Do You Hear... Faith Not Fear?

"Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard." 
"Do not be afraid, Mary: you have found favour with God."
"Joseph, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife."
"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people."

When we think about Christmas, we don't normally think about fear. The idyllic picture of Christmas includes peace on earth and frosted window panes, snow-laden pine trees and brown paper packages tied up with string. But the biblical narrative tells a different story. There were so many unexpected encounters, twists, turns and strange events that our main characters are always met with the encouragement to not be afraid before anything else unfolds. So, it seems that fear is a big part of the Christmas story!

Fear is also a part of our stories. We grapple with it and manage it throughout our lives -everything from nervousness to phobias. Sometimes it keeps us safe, sometimes it keeps us too safe. It makes sense that calming fear is woven so well into Christ coming to earth. 1 John 4:18 tells us that there is no fear in love and we know that Christ is the epitome of love. 

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear...”

— 1 John 4:18

For the third Sunday of Advent, we're going to talk about fear. A different twist on what we think of as a peaceful story, but one that connects our ordinary lives to what happened on the first Christmas. 

Looking forward to seeing you then,
P. Tracy

Do You Hear... Obedience in Any Circumstance?

Obedience is a word that makes many of us cringe. It sounds so restrictive. However, the Christmas story shows us the incredible peace and reward of obeying God. God is for us. He wants us to live in freedom. In order to experience this freedom and peace, we need to obey God's Word, his teaching, his leading in our lives. God's words to us are ALWAYS for our best and so to obey them actually brings freedom and not bondage. Incredible!

We're going to look at some of the steps of obedience that Joseph had to take. This was no easy task; he was called to a very difficult role. We're also going to hear from another one of our church families who have had to obey God through some very trying circumstances. You will be inspired by their story.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday and exploring together how our obedience to God can be so powerful in our lives.

See you there,
Erin

Do You Hear... Trust in Uncertainty?

"City sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style; in the air there's a feeling of Christmas..." I'm writing this on the eve of our first predicted snowfall and two days ahead of Black Friday. I suppose the holiday season really is in the air. 

"Hear the snow crunch, see the kids bunch, this is Santa's big scene; and above all the bustle you'll hear... Silver bells." Is that what you hear? Not to be cynical but I've lived in "the city" for a long time and have never heard silver bells while strolling down the street!

While your calendar fills up and your bank account does the opposite, what is it that you hear at Christmas? What do you see? We wanted to ask you these questions starting on this first Sunday of Advent. John, one of the ones to have known Jesus in person while He was here on earth, starts his first epistle by describing what it meant to have God in the flesh living among us...

1 John 1:1-4 (MSG)
"From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in-we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes; we saw it happen! And now we're telling you in most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The infinite Life of God himself took shape before us. We saw it, we heard it, and now we're telling you so you can experience it along with us, this experience of communion with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!"

This is what we hope to do together this Advent and Christmas season, to really listen to what there is to hear and see what there is to see coming from the Incarnation story. On Sunday, Bjorn will start the "Do You Hear What I Hear" series with a message that brings Mary's story to the forefront - "Trust in Uncertainty". Plus you're going to hear another story from our Freedom family that will help us to launch into these next weeks with our ears really hearing and our eyes really seeing.

Looking forward to Sunday,
. Tracy

Pentecostal - A Heritage to Pass On

This Sunday, to wrap up all that we've been talking about since this series started in September, we're going to look at the heritage we have to pass on. This heritage is for the next generation and beyond, but it's also for us to live out and pass on to everyone that our lives come in contact with.

In the opening verses of 1 Thessalonians we get a glimpse into the reputation and influence of the Thessalonian church. Even though they were a young church and very unpopular in the their city, the church had already become well known for their endurance and faithfulness. (1 Thessalonians 1:2-10) Even though it cost them dearly, they didn't hide their belief in Jesus. 

We can learn a lot from their example. We're going to take some time together and consider our own influence and legacy. What are we known for as a church? As a family? As an individual? Let's dig into it and encourage one another as we get together on Sunday morning.

See you then,
Pastor Tracy

Pentecostal - Anointed For Service (Freedom Devotional)

I consider myself to be among the fortunate because as a child I was given Psalty: The Singing Songbook cassettes My favourite was Kids Praise 4.

And yes, I'm including these links because I think every child needs Psalty as part of their Christian education. LOL!

The reason I loved Kids Praise 4 so much was because it was about a church mouse named Charity who wanted to be a gospel singing star. This essentially summed up my dreams as a child. I'm sure you don't find that hard to believe. The lesson in the story comes when Charity realizes that even though she loves to sing, it's more important for her to be a servant than a star. 

The soundtrack of my childhood included lyrics like "make me a servant, humble and meek," "take all of me" and "learn to be the servant of all." I am so grateful for that because it has helped me understand something as I grew up in Christ. It's not a matter of how much you can bring to the kingdom, it's a matter of being filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit for kingdom service. Surrender is more valuable than status.

And while I know these things are true, when the rubber meets the road these principles are not always easy to live out. Surrender to the Holy Spirit and walking in anointed service isn't something we can decide once and for all. It's a daily decision to deny ourselves, take up our crosses and follow Him. 

When we read in scripture the anointing for service that Christ has made available to us, it's pretty amazing. I've heard many of you say that you are hungry for more of God and would love to see Matthew 10:8 happening in your life and in our church. What does it take to live out "anointed service" in our every day lives? I'm looking forward to exploring this with you on Sunday. 
 

See you then,

P. Tracy