MERRY CHRISTMAS!

The Christmas season is here. I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. Remember, do not allow the socially expected traditions of mankind to obscure your view of the Christ Child in the manage. It is through Him that salvation is offered, for the Jew and the Gentile. He is the long awaited Messiah of Israel and the Savior of the world.
He is the hope of eternal life with God and a life on earth with purpose by giving His life as a ransome for many.

Have a great Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year!
See you all soon.....
Commander Bobby

"And the virgin shall give birth to a Son, and His name shall be Immanuel (which means God with us).

Isaiah 7:14

THANKS FOR A GREAT PARADE!!!

What a great time we all had at the Pelham parade on Saturday. It was something that I will always remember....
It was great to see the float in it's finished state. The kids were all smiles and we loved having them all there to represent the chapel and the Awana club. And a special thanks to the adults who gave up their time to be a part of the parade, whether it was the volunteers on the float, the ladies who made our scarves, to parents driving their kids to the parade, or videotaping or taking pictures, thanks.....
We also gave away about 230 Bibles. Thanks to God who prepared the hearts of people to recieve His Word. Now we have to pray for those who recieved them that they would see their need and come forth to Jesus, the Savior of our lives.

Again, it was an awesome experience, and one three years in the making, since the Lord first dropped the thought into my head. It's been great seeing His hand at work preparing us and brining us together to accomplish something for His Kingdom.

"So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it."  Isaiah 55:11

The Parade is a GO!

Now that all the scarves are done (thanks to all the ladies who made them!), the carols are being recorded and the float is almost completed (a special shout out to Kim and Kevin for all their hard work), it's time to think about how this is all going to work.
Everyone invloved with the float will meet at Bethany Christian Reformed Church on 1086 Balfour St. at 12:15 P.M. You will have to get there from Foss Rd. because Welland Rd. will be closed for the parade.
Parents are encouraged to park near the end of the parade route near Centennial Park on Church St. after dropping your kids off. This is where the parade will end and kids can be picked up.
There are free things to do and eat after the parade, but children will be the responsbiblity of thier parents.
PLEASE DRESS WARMLY, as Commander Bobby says, "This ain't golfing weather!!!"
Wear comfortable shoes, because the thing about parades, there's alot of walking for those who are in it....
On another note, the Christmas concert rehersals are done and it looks great. I can't wait to see all the parents, clubbers and leaders at the concert. It'll be alot of fun! Plan to stay afterwards for snacks...
Finally, as the term draws to a close, the winning teams were announced, and they were the Blue and Yellow teams. They, along with their parents are invited to a nite of pizza and a movie at the chapel for 6:15 P.M. on Friday December 17th. The winning team members will be recieving phone calls to confirm.
Anyways, that's it for now, lots going on, but that's the Christmas season.

But please, don't lose sight of the Light in the dark tunnel of gift buying, meal prepreations and the attempt at having the perfect Christmas (the only perfect Christmas was about 2000 years ago). The reason for the season is Jesus Christ, God's Beloved Son, who was born to die for our sins. Even from the womb, Jesus was not far from the tomb. From the cradel to the cross, He purposed Himself to die for the sins of mankind. May this be the thought and focus of our Christmas season.

"And she will give birth to a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He shall save His people from thier sins."
Matthew 1:21

The Parade is coming!

We've begun initial preperations for the Ridgeville Bible Chapel/Awana float for the Pelham Christmas Parade. Any clubber who wish to participate will be advised of the schedule for December 11th (parade day) shortly.

Parents, keep an eye out for a notice regarding the parade.

Christmas time again

The club is a buzz with our Christmas concert preperations. There are alot of dedicated leaders and clubbers working hard at pulling off a great concert that is both entertaining, fun and honoring to the LORD.
Remember as we appraoch the date (Dec 14), it is really important for your clubbers to be at club, as we only have a few nites and a limited amount of time to prepare. Clubbers are asked to be at the chapel on concert nite at 6 pm.
The chapel also had a chance to put together twenty Christmas boxes for Operation Christmas Child. I took them over to Wellspring Church last Saturday. It was an incredible sight to see the thousands of boxes there, knowing they are headed to children in some of the poorest countries in the world. Pray for the boxes and the families recieving them, that they would feel the love of Christ and recieve Him as their Savior.
Finally, the chapel and the club is preparing for the Fenwick Christmas parade, which is being held on Dec 11th. We are putting together a float, and are really excited to spread the news of CHRISTmas!!!
See you guys around the club....

"But as many as recieved Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.." John 1:12

It's almost here!!

With the annual October candy grab behind us, it's time to start the annual Christmas countdown. For those of you who may not know this but I LOVE Christmas! Not for the presents (though I am now accepting personal cheque and mastercard ;) but for the simple reason that this is the time of year we celebrate Christ's coming to save mankind from it's sins.

EXAM TIME FOR BOBBY

No matter how old you get, there's always something to learn.
I'm finishing up my intro New Testament course and am staring down the barrel of an exam.
Time to study hard....
Please pray for me...I'm taking my exam on October 10th in the afternoon.
I better know what "religious and polythesitc syncretism" is ?!^#*:)
Talk to you all soon......

Awana Conference

I went to the Awana conference today. Had an awesome time. I was asked to do a workshop on our newsletters and general communication with homes and clubs, even used this blog as an example. However, the key note speaker (Bob Dobson) was the hight light of my day. He shared a little of his life over the last few years including the tragedy of losing his wife and mother in the same car accident.
While on a trip to Oregon for a time of respbite from pastoring, a young man fell asleep at the wheel and hit their van head on. Bob, his wife, mother, son in law, daugher and his fourteen month old granddaughter were all involved in the accident. Bob suffered numerous broken bones, traumatized neck and back, had his heart stop twice and almost died while in a drug induced coma. When he (Bob Dobson) woke up, he saw a team of nurses and doctors surrounding his be. They warned him that they had bad news, that being his wife and mother had not survived the accident.
It wasn't the tragedy of this man's life that gripped my heart, but his response to those doctors....."The LORD gives and the LORD takes away. Blessed be the name of the LORD."
After four years of dealing with this incredible situation, Bob has come out a stronger believer, who's faith has grown in depths which he said he could not imagine. He told me (Commander Bobby) that this event, as tragic as it was, proved to him (Bob Dobson) that God is faithful to His people, and that God is glorified in it, even if we don't understand how. He went on to say that this event has transformed his life into one that is deeply concerned for the eternal destinies of people. He finds himself constantly asking people, even strangers, "do you know where you'll be spending eternity?"
His hope during all this was the LORD Jesus. He gave him the strength to endure the greatest trial of life, surviving the loss of a loved one.
But Bob was quick to point out that the Christian never really says goodbye to other Christians, as in the case of his wife and mother, only "see you soon in our Father's house"
Incredibly, in this great tragedy, God's grace can be seen. Bob's grandaughter did not suffer one scratch. Now she's four years old and beginning Cubbies this month!
 How about you, are you concerned with your eternal destiny? Do you know where you'll be after the last breath of life leaves your body? Are you concerned with the eternal destinies of others?
Come to the cross today........bring some friends with you......because this could be your last day on earth.....

"Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD."  Job 1:21

"My grace is sufficent for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9

LOVE"S A VERB!

The Bible describes love as a verb, contrary to the world view of love, which believes it is an emotion cultivated by experience or circumstance. Jesus described the love believers are to have toward not only Himself, but toward fellow man. Jesus describes the active love toward individuals who are in need as ministering not only to themselves, but also unto the Lord Jesus Himself. These acts of charity, such as feeding the poor, clothing them, visiting those in prison, taking in strangers and ministering to their physical and spiritual needs, is the love of God manifested among His people. Jesus goes on to teach that ignoring these facets of the Christian faith is evidence that an individual is in fact unregenerated and therefore unsaved, dismissing those who refuse to manifest love to everlasting judgement into the lake of fire.


Paul describes that of all the spiritual gifts, love is the only one that will follow us into eternity. Faith and hope will disappear when the believer reaches the end of their pilgrimage on earth and finally sees Jesus face to face, but love endures and will accompany the believer into heaven.

Love's character is patterned after God's own love. It stands to reason that since “God is love” (1 John 4:16) it is His example that the believer is to follow. Without God's indwelling love, a “Christian” ceases to be what he claims to be; since the love of God indwells a believer, a lack of love reveals the true heart of an individual in the realm of spiritual standing. An individual could live a life of a martyr, giving everything he owns, even to the point of death, without love it is useless. It is useless because the Spirit of God does not indwell the individual, therefore there is no assurance of eternal life in heaven.

Love is described as the concern of other over self. Love rejoices in the happiness of another and sorrows with them in pain. Love seeks to protect and preserve the integrity of others. Love is long suffering, that is, even in the light of hatred and persecution, a believer loves and manifests that love toward the antagonist. Pride is absent in love, with humility dominating the thoughts and actions of a believer. Love is as simple as providing a cold cup of water to a stranger on a hot summer day, and as profound as a Savior dying on a cross for sins that are not His own. In either case, it is the manifestation of love in real time and in a real way that shows the Spirit filled heart of an individual.

Love among the brethren is also stressed in the scriptures. The apostle John, who has been nicknamed the “apostle of love”, describes a love for one another in the church that elevates itself beyond the temporal and sinful nature of individuals before being perfected in death and resurrection. It recognizes and applies the principal of sacrificial love, as seen in the life and atoning death of Jesus, as it's pattern. It is this love that indwells a believer in the form of the Holy Spirit, that enables them to love those who would otherwise be tolerated or even hated. Anyone who claims to love God and refuses to love his brother is a liar. The Bible commands we love God, but also to love one another.

This type of supernatural love is only available to those who confess Jesus as the Son of God (1 John 4:14). The believer then abides in God and God abides in him and is made perfect through that love, so that in the day of judgement, the believer has no fear, since God's great love has been manifested in our lives on earth.

Are you living in fear.....or are you living in God's love????

I LOVE MEATBALLS

Have you ever eaten something so good...you can't help eating more, even when you're full! Last night we celebrated by brother in law's brithday. He made these incredible meatballs...I couldn't stop eating them. Man was I stuffed!!

But I've had some meatballs in my life that could pass as hockey pucks..they were not so good. Even though meatballs are esentially the same no matter who makes them or how they're made, some are just better than others.
It's the same with "religion"...some seem really good, some not so good.....
But the best religion isn't a religion at all....it's a relationship....a relationship with Jesus Christ.
He's different....walked to His own tune...lived a life like no other....and most of all, was God in the flesh.
He was full of grace and truth.
Everything about Jesus was antiestablishment. He stressed love, relationships, community, reconcilliation, regeneration, faith and forgiveness.
His life was given as a payment for our sins...but it only qualifies to those who believe and trust in Him...

Have you trusted Him yet?

After all, He gave His life for a bad meatball like me......and once you get a taste of Jesus, you'll be full and yet always want more!!!

"I am the living bread which came down from Heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is of Myself, which I shall give for the life of the world."

John 6:51

Back to school!!

So back to school time...it reminds me that Awana is beginning next week. I'm prepearing the teaching materials for the Sparks and T&T lesson time. I'm really excited and looking forward to the year. Last year, as some of you know, I had a difficult time getting motivated. That is untill some clubbers gave me some encouraging words. Who knew that God would use the very kids I was ministering to to minster to me.
Well this year, I'm psyched...and ready to rumble.
I'm looking forward to what the LORD has in store for us...though the schemes of Satan will become evident as the Word of God is presented, he doesn't stand a chance, becuase "....stronger is He (Christ) that is in me than he (Satan) who is in the world." 1 John 4:4

See you all next week...you too parents ;)

So Soon...

Awana begins in about two weeks....things are moving nicely. Can't wait to see all the clubbers again. It'll be fun to teach them about God's Word and the love of Chirst....
I'm beginning to plan out the lessons, not only for the Truth and Training club, but the Sparks club as well this year.
We got afew new and exciting things that will be going on this year. So if you are coming back to club this year, or are new, bring a friend and see what Jesus can do in your life.

Jesus was a Jew!

It has come to my attention that Jesus wasn't Canadian....nor was He American....or Cuban, Mexican or British! Jesus was a Jew. Not only that but a Jew living in the first century (that would be 2000 years ago for anyone keeping track:) keeping the law.
Wouldn't it make sense to study Him in that light??
We in the west are not only removed culturally, but in time as well.
A great book I'm reading is by Joe Aramal.  He wrote the book "Understanding Jesus". It's incredible!
If you get the chance to read it, do it! He does a great job of reminding us Christians of our Hebraic roots.
After all Christanity sprung from Judasium. It makes sense to study the life of the Master when He walked on the earth...that way we can be like Him as we walk on the earth. 

Here we go.....

We just wrapped up our first Awana meeting at our house...so far so good!
It looks like we'll be having another awesome year, espically now that we've gone online.
This is the first of many posts on the site, so keep your eyes peeled for updates and news.

"For the Son of Man came to seek and save that which was lost." Luke 19:10

Are you lost...Someone's looking for you....