New Life Church » Pastor Michael

Bible Reading: February 2012

Michael Geddie — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:38:00 +0000

Hey there, New Life – the February Bible-reading calendar is available for download and printing. Click here to download the calendar, print it out, hang it on the refrigerator, and keep up with your Bible reading! This is a great reminder for you and your family, to stay on top of God’s Word this year!

I am a Soldier…

Michael Geddie — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 18:00:08 +0000

I AM A SOLDIER:

I am a soldier in the army of my God. The Lord Jesus Christ is my commanding officer. The Holy Bible is my code of conduct. Faith, prayer, and the Word are my weapons of warfare. I have been taught by the Holy Spirit, trained by experience, tried by adversity and tested by fire.

I am a volunteer in this army, and I am enlisted for eternity. I will either retire in this army at the Rapture or die in this army; but I will not get out, sell out, be talked out, or pushed out. I am faithful, reliable, capable and dependable. If my God needs me, I am there. He can use me because I am there! I am a soldier.

I am not a baby. I do not need to be pampered, petted, primed up, pumped up, picked up or pepped up. I am a soldier. No one has to call me, remind me, write me, visit me, entice me, or lure me. I am a soldier. I am not a wimp. I am in place, saluting my King, obeying His orders, praising His name, and building His kingdom! No one has to send me flowers, gifts, food, cards, candy or give me handouts. I do not need to be cuddled, cradled, cared for, or catered to.

I am committed. I cannot have my feelings hurt bad enough to turn me around. I cannot be discouraged enough to turn me aside. I cannot lose enough to cause me to quit. When Jesus called me into this army, I had nothing. If I end up with nothing, I will still come out ahead. I will win. My God has and will continue to supply all of my needs.

I am more than a conqueror. I will always triumph. I can do all things through Christ. Devils cannot defeat me. People cannot disillusion me. Weather cannot weary me. Sickness cannot stop me. Battles cannot beat me. Money  cannot buy me. Governments cannot silence me. And hell cannot handle me.

I am a soldier. Even death cannot destroy me. For when my commander calls me from this battlefield, He will promote me to Captain and then allow me to rule with Him.

I am a soldier in the army, and I’m marching claiming victory. I will not give up. I will not turn around. I am a soldier, marching heaven bound.

Here I stand!

Soldiers – together, ready for battle

To clarify – I did not write this (not even sure who the author is to give credit), it was just too good to not post again!

New ACTION Night Series Begins 1/4/12

Michael Geddie — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:13:04 +0000

New Life Church will be beginning a new 8 part series on Wednesday evenings as a part of our A.C.T.I.O.N. (All Church Teaching In One Night), adult weekly Bible study.

We will restore the “three class/three teacher” format for these sessions. You may choose your class. All classes will be studying the same scriptural passages and principles.

Our series is called: Truths For Christian Living. It will cover the New Testament books of I, II, III John, and Jude.

The subject titles for the Wednesdays in January are: Fellowship With God / Living As Christ’s Disciple / Being Children of God / This You Can Know.

I believe these Bible studies will assist us with the arming and equipping for the spiritual battles ahead.

I invite and encourage you to be in attendance as much as possible!

Let’s go to WAR!

Michael Geddie — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:02:15 +0000

The Bible has gotten some bad press that have tarnished what is held within. It seems that there are many, especially many men, who believe the Bible is nothing more than a collection of verbal Thomas Kincade paintings, soft, pretty, frilly – but nothing that they can relate to, nothing that excites them, nothing that they can get fired up about.

The truth, however, could not be further from this sad misrepresentation. The Bible is full of language of war, of battle, of a great fight. In the Bible, the word WAR is used 228 times, the word BATTLE is used 179 times, and the word FIGHT is used 126 times. This does not include any other wording or language of war, such as skirmish, squabble, throw-down, beat down, or anything else of that type.

We believe that the Bible is the God-breathed, inspired, directed, protected Word of God – straight from God to man. We believe that what is written in the Bible is fact, not fiction, not conjecture, not speculation, not subject to question, not able to be refuted. By believing this, the stores that are contained within the Bible are HISTORY, not a fictional novel. This means they really happened! God really used these people to accomplish His purposes, the ways that He intended and orchestrated!

The Old Testament is filled with story after story of God using ordinary (or even less than ordinary) people to accomplish great feats through war and through battle. Samson killed 1000 men with a donkey’s jaw (Judges 15:15). David killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands as a boy, then slayed a giant that grown soldiers were afraid to fight (1 Sam 17:36, 1 Sam 17:48-51). The stories of the Israelites overcoming the Egyptians (Book of Exodus), the walls of Jericho falling (Joshua 6), Gideon and his small army (Judges 7:1-22), and David and his mighty men (2 Sam 23:8-39) are just a few of the many exciting, guy-inspiring stories found in the Bible.

The New Testament does not discontinue to use this same language of active participation in a battle, in a war, in a fight. Paul writes to the church in Corinth that “though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh…” (2 Cor 10:3), and to Timothy he writes to “fight the good fight of faith.” (1 Tim 6:12)

Old Testament warfare is a picture of spiritual warfare. It is a picture of good conquering evil. It is a picture of God defeating Satan. New Testament warfare teaches us that the battle that we fight is not flesh and blood, not in the physical. It is a spiritual battle that we fight, against unseen forces of evil in dark places (Eph 6:12).

When we become a Christian; when we accept the gift that Jesus freely gives, but paid everything for – we enlist that day for life in the Army of God. We are soldiers, and we are in battle. Make no mistake – we are in battle. If we are not actively engaged in battle, there’s a good chance we are losing the fight. (If you aren’t fighting back, what’s the likelihood you are winning?)

The battle is raging, the sides are chosen, and the lines are drawn. The question we must each ask ourselves is -

“Am I in the fight?”

Am I actively engaging my enemy in combat? Am I preparing myself as a soldier each day to go to war for my Commander? Am I making the most of each day, taking ground from the enemy every step of the way? Am I allowing myself to be used by my Commander for the accomplishing of His purposes?

Jesus tells the crowds in Matthew 11:12 (AMP) “And from the days of John the Baptist until the present time, the kingdom of heaven has endured violent assault, and violent men seize it by force [as a precious prize - a share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense exertion].”

This is ACTIVE. The kingdom of heaven, bringing God’s kingdom (His purposes, His plans, His desires, His will) to earth is something that we seek after with ardent zeal. It is something that we seek after with intense exertion. It is a passion!

So – Are you in the fight?

To be continued…

Parents: Sharpen your sword WITH your kids!

Michael Geddie — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 02:50:01 +0000

Parents, the Geddie family just finished our first day of Bible reading through the plan (Genesis 1-3)! We had a great time letting our kids do most of the reading. This led to some great discussion, some interesting questions, and a great time for our family. Our kids were reading God’s Word, we were getting to share and discuss with them, and we all are learning and growing together.

We want to encourage you, parents, tackle this challenge with your kids. Impart the importance of God’s Word to your children, regardless their age. Let this be a great time of family as you dig into the Bible together. Let’s God’s Word become a priority in your family life – something you all look forward to together, not something you HAVE to do…

If they are old enough, let them do some of the reading. Explain the parts they don’t understand. Put it into language that they will get. God’s Word is accessible to everyone – it doesn’t have to fly over their heads!

(One thing to note, parents – this should take about 15-20 minutes per day to stay on track with this plan. That is – unless you have your 7-yr old read an entire chapter from Genesis. That might add a little more time, so plan accordingly! Definitely worth the time investment, though – and YOU will be greatly rewarded!)

Network Inventory 2011

Michael Geddie — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 20:00:09 +0000

New Life Church was proud to help The Network with their annual inventory, a practical way to serve those in our community that help others. The Network is a great organization that we support, and this was just another way to help them accomplish their mission of helping others.

[Show as slideshow]

No Service: Wed., December 28

Administrator — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 23:31:55 +0000

We will have no service on Wednesday, December 28 – over the holiday week. Please enjoy the evening at home with family, get rested, recharge, and be ready for a great new year beginning Sunday, January 1, 2012!

January 1: Time of Commitment

Administrator — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 23:18:19 +0000

Hey there, New Life family! I’m excited about what God has done and continues to do at New Life! As I announced a couple of weeks ago (check here for the original post), God has given New Life a challenge for 2012 – to get into the Scriptures, to read and soak up God’s Word, and to apply His Word fully to our lives. With the challenge will come a special time of commitment – committing to accept God’s challenge, committing to growing spiritually in 2012, and committing to not stay the same as we are December 31, 2011!

I have great faith, New Life, that God wants to, can, and will (if we allow Him) change each and every one of us more into that person that He desires us to be as we make a commitment and an continued effort to draw near to Him. It’s going to be exciting, as we begin this journey together as a family!

Christmas Eve Communion Service

Administrator — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 23:08:50 +0000

You are formally invited to join the family of New Life Church as we begin the celebration of Christmas. Our annual candlelight communion service is a New Life Church family tradition – and if you have not made it part of your family tradition and celebration, I want to invite you to join us. This will be a special one-hour service of honoring God with worship, a brief message from the Scriptures, and a time of remembering what Jesus has done for us as we receive communion.

The service begins promptly at 6PM, and concludes at 7PM – won’t you join us as we celebrate!?!

2012 Bible Reading Challenge

Michael Geddie — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 21:03:40 +0000

New Life, we have been challenged by God. I will address this more at the beginning of the year, but I wanted you to begin preparing – preparing your heart, your spirit, and your mind. This challenge that God has for us will not be easy, but can be accomplished and will yield some very good fruit in our lives. This challenge will require something from each of us every day of 2012. This challenge will require perseverance to see it through to the end, but the results will be well worth the effort and the wait!

The challenge that God has for New Life Church is one of commitment. Commitment to growth. As I said, I will share more of this at the beginning of the year, but one key area that God has for refocused commitment is in the area of Scripture reading and study. This has become very clear to me, personally, as I have been challenged by God to read the New Testament during the month of December. For the next year, though, I want to challenge each of us to commit to joining together to read and study the Bible. I will begin a one-year reading plan on January 1, 2012, and I want to challenge you to join me. I will share regular updates about the passages we’ve been reading, and give any insights God has given to me during that time. I’d like to also ask that you interact – post your comments and thoughts. This will be available on the website, so it will be accessible and easy to find. The reading plan I have selected reads the Bible in chronological order – from the oldest events to the most recent. If you have never read the Bible through, or it’s been a really long time, please let me know! I want to be able to encourage you and challenge you to stick through with us to the end.

This will be a great way for us individually and corporately to commit to growing spiritually in 2012. Let’s do this, let’s meet the challenge, and let’s please God!