Ideas for the New Year!

It seems everyone tries to do "cutbacks" in January. We cutback on our food intake, we cut back on our spending, we set goals and, a lot of those goals will involve some sort of cutback. Let me encourage you this year to actually increase! Sanctification is an ongoing process by God’s grace in our lives. While God’s grace is at work, there must be spiritual discipline in our lives to see great strides. I want to just challenge you to "gorge out" in three key areas of your spiritual walk this year:

First, read more good books than you have ever read before. Here is a list of suggestions to help you get started: http://www.holding2truth.blogspot.com/2012/11/final-blog-of-2012-great-resources-for.html  Too many times we set goals for every area of our lives, except our spiritual life: Our spiritual walk should be preeminent and can not be neglected! If you have had trouble in the past with consistency in this area, let me encourage you to begin your year by using the "Amazon search" link and type in Ordering Your Private World - it will take you to the book you need to start first. Between this blog and our book table at Trinity, there are numerous resources to enhance your walk for 2013.

Secondly, I would encourage you to give a greater percentage financially than you have ever given. Some have taken new jobs, some have taken cuts and others have gotten promotions. Regardless of where you are, you can make a commitment to give more to kingdom work than you have ever given from a percentage standpoint. I have said before that if you believe you have grown spiritually but this growth has not made an impact on how you give and how you spend…you need to check your idea of what growth looks like. Spiritual growth will impact every area of my life, especially those areas that demonstrate trust and that my security is in Christ, such as our finances.

Lastly, I would encourage you to disciple more. If you can not think of anyone that you are presently pouring your life and spiritual knowledge into, then you are not carrying out our King’s commands. We are called to be disciple makers and that means I have to give my time to others. This takes dedication and energy from all involved, but this is something every one of us can do. You can walk through a book with another person, you can take a couple who has not been saved long, or even been married as long as you, and help them grow in a biblical understanding of marriage. You can do this by investing in ministries here at Trinity, but this should be going on individually and privately as well.  Let’s use 2013 for His glory like no other year before!

Final Blog of 2012 - Great Resources for Your Holidays

One of the dumbest statements ever said to me was that someone could "read themselves stupid." The greatest minds in the world read with passion and fervor. Usually people say things like the aforementioned quote when a book points to something they don't like or that is contrary to what they have experienced in the past. C.S. Lewis said "we read to know we are not alone." Books are our friends and sadly, most believers struggle in the area of reading - especially men. 

I have been asked MULTIPLE times if I could create a book list for those believers in our fellowship. We have a "Pastor's Picks" table at Trinity on which all the books have been "screened" by our staff. Today, I am creating a digital version of this book table with some help from Amazon. I decided to add this one final blog for the year, given that many of you might consider these books to read over your vacations or to give as holiday gifts. This new "Pastor's Picks eStore" is a link to Amazon where you can purchase the books online. Again, most all of these books are also available on our book table at the church and even in our church library. There is one other resource offered that many of you may not have heard of previously; the Clearplay DVD player/filter.  Our family found Clearplay over two years ago and it is a wonderful way to watch movies/dvds without worrying about negative content.  

Hope this site gives you some great reading for the holidays and for some of you, starts you on a journey full of passion for reading GREAT books! 
   
I also want to close with a reminder of upcoming events and schedule for the holidays.  Please mark these dates down and make the most of them with your family.

November 25: No Evening Service

December 2: An Evening In December. Please come this evening and celebrate our Savior as our choir will lead us in worship with a special presentation to celebrate the birth of Christ.

December 16: Sunday evening we will be celebrating “Happy Birthday Jesus.” This is a time that our entire church will bring a gift to celebrate the birth of Christ. We lay an additional offering at the altar (please involve your children in this by making cards and putting this offering in it) as we want our children to see our entire church celebrate His birth through giving.  There will be a special time of  fellowship afterwards.

December 23 and 30: No evening service.

January 6: In our evening worship we will begin a series entitled “Wise Counsel;” this will be one of the most important series we will walk through as a church body.  This series and will enhance your personal discipleship along with your ability to disciple others as we open the Word and dig into truth, allowing it to change who we are in our circumstances, instead of trying to use the Word to change our circumstances or rationalize our circumstances. Start your year off by being faithful all day on Sunday! 

February 10-13: Revival with Bro. Rick Coram. Bro. Rick has been with us before and was greatly used of God; I cannot wait to see what God does in the life of Trinity during this time.

I love you and hope that you have a Merry Christmas and outstanding New Year. I will resume blogging on January 8^th.