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Thursday, November 28, 2019

Bring On The Peace


As I chatted with a friend this week at work, we were commenting on this thing called Black Friday and how it seems like people are already conditioned to spend money on gifts for no apparent reason. I recounted to her about purchasing a couple of large containers of water from a local big box store. As my wife and I entered, we were immediately bombarded with the static din of aggressive shoppers, all armed with shopping carts. As we waited patiently in line for what seemed to be an eternity, not really, we felt the stress of everyone around us as they clamoured and jockeyed for position so as not to miss something. We were finally able to breathe once we retreated to the quiet and sanctuary of our vehicle.

My co-worker, a great spiritual ally and teacher preacher, reminded me that it was like that in Bethlehem when the census was ruled to happen, in order for the Romans to flush out the messiah. She described that the confusion of people from everywhere were trying their best to make it back to their birthplace, Bethlehem in order to comply, out of fear. Can you just imagine the noise, confusion, stress, and worry that would be taking place? Instead of shopping carts and short fuses, there would have been donkey carts and Roman soldiers.

Yet in the midst of all the chaos, Mary and Joseph and their meager possessions were able to find peace and quiet, once they removed themselves from the mayhem. Now just imagine, there they were, alone. Only they knew who she was to give birth to, Jesus, Emmanuel, our King, The Prince of peace. It was all to happen in perfect peace. That, is the peace we need to carry everywhere with us. In this time of misguided values of gift purchases because the world says so, we need that peace. I encourage everyone to extract themselves from the stress of expectation that going into financial debt to show love for someone, is what Christmas is. Resist the deception that Christmas is a time for gift giving.

Let us all realize that the true gift is the peace we have already been given by the miracle of Jesus’ birth. Bring that peace to your workplace, your dinner table, your family and friends, and to your church body. Love your neighbors, family, and spouse, as yourself, knowing that true peace, His peace will surround you if you let it. Count those blessings, instead of your leftover pocket change. In other words, bring on the peace.

Mike Shindruk
www.mastershandministry.blogspot.com

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

You Can't Please Everyone

When I was a teen, my family bought our brand new house and my brother and I were allowed to choose the colour of our carpet and the wall paint. We both chose a shade of blue but mine was just slightly different than his. It would have been easier and less expensive of we both could agree on the same colour scheme but there was no pleasing. In the end, we were thankful for our own touch on our surroundings but what was truly important was we were under one roof, safe and sound. I'm not sure if a day goes by when we fail to please someone 100%. In counseling they talk about a win/win situation but there are many times when that is not always the case. Let's be honest, there are times when we put on the mask the big smile but behind the mask there is still a bit of pain and hurt. I have seen this destroy relationships, businesses, tear down Nations and split churches. The idea of my way or the highway or we can compromise but it has to be a good deal for me seems to be the norm in society today.

So here is the question, has God pleased you? I've seen people jump from job to job, relationship to relationship and even church to church because they were not completely satisfied. Now before anyone calls me hypocrite, I am not claiming perfection because I'm a work in progress. This is the question for us all to self-examine. Is God living up to your expectations? Has He jumped through the hoops we have set for Him? Does He answer the questions the way you want Him to? Has He provided exactly what you wanted? If God hasn’t granted your every wish, are you annoyed enough to give up on Him? Time to blow your mind; none of us are perfect and yet God is there for us, ready to take us just as we are. There is a win/win solution in this message; declare Jesus as Saviour, ask forgiveness and you will be forever pleased. You can't please everyone but God can, trust in the King!


This Sunday we will explore God’s love for us all. We invite you to join us if you can at 10:30 MST on Sunday or watch live online on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MainAvenueFellowship/ ) or view it afterwards on our website (www.mainavefellowship.blogspot.ca).

Blessings
Pastor Todd

Monday, November 25, 2019

Peter's Picks

The Perfect 7-day Diet – Peter’s Picks
‘What God Says About You’
Day 1: Psalm 139:14 – “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous – how well I know it.”
Day 2: Deuteronomy 7:6 – “For you are a holy people, who belong to the Lord your God. Of all the people on earth, the Lord your God has chosen you to be his own special treasure.”
Day 3: 1 John 3:1 – “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him.”
Day 4: Romans 8:16, 17 – “For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.”
Day 5: Romans 8:39 – “No power in the sky above or in the earth below – Indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Day 6: Psalm 16:11 – “You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.”
Day 7: 1 Peter 2:9 – “But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.”
** Verses taken from the New Living Translation

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

The Hardest Words To Say


What are some of the hardest words to say? Here are a few to get you started. For some people (insert your own joke here) the hardest words to say are “I’m sorry, that was my fault”. How many conflicts could be avoided if the person responsible for an error stood up and took responsibility for their mistake rather than look around for someone else to blame? “If I can deflect this, I should be able to slide under the radar and avoid taking responsibility.

Another phrase that is difficult for some is “I need you”. For some, asking for help is a sign of weakness. I will confess that this is a difficult one for me because I feel I am interfering in others plans when I ask for help. There are times I feel like I am being a burden on someone if I tell them I need them so I do it myself rather than disturb them. This is counterproductive on two levels because there are times I really should ask for help but there are also times when they would ask for help but they do not want to interrupt my day.

Last one for today. “I love you”. I have heard this bandied about to the point where it may seem rather overused but I have also seen people struggle with this in so many ways. I mean think about it. When was the last time you chatted with your siblings, parents, children or your spouse and declared your love for them? I know that if I called my brother up right now for no other reason than to say “I love you bro” he would ask if I was feeling okay. Truth be told, it is the ones closest to us that we really should be letting know of how we feel.

Here is another one that, if we declared it and lived it, the entirety of the world would be significantly improved:

“Lord God, I am truly sorry for my errors, forgive me. I need you in my life because without you I am completely lost. Help me please! I love You with all my heart, show me how to love You and those around me more deeply”.

This Sunday we will explore God’s love for us all. We invite you to join us if you can at 10:30 MST on Sunday or watch live online on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MainAvenueFellowship/ ) or view it afterwards on our website (www.mainavefellowship.blogspot.ca).

Blessings
Pastor Todd

Monday, November 18, 2019

The Sum Of Many Parts


As I write this, I am cooling down from a concert that our Gospel group presented at Salvation Army Corps, Westville. We have sung there many times over the years and have a special bond of fellowship and friendship with this body. We have been honored to have presented the Gospel in song at many other churches throughout the county. I mention this, only to demonstrate how we are the sum of many parts. We are all a reflection and a piece of the people we have contact, fellowship, and live with. We may meet in different buildings, yet we belong to one church, God’s. As we go through life we are all massaged into the person and people that Jesus wants us to be. He does that by His messages from the pulpits, through the music of every worship team, and by the face to face interaction between us all.

Just as in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 where the scripture talks about the body of Christ working together, each of us are made up of the parts of others in our make-up. The traits we acquire are a result of who we hang with. My dear mother taught us a saying from a very young age. She said “show me your friends, and I show you your future”. This is so true, even today. When we connect through Christ if one gets a cut, another bleeds. When we pray, someone is lifted, and when agree that Christ is our only Savior, than we are all a part of the body of Christ.

Some of us will be pastors, some will be singers. Some will lead Bible studies, and some will be prayer warriors. Some will greet at the door, and others will be content to work behind the scenes. When this is assembled, regardless of where we fellowship, then church happens. Church is not a building, rather a gathering of like- minded believers. When all of us allow our hearts and heads to get beyond man made religion, and into God made faith, then all of the parts of the body of Christ come into alignment.

We are the sum of those parts. I am part of you, just as you are a part of me. We are all separate and unique, yet woven together like a fine tapestry. So, when we attend a concert, or church service, look around. Look closely and you will see how God has put you together, one part, one person at a time.

Mike Shindruk
www.mastershandministry.blogspot.com

Peter's Picks


The Perfect 7-day Diet – Peter’s Picks
‘Just Trust’
Day 1: John 6:35 – “Jesus replied, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.’”
Day 2: 2 Corinthians 5:21 – “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.”
Day 3: Galatians 3:13 – “But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’”
Day 4: Hebrews 4:16 – “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”
Day 5: Psalm 32:8 – “The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.’”
Day 6: Psalm 37:23 – “The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.”
Day 7: Hebrews 11:6 – “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”
** Verses taken from the New Living Translation


Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Quick To Respond


I have been watching as the world quickly turns on each other in a bizarre attempt to promote its own agenda. In days gone by, the family was the key. Families stuck together, supported each other in good times and bad and the clan was the hub of the village. There are still places in this world where the foundation of the community is still the family but they are eroding quickly. Individualism is replacing community. Now before anyone decides to get up in arms and start claiming I am wrong and feeling offended, sociologists have noted that many modern interpersonal relationships are played out on social media. People tend to wear a mask that will ensure they get the “likes” they need and steer away from controversy unless they know they can garner the support by riding a tide of popular opinion. Once the surge is done, they find a new wave and ride it once again reveling in the power of the tsunami. Quick to jump on, quick to jump off yet rarely cognizant of the destruction left in their wake.

Consider this, the relationships made by this method are as temporary as the first quarrel and unfriending. One comment that offends can end a relationship like a door with only a handle on the inside being slammed shut. Why can we not go back in time and read carefully the wisdom found in Proverbs?

Loners who care only for themselves spit on the common good. Fools care nothing for thoughtful discourse; all they do is run off at the mouth. When wickedness arrives, shame’s not far behind; contempt for life is contemptible. Many words rush along like rivers in flood, but deep wisdom flows up from artesian springs. Proverbs 18:1-4 Msg

The wise stay silent while those bent on being right at all cost leave a wake of turmoil and destruction. The foolish will shout louder and louder until those around either jump on board or turn from the turmoil and stay silent on the sidelines until the fury has passed. The wise will interject in the spirit of love while the foolish will drive forward with blinders on. We yearn for the days where respectful debates allowed for not only wonderful banter but also growth of a community. Today, debates are a rarity, clashes are the norm and the only thing that comes out of it are divisions and broken relationships. What will it take to shift the paradigm from individualism to relationships based on relationship? Love God, love each other. Read the Bible folks, it has all the answers.

We invite you to join us if you can at 10:30 MST on Sunday or watch live online on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MainAvenueFellowship/ ) or view it afterwards on our website (www.mainavefellowship.blogspot.ca).

Blessings
Pastor Todd


Incomplete, Ineffective, Or Inconspicuous


If you feel that you’re incomplete, ineffective, or inconspicuous, you’re in good company. If we were all brutally honest, we are but that’s okay. We are all incomplete because God is working on molding and shaping us into what He sees us to be. Each of us, are in a uniquely personal place in Christ. Although we follow Him, we are separate in our walk and understanding of His purpose for us. I liken it to a masterful jigsaw puzzle where the box doesn’t tell us how many pieces there are, or show what the finished image should look like. Regardless of age, when we think of our journey with God, having a feeling of being incomplete should bring us some degree of comfort. It tells us that He is never finished with us.

As far as being ineffective, I’m sure that feeling comes and goes like the tides. When we wonder if our own efforts and contributions really matter, we are both tempted, and rewarded. Satan would have you think that believing in a God that we can’t see is pointless, let alone serving Him. Yet, God rewards us with the peace of knowing that Satan has to fight every day for any victory of our failing. That my friends’, is where we are most effective. Whenever we come along side someone and lift them up, God wins. When you are lifted up by someone’s prayers, you win, and when we do what we can to feed our “spirit-man”, we all win. I believe that those who signed up to serve our country to fight for our freedom, went knowing that even one person’s effort would make a difference. So you see, regardless of how or what we do in service for the Lord, we are never ineffective.

Feeling inconspicuous may not be so bad. God allowed Jesus to arrive that way in order to evade Herod. He lived as a human, relatively inconspicuous, until God’s chosen time for Him to begin His ministry. God’s plan was to have Jesus be one of us, among us. His ministry was never self-serving, it was God-serving. In this age of social acceptance and self-admiration, it is easy to be offended when we are not noticed by the world, so be inconspicuous is uncomfortable to most people. We’re not the Pharisee, so anonymity in serving our King should feel like a warm blanket. So now I hope you have a better understanding of how the thoughts of being incomplete, ineffective, or inconspicuous may in them-self be a blessing in disguise.

Mike Shindruk
www.mastershandministry.blogspot.com

Friday Nov 15th

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Peter's Picks


The Perfect 7-day Diet – Peter’s Picks
‘Just Ask’
Day 1: John 14:16 – “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.”
Day 2: John 20:31 – “But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.”
Day 3: Isaiah 40:29 – “He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless.”
Day 4: 1 John 5:14 – “And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him.”
Day 5: Romans 8:32 – “Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?”
Day 6: 1 John 1:9 – “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”
Day 7: John 14:23 – “Jesus replied, ‘All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them.’”
** Verses taken from the New Living Translation


Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Lest We Forget


My Great Uncle Howard spent years in Italy during the war, my Grandfather served with the Corps of Company Clerks as a Sergeant Major, my Great Uncle Malcom was with the infantry. I have pictures to remind me of them, both are on my computer and in my office. They volunteered to serve not only our nation but also those who could not defend themselves against the tyranny of the world. They gave so that others would have hope. There were many more who left but did not return. Some paid the ultimate price with their lives while others came back forever changed and their families paid a price. While I have never gone overseas or fought in any conflicts, I have lost Canadian Forces brothers and sisters who volunteered to serve our nation. They put the needs of others ahead of their own.

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:12-13

Our soldiers put it all on the line to protect, protect those who do not have hope. They chose to go and, in many cases, they gave up their lives for people they did not know, a friend unknown.

Jesus Christ came to earth with full knowledge that He was going to lay down His own life for all mankind. He came to earth, lived the life on earth’s terms, walked the walk and, in the end, was killed by those He had come to save. While He was on the cross, He begged the Father in Heaven to forgive us because we have no clue what we were doing. Some blame the Jews while other blame the Romans but truth be told, Christ allowed this to play out, He stayed on the cross and He died. Why is this significant? Greater love has no one than this; to lay down one’s own life for one’s friends. Christ loved us so much He died for us and then He beat death and three days later returned to prove that death has no power over Him. He gave it all so we could know eternity in Glory with Him.

This Sunday, we will remember them. We will remember their sacrifices for those they did not know and we will also remember our Lord, Jesus Christ, His sacrifice for all humanity past, present and future. We invite you to join us if you can at 10:30 MST on Sunday or watch live online on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MainAvenueFellowship/ ) or view it afterwards on our website (www.mainavefellowship.blogspot.ca).

Blessings
Pastor Todd


Peter's Picks


The Perfect 7-day Diet – Peter’s Picks
‘BUT GOD’
Day 1: Romans 6:23 – “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Day 2: Ephesians 2:4, 5 – “But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,  that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)”
Day 3: Romans 5:8 – “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
Day 4: Matthew 19:26 – “Jesus looked at them intently and said, ‘Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.’”
Day 5: Psalm 86:15 – “But you, O Lord, are a God of compassion and mercy, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.”
Day 6: Psalm 73:26 – “My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.”
Day 7: Romans 12:2 – “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
** Verses taken from the New Living Translation


The Needs Of The Many


As we come into the month of remembrance to those who served, and are now serving for our country, I am reminded of why. My understanding is that they enlisted and went to serve so that we would have a better life and future. I had uncles who fought and served both overseas, and here in Canada. I have friends and relatives who also served, and who are now serving, and I never take that or them for granted. We should all feel a sense of pride for those who have chosen to stand between us and any enemy be it foreign, domestic or spiritual. Each of them made a decision to serve and protect those who they don’t even know. They were and are, willing to sacrifice themselves for us. It’s the greatest gift that anyone can offer another. If you ask yourself why, I believe the conclusion you will come to is simple. It would be for the needs of the many.

I am reminded also of Christ’s sacrifice for us on the cross. Jesus knew what His destiny was. He knew what would befall Him as He spoke God’s truth even though it flew in the faces of the Pharisees and the Roman law. He rose to the call from the Father willingly and never wavered in His obedience. He had no military uniform, yet wore the full armor of God. He lived Ephesians 6:10-18 long before the book of Ephesians was even written. Jesus had no officer giving Him orders. He simply obeyed Father God’s instructions to come to live and die among us and for us. Like those who we honor in remembrance, He obeyed the Father and went willingly into battle and to the cross for the needs of the many. This selfless act of love has been unmatched in history and I’m sure it has been the model for many who have signed up to serve.

I draw a comparison only as an illustration. As noble as the sacrifices of our military, police, firefighters and all who serve our community and country is, we must never forget Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice. He died, so we may have life eternal. Those who have died in service for our wellbeing, I believe have been given their reward in heaven. So my friends, as the sun goes down let us all remember them. And as another day dawns let us also remember Jesus’ sacrifice for all of us, who are the many.

Mike Shindruk
www.mastershandministry.blogspot.com