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Spare Change - April

Our family's new favorite show is Lego Masters.  First, because we love to see the awesome creations that the contestants come up with.  Second, it’s a show that the whole family can watch, and third, we just love Lego! The fact that you can create anything you can imagine, you can follow the directions, or you can go off script and create something original.  If you have never played with Lego, I would strongly encourage you to get in touch with your inner builder.

This reminded me about a great truth that I felt was very appropriate for this time.  God is the greatest builder and one of His greatest builds is the church. We see this in Ephesians 2:18-22.

For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the  cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. Ephesians 2:18-22

We all know the church is not a building, it is the people of God.  God has built the church through the gospel of Jesus Christ. He has collected people, His children, creating a great structure called the church.  We see the foundation of this is the apostles and prophets. The great teaching from these two groups of men forms our foundation of God’s Word and points to the greatest part of the structure…Jesus.  Jesus is the cornerstone. This is the perfect stone that keeps the foundation in line, the walls straight, and makes the whole thing work. This structure, the church, is a holy temple created to bring glory to God.  He brings this all together by joining all His children in the Holy Spirit.

This truth points to the fact that we are all united because we have believed the gospel of Jesus Christ.  When we become believers, the Holy Spirit comes into our lives to help us, guide us, convict us, and strengthen us.  All believers throughout all time have had the Holy Spirit on them. This is a great uniting factor that helps us to know we are a part of God’s family.

What a timely admonition, especially as we are under a Stay-At-Home order from our governor.  Even though we can’t meet in person for worship or Bible study we are still one in Christ, bound by the Holy Spirit.  Remember the church does not exist because we have a brick and mortar building. Don’t get me wrong, buildings are nice.  We can provide a ton of ministry for our church and community because we have a building; however, we are reminded that the church is more than a building.  We have had to find new ways to connect through old and new technology. Our staff is actively seeking to keep connecting, teaching, and discipling even though we are not physically together.

The truth that we are united in Christ should be a great encouragement to all believers.  God still wants to use us during this difficult season. He is still building the church! Just because we do not get to be together does not mean we should not be looking for ways to grow the church.  I would encourage all our families to connect with teaching opportunities that the church is offering through worship, and teaching. We should all be looking for ways to connect with others during this time.  Call them on the phone, write letters, send emails, text, or video chat with each other. While we are sitting at home, possibly bored, use that time to do something for the Lord. Grow your relationship or encourage someone else.  Don’t let this time be wasted! God is going to continue to build the church, be a part of what He is doing!

Student Ministry - April

Dear Church Family,

Since I last wrote a newsletter article everything in the world has changed. Except for, of course, the fact that God is on His throne, and in Him we have a firm foundation! Believing this truth has become profoundly applicational for our lives at this time in history. I hope that you are holding on to Christ (as He holds onto you) wherever you are in life. In order to help students and families focus on the important things right now, I made a series of videos called: How to Spiritually Survive a Pandemic. I want to share some of what we talked about in those videos with you here.

 Here is the main question we need to ask ourselves: What do we need during a pandemic? The answers are actually very simple but easily overlooked.
1.      We need fellowship with God.
2.      We need community with Church, Family, and Friends.

We always need these things, but it is during a pandemic that we realize that we need them a lot more than we think we do.  Things like this help us to see what is truly important in life. These are the two great commands: to love the Lord with our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love neighbors as ourselves (Deut. 6:5; Matt. 22:37-40). This is what life is actually all about… even during a pandemic.

Fellowship with God comes through communication with Him. He communicates to us through His Word, which is illumined by the Holy Spirit in us. We communicate to Him by praying to Him. This is what we need every day. Jesus tells us in Matt. 4:4 that “man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” We need communication with God more than we need food, drink, and shelter. Those things can be taken away, but when you have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, you have eternal life, and He can never be taken away from you.

The second one, Christian community, is significantly harder now, but it is not impossible. I believe that we will crave this more since we know what it is like to be without. Christian Community with Church, Family, and Friends   usually looks like spending time together and encouraging one another in the gospel (1 Thess. 5:11). Well, during a  pandemic when you are on lock-down, you can’t be together. But with technology (video chats, live stream, simple phone calls and letters even), we can still spend time “together” just not together. We can encourage, pray, laugh, cry, study the Bible, and generally socialize via all sorts of social media platforms! We always say that social media isn’t bad, it’s all in how you use it. That’s why, especially now, we need to use it for God’s glory and the building up of other     believers. This is a time when we can find out just how good technology can be.

That said, your pastors are here for you. We love you and miss you all. Please reach out to us if you need anything. In the meantime, God bless you all!

Sincerely,
Brian Van Doren