The following newsletter came today and after reading it, thought about all the dedicated parents who are part of our GFI family and the ‘difference’ you and your children are making. Sometimes it doesn’t seem like much and you may even think, ‘is it all worth it? Yes, our family is ‘different’ but are we making a difference?’ The fact that as parents and children you are committed to ‘putting on Christ’ each day, being that ‘living epistle’ that Paul speaks of, light in a dark world. Remember, none of the people we read about in the Bible [except Jesus] were aware of the difference they would make for millennia to come. They were ‘ordinary people, used by God to do extraordinary things for His Kingdom sake’ Be encouraged and continue being a ‘difference maker’ in your home and community, God will take care of the rest. Blessings, Anne Marie

We all appreciate “difference makers”. The hope held by the American people is that our newly elected president and his team will make a difference! Those of you that are into football are watching the activities of free agency and wait for the big April event, the NFL Draft, with the hopes that their team will select a “difference maker”. So the question is, are you a “difference maker”?

We should not be surprised that many of the “difference makers” both in the real world and the Bible are/were common people. Several years ago, I heard a statement about the world being run by “C” students. As I teach through the Bible in our Real Bible Institute, I’ve been impressed with all the common people that made a difference for God! Luke has impressed me this past week, as we are studying his gospel. While some may have a more difficult time relating to him due to his professional manner (as a doctor), he was still a difference maker.

In many ways, Luke was an outsider and didn’t really “fit the mold”. The fact that his parents were Greek made him the only Greek writer of a New Testament book (In Colossians 4:10-14 he is not identified as one of “the circumcision”, or as a Jew). His heritage would also have made him an outsider during much of the first century Judeo-centric church. In addition, he did not possess a Jewish/Christian pedigree, and while we believe that he was similar in age to Jesus and Paul, it is doubtful that he was born into a believing home. Thus, it is very possible that Luke was an adult convert of Paul’s ministry.

Here are two lessons from Luke on being a difference maker:

He ministered. Luke did not allow himself to focus on his limitations; he just did it. He did not get hung up on who he was. He did not allow other gospel accounts to keep him from writing to an influential gentile friend, Theophilus. Neither did He allow his lack of pedigree keep him from writing a two-volume work on the life of Christ and the expansion of the church. The Gospel of Luke and Acts came to comprise 28% of the New Testament, his gospel being the longest work in the New Testament. He was also responsible for more New Testament content than any other author.

We also know that Luke was faithful. He rolled up his sleeves and got involved. He was a man who kept ministering through the ups and downs of life and Christian ministry. His use of “we” and “us” in Acts (16:10-ff) indicate that he joined Paul on his second missionary journey in the early A.D. 50’s, and continued to minister with Paul for the rest of his life, (almost 15 years; 2 Timothy 4:11).

What a testimony! Think of the people that have made a difference in your life… Chances are, they were just like Luke. What a challenge! How often do we fail to make a difference because we do not even try? How often do we give up or move on before God has a chance to work! You and I are no different than Luke or even Mark. Some of us have been raised in Christian homes and others of us came to know Christ later, but we can each make a difference. How will you make a difference this year?

- Pastor Joe

The concept of Community is not new to our GFI family – Gary has been teaching the importance and value of being a part of a ‘like-minded’ community for years. In reading the following article in Pastor Joe’s newsletter, I was once again reminded of the value and power of Community.

We in the U.S. are not the only ones facing economic challenges, this is a worldwide issue and for most of the world, this is not something new, they have been living with it a long time. Yet, as I watch and listen to the news, it seems the mainstream media is not addressing the ‘root cause’ – what are our Beliefs? Everyone agrees,  we have a broken ‘how’ and those attempting to ‘fix’ the problem, while they may inadvertently go back to their Beliefs and goals, those Beliefs + goals do not reflect the core Beliefs we all hold to, which starts with a Creator God – it’s difficult to come to a consensus when the starting point differs.

But we, as part of the Body of Jesus Christ know where our strength comes from. Let us not grow weary in well doing, living our lives according to the character and virtues found in Christ and then instilling those virtues into the heart of our children. We are the salt & light, our purpose is to glorify, [make bigger] our Father in Heaven. What an exciting time for us to live and fulfill the purpose for which we were created. Blessings, Anne Marie

Right now I’m replaying a video in my mind of how a pack of wolves takes on a herd of Elk. Of course, the wolves do not stand a chance going head to head with the herd, so what do they do: they isolate an individual from the herd. Then, an elk becomes easy prey for the wolves.

This brief illustration is a reminder of the power of community. The Bible challenges followers of Christ to be ‘plugged in’ and a part of His community; the local church. It is unfortunate that many who claim the name of Jesus are not involved in a local community. Please understand that I am talking about more than just attending a weekend service!

During times such as our nation is currently facing, the concept of community becomes important, especially taking into consideration the fact that many families are scattered across the country. Here are a few reasons to consider: as I already mentioned, the power of community is seen in the protection it provides. The saying “there is strength in numbers” is very true. The Bible teaches that “though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken” Ecclesiastes 4:12 (NIV). It is even amazing how participants in ‘Survivor’-type reality shows work together, despite efforts of the producers to cause tension and discord. What helped our country survive the Great Depression was a commitment to one another. Should the economic situation continue to deteriorate, your community of faith will become even more important.

Another power of a Community is its ability to share and help meet needs. One of the hallmarks of the Church established by Jesus Christ (at least until the modern welfare system was established), was that Christians took care their own and others. The first century church knew the power of sharing. “There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need” Acts 4:34-35 (NIV).

The power of community also adds meaning to your life. For the Christian, community is the soil for cultivating your God-given purpose. Paul writes, “so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us” Romans 12:5-6 (NIV). Often, the greatest blessing of belonging to a community of faith is not what you get, but how you are able to touch others by giving: “remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” Acts 20:35b (NIV).

We also see that the power of Community is a source of encouragement. The author of Hebrews, writing to a group of persecuted people said this: “and let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as you see the Day approaching” Hebrews 10:24-25 (NIV). Your greatest need during difficult times is encouragement. Often, it is an encouraging word or knowing that someone is praying on your behalf that gives you the strength to press on.

So, if things continue to unravel morally and  economically, will you and your family be ‘running with the herd’/Community or isolated and alone? Joe Parkinson

I’m currently studying the book of Hosea.  At the time Hosea prophesizes the people of Israel are deep in spiritual idolatry.   Many of the chapters list the grievances of God against His people.  They are worshiping false gods; even giving them credit for what God had done for them.  Their idol worship includes temple prostitutes (male and female) and putting their children through sacrificial fires.  The priests have perverted the covenant of God and are becoming wealthy on the sins of the people which they encourage.  The kings all do evil in the sight of the Lord and lead Israel into sin, provoking the anger of God against them.

The Lord God is holy and does not wink at sin and He does judge the people of Israel by allowing an Assyrian king to lead them into captivity.   Yet, chapter 11 of Hosea contains a list of statements from the Lord; statements that show the heart of God towards His people.  “How can I give you up”, He asks?  “How can I surrender you?”  “My heart is turned over within Me”.

When you are reading the list of wrongs He holds against Israel, you might conjecture that He is through with them; that He has given up on them.  You might even conclude that He no longer loves them, but these thoughts are not only wrong, they imply that the Israelites performance gauges whether God loves them or not.

Eugene Peterson says the same thoughts plague Christians today.  As believers, we often feel that when illness comes, or hardships, or conflicts and anxieties, or repeated sinful patterns creep into our lives, “that God has gotten bored in looking after us and has shifted his attention to a more exciting Christian, or that God has become disgusted with our meandering obedience and decided to let us fend for ourselves for awhile, or that God has gotten too busy fulfilling prophecy in the Middle East to take time now to sort out the complicated mess we have gotten ourselves into”. This is a mistake for it assumes that God’s love fluctuates depending on how we perform.  It supposes that “God’s interest in us waxes and wanes in response to our spiritual temperature.”

God doesn’t just show love, He is love!  God does not act contrary to His character and thus love is who He is and does not alter or diminish.  It is unchanging!  We, however, feel loved or not loved according to our circumstances or behavior.  So if you are in a pattern of sin and disobedience, or so busy running your own life that you feel distant from the Lord, the remedy is given.  In Hosea the Lord tells His people through the prophet to acknowledge their guilt and return to the Lord with their whole heart.  If you are going through an illness, trial or hardship and are doubting the Lord’s love for you, then confess that doubt and cling to the promises in Psalm 121.  “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.  He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.” If He will not let your foot slip, it implies the road you are treading is treacherous and the possibility of falling is there.  Yet, those who lift up their eyes to the mountains, from whence their help comes will not slip.  It does not mean that there will not be hardship, but that God will keep you through it and He is never off duty (He does not slumber).

So, this Valentines I pray that the Holy Spirit gives you true appreciation of the love of God and that if you are straying or doubting His love, that you would turn and run into His embrace and be smothered in the unending, all consuming, and ever sheltering love of God.

As God pleases, dispose the day © 2009 is an electronic devotional by D. A.  Brewer.   All Bible quotations are from the New American Standard Version, © 1993 Lockman Foundation and used by permission.  The title “As God pleases, dispose the day” is a quote from Henry V by William Shakespeare.   Quotes are taken from A Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson.

This past month I celebrated my birthday; my 46^th, to be exact! Birthdays come whether you want them to or not! One of the things that I have noticed over the last few years is that my perspective on life is changing. I find myself looking at situations through a lens of past experience. If you are over 40 years old, you probably know what I am talking about. If you are under 40, then read this article carefully. Hopefully, it will offer you some perspective that will help to minimize the stress in your life.

One of the lessons I am learning is that God often uses bad times to accomplish good. Of course, we shouldn’t be surprised at this; it is exactly what the Bible says: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 (NIV)

I was reminded of this important truth as I was preparing to teach my Tuesday night New Testament Literature class for the Real Bible Institute. As I reviewed the history of the end of the Old Testament age I was reminded that God is working.

Captivity in Babylon, an extremely terrifying event, was God chastening His people for disobedience. In a series of poor choices, the nation of Judah was literally wiped out. Their best and brightest were taken to Babylon while the city and temple were destroyed. From a human perspective, the worship of Yahweh was finished; the secular gods of Babylon had conquered. Of course, we know that that was not the case, but the people of that time were not able to skip ahead and read the rest of the story. God certainly did not leave his people without hope: again and again he reminded them that this time of judgment would come to an end and they would be restored to their homeland. Again and again he told them that what would happen would serve a purpose: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

I was impressed by the way that God used Babylonian captivity to set the stage for the coming of Christ and the birth of the church. The dispersion of the Jews around the world is known as the Diaspora. Prior to their exile, the Jewish people were located in Palestine. Even after the exile. When given the opportunity to return to Palestine, many continued to live in other lands. This dispersion of Jews in cities around the Roman world facilitated the spreading of the Gospel and the expansion of the church.

When the temple was destroyed, formal corporate worship as the Jews had known it ceased. A new type of structure for corporate worship sprang into existence, serving as a tangible focal point for worship: the synagogue was born. It has kept Jewish faith alive and provided a place for religious training and education. Amazingly, this captivity-born institution became the launching pad for the gospel and New Testament church hundreds of years later.

The number of scribes also expanded during the exile. The marginalization of the priesthood after the destruction of the temple created a new class of Bible scholars who taught, copied, and interpreted Jewish law for the people. God used their ministry to influence His people. One famous scribe, Ezra, was used along with Nehemiah and others to bring revival to God’s people (Nehemiah 8-9). In fact, many use Ezra as a model for modern day expository preaching (Nehemiah 8:8).

Lastly, God cured His people of the habitual sin of idolatry, which had plagued the nation since its inception in Exodus 32:15.

If you are facing hard times, I encourage you to put aside worry, discouragement, and frustration so that you can embrace God’s direction and turn to Him. Your difficulty may be His way of getting you to focus on Him or preparation for something He wants to do through you. While this may not be easy (it rarely is), God is working!

Growing up as Christians in the 70′s and 80′s, we had our share of immoral things that were thrown our way, but wow what a different world we live in today.  Our children today have so much to try to avoid that it’s scary.  The truth is they won’t be able to avoid it all so they are going to need to be equipped with Biblical ethics showing them what to do when they are faced with decisions they have to make for their lives.

It was never God’s intent for us to expect our church or our Christian school to bring the majority of moral training in our children’s lives.  It was God’s intent, according to Deuteronomy 6:6-7 for parents to play the major role in training their kids.  Check this out from the Message: 6 write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you 7 and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night.

Today’s society is turning to the concept that their really isn’t a right or wrong, it’s different for every person.  The Bible should be our standard and it clearly shows us how we should conduct ourselves as Christians.  It’s full of wisdom for training up our kids.   Here are some training essentials that all parents can do:

Make your marriage the priority relationship of the Family

Why is it we find that special person that we want to spend the rest of our lives with, children enter the picture and then all of the sudden they become the center of the family and we forget about the marriage relationship?  We stop doing all of the things we did as a couple before we got married.   All of our focus and energy go to the kids for the next 18 years and then they move out and we are stuck with this other person we don’t know any longer.  We do this in the name of Love for the children’s sake but it really ends up breeding insecurity in them.  In truth, one of the greatest gifts parents can give their children is the confidence that Mom and Dad love each other.   Child-centered parenting fosters selfishness and independence instead of a humble-‘thinking of others first’ attitude.  Romans 12:10 says Honor one another above yourselves.   Your kids probably won’t tell you this until they are older but what they really want is to know that Mom and Dad love each other and that their relationship is good.  Regarding Mom and Dad’s relationship, when a child perceives more weakness than strength, a low-level anxiety is produced that ultimately affects every other learning discipline.  So how can we practically begin to turn this around?

Here are a few suggestions:

Spend uninterrupted time with your spouse in front of the children each day that it is possible.  Make this a habit.  Tell the kids they are not allowed to interrupt during this time unless it’s an emergency.  This is time you and your spouse can spend talking or reading together.  If you are a single parent, we encourage you to have your personal time with the Lord in front of your children, also telling them they may not interrupt.

Some children might pull on you at first because they have been used to getting all the attention up till now. Just tell them that you will spend time with them after you spend time together. You may be pleasantly surprised at the positive results that follow.

Have a date night on a regular basis.  Get a babysitter and tell the kids Mom and Dad are going out because we love each other. Single parents can go out with a friend or go out to have some alone time.

Find a way to minister as a family with your kids.  Your church will usually have opportunities for you to reach out to the community.  This will cause your kids to start to think of others more and they will be happier for it.

Continue with your other relationships that you had before you had children.  Just because you are now a mother doesn’t mean you stop being a daughter a sister or a friend.

Keeping the marriage the priority of the family will help to protect against child-centered parenting.

One single Mom whose son was having problems in school, after realizing she was a child-centered parent, apologized to her son for making him the center of her universe.  She explained to him how things were going to be different in their family from now on.  Not long after this, his teacher said, what has happened to your son…he is like a different person.

Heart Training

We need to train our children from a very early age on not just how to act morally, but how to think morally.  We do this by placing Godly values in their hearts.  This forces us to go to God’s word and make sure the values are in us first so we can pass them on to our kids.  It’s our job as parents to write these godly values on our children’s hearts…. to fill up their moral warehouse, if you will. This will ensure that they are ready to leave home and face hard situations on their own because they will have these morals stored in their moral warehouse that they can pull from.  Otherwise there is such a danger of bringing up children who are robotic in nature – or they basically don’t know why they even believe what they believe.  It is heart breaking for parents if after raising their children in a Christian home, the children go off to college and 6 months later turn completely away from God.  This is why it is so crucial that we reach the heart of our children.

When situations arise take the time to teach into it and give the reason why behind the what.  Here is a great recent example that a mother shared with us. She was watching something on television with her kids.  She realized that it was not going to be good for them to continue watching.  She said, normally they would have whined about it and thrown a fit.  But instead of just telling them, you can’t watch this; she took the time to get her Bible and sit down and share with them why this particular show would not be good for them.  She said after she did this, they said, oh, o.k.  and when they were watching T.V. later while she was not in the room, but close by, this show came back on and she noticed that they made the decision on their own to turn the channel to something else.

We recently needed to tell one of our daughters who always likes to be first in line at gymnastics that it would be a great way to let her light shine for Jesus if sometimes she would choose to let all the other children go before her.  Well, that very night at gymnastics she cut in line in front of another kid and she immediately looked up at us.  Then, she got out of line and let all the others go first.  That was so interesting that at 5 years old her conscience was telling her she did something wrong.  But, what if we had not taken the time to place the value in her moral warehouse…would her conscience have accused her that she was going in the wrong direction?  Giving the reason why instead of just saying no all the time or you shouldn’t do  that will  help you’re your children make the right decision later on when Mom and Dad are not around to tell them what to do.  The goal is for our children to want to do right not just because Mom and Dad said so and they will be in trouble if they don’t but because of the love of virtue.  And don’t forget to encourage, encourage, encourage your kids when they do choose wisely.  Let them know you are proud of them. Tonight one of our daughters received a consequence for doing something unkind to our other daughter.  After a short time, she came to us to say she was sorry and to get a hug.  We could tell she was truly repentant for making a poor choice. She then went on her own to apologize to her sister and ask for her forgiveness.  We said to each other, now that is when we know we are reaching the heart of our child.

Another reason we see problems show up when our children are older is because Mom and Dad are saying one thing at church but modeling something else at home.   We need to be the role-models for our children and if we are not they just may go looking for their role-models in all the wrong places.

Stay Connected

It is important that we stay in relationship with our children as they grow older.  We should know what’s going on in school, who their friends are, what time will they be home.  Take an interest in what interests them.  Kids so desperately want their parents to be involved in their lives, not in a nagging way, but in a positive way. Sometimes parents of young children try to buy their kids over or spend a lot of  time convincing them as to why they should do what Mom and Dad want and then when their kids are older and parents are not getting the results they expected, they panic and start trying to control their kids behavior.  It should actually be done the opposite way.  When our children are young we should lead them by our authority, but around the middle years an all important transition begins to take place and by the time our kids are teens we should be leading them by the power of our relational influence.  Don’t be afraid of the teen years and resist listening to the negative comments others make about teens.  With biblical parenting, you are doing the hardest part of your parenting when your children are young. Yes, we will have trials all along the way and God will use those to make us better people. Parenting is a process…a long process. We know we don’t control all the variables.  We just do what we can and trust God with it all.

As you can see, Biblical parenting takes time but the rewards are everlasting.  Some day when we stand before God we will want to hear Him speak the words, “Well Done!’

And if you are saying, “well I have already royally messed up.  What do I do now?”  We believe children have such a deep love for their parents that they are willing to forgive more than we adults are many times.  We always go to our children if we have reacted toward them in an ungodly way and immediately apologize and ask them to forgive us.  This just makes them respect us all the more.

The Grace of God

No matter how many tools we have learned for proper parenting, we must always remember that none of it replaces the Grace of God and the wisdom that the Holy Spirit gives if we will just take the time to ask for it.

Sandra McCollom; wife, mom of twins and along with husband Steve lead  GKGW classes in St. Louis, MO area.