​Good morning. I hope you’re making this a great week. What a beautiful day. I hope you take some time today to experience to some degree the glory of God’s creation. We can’t literally stop and smell the roses because of the snow but we can apply the principle. 
Lots to share with you so please read below.
 
 
GBC in the Movies…or at least helping with one
This week a movie production company has been staging out of GBC for a film production being shot not far from here.  Dozens of cast and crew have been here doing their thing. I’m particularly excited that they’re using, among other spots, the youth room since if you’ve been up there, you’ll know there are some great scripture verses and powerful statements all over the walls. What a great way to be exposed to the Good News of Jesus.
Please pray for them!  They’ll be here until late Friday night.
This has been a great opportunity to show off GBC and a super outreach opportunity to a whole lot of people who don't likely know him.  I’ve already had the chance to talk to several of the crew members.
 
 
Join us on Sunday
I will be concluding our series on Jesus I AM statements Sunday.  This week we’ll be looking at one that people don’t often thing of. What is it? Join us here or on our livestream to find out.
Remember, you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca  our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE
 
 
40 Days of Prayer Update
Today is Day 16 of our 40-day prayer journey. How are you doing with this?  Prayer is a discipline and needs to be practiced. Stick with it!
The verse for the day is Matthew 5:9 that says blessed are the peacemakers. Today, where can you be a person of peace and bring peace and the Good News of Jesus to your world?
 
 
Thought for the Day: Be a loving servant
We’re continuing to look at the character traits of Jesus. Character is what distinguishes, us, its who we are. May we look to be like Jesus in this way.
What do I mean?
Well, he was a servant
Without a doubt, Jesus was the ultimate servant. Although He was praised as a great teacher and even had a decent following, He made sure to teach them to be servants by actually doing it himself. In Mark 10:45, Jesus even tells everyone: “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve.” Despite having the authority to get anything He wanted, have people praise and pamper him, He did the exact opposite by lowering himself and serving others. What a great example, and challenge for us as we go about our day.
As well, he was loving
Obviously, Jesus had a love for others. If He didn’t, He wouldn’t be compassionate nor a servant. Jesus claimed that there is no greater love than to die for one of your friends—and He did just that. If anyone doubts His love, all they have to do is look upon the cross and see the agony that He bore for our sakes. He experienced that horrible death so that all can be saved. That, very clearly, is true love at its finest.  The question I ask myself, then, is who can I love sacrificially?  I’d encourage you to do the same thing.
And that is what character looks like!
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

​Good morning!  It was great to celebrate communion again in person as a church family for those who were here. For those still joining us from home, I hope it was also a meaningful experience.
I’m starting a new series of thoughts on the character traits of Jesus that we should be looking to emulate in our lives.  I heard character described as “who you are in the dark when no one is watching.”  I like that!  Character is the distinguishing nature or qualities of someone-it’s about who you are. Now, more than ever, we need to be people of character as we seek to let the light of Jesus shine and share the Good News of the gospel with the world around us.
 
 
Join us for Prayer Wednesday
On Wednesday afternoons at 3pm a small group of people gather here at GBC for prayer. We’re focusing on the themes in the 40 Days of Prayer for March. Feel free to join us!
 
 
GBC Family Shower for Levi Tamminga
We are excited as a church family to celebrate the birth of Levi Tamminga. On Saturday March 20 at 1pm we’ll be coming together with Ken and Rebekah for this great event. For those who are unable, or are still not comfortable attending public events, we’ll be giving you the opportunity to join in virtually.
Look for more details in the days ahead, but a reminder for you is if you want to participate in the group gift the deadline for contributions is Sunday, March 14. You can give your donation to either Andrea and Patrick Thornton or Holly Alac.
 
 
Thought for the Day: The Character Traits of Jesus
There have been some high-profile ministry leaders who’ve fallen of late and so the idea of character, and what it means to be a person of character as a follower of Jesus, has been on my mind.  Where do we look when those who we admire fall?  Christians, and even many non-Christians, agree that Jesus is a great role model to have. From His faith, perseverance, generosity, and even His intelligence, people see the best qualities that mankind can possess.
 
The Bible teaches everyone to become more like Jesus each and every day, so it’s helpful to learn about some of the character traits he had. So, over the course of the next number of updates, I’m going to give a brief overview of some of the character traits of Jesus that we all should be looking to emulate.
 
Compassion
Jesus never looked away from people; He always looked at them, seeing them for who they were and had compassion on them.  We see this in the story of the man with leprosy in Matthew 8. Compassion is an awareness of the suffering of others along with the accompanying desire to do something about it.  Whenever people were around him, Jesus understood what their real needs were and sought to address them. For some, physical healing was necessary, for others the root issue was spiritual. In all cases though, Jesus took the time to actually notice that people were hurting—and His compassion drove Him to help them.
How can you show compassion today and to whom?
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

​Good morning!  I hope you’re making this a good week!  Gorgeous weather today and I’m glad it’s gotten a bit warmer.  I’m finishing today my thoughts on what it means to follow Jesus.  Starting next week I’m going to be looking at some of the character traits of Jesus and how these may apply to our lives today.
 
 
Join us on Sunday
We are again in person for our service and it’ll be great to welcome you again. As  a reminder, we will be taking communion as part of the service.
If you’re not able to come out or don’t feel comfortable attending in person, no problem, you can continue to join us on our livestream. 
Patrick will be continuing our series on Jesus I AM statements and this week he’s looking at his amazing statement: “I AM the vine”.  What does it mean to bear fruit?  Find out on Sunday!
Remember, you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca  our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE
 
 
Thought for the Day:  Jesus’ disciples stay close to Him by making prayer a top priority. 
As we wrap us this look at what it means to follow Jesus there was one other essential ingredient in his ministry with His followers — He prayed.  We have examples of this throughout the gospels and is perhaps very relevant today as we’re in Day 8 of our 40 Days of Prayer. At this point the novelty has perhaps worn off and now it becomes an act of spiritual discipline. Good! Jesus taught this to his followers. 
Jesus taught them how to pray in the Sermon on the Mount and also told them he expected them to pray as we read in Luke 22.  He Himself established prayer as a way for his followers to communicate directly with All-mighty God as the writer of Hebrews 4 reminds us.
Prayer proves that His disciples are dependent upon Him — and true disciples of Jesus will be characterized by a vibrant prayer life.
Why does this matter?
Jesus expects His disciples to follow Him, okay Chris, I get that.  This becomes important though in days like this — to learn from Him, talk to Him through prayer and to stay close to Him. That’s what He wanted from His followers during His earthly ministry and that is what He wants from His disciples today. 
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

Good morning!  We sure have had a lot of snow lately!  It’s quite the winter wonderland out there. God’s creation sure is amazing!
It was so good to see so many of you out on Sunday!  It was nice to have the place abuzz again.  Kid’s Church kicked off their Kingdom Rock series and it was AMAZING to Ken, Rebekah and baby Levi join us!  It was a great day!
 
 
Communion This Sunday!
Our next opportunity to participate in communion will be held this Sunday. I would encourage you to spend time this week preparing your hearts to commune with the Lord. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians that when we take communion “whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”  This is a great thing to remember: Jesus is coming back and when he does everything changes.   We’ll be remembering that on Sunday. I hope you’ll celebrate with us.
For those joining us on our livestream, I’d encourage you to participate.  If you’d like a set of the elements we’ll be using, let me know and I can arrange delivery.
 
 
40 Days of Prayer Update
We’re on Day 7 of our prayer journey. It’s still not too late to start.  In fact, if you haven’t yet, I strongly encourage you to. 
While the prayer guide is available on our website we also have physical copies available. We can arrange to have one delivered if you’d like, just let me know.
Let’s continue to pray and seek the Lord!
 
 
Thought for the Day: Jesus’ disciples stay close to Him by personally spending time in His Word. 
It’s obvious from any study of Jesus’ dealings with His disciples that the key to His ministry with them was that He spent quantity and quality time with them.  The key to discipleship was the opportunity to get close to the teacher and we have examples of this throughout the scriptures.
After Jesus’ resurrection, His followers gathered on a hillside in Palestine to watch as He ascended back into heaven. The Lord took that opportunity to give them one more set of instructions which we looked at last week, but He also gives them an amazing message of encouragement, “…I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
His earthly disciples realized that He was about to leave them to return to His Heavenly Father; but in this last time together, He helped them to understand that because He was God, they could actually be with Him for the rest of their lives.
It’s so important for those of us who want to be Jesus’ disciples today to understand this important truth as well. Being a disciple means spending time with Him. Even though Jesus is not physically present today, His followers can stay close to Him by spending time in His Word, in prayer and by meditating on his promises to name some things. The key is you do it and do it regularly.
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

Good morning!  Hope you’re making this a great week.  It’s so nice to see things starting to open up again. We had our first in-person youth group session last night since the lockdown and it was great. I can’t wait for Sunday!
 
We’re Meeting on Sunday!
If you were out to our Sunday services prior to the lockdown you’ll be familiar with our Coivd protocols.   They haven’t changed so we should hopefully be able to get up to speed on them quickly.  That being said, I would encourage you to read the outline on our website that reviews them all. We want to do what we can to be compliant not just because we’re supposed to but also because this is a great witness to the community around us. May we let our lights shine by how we do this!
 
 
Join us on Sunday!
If you’re not able to come out or don’t feel comfortable attending in purpose, no problem, you can continue to join us on our livestream Sunday.  I’m continuing our series on Jesus I AM statements and this week I’m looking at his powerful and impactful declaration: “I AM the way, the truth and the life”.  Why is this statement so controversial in the world around us?  Find out on Sunday!
Remember, you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca  our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE
 
 
Thought for the day:  Jesus disciples learned from Him by willingly doing what He said. 
Okay, I have to confess, this is a tough one for me. It’s easy to KNOW what Jesus would have us do, we just read our bibles, but to actually DO what he says is tougher.
So, an important, critical really, aspect of Jesus teaching that He continually emphasized with His disciples was to do what he’d taught them. He expected His followers to put what He taught them into practice in their lives. He wanted His disciples to apply the truth of what He instructed — and He wants His followers to continue that today.
 
This principle too is included in the Great Commission which we looked at on Tuesday: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.” The word “observe” in this passage does not mean “to see” or “to look.” Rather, it means “to do” or “to implement.”
 
There are several earlier passages in the gospel that underscore this same idea. It’s obvious that Jesus expects His disciples to put what He taught them into practice. Is this an easy concept to understand? For sure!  It’s a lot harder to do, though. It takes effort, purposing and choosing to do it.  Jesus reminds us to ‘take up our cross’ every day. We do that through doing what he says. This takes discipline, which is at the root of what it means to be a disciple.  Give it a try. You will fail at times but keep at it and you’ll find one day, through the power of the Holy Spirit, you’re not just doing it, you’re growing in the process!
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris
 

Happy snowy Tuesday! I’m super excited to be able to reopen and have people back live at church. I do really like the livestream and the opportunity for outreach it provides but I sure do like seeing you all here!
40 Days of Prayer starts tomorrow. I’m looking forward to hearing what God will reveal in my life and in yours too.
I’m continuing my thoughts on how to grow as a disciple this week, I hope you find them challenging  as we all seek to let the light of Jesus shine!
 
 
40 Days of Prayer starts tomorrow!
Our prayer initiative starts tomorrow. A copy of the prayer guide for your use or can be found on our website. We’ll also have physical copies available on Sunday.  I hope you’ll join me in praying for renewal in our lives and for our church. We are at a critical stage as a church and society in many ways. God is moving but we need to be sure we’re walking closely and in alignment with him. May we see much fruit grow during this time of prayer!

 
Update from the Directors
On February 8 a special meeting of the members was held by proxy as previously announced in January.   The Board of Directors met, and having received the sufficient amount of votes by proxy through email, and in accordance with all the constitutional requirements for capital expenditures to be approved by the members, a motion was passed:
 THAT the GBC roof be approved for replacement in 2021.
So, we now have the approval and the money to go ahead with our roof replacement in the spring. We’re our contractors first project, in fact! 
This is so encouraging, God provides!
 
 
Thought for the Day: Jesus disciples learned from Him by listening carefully to His teaching. 
The teaching ministry of Jesus was one of the most important aspects of His earthly ministry. It’s interesting to note that immediately upon calling His first disciples, they followed Him throughout Galilee listening to Him “teaching” and “preaching” as we read in Matthew 4.  In fact, Jesus most familiar sermon, the Sermon on the Mount, was presented soon after He instructed Peter, Andrew, James, and John to follow Him. Obviously, the Lord’s teaching ministry was one of the most important aspects of how He discipled His followers.
 
And what was part of his final mandate to His disciples?  There was an emphasis on teaching. In Matthew 28, Jesus says, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.”
 
We see from these examples that receiving solid teaching is a priority for disciples. These followers of Jesus were students.  Followers of Jesus today must be students as well. Learning from Jesus today means hearing, listening to, studying, and applying the written Word of God.  It’s not just listening to my messages on Sunday (though I appreciate it!) but perhaps joining a Bible study or reading a book from our library.  Regardless of what it is, find ways to continually be learning and growing in God through the Bible.  Be sure you’re a student of God’s word your whole life and you will grow as a disciple.
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

​Good morning!  I hope you’re making this a great week!  I hope, also, you get a chance to enjoy this beautiful, sunny day.
I’m starting today my new series of thoughts on what it means to follow Jesus. How can we do this?  What does it mean to be a disciple?   We’ll be looking at this over the next few updates. I hope it helps you grow in God
 
 
Return to Live Services
As I mentioned on Tuesday, with the premier’s announcement on Monday it looks like we’ll be able to return to holding live services next Sunday, the 21st. I’m super excited to welcome those of you back who will come. Just a quick reminder though- we will be maintaining our protocols from the past in terms of the proper wearing of masks, check-in and screening on arrival and the like.  I’ll review our procedures more fully next week when we get confirmation Monday from the government.  Can’t wait!
 
 
Join us on Sunday!
Join us on our livestream Sunday.  I’ll be stepping back a bit in the narrative and looking at Jesus statement: “I AM the good shepherd” as part of our series “I AM: Jesus in his own words”.  This has a powerful truth for the future but also an impact for today. I hope you’ll join me to find out what that is.
 
We continue to work on the quality of our livestream experience in regards to the bandwidth issues we’ve had the last couple of weeks. I’m confident we have things well in hand.  Remember, you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca  our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE
 
 
Thought for the day:  Practical Implications of Being a Disciple of Jesus
What does it mean to follow Jesus? There are lots of books written about it, blogs and podcasts too. There’s no lack of information out there. Still, what does it mean to FOLLOW Jesus?
 
When Jesus called His first disciples He simply said, “Follow Me.”
 
These humble fishermen responded by leaving their careers, their possessions, and even their families to follow Him.  This wasn’t just a part-time project for them where they could change their minds in a few days and go back to their profession as fishermen. They left everything — and by doing so they were making a promise to complete the course and finish this new assignment.
 
By agreeing to follow Jesus they consented to be His students or His learners in the Jewish method of a Rabbinical school of discipleship. They recognized Him as a teacher and a leader, and they made this commitment to be His disciples.  What Does it Mean to ‘Follow’ Jesus? It’s a commitment and a choice and yes, it does cost us but its so worth it.
 
So this is what I’m going to be looking at over the next couple of weeks. For today I’ll add this: being a disciple of Jesus means to learn from Him and to stay close to Him. These two imperatives are the very core of true discipleship. These two requirements were essential for Christ’s disciples then — and likewise are necessary for followers of Christ today.  We’ll go deeper into these in my next number of updates.
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

​Good morning everyone!  With the announcement from the premier yesterday it looks like we’ll be able to gather on Sunday the 21st. I can’t wait to see those of you who are comfortable coming back!
Sorry for the technical difficulties we experienced partway through our livestream on Sunday.  We’re having some bandwidth issues. Our amazing tech team is working on this and I’m confident they’ll find a solution that’ll smooth things out and get us back to normal. Thanks for your patience and prayers for this vital ministry team.
I’m wrapping up my thoughts on finding hope in times of trouble.  I’m glad this has been an encouragement to many of you.  Starting Thursday, I’m going to share some thoughts on what it means to truly ‘follow’ Jesus.
 
 
40 Days of Prayer starting February 17!
As I mentioned last week, we have an exciting new prayer opportunity coming next week.  In preparation for Easter, and to strengthen us as a church, we’ll be holding a 40 day time of prayer.  The prayer guide will be available soon to guide you through each day as we get ready for Easter and also pray for our church. This is a great opportunity to come together collectively and pray in unity for our church and each other as we get ready to remember the cross and celebrate the empty tomb.  I hope you’ll be a part of it.
 
 
Wednesday Prayer
Join Jacob and Karen Ginter for a time of prayer on Wednesday afternoons at 3pm here at GBC in the Side Auditorium.
For questions or further details please contact Jacob at– jginter@guelphprays.com or text 519-803-4453
 
 
Thought for the Day: God is preparing us for eternity.
So, what have we learned about living with hope in times like this?  As with my sermon on Sunday, we know that God is preparing us for eternity but also helping us each day until that point.  When you really understand this truth, it’ll change everything about how you deal with difficulties. God is using everything in your life—the good, the bad, and the ugly—to prepare you for eternity.

Peter describes this so powerfully in his first letter : “So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold”.

You will certainly have trials in 2021. You may have a more difficult year than 2020; not a happy thought! But wait for it, better days are ahead.  1 Peter 1 reminds us that our trials are temporary. They will pass one day.

In the meantime, these trials will help you grow. They’ll test your faith—and strengthen it. You’ll be better because of them and that can give us the hope we need to not only carry on, but let our light shine! I hope this truth encourages you today.
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

​Good morning! I hope you’re making this a great week.  It’s another beautiful day.  I was looking at the frost on some tree branches this morning and it was so amazing.  Isn’t God’s creation incredible?  I’m so glad that I (finally!) learned to slow down and enjoy the world around. Yes, there’s lots to be discouraged about right now but there’s LOTS to be encouraged by too. It all depends on where you’re looking.
 
 
Outreach Workshop Sunday!
As a reminder, our next outreach workshop is this Sunday starting at 12:30, so shortly after the service. For 45 minutes we’ll be looking at practical ways that you can strengthen and gain confidence in your ability to share your faith. There’ll be useful teaching to help you grow in comfort in this important part of discipleship. 
I’m excited to see what comes from this as we look to let the light of the gospel shine more strongly through our lives.
The workshop will be held on Zoom.  Here’s the login information:
Topic: GBC Outreach Workshop
Time: Feb 7, 2021 12:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
 
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84414337231?pwd=YlBaYTExNWlya1NBTnNrd3dVcVI1QT09
 
Meeting ID: 844 1433 7231
Passcode: 193492
 
Dial by your location
        +1 778 907 2071 Canada
        +1 204 272 7920 Canada
There’s no need to register, just show up!
 
 
Join us on Sunday!
Join us on our livestream Sunday.  I’m looking forward to being back and speaking after my break. I will be returning to our series “I AM: Jesus in his own words”.  I will be sharing one of my favorite passages of the bible where Jesus declares: “I AM the resurrection.” This has a powerful truth for the future but also an impact for today. I hope you’ll join me to find out what that is.
 
Please tune in either on Facebook Live or through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca  or on our YouTube channel!
 
 
Thought for the day: God’s power will protect us.
I’ve been looking at the issue of hope the past couple weeks and I’ve appreciated the positive comments from many of you.  I can see from it we all are looking for the same thing- answers that will give hope. 
 
People often ask me, especially in the times we’re in, what I think is going to happen in the days ahead. At the beginning of Covid I had a lot more confidence that I had it figured out but now, I have no clue.  That can lead to a lot of discouragement and distraction. It can also lead to a loss of hope.  Here’s my concluding thought on this subject: no matter what the year ahead has in store, you can always count on God to help. How do I know?  Peter writes in his first letter to the early church: “Through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see” Here’s the key: By HIS power and through OUR faith, we can always have hope since God is not only working out his purposes and plans but he’s also protecting us as we go through all of this.

Sometimes we all feel helpless and powerless, it even happens to pastors. But when God is in your life, he has mighty power to help you. His power is bigger than anything you will face this year and that gives me a lot of hope. I ‘hope’ it does for you too!
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris

​Good morning. I hope you’re enjoying this sunny, crisp winter day.  Thanks everyone for your patience, encouragement and prayers for our livestream and AV team on Sunday. If you missed the broadcast of the service in the afternoon you can always watch it now on demand on both our YouTube channel and Facebook page.  Actually, that goes for every week!  You can watch previous services as well. I’m so glad we have this resource. Thanks to Ken and his team for all they do!
 
 
40 Days of Prayer opportunity to help you prepare for Easter
Coming up, and in preparation for Easter, we’ll be holding a 40 day time of prayer.  There will be a prayer guide available that’ll take you through each day as we get ready for Easter and also pray for our church. More details will be coming out soon but I wanted to let you know about this exciting opportunity to go before God in prayer in a more directed way.
 
 
Wednesday Prayer
Join Jacob and Karen Ginter for a time of prayer on Wednesday afternoons at 3pm here at GBC in the Side Auditorium.
For questions or further details please contact Jacob at– jginter@guelphprays.com or text 519-803-4453
 
 
Thought for the day: God has secured our future.
“I hope I’m good enough for Heaven….I hope God will accept me.” 
As a pastor I’ve heard things like this a lot over the years.  Even after receiving Jesus as their Lord and Savior many worry about whether or not they’re acceptable to God.  If you’re a believer, you don’t need to worry about your eternal destiny. It’s secure. No matter what else changes in 2021, your eternity won’t shift a centimeter. The Bible says, “Now we live in the hope of eternal life because Christ rose again from the dead. And God has reserved for his children the priceless gift of eternal life; it is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay” Jesus death on the cross secured that for those who believe in him and have surrendered their lives to him.
What does this mean in a practical sense?
In Jesus, you have a reservation in Heaven that can never be canceled. Covid, or whatever else 2021 throws at you, won’t be the end of you. God has written the final chapter of your life—and you win!  May that give you a sense of assurance and hope today!
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris