The picture shows Stuart Townend on the left and Keith Getty on the right. Stuart has an upcoming album on which he has re-recorded “Every Promise.” For those of you at Edgewood, I am sure this is a hymn we will be learning at some point this year. Jump over to the Getty’s website and familiarize yourself with it. Here are a few quotes about the song “Every Promise”.

Every Promise of your word is a song that reminds us of the rich promises in God’s word which are more than sufficient for our every circumstance.

This can be used as a congregational song or as an answer and response, where the congregation simply sing - ‘and I stand on every promise of Your word’

Paul Tripp on Every Promise

Why hope in the Word? Why stand on its every promise? Why heed its guidance and reach out for its grace? The answer is simple, it is the only place where life can be found. There is no firmer place to stand. There is no more reliable place of hope. There is no more trustworthy place of comfort. The story, the mirror, the scalpel, the map, the drink, the key, and the portrait all call me to come and rest again and hope again and stand again at the only place where life, real life, eternal can life be found.

We get a lot of church merchandise magazines in the mail. I happened to thumb through one today and found that you can purchase parking tickets with free personalization for your church! (Click on the picture to see for yourself) Nothing says ‘glad you came to church this week’ like a parking ticket neatly affixed to your car window. Plus you have all the church information professionally printed right there so you will remember where you want to go to church next weekend! I love the marketing at the top of the ad, “Everyone is sure to get the message.” The same company also can help you with your church outreach needs.

Bob Kauflin: “From February 1 through February 29, Sovereign Grace will be selling all our CDs for six dollars. With free shipping. In addition, we’ll be selling our Pursuit of Godliness books for five dollars, also with free shipping.” Read his post for more info!

(ht:jt)

For those at Edgewood, you might want to keep in mind that the style of these CD’s will be more contemporary.  We do sing several of the songs from Sovereign Grace including, “I Will Glory in My Redeemer”  and the newest one we learned at retreat, “Surrender All”.

If you are new to Sovereign Grace Music, I would recommend considering “Upward“, “Valley of Vision“, and “Worship God Live“.  You can listen to samples before buying to see if these CD’s are for you.  Remember, the CD’s will not be on sale until February 1st.

We had a great year this year at our Annual Youth Retreat. Thanks to all who helped out. Also, I really enjoyed working with and spending time with all the teens that were there.

Jeremy Pierre was the speaker and his messages really seemed to hit home with all the teens. The picture above was has the theme and 3 sermon subjects on it. The sermons from this years Winter Youth Retreat are now available for free. Download them here.

All counseling must move people to the normative fellowship of being part of the body of Christ.

In my ministry I am not away from my family very often. A few times a year I will be away for about 2 days at a time. This week I will have been away from my wife and children for the longest stretch, almost 7 days. I am learning that I get homesick easily. I am staying with a very gracious friend. He is a wonderful surgeon (according to his mother), works long hours, and is single. All my classes are from 4-10 PM, he goes to bed before 10 PM and is gone by 7 AM. This means that from 7 AM until I go to class there is no one else in the house and it is hauntingly quiet for a guy who goes home every night to a wife, 3 energetic children, 2 barking dogs, and 3 cats. I am used to noise, people, hugs, kisses, talking! I have been going nuts the last few days. It is too lonely to fall asleep, too quiet to stay asleep, too still to read and think. I walk around the house and there I am, just me, lost inside. Saturday I get to go home!

I don’t express for attention or sympathy, I know many are away from loved one much longer and more frequently. However, it has helped me to sympathize and pray more for those who are homesick and lonely. Particularly, I have prayed more deeply for my grandfather this week. I get to go home to what is known and what I love on Saturday. My grandmother , who went home to be with the Lord in May, will not be there any more for him to go home to ever again. He has talked about loneliness and lostness since her death. There are times he seems to walk around as if he was looking for or longing to hear someone, particularly, his wife. He is not the only one. There are many widows and orphans each of us know. Pray for them, reach out to them. We all know what it is to be homesick, now imagine being homesick for a home you cannot find again on this earth. God is sufficient and can satisfy them in a sense that no home or relationship can, but this does not mean there will not be struggles with lonliness and emptiness. We need to lift them up, come along side of them, cry for and with them, and assure them of God’s grace and hope.

When I worship Idols of the heart I use others rather than serve others.

I am convinced the reason the church looks so much like the world is that they are not amazed by grace any more.

These are helpful things to consider about why one should go to Sunday School if your church has such a program in place. Going to Sunday School will not make one righteous in and of itself, nor is it a measure of righteousness in and of itself. However, it does have value in church life and in individuals.

1. You delight in God and therefore want to learn more of Him and be around others who delight in Him. If your heart beats for God then your desire for learning more about him should be natural.
2. You are to be seeking first the kingdom of God and this is one way of keeping focus.
3. You love Mindy and Mark (plug in the name of someone in your church). No really. How fair is it to them, if they make the effort, prepare, and then don’t have anyone else to fellowship with, challenge, and be challenged by. This is a secondary motivation, but Scriptures teach us to love others above ourselves and in loving them we show our love to Christ. Do you love Mindy more than yourself? Do you love Mark more than your extra hour of sleep? More than staying out late on Saturday night? More than your hobbies? Can you see the me centeredness vs. otherness?
4. You want to make your pastors/teachers job more joyful (this is to your advantage according to Hebrews). Healthy pastors love seeing your faces, hearing your feedback, being challenged by your questions and responses. Hebrews 13 tells us to make our shepherd’s job a joy. Attendance is a great place to start.
5. What else are you going to be doing at 9:30 AM on a Sunday? Redeem the time, don’t waste it. Figure out what is keeping you from here and begin to think about giving an account of your life in light of that motivation and action.
6. It ensures you will be on time for the Worship Service and even helps in the preparation of your heart for that time.

“If there was a better circumstance for you to be in at this moment God would put you there”