Make our joy complete
Scripture: 1 John 1:1-2:6
Well, here we are back at Carman for another year! We’ve had a light summer here in the church, a time of rest. And now that September is upon us, it’s the time of year we begin to try and remember what we were saying we should do way back in May and June!
We’ve got a number of things to get back on track here at Carman. Some of which I’m excited about, well most of them really, but others are smaller items which will hopefully streamline things a bit for us.
Of course, we need to get another round of Hearing God workshops going this fall. I anticipate getting those started mid October, so stay tuned for that. We are working on our anniversary service in early November. Our Light Up service around the start of Advent. We want to have a spiritual retreat this year, and we’ll be working on finding a time in the early spring for that. We’re working on a potential new governance structure for you all to consider sometime over the winter. What else is on the go?
Oh yes, there’s the youth outreach activities that other churches want to get started with us here in the town. We’ve talked over the years about running Alpha again. Will we have Bible studies this year? Will we have a youth group? Will we have a confirmation class?
There is a lot going on this year, on top regular Sunday services, funerals, Christmas and Easter and our Sunday School!
How are we going to get all this done? read more…
Who’s Reward
Scripture: Matthew 16:13-20
It is good to be back with you this morning. We had a very nice and relaxing family vacation, and the best part was when my phone didn’t ring!
We didn’t do anything particularly special this year, just hung out together and did some little day adventures here and there which kept us as busy as we wanted to be.
There’s just something about getting away for a bit which helps you reflect, which helps you reenergize, which even helps you to prioritize things in a new way when you return.
I feel like this has been particularly good vacation for me this year. It’s been good for me to get away and unplug from life in the church, to spend time with my family, and to relax.
As a result, I’m back, I’m refreshed, and I’m ready to continue on this journey God is calling us on.
But what of this journey? What is it we are doing as churches? What is it that grants us the permission to stand out as something (or someone) different in the world today?
Review: God among Sages, Kenneth Samples
God among Sages: Why Jesus Is Not Just Another Religious Leader is an interesting book which introduces people to the variety of major religions of the world from a Christian perspective. Samples compares Jesus with the other major religious leaders/founders who are worshiped in today’s world.
He lays out some good arguments from the Christian perspective, but without further reading he does make some leaps/assumptions not everyone may agree with. Personally I didn’t have much opposition to what he wrote, but I can certainly see how people may.
If your are looking for an introduction to other religions from a Christian perspective, to see how Jesus “matches up” against other religions, this book is a good place to start.
Pick up your copy at your local Christian store or online (ie. Amazon)
*Disclaimer: I received this book complimentary from Graf-Martin and Baker Books
Review: (re)union, Bruxy Cavey
I’ve been looking forward to this book when I first heard of it. I appreciate Bruxy and his contributions to the church, and was looking forward to what he had to say in this book.
The full title of his latest book (released May 2017) is, Reunion: The Good News of Jesus for Seekers, Saints, and Sinners
It truly is good news.
This book lays out the great promise of God in Jesus Christ in plain, simple to understand language. Whether you are a seeker, a new Christian, or even a pastor like myself you will learn from this book.
I know it’s given me some new insights into Jesus and will likely help form and inform an upcoming sermon series at some time in the near future.
Thanks to Bruxy for writing this and I look forward to further engagement with people on the topics covered in the book.
Pick up your copy today at your local Christian store or from Amazon.
*Disclaimer: I received this book free from Graf Martin and Herald Press.
Finding Purpose
Scripture: Romans 6:12-23
It’s kind of remarkable to consider how the landscape of Canada has changed over the last half century.
Sears is closing many of it’s stores this year. I’m sure many of you remember Sears and it’s centrality of your life at some point. Who could ever forget the Christmas catalog! I remember as a child making regular trips into Halifax to shop with my parents at Sears, mainly the outlet store, although we always walked through the entire store.
But it looks like Sears is going to be no more. Sure they are doing all they can to halt that arrow which is pointing downwards in regards to their profitability. But we’ve all seen this pattern before.
You want to save money, so you close your stores. But, if you close your stores, how are people going to know what to buy?
Well, you ramp up your online presence. It seems like everyone is buying stuff online these days. That’s great. But you’re late to the market with that one. There are MANY other options out there, which are far more well known and often have better prices.
It’s part of capitalism really. Sure there are examples of companies surviving such a turnaround, but those are few and far between these days. And certainly, those who have turned it around didn’t face such strong competition as Sears.
There are hundreds of competitors to Sears, both with physical stores and online stores which are already more popular. read more…