The Christian Thing To Do?

I'd appreciate your help with something that happened to me yesterday.

We are going on vacation tomorrow.  The first leg of our trip is driving to Winnipeg, a four hour drive from home.  To get to Winnipeg we drive through a piece of Minnesota where I always gas up because it is much cheaper there than here.  I wasn't sure that I had enough gas to get us to the gas stop in Minnesota so I decided to get $20 worth of gas at our local gas station.  I could have run across the border to the U.S.A. here to get some.  It would have only taken 10-15 minutes, but I didn't want to bother with the border crossing and I didn't have enough U.S. money to get gas there and also on the way to Winnipeg.  So I was willing to pay an extra 30 cents a litre for the $20 I was going to get here.

The gas station here is full service so I told the attendant I wanted $20 of regular.  She set the pump then went off to help other customers.  A couple minutes later I realized the pump was still going and I quickly got out to shut it off.  It was just over $54.00.  The girl saw me get out and came running over to see that it had not stopped at the $20 she said she had set it at.

I was torn as to what to do; as to what the Christian thing was to do.  If I had wanted to fill it I would have gone across to get the cheaper gas.  Yet I did get much more than $20 worth of gas.

What would you have done?  What should I have done as a Christian?  Please give me your opinion and feel free to use Scripture to support your point if you like.

We are leaving tomorrow for 2 weeks vacation  so it is doubtful (a slight possibility, but doubtful) that I'll be blogging in that time.  I look forward to your advice on this issue and I'll let you know what I did when I get back.

Dave

A Quiet Place

Early mornings by the river, an eagle or pelican in flight, an occasional deer and a cup of Tim Horton's coffee;  These are some of the things that mark our quiet place.  My wife and I get up early about four times a week to take in God's creation, spend time catching up with each other, and reading and praying together.  We are presently reading a daily devotional about how God's Word has touched peoples' lives.  In the past we have read books on marriage, prayer and spiritual growth.

As much as we still rely on the TH coffee to help get us out of bed, the other elements are far more beneficial.  We continually marvel at God's creation.  We grow through time together.  We start the day with God.  

If Jesus needed to get away to a quiet place with His Father, how much more do we need it.  I realize it is probably not possible to get away outside the house if you have a young family.  You just need to do the best you can at home.  But if at all possible, find a special spot to meet with God.  I highly recommend it. 

Dave 

Youth Ministry in Small Churches and a Small Town

What can you do when you have a few teenagers, but no volunteers who feel skilled enough to lead a youth group and too small of a church to afford a paid youth minister? That concern has been on my mind and in my prayers for the year I've been pastoring at Bethel Baptist.

God has begun to work to answer our prayers. No, we haven't suddenly had a large infusion of money to be able to hire a youth worker. We haven't had a sudden influx of people wanting to become youth leaders. What we have had is a coming-together of a few pastors and a Canadian Sunday School Mission missionary to pray, talk, and dream. Three evangelical pastors meeting together monthly for encouragement and prayer were joined one month by Debbie, the CSSM missionary. Debbie and an advisory board working with youth in a neighbouring town had a desire to reach out to teens in our town's high school. With the support of the pastors, Debbie got going.

All of this led to several teens and adults from four churches coming together for prayer and planning over several weeks. So far this has resulted in the first joint Christian youth get-together in our town in a long time. The plan is to develop a core group of teens who love the Lord to reach out to youth in their school.

My role is not hands-on. Some good people have come forward from the churches to be on the front lines. I see myself as more of a cheerleader and interceder and if necessary, a resource person. But this is definitely one of the things I like about this small town. It is awesome to see Bible-believing churches and people coming together to serve the Lord and our youth! I'm pretty sure Jesus loves it too.

Dave

Baptisms

Our church witnessed three baptisms on Sunday. I love baptisms. I love to hear how God has worked and is working in peoples' lives. I love to hear the circumstances by which God brings people to faith in Christ. I love to see people making obedient choices in following Christ. I love being part of helping people take that step.

The first candidate was a young woman who came to faith about three months ago. It has been such a blessing to see her learn and grow. The other two were a couple of our teens. Again, it is so exciting to see young people make this decision. Both of these teen girls are faithful in attendance, love God and church and are active in serving in AWANA. It was time for them to make this public commitment.

To add to the adventure the baptisms took place in the Rainy River. I know many baptisms have happened in lakes and rivers, including at our church, but this was my first time. The afternoon was hot and very windy which was actually a great combination. We had a good turn out including friends and family from other churches and some who don't go anywhere. It was definitely a witness and a celebration! Praise God!

Dave

Starting in the Right Place

On our recent trip to the Minneapolis area I wrote down the directions in my usual point form way.  Hwy 53 -> Hwy 33 -> I35S ->  etc.  It worked out beautifully; no problems.

On the way back home I simply reversed the list of directions and expected smooth sailing.  Trouble is, I changed the starting point.  We stopped for breakfast at the IHOP near the Mall of America.  I noticed the day before that the 494E, a road we needed, was right near the mall.  After breakfast we got on the 494E and started looking for 100N.  After driving for a half hour I realized that something wasn't right.  We finally figured out that the entrance to the highway we had taken near the mall was already past 100N.  

We weren't exactly lost; we could have found our way from where we were.  The bigger problem was, we had given the same directions to our son and we had no way to contact him.  They had taken a slight detour to check out another store.  Feeling responsible, we travelled back the half hour and did all we could to find them, to no avail.  

It all worked out in the end and I was reminded just how important it is in the spiritual realm to start in the right place.  No matter how many things we may get right, if we don't start in the right place, with faith in Christ and putting God first, we will certainly lose our way.  And how much worse when we put others off course along with ourselves.  But as long as we have breath, we can get back on track by trusting the Lord rather than relying on ourselves.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Dave

Power in Weakness: Family Edition

When our son and his family arrived to visit us about three weeks ago I was outside cutting the grass. I ran to the driveway and did my version of "the happy dance" in joy over their coming. I also let them know that I would be doing my happy dance again the moment they turned the corner to start their trip home.

Three weeks is quite a long time to have five extra people visiting you. Family or not, two young adults with different priorities, schedules, etc., and three very active children is an adjustment. It takes a great deal of patience, communication, giving and forgiving, and the crucifying of self-interest to get through. I did not always succeed. We did not always succeed. There were some tense moments, some hurt feelings, some frustrations on all sides. Human weakness! There were even a couple of times I would not have objected if they had left early.

Well they left on schedule this morning and there was NO happy dance. Instead, when I was alone there were a few tears shed. There were strong feelings of separation and loneliness. There was no happy dance because in spite of differences and frustrations there is love. Love of family and God's love flowing through us.

So until next time we have some pictures, some fond memories of bocce ball on the wonderful hills of the church lawn, camping in Minnesota, swimming and canoeing at the lake, and playing with the kids.

And we can't wait for another opportunity to practice the attributes of love with each other!

Dave

Do Something

I thought I was done with this topic of doing hard things, sacrificing one's life, etc., but I guess it is still very much on my mind(a good thing I believe).  When I saw this plaque and the accompanying display at the Mall of America in Minneapolis I couldn't pass it up.  We never know when we will be confronted with the opportunity and obligation to do something.  

(Sorry the picture's not too great, but if you click it you should be able to at least read it)

Dave