But the fact is these stories exist, both in and out of the bible. So what do we make of them?  How do we understand them?  I don’t think anyone who claims to be a Christian would state that they don’t believe God can heal people, yet we seem to doubt that he does…

We’ve been spending the past few weeks talking about healing in the bible and how it shows a side of God’s character.  Today our students attempted a scholarly endeavour and wrote out synoptic comparisons on the stories of Jairus’ daughter and the bleeding woman, and Blind Bartimaeus. We also countered these stories of faith healings with the story of the demon possessed boys father who begs Jesus to save his son “if he can”.  The man tells Jesus “Lord, I believe… but help me with my unbelief…”

Sometimes we know something about God intellectually, but not with our hearts.  We know the theology behind it but get lost in the practise.  In our society we believe, but we need God to help us in our unbelief.

Is doubting God will be faithful, but acting according to his will anyways because you know that he is faithful an act of faith?

I think it is.  And I think God honors that.

Let’s pray boldly church.  Let’s act in faith, and when faith is lacking let us act according to God’s promises to us, because he is faithful.

We did an exercise.  We called it “crossing the river”.  I listed circumstances and issues that teenagers often have to deal with, and if it has effected you in some way, you cross the river (walk from one side of the room to the other.)  It took guts.  It took boldness.  For 11-14 year olds who normally keep their issues private it took an extreme amount of courage to open up to each other that way.  We should be proud of our youth.
“Cross the river if you feel, or have recently felt stressed out.”
“Cross the river if your family has experienced hard times. divorce, unemployment, death, addiction, things like that.”
“Cross the river if you’ve been called stupid or made to feel like you’re not good enough.”
“If you’ve felt betrayed by a friend”
“If you’ve lost friends because of a rumour about you.”
“Girls: If a man has whistled or cat called at you or in any way diminished your worth as a woman, or told you you couldn’t do something because you were female.”
“Guys: If someone has told you to suck it up, to be manly, not to cry, or to hide physical or emotional pain.”

Question after question students took a leap of faith and were surprized to see their friends crossing with them.  Most questions had the whole group crossing, none had less than two.

We can’t hide from our problems, and so we shouldn’t hide our problems either.  There are people around you, people who love you, who have gone through or are going through what you’re going through.

you are not alone. Jesus loves you.  He knows your circumstance, he’s right there with you.  No matter how bleak, how dark, or how hopeless it seems, he is there.

Thank God for that.

-Jeff

A penny for your thoughts.—Old proverb

A few months ago the government of Canada decided to stop producing pennies from the Royal Canadian Mint. This past week, the last ceremonial penny was produced at the mint in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Apparently this will save the government $11 million dollars per year. All the existing  pennies will remain in circulation for years to come. But eventually the lowly penny will disappear from small-change purses, piggy banks, jars and cash registers.

I don’t know about you, but I find there is something bittersweet about the demise of the penny. Many of us remember purchasing “penny candy” as kids, or tossing pennies into wishing wells. Like many children, I remember collecting pennies in a piggy bank, rolling them up and taking them into the bank to open a savings account. It seems to me that the penny has gotten a “bad rap” of sorts. I think that the penny represents one of the many small things in life, that while they may seem insignificant on their own, can have a great impact when amassed together.

I’m reminded of a proverbial rhyme which goes like this:

For want of a nail the shoe was lost. For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost. For want of a rider the message was lost.
For want of a message the battle was lost. For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

The rhyme tells us that small actions can have large consequences. In one of his parables, Jesus gave a similar analogy: “The person who is faithful in the little things will be faithful in the big things.” (Luke 16:10)

Despite seeming insignificant, lots of pennies can make an impact. Similarly, lots of small deeds of love and kindness can make a difference in our world. The late Mother Teresa of Calcutta put it this way: “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” The next time you want to discard a penny, think about the cumulative power of many pennies. And remember the awesome power of many small acts of love and kindness.

A penny for your thoughts?

Date: Sunday, May 27th    Time: 12 – 3 PM

This summer marks the 30th anniversary of SPARC Camps! SPARC began at Lorne Park Baptist Church back in 1982, and has since grown and flourished into the much loved day camp it is today. Whether you are a past camper, helper, camp counselor or parent, whatever your connection to SPARC may be, please join us on Sunday, May 27 as we reminisce, appreciate, and celebrate 30 amazing years of SPARC Camps!

I want a house more than anything I can think of.  Apartment living just doesn’t seem to cut it now that I have kids.  The idea of sitting in my house, looking out into the back yard with a warm cup of tea is more than pleasing to me, it’s downright sinful.  I am trying to get in shape so I will quite often go for long walks or runs on which my mind glances from house to house thinking about what I like and dislike about them.  I like to think about the features I want my house to have; how many rooms, bathrooms, open or closed concept, back yard, back patio, near parks, schools etc.  I actively covet houses.  It’s something that I enjoy doing, but something that ultimately leaves me feeling unsettled and unsatisfied.

We all know we aren’t supposed to covet; and yet we all do (I’m fairly comfortable making that generalization).  We covet things that we don’t have, things that we are sure will make our lives better, but deep down are we really convinced that they will?

There is an old Hindu story about a king who goes out into his country to see his people.  He sees many, many people in destitute poverty, and some who are very rich.  He sees different interactions between different people, but through it all he sees that all the people seem generally dissatisfied with life and with each other.  Finally he comes across a man sleeping by the side of the road with a stone for a pillow.  The man is sleeping with a huge smile on his face.  He is very satisfied.  The king asks one of his servants why the man looks so happy.  The servant asks the king for 99 rupees to demonstrate something to him.  The king obliges and the servant gets out of the carriage.  He goes to the sleeping man, wakes him, and hands him 99 rupees.  The man smiles, counts the money and frowns.  He looks at the king’s servant and says: “Why not 100?”

We are never satisfied.

I don’t think it’s wrong to want things, or to dream of what your life might have in store.  As I understand it, coveting things is not wrong because you want the items you covet; it’s wrong because you are not trusting God to provide you with the things that you need.  You are not satisfied with what the king has given you.  You want 100 rupees instead of 99.

I’m reading this book right now by a pastor named Francis Chan.  The book is called “Crazy Love” and it’s about God’s love for us, and the different ways we respond to that (both appropriate and inappropriate).  In one chapter Chan talks about how he felt God calling him to sell his house, move into a smaller house, give away the extra money, and use the money that they saved on monthly mortgage payments to help people in need.  He also talks about how his church and his friends responded to that.

“You’re crazy!”

“You aren’t being fair to your kids!”

“You aren’t doing what’s best for your family!”

“You’re taking the bible too literally!”

Now, Chan sold his house to better serve God, which I know for him also means to spend lots of time with his kids and his family.

When was the last time you ever heard somebody say “Yeah, my dad was around a lot, but I just wish he would have worked longer hours so we could live in a bigger house!”

Never. (I’m also fairly comfortable making THIS generalization)

You never hear that!  People always say the opposite. They talk about all the material things their parents were able to give them, but mourn the fact that they didn’t get more face time with their dads or moms.

Billy Crystal wrote a whole play about it!

If I buy a house, I will have little to no available income to give away if someone needs it. (Not that we should give out of what we have, we should give more, more out of what we don’t have and have faith that God will take care of it; but that’s a whole other blog!)

Maybe God is calling me to live in an apartment so that I can afford to bless people and projects with my available finances.  Maybe my coveting houses is blinding me from seeing the kingdom of God unfolding before my eyes.  Maybe my dissatisfaction with my living space is a spit in the face of the king who gave it to me (it’s certainly more than I deserve).

God gave me 99 rupees, and I have the audacity to ask him for the hundredth?

God knows my heart.  He knows what I want.  And he knows when, if, and where he wants to give it to me.  Maybe I should trust that.  His plans have proven way better than mine so far anyways.

Maybe I should stop coveting my neighbours ox, and start praising God for the ox he’s given me.

What do you covet?

(This blog also available at http://www.twoxtwo.ca)

See upcoming info, events and just connect!

“LPBC…a church made up of families, singles, children, youth, young adults and seniors. Some are long time Christ Followers, while others are trying to figure out who God is and what Christianity is all about. We are all different, but here for one common reason, to discover the truths in the Bible and make them practical in our lives today. Check out www.lpbc.ca.  All are welcome!

SEND A KID TO SPARC CAMP!
Many families cannot afford to pay for camp for their children. We hope to offer 30 FREE
spaces to children from our community. With camper registrations ranging between
$168 – $212 each week, we have a goal of raising $5500 for camper scholarships!
If you can assist us, even with partial registration fees, please place your cheque payable to: Lorne Park Baptist Church, designated for SPARC in the memo line, in the offering plate. Give a child a week they will never forget!

MANITOBA TOWEL & LINEN DRIVE
Each year, LPBC has generously contributed much needed bedding and towels for the First Nations community we visit in Manitoba.
This year, we need your help more than ever.
The spring floods have devastated the community of Little Saskatchewan, and it may be September before our friends can return to their homes again. When they do, we expect that their homes will have been damaged by water and mould.
Please consider donating your clean towels or bedding, new or used and we will deliver
them to Pathways Ministry for distribution to this and other needy communities.
They can be dropped off at the church before July 29th or call for pickup.
Thank you from the Manitoba Mission Team!

“Anyone too scared to fight in this battle may leave now and go home to your families!”

Confusion sets in over your army as they pause to take in what you’ve just said.  You open your mouth to speak again, and are once again shocked at the words you speak:

“The LORD has told me that we are to win this battle by his strength alone!  So anyone who is afraid to fight may leave now!”

Slowly, and with much hesitation, men start walking down the path to the bottom of the mountain towards their homes.  Only a few go at first, but soon more.  A trickle becomes a flow, and a flow becomes a current and suddenly 22,000 of your 32,000 men are timidly walking down the mountain towards their home, safe and secure.  Your heart sinks as you do the math in your head.

“32,000 – 22,000 = …10,000… well… we can still make a dent in them… maybe scare them away from us for a while…”

It’s almost time for the fight, you lead your men to a stream and tell them to drink so that they can be properly hydrated before the battle.  Your heart sinks again as you hear that old familiar voice inside your head.  It’s him again…

“You still have too many warriors.” He says, “If you go into battle with this many people your nation will think it liberated itself.  I am going to liberate you.  They need to know that.  Send some more home.”

You try and reason with him, but it’s pointless.  It always is.  You look out at the way your men are drinking.  Some are cupping the water into their hands and then using their tongues to drink like they were dogs, but most are just kneeling with their mouths directly in the stream.  Reluctantly you open your mouth to speak.

“Everyone who is kneeling down and drinking with their mouths can go home!”

Confusion again, but in times of battle one must always listen to their commanding officer.  Slowly the men stand up and head down the same mountain path that so many of their friends walked earlier that day.  Math time again.  This time it’s easy, a simple head count will do.  After you and your commanders spend a few minutes counting and adding you choke out a rough figure of those who are left.

“…300… 300 men to fight off all of the Midianites… we’re dead…”

It seems crazy.  It was crazy.  This was the situation a guy named Gideon found himself in, in Judges Chapters 6 and 7.  He was afraid; who wouldn’t be?  But God required that Gideon trust him.  God needed the Israelites to know that he can do much with little.

God does stuff like this throughout the Bible; particularly when Jesus was in the picture (I mean… Jesus is still in the picture… just in a different way).  In Mark chapter 6 Jesus feeds 5000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish.  That’s 1000 people per loaf and 2,500 people per fish.  Now either they were enormous loaves and the biggest fish you’ve ever seen, or that is a clear example of God doing much with little.  The bible says everyone ate until they were full and afterwards 12 baskets of food were collected from the scraps.

Later on in Mark chapter 8 Jesus feed 4000 people in a similar way.  That time there were 7 baskets left over.  Numbers are always tricky in the bible; sometimes they mean something, and sometimes they don’t.  In this case I think they do.  You see, there were 12 tribes of Israel, so when Jesus did a miracle with 12 baskets of food left over I think it was God’s way of saying that he has the power to take care of all 12 tribes.  In the second miracle 7 baskets were left; in the Jewish tradition 7 is the number of wholeness.  I think it was God’s way of saying that he has the power to care for the whole world.

The Bible is full of examples of how God can do a lot with a little, and how all we need to do is trust him.  This week we’re challenging our students (and ourselves!) to realize where in our lives God is trying to do much in.  Because the truth is all we need to do is let him.

Jb