Hey Y'all. I hope everyone has a great Christmas this year. I am actually typing this from my parents computer in Mississippi. We are here for a few days to spend Christmas with our family and to visit with some friends. And the weather...WOW! I am actually wearing short sleeves outside because the temps are in the 60's. Whew...its getting kind of hot! We do miss the snow, though.
So have a great Christmas remembering and celebrating the birth of our Savior who was miraculously born in human flesh. He humbled or emptied Himself and gave up the splendor of heaven to take on our human flesh and live on this earth and then die on the cross for sins He had not even committed. Now that really deserves a WOW!!! That is definitely the greatest gift we could ever receive. So please don't forget Christ's birth this year as we celebrate one of the most awesome events (if not the most awesome) to ever take place in the history of mankind. And what great hope we have because Christ rose from the grave on the third day and now is in heaven preparing a place for us and will soon return to take us HOME. It is going to be great when we get HOME to heaven and spend eternity with our ginormous (thats the gigantic and enormous combo) family of believers. WOWSERS!! That will be awesome. And we are confident that Christ will return. Just as many prophecies were fulfilled when Christ was born in Bethlehem that night many years ago, so too, we can be confident that the prophecies dealing with Christ's return will also be fulfilled. Our HOPE is a CERTAINTY!!
Ok, so I hope that encourages you a little. I am encouraged just thinking about all of these things and knowing that I am a secure child of God. I hope everyone reading this also has that security. If not you certainly can. Just ask me how, its simple, it is simply faith in Christ.
All right, y'all have a great Christmas!!
Friday, December 23, 2005
Monday, December 19, 2005
Super Cold Caroling was Super
Thanks to all who came out to carol this weekend. We caroled with the youthies and their families on Saturday night and that was great. I think the folks that we caroled to really enjoyed the carols and next time we will either not sing Ring the Bells or we will practice it beforehand. So thank you very much for getting out in the cold and spreading some Christmas joy to folks from our church who can't be with us every week at our worship services. It was a great time.
And of course it was a great time afterwards when we had some good food and a warm place to meet and even some good laughs around the karaoke machine and playing games and exchanging ornaments. It was a long night...but it was a super fun night too! So thanks.
And then we sang some more on Sunday night at the church wide caroling event. And if you thought it was cold Saturday, you missed out on what cold was all about. This time we were walking and not driving and by the time we got to the third or fourth house I couldn't feel my face anymore. So hopefully my mouth was moving and carols were coming out of my mouth. But we also had a great time Sunday night caroling to our neighbors close by the church and passing out calendars (great job Becca passing out the calendars). It is very important for us to be a testimony to our neighbors and minister to them as often as we can. Who knows what impact passing out a calendar, a note, and a gospel tract might have on someone's life. At least we have given them an opportunity to read and hear the gospel. And that is the most important thing of all. Not that we are cold or tired...but that we share the good news of Jesus Christ with others. So thanks to all who came out for that.
And today...well it is even colder today. So nice and sunny as you look out the window...so freezing cold when you walk outside. Hey, its not even really winter yet. Its still fall. Maybe this will be a warm day in a couple of months. BURRRRR!!!
And of course it was a great time afterwards when we had some good food and a warm place to meet and even some good laughs around the karaoke machine and playing games and exchanging ornaments. It was a long night...but it was a super fun night too! So thanks.
And then we sang some more on Sunday night at the church wide caroling event. And if you thought it was cold Saturday, you missed out on what cold was all about. This time we were walking and not driving and by the time we got to the third or fourth house I couldn't feel my face anymore. So hopefully my mouth was moving and carols were coming out of my mouth. But we also had a great time Sunday night caroling to our neighbors close by the church and passing out calendars (great job Becca passing out the calendars). It is very important for us to be a testimony to our neighbors and minister to them as often as we can. Who knows what impact passing out a calendar, a note, and a gospel tract might have on someone's life. At least we have given them an opportunity to read and hear the gospel. And that is the most important thing of all. Not that we are cold or tired...but that we share the good news of Jesus Christ with others. So thanks to all who came out for that.
And today...well it is even colder today. So nice and sunny as you look out the window...so freezing cold when you walk outside. Hey, its not even really winter yet. Its still fall. Maybe this will be a warm day in a couple of months. BURRRRR!!!
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
Let's Go Caroling...
We are going to go caroling and have a Christmas party on December 17th for the Sr. High and Jr. High as well as their families. Our desire is to carol to some folks in our body at CBC who are not able to get out very much and who cannot join us at church all that often. It is important that we do not forget these precious ones who are a part of our body.
So we will meet at CBC at 4pm on the 17th and we will divide into two groups and take off caroling. Don't forget to dress warm, I think it will be pretty chilly!
After we are finished caroling (around 6:30 - 7:00), we will meet back at the church for a snack, some Christmas karyoke, a carol battle, and an ornament exchange. I would ask that each family bring a snack to share, and that each person would bring a wrapped ornament for our ornament exchange. We should be finished with everything by 9pm. It should be fun.
I hope you are able to come. Please let me know ASAP if you are coming so I can make necessary arrangements. Thanks!
So we will meet at CBC at 4pm on the 17th and we will divide into two groups and take off caroling. Don't forget to dress warm, I think it will be pretty chilly!
After we are finished caroling (around 6:30 - 7:00), we will meet back at the church for a snack, some Christmas karyoke, a carol battle, and an ornament exchange. I would ask that each family bring a snack to share, and that each person would bring a wrapped ornament for our ornament exchange. We should be finished with everything by 9pm. It should be fun.
I hope you are able to come. Please let me know ASAP if you are coming so I can make necessary arrangements. Thanks!
Birthday Parties for Jesus
We have a great opportunity this month to minister to kids around the Aurora area by having Birthday Parties for Jesus. Thanks to all who attended the training on November 20th, now we get to put that training into action.
We will be involved in three of these events in December.
December 10th at Life Spring from 10:30am - 12:30pm
December 17th at CBC from 11am - 2pm
December 21st from 3pm - 5pm Place TBA.
We certainly look forward to the way that the Lord will be able to use us as we share the Good News of Jesus Christ during this Christmas season. And remember...everyday is an opportunity to share the Good News with someone.
As we prepare for these events, please pray that the Lord would use us as He sees fit to accomplish the purpose He has for us.
We will be involved in three of these events in December.
December 10th at Life Spring from 10:30am - 12:30pm
December 17th at CBC from 11am - 2pm
December 21st from 3pm - 5pm Place TBA.
We certainly look forward to the way that the Lord will be able to use us as we share the Good News of Jesus Christ during this Christmas season. And remember...everyday is an opportunity to share the Good News with someone.
As we prepare for these events, please pray that the Lord would use us as He sees fit to accomplish the purpose He has for us.
Christmas...or...Xmas
It's the most wonderful time of the year... at least according to the popular Christmas song. And while I certainly don't want to be a Scrooge with a "ba-humbug", I do think it is sad to see what our world really thinks of Christmas. Why is it the most wonderful time of the year? Because we get presents and get out of school and off work? Because many times people get Christmas bonuses and have some type of worldly benefit? Or is the reason because we are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who came to this earth to give us the greatest gift we could ever have.
Unfortunately, although not surprisingly, our world has lost the focus of Christmas...although I wonder if the world really ever had the proper focus anyway. But, from my perspective, it seems each year that our world moves further away from focusing on the birth of Christ, and more and more on themselves. And, even more unfortunate, is the fact that many believers lose focus of Christ during this time of the year and get caught up in what the world is focused upon. During this time of the year, DO NOT GET CAUGHT UP IN THE THINGS OF THE WORLD AND LOSE SIGHT OF CELEBRATING THE BIRTH OF CHRIST!!
One evidence I see of a worldly focus of Christmas that really bothers me, is the change from Christmas to Xmas. Now obviously "Xmas" is quicker to write and easier to spell, but it sure gets rid of the reason we celebrate Christmas. I would really hate having my name replaced with an "X" and that is exactly what we do when we say Xmas. We replace "Christ" with an "X". That is pretty sad to me. It is also interesting to me that schools no longer have Christmas break or Christmas vacation. Instead they have winter break or winter holidays. People also are beginning to say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Little things like this are evidence to me of the disdain our "tolerant" society has for Christ or the things of God. I hope we, as believers, do not fall into this form of thinking.
In addition, as believers, we celebrate Christ's birth as well as His life, death, burial, and resurrection every day. Obviously we celebrate and are thankful for so much more than that as well. We have all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. He is the reason that we can have hope. I heard a story on the radio the other day of a lady who leaves her nativity up all year long to remind her that we celebrate Christ's birth every day. I hope we remember that as believers. Christ is the reason for everything. He is to be our focus. Have a great Christmas.
Unfortunately, although not surprisingly, our world has lost the focus of Christmas...although I wonder if the world really ever had the proper focus anyway. But, from my perspective, it seems each year that our world moves further away from focusing on the birth of Christ, and more and more on themselves. And, even more unfortunate, is the fact that many believers lose focus of Christ during this time of the year and get caught up in what the world is focused upon. During this time of the year, DO NOT GET CAUGHT UP IN THE THINGS OF THE WORLD AND LOSE SIGHT OF CELEBRATING THE BIRTH OF CHRIST!!
One evidence I see of a worldly focus of Christmas that really bothers me, is the change from Christmas to Xmas. Now obviously "Xmas" is quicker to write and easier to spell, but it sure gets rid of the reason we celebrate Christmas. I would really hate having my name replaced with an "X" and that is exactly what we do when we say Xmas. We replace "Christ" with an "X". That is pretty sad to me. It is also interesting to me that schools no longer have Christmas break or Christmas vacation. Instead they have winter break or winter holidays. People also are beginning to say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." Little things like this are evidence to me of the disdain our "tolerant" society has for Christ or the things of God. I hope we, as believers, do not fall into this form of thinking.
In addition, as believers, we celebrate Christ's birth as well as His life, death, burial, and resurrection every day. Obviously we celebrate and are thankful for so much more than that as well. We have all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. He is the reason that we can have hope. I heard a story on the radio the other day of a lady who leaves her nativity up all year long to remind her that we celebrate Christ's birth every day. I hope we remember that as believers. Christ is the reason for everything. He is to be our focus. Have a great Christmas.
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Thank You or... No Thanks
Well, it is that time of the year again. Time to give thanks, right. Yes and no. Unfortunately, our nation today has made our Thanksgiving holiday into something it was not intended to be. So often the focus of Thanksgiving is on the four "F's" - Food, Family, Football, and Fun. Now, I don't mean to say that any of these are wrong in and of themselves, but so many times we are so focused on all of these that we forget to give thanks. Thanksgiving began as a way to give thanks to the Lord (yes, that's right, to God, imagine that) because the early pilgrims to America had a new freedom. They realized it was a blessing from the Lord that they made it safely to America and that they could now worship and live as they thought the Lord would have them to. And guess what...there was no football. As we celebrate Thanksgiving later this week, let us not forget how Thanksgiving began and what the focus was. Let's not be so selfish to forget the One who deserves all of our thanksgiving.
On the flip side of the coin, however, is another aspect of Thanksgiving. For some, this is the only time that they give thanks. They say thanks for this and thanks for that but they do not realize that everyday (not just Thanksgiving) is a day to be thankful to the Lord. You see, for the believer, our attitude before the Lord should be "Thank You". We should have this attitude because who we are as believers and what is available to us as believers (and that is all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places [Eph. 1:3]) is not from us but from what Christ has provided for us. Yet so often as believers, we forget to say "Thank You" to the Lord. We think in someway we have what we have in Christ because of something we have done. Yet Christ has done it all.
We should also have this attitude of "Thank You" throughout our lives because we know that whatever comes our way (good or bad), God can use that to grow us as believers. An attitude of "Thank You" can literally change your life because your viewpoint will be changed to see all things through your relationship with the Lord rather than ignore your relationship with Him as you deal with everyday life. I don't think it is by chance that the apostle Paul and other writers of Scripture stress the importance of giving thanks, being thankful, and having an attitude of thanksgiving. "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
So this Thanksgiving don't forget to be thankful, and don't forget to be thankful everyday of your life. As a believer, you always have a reason to be thankful, and you never have a reason not to have an attitude of "Thank You" as you live each day.
On the flip side of the coin, however, is another aspect of Thanksgiving. For some, this is the only time that they give thanks. They say thanks for this and thanks for that but they do not realize that everyday (not just Thanksgiving) is a day to be thankful to the Lord. You see, for the believer, our attitude before the Lord should be "Thank You". We should have this attitude because who we are as believers and what is available to us as believers (and that is all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places [Eph. 1:3]) is not from us but from what Christ has provided for us. Yet so often as believers, we forget to say "Thank You" to the Lord. We think in someway we have what we have in Christ because of something we have done. Yet Christ has done it all.
We should also have this attitude of "Thank You" throughout our lives because we know that whatever comes our way (good or bad), God can use that to grow us as believers. An attitude of "Thank You" can literally change your life because your viewpoint will be changed to see all things through your relationship with the Lord rather than ignore your relationship with Him as you deal with everyday life. I don't think it is by chance that the apostle Paul and other writers of Scripture stress the importance of giving thanks, being thankful, and having an attitude of thanksgiving. "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
So this Thanksgiving don't forget to be thankful, and don't forget to be thankful everyday of your life. As a believer, you always have a reason to be thankful, and you never have a reason not to have an attitude of "Thank You" as you live each day.
Sunday, November 20, 2005
Full of Emotions...
As most everyone knows by now, Pastor Ken is now home with the Lord; he went home Friday morning. I can't begin to tell you how thankful I am to have had the past few months to get to know him and to learn from him and to minister with him. I have been blessed throughout my life to have pastors who truly teach the Word of God and who have made a huge impact on my life. Although I only knew Pastor Ken for a few months, I can say that he too had a great impact on my life. These months that I knew him were probably some of the hardest months of his life. However, I never saw him waiver. He was able to stand fast in the Lord because of the relationship that he had with His Savior. I had the privilege to see a believer finish the race well.
One of the things that impressed me about Pastor Ken from the very beginning was his love, care, and concern for all people. He showed forth the love of the Lord Jesus to everyone. And I was so impressed by his love for children and the children's ministries of our church. Pastor Ken never wanted praise, he wanted the praise to go to God. He had much in his life that he could have boasted about, but he never did. I had no idea that Pastor Ken had received his doctorate until about a month after we began ministering here. But he would have never wanted to be called Dr. Weddle, just Pastor Ken. I am so thankful to the Lord that I had the privilege of knowing His servant, Pastor Ken, before he went home to be with his Savior. I am so thankful that Pastor Ken was simply available to the Lord to be used in marvelous ways here upon this earth.
As we go through a time like this, we are flooded with so many emotions. We are so thankful and full of joy that our dear Pastor is now home in the presence of God. We are so thankful that we do not grieve as those who have no hope. But we do grieve and we are saddened. We do not grieve for Pastor Ken because he is now in the presence of God. We grieve for ourselves and for his family who we care about so much. We are saddened because there is earthly separation from Pastor Ken. However, we stand upon the Word of God in times like these. Nothing else but the Word of God can give us the true peace and comfort that we need as we go through these times of sorrow. Pastor Ken desired for us to be steadfast in God's Word because he knew how important it was to our everyday life.
We serve a faithful God. We serve a God who does not change, who is in control of all things. We serve a God who cares for each of us individually. And we serve a God who answers prayers. Let us not forget that God has answered our prayers now. We prayed over the past few months that God's will would be accomplished in Pastor Ken's life as he dealt with the cancer. And God answered our prayer, and He showed us what His will was for Pastor Ken. One of the hardest things to do now is to say 'Thank You Lord'. Thank you for answering our prayer, and thank you that you accomplished your perfect will in this situation. God has already received and will continue to receive the glory for all that has taken place in these past few months. We will not truly understand how much glory God will receive through this situation until we stand in eternity one day. And we will stand in eternity one day, as Pastor Ken does now, based solely on our faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. As great a man as Pastor Ken was, it was nothing that he did to allow him to spend eternity in heaven. Pastor Ken is in the presence of God, because he simply believed in Jesus Christ to pay for his sin. And knowing Pastor Ken only the few months that I did, I know that he would also direct us to the fact that it was not him, it was Christ in him to produce the man that we loved so much.
Yes we will miss our dear Pastor Ken and will always remember the times that we had with him here upon this earth. But never forget that as believers in Christ we will one day be reunited with Pastor Ken as we each will be in glory praising and serving our Savior for eternity. We have hope, it is in Christ.
One of the things that impressed me about Pastor Ken from the very beginning was his love, care, and concern for all people. He showed forth the love of the Lord Jesus to everyone. And I was so impressed by his love for children and the children's ministries of our church. Pastor Ken never wanted praise, he wanted the praise to go to God. He had much in his life that he could have boasted about, but he never did. I had no idea that Pastor Ken had received his doctorate until about a month after we began ministering here. But he would have never wanted to be called Dr. Weddle, just Pastor Ken. I am so thankful to the Lord that I had the privilege of knowing His servant, Pastor Ken, before he went home to be with his Savior. I am so thankful that Pastor Ken was simply available to the Lord to be used in marvelous ways here upon this earth.
As we go through a time like this, we are flooded with so many emotions. We are so thankful and full of joy that our dear Pastor is now home in the presence of God. We are so thankful that we do not grieve as those who have no hope. But we do grieve and we are saddened. We do not grieve for Pastor Ken because he is now in the presence of God. We grieve for ourselves and for his family who we care about so much. We are saddened because there is earthly separation from Pastor Ken. However, we stand upon the Word of God in times like these. Nothing else but the Word of God can give us the true peace and comfort that we need as we go through these times of sorrow. Pastor Ken desired for us to be steadfast in God's Word because he knew how important it was to our everyday life.
We serve a faithful God. We serve a God who does not change, who is in control of all things. We serve a God who cares for each of us individually. And we serve a God who answers prayers. Let us not forget that God has answered our prayers now. We prayed over the past few months that God's will would be accomplished in Pastor Ken's life as he dealt with the cancer. And God answered our prayer, and He showed us what His will was for Pastor Ken. One of the hardest things to do now is to say 'Thank You Lord'. Thank you for answering our prayer, and thank you that you accomplished your perfect will in this situation. God has already received and will continue to receive the glory for all that has taken place in these past few months. We will not truly understand how much glory God will receive through this situation until we stand in eternity one day. And we will stand in eternity one day, as Pastor Ken does now, based solely on our faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. As great a man as Pastor Ken was, it was nothing that he did to allow him to spend eternity in heaven. Pastor Ken is in the presence of God, because he simply believed in Jesus Christ to pay for his sin. And knowing Pastor Ken only the few months that I did, I know that he would also direct us to the fact that it was not him, it was Christ in him to produce the man that we loved so much.
Yes we will miss our dear Pastor Ken and will always remember the times that we had with him here upon this earth. But never forget that as believers in Christ we will one day be reunited with Pastor Ken as we each will be in glory praising and serving our Savior for eternity. We have hope, it is in Christ.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Fall Back...
Don't forget to set your clocks back TONIGHT!!! That's right, we get an extra hour of sleep tonight. Sounds good but if you forget then you will miss out on that extra sleep time. Don't wake up at 2am to do it (that is the official time of the fall back I believe). Do it before you go to bed and just enjoy the benefits. By the way, if you stay up that extra hour then you really don't get an extra hour of sleep, just an extra hour to make yourself more exhausted. Have fun sleeping..
In Addition .....
I will also try to use this blog to comment on some pertinent issues and to answer any questions you might have. So if you want, email me your questions and I may answer them over this blog. And I might just tell you what I'm thinking about things or let you in on something the Lord has been teaching me or showing me in His Word. By the way...if your not...GET IN THE WORD... it will really be the place to get your questions answered and grow in your relationship with the Lord. God's Word is to be our basis in all things because God is the one who knows all and can answer all questions perfectly. "Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." (NASB).
Monday, October 17, 2005
Probe Ministries Mind Games Conference
Don't forget that the Mind Games Conference at Plano Bible Church is this Friday and Saturday (Oct 21 & 22). As the name implies, you better put your thinking caps on and be prepared to get some great information on knowing what you believe and why you believe it. The topic is "Reasons to Believe."
We will leave the church Friday evening around 6:00pm so try to be here by 5:45pm so we can be prepared to leave at 6. Friday night will cover 2 sessions - "Worldviews: What is True?" and "Reliability of the Bible". I plan on being back at the church by 10:30pm at the latest.
We will meet back at the church Saturday morning at 7:45am so we can be at Plano Bibl Church by 8:30am. We will pick back up with the remaining 3 sessions - "Evidence for the existence of God", "The Deity of Christ", and "Is Jesus the Only Way?". After the conference is over we will have a fast food lunch before returning to the church around 1:30pm.
Remember that the cost for the conference is 10 dollars, and I will need that when we meet at the church.
I think this conference is going to be a great opportunity for us to learn more the subject of worldviews and how to defend and spread our faith in a world that often wants little or nothing to do with God.
We will leave the church Friday evening around 6:00pm so try to be here by 5:45pm so we can be prepared to leave at 6. Friday night will cover 2 sessions - "Worldviews: What is True?" and "Reliability of the Bible". I plan on being back at the church by 10:30pm at the latest.
We will meet back at the church Saturday morning at 7:45am so we can be at Plano Bibl Church by 8:30am. We will pick back up with the remaining 3 sessions - "Evidence for the existence of God", "The Deity of Christ", and "Is Jesus the Only Way?". After the conference is over we will have a fast food lunch before returning to the church around 1:30pm.
Remember that the cost for the conference is 10 dollars, and I will need that when we meet at the church.
I think this conference is going to be a great opportunity for us to learn more the subject of worldviews and how to defend and spread our faith in a world that often wants little or nothing to do with God.
BRAND NEW!!
This Central Bible Church Youth blog is brand new. I hope to be able to keep everyone up to date with what is going on with our youth program at CBC and with upcoming events . I think this will be a very resourceful tool for our youth and their families to keep up with our youth program. We will also try to post some pictures, if possible, of past events.
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