To God's Beloved At Cloverdale Baptist Church:
It is good to be home. I have had the privilege over the past few weeks to travel, and the travelling was an amazing experience. To be a part of the shaping of the evangelical world is a tremendous privilege as a part of TGC, and holidays in the sun with my family, a true JOY! BUT...it is good to be home! Not just the address of our dwelling, but our church family and all that is going on here. Thank you for being the kind of church family that is a joy to come back to. I love serving Jesus and you in this place, and through you and our church around the world.
As we move forward we constantly want to be a church that is in absolute dependance on God! Your part in this is to pray, and to join us in prayer. Please include ministries that come to mind, church leaders and staff, and other things that can guide you in this! My favourite book on prayer is Carson's, A Call To Spiritual Reformation, which looks at the prayers of Paul and seeks to teach us through them how to pray. Take the time to PRAY, and to learn more about prayer as you move towards the summer.
The last Sunday I preached, a few of you have pointed out that I said Jael killed the king. I listened to my sermon twice, to check (great thing about our world, we record everything), and you were right! This is both wonderful, and sad. Wonderful that so many of you had your Bible's out and kept track of what was being said and it's accuracy. Open Bibles are the sign of a healthy church. Wonderful because you noticed that Jael killed Sisera, who was not king, but rather the General of Jabin's army, and representative of the oppression of Israel. Wonderful because the mistake was minor (I don't like making Biblical mistakes) and did not take away from the message. Sad, because the mistake was made. So for all of you with open Bible's that noticed, WELL DONE, KEEP IT UP. May God's Word always be preached here in a way that rejoices with Bereans! Also had some of you with further questions about the passage, love that as well, please keep going back to God's Word filled with questions, and know that He is revealing His Name and how to follow Him there! It is as we know Him, and follow Him accurately that we best accomplish His purpose of glorifying His name!
Sunday is coming...please take the time to read the text and prepare your heart for what the Spirit wants to teach you!
Text: Judges 6
Title: A Doubting Warrior With A Great God
Is doubt for the believer a good thing or a bad thing?
Why is Gideon so often given a pass, or even used as a model for how to handle doubts?
Is this right or wrong?
Why does God make sure the army is so small that it could not possibly get the glory?
How do you see God do this in your own life?
How do Old Testament stories like this help us to trust in God?
Have a great week, looking forward to a great Sunday, of all of the characters in the Bible, the one that my Professor helped me understand in a fresh way the most was Gideon, so praying I would be able to preach that WITH NO MISTAKES :)
Have a great week, and looking forward to a wonderful Sunday of celebration of God's glory, and seeking that with you!
Joyful to have gone away, and be home,
Pastor Rob