Any Room for Jesus?
Do you have room for Jesus? If He showed up to change your plans and send you in a different direction would you be okay with that? Would you be willing to go see this thing that has happened? (Luke 2:15) Would you like Mary ponder up the treasures of God in your heart? (Luke 2:19) Would you desire in your heart to praise God and glorify His name to the world after receiving what you heard and what you have seen God Do? Christmas allows God’s people to share God’s Good News to hearts that are looking for hope. Let’s go church- spread good tidings and Good News.
Celebrate Recovery
I am so very excited to tell you about a new ministry coming to Rosedale Church October 28th, 2016. Celebrate Recovery is a support based group for hurts, habits, and hang-ups that will be meeting at the church once a week. This really is for each and everyone of us because we all have baggage that we need to get rid of from our lives. This new ministry is a Christ-centered 12 step program based on Matthew Chapter 5:1-5:12. There are other 12 step programs out there but I love that through Scripture and God’s love we can tell them that they can have a personal relationship with the higher power and we know His name is Jesus Christ. Please be in prayer as we launch this group and believe that the Lord will touch people’s lives. I believe that this is big enough and if we were honest that this new small group will in its maturity have something for everyone.
Working together, walking together
Pastor Tony
Happy New Year
Happy New Year Everyone!
I hope that you are anticipating a great and prosperous New Year for 2013.
You know what makes a New Year good? Learning from our mistakes of the previous year and trusting God to help us not make them again in the coming year. Often we hear words like ‘getting in the groove’, but I think that is what gets us in trouble: getting right back in the same spot we were before and doing the same old thing the same old way!
Here is a quick and easy receipe for the New Year
- Smile. It takes all the pressure off yourself and places it on someone else on what they will do with it.
- Spend time quietly with the Lord every day. You will be surprised what He wants to say to you.
- Don’t waste time with gossip. Focus on positive things.
- Life is too short to waste time hating anyone or anything.
- No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
I plan to do a sermon this Sunday entitled “What Can I Expect From 2013”
Start thinking about today,
Pastor Tony
Being a member
As I prepare to start another membership class, I am excited to see God doing some tremendous things in the life of Rosedale. It made me think of the reasons that someone would want to join a church and become a member. To some of us who have been a part of the church for a long time, we sometimes forget what we have signed up for when we become a part of the body of Chirst. The decision to go from an occasional attender to a member of the church is one that we should take seriously because the Lord puts responsibility and blessings on our decison. Here are some of the things brought to my remembrance.
- When you stand before a body of believers, you are committing yourself before God that you will take active interest in the things that the Lord is trying to do through that particular body of believers.
- You commit that you will faithfully attend services.
- You commit financially that you will support your church with your tithes and offerings as the Lord has blessed you.
- You want to establish and nurture relationships with your brothers and sisters in the Lord by fellowshipping with them.
Blessings of membership
- You stop “shopping around” and begin to build a relationship with people of like-minded faith.
- You get plugged into something bigger than you and you have a support system.
- You partner with others to accomplish a task that lines up with God will as we know it.
- A Christian without a church is an orphan. You have become adopted into the family of God
I am so glad to be a part of this body of believers and feel like God has mighty things in store for us if we will remain faithful and focused on the the things of God. Sometimes, we just need a reminder, I know this member does.
Blessings,
Pastor Tony
Enjoying the Ride at Rosedale
As our church prepares for the second night of Vacation Bible School, I reflect back on all the hard work that has gotten us to this point. It is a team of 20-25 people being dedicated to the cause of reaching kids for Christ and showing them that we love them also as well as all the hours of prep and sweat equity that goes into the project that has become our superbowl of outreach. You would think that positive response would be 100 percent, participation would be 100 percent, and the excitement of the end result would be 100 percent. The longer that I pastor, the only thing I know 100 percent is that you will not get 100 percent.
I quit struggling and worrying and taking myself so seriously– well, at least becasue I have a great team of leaders around me, I am getting better at not worrying! We let God build His house. We work hard, do what we know to do, and commit all the circumstances over to the Lord. We’ve quit living and dying on every sermon and every worship song and started to enjoy where the Lord is taking our church. When someone leaves the church or some visitor doesn’t return, we let them go in our heads and in our hearts, thanking the Lord for the opportunity to minister but also realizing that the Lord is the only One who can change a heart. We are enjoying the people who are here–who choose to be here, and not so much on the ones that you have to beg. This is a freeing moment! The moment you begin enjoying the ride is the moment you begin to walk with the Lord on a journey of faith.
Enjoy the ride, Church.
Pastor Tony
Goliath Defeated
I was so excited for the celebration service on Sunday. It was and is a dream come true for the faithful at Rosdale who never give up on what God is doing. It was alot of work for so many to put feet to what the Lord has allowed us to have. It was and is a sacrifcie to those that every week invest in what God has been doing at Rosedale. I know that I cannot thank each of you for that sacrifice; but I can tell you that the Lord sees and He can and will bless you for your faithfulness. How many people will be in the kingdom because we have given them an opportunity to experience the Lord in a fresh and new way? How many people, because of your investment, will see the love of Christ through the life of those who believe in them?
Goliath was defeated because a body of believers stood up to him in the power of God believing that God had more for us and we wanted it! Would not be intimadated by defeated words like “we tried that before and it won’t work” or “We don’t have the money to do that”. While we enjoy the moment of victory, remember that it is the Lord who gets the glory; and that, if we want to see it continue, we have to be mindful of His kingdom work.
Thank You! Thank You! Each one of us has a place in this family and each one of us has a job to do. “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord”
Looking forward to what He has for us!
Pastor Tony
Another Fathers Day Behind Us
Good morning, everyone.
Another great service Sunday, Father’s Day! A day we lift up and remember to thank our fathers for all the great things they do for us. For some, it’s a day to remember what our fathers did for us as we gather up all the memories and keepsakes that we have treasured in our hearts. As some of you know, this week the Lord would not let me get away from the message of prayer and the power of prayer to a believer’s life. In Jesus’ priestly prayer to HIs Father recorded in John chapter 17, Jesus prayed for Himself, for His disciples, and for each one of us as future believers.
The acronym P.U.S.H comes to my mind: Pray Until Something Happens! Why is it that prayer is usually the last thing we do instead of being the first thing we do? Maybe because we really need to learn that God cares, God listens, and God responds to His children. He really is a great Father! There is power in prayer and there is power in the name of Jesus in which we should be praying. It is the most important weapon in a believer’s arsenal. He answers prayers in a variety of ways.
- Quickly. This is usually is the one that we like best. Unless, of course, it is not the answer we were hoping for!
- Later. “I have something for you but you must wait.” We settle for less than what the Lord is desiring many times because we are not willing to wait for His best.
- No. “No” is an answer. We may not like it, but it is a response and it is an answer from the Lord.
If, as another Father’s day goes by, maybe you have experienced that your children have not even picked up the phone, be ebncouraged! Your heavenly Father has acknowledged what you are doing and sees what you have done. You may be longing for heaven, but it is here on earth that you are doing the work of the Lord. I’ll close my thought with words from the movie Courageous–
“Joshua: 24:15: As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. I do solemnly resolve before God to take full responsibility for myself, my wife, and my children. I WILL love them, protect them, serve them, and teach them the Word of God as the spiritual leader of my home. I WILL learn from my mistakes, repent of my sins, and walk with integrity as a man answerable to God. I WILL seek to honor God, be faithful to His church, obey His Word, and do His will. I WILL courageously work with the strength God provides to fulfill this resolution for the rest of my life and for His glory. –Excerpt from THE RESOLUTION, featured in the movie Courageous
I want this in my life–don’t you? If you’re a father, be encouraged! If you’re not a father, mentor someone that God has brought into your path.
In Jesus’ name! Amen.
Tipping Point
The construction for the Multi-media projection project will begin in 10 days!
This has been a long process coming with alot of thought and hard work put into it to bring us to this pivital stage. I look at this momment in the life of Rosedale as a “tipping point”– a point where we can go to the next level of worship and reach a new group of worshippers who are technology-minded to join us. This group of young people knows its way around computers, and are extremely familiar with iPads and smartphones, and is not hung up on doing everything the old way.
I know this 55-year-old pastor is looking forward to experiencing and enjoying the freedom of getting out of our little box and exploring and seeing what is on the other side of the barrier walls we have in place. There are a lot of “New and Improved” products out there today and just because they are labeled new does not make them the correct product. However, the same applies to old and traditional, just because something is labeled safe and secure–oops, old and traditional– does not mean it is the only way to do something. Please be in prayer as we lauch into a new worship experience and please also be in prayer for how this new technology might reach someone that you know.
In Luke 17, Jesus is speaking to His disciples about sin, faith, and the duty we have as belivers. Jesus makes such a plead to them that they realize that without His help that they cannot do it. In verse 5, they ask the Lord to “increase our faith”. Jesus responds back that it is not about increasing their faith, but excercising the faith that they already have. It is not about more faith; it is about better faith! As we move into this new and exciting time, let’s trust the Lord to move on the hearts of His people and take us to a new level of love for the Lord.
Living exciting times together,
Pastor Tony
