Ownership
We ended 2011 with gratitude to the Lord. New Year's Day we gathered strong to worship and fellowship. What a wonderful day!
The Discipleship MAT developed a "Breaking Bread" campaign for 2012 with 400 notebooks prepared for individuals who are ambitious to read the Bible through in a year. Personalized notebooks included strategy materials, a calendar, and instructional materials about prayer, fasting, and building relationships with God and man.
There is power in the Word. Many who have thought to read the Bible for criticism have found life flowing from the pages. Such is no question. The printed pages tell the wondrous story from Creation to the present of man searching for peace, and God seeking to provide peace.
I just read several chapters of the Book of John. Jesus did not hiccup when asked who He was or what was the purpose of His mission. He spoke distinctly, articulately and with singleness of heart that He had come from heaven to redeem man and give eternal life (John 4).
I taught high school English the year Laila and I married. Occasionally I would assign students to go the library and search for a book. They were to bring back a book whose author promised them that his spirit would be with them to help explain any difficult passages and to make what was written meaningful for the reader's life.
There is only one book in the library, any library, that has such a promise: The Bible. From the pages of the Bible flow words of inspiration, explanations of history, geography, climate, solar systems, archeology and social science. From the Bible flows practical advice about relationships, finances, investments, health, marriage, business, and rest of soul. From the Bible flow explanations of good and evil, war and peace, promise and hope, and eternal life.
It is still the most published book in the world---about 25,000,000 copies printed each year. Other religions have sought to produce books in greater numbers and failed. Can it be because there is only one book that points to the Living God and how every soul has hope in Christ?
We press into 2012 with great resolve to share the message of Jesus more generously. We ambition to press our own hearts more into fellowship with the saints. We have a passion to labor together in hopes of a great harvest. We pray that with singleness of heart we may focus on the mission Christ gave us---allowing nothing to separate us from devotion to honorable service (Matthew 28:18-20).
We believe that a foundation has been laid. We believe the world is hungry for words of peace and hope only Jesus can provide. We have our testimony. We will share what God had done for us in hopes that words of grace will fall softly upon the hearts of others.
We commit to an ambitious year. We pray that the Holy Spirit will equip us to be effective, efficient, and productive. We commit to live a life demonstrating that we are responsible citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. We will take up our cross and follow Jesus.
Stay in the Word.
Pastor Bare
John 1:1 ff