I had a lot of good feedback from yesterday’s service.  It seems that you guys like getting things thrown at you.  Next week I will talk about the stoning of Steven.  Ok, probably not.

I saw on Facebook that someone posted about yesterday’s sermon “Interesting service today… Welcomed 14 new members, had corn thrown at us, heard about Bonsai trees and even a mention of Mr. T.”

This morning my staff couldn’t even remember the title of my message! I hope you got more out of it than they did.  For those of you that weren’t here yesterday I spoke out of Matthew 13 and the parable of the sower.  I spoke on what we have to do in order to have a Harvest of Righteousness, which was the title they couldn’t remember.

We have to make sure the ground is good if there will be a harvest.  Basically it is two things.  The first is to make sure we remove the rocks so we can put down good roots.  This is the process of discipleship.  We also have to remove the weeds.  A weed is something that seems to be important to us at the time but takes away from our walk with God.  If we will make God and the things of God (e.g. church, devotional time, accountability) a priority in our lives we will know how to distinguish the weeds from the wheat!

If you missed service and want to hear the message, watch for it to be uploaded to messages page. If you would like to share your thoughts or comments with me concerning service, you can email me HERE.

God Bless-

Someone asked me the question after Sunday morning’s service, “How do I know I’m on the right path?”  That morning we talked about letting God lead and making sure that we are truly a follower and not just a hitchhiker who is along for the ride as long as we are going the same way.

For a minute I felt stumped.  How do we know we are on the path that God has planned for us?  How do I know I’m not making my own plans and pretending to follow God’s leading?  Surprisingly enough, the answer came from the same person that asked the question.  They recalled the two main points from service: we follow in submission and we follow in sacrifice.

If you are concerned about your path, whether it is God leading you or you trying to lead God, simply remember these two things: submission and sacrifice.  In your prayer time reaffirm that God is in control.  Submit your life to His leadership again.  And be ready to sacrifice.  God may point out things in your life that need to go, or things that are not that need to be added.  If you are in submission to God, you will make the sacrifice.  If you find it hard to follow in sacrifice, then you may need to repeat step one!

God will call us all to sacrifice in our lives- our time, our talents, our money, and all for the sake of the kingdom.  But remember what Abraham said from the mountain when he was standing where God wanted him to stand, “YHWH Yireh” or “God will provide.”

When we are walking the path God has planned for us, our sacrifices feel more like worship.  We realize that we give of ourselves because God has given so much of Himself to us.

I want to challenge you to read the story of Abraham as he followed God in complete obedience during the most difficult test he ever faced.  You can find the story in Genesis 22:1-14.  If you missed service, watch for the message to be uploaded to www.vaog.net soon.

Blessings,

Pastor Ryan

2011 was a great year.  God taught us some much needed lessons on forgiveness and He brought us together in closer unity.  Looking back, I am grateful  for what  He has done.

I don’t just want to look back.  I want to look ahead.  This is a new year and I expect new things from God in 2012.  We hit the ground running at the start of the year.  We have had some great services so far and I look forward to pressing in a little more closely this year.  We have just started a 21 day fast.  We will have a week of prayer emphasis starting January 22^nd and we will host services of spiritual renewal on January 29^ththrough February 1^st.  I believe we will experience a spiritual growth spurt the first month of this year.

Truthfully, this is all unproductive if we approach this with the attitude of consumerism.  We are not fasting, praying and worshipping just to feed our own spiritual cravings.  We are using these disciplines to help us seek the face of God.  God has a plan and a purpose for your life and for this church that is about so much more than filling our personal spiritual hunger.  God desires to prepare us to be the church, person by person, that He longs for us to be.   During this time of spiritual renewal, I want to find His direction for what comes next.  I want Him to challenge us to go out like never before.  I want to learn how to live with the Kingdom of God in mind.

I hope you  are spiritually hungry and I hope during this month that God would fill you, but I don’t want it to end there.  I want this month to begin a year of renewed purpose in me as I hear His voice lead me back out into the harvest fields.  I hope you will join me.

Looking Forward,

Pastor Ryan