GBC Community Update: Seek the peace of God

​Good morning!  I hope your week is off to a good start.  I’m looking forward to “Lunch on the Lawn” on Sunday.  Remember to bring a lunch and join your church family on the front lawn for a chance to connect or to reconnect. Drinks will be provided. As I mentioned Sunday, its amazing the simple things I used to take for granted such as opportunities like this. God sure has a way of changing our perspective, doesn’t he?  I hope you’ll make the time to stay around after the service as we seek to grow together.
 
 
Community Volunteering Opportunity
As was mentioned on Sunday, we have recently had the opportunity to connect with the Junction Neighborhood Association.  This has many exciting possibilities the Outreach Team is exploring and you’ll hear more about this in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, they have an immediate need for several volunteers for a jazz festival they are hosting at Norm Jerry Park in the Willow Community area.  This is short notice but they need several people to help.  The event is being held on Thursday and Saturday.  They are in need of the set up and break down shifts for both days:   
4:15-6:00pm in need of  1 more volunteer 
6:00-7:30pm in need of 1 more volunteer
If interested, please contact Shauna Brown, the festival co-ordinator, directly (and let me know too!) [email protected]
 
Join in prayer on Wednesday night
Our last weekly prayer gathering for the summer led by Patrick happens here at GBC on Wednesday at 7:00 pm this week.  The focus is to be on praying for the gospel to reach people in the city of Guelph, and more specifically the Junction Neighborhood. The gathering will be held in the Adult Ministry Room.
 
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 Thought for the day: Seek the peace of God
With talks of a ‘fourth wave” and the Delta variant starting to kick into high gear and begin impacting things, fear seems to be sticking around.  Fear brings turmoil in our hearts and minds. When we’re filled with so much fear, we can’t think properly. It seems everything that we do is subject to danger. We’re constantly stricken with the thought that things can go wrong.
Thankfully, God left us His peace. Jesus said this: “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
Jesus gives us a reason why we shouldn’t be afraid. He gives us peace and this should ease our fear.  But you might ask, how can peace extinguish fear in my heart?
Great question!
The simple answer is that the two are contrary to each other. You can’t have both peace and fear at the same time. It is either you are peaceful or fearful.  It can’t be both.
The peace that Jesus brings originates from Him. It is NOT something that you ordinarily get from the world. For most people, peace is the absence of conflict and war. But for God, peace is having an intimate and close relationship with Him.  Peace is having God in your life. Peace comes from the assurance and belief that God is always in control.  When you are filled with this type of peace, then you can cast away fear from your heart no matter the wave or whatever else is going on. Get the peace of God!
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris