So I’m excited about some of the things that took place this week. One of the things we do to begin our Tuesday morning staff meetings is share our “wins” from the last week. I had a few to share. So I want to share with you today.
Our Sunday morning went really well. I was a little concerned with how the Sunday School lesson would go. Remember that 2 weeks ago I talked about how the Bible was put together – the canonization of Scripture. I knew that it would be a little on the lecture side (which I try to steer from), but it’s so important for us as Christians to know how we got the Bible.
Well this week I talked about how we can know the Bible is reliable. Not only do we need to know how we got the Bible, but we also need to know that the Bible is reliable. Faith is definitely part of that, but we also have some incredibly valid facts to draw from. We have 3 ways to know that the Word is truth. We have Fulfilled Prophesy, Archeological Support, and Historical Evidence. All 3 provide ways that we as Christians can defend our faith (Apologetics). I will create a copy of what I talked about so that you can have it too. I really think it’s so important.
My win from that is hearing the excitement many of students had toward the lesson. Some were really struggling with how to know for sure that the Bible is reliable. God answered them! Huge win!
Sunday night was great as well. We continued the series on the Fruit of the Spirit. This week we focused on Peace. Please take some time to listen to what your students are hearing - http://www.fbcvandalia.net/media.php?pageID=44
This Sunday night we will be looking at Patience.
On Tuesday morning I had the great opportunity to go to Bethel HS and lead the morning devotion for a group of students. There were about 15 in attendance. The focus that morning was on “Where is God in Your Life?” I asked them if God was the main priority in their lives. Many people say that God is number 1, my family is 2, my church is 3, my job is 4…etc. But ultimately when we live that way we tend to put everything in its own box. And sure we may spend time with God, but He is soon forgotten. Instead, God must be in everything and every area of our lives. So instead of God AND my family, job, school…make it God IN my family, job, school. Spending time there was a great encouragement to me. I got a chance to meet some new students and give them encouragement too. It was a great morning.
I want to continue to encourage you to ask your students questions about what they are learning. I am beginning to do that with Tyler and it’s important to talk a little deeper about what’s going on.
Just a reminder that this Sunday morning is “United We Worship” at Butler HS Student Activity Center starting at 10AM. I am really excited about worshipping together under one roof at one time. Come prepared to worship our great God together! (We will not have any Sunday morning Small Groups/Bible Study for Students or Adults. However, Sunday night is on as usual) It’s also WOW Sunday. The offering we take up on Sunday will go to help those going on mission this year. Ask the Lord to reveal to you what you are to bring this Sunday!
We also need a little more help with transporting and setting up staging for this weekend. If you are available please show up in the main building/sanctuary at 1PM on Saturday. The load up will begin and then the setup will happen about 3PM in the SAC. I hope you can help!
Thanks again for your prayers! Continue to pray for all of leaders in our ministry! And remember that the Hangar is open on Sunday and Wednesday nights for you to come and pray!
Pressing On,
Dale
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
How are we today?
“Today has been a pretty good day so far! Thanks for asking.” I know that the day is still pretty young, but it’s already been good. I’ve felt love from my family, have spent time in the Word, and had a pretty in depth conversation with a student about how I interpret a portion of Scripture out of the book of Hebrews…good start!
So let me bring you up to speed over the last week or so…
Three Sunday’s ago, Pastor David preached in our IMPACT service. He did a great job challenging students to step it up and be an example for the Lord. His message was uploaded to our server so that it could be posted for you all to hear… Unfortunately, it’s now nowhere to be found. :/ If we do stumble upon it, we will let you know and upload it for you to listen to.
Two Sunday’s ago was Super Bowl Sunday. During the morning Bible study, we watched a sermon from Francis Chan called, “The Biggest Lie in Your Life” If you have a chance, please watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5ILptT_CRo. He talks about the fact that there are Christians who think they are something they’re not. He refers to Revelation 3:1. “I know your works. You have this reputation for being alive, but you are dead.” Tough words from Jesus to the church of Sardis…but equally challenging to us as well. How many of us have this reputation for being alive, but on the inside we are spiritually dead? We may have the ability to make others think we are better than what we are. We can put on a good show when we are at church, in small group, even hanging out with church people, but on the inside there is nothing in us that looks like Christ. He asked the question, “Are you more concerned with your reputation than with your character?” “Are you more concerned with stuff or with Christ?” In Philippians 3, Paul says that he wants nothing more than to become like Christ. Nothing else matters. He counted everything else as a loss. It is a challenge every one of us needs. To be asked those difficult questions…and to respond honestly. So what are you pursuing? Stuff or Christ.
That night we had a focused time of prayer. We had a number of students who were attending Super Bowl gatherings, so I did not want to jump right back into the Fruit of the Spirit series and have many of our students miss. The time of prayer was awesome. We had students and adults pray and we had a great time worshipping our Great God!
This past Sunday was a great Sunday as well. In the morning Bible study we looked at how we got the Bible. I was able to ask some questions about the Bible and then go into a direction of how the books were chosen…a little history in the canonization of Scripture. It was fun. Did you know that the Bible was written over a period of 1500-2000 years by roughly 40 writers? It’s important for us to know the history of the Word. If we are going to defend our faith in Christ, we must know how the Book was put together. I also provided a handout of authors, themes, and dates of each book. We still have some of those handouts available, or if you would like, I can email it to you. Just let me know. This coming week are going to look at how we know the Bible is true.
Sunday night we jumped back into the Fruit series. We look at the Fruit of Joy. We had a great time of worship and then teaching. I was able to share that Joy is different than happiness. Many times we confuse the two.
Here is my intro the message…the audio should be up today.
You see, joy stands even in the times of trials and difficulty. Why? Because Joy comes from God’s grace. He provides us with the ability to be joyful in those hard moments. Happiness goes away. It’s based on our feelings. I can be joyful without being happy.
Take time this week to listen to the rest of the message.
It’s been a good couple of weeks. I’m excited about where we are and where the Lord is taking us. Keep praying for the leadership in our ministry. We are seeking to do what the Lord is calling us too, and we ask that you continue to lift us up!
Here are a couple of things to be aware of…
Thanks for trusting us with your student!
Pressing On,
Dale
So let me bring you up to speed over the last week or so…
Three Sunday’s ago, Pastor David preached in our IMPACT service. He did a great job challenging students to step it up and be an example for the Lord. His message was uploaded to our server so that it could be posted for you all to hear… Unfortunately, it’s now nowhere to be found. :/ If we do stumble upon it, we will let you know and upload it for you to listen to.
Two Sunday’s ago was Super Bowl Sunday. During the morning Bible study, we watched a sermon from Francis Chan called, “The Biggest Lie in Your Life” If you have a chance, please watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5ILptT_CRo. He talks about the fact that there are Christians who think they are something they’re not. He refers to Revelation 3:1. “I know your works. You have this reputation for being alive, but you are dead.” Tough words from Jesus to the church of Sardis…but equally challenging to us as well. How many of us have this reputation for being alive, but on the inside we are spiritually dead? We may have the ability to make others think we are better than what we are. We can put on a good show when we are at church, in small group, even hanging out with church people, but on the inside there is nothing in us that looks like Christ. He asked the question, “Are you more concerned with your reputation than with your character?” “Are you more concerned with stuff or with Christ?” In Philippians 3, Paul says that he wants nothing more than to become like Christ. Nothing else matters. He counted everything else as a loss. It is a challenge every one of us needs. To be asked those difficult questions…and to respond honestly. So what are you pursuing? Stuff or Christ.
That night we had a focused time of prayer. We had a number of students who were attending Super Bowl gatherings, so I did not want to jump right back into the Fruit of the Spirit series and have many of our students miss. The time of prayer was awesome. We had students and adults pray and we had a great time worshipping our Great God!
This past Sunday was a great Sunday as well. In the morning Bible study we looked at how we got the Bible. I was able to ask some questions about the Bible and then go into a direction of how the books were chosen…a little history in the canonization of Scripture. It was fun. Did you know that the Bible was written over a period of 1500-2000 years by roughly 40 writers? It’s important for us to know the history of the Word. If we are going to defend our faith in Christ, we must know how the Book was put together. I also provided a handout of authors, themes, and dates of each book. We still have some of those handouts available, or if you would like, I can email it to you. Just let me know. This coming week are going to look at how we know the Bible is true.
Sunday night we jumped back into the Fruit series. We look at the Fruit of Joy. We had a great time of worship and then teaching. I was able to share that Joy is different than happiness. Many times we confuse the two.
Here is my intro the message…the audio should be up today.
The Greek word for 'joy' is chara. Chara comes from the word charis. And charis is the Greek word for 'grace.' This is important to note, for chara (joy) is produced by the charis (grace) of God. This means 'joy' is not a human-based happiness that comes and goes but, rather, true 'joy' is divine in its origin. You see happiness comes and goes based on feelings. But joy is a Spirit-given expression that flourishes best in hard times. Paul talks about this in 1 Thessalonians 1:6. You see, the Thessalonians were under great stress due to persecution; but in the midst of it all, they continued to experience great joy. The Greek strongly implies that their supernatural joy was due to the Holy Spirit working in them. Paul even called it the "joy of the Holy Ghost".
You see, joy stands even in the times of trials and difficulty. Why? Because Joy comes from God’s grace. He provides us with the ability to be joyful in those hard moments. Happiness goes away. It’s based on our feelings. I can be joyful without being happy.
Take time this week to listen to the rest of the message.
It’s been a good couple of weeks. I’m excited about where we are and where the Lord is taking us. Keep praying for the leadership in our ministry. We are seeking to do what the Lord is calling us too, and we ask that you continue to lift us up!
Here are a couple of things to be aware of…
- This Friday night we are having a Board Game Night in the church fellowship hall. The time will be 6:30-9:30PM. Students and leaders are to bring their favorite table/board game, as well as a snack to share and something to drink. There is no other cost. Let them come and hang out with us.
- Sunday is the deadline to register and pay for Dare 2 Share. D2S is a conference that trains students to share the Gospel. The cost is $45 + 3 meals. The conference is March 2-3 at Hara Arena. We will be sleeping at the church on that Friday night. Once they are registered they will need to fill out a waiver and I will be providing a list of what to bring and not bring. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Thanks for trusting us with your student!
Pressing On,
Dale
Friday, February 3, 2012
Where did this week go?
So title for this week says it all. I'm wondering where this week went. Well, I kind of know...but that doesn't make it any easier.
This week started off really busy and ended with me battling being sick. There were a few meetings on Monday, one at Butler HS that had some great results. I am loving the partnership with them over the last year and am excited for what's to come.
The rest of the week...well that's another story. I started to get sick on Tuesday...which I found out on Friday that I have bronchitis. It's not been fun. However, it's one of the main reasons for the delay in this blog post.
Last Sunday night was a great night of worship. The students were singing praise to God with everything. There was such passion in their voices. I am continuing to pray that this is genuine heartfelt worship to our great God. Please pray with me!
The message Sunday night was brought from Pastor David. He challenged our students to be an example to others in the way they speak, live, love, faith and in purity, His challenge came from 1 Timothy 4:12. It was great for our students to hear from our pastor. We have a number of students who are coming on Sunday and Wednesday evenings, but not Sunday mornings. I have strongly encouraged them to do so, so it was good to give them the chance to hear from David and to know that they have an important role in our church as a whole. It was a great night and the message will be up soon. I encourage you as parents to listen so you know how your student was challenged. It'll also give you some talking points with your student.
This Sunday night will be a night of prayer. I am not going to be jumping right back into the Fruits of the Spirit series. I will restart that on 2/12. I know that this week is the Super Bowl and that some of you are having small group gatherings and you are having your student stay with you. I know that some students are gathering together too. I really do not want them to miss out on our series and due to my illness as well, my prep time has been limited this week. As I prayed through some things...talked with Christa and Zac, I made the decision to have a night of prayer. We have a lot to pray about...and I'm excited to see where the Lord takes it.
Following our service, we will have the tv's in the cafe, college room and maybe another area with the big game on. So if you and your student will be around, we can watch the game together.
Just as a reminder...the worship room will be open from 5:25-6PM on Sunday evening if you would like to come and pray. It is open to all parents...or anyone who feels led to pray for our students and leaders.
Pressing On,
Dale
This week started off really busy and ended with me battling being sick. There were a few meetings on Monday, one at Butler HS that had some great results. I am loving the partnership with them over the last year and am excited for what's to come.
The rest of the week...well that's another story. I started to get sick on Tuesday...which I found out on Friday that I have bronchitis. It's not been fun. However, it's one of the main reasons for the delay in this blog post.
Last Sunday night was a great night of worship. The students were singing praise to God with everything. There was such passion in their voices. I am continuing to pray that this is genuine heartfelt worship to our great God. Please pray with me!
The message Sunday night was brought from Pastor David. He challenged our students to be an example to others in the way they speak, live, love, faith and in purity, His challenge came from 1 Timothy 4:12. It was great for our students to hear from our pastor. We have a number of students who are coming on Sunday and Wednesday evenings, but not Sunday mornings. I have strongly encouraged them to do so, so it was good to give them the chance to hear from David and to know that they have an important role in our church as a whole. It was a great night and the message will be up soon. I encourage you as parents to listen so you know how your student was challenged. It'll also give you some talking points with your student.
This Sunday night will be a night of prayer. I am not going to be jumping right back into the Fruits of the Spirit series. I will restart that on 2/12. I know that this week is the Super Bowl and that some of you are having small group gatherings and you are having your student stay with you. I know that some students are gathering together too. I really do not want them to miss out on our series and due to my illness as well, my prep time has been limited this week. As I prayed through some things...talked with Christa and Zac, I made the decision to have a night of prayer. We have a lot to pray about...and I'm excited to see where the Lord takes it.
Following our service, we will have the tv's in the cafe, college room and maybe another area with the big game on. So if you and your student will be around, we can watch the game together.
Just as a reminder...the worship room will be open from 5:25-6PM on Sunday evening if you would like to come and pray. It is open to all parents...or anyone who feels led to pray for our students and leaders.
Pressing On,
Dale
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