Tag Archives: God

The Road Through Romans: The Thing About Spiritual Gifts…

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We are continuing today our discussion through the Book of Romans. We’ll be spending at least another day in Romans 1:11 because there is a bit more I have to say on the subject of spiritual gifts.

Paul wrote,

 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—Romans 1:11 NIV

I suppose most of you don’t know this but I wasn’t always a Christian. I wasn’t raised in a Christian home. My parents were agnostics influenced by the early New Age movement. In my pre-teen and early teen years I was an avowed pagan. I wouldn’t have called myself wiccan, exactly, but I did spend time channeling spirits and talking to “angels”.  I tried astral projection and did have a few out of body experiences.

It was more than a flight of fancy. I experienced real power in my pagan practices. I craved power. I craved strength because, God knows, I wasn’t finding those things in my earthly experience.

My initial decision to attend church was actually at the insistence of one of my spirit guides. I think I was supposed to make some kind of scene in the church and disrupt the service. That didn’t happen. I remember walking in the door and being hit with the presence of the most amazing love I had ever experienced. I was overwhelmed by it actually. It wasn’t the preaching that did it. I could hardly understand the Pastor who was from Trinidad. It wasn’t the music. There really wasn’t any. The piano player only knew “Jesus Loves Me” So she would get up and clap to any song that wasn’t that.  And the I didn’t experience love because the people were wicked friendly or anything. It was New England after all. There was one lady in the congregation who prophesied just about every week. She was so mean when she did it,the Pastor eventually asked her to stop and when she wouldn’t he had to kick her out of the church.

The love came through the people from God as a spiritual gift to me. It was an atmosphere they created more than an action they practiced. It wasn’t what they did that brought the love. It was was Who dwelt in them that caused me to experience it, as I sat in the church service and heard the people worship. It was a gift imparted.

For the first time in my life, love was becoming a force stronger than every other spirit I had ever experienced. In its presence the voices in my head were silenced and I was left powerless in its wake.

BUT

Then I learned that this power, this love, wanted to dwell inside me and strengthen me for life.

One of the reasons I became a Christian was because I became convinced that no other power in the universe could match this God of love I was experiencing. I wanted to align myself with that kind of power. It was not a question of me accepting Christ. I knew He was bigger than me and bigger than all the other spirits I had been entertaining. It was a question of Him accepting me. The question I had to toy with once I acknowledged that God was God and there was no other was, “would He accept me?”

He did! The spiritual gift of salvation was imparted to me the very  day I asked.  I will go on from here to speak about the impartation of the Spirit called the baptism of the Holy Spirit tomorrow, but first…

why don’t you take a bit and tell me about your own experience of meeting God.

If you have missed any of our discussions through Romans they can be found on THE ROAD THROUGH ROMANS PAGE

Artist’s Soul

Posted on by under C.cada: Arts and Stuff

Our church administrator, Charlotte Dorais, is retiring at the end of the year. Today we are honoring her  at our staff Christmas party. Charlotte has served in just about every ministry I have had oversight of through the years I have known her. Her love for Jesus has called her to take up posts outside her comfort zone many times. I just know that love for her God is going to lead her on to even greater adventures now.

She was one of my adult champions when I led the youth ministry (we called ourselves “the Beyonders”). She has worked as a shut-in visitor for the Compassion Ministry and as an artist manager for C.cada. She has been an untiring intercessor and a woman always willing to lend a hand in practical ministry. She is an incredible artist as well as an able administrator. Above all she is a committed friend.

Thank you Charlotte for your love for God and his church. I have written this two stanza Cinquain in your honor. It is entitled

Artist’s Soul

by JE Lillie

Artist’s

Soul, disciplined

By the brush of prayer.

Colors careful mixed until God

Brings forth

Artist’s

Strength, directed

Unafraid of future

Steps into the blank canvas called

His plan.

Christmas Party

Posted on by under Pastor Wrinkles

This weekend was our Special Touch Disabilities Ministry Christmas Party. It was hosted by Bread Of Life Church in Westminster MA. Over a hundred folks from the disabled community came together to worship and fellowship . Here are some pics.
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Preaching about love, joy, peace and hope.
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Guests at the dinner table

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Christmas greetings

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Praying together.
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The Road Through Romans: What Makes Us Strong

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“I’m sorry,” I said to the woman sitting before me in my office.

“Our benevolence fund is empty. I don’t have any money to give you but we can pray about the need and I know God will help.”

I remember she was wearing a blue sweat jacket. Her hair was pulled back into a pony tail and her face wore a mix of weariness and anger that comes with living long in the shadow of despair.

“No. If you can’t give me money there’s no point in praying.” She returned flatly.

Today we are discussing Romans 1:11 in our conversation through Romans. Pick up previous bits of our chatter on THE ROAD THROUGH ROMANS PAGE

In Romans 1:11 Paul writes,

I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— Romans 1:11

I wish I could say that the story above was a one time deal. I wish I could say that I have only ever had to turn one person away without providing the need. I cannot say that because the need is always greater than the cash supply. Someone always walks in the door after the last turkey is given away or the last gift card is handed out. Someone’s oil tank always runs dry just after we have helped someone else pay off the rent bill and we have to say with the apostle, “Silver and gold have I none but such as I have give I thee.” Acts 3:6

The truth is though, it is when the silver and gold run out that the Christian life…church life really gets exciting. The power of the church has never been in its fiscal solvency or its financial prosperity. The power of the church is found in its ability to impart spiritual blessings.

Spiritual blessings change lives from the inside out. In the end that is what we really need. We need the inside out change more than we need the rent payment or the lights kept on. We need the power of God transforming our souls more than we need our next meal. If we come to live in kings palaces but our souls are lost what have we really accomplished? On the other hand Christ’s promise is this, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:33,34

What I long to give people is a spiritual blessing. Our culture may not value such a thing but then our culture does not share many values with Christ or his apostles anymore. I decided long ago I would throw my lot in with the Jesus instead of the world. His way of spiritual blessing ultimately opens the door to meeting all the other needs men might have.

 

 

Sunday Quips & Quotes 12-13-15

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Q&Q

Hey there folks! Here is a new challenge for all my Sunday readers. Every Sunday I will post one quip or quote that struck me during the week. You can join along in the quipping and quoting. Here is what to do:

Publish a post of your own, using one quip or quote that grabbed you during the week. You can add a picture to it if you like or even photograph the quote from it’s source.

Link back to my post

You can include the Pastor Wrinkle’s Q& Q photo in your post if you think my mug worthy of your blog.

Quote of the week:

 

 

Endless Sky

“Despair tells us that our circumstances teach us what is true about God. Hope tells us that God teaches us what is true about our circumstances.” Barry Risto

 

The Road Through Romans: Is Your Road God’s Road?

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“God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.” Romans 1:9,10

We all have wants, desires and dreams. The first question is how many of those wants desires and dreams are  what God wants, desires and dreams for us?

Paul’s pathway was entirely committed to the Lord’s design for His life. He wanted to go to Rome but only if God made a way. For those who don’t know the story, God did answer Paul’s prayer. He did go to Rome…in chains!

So the second question I would put to you is if your wants, desires and dreams do end up being God’s wants, desires and dreams for you will you still want, desire and dream them even if there is some pain in the realization of them?

There is always a cost for life’s God dreams. Will you pay it?

 

 

 

The Road Through Romans: Constantly

Posted on by under Pastor Wrinkles, Uncategorized

100_5431We have been working our way through the first Chapter of Paul’s letter to the Romans. If you have missed any of our discussions thus far you can find them on THE ROAD THROUGH ROMANS PAGE.

The verses we will be dealing with today are Romans 1:9,10

God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.

I want to spend a bit of time talking about Paul’s prayer life today.

Paul tells the Romans that he constantly remembers them in prayer. The word constantly is the word adialeiptōs which means Paul is praying for the Roman church incessantly.

The idea of incessant prayer is a familiar one in Paul’s life. Paul was a mighty apostle of the church. He was a prolific writer, an effective communicator, an able administrator and a wonderful pastor; But above all Paul was an outstanding PRAY-ER.

Listen to these words from some of his other letters:

“We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers. 3 We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1Thess. 1:2,3

Therefore, we never stop thanking God that when you received his message from us, you didn’t think of our words as mere human ideas. You accepted what we said as the very word of God—which, of course, it is. And this word continues to work in you who believe 1:Thess. 2:13

We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Col. 1:3

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.  Eph. 1:15-17

Paul’s desire, though, was not just to be a powerful prayer warrior in his own right. He expected that every Christian would be like him. His command  to the churches was that, like him they should, 17 Pray without ceasing. 1 Thess. 5:17

If Paul in his day needed to be a man who prayed without ceasing, how much more do we the Christians upon whom the end of the age has come need to be men and women of unceasing prayer?

What must you eliminate from your life so that you can spend more time in prayer?

The Road Through Romans: From the Inside Out

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We have been discussing the Book of Romans over the last several weeks and we have made it to verse 9 of chapter 1.

God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you.

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Paul makes a statement. He says he lives for God in his Spirit and out of that flows the work of preaching the gospel of God’s Son. Paul’s Christian work flows from the passion of his heart for God.

Somewhere along the line many of us have lost the truth that Christianity starts on the inside and works its way out.

We blame so much of our behavior on others. “If my sister didn’t do this then I wouldn’t do that.”

“If my father was nicer I wouldn’t be like this.”

” If my husband weren’t such a jerk I’d…”

But Jesus said, “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” Luke 6:45

It is what is in our own hearts that makes us good or evil not what is going on outside of them. We may not be able to control the world or the people in it but with Christ’s help we can control our responses.

What do you need to let God change on the inside so that you can live more for Christ on the outside?

If you have missed any of our discussions through Romans they can be found on THE ROAD THROUGH ROMANS PAGE.