One Region, One Church, One Mission
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Next Issue
Thursday, March 21, 2013
AND DELIVER US FROM…RELIGION
-Dr. Robert Stearns, Executive Director of Eagles' Wings
Religion promoted by man (arrogant, defiled, and impure) is insidious because it reduces the supreme loving, liberating force in the universe to a series of “oughts and “shoulds” that have no power to produce true change in a life. It sounds like a cliché, but it is true that the greatest power in the world is love. The source of pure love is God. But religion has portrayed God as a harsh, unloving taskmaster who is more concerned with actions than attitudes. God certainly does care about actions, but Scripture is crystal clear that a holy life flows out of a pure and clean heart. Jesus taught us that the sick need a doctor, not the healthy (see Luke 5:31). King David wrote, “Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom” (Ps. 51:6, NKJV).
I believe the next generation will not tolerate a Christianity that is not wholly authentic. There will simply not be time or effort invested in churches or institutions that sound and look shallow and plastic. There is a tremendous anointing of discernment on this generation, even those not consciously in relationship with God. They possess an instinctive quest for the real thing. This discernment ferrets out insincerity and thirsts for the genuine.
The present church leadership, seeking survival, may decide simply to placate the faithfully attending and tithing Sunday morning crowd. But they will soon realize that the church will have no future because neither guilt nor tradition will bring the next generation to church on Sunday morning. The next generation will simply stop attending, and the church will be left with a docile, obedient, but shrinking older crowd with no generation to pass anything on to.
In the midst of this crisis, the next generation will discover Jesus.
INTIMACY WITH JESUS
The Church is coming to a place where relationship with Jesus is really all that matters.
Many aspects of Christ’s message vie for our attention. There is so much in the Word to learn! But too often, we have succumbed to focusing our attention on one aspect of Jesus’ teaching rather than on developing a relationship with the Teacher. This misplaced focus leads us to all kinds of church movements that divide and weaken us. So we have portions of the Church that focus on healing, on faith, on evangelism, on spiritual warfare. The list is endless. All these, and many other areas of focus, are valid and necessary aspects of the Christian life. But all too often, these teachings become the filter by which we define our Christian lives. Instead, we must constantly keep the plumb line of simple devotion to Jesus.
We must regularly experience the penetrating gaze of Jesus’ eyes. Through the power of His Spirit, He searches our hearts, jealous over our affection. If we do not have these times of truly experiencing Him, then anything—our ministry, our theology, all our good activities—can easily become an idol, keeping us from deep relationship with the very One we say we are serving.
A COMMUNITY OF FAITH—Serving and Loving with Humility and Sincerity
At the National Prayer Breakfast in 2012, keynoter Eric Metaxas (author of recent biographies on the lives of Wilberforce and Bonhoeffer) weighed in on the issue of dead religion and said in his speech, I Hate Dead Religion, “So finally, Jesus tells us that we must love our enemies. That, my friends, is the real difference between dead religion and a living faith in the God of the Scriptures, whether we can love our enemies.” God, deliver us from the tsunami of dead religion sweeping over major institutions and leaders in some parts of the Church today. Revive us with authentic, Christ-centered faith!
The Apostle James writes, “If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion isuseless. Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world” (James 1:26-27, NKJV). Simplicity of heart, speaking truth in love, humility, sincerely demonstrating love to one another and the world (friend and foe alike), fear of God, holiness, and a zeal to both proclaim and live out the Good News of Christ will mark the coming generations of godly leaders in the Church.
[Adapted from Robert Stearns’ Prepare the Way (Or Get Out of the Way!) (Destiny Image)]
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Seeking Justice in Health Care
Dr. Myron Glick - A Transcription of his speech delivered at 2012 Imprint Buffalo hosted at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY
Martin Luther King in 1966 said “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane” (King Jr.). In 2012 I still see this injustice every day in our work at Jericho Road.
Many of the folks in the community served by Jericho Road are uninsured, on Medicaid or are refugees. Most are poor. Almost every day we have someone call us or walk into our office with a story that breaks your heart and that is unbelievable, but true. In a city with many eye doctors I have seen a man walk in blind because he was uninsured and could not afford to pay for cataract surgery. I have diagnosed lung cancer and have watched in dismay as my patient calmly told me he had decided not to undergo treatment because he did not want to leave his family with the hospital bill to pay. I have had to listen to a middle-aged married couple of 25 years who discussed the possibility of obtaining a divorce so that they would qualify for Medicaid and would be able to afford their medications. I have examined a man with an inguinal hernia larger than a football who refused to go to a surgeon to have it repaired because he knew he could not afford to pay the bill. I have watched a 50 year old man who is suffering from liver failure and every week his belly fills up with acidic fluid and yet he refuses to stop working because he knows if he loses his job he will be unable to afford his health insurance and then will be unable to pay for his life saving medical care.
In Erie County, where Jericho Road is located, there are over 100,000 uninsured and in America over 50,000,000 people who have no health insurance. A study published in the American Journal of Public Health in December of 2009 estimated that 45,000 people die every year in the USA simply because they lacked timely access to medical care. There is little justice in our health care system. The poor who have Medicaid insurance are often discriminated against and their access to health care is limited. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in May of 2011 examined the availability of specialty care for children with a variety of urgent medical problems. They had trained researchers pose as mothers of these sick children and call to make an appointment with the specialist. They made two calls to the same office. First, as a mom with Medicaid insurance and then as a mom with private
medical insurance. They found that 66% of callers who had Medicaid insurance were denied an appointment as compared to 11% of callers with private insurance. Even when they found a medical office who would accept Medicaid and private insurance the Medicaid caller needed to wait 22 days longer for the first appointment to the same office with the same urgent problem. This is not justice.
Injustice in health care is also illustrated by the disparity of health outcomes between the poor and the rich. Too often people living in under-resourced communities suffer from higher rates of chronic disease such as asthma, diabetes and obesity. They die younger and suffer more chronic disabilities. In these communities the social determinants of good health are strained and so the health of the people suffer. For example, In Buffalo we see higher rates of asthma in the mostly poor community that is next to the Peace bridge. This bridge has lots of truck traffic and as the trucks idle waiting to cross the bridge the exhaust fumes cause poor air quality and higher asthma rates. We see refugee children with high lead levels because they are living in old beat up houses. Obesity is common in the community we serve but playgrounds, parks and grocery stores with fresh fruits and vegetables are rarely found. Injustice and inequity in the community is a major contributing cause of the poorer health outcomes of the most vulnerable people we see every day at Jericho Road. Poverty is not good for your health. It can kill you.
I believe that the heart of God must be profoundly grieved by the injustice in our health care system.
Justice is broadly defined as the quality of acting with “fairness”, impartiality and with equality towards others. To give each person equal protection under the law. To provide each person with basic rights. The Biblical idea of justice is closely related to that of righteousness. In fact the Greek and Hebrew word for these two concepts are essentially the same. Righteousness and justice in the scriptures demand the individual person to live a life of moral uprightness and to treat others and especially the poor in a fair manner. But this concept of personal righteousness is expanded to challenge nations to also act with justice and righteousness towards others. Biblical justice is both a personal and community responsibility. Jesus acted and spoke in ways that showed His commitment to justice. By healing the sick, feeding the hungry, casting out demons, touching the leper, befriending the prostitute, walking among the poor and calling people to be His disciples His life is a vivid example to all of us about what it means to live in a just and righteous manner.
Jesus showed compassion to the poor. Jesus told stories like the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 with which he challenged the rich young ruler to “Love his neighbor as he loves himself”. In this story a man is beaten up and left for dead along the Jericho Road. First a priest and then a teacher walk by and see the man almost dead and hurry on leaving him to suffer alone. Then a Samaritan man, whose people are sworn enemies of the man who is lying half dead, passes by and instead of hurrying on he actually stops to help, puts him on his donkey and takes him to a hotel where he pays for all that the man needs to become healthy and whole again. This man, Jesus says, is the true neighbor and has acted in a just and righteous manner. Jesus asks us to “Go and do likewise”. In Luke 6:31, Jesus echoes the great saying that has been passed down through the ages that speaks to the heart of what justice is really all about: “Do to others what you would have them do to you”. To me that simply means that if my mother is sick and dying I would want her to have the very best health care available. In the same manner then I should treat every one who is in need of health care as if they were my own mother. These words of Jesus that call us to “love our neighbors” and “do unto others as we would have them do to us” are the foundation of Biblical justice.
What then should a follower of Jesus do? How can we make a difference? At Jericho Road we have tried to create a model of care that is welcoming to the poor, the uninsured, refugees and the people who are most vulnerable. This means accepting all insurances, including Medicaid and having an income based sliding scale fee schedule for uninsured patients. In 2011 69% of our patients had medicaid insurance and 12 % had no medical insurance. Our commitment to the under served means that we are determined to treat everyone with respect and to show mercy and compassion and acceptance. We are determined to provide excellent quality care even with limited resources. Our goal is to provide the same care to each patient whether they happen to be the President of the United States or a refugee who just arrived in Buffalo from a refugee camp in Kenya. We become advocates for our patients to help them navigate the health care system outside of our office. So we need to find specialists who will see our patients, obtain timely tests and services as needed. This requires great persistence on the part of our team. At Jericho Road we also have developed many programs that are designed to address the social determinants of health and combat poverty.
Programs that promote financial literacy, healthy pregnancies, preschool language development, home ownership and refugee empowerment are vitally important components of our model of care. We simply believe that this is what Jesus would do and so we are determined to do it, no matter the cost.
But what we do at Jericho Road in delivering this model of care is not enough if we are to see justice in our health care system. It is vitally important for those of us who follow Jesus to advocate for changes in this failed and unjust system. We need to figure out ways to allow the voices of the people who are suffering to be heard. Many times the people in power who make decisions, such as people in Congress, have no clue of what it is like to be sick and have nowhere to go for help, or have a painful toothache and have no access to a dentist, or see a loved one die without getting the needed care.
We must be the voice of those who cannot speak. Telling the story is a powerful way to advocate for change. We must tell the stories. It is also time to challenge the Church to care more deeply about the injustice and inequality that we see on the front lines of health care every day. Followers of Jesus meet every Sunday to worship God. Too often the leaders of the Church do not confront or even speak about the great injustices of our time. I do not imagine the Jesus Christ of the early Christian church would have been silent. Nor should we be. It is time for the Church to regain its prophetic voice and
speak out against injustice in health care. Finally, I believe it is important to advocate at a national level for systematic change. Vote for leaders who will bend the curve towards justice in health care. Advocate for policy changes that provide for health care coverage for more people, that seek to improve the communities of the poorest and most vulnerable. Speak out. You will be heard.
In the last two thousand years, followers of Jesus have courageously shown us the way to live a life that counts. The early disciples of the Christian church came from all levels of society and bravely formed a community of believers who loved each other. Basil the Great witnessed the sick being cast out of his city and left to die and so he built a refuge for the outcast and sick that society had rejected. Saint Francis of Asissi gave up great personal wealth to live among the poor. Florence Nightingale acted with great compassion as a nurse and her courage helped to found the modern hospital. William Wilberforce witnessed the atrocity of slavery and the silence of the Church and so he determined to use his influence to lead the movement to abolish slavery in England.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German theologian who stood up against Nazi Germany while most of the rest of the Church was silent and it cost him his life. Martin Luther King was a pastor in the segregated south who had the courage to find his voice and in so doing led the Civil Rights movement and changed the course of our nation. Mother Theresa gave her life to the poor of Calcutta. These followers of Jesus all led lives of great courage and sacrifice and in so doing have bent the curve towards justice and righteousness. Now it is our time to confront with courage the great injustices of our time. May we as modern day followers of Jesus at Jericho Road stand with these saints of old and alongside the prophet Amos and work together for the day when “justice will roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.” For the day when justice and righteousness are restored in our nation’s health care system and all people are treated as if they are created in the very image of God. This is what we will continue to stand for as Jericho Road Community Health Center.
Resource Review
Kirk Cameron’s fight to win America back to its roots of faith and family in his film Monumental. A must see.
All Books, Bibles, Music, Gifts, and Stationery are available at: Bender’s Parable Christian Store, located at 8550 Sheridan Drive in Williamsville, NY. Open Monday-Friday from 10:00am-9:00pm; Saturday 10:00am-6:00pm. Shop online at: www.ShopBenders.com
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Monday, March 18, 2013
Resource Review
TobyMac returns to the scene on with his highly anticipated new album Eye On It, featuring the hit single "Me Without You." One of Christian music's best selling artists, TobyMac continues to successfully combine elements of rock, pop, and hip hop. His music reflects real life struggles, his faith and passionately pursuing God in a crazy world. His previous album, Tonight, featured 4 Top 10 hit singles including "City On Our Knees," "Tonight," and "Get Back Up."
Resource Review
As the curtain rises, Hannah hesitantly steps onto the stage for her theatrical debut in college. Yet before she can utter her first lines, Hannah collapses in front of the stunned audience. After countless medical tests, all signs point to one underlying factor: Hannah's difficult birth.
4 Questions with Gregory P. Nelson
Gregory P. Nelson
Pastor
Delanie-Waring AME Church
680 Swan St, Buffalo, NY
You're a new pastor in town, what has been your initial impression of the city so far?
My initial impressions is that Buffalo has much potential. I would like to see a greater coming together of clergy and community organizations so that collectively we can address some of the cities challenges in the areas of fair housing, employment for minorities, gang violence and crime overall in our streets. Their is a divide in Buffalo among the haves and the have nots. The playing field is not equal and the church should speak to politicians to make sure this uneveness is addressed.
How can African American churches and Caucasian churches work together for Jesus's glory in this city?
We can work together by allowing ourselves to become real about ecumenicalism through the eyes of diversity. I feel it begins with pastors and church leaders exposing their parishes and congregations to other faiths and cultures within the Body of Christ. Pastors must be real with our convictions and preach tolerance and sensitivity about race to the pews. The church should host racial, sensitivity trainings, just like the school boards or law enforcement and corporate America.
What is one thing you hope to accomplish during your time in Buffalo
One of the accomplishments I pray to achieve is to grow the church I pastor spiritually, numerically and financially. Also to reconnect the church to the community. To empower Delanie-Waring AME Church to be a force for the Kingdom of God in reaching souls for Christ.
What have you learned about unity and working together in other cities that you hope to implement here in Buffalo?
Pastoring in Harlem NY and Philadelphia along with other cities throughout the Northeast Region I hope to assist the church I pastor presently in buying property that can one day be used to house single mothers with children, or transitional housing which is needed in our communities. I believe the church should be involved in PARTNERSHIP with other faith agencies and organizations to bring about empowerment to the people we serve, especially the young people.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
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Bible Series Continues on History Channel
The program tonight ended with the beheading of John the Baptist and continues to share the truth of God's word with the masses.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Create a Mobile Website
Friday, March 15, 2013
Daryl Largis to Speak at Business Men's Fellowship Monthly Meeting
Register by Phone: Jeff @ 716-548-5869
Daryl is currently serving as Co-Pastor for Mission Advancement at The Chapel at CrossPoint (www.thechapel.com). In this new role he is responsible for extendings i the mission of the Chapel, locally, regionally, nationally and globally while still providing senior leadership oversight to The Chapel. He also serves on the Executive Leadership Team of the Global Fellowship which is ministry working with national church leaders around the world (www.gfmission.com). Previously, Daryl served as the Executive Pastor at The Chapel. Prior to his ministry endeavors, Daryl was a manufacturing director/plant manager for a global chemical company who has a manufacturing facility located in WNY. Over the course of his business career, Daryl has held positions in senior manufacturing plant management, marketing, sales, supply chain, strategic planning, research/development and engineering. He has a BS in Chemical Engineering and a Masters degree in Christian Leadership. He is married with two daughters and resides in Lockport, NY.
Feed the Children is coming to Buffalo
They will be partnering with the Buffalo Dream Center and the Belle Center to provide food and hygiene products to 800 families on the west side of Buffalo.
The event will take place next to The Belle Center (104 Maryland Street, Buffalo NY 14201) on Busti Avenue near the corner of Maryland St.)
The Dream Center needs volunteers from 11:00am until 3:30pm. As a volunteer you will be helping people to collect their boxes and get them to their house or vehicle.
Volunteers of all ages are welcome. It is a great opportunity to serve the community, if you are interested in volunteering you can call the church office and leave a message (854-1001).
Great Quotes
“I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
― Michael Jordan
Mark Batterson to Speak in Lima
Mark Batterson, lead pastor of National Community Church (www.theaterchurch.com) in Washington, DC is coming to Rochester for EMBRACE, Elim Fellowship's Leadership Conference in Lima, NY May 21-23. One church with seven locations, Batterson's church NCC is focused on reaching emerging generations. The vision of NCC is to meet in movie theaters at metro stops throughout the DC area. NCC also owns and operates the largest coffeehouse on Capitol Hill.
Mark has two Masters Degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago, Illinois. He is the author of the best-selling books: In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day, Wild Goose Chase, Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity, and Soulprint.
Other speakers at this year's Leadership Conference include Roderick Hennings, Paul Johansson, Michael Cavanaugh and Ron and Judy Burgio.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Update on Buffalo Christian Center Plans
(see original document)
The Buffalo Christian Center
March, 2013
Dear Friend,
We write to you today with both deep remorse and uninhibited optimism about the future of the
Buffalo Christian Center. At the end of 2012, the BCC was faced with an unforeseen financial issue,
forcing BCC leadership to make some very tough decisions about the future of the organization. The
difficult reality was that unless something was done, the BCC would have had to close its doors by late
spring 2013. For this reason, the BCC was forced to let go of staff and programs that had served the inner
city of Buffalo faithfully for many years. Programs let go included Friday Bible study lunches, summer
camp, and the bookstore. Even though the bookstore was a staple in downtown Buffalo for many years and
had a dedicated staff, the BCC was no longer able to financially sustain this ministry. Much like Borders and
other bookstores around the nation, we were simply unable to keep up with online book retailers.
The BCC can firmly say that these actions, although drastic, have put the BCC on sound financial
footing moving forward.
The current offering of BCC programs, although smaller, are making a large impact in the
community, especially amongst the at-risk youth of Buffalo.
Merge, which is our Friday night youth program, has seen over 250 youth attend in the past year.
Children who have often never stepped foot into a church hear the gospel message, have group discussions
on relevant topics—such as how to handle conflict resolution—and eat a free pizza dinner provided by the
BCC.
Teen MOPS (Teen Mothers Of Pre-Schoolers) continues to grow in quality and quantity.
This program provides teen mothers with a support group, teaching good parenting skills and offering
encouragement. Recently, every mother in the group raised her hand to indicate she wanted to know Christ
or turn back to Him! What a great foundation for good parenting.
Bills Night Out is our unique partnership with the Buffalo Bills. This year over 400 youth had the
opportunity hear the gospel from some of the most prominent current Buffalo Bills players, including C.J.
Spiller, Stevie Johnson, and Rian Lindell.
Besides the services that we provide, we also make it possible for other organizations to use our
facility at discounted rates. For example, the Buffalo Dream Center continues to have Sunday church
services and an after-school program at the BCC.
Although we are excited about the focus and growth of our current mix of programs, the future of the
organization is the brightest it has been in many years due to a few key developments.
First, the BCC has rejuvenated the board by bringing on new board members in January. Boards are
essential to the health of a non-profit: they are responsible for driving the mission and helping the Executive
Director guide the organization. The new board members are passionate about at-risk youth in Buffalo and
bring new talents to the table. New members include a wealth manager at a local Buffalo financial firm, a
Buffalo police captain, a manager at Moog in East Aurora, the head of men’s ministry at a local church, and
a former Buffalo Bills player. The entire board is committed to the long-term success of the BCC and is
looking forward to aiding in its future growth.
Second, an anonymous donor has come forward recently and promised to MATCH every new dollar
donated by you and our other donors to the BCC before April 30. This matching gift is up to $25,000
dollars. We are excited about this opportunity to have every donor’s gift make “double” the impact. We ask
that you prayerfully consider any gift, large or small, before April 30.
Finally, the BCC has been blessed to receive the pro-bono services of a consulting team. This team
will be working with the BCC over the next five months to evaluate what new programs could be offered at
the BCC to further help at-risk youth. This has been a great blessing for us, as a consulting group with
similar expertise would have cost the organization over $100,000 in fees!
We look forward to sharing the consulting group’s results with you when the project has been
completed in June. We have no doubt that the recommendations will be bold and exciting, providing ways
for the BCC to make an even larger impact on the local community. In the mean time, please feel free to
contact us at with any questions. We would be happy to talk with you about the exciting future of the BCC.
Our hope is that you will continue to play a large part in the BCC serving Buffalo’s at-risk youth.
Regards,
Executive Director and the BCC Board
Jim Swearingen
Leroy Wiggins
Scott Lezynski
Ryan Kozey
Bill Deacon
Brad Butler
David Stabler
512 Pearl St. Buffalo, NY 14202
(716) 856-7495
Fax: (716) 856-7497
www.thebcc.org
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Financial Peace Seminar
The duo will also have a Q&A session at the end of the seminar.Refreshments and light appetizers will be served. Please feel free to invite as many people as you would like to attend with you. Just make sure you register yourself and your guests as seating is limited.
Register Now
Additionally another class will be held Thursday April 4 at the Orchard Park Country Club from 7-9PM
Help The Homeless
You Can Make a
Difference for the Homeless in Need!
Gently used
clothing is an ongoing need.
Personal
Care
- Bras
- Denture Cream (25)
- Dental Floss (25)
- Deodorant: aerosol (25)
- Desitin and or A and D Ointment (10)
- Boxers (Men’s
to size 54)
- Foot powder: Medicated (25)
- Gym Shorts (size lg and xlg) (15
pairs)
- Gym Sneakers (size 10 and up)
- Pajamas (Ladies
sizes sm, med, 2x and 3x)
- Razors (disposable)
(25)
- Soap:
- Bar (regular
and hotel size 25)
- Dish soap (15)
- Socks (Men’s only)
- Hats and gloves (Men’s only)
- T-shirts (Men’s size 2x, 3x, 4x 5x)
- Underwear (ladies
sizes 5 and 11)
- Wipes:
- Diaper (25)
- Disinfectant (25)
Facilities
- Batteries: AA (5-20 packs), AAA (5-10
packs), C (25), D (100), 9 volt (used for CO Detectors)
- Bibles NIV, NLT, The Open Bible
- Dish racks and Drain Boards (20)
- Sheets and
pillowcases: white
twin size, flat and fitted (25)
- Sterilite Storage Containers (54 quart see through with
lids 50 needed)
- Bath and Hand Towels:
White
- Dish towels and Dish clothes
- Scrubbies
- Help
our piano make beautiful music.
Piano repair person is needed to
repair 4 broken hammers.
For the details please call Doug at
854-8181 x428.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Finding Financial Peace
By Ryan Loos, Dave Ramsey Certified Financial Counselor, www.rklfinancial.com
In today’s economy, how
can we experience true financial peace? Many of us have lost homes, jobs, and retirement
funds, while others may be behind on specific payments and uncertain as to how
to handle the persistent calls from their creditors. In this time of economic crisis,
it is crucial for us to remember that we have hope through Jesus Christ. Not
only in the eternal scheme of things, but Christ is alive and present with
us even in our current circumstance. By His Holy Spirit we can gain wisdom and
be empowered to live above the cultural norm—to live debt free!
In the book of 2 Peter,
Peter emphasizes the importance of gaining knowledge in Christ for the purpose
of detecting the deceit of the false teachers. Unfortunately, we are bombarded
with media influences that can easily sway us from God’s truths regarding our
finances.
The Bible says, “Your ENEMY the devil prowls around like a
roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”(1 Peter 5:8). The salesmen, debt-relief
agencies, and creditors in secular America
The captions in the advertisements
promise guilt–free purchasing by offering zero percent financing, with no money
down and no interest, for six months. The creditors promise lower interest
rates and great rewards for purchases made on their company’s credit card. And
let’s not forget the corporate ladder that promises years of financial
prosperity for those who are willing to forgo family, friends and the Church for
the cause of the company.
What all of these companies fail to tell you is that 79% of
consumers never pay off the 0% loan on time. What they don’t tell you is that the
average
balance per credit card-holding household is $9,300. To top it all off they certainly do not tell you that according to the
Wall Street Journal nearly 70% of all consumers live from paycheck to paycheck.
For years I thought that I could use a credit card, pay-off the balance in full each month, and reap the credit card rewards of air miles, cash back, or money down towards a new vehicle. While we were able to pay-off the balance each month my wife and I calculated that we were spending approximately $300 more than we needed to spend a month simply because it was easier to swipe a card than hand out cash. No credit card reward ever added up or even came close to the $300 a month that we are saving, now that we are operating on a budget and only using cash.
Furthermore, years ago,
I was that accountant, earnestly seeking to climb the corporate ladder and
leave my mark in this world. I traveled and worked countless hours to prove
that I was deserving of promotions and special perks, but unfortunately, this
was at the expense of my family. My wife
and I felt so distant from each other and I missed months with my first child,
who needed a father’s influence just as much as she needed her mother.
I believe wholeheartedly
that the foundation for experiencing true financial peace begins with the
understanding that everything we have, including our income, is from the Lord.
The Bible says in Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the Lord’s, and all its
fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.” When we allow God to plant this truth in our
hearts He begins to transform our lives in such a way that we no longer spend
for ourselves, but we begin to realize the importance of tithing, meeting our family’s
needs (spiritually, emotionally and financially) and saving for our family’s
future.
True financial peace
comes when we know we are giving, saving and spending as Christ would have us
do.
I encourage you to go
against the grain! Make the decision today to give your finances over to the
Lord! Change your spending habits and find someone to help hold you
accountable. Husbands and wives, work at managing your finances together, so that
there are no surprises. Continue to seek God in all things and He will give you
financial peace beyond all measure!
Resource Review
Once again Camp teamed up with award-winning producer Brown Bannister to create a heartfelt, worshipful project. Returning to his worship music roots, he co-wrote with other notable worship leaders Matt Maher, Reuben Morgan (Hillsong) and Brenton Brown. "It is an overwhelming joy to see how the Lord has been faithful even though I am undeserving of it,” shared Camp regarding his latest release We Cry Out.
Monday, March 11, 2013
NDP Prayer Rally Tonight
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Bible Series Continues
The Bible series continues to draw a large following of viewers to the History Channel, as part two of the miniseries premiered tonight, featuring the life of David. The miniseries continues next Sunday on the History channel from 8PM-10PM.
Friday, March 8, 2013
Buffalo Christian Center Staff Laid Off
The Buffalo Christian last month laid off the majority of their staff, in a reorganization effort by Executive Director Jim Swearingen and Chairman of the board Brad Butler. The ministry is looking to restructure its model of support for the 60,000 square foot facility. The bookstore is temporarily open during limited hours and the Buffalo Dream Center continues to operate within the facility. More details to come.
Resource Review
Since the Toronto rock band’s worldwide launch in 2003, listeners have felt a connection to lead singer Trevor McNevan, drummer Steve Augustine, and bassist Joel Bruyer’s unique approach to music. With five successful projects under their belts, “The End Is Where We Begin” is the band’s first independent release.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Regional Prayer Outpouring 2012
"Jesus ruined every funeral He went to - including His own!" - Bill Johnson
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? Isaiah 43:19 (NIV)
Have you ever noticed that God’s answers to your prayers seldom look like what you expected? If you are like me, when you pray, you have a rough idea of what God’s response should resemble. But God often colors outside of my lines.
Allow me to illustrate. In April, 1995, an unusual prayer outpouring facilitated by Pastor, now Bishop, Troy Bronner began at a church in Buffalo. It was aptly named ‘Early Morning Prayer.’ We began attending in 1997. It was powerful, unlike any prayer meeting we had ever attended. At times, attendance was 700+ in the wee hours of the morning, with everyone sharing the same passion for Jesus.
At that time, I thought we had discovered the secret to resurrect Buffalo – bring every Buffalo Christian to Early Morning Prayer. Surely this was the key to transforming our city.
God corrected me in a vision. In the vision, I was looking over what seemed to be a Pacific island during World War II that had been overgrown by the jungle. I sensed that the Allied troops had pushed the Japanese out, and immediately needed to clear a runway to land support planes. As the troops began clearing jungle overgrowth, it was thicker than they expected. This meant that it took longer so the runway was not finished until after dark. The troops lit barrels on fire to outline the runway for night landings. When I looked down, there were actually 2 runways in the shape of a cross, and I saw the ‘cross’ runways outlined by these multiplied bonfires.
I sensed the Lord explain what I was seeing. No one fire of prayer, no matter how large, could illuminate His landing strip for our city. Rather He instructed me to watch and wait for a season when there would be countless prayer fires, some larger, some smaller, some I would never even know about. When this season of spontaneous prayer fires exploded among us, all the fires together would make a safe runway for the Holy Ghost to land in our city.
My prophetic radar went off last November (2011) when Bonnie Chavda declared the following at an Eagles Wings Ministries conference:
I believe that Buffalo has been sleeping and I honestly believe that the Lord has shown that this is the time of awakening. I believe that by the end of this year there are going to be signs in the various communities around this city, around this region, of awakening.
Deb and I believe that the prayer fires are burning brightly right now. Over the next several issues, we will be focusing on prayer fires in Erie County, Niagara County, city, suburbs, among different denominations, racial groups, and age groups. Some of these prayer fires are even burning in the Marketplace!!
The purpose of these articles will be to increase prayer and to increase faith that our prayers are making a difference. One of the words the Lord gave us for 2012 is that We Are Better TOGETHER! The very gates of hell are not safe against His praying Church on the march and on the move.
WARNING: The verse with which we opened contains a caution, ‘See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?’ Isaiah 43:19
Could God do a ‘new thing’ in Buffalo, and His Church fail to perceive or recognize it? Will we embrace the prayer fires of God if they happen outside our religious boxes?
Prayer Fire – an outside-the-box example
Nik Wallenda, high-wire walking between Niagara Falls, NY, and Niagara Falls, Ontario. ‘What? How can that be a prayer fire, a move of God??’ you may ask. Could a daredevil’s stunt be an answer to our prayers?
For those of you who watched on June 15th, you were among 20 million viewers in the U.S. and Canada. As Christians, we were amazed that as Nik walked, the ABC live microphone recorded Nik praying and quoting Scripture. “Oh God. How I praise You, Jesus. Oh Lord, You are my Savior, You are my King. You are my Jesus. You are my Counselor, You are my wisdom. Praise You Jesus.”
As my wife Deb and I watched and listened to Nik, it dawned on us that we were observing the most surprising move of God that we have ever witnessed. In fact, the article we wrote for national publication was entitled, “Nik Wallenda: Taking Prayer Walking to new Heights over Niagara Falls.” Nick prayed and prophesied over two nations as the world held its collective breath.
Even ‘secular’ news sources reported on Nik’s faith in their coverage.
Carolyn Thompson, Associated Press “A born-again Christian, Wallenda said he stays calm on the wire by talking to God, quoting scripture and praying.”
Nik did his part, and in the coming months we will introduce you to other non-conventional spontaneous prayer fires. What is your part? Ask God for spiritual eyes to recognize the prayer fires among us. Expect God to answer your prayers, and to birth prayer in unexpected ways in unexpected places through ordinary believers. Get ready to celebrate the new season of acceleration among us!! We Are Better TOGETHER!
"So there was great joy in that city." Acts 8:8
Revs. Al & Deb Warner are the founders and directors of Set Free Inc. Set Free is a networking ministry connecting business,governmental and church leaders for a Nehemiah-like rebuilding
and transformation of our city. Al and Deb have over 30 years experience pastoring local churches and working as missionaries in Hong Kong. In 1997, God laid a burden on their heart to bring
the regional church of greater Buffalo/Niagara Falls, NY, together. As they obeyed, God birthed their ministry, Set Free Inc. The Warners have led multiple prayer and training events over the years, including National Day of Prayer.
To contact them, email: info@setfreeinc.org
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Good Friday Speakers
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Details on Good Friday Together: There will be a mass community choir, and guest speakers from local WNY churches and the Christian community such as Pat Jones, Marty Macdonald, Roderick Hennings, Jill Kelly, Darius Pridgen, Angel Gautier, and Jerry Gillis. Along with all of these speakers and churches gathering together, an offering will be taken to help fulfill needs in the city of Buffalo, in areas such as education, sustainable housing, healthcare, and teen mentoring.
Resource Review: Full Disclosure
Ann Silver is a cop's cop. As the Midwest Homicide Investigator, she is called in to help local law enforcement on the worst of cases, looking for answers to murder. Hers is one of the region's most trusted investigative positions.
Paul Falcon is the FBI's top murder cop in the Midwest. If the victim carried a federal badge or had a security clearance, odds are good Paul and his team see the case file or work the murder.
Their lives intersect when Ann arrives to pass a case off her desk and onto his. A car wreck and a suspicious death offer a lead on a hired shooter he is tracking. Paul isn't expecting to meet someone, the kind that goes on the personal side of the ledger, but Ann Silver has his attention. Paul wonders just what secrets Ann is keeping, until she shows him the John Doe Killer case file, and he starts to realize just who this lady he is falling in love with really is.
Monday, March 4, 2013
God Loves You
Dr. David Jeremiah reveals that not fully understanding and appreciating every critical dimension of God's love can lead to missed opportunities to experience His love. He explains how even the so-called negative dimension of God's actions can only be rightly understood by viewing them in light of God's true love.
Resource Review: Deep and Wide
With surprising candor and transparency pastor Andy Stanley explains how one of America's largest churches began with a high-profile divorce and a church split. But that's just the beginning. Deep and Wide provides church leaders with an in-depth look into North Point Community Church and its strategy for creating churches unchurched people absolutely love to attend. Andy writes, 'Our goal is to create weekend experiences so compelling and helpful that even the most skeptical individuals in our community would walk away with every intention of returning the following week.with a friend ' Later he says, 'I want people to fall in love with the Author of Scripture. And while we can't make anyone fall in love, we can certainly arrange a date.' For the first time, Andy explains his strategy for preaching and programming to 'dual audiences': mature believers and cynical unbelievers. He argues that preaching to dual audiences doesn't require communicators to 'dumb down' the content. According to Stanley, it's all in the approach. You'll be introduced to North Point's spiritual formation model: The Five Faith Catalysts.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Resource Review: Gospel in Life
Join author and pastor Timothy Keller in an eight-week video-based study of the gospel and how to live it out in everyday life. In week one you and your group will study the city, your home now, the world that is. Week eight closes with the theme of the eternal city, your heavenly home, the world that is to come. In between you'll learn how the gospel can change your heart, your community, and how you live in this world. The Gospel in Life Participant's Guide is designed to help you and your group engage with and discuss the topics presented on the Gospel in Life DVD.Gospel in Life session titles: Session 1, City-The World That IsSession 2, Heart-Three Ways to LiveSession 3, Idolatry-The Sin BeneathSession 4, Community-The Context for ChangeSession 5, Witness-An Alternate CitySession 6, Work-Cultivating the GardenSession 7, Justice-A People for OthersSession 8, Eternity-The World That Is To Come
sponsored and available at Bender's Parable Christian Store
Famine In The Land
“Behold, I long for Your precepts…” Psalm 119:40. Oh that the people of God would take up this same cry. We are wrung out and dry, dying because of the same famine in the land that the prophet Amos spoke about when he said, “Not of food for hunger, nor of water for thirst, but for the Word of the Lord.” (Amos 8:11) Amos was watching a vision of our day, he spoke of ‘strong young men’ and ‘fair virgins’ fainting from thirst. The rate of teenage depression and suicide in our day is higher than it has ever been. We have 16 year olds stumbling around drunk in the streets at 4 in the afternoon where I minister in South Buffalo. Amos was speaking in a time that couldn’t be more like America in our day. It was a time of complacency, prosperity, oppression of the poor, and religious rote and rituals. That is our time.
Beloved, the famine that I’m talking about is not a lack of Bibles. Statistically, the average American Christian has 9 Bibles, whereas the average third world Pastor has no Bible at all. There are over 50 English translations of the Bible. In America there are approximately 15 Bibles (on and off the shelves) to every one person, whereas in Asia there is one Bible to every fifteen people. We have too many Bibles. The famine is because we have become a lazy and satisfied generation and in our pride think we have all we need. A woman came up to me after a service that I had preached at in tears, she told me that she had been planning to leave her church. After inquiring as to why, she couldn’t really explain it, she said, “I don’t really know what it is.” Even in church her family was dying of thirst for the Word. David had a hunger for the Word of God. He wrote, “My tears have been my food…when can I go and meet with my God?” One of my favorite preachers, David Wilkerson said that he observed most Christians “leave God’s house empty, unsatisfied and weak.” What must we do that we might wake up and develop a hunger for Jesus?
In Mark 10:46-52, there is a man that was hungry to hear a word from Jesus. It says that Jesus was walking with his disciples and a many others. Jesus was at the height of His popularity, we all know this didn’t last long, but anyway, he had his disciples, his followers, his fans, and the press all around him. What time would he have for a blind beggar? The first thing that we must do as those who long for a hunger for Jesus is humble ourselves before him. Stop being in denial! You are a blind beggar without him, are you not? You can’t see spiritually, and you’re spiritually bankrupt and destitute. This man, named Bartimaeus knew his state and cried out from the side of the road, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” If you will not recognize that you need his mercy, you will never get it. Bartimaeus could have sat there by the road, wallowing in his misery and grumbled ‘oh here comes that big shot, well I’m doing just fine without him.’ And thus many of us do. Not that we say this, but the way we spend our time, our money, our energy, how we go days without praying, a week without opening His Holy Word. It’s the non-verbals that are killing us! So he’s there crying out to God.. When’s the last time you cried out to God? Desperation is the master key to breakthrough. We’re often all too satisfied with doing it on our own, never do we let ourselves get to a point where we just go to our room, shut the door, collapse into the arms of God and say ‘HELP!’ He wants to hear a cry from His people! Like the Israelites in Egypt, 400 years and they finally started to cry out to God and God says in Exodus 3:9, “Behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come unto me…”
The hungry cry of the people of God peaks his attention. Watch what happens in Mark 10. Verse 49 says, “So Jesus stood still.” Jesus stopped! Jesus was on his way somewhere, where? He was on his way to Jerusalem to enter as king, riding on a donkey. Jesus had places to go, people to see. Jesus had the cross on his mind as it was only a week away and he knew what he had to face. He had a noisy boisterous crowd all around him trying to get a piece of him. It was probably a hot day and this unashamed and hungry cry moved the heart of Almighty God to stop in his tracks! How powerful is that? Jesus saw that some people had tried to shut him up, but he was far too desperate to let them stop him from his cry. Let me tell you something, when you take up a desperate and hungry cry for God, the religious people around you aren’t going to like it. It ruffles religious feathers, because your cry is exposing their complacency. You might have people, even in church, trying to drag you down into their spiritual tomb with them. They are dead and dry and satisfied with mere religious games and they like it that way. You may offend a lot of people.
So then after Jesus has stopped in his tracks, Jesus does something amazing. “So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called.” Essentially Jesus is saying, ‘I want that man!’ When God sees that you’re hungry for his presence, He wants your presence. God will not call people who are not hungry for him. If you are waiting for a call from God, wait in hunger and it will surely come soon. Fast, pray, delve into His Word and take up wherever you are as your mission field, don’t wait for a call to start laboring for the Lord. Too many wait for God’s call and in the meantime they become sluggish and pursue meaningless relationships, watch mind numbing TV, doubt God, entertain gossip and philosophies that are against God, and before too long they wouldn’t want a call from God even if he wrote in the sky for them. “Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”
Oh that the people of God would let out a cry “God help, we need You! Where are you, we are desperate for your presence, we have abused your grace, we have blasphemed your Name and we have grieved your Holy Spirit. Have mercy Son of David! Look on our blindness and spiritual destitution and come have your way in us. ” Oh that the people of God would turn to Him with fasting and weeping and mourning! This famine is killing us and we must humble ourselves and offer desperate prayers to the Captain of our salvation.
Ben Tagg is married to his beautiful wife Ruth. Together they serve as Directors of Ministry at Steps Ministry located in South Buffalo. Originally from England Ben is a missionary to the United States and raises his own support as a full time missionary in the Seneca Babcock Neighborhood of South Buffalo.
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