The Giving Crisis by Andrew McNair

Dear Church Family,

I recently confessed to you that I had not done a good job of discipling the church in the area of finances. I’d like to change that, and for more reasons than what is probably coming to your mind right now.

As I was reading a book in my office on the subject of generosity, I came across this excerpt. I thought it was worth sharing. It came from Andrew McNair’s The Giving Crisis. I pray it speaks to your heart…

Some Christians hold the mistaken belief that the Bible is silent on giving. Nothing could be further from the truth. One count tallies 2,350 versus about money. One-fifth of Jesus’ parables involve money. According to Forbes, money and material possessions is the second most referenced topic in the Bible, appearing more than 800 times. Money - collecting it, giving it, paying the government, and the dangers of money - is quite present in the Bible.

What about tithing, specifically?

Some dismiss tithing as an outdated Levitical law - but is that the case? It’s amazing how many people become overnight biblical researchers when defending their current spending habits.

Tithing has a broader foundation than Levitical code. We can trace tithing all the way back to the first book of the Bible: Genesis. In Genesis we encounter the story of Abraham, called by God as the Father of many nations. Abraham’s story is the beginning of the story of the people of God, the Jews. Chapter 14 describes his quest to rescue his nephew, Lot, from his captors. When he returns successfully, he gives 10 percent of his spoils to the priest-king Melchizedek. The author of Hebrews, a book in the New Testament, affirms Abraham’s tithe.

Later in Genesis, Jacob, grandson of Abraham, vows to give 10% of everything to God.

You might be asking, “What about grace” It’s true. We must remember that because of the New Covenant, we Christians are now covered with a layer of grace that wasn’t known in the Old Testament. Grace never lowers the bar for living Godly lives.

In fact, we learn from the Sermon on the Mount that grace raises the bar. The law was only the beginning. It was a starting point. It set the standard for us to follow. The Law reveals to us our own reluctance to give; it reveals our selfishness. As New Testament Christians, we are challenged to give even more. As we grow in spiritual maturity, the tithe becomes something we feel eager to give, not a check we feel obligated to write. The 10% required by Law becomes a baseline for our giving - not the maximum amount.

See you Sunday!

Pastor Lane

Psalms - The Bible's "songbook"

Many people love the book of Psalms. The Bible’s “songbook” shows us how to deal with real life. Eugene Peterson writes that the Psalms are a place where we “find the experience of being human before God exposed and sharpened.” The Psalms are incredibly honest, embracing the realities of life and singing through them.

Over a third of the Psalms can be categorized as laments. Over and over again these songs face up to the sharpest of pains, the deepest of struggles, and the loneliest of moments. This is where many of us are as we gather together on a Sunday. There are times when we come to sing with a heaviness of heart. None of us comes with everything figured out. We need to sing songs that recognize these realities without leaving us to despair of those realities, because they bring us to the Rock that is higher than us.

The Psalms tell us to sing when we’re happy. We have freedom to dance, to shout, to sing and play music, and to celebrate our victories. But we must not only sing songs that help us when we’re happy. We can also sing because we’re sad, and we must also sing of Christ when we’re sad. We have freedom to weep, to pour out our souls to a God who hears and who acts. We sing for our brothers and sisters in those moments or seasons when they cannot.

We sing, as the Psalms train us, to help us bring all of our lives, failures, successes, losses, gains, dreams, and ambitions into gospel perspective. Our singing can prepare us for every season of life, and sustain us through every season of life. We don’t need a musical escape from our lives; we need to gaze on the Savior of our lives – our refuge and help and comfort.

(from “Sing!” by Keith and Kristyn Getty)

PraiSing Him!

Mark

Growing Things Change

It’s been about one month since Awana started back this year, and I am excited to be experiencing something I’ve known to be true:

Healthy things grow, and growing things change.

Two years ago we chose Awana as part of our discipleship strategy for the next generation. I am so proud of all of our volunteers who continue to make Awana better and better every week. In addition to adding a high school Bible study on Wednesday nights, we also launched a middle school component to Awana. We currently serve around 40 students each week, including many families that are new just in the past month!

As Awana continues to grow, we’ll continue to change to accommodate that growth. There are some key volunteer spots we need to fill, including lining up substitute leaders to fill in when someone is out of pocket. We are trusting God to provide those volunteers, and maybe he is leading you to step out and jump into one of those roles.

We continue to look forward to an amazing year sharing the love of Jesus with the next generation. We look forward to continued growth in the future, and we know that with God’s help, we’ll be ready when it comes!

Still Small Voice

There was a time in my life when I was hiding. I was scared, unsure of what to do, or where to go. I felt like I was out of options. As my husband likes to say I buried my head in the sand. These verses make me think of that even though I was hiding from bad decisions and mistakes. Elijah was hiding because he had done what God asked him to do and people were angry at him. Two different reasons to hide, but God still showed up, even for me. 

I was sitting outside one day doing my Bible Study. I have no idea what that was or what scripture it involved. I do know I was sitting outside and it was a calm day, no wind or rain just a stillness. I started praying, the kind of prayer that ends with nothing but tears and crying. I can remember this so clearly even though it has been about 16 years. Suddenly a gentle breeze blew through my yard. It felt like a gentle caress on my cheek and I could hear God telling me deep within - "It's going to be ok. I will be with you as you walk through this." That day was a new beginning for me! 

Are you hiding from something? No matter what your reason for hiding, God will walk with you through it. Call out to Him! If you would like us to pray for you, fill out the form on the left. We would love to pray for you!

~CJ

1 Kings 19:11-13