Uh-mazing or Ah-mazing?

This past week we finished our "Foundations of our Faith - Why I Am a Seventh-day Adventist Christian" sermon series.  Our concluding sermon included the communion service because our final message was how the Seventh-day Adventist church follows Jesus and therefore values service.  I am a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church because of the amazing service so many church members rendered to me throughout my time in SDA schools.  So many servants gave in so many wonderful ways that truly touched my heart to the point I gave my heart to Jesus Christ to be the Lord and Savior of my life.  Those who were serving to help me, connected with me and connected me to Jesus.

Service is a spiritual discipline.  It's easy to think about service and think "Yeah, it's uh-mazing," you know, like we know it's supposed to be great but we don't connect with it on a heart level.  Service, however, like all discipline, reveals it's worth the effort in every way!  There is no more rewarding work than to know we have helped someone and connected them closer to the Lord Jesus Christ.  Galatians 6:8-9 says, "Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.  Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."  In other words, the Bible is telling us God will prove to us that serving others truly is "ah-mazing" because one day soon we will all say, "Aha!" at the incredible harvest that will make everything worthwhile.

May God bless our Meadow Glade Seventh-day Adventist Church family to ever appreciate growing as servants of our Savior Jesus Christ.

- Pastor Michael Brackett

Higher Education

Here at the close of the school year I can't help but praise God for another year of learning on this campus! Learning is such a beautiful part of the Christian experience. Our God is ever wanting to teach us so we can grow in His ways every day and forevermore.

Isaiah 27:5-6 says, "'Or else let them come to me for refuge; let them make peace with me, yes, let them make peace with me.'  In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit."

A life joined to God begins a process much like the beautiful unfolding of a blossoming flower. The giving of one's heart to God brings the fresh aroma of real peace.  And peace is not the only gift God gives!  Real growth and ongoing transformation become a constant, daily experience!  Where a person starts is dramatically different than where a person is today, when a person has a relationship with the Almighty.

Father in Heaven, you gave Jacob a new name (Israel) and completely rewrote his history. Thank you for doing the same for us!  Please continue to unfold Your flowering gifts to us so the world will feast on the sweet fruits of lives that remain humbled before Your awesome, transformative power. Thank You for providing us with a beautiful, unfolding, and ever-higher education.

-Pastor Michael Brackett

A Fuller Picture of Jesus

As a child, I knew the titles of my parent's professions but didn’t know exactly what they did. Sure my mother was a nurse, but what exactly do nurses do? Yes, my father was a funeral director, but what does that look like? I knew their job titles, but everything else was very abstract.

 That all changed when I got to visit my parent's workspaces. One time my mom showed me her unit and introduced me to the nursing staff. Another day, my father showed me his office and introduced me to the staff he worked with. Suddenly, what they did each day became more concrete in my mind, and their jobs and lives became more meaningful. My mom was not just a “nurse”; each day was serving and helping newborn babies and first-time mothers. My dad was not just a “funeral director” but sat with families in the middle of their loss and grief. Seeing their workspace, gave me a fuller picture of who they were, and what they did each day.

In a sense, the book of Hebrews invites us into Jesus’ workspace. Hebrews takes us into the heavenly sanctuary and shows us what Jesus does daily. Hebrews 8:1-3 says: “We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, and who serves in the sanctuary…” What is Jesus doing? He is serving and ministering on our behalf. This means that Jesus is not just someone who did something in the past but is someone who is doing something today.

If your world is turned upside down right now, know this: Jesus is actively ministering on your behalf. He is actively doing his part to bring his kingdom to our broken world. This is our God. Our God who laid down his life for us in the past, and who is presently ministering on our behalf.

-Pastor Evan Davies

What is Your Faith Based On?

Text:

2 Corinthians 13:5 - Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?

What does it mean to be in the faith? Faith is used to describe a person’s set of statements of  belief. The Christian faith is obviously ideas of belief that Jesus taught. But more specifically, are the teachings themselves our foundation? Or is Jesus our foundation by which our beliefs are descriptions of Jesus and what we understand him to be?

One day, when I was around 14, an adult friend and I were going door-to-door witnessing about Jesus. We were also making friends. At one point, that Sabbath afternoon, my friend got involved with some other folks he had known from before and I was getting board waiting to continue our visiting door-to-door. So I went on by myself.

The first door I came to, I met a young man who was a teacher at the local public school. He invited me in and asked me, how do I accept Jesus into my heart. I was scared to know how to answer him. But I sent up a prayer and God gave me the perfect passage to share with him. It was John 3. I began reading the story of Nicodemus to him. And God gave me the words to say for explaining the meaning of the story. The doctrine of Salvation was about experiencing the new birth and becoming a new person in Jesus. At the end of our study, he said he wanted to give his heart to Christ, and I, without any training in how to lead someone to Christ, God led to pray the prayer of surrender and He received Jesus into his life that day. Jesus was the center of that study. He was the One who would be lifted up from the earth on a cross, and all would be drawn to him for their salvation.

I would like to propose that unless our beliefs and teachings are centered in Christ, they are empty of power to change us, or to draw others to Him. I’m so thankful that through some very challenging times in my life, I rediscovered Jesus was the center of our beliefs as Seventh-day Adventist Christians. This perspective helped me not only love God more deeply, but it gave me greater confidence in God’s leading in my life.

In our verse above, we are told test ourselves regarding how well we are rooted in our belief in Jesus and his Word. For some this process may be confusing, and for others it may be easy. The one thing the verse reminds of is that Jesus Christ is in us. If Jesus is in us, we pass the test, because a believing faith in Jesus, is having a relationship with Him through Prayer, Bible Study, and Sharing with others the faith we are experiencing with Him.

Here are some questions that can be helpful in evaluating your faith and trust in Jesus:

1.      What place does Jesus have in your everyday life? Do you think of him when facing a difficult decision or are experiencing some discouraging life challenges?

a.       If you’re not in the habit of reaching out to him for help. I have found it helpful to getting a book of Bible promises that can give you God’s Word of hope in that situation.

2.      Take time every day to read a portion of the Bible. God’s Word is the how we learn about him.

a.       Sections of the Bible are better for this kind of devotional Bible study, such as the Psalms, and the Gospels.

3.      If you are finding it difficult to understand a passage of scripture or a doctrinal teaching, try to see how it would relate to a picture of God or Jesus.

a.       Don’t give up on searching for ways it could give you a better picture of God.

b.      Read some commentaries or books that are covering the topic which might help you understand it better. Don’t neglect to read what Ellen White may have said about the passage or teaching.

c.       Join a small group Bible study where you might ask questions about what others may have discovered from the passage or teaching for themselves.

4.      And finally, keep it as a matter of prayer, remembering that God’s timing is always perfect in revealing new perspectives that will open up your mind to a new understanding of truth to you.

When a came through a time when I was questioning my faith, I learned that God was with me through that challenging time. And I discovered new perspectives of understanding that made me love Jesus more and love our message more. I hope you will discover Jesus in your beliefs and in your relationship with God.

-Pastor Ben Moor

Family Pride

How proud are you of family?  Family is an important concept to most.  Family can be a constant challenge also to most.  We have an inner longing to ever improve our family dynamics.  I am proud to be a Seventh-day Adventist Christian today because of its devotion to ever improve family.

Our church was organized with the purpose of being a worldwide family.  We have over 21 million members in our growing, global church membership.  Worldwide there are 13 divisions, 122 unions, 600 local conferences which are all serving 140,000+ congregations.  These congregations are found in 208+ countries, worshipping in 924+ languages, and they all want to connect with you and consider you to be a part of their family.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church proves it is proud of its worldwide family through its unique tithe system.  Whereas many churches keep all the tithe for their own use, we send 100% of our tithe to our local Conference where it is spread far and wide through the unions and major divisions to continuously equip its churches and work throughout the world.  This work is about strengthening the lives of its family members and future family members through education, medical work, disaster relief, publishing work, and local church congregations.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church proves it is proud of its worldwide family through its unique diversity.  It is the most racially and ethnically diverse religious group in the United States, according to a report released by the Pew Research Center, a respected non-partisan organization in Washington, DC.  If a study was done for worldwide diversity, I'm sure the results would be the same.  People from all cultures, races and ethnicities are welcome to be a part.  This includes liberals and conservatives alike.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church seeks to ever improve its families by improving the health of each family member in mind, body and spirit.  Growing by taking our minds captive to Christ; growing healthier through lifestyle habits (such as diet and exercise); growing in God's grace and love - all are vital parts of the mission of this worldwide church.

How proud are you of family?  The Seventh-day Adventist Church wants to help everyone grow ever prouder of family.  You have a worldwide family within it that ever desires and teaches that God is the answer to keeping all families growing stronger and stronger in Him.

-Pastor Michael Brackett

Bearing Witness to the Truth

What is truth?  A fair question in a world where we are fed so much information continuously.  It seems that daily someone is proclaiming their “truth.”  But the way I understand truth, everything can’t be held up as true.   If we all went outside and it was gray, rainy, and cold we wouldn’t accept someone telling us it was sunny, warm, and the sky was blue.  Isn’t it interesting then, that many see truth as relative and subjective, when by definition, truth is the quality or state of being true, and that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality. Truth is true, regardless of what you or I think about it. 

Brought before Pilate and asked if He was a king, Jesus responded, “You say rightly that I am a king.  For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into this world, that I should bear witness to the truth.  Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”  In response Pilate asked the question, “what is truth?” (John 18:37-38). Maybe he really wanted to know, or maybe he didn’t believe truth could be understood, or perhaps he, like all of us at times, don’t want to know or believe what is true because it doesn’t fit our plan for life. 

I’m grateful for the consistent reliability of God’s word.  How about you?  Sure, it requires faith to accept, but the evidence is strongly in favor of it being true.  It is reliable, with places, people, and events supported by history and archaelogy.  Creation, a Creator, and a global flood, long believed by science to be myths, have more adherents today because the evidence fits better than other theories.  And Jesus?  Not only do we have recorded eyewitness accounts of what followers saw and experienced, but these were people who often laid down their lives for the “truth.”

Perhaps, greater than all of this is the personal evidence of a life changed by the power of the gospel,…mine….and yours, because of the truth that “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”  And if we believe it, and share it, it is the truth will set people free.  Free to love, free to live, free to have hope, and peace, and assurance in spite of all going on around us.  The Bible: still the truth, and still the best news ever.  

-Pastor Jim Bollin

Cycle of Rest

How is your work-cycle of life?  Do you get weary rushing to complete your weekly schedule only to have to do it all over again?  It's easy to get stuck in the rut of repetition, where time speeds up and your joy slows down.  There is practical advice to break the monotony:  Drive a different way to work; brush your teeth with the opposite hand; stand a different direction in the shower; wash your clothes the old-fashioned way in the river.  (Ok, I made that last one up.)  Experts have great advice on unique ways to invigorate our cycles in life.

There is One expert that excels above the rest, however.  The Lord Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, invites us to find perpetual rest in Him.  Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all you who are weary, and I will give you rest."  Anytime we feel overwhelmed and overburdened, Jesus is there for us.  He lives to do this for us perpetually!  All His incredible energy - powerful enough to create all things just by speaking words - is focused and harnessed to help us.  What kind of love is this?  The kind of love that offers us rest consistently.

At creation, Jesus also created the Sabbath.  He rested the 7th day to be with us.  That 7th day continues every week as an open invitation to lean fully in His powerful and capable word.   Will we believe He can offer us rest?  Even if it means stepping away from our busy, weekly cycles of work?  Is He capable of giving us rest even if it means one less day working to be with Him?  That's between each of us and our Creator.  I want to trust more myself in His Words.  I want to put more weight into His ability over my own.  I want to deepen my experience with a weekly cycle of rest in my Creator.  Will I trust Him more and will I find more rest in Him than I could fathom?

His Word also says He is coming soon!  The rest we will experience on that day will be unlike anything we can imagine now.  We will finally feel energized completely.  Our souls will have a stillness in our Savior that we will savor forever and ever more.  I'm feeling more peaceful even now just thinking about it!  Lord, we lean into Your Word today, trusting You are there for us now, every week, and for eternity.  Thank you for offering us a perpetual cycle of rest to counterbalance our work-cycles in life!

-Pastor Michael Brackett