GCV Blog

"Peanut butter." What comes into your mind when you hear those two words, "peanut butter"? Me, I think of how I like to eat Reese's two at a time. Or maybe one of my favorite ice creams ever, Moose Tracks. Say those two words to Silas, however, and he'll react much differently. He'll say "yuck," or make a spitting noise or, on a polite day, simply inform you that he's allergic and can't have any. In a much less trivial way, the two words "Mother's Day" can also result in a variety of reactions. This Mother's Day, let's take time to consider how we can best minister to each other.

Last week, we began to answer the question "What is Judges 19-21 in the Bible for?" My first suggestion was to look for clues in the context and text. Repeated phrases, recurring themes, and obvious similarities in the stories have already pointed us to the absence of a king and the utter spiritual bankruptcy of the nation of Israel.

Regardless of what age you choose to have your kids hear adult preaching, I'm sure every faithful parent wants their kids to get the most out of preaching. Joe Holland, pastor and church planter, gives 8 tips for talking to your kids about the sermon afterwards. Here are the first three:

In part 2 of last week's word, Joe Holland moves on to both practical and Gospel-centered advice. "Engage your kids with open ended questions. You know the outline and you can keep to the main point. You know youʼre going to talk a ton about Jesus. Now engage your kids with any kind of question you can think of... except ones that can be answered, "yes" or "no".

From despair to hope, defeat to victory, death to life, Easter is celebration. The resurrection is so central to Christianity that without it there isn't any Gospel to believe. With it, Christians are of all people most joyful and hopeful. But the resurrection isn't just central to the Gospel, it's also a key component of the glory of God. God, and God alone, gives life. He is where all life comes from. So without a God who can cause resurrection, there is no God of the Bible.

They are coming! In just two and a half short months, VBS and Camp 7 Oaks will be back in full swing. VBS and Camp give us unique and dynamic opportunities to make young disciples. From presenting the Gospel to teaching Christlikeness, these two special summer opportunities seize our summertime flexibility to fulfill the Great Commission. Our VBS and Camp 7 Oaks are venues to come alongside parents as they point their kids to Jesus. While we are making disciples of kids and partnering with Grace Church parents, we are simultaneously reaching out to parents and homes in our community. That's a lot to accomplish, even without considering any of the functional details that lie ahead!

"If you could lose your salvation, you would already have lost it." This was how John MacArthur began his sermon on Romans 8:26-33 at this years Shepherd's Conference. His contention was that the work of preserving us is a work that only God can do. As such, if we were in any way responsible for "keeping" our salvation we would fail. The work of keeping us is primarily the work of the Holy Spirit. He said that it was his opinion that the Holy Spirit's work in preserving us is the most precious work of the Holy Spirit.

I've watched a couple of military-themed movies recently and have found my thoughts occasionally occupied with "war themes." What would it be like to be a soldier? What would the training be like? What would combat be like? Could I hack something like the Navy Seals?

Legalism--there's at least a little bit in all of us, and it's bad for us. For a previous pastoral word we looked at Erik Raymond's article on legalism that pointed out that legalism promotes unbiblical standards (self-authority) and performance (self-righteousness.) In the second part, Erik focuses on the divisive nature of legalism.

Currently we have a total of five volunteers from our church who are active volunteers. Peter Thomas, Ben Friesen, Mark Edwards, Mary Ann, and I have all ministered at the prison over the past several months. We minister on two separate yards (prison facilities) at the prison. On Delta yard we lead services every other Friday night. On Alpha yard we lead a study on the third and fourth Sunday of each month. On both yards we enter in groups of two or three volunteers and minister to 30-80 inmates. The setting on each yard is different. On Delta yard we have one hour for a church service with 20 minutes of music and 40 minutes of preaching followed by an hour of fellowship and prayer. On Alpha yard we lead a two-hour Bible study. We are studying and teaching through the book of Mark on both yards. This ministry is much more than just a teaching ministry. It is one of encouragement and visitation. These brothers in Christ are so blessed by those who come to see them and spend time with them. Many are completely cut off from their families, some as a result of surrendering their life to Christ.