Do You Hear... Trust in Uncertainty?

"City sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style; in the air there's a feeling of Christmas..." I'm writing this on the eve of our first predicted snowfall and two days ahead of Black Friday. I suppose the holiday season really is in the air. 

"Hear the snow crunch, see the kids bunch, this is Santa's big scene; and above all the bustle you'll hear... Silver bells." Is that what you hear? Not to be cynical but I've lived in "the city" for a long time and have never heard silver bells while strolling down the street!

While your calendar fills up and your bank account does the opposite, what is it that you hear at Christmas? What do you see? We wanted to ask you these questions starting on this first Sunday of Advent. John, one of the ones to have known Jesus in person while He was here on earth, starts his first epistle by describing what it meant to have God in the flesh living among us...

1 John 1:1-4 (MSG)
"From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in-we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes; we saw it happen! And now we're telling you in most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The infinite Life of God himself took shape before us. We saw it, we heard it, and now we're telling you so you can experience it along with us, this experience of communion with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!"

This is what we hope to do together this Advent and Christmas season, to really listen to what there is to hear and see what there is to see coming from the Incarnation story. On Sunday, Bjorn will start the "Do You Hear What I Hear" series with a message that brings Mary's story to the forefront - "Trust in Uncertainty". Plus you're going to hear another story from our Freedom family that will help us to launch into these next weeks with our ears really hearing and our eyes really seeing.

Looking forward to Sunday,
. Tracy

Pentecostal - A Heritage to Pass On

This Sunday, to wrap up all that we've been talking about since this series started in September, we're going to look at the heritage we have to pass on. This heritage is for the next generation and beyond, but it's also for us to live out and pass on to everyone that our lives come in contact with.

In the opening verses of 1 Thessalonians we get a glimpse into the reputation and influence of the Thessalonian church. Even though they were a young church and very unpopular in the their city, the church had already become well known for their endurance and faithfulness. (1 Thessalonians 1:2-10) Even though it cost them dearly, they didn't hide their belief in Jesus. 

We can learn a lot from their example. We're going to take some time together and consider our own influence and legacy. What are we known for as a church? As a family? As an individual? Let's dig into it and encourage one another as we get together on Sunday morning.

See you then,
Pastor Tracy

Pentecostal - Anointed For Service (Freedom Devotional)

I consider myself to be among the fortunate because as a child I was given Psalty: The Singing Songbook cassettes My favourite was Kids Praise 4.

And yes, I'm including these links because I think every child needs Psalty as part of their Christian education. LOL!

The reason I loved Kids Praise 4 so much was because it was about a church mouse named Charity who wanted to be a gospel singing star. This essentially summed up my dreams as a child. I'm sure you don't find that hard to believe. The lesson in the story comes when Charity realizes that even though she loves to sing, it's more important for her to be a servant than a star. 

The soundtrack of my childhood included lyrics like "make me a servant, humble and meek," "take all of me" and "learn to be the servant of all." I am so grateful for that because it has helped me understand something as I grew up in Christ. It's not a matter of how much you can bring to the kingdom, it's a matter of being filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit for kingdom service. Surrender is more valuable than status.

And while I know these things are true, when the rubber meets the road these principles are not always easy to live out. Surrender to the Holy Spirit and walking in anointed service isn't something we can decide once and for all. It's a daily decision to deny ourselves, take up our crosses and follow Him. 

When we read in scripture the anointing for service that Christ has made available to us, it's pretty amazing. I've heard many of you say that you are hungry for more of God and would love to see Matthew 10:8 happening in your life and in our church. What does it take to live out "anointed service" in our every day lives? I'm looking forward to exploring this with you on Sunday. 
 

See you then,

P. Tracy

Hidden Treasures: Zechariah (Freedom Devotional - July 21)

I remember reading the Old Testament in Sunday School or hearing my youth pastor preach from it at Youth Group. I always felt like it was disconnected from the New Testament... what does 2 Chronicles have to do with Paul's letter to the church in Galatia (Galatians)? One of the great things about being older and studying the bible for myself has been the realization and deeply held understanding that God is God. He never changes and His story is His story. He is revealed throughout scripture and He invites us to get to know Him.

I've been approaching the Prophets with that same wonder. What used to seem like doomsday warnings to "stiff-necked people" is proving to hold so much more as I camp out there. Zechariah, just like Haggai from Erin's message last week, was speaking for God during the time of rebuilding. What is encouraging is how God's words to His people came at the right time, in the right season and enabled them to do what He had for them to do. 

I invite you to read through Zechariah 3 before we meet together on Sunday. See if there is anything that speaks to your heart and look for Jesus. (**SPOILER ALERT** He's there!)

See you Sunday,

P. Tracy

Hidden Treasures: Haggai... Serve the Lord First

Me first!  No, you went first last time!  You are always first, I'm always last!

Sound familiar to any of you that are parents or spend time with young kids?  This is the constant sound in my house when asked to do something or come get something.  It's absolutely maddening and as we are only in the second week of summer vacation, I can only imagine the frustration levels for parents and care givers will increase as the summer goes on and the race to be first continues.

It can be so absolutely frustrating listening to people fight over who is first, or who's need is the most important and I think, how does God do it? How does He listen to our prayers all day long, with each of us desperately declaring our needs as the most important?

This week we will be looking at the book of Haggai, a small book but with a really great theme of who or what is first in our lives. Have you thought about that lately? Who is first?What things are the most important to you, that you prioritize over everything else? We are going to look at how things worked out for Judah when they put their needs above everything else.  **Spoiler alert** It didn't work out very well.

Spend some time this week asking God to help you sort out your priorities so that He is first and foremost in every area of your life. I promise it will be worth it!

See you Sunday,

Erin