Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Advent Season 2010--The Lord's Coming

I love the Advent season. It is a time of anticipation. Just as our little children anticipate opening their Christmas presents on Christmas Eve, we look forward to the coming of Jesus Christ. Yes, He has come, that is historical fact. But there are two other realities at play during this season. We also anticipate His Second Coming. We believe His coming could be at any time, and so we want to be ready and looking for His coming. The signs are all around us. For the first time in many years, this has been the focus of our Sunday messages during Advent.

The third reality is this: We sing in the Christmas Carol, "Joy to the world, the Lord IS come. He truly is come to all of those who have received Him as Savior. This God who took on human flesh 2000 years ago, and who will return for His own one day, also comes to live in the hearts of those who trust Him for the forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life. There is no other way to God the Father except through His Son, Jesus Christ. God bless you as you experience the reality that "the Lord is come" in your own life!

A Blessed Christmas to you!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

The House of God

The title of my blog is "The House of God" because we are experiencing that reality with our church meeting in our home. The Apostle Paul stated the same in I Timothy 3:15, "...I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." The church of God is described as a house, similar to the foundation of the family that God designed in the Old Testament. In his epistles, Paul sends greetings to churches that meet in homes. For example, in Romans 16:5, he says, "Likewise greet the church that is in their (Priscilla and Aquila's) house."

We've been meeting at our home for church for some time. You may know that we minister at Tamiami RV Park from November through just after Easter. During the rest of the year we meet in our family room for worship. Our church started in 1998, and met at Gulf Coast Village for six years. In the Spring of 2004, we began this chapter of our spiritual pilgrimage and moved our services into our home. It's been a smaller group since that time. We've had families come for a time and then stop. We've had one couple come for awhile and then move away. Each time there is encouragement in new people, but at the same time, there is strength in the ones we have come consistently. For now, that's been my own family and Jim and Judy Myre. I have great appreciated their faithfulness to our ministry. They came to Living Faith while we were there, and followed us to Word of Life. That's been about 17 years! Thank the Lord for their loyalty!

So, if you are reading this blog, I invite you to join us. We are really a "house" of God. We meet on Sunday mornings at 9:30 A.M. for about an hour and a half. We listen to preaching (that's me seeking to expound God's Word), respond to it with testimonies, sing hymns together (and I mean hymns), worship the Lord by giving our tithes and offerings, and pray together. We're small, and not perfect, but desire to be a living illustration of God's household in this day. You are welcome! We'd love to have you.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Tamiami Fellowship is in full swing again

If you've found this blog, we're thankful. "Season" is upon us again. No, I'm not referring to Christmas season. That has come and gone. No, the season is "snowbird season." Each "season" here in Florida, we are blessed with part-time residents who travel down here to escape the cold up north. It is encouraging to be a part of the fellowship at Tamiami RV Park. The people there hail from all over the upper Midwest and East, including several from Canada. Just last week at church we took a survey of those who are from other states and provinces. Now that January has come, the park will be full, and we trust the attendance at church will reflect that.

We hope that you are encouraged in your faith as you worship with us. We love coming to Tamiami as a family. We have many friends, and love the attention our children receive from surrogate uncles and aunts and grandparents.

As you continue on your pilgrimage toward the celestial city (reference Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan), we hope that the preaching, worship, and fellowship we share is meaningful to you.

God bless you as you follow Him in 2010!