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| NEWSLETTER January 9, 2011 MONDAY EDITION |
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THE WILDERNESS OF COMPLAINT
- Your Choice -
Your undesired murmurings for whatever reason has a parallel in the desert wanderings of Israel between Egypt and the Promised Land. You find insight into the unique challenges and opportunities that accompany the tough transitions that go with these.
As they trudged through the desert for years, actually going in circles, they suffered not from hunger but from the drudgery of eating the same food (manna) day in and day out and this turned into a riotous complaint (Numbers 11:5-6). The grumbling spread from tent to tent, from one family to another. They remembered the good food they had in Egypt.
Their complaint was more than just about the food. It was about their weary existence and in a sense they were blaming God because they perceived they were better off in slavery, better off without Him, a serious charge!
You may be critical of Israel's ungratefulness, but complaint is a real snare for anyone who travels through a life-altering transition. Take a moment to examine your own heart: what's wearing you out? What's eroding your energy and draining your joy?
As you hear the voices swell into a choir of the discontented, is it possible that your own voice is rising with theirs? Does honest frustration start to morph into a spirit of complaint that takes residence in your heart?
Your heart may drift towards complaint as if it is pulled by gravity. After all, protest seems like a reasonable response to a series of disappointing events. Many times grumbling doesn't have to be invited. It usually arrives as an uninvited guest and it is difficult to shoo it away. Complaint is a master at resisting eviction!
To discourage grievance from taking root in you, invite another guest to move in: TRUST. When the choice is made to place one's confidence in God in the middle of life's frustrations and disappointments, complaint has little space to maneuver.
Trust and complaint are incompatible roommates. One inevitably pushes the other out, depending on who is made to feel more at home. In the case of Israel, the tragedy of their reaction is that it undermined God's initial purpose for the wilderness experience, which was an attempt to forge a relationship of trust with them. It was intended to shape and refine them into a community of trusting followers who would be prepared to enter the Promised Land.
Time spent in such inhospitable surroundings as they did in the wilderness led them to make a choice either to strengthen them and make them more authentic and reliant on the Lord so they could eventually be prepared for what lay ahead of them, or to become a desert of endless wandering where their faith could dry up if they let it.
The habits you foster in your hearts - your responses and reactions - are where your choice begins. As you journey through chaos, uncertainty, or pain, ask yourself, "What is the Lord desiring to cultivate in me as a result of this wilderness?" The seemingly barren land in which you feel lost or deeply wounded is also fertile ground for your spiritual transformation - and for God's miraculous grace to be revealed to you and through you in magnificent ways.
The choice is yours.
The Church Staff |
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MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE?
Pastor John delivered a very thought provoking sermon yesterday when he explained what "Church Without Walls" meant to Gospel Life Community then, and what it further means now. He went through a capsule of the church's history in the last ten years or so.
When the church was formally organized many years ago, the concept was for her to be open to people of all nations, creeds and colors, to be non-judmental, to spread the pure gospel of salvation by grace alone. Now it means even more than that, to train and equip people to go out and bring the church's message to the community, to be a transforming influence in the marketplace, to the "seven mountains" of influence in society.
The "seven mountains" are categorized as follows: 1) family 2) arts and entertainment 3) government and law 4) media and communication 5) business and finance 6) education and 7) religion and church. According to different studies, the seventh mountain (religion and church) has the least influence in American society today.
Rather than insulating itself from the other six sectors of society, the church must go out and do its ministry among them by sending out properly trained and equipped members to these sectors.
The pervading thought throughout Pastor John's message is that "our love for God will cause us to engage the world" and that "we are gifted and empowered by the Holy Spirit to transform society."
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STRATEGY REVIEW
Yesterday's Core Group Meeting was quite appropriate for the beginning of the year 2012 in that Gospel Life's mission and vision in her "Journey to Divine Destiny" was reviewed at length and re-emphasized for its continuing implementation.
The rationale for our strategy was restated, which called for a Christ-Centered Lifestyle, this being summarized in five areas: 1) Loving God, 2) Loving My Family, 3) Serving Humanity, 4) Sharing the Good News, and 5) Fulfilling My Life Mission.
The role of the small group fellowships in fostering this type of culture was pointed out again and for this to be discussed within the small group setting.
The meeting ended with the group linked hand in hand in a prayer circle. | |
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JUST FOR MEN
The Men's Breakfast Meeting is scheduled for this coming Saturday, January 14, at 8 a.m.
Many of you have indicated that you will attend, so please do not forget and do not sleep in on Saturday morning. Come to the Fellowship Hall.
We will have an opportunity for praise and worship. Ray Bautista will bring his keyboard and sound system to provide music for us. There will also be an interactive exercise among the attendees as part of the program. Men of all ages, young and old, are encouraged to attend.
Please bring whatever breakfast items you'd like to share for everyone to enjoy. There was a lot of food brought in at the last meeting. So there shouldn't be any lack of it this time either. | |
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MONTHLY DINNER FELLOWSHIP
We will return to the Capital Chinese Restaurant for our Monthly Fund-Raising Dinner Fellowship on the fourth Tuesday of this month, January 24th at 7:00 p.m.
Kindly make your reservations through Johnny Chua (909-228-2162) who has kindly been making all our dinner arrangements in the past. Please give your monies to him. If its a check, he requests for you to make it out to Gospel Life.
Many thanks! | |
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LIFE LINE: a book review
Pastor John's newest book is out! Entitled "Life Line: Kingdom Essays for a Loving Community," it is a compilation of his Life Line articles over a three-year period spanning 2007 to 2009.
Interesting short articles originally published in Gospel Life Community church bulletins are peppered with personal experiences, anecdotes, current events, and the history of the growth and development of Gospel Life as a church organization.
Liberal usage of scripture texts make for inspirational reading as a daily devotional book both for personal use and for group discussion. However, you may be tempted to read the book through without interruption.
The points made in each topic are clear and to the point. You won't ever get a feeling of being left hanging in the air.
The book is definitely worth more than your minimum donation of $15. Proceeds will help fund Gospel Life Community's global missions.
There are 325 pages including a promotion in the last few pages for Pastor John's two previous books, "Keys to the Kingdom" and "Tipping Points of Grace." Published by Gospel Life Global Outreach and printed by Tempo Printing and Graphics in Walnut, CA, U.S.A.
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MARKETPLACE MINISTRY
Work Rewards
"For He repays man according to his work, And makes man to find a reward according to his way." (Job 34:11 NKJV)
There is a belief held by many in the body of Christ that says "If I'm not doing something that has an inherent spiritual value, then it has no value at all." This sacred/secular dichotomy impacts believers everyday as they go into their secular workplace. They believe what their secular work is simply a means of supporting the real ministry carried out by local churches, ministers, missionaries, and vocational ministries.
However, this has no biblical basis. Some of the most important leaders in the early church had secular jobs. And, they did not see them as jobs only to support other ministry. They considered their own jobs as ministry. Consider Dorcas (also known as Tabitha), who was a clothing manufacturer who was "abounding with deeds of kindness and charity, which she continually did."(Acts 9:36) When Dorcas died it was immediately brought to the attention of Peter which tells us she was very important to the early church leaders. "Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them" (Acts 9:39). Dorcas was known equally for her business as well as her ministry among the people. However, she was about to be known for being raised from the dead! "Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, 'Tabitha, get up.' She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called the believers and the widows and presented her to them alive. This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord" (Acts 9:40-42).
What type of ministry in the workplace do you suppose Dorcas had after this event? Dorcas is a great reminder for every worker in the secular marketplace that "He repays man according to his work, and makes man to find a reward according to his way."
Today God Is First (TGIF) devotional message, Copyright by Os Hillman, Marketplace Leaders
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MAILING ADDRESS: 436 Crestwood Lane Walnut, CA 91789 |
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| MEDITATION |
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"Dear God, this is the beginning of the year. People may be traveling or still finishing up year-end business records and reports. I thank You that during this time You continue to cover me with a blanket of protection.
"Thank You for granting safe travels to those who are driving, riding, flying around their neighborhoods, across the country, and throughout the world.Thank You for giving peace, comfort, and joy to all who are your children and for filling their hearts with praise and rejoicing.
"Let me be a shining example of your love and Christian living before the world. Thanks to You for guiding me to conduct my personal and business affairs with integrity, and that as I am blessed, I would be a blessing to others.
"Thank You for leading the lost to see Jesus and to be drawn unto You.
"Thank You, Father, for watching over me, for being with me, and for loving me in spite of myself. You are merciful and worthy of my insignificant praise. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.
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