Covenant Church

Check it out on Google. You won’t find a three-wheeled Conestoga wagon in all the stories of the Old West. No such thing. Wagons needed four wheels…four good wheels…four wheels with lots of grease in the axels.

Terrain was rough, sometimes dry as a bone, with gullies, rivers, mountains, sandy/loamy soil, buffalo grass…you name it. Those big wheels had to keep on rolling. A few Indians in a bad mood put the horses or mules in a mad dash for shelter and safety. Every wheel needed to do what it was supposed to do. Life and limb depended on those four wheels to balance the wagon---keep it from turning over…and provide shelter for people, foods, and precious goods.

 Seems to me that some of the church world is trying to run on three wheels---and not much grease in the three wheels. No Bible study. No discipleship. No coordination of instruction to maintain consistency of doctrine, focus of purpose, and strategy for evangelism and missions. The 4th wheel of discipleship has been taken off. Spare folks the pain of having to learn about things that God says cannot be changed by times, seasons, economics, politics, wars, ad infinitum. Just pump and prime with feel-good songs and sermon.

Just save the energy of the fourth wheel and tell everybody we are headed West to find GOLD! Yes, Sir. Gold. Don’t fret. Don’t worry. Spend all your life savings on having a good time right now. Don’t worry about nothing, ‘cause God wants us to have a good time.

I am most delighted to share with you that Covenant has stayed the course. We never resorted to the feel good, be blessed without pain, and “how to go to heaven without sacrifice” sales speech of the devil.

We like and have good music. We enjoy worship. We are serious about the preached Word. Yet, we cherish and are deeply devoted to small groups studying the Bible and how to apply the Bible in our daily lives.

This past Sunday we put an exclamation mark on that 4th wheel of Bible study. Facilitators presented subject matter to be studied and recruited persons for their classes. All children and youth have focused Bible studies. Adults have a total of eight different Bible studies. Laila and I are doing a marriage class, but after listening to facilitators I almost wished Laila would teach and let me attend other classes. Subjects are wonderfully exciting, fresh, innovative, and practical for daily living.

Just like no three-wheel Conestoga wagons made it West, I am equally certain that congregations attempting to function without Bible study and discipleship will not survive. The Holy Spirit will not hang around where stagnation stops the flow of the Holy Spirit.

My hope is that you will catch the fever---the good fever of craving to be in a Bible study on Sundays. Learn. Share. Meet new friends. Bring friends and neighbors to enjoy Sunday worship and Bible study with you. Help them to enjoy their eternity in heaven.

That ole Conestoga wagon was one of the staples of the Old West. Four wheels. So, I reckon at Covenant we will stay with the tried-and-true---keep ourselves doing what Jesus and the disciples did…just stay in the Word. I have a hunch that the best of the future belongs to those who preserve reverence and devotion to Bible study.

Pastor Bare

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth [2nd Timothy 2:15].