GBC Community Update: Are you a disciple?

​Good morning! So, we’ve gone from the heat and humidity of summer to now extreme rain.  While the weather may change God doesn’t and I’m glad for that.  I hope your week is off to a good start.  I have a question on this rainy Tuesday: are you a disciple?  Not sure? Read my thoughts on this below.
 
Mission’s Update
Mark and Gretchen Potma
-Quarantine
-Church
-Projects
Our 2 week quarantine went by quickly with plenty to work on.  We’ve prepared project proposals for couple of foundations: Church Planting in the Most Irreligious Country on Earth and Through a Gateway City: Reaching Mongolians in Europe for Christ.  Please pray for these two projects.  If you’d like to find out more, we’d be glad to send you details.
Petr, the outreach worker at Ladvi Church, sends us regular updates from Prague.  He and a team from Ladvi Church passed out Gideon Bibles and invitations, which resulted in newcomers at Ladvi Church’s Bible study.  Please pray for two people who sought out Petr and asked him to explain the Gospel to them.
At South City church, Sunday services and midweek meetings are continuing.  Last month, pastoral intern Vit and his wife Marketa announced the birth of their son, Jachym.  A few weeks later, the oldest member of our church, Libuse, went to be with her Saviour at 90.  Libuse was faithful to God through the Nazi occupation, Communist dictatorship persecution, the drive for freedom and democracy, and being part of helping new church plants to grow!
 
 
Wednesday Prayer
GBC Prayer Night is shifting to “in-person” gatherings! We plan to meet for prayer on Wednesday’s at GBC (in the side auditorium). Start time – 7pm. Please plan to join us in prayer God’s Kingdom to come, His will to be done, in Guelph as it is in Heaven!
For questions or further details please contact Jacob Ginter– [email protected] or text 519-803-4453
 
 
A thought for the day: Are you a disciple?
Are you a disciple of Jesus or do you have a cultural and religious connection to Christianity? For many, sadly, we find our relationship with God is a cultural connection rather than a spiritual transformation.  Jesus hit the nail on the head when He said in Luke 9: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.”  Denial…lose…the character traits of discipline which is what it takes to be a disciple.
 
Discipline is defined as an orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior. We who are followers of Jesus are to live in this way since to be a disciple is more than merely praying to receive Jesus as savior. That’s only the beginning!
           
So, to be a disciple is an all-out commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. That takes discipline. God makes stringent demands on his disciples in terms of attitude and lifestyle, action and heart.  Martin Luther once said “A religion that gives nothing, costs nothing, and suffers nothing, is worth nothing.”  God, through His gracious power allows us to experience something so much more than mere religion. He fills us with His Holy Spirit, empowers US to be his agents and vessels of grace, his hands and feet…that’s tough, it can only be done through Him.  That takes discipline and it does cost something. Are you settling in your walk with God when the great adventure of being a disciple is available?
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris