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Good morning. Looks like we’re getting a taste of summer today! Enjoy the heat and sunshine but if you’re outside, remember sunscreen.
I’m finishing up my thoughts on character today. I hope they were challenging to you all as we seek to let our light shine and support what we tell by showing what it means to be a follower of Jesus by our lives. Giving Update As I like to do on occasion, I share with you an update on our giving situation. As May wraps up I’m sorry to tell you that we are running behind in our giving year-to-date and our expenses have been up over the course of the year. Now, I was never great at math but even I know that is not a winning equation. So, not surprisingly, we are seeing a growing gap and rising budget deficit. That being said, first off, thank you to all who have been giving faithfully on Sunday and during the week through EFT or by pre-authorized payment. I appreciate you supporting our ministry here. For those who have not given in a while (or for those who may be able to make an extra gift) I’d REALLY appreciate you pitching in and helping us out financially so we can be good stewards of the opportunities God is giving us as a church. GBC Family Picnic coming June 8 Next Wednesday we return to our always fun GBC family picnic. For those newer here, this always fun event was suspended due to Covid. Now its back! Held at the Guelph Bible Conference Center. Here’s what’s going to be happening: Fellowship/Mini-golf: 4:45-5:30pm BBQ Supper 5:45-7pm Children and adult games 7-8pm (including the popular kids candy scramble!) If you’re interested in joining us, please sign up in the foyer. It’s going to be a great night! Thought for the Day: Growing in Christian Character means…. We’ve been looking at the traits of Christian character and how to develop them in the day-to-day of our lives. So, let me summarize this a bit and share one more thought. We develop Christian character by controlling our thoughts, practicing Christian virtues, guarding our hearts, and keeping good company. Men and women of character will set a good example for others to follow, and their godly reputation will be evident to all. As we examine this short list is there anything they have in common? I believe there is! They all require us to: Live! We all live life in context and some form of community. So, to be a person of character we need to live. But with that in mind, be different in the way that you live life. Be mature and conduct yourself maturely. This doesn't mean that you have to look totally different but it does mean that you should be mindful of how you dress and thoughtful in your interactions with social media. As well, listen to good music with a positive message (based on your taste of course!) and avoid any inappropriate videos. Use your best judgment. The only way to truly live in a Christ-honoring fashion is to know Jesus. You will never know him completely, on earth, but throughout life, by praying, reading your Bible, getting involved with study, being a disciple, being in community in a small group, you can know him more. Act the way Jesus did, and that's a life worth living. Once you know Jesus more than you did at first then you can understand how to live. Remember those WWJD bracelets that were popular a few years ago? May that be a reminder: what would Jesus do? It’s hard though to do what Jesus did if we don’t BE what Jesus was. And that was a person of character. Strive to live the best character you can and watch your life change and the life of those around you. In His grip, Pastor Chris
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Good morning! I hope you’re making this a great week! The storm on Saturday reminded me that while we may make plans, we need to hold them with an open hand. Much can change in a short period of time. Commit what you do the Lord and trust in Him.
Baptism opportunity Our next opportunity for believer baptism by immersion is on Sunday June 19. If you are interested in taking this step of obedience, or would like more information, please let me know. Outreach Opportunity: Tree Planting with the Junction Neighborhood Group The Junction Neighbourhood Group will be planting trees and clearing away invasive plants on the morning of Saturday June 11 at Goldie Park (63 Memorial Cres). Volunteers from Guelph Bible Chapel participated in the last tree planting in 2016 and we've been invited to join again! This is a great way to engage and love our neighbours by supporting their efforts to improve their community park. If you'd like to participate in this event, please let Andrea Thornton know at [email protected] or 905-537-9607. Join us on Sunday in-person or on our livestream as we start our new spring series “In focus”-God’s call on this church Sunday we return to our spring series “IN FOCUS”: God’s call for this church. We continue to examine God’s calling for this church in 4 specific areas of ministry: outreach, small groups, prayer and our Sunday morning experience. This Sunday Patrick will finish the topic of small groups. Why are these important and how does God use this vehicle to build community in his church? Find out Sunday! Remember, you can join us as we gather in-person or you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE Thought for the Day: God desires to develop the character already in us It’s God’s purpose to develop the character within that He’s already planted in us. We read in Proverbs 17: “The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart”. Godly character is the result of the Holy Spirit’s work of sanctification in every believer. Character, then, in the believer is a consistent manifestation of Jesus in his life. It’s the purity of heart that God gives becoming purity in action. God sometimes uses trials to strengthen character. The Bible also says: “we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope”. God is pleased when His children grow in character. We read in the Psalms “you test the heart and are pleased with integrity”. God loves when we grow in character! While its there to be developed and God helps us through the Holy Spirit, we still need to work to develop it. With that in mind, here’s our next tip: Learn! Once you become more devoted to Jesus, things should become different. I still remember that vividly in my own life. Christian musician Steven Curtis Chapman says, "What about the difference? What about the change? What about forgiveness? What about a life that's showing I'm undergoing a change?" In order to see that change take root we need to learn. We learn about God, about his character, his desires for us and what Godly character looks like. We can do that through doing a Bible study, being part of a small group or reading Christian literature. A great resource we have at GBC is our libraries. We have an adult library in the Side Auditorium with amazing resources and an excellent children’s library upstairs in our Kid’s Ministry Wing. Why not check out some books and use some of your time to learn? When you do, you can’t help but develop of character! In His grip, Pastor Chris Good morning. Thank you to those who prayed for our outreach opportunity at Michael House last week. It went extremely well and we were able to make some great connections. I appreciate the heart of those who joined me as we began to make friends for the kingdom. Please continue to pray for this opportunity to be good neighbors to this practical ministry just down the road.
Congregational Meeting June 12 On Sunday June 12 we will hold our next congregational meeting. Starting after the service we will be sharing an update on our pastoral transition process and also having an open discussion on Sunday mornings and what that looks like here at GBC. More details to come but mark this date. Oasis@Midweek tomorrow Our final installment for May for our popular mid-week kid’s ministry Oasis@Midweek happens tomorrow. GBC Youth is leading this time so look for some great games, our popular drama and a topical message around the theme of “treasured”. This ministry for children JK to Gr.6 is not only for those who attended Oasis Camp or are part of GBC Kids Ministry but any in that age group that would like an encouraging evening event. Thought for the Day: Character is influenced and developed by our choices. As we continue to look at how to grow in Godly character and live it out, I suspect most of you realize that the choices we make have a huge impact on our character. You’ve hopefully also realized that this is not something that happens just in church but rather in the ‘lab’ of life. We need to CHOOSE each day how we’ll live in the reality of our world and the choices it gives. Daniel “resolved not to defile himself” while living in captivity in Babylon and that Godly choice was an important step in formulating an unquestionable integrity in his life. Character, in turn, influences our choices. Proverbs 3 tells us: “The integrity of the upright guides them”. Character will help us weather the storms of life and keep us from sin. Okay, ready to put this into practice? Here’s our next tip: Fellowship! You can’t do this in a vacuum and you cannot find success alone. You need others in your life; you need fellowship. That word means a lot more than casseroles and roaster chicken at church get-togethers. It means conversation. It means praying together. It means talking about what God is doing in your life. It means building up others who feel down. Okay, that makes sense, but it also means no gossiping. Are the things we’re saying building others up or tearing them down? So, it takes making wise choices and that means you need other Christians in your life to help you out. You need other Christians to give you encouragement and to listen to you. You need advice, too. And you need to give it when you can. Not sure where to look? Hint, hint: the best place to start looking for some Christian friends, is, of course, church. Choose them wisely though, only the ones that look and act like they really are dedicated and really are following Jesus. Then you can both grow in character! In His grip, Pastor Chris Good morning. I hope you’re making this a great week! Today a number of us are making connections with our neighbors at Michael House. I’d appreciate you praying for the team and I that doors of relationship would be opened with the ladies there and we would let our light shine. Michael House is one of our supported ministries and provides assistance to at-risk mothers and their children in a residential setting.
Service and facility Update As we move forward as a society continuing to come out of the pandemic, I wanted to share the next step in our own progression. As of Sunday, most of the ropes will be down in the Main Auditorium to more fully open it up. For those who are still cautious and would prefer to maintain some physical distance, we will be keeping the ropes up on the pews on the left side plus also keeping chairs out in the Side Auditorium for you to space out. We will also continue to block off the pews our cameras are in. Let us continue to move forward in grace and unity as we have before, keeping our focus on Jesus and letting our lights shine. Join us on Sunday in-person or on our livestream for a guest speaker from the Guelph Bible Conference Center Sunday we take a break from our spring series “IN FOCUS”. Our friends from the Guelph Bible Conference Center will be joining us and their speaker, Brian Gunning, will be bringing the message. For those newer to the GBC family, this was a tradition that was paused due to Covid so we’re glad to have them back. So, look for lots of new faces and a message not related to our spring series. Remember, you can join us as we gather in-person or you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE. Thought for the Day: Character is built on consistent experience I introduced to you Tuesday the idea of character, defined it and looked a bit at its importance. So now the natural question might be: how do we gauge character? A person’s character is the sum of his or her disposition, thoughts, intentions, desires, and actions. It’s good to remember that character is gauged by general tendencies, not on the basis of a few isolated actions. We must look at the whole life. For example, King David was a man of good character although he sinned on occasion (and had a few BIG ones). And although King Ahab may have acted nobly once (hint: see 1 Kings 22:35), he was still a man of overall bad character. Several people in the Bible are described as having noble character: Ruth, Nehemiah, and Job, for instance. These people’s lives were distinguished by persistent moral virtue. They stuck with it. That means they consistently sought to learn from God and follow him no matter the circumstance. With this in mind, here’s our tip for the day: Experience! You grow in Godly character through experience in the day-in and day-out, in the grind of life. When you allow this to happen an interesting thing happens: you can then experience the power of God in your life and know the real happiness which is more than just a religious concept. There is joy in living the fullness of character that comes through having the Holy Spirit in your life. As you grow in character you can build up your faith by praying as you experience the power of the Holy Spirit. This takes time though, and it takes consistent effort. When you do, you’ll experience the joy, power and transformation for yourself and the world around you of Godly character. In His grip, Pastor Chris Good morning! With a provincial election underway, a war in Ukraine and so many things going on recently I’ve been thinking about the need for character that reflects our hope in God in times like this. So, for the next few updates I’ll be sharing some thoughts on this.
Outreach Opportunity: Tree Planting with the Junction Neighborhood Group The Junction Neighbourhood Group will be planting trees and clearing away invasive plants on the morning of Saturday June 11 at Goldie Park (63 Memorial Cres). Volunteers from Guelph Bible Chapel participated in the last tree planting in 2016 and we've been invited to join again! This is a great way to engage and love our neighbours by supporting their efforts to improve their community park. If you'd like to participate in this event, please let Andrea Thornton know at [email protected] or 905-537-9607. Thought for the Day: What does it mean to be a person of character? As I mentioned, I’m going to be looking at the issue of character over the next couple of weeks. I’ll look at an element of character and then share some practical tips on how to grow in this important area of being a disciple of Jesus. To start with, character is defined as the attributes and features that make up a person. That’s good, but I like to take it one step further: character is ‘moral excellence and firmness. strength of moral fiber.’ Pastor and author A.W. Tozer described character as “the excellence of moral beings.” As the excellence of gold is its purity and the excellence of art is its beauty, so the excellence of people is in their character. Persons of character are noted for their honesty, ethics, and charity. Descriptions such as “man of principle” and “woman of integrity” are assertions of character. A lack of character is moral deficiency, and persons lacking character tend to behave dishonestly, unethically, and uncharitably. It’s pretty straightforward but hard to attain! Here's your first tip on growing in character: Read! Let's say you get an e-mail from one of your close friends you haven't heard from in a while. What do you do? You read it, of course! God wrote several letters to us, including James which we’re currently studying. When was the last time you read them? We develop character by understanding how God sees it and then applying this to our lives. Make sense? Good! But don't take out your dusty Bible and read it from cover-to-cover tonight. No guilt trip here. Instead, find and following a reading plan but also read other books, like devotionals, studies or commentaries that repeatedly talk about and look at the Bible; then you should read chapters of the Bible dealing with the issue in your devotional. We have some excellent resources in our church library in the Side Aud to help you with this. Check it out or ask Elaine Finlay, the librarian, for options. A good standard of Bible reading time is ten to twenty minutes a day. You can do more if you want, obviously. Do this and you can’t help but grow in character! More to come! In His grip, Pastor Chris Good evening. I hope you’re making this a great week! Big change in temperatures, huh? Looks like spring is in full tilt. Its nice to see the flowers blooming and trees budding. Personally, I enjoy hearing the birds singing in the morning too. Thank God for simple pleasures!
Last call for Oasis Camp leaders We still need a few more leaders for Oasis and this is your last week to apply. This is our biggest ministry initiative of the year so requires a lot of volunteers (and is also an amazingly fun week as well). We still have spaces in several different roles. Oasis Camp runs the week of August 1 to 5. Our theme for this week of camp will be “Monumental – Celebrating God’s Greatness”. If you have an interest in being involved in this year’s camp ministry, please complete an application form available on the info table at the back of the auditorium and return it to Dan Chapman. If you have any questions you can ask me, or Dan. It’s going to be an AMAZING week of Ministry! Join us on Sunday in-person or on our livestream as we start our new spring series “In focus”-God’s call on this church Sunday we continue our spring series “IN FOCUS”: God’s call for this church. After our 100 Days of Prayer in 2020 we felt God calling us to bring focus onto 4 specific areas of ministry: outreach, small groups, prayer and our Sunday morning experience. Since then this has guided much of what we do here at GBC. So, We’re going to examine this from a biblical perspective. This Sunday Jacob will be looking at the topic of small groups. Why are these important and how does God use this vehicle to build community in his church? Find out Sunday! Remember, you can join us as we gather in-person or you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE Thought for the Day: Remember that only God can save someone I’ve been looking lately at the opportunity we have to share our faith and the Good News of the gospel with the world around us. I hope it has stimulated some thought and reflection. The last thing I want to share is a critically important thing to remember when you start sharing your faith: only God can save someone. I don’t know about you, but for many, me included, there can often be a lot of fear surrounding sharing our faith, especially in a post-Christian, post-modern culture. There can also be a lot of guilt around not doing it or doing it wrong. It’s at times like this that God, as a sovereign King, chooses who he saves and when. I remember a well-meaning youth leader who told a group of teens that when sharing their faith if they ‘got this wrong it’ll mess up kid’s eternity’. Honestly, I was pretty steamed by that and it had a negative effect amongst this group of youth. I later reminded them that its up to God who he chooses and when. We’re tools in his hands so relax and go with the spirit. We need to remember to be faithful to the call and the opportunities God provides. We do our part, he does his. In my own experience some of my most articulate, well laid out and passionate gospel appeals have fallen on deaf ears while some of the worst, poorly thought out, inarticulate times I’ve shared my faith have led to someone surrendering their life to Jesus. The key is to be open to being used by God as he sees fit in the way he wants. So, here’s the parting lesson: God is the only one who can save someone. All I am responsible to do is bravely share what He gives me to share, in the opportunities He provides. The rest is up to Him, and He wants people to know Him far more than I ever could. So, I can trust Him. That takes away my fear. In His grip, Pastor Chris Good morning! It was a great weekend! The repair café was an amazing experience for us and it was nice to be back handing out carnations for Mother’s Day. We seem to be hitting our stride in a semi-post Covid world. Key for all of us now is how do we let our lights shine in this context?
Outreach Update: Repair Café was a HUGE success Saturday was our repair café run in conjunction with the Guelph Tool Library. This opportunity came to us through our growing relationship with the Junction Neighborhood Group. Both of these are initiatives of our Outreach Team. Andrea Thornton led this exciting new opportunity to connect with our community and let our light shine. Running from 11am to 3 pm people from the neighborhood and across the city were able to bring in broken items to be fixed. This was the first time they were able to run this event in this part of Guelph since they never had a location before in run it. In the end, here are some facts about the day: 10 fixers -50 visitors plus kids -60 items received -85% fixed rate -we diverted 100 kg of material from the landfill! This was a significant opportunity for us and a terrific connection to make as we built relationship with the Junction team and the Tool Library as well. They have already asked if we would host another event. Praise God! Thanks to Andrea and the team of volunteers who made this possible and for those of you who prayed for this event. The event even made Guelph Today! See a picture gallery here: https://www.guelphtoday.com/local-news/the-fix-is-in-at-guelph-tool-librarys-repair-cafe-7-photos-5342860?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Email GBC Family Picnic returns After a two year absence we are planning a return to the GBC Family Picnic. For those who are newer to the GBC family, this is a fun event held up at the Guelph Bible Conference Center which was suspended due to Covid. It features a BBQ dinner, mini golf and kids games (plus the always-popular candy scramble!). It’s a great time to come out and get to know your church family better. More details will be coming out soon so stay tuned. You don’t want to miss this! Thought for the Day: You have a testimony I’ve been sharing of late some thoughts on outreach and sharing your faith. Here, to me, is the most effective way- share your story! I think the best way to share our faith is to share what God has done in our own lives. But you don’t have to have an “I-almost-died-doing-drugs-when-Jesus-showed-up-in-a-vision” story in order to have a testimony. Your testimony can simply be knowing that God is faithful and knowing how much He loves you and sharing that message of hope. Most of you know my story of how I came to be a follower of Jesus (if you don’t, let me know, I’d love to share it with you). But that’s my story. Your story is your story and yours is as valid and as important as mine is. We don’t want to get into valuing our stories based on the content. Tell YOUR story and let God work with it through the Holy Spirit. Whether you’ve journeyed with God your whole life or you’ve walked through a whole lot of pain, brokenness and mistakes, you—yes, you!—can testify to what God has done and who He is. Share your story with the world around you. I think this is the most powerful way we can share our faith: to share what God has done in our own lives, and talk about our relationship with Him. In His grip, Pastor Chris Good afternoon. I hope you’re making this a great week! You can tell a provincial election is underway by all the sign popping up. Regardless of your political preference, may we all be in prayer that God’s will would be done through the process and in the outcome. Remember to pray for our politicians!
Reminder: Repair Café is Saturday here at GBC! Have something you need repaired? A piece of jewelry? Clothing? Electronic device? Come on out to the Guelph Tool Library’s “Repair Café”! Saturday from 11am to 3pm here at GBC a variety of skilled trades people will be out to fix items for no charge. This is an initiative of the Outreach Team and being held in conjunction with the Junction Neighbourhood Group. Please pray for this event that we would have the opportunity to let our lights shine through this tangible act of service. Oasis Camp is still looking for a few more leaders Oasis Camp will run the week of August 1 to 5. Our theme for this week of camp will be “Monumental – Celebrating God’s Greatness”. We’re looking for leaders! If you’re newer to the GBC family, you’ve likely heard of our Oasis Summer Day Camp. This is a large ministry of ours which we run each summer at Guelph Bible Conference Center. We’d love to have you as part of the team! As in prior years, we will be asking all potential volunteers to complete a brief application form (please note: references are only required for first-time leaders). The leadership team will select leaders with first priority being given to those who attend GBC, are involved with GBC’s ministries, or who have a family connection to GBC. If you have an interest in being involved in this year’s camp ministry, please complete an application form available on the info table at the back of the auditorium and return it to Dan Chapman. If you have any questions you can ask me, or Dan. It’s going to be an AMAZING week of Ministry! Join us on Sunday in-person or on our livestream as we start our new spring series “In focus”-God’s call on this church Sunday we continue our new series for the spring. We will be bringing focus onto God’s call for this church. After our 100 Days of Prayer in 2020 we felt God calling us to bring focus onto 4 specific areas of ministry: outreach, small groups, prayer and our Sunday morning experience. Since then this has guided much of what we do here at GBC. So, We’re going to examine this from a biblical perspective. This Sunday I will be continuing the topic of outreach examining the study of Jonah. Why is it that if there was no chapter 4 Jonah would have been seen as an amazing missionary? How does this pertain to today? Find out Sunday! Remember, you can join us as we gather in-person or you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE Thought for the Day: Watch (and ask) for opportunities...more thoughts Tuesday I examined the idea of looking for opportunities to share our faith with the world around us. While I will often be given the chance to share the hope that I have, we can also ASK God to give us these openings and then we just have to keep our eyes open to see the opportunities when they pop up. Great! Here’s another thing I watch for: Questions from others. Although most everyone who knows me knows I’m a Christian, it doesn’t mean I’ve exhausted my opportunities to share my faith. When someone asks me about an element of my faith, like one of my athletes did recently, or I see an opening in a conversation, I just share a little bit unless the person wants to keep talking. For example, someone once asked how I could forgive a person who’d treated me badly. I got to share very briefly that I could because God had forgiven me for so much as well. That was it. The person didn’t have any more questions and we moved on to another subject. But other times, a person has wanted to keep talking, and we’ve talked about God for a long time. I try to listen to what they’re interested in and just share that so I don’t come across as being pushy. The key here is to be connected to the Holy Spirit and wait on the Spirit’s prompting, not rushing, but also not being passive. More on this next week! In His grip, Pastor Chris Good morning! It’s been nice to see the daffodils bloom and plants starting to burst forth despite rain, cold and even snow recently. Spring is here! Our spiritual journey can be like this at times. It can seem like never-ending winter yet spring always follows! Hang in there, look to God and rest on his promises of deliverance. If you find yourself struggling and need someone to talk to, please reach out to me, or someone you know. Don’t travel this path alone!
Repair Café coming to GBC! Have something you need repaired? A piece of jewelry? Clothing? Electronic device? Come on out to the Guelph Tool Library’s “Repair Café”! Saturday from 11am to 3pm here at GBC a variety of skilled trades people will be out to fix items for no charge. This is an initiative of the Outreach Team and being held in conjunction with the Junction Neighbourhood Group. Please pray for this event that we would have the opportunity to let our lights shine through this tangible act of service. GBC Summer Jobs! Are you between 15 and 30 years old? Are you looking for a meaningful summer job? Do you like developing programs for children or doing projects with your hands? If so, consider applying for one of two positions available this summer. The roles will be focused on delivering our OASIS summer camp, supporting children and youth ministry and doing light duty facility and grounds maintenance work. Roles will last 8 weeks and pay $15.25 per hour for a 35-hour week. Start dates can be as soon as the beginning of May. Speak to Pastor Chris or Dan Chapman for more information. Thought for the Day: Sharing your faith: Watch (and ask) for opportunities. I always find it so interesting how God brings opportunities for me to share about Him (whether at times I want to or not!). He really does love to do this, sometimes at the strangest of times! That means I have to keep my eyes open so I can see the opportunities when they pop up. I’m going to share two things to watch for, one today, the other Thursday: God’s nudges. Only He knows when someone’s heart is ready to hear about Him. So, if I sense Him nudging my spirit, I know it’s time to say something. For me, His nudges feel like the nervousness I’ve felt before a race or competition, and my heart beats faster. I know I need to say something. It can feel different for different people, though. Sometimes I’ll get that feeling with total strangers or people I’m having a totally different interaction with (think being treated by a physiotherapist!). I suddenly sense God wants me to tell them about what he’s done in my life and what he can do for them. Honestly, these opportunities can be kind of scary times for me, but I’ve seen God open up crazy doors of conversation! So, here’s my encouragement: LOOK for when God nudges, or better yet, PRAY for God to nudge you and watch how he does! In His grip, Pastor Chris |
Pastor Chris"At GBC we're serious about the Bible, serious about the truths that are found in it and living in Him but also like to laugh, cry and experience life together." Archives
January 2024
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