving stuff in it and keep the door closed from company to hide the junk. Pastor Lorne believes when we go before Christ, we need t open all the rooms of our house. Like the tax collector – he didn’t show just the nice kitchen and shiny sink or dining and living rooms with nice furniture – he opened his house and said, Lord, this is it.
We need to come before God and open up our lives to Him. Come before the Lord in prayer. Christ wants us to show him everything. We are human and sinners and need His grace to come in and be a part of our lives. You know what the bible says – all our righteousness is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) because our righteousness is in Christ. We need to come before God with an open heart.
John 17 is a complete chapter of prayers that Jesus prayed. He prayed for Himself, for His disciples and He prayed for the believers. Pastor Lorne said he noticed some interesting things in this chapter of Jesus:
- v10 “All I have is yours and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them.” Pastor Lorne said that’s quite a statement. Jesus acknowledged that His followers and disciples brought glory to Him. As true disciple of Christ, our lives would bring glory to God. We might think we’re failures and mess everything up, but we can bring glory to Christ in our lives.
- v24-26 – this is Jesus’ prayer for you and me. It’s one of the prayers for the father to his son. The love God had for his Son. Jesus is praying that you and I, as children of God, will have that love in our heart. He is in you and me in his Holy Spirit in our hearts and our lives.
Pastor Lorne asked us to forgive him but he had another grandfather story: He said his young granddaughter stays overnight sometimes. And he’ll get up early and be reading and doing his devotions and she’ll come downstairs, climb into his lap, and tell him her dreams and other little things important to her heart. Little special times of talking. No one else, no toys, just talk. He said he thought of how we can come to God, crawl on his lap, tell him our dreams and disappointments and they may not make sense to anyone else but to you and your heavenly father. He wants to hear what you have to say.
And the way we can do it is in the avenue of prayer. Even though we feel weak and helpless to change our situations, when you come before God, you have the resources that created heaven and earth.
Pastor Lorne wants to encourage each one of you as a follower to pray. That time you spend in prayer is important to just talk to Him and He’ll talk, listen and encourage you. Just like a grandchild will share, share your little things with God. We need someone to listen without judgment or suggestion. Your heavenly father is that person. Have that time to talk with God and share what’s in your heart.
If you would like to speak to Pastor Lorne about this, please email .
.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Mini stories from Sunday
I'm working on Sunday's message but in the meantime, here's two short stories of other things that happened on Sunday.
Every Sunday, I carry my little typing table to church and set it up in the last row so I can take down the message. Well, this Sunday, I reached for my table and at the last minute I backed away. I remembered a computer desk sitting in the alcove behind the window where we usually sit. The desk was facing the wrong way, but I thought if I sat at it and someone from the congregation saw my back, maybe they’d offer to move things around so I could sit in front of the window while I typed. So, I left my table at home…and stood stunned when I walked into the foyer and saw the desk already in front of the window and the alcove had been enclosed with a wall and door. Wow! Thank you, God. Oh – and Maurice who is leading the work of building a sound room. What a delightful surprise.
With her charming Australian accent, Ashlee gave a report on the youth retreat she and other members attended on Sat. They headed up to the Strasbourg Bible camp and came back quite late. Ashlee said the session was an awesome testimony to what is happening with the youth. She said she saw young 12 and 13 yr olds touched by the words and music, raising their hands in worship. It was really encouraging. Ashlee also said God has been watching out for her and she’s blessed to be able to stay at Pastor Lorne and Dianne’s place. When she left Australia, she didn’t think she was coming here to meet with God, but He’s been showing her stuff and getting closer to her.
Thank you for sharing, Ashlee.
Every Sunday, I carry my little typing table to church and set it up in the last row so I can take down the message. Well, this Sunday, I reached for my table and at the last minute I backed away. I remembered a computer desk sitting in the alcove behind the window where we usually sit. The desk was facing the wrong way, but I thought if I sat at it and someone from the congregation saw my back, maybe they’d offer to move things around so I could sit in front of the window while I typed. So, I left my table at home…and stood stunned when I walked into the foyer and saw the desk already in front of the window and the alcove had been enclosed with a wall and door. Wow! Thank you, God. Oh – and Maurice who is leading the work of building a sound room. What a delightful surprise.
With her charming Australian accent, Ashlee gave a report on the youth retreat she and other members attended on Sat. They headed up to the Strasbourg Bible camp and came back quite late. Ashlee said the session was an awesome testimony to what is happening with the youth. She said she saw young 12 and 13 yr olds touched by the words and music, raising their hands in worship. It was really encouraging. Ashlee also said God has been watching out for her and she’s blessed to be able to stay at Pastor Lorne and Dianne’s place. When she left Australia, she didn’t think she was coming here to meet with God, but He’s been showing her stuff and getting closer to her.
Thank you for sharing, Ashlee.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Changes
Welcome to a new look for Church on the Hill.
I've been having technical problems with my computer and with the little voice recorder I use to tape Pastor Lorne's messages so I don't have a current message for you.
However, I've been trying to find a new layout for this blog and I thought this might be a good one.
The only thing I don't like about it is that there are no buttons for you to push to go to the different pages for the Prayer List, Music, Youth, Sunday School, etc.
What do you think? Do you think it's okay?
Or would you mind if I try another one?
Please leave a comment so I know what you're thinking.
God bless you.
I've been having technical problems with my computer and with the little voice recorder I use to tape Pastor Lorne's messages so I don't have a current message for you.
However, I've been trying to find a new layout for this blog and I thought this might be a good one.
The only thing I don't like about it is that there are no buttons for you to push to go to the different pages for the Prayer List, Music, Youth, Sunday School, etc.
What do you think? Do you think it's okay?
Or would you mind if I try another one?
Please leave a comment so I know what you're thinking.
God bless you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)