You would think that everyone would be working hard to have more family dinners, yet according to a number of studies the frequency of family dinners is shrinking in Canada. Today 1/4 to 1/3 never or seldom eat together as a family and 14% never eat a family meal!

Walking by faith is rewarded by God, but so is standing, and this takes confidence. In Hebrews 10 we read, do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised… “My righteous[one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.”

From the time we were little, many of us dreamt of being firefighters, astronauts, doctors, soldiers… All occupations that take courage. And though we may not always maintain the same passion for that particular occupation as we grow older, something in all of us still longs to do something courageous with our lives. Yet so often, when the moment comes to make a decision or to step out in courage, we can find that we don’t have the capacity or ability to do so. The desire may be there, but often when the moment comes, we feel like we are not ready, and we can easily shy away from the moment.

At the end of the Day, the medals that we have hanging from our heavenly shelves will not be given according to our earthly wealth or our worldly achievements, instead we are rewarded by the influence and impact that we make in helping others know about Jesus and inspiring them to race for the eternal crowns that they too will have the opportunity to receive for generations to come.

On a scale of 1 to 10 how encouraged are you today? Are you somewhere in the middle?
As we go through each day, I think we often walk a very fine line between encouragement and discouragement. One moment, everything is positive – your feeling good – and then out of nowhere something doesn’t quite go as you had hoped or you hear a piece of bad news and you find yourself battling discouragement.

A significant struggle as Bible believing Christians is with having courage to trust God even when we’ve been disappointed before. In Pastor Dave’s sermon series on courage this summer, we learned recently about how important our worldview is when it comes to standing for truth (sermon titled: Courage to Stand for Truth).

There will be moments in all our lives that demand courage. We will all face situations that are larger than our experience or ability. The great news is that we don’t have to walk through these situations in our own strength, as believers, we have the power of God in us. The Bible is filled with stories of ordinary men and woman that reveal how we too can be courageous.

What is the biggest fear you have had to face in life? No matter what season or times we live in, we will all face difficult situations to which we will need courage and strength. It could be a change in jobs, a new venture, a new career, or new relationship. Returning to a new normal after more than a year of being isolated looks like a new territory for many of us.

The living God is not like us, that is all the more reason to seek Him. Tozer said: “what we think when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” What are we thinking? Isaiah 66:2: “But on this one will I look: On him who is of a poor and contrite spirit, and who trembles at My Word.” He is speaking of reverence. That is something I need to know. Listen to Pastor Dave’s message again. So many good lessons when we are in a valley with a shadow.

You and I were created to have an unbroken relationship with God and others. We were always meant to be in a loving functional relationship demonstrated by continuous and clear communication.

Have you ever found yourself in a mess and you can’t see a way out? There are relationship messes, a financial messes and legal messes to name a few. Sometimes we are in a mess because we “messed up”, other times we’re caught up in a world or turmoil or disarray that is beyond our control.

When it comes to your personal life are you a good planner? Do you enjoy making plans? In our family, we run the full spectrum. Some are meticulous planners and organize almost everything well in advance…

It was well over a year ago (around March of 2020) when church leaders began to ponder the question, “What are we going to do if we can’t meet as a church on Sundays?” Fast forward to the late spring in 2021 as churches in our Province are allowed to resume in-person meetings, I want to share some of the lessons that church leaders, like myself and many other pastors, have gained to see the church not only survive the pandemic, but to THRIVE amid adversity.

very great man and woman of God that we read about in the Bible has been confronted with the question of whether they are affecting culture or if the culture around them is affecting them. And in that question, a decision arises: Will you set a new trend, or simply follow along with society and what the culture of the day dictates?

I’ve got to be honest, this passage never really filled me with much joy or hope… I mean James paints a pretty bleak picture of how incapable we humans are at controlling such an unruly part of us. Reading this as a teenager hit pretty hard. Teenagers already have a hard enough time believing they’re good enough at doing stuff, here was another thing to add to the list. How many times did I crack a joke trying to fit in that really ended up being unkind? Why did I say that? It was frustrating to reflect on at the time, and then James went on to describe the tongue as a relentless evil full of deadly poison. Yikes. Was there any hope for any of us, I wondered?

What unites a family beyond genetics, could be faith, culture, hardship, hobbies, or a physical home. But one thing that is always true without fail, is how different every family member is. As every one gets older, the things that united the family, may not seem as significant anymore and differences may become much more apparent.

Have you ever felt as if your past mistakes, glaring flaws, and life circumstances have led you to a dark place limiting you from receiving something from God?  Perhaps these have paralyzed you with inaction and wondered, “am I good enough to receive all that God has for me?”