I know that we are told constantly that we are not supposed to be a one issue voter, but when one issue for me is of such moral importance that I cannot ignore it. I vote consistently pro-life, and here is a link to a letter by a Catholic Cardinal that give a good explanation of what I believe it is of such importance.
http://www.cny.org/archive/eg/eg102308.htm
Friday, October 24, 2008
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
New EFCA statement of faith
Dear brothers and sisters,
I wanted to make you aware of a change that has happened in our denomination. The Evangelical Free Church of America was formed in 1950, and since that time has centered around a 12 point statement of faith that has helped define what we believe are essential biblical doctrines. Over the last few year the denomination has been reviewing and seeking to revise those statements so as to deal with new issues in the world that have arise since the original document, and to address areas that may not have been as clear in the original.
This summer the national conference has adopted a new statement of faith. It can be found here http://www.efca.org/about/doctrine/ along with a link to the old statement of faith. In reading both you will see that no major changes in doctrine have been made. The main differences are in updating language and adding a section about our responsibilities as Christians. The EFCA has a history of majoring on the major doctrines and not getting hung up on minor doctrines. One way of saying this is, "In essentials unity, in non-essentials charity, and in all things Jesus Christ."
As we at Harvest seek to review and affirm our constitution we should plan to review this new statement to make sure we can affirm it. I personally think the revisions are very helpful and the process to make them has been scholarly, prayerful, and thoughtful. If you have any questions about it, please feel free to email me about it.
Pastor Mike
Harvest Community Church, Litchfield, MN
Always live in confident dependency on your God. Hosea 12:6
I wanted to make you aware of a change that has happened in our denomination. The Evangelical Free Church of America was formed in 1950, and since that time has centered around a 12 point statement of faith that has helped define what we believe are essential biblical doctrines. Over the last few year the denomination has been reviewing and seeking to revise those statements so as to deal with new issues in the world that have arise since the original document, and to address areas that may not have been as clear in the original.
This summer the national conference has adopted a new statement of faith. It can be found here http://www.efca.org/about/doctrine/ along with a link to the old statement of faith. In reading both you will see that no major changes in doctrine have been made. The main differences are in updating language and adding a section about our responsibilities as Christians. The EFCA has a history of majoring on the major doctrines and not getting hung up on minor doctrines. One way of saying this is, "In essentials unity, in non-essentials charity, and in all things Jesus Christ."
As we at Harvest seek to review and affirm our constitution we should plan to review this new statement to make sure we can affirm it. I personally think the revisions are very helpful and the process to make them has been scholarly, prayerful, and thoughtful. If you have any questions about it, please feel free to email me about it.
Pastor Mike
Harvest Community Church, Litchfield, MN
Always live in confident dependency on your God. Hosea 12:6
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Reflections on Exodus 33
Here is an old leadership reflection of mine from February 2005, just after moving to Litchfield. It still seemed very helpful, so I thought I would share it here.
The other day I was reading through Exodus 33, and I was struck by Moses’ statements and requests to God in verses 12-23. Here he is in the midst of being commissioned to lead several million people to the promised land, and he knows that without God’s help this will be an impossible task. Therefore, he asks God for some specific things, and I felt they applied to our situations as well.
First, he asks to understand God’s will for him and for the people in verses 12 & 13. God responses by saying don’t worry I will go with you. God seems to be saying that you don’t have to worry about all the details in the future, because I will be with you each step of the way to show you what comes next. God had already given them a broad picture of the future, now he wants them to stay close enough to him that they have to rely on him for the details.
Second, Moses then asks for God to go with them personally. Moses says that they will not move until they know God is with them and that they are his special people. The LORD replies that he will answer Moses prayer to be with them because he loves Moses and considers him his friend.
Finally, Moses asks God to show him his glory. God says, that he can only show him part of his glory because otherwise Moses would die. I also found it interesting that part of God’s glory is his goodness, which in part means his kindness and mercy. In asking God to show him his glory, Moses was asking God to reveal His nature to him.
Here are some thought that might apply to us in this scripture. We need to make call out to God for direction and vision, but remember that the best way to know his direction is to have him walking with us. Therefore, we need to make sure that we are seeking his presence in our lives personally and corporately. He does love us and if we seek his presence he will go with us and guide us.
Finally, when we seek him we should seek his glory. When we see God we will be transformed into his likeness, and furthermore the problems of this world will seem like nothing compared to his goodness.
The starting point any church is to seek the Lord. I encourage you to daily seek him, even if it is just a few minutes. Let’s commit together not to move unless we know his presence is with us.
I hope these thoughts have been helpful.
Your brother and friend,
Pastor Mike Sechler
Matt 6:33-34
33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well
The other day I was reading through Exodus 33, and I was struck by Moses’ statements and requests to God in verses 12-23. Here he is in the midst of being commissioned to lead several million people to the promised land, and he knows that without God’s help this will be an impossible task. Therefore, he asks God for some specific things, and I felt they applied to our situations as well.
First, he asks to understand God’s will for him and for the people in verses 12 & 13. God responses by saying don’t worry I will go with you. God seems to be saying that you don’t have to worry about all the details in the future, because I will be with you each step of the way to show you what comes next. God had already given them a broad picture of the future, now he wants them to stay close enough to him that they have to rely on him for the details.
Second, Moses then asks for God to go with them personally. Moses says that they will not move until they know God is with them and that they are his special people. The LORD replies that he will answer Moses prayer to be with them because he loves Moses and considers him his friend.
Finally, Moses asks God to show him his glory. God says, that he can only show him part of his glory because otherwise Moses would die. I also found it interesting that part of God’s glory is his goodness, which in part means his kindness and mercy. In asking God to show him his glory, Moses was asking God to reveal His nature to him.
Here are some thought that might apply to us in this scripture. We need to make call out to God for direction and vision, but remember that the best way to know his direction is to have him walking with us. Therefore, we need to make sure that we are seeking his presence in our lives personally and corporately. He does love us and if we seek his presence he will go with us and guide us.
Finally, when we seek him we should seek his glory. When we see God we will be transformed into his likeness, and furthermore the problems of this world will seem like nothing compared to his goodness.
The starting point any church is to seek the Lord. I encourage you to daily seek him, even if it is just a few minutes. Let’s commit together not to move unless we know his presence is with us.
I hope these thoughts have been helpful.
Your brother and friend,
Pastor Mike Sechler
Matt 6:33-34
33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Intentional - On purpose - Deliberate
Anyone who has attended Harvest for any length of time will tell you that one of my favorite words is "intentional." I like this word because it helps me think about the answer to the question why?
C.S. Lewis wrote that every ships' captain has to answer three questions. How to stay afloat? How to keep from hitting other boats and obstacles? Why I am out here?
I believe that much our lives is spent answering the first two questions, and we only occasionally think about why we are out here in the first place. If you do not know where you are going, it does not follow that go nowhere, but that you go someplace you don't want to be.
At some point in our lives we need to ask why we are here. We also need to ask "why am I doing this?" about all the areas of our lives. I believe that if we did this more frequently that staying afloat and not running into others would be a lot easier if someone is steering the boat.
Of course, as a Christian I believe that ultimately our direction and purpose need to be set by God, but He gives us such great freedom that we still need to answer some of the specific questions for ourselves.
Now I don't believe that we should constantly be questioning everything, and I know that we all need some unplanned space in our lives. On the other hand, if someone asks me the question why are you doing that or why do you believe that, I want to have at least thought about it. Even unplanned fun time can have the good purpose of enjoying the life that God has given us.
So my question for you is -- Why?
C.S. Lewis wrote that every ships' captain has to answer three questions. How to stay afloat? How to keep from hitting other boats and obstacles? Why I am out here?
I believe that much our lives is spent answering the first two questions, and we only occasionally think about why we are out here in the first place. If you do not know where you are going, it does not follow that go nowhere, but that you go someplace you don't want to be.
At some point in our lives we need to ask why we are here. We also need to ask "why am I doing this?" about all the areas of our lives. I believe that if we did this more frequently that staying afloat and not running into others would be a lot easier if someone is steering the boat.
Of course, as a Christian I believe that ultimately our direction and purpose need to be set by God, but He gives us such great freedom that we still need to answer some of the specific questions for ourselves.
Now I don't believe that we should constantly be questioning everything, and I know that we all need some unplanned space in our lives. On the other hand, if someone asks me the question why are you doing that or why do you believe that, I want to have at least thought about it. Even unplanned fun time can have the good purpose of enjoying the life that God has given us.
So my question for you is -- Why?
Friday, July 20, 2007
The perfect church
An article I have read recently and a conversation with a friend has made me reflect on the idea of the perfect church. The author of the article detailed how she had seen people (particularly leaders) fail to live up to Biblical standards. Often this affected her and the whole church.
I too have had to face the fact that my church is not perfect. I sometime despair because I do not like conflict, and I do not like to deal with other people's conflict. Unfortunately, the members and attenders of my church are not perfect yet (including me), so we run into each other and that hurts.
So what can I do? Is there a perfect church out there waiting to be found where I don't have to deal with all the imperfections of people around me? If there was then it would become imperfect the moment I joined it. So again I am left with the question what are we to do?
Well the answer from the woman who wrote the article was essentially that we need to see that God is still God, and He still uses His church in spite of the imperfections. My strength needs to come from God, and because of this I can learn to trust and forgive people even though they are not perfect. Furthermore, because I do not have to build myself up, I am learning that I can be vulnerable enough to confess my own sins (where appropriate), because I know that my value does not come from my own behavior, but from a God who loves me.
This leads me to the conclusion that instead of trying to find the perfect church, we need to examine where God calls us be content in Him. When counseling people who are dating or looking for a mate, I tell them to stop looking for the perfect person, and instead concentrate on their own character. The perfect church does not exist, and even if you love your church, if you stay long enough and look deep enough you will see its flaws.
The question is not, "Is this church perfect?" but rather "Has God called me an imperfect person to this church to grow closer to Him with these other imperfect people?"
I too have had to face the fact that my church is not perfect. I sometime despair because I do not like conflict, and I do not like to deal with other people's conflict. Unfortunately, the members and attenders of my church are not perfect yet (including me), so we run into each other and that hurts.
So what can I do? Is there a perfect church out there waiting to be found where I don't have to deal with all the imperfections of people around me? If there was then it would become imperfect the moment I joined it. So again I am left with the question what are we to do?
Well the answer from the woman who wrote the article was essentially that we need to see that God is still God, and He still uses His church in spite of the imperfections. My strength needs to come from God, and because of this I can learn to trust and forgive people even though they are not perfect. Furthermore, because I do not have to build myself up, I am learning that I can be vulnerable enough to confess my own sins (where appropriate), because I know that my value does not come from my own behavior, but from a God who loves me.
This leads me to the conclusion that instead of trying to find the perfect church, we need to examine where God calls us be content in Him. When counseling people who are dating or looking for a mate, I tell them to stop looking for the perfect person, and instead concentrate on their own character. The perfect church does not exist, and even if you love your church, if you stay long enough and look deep enough you will see its flaws.
The question is not, "Is this church perfect?" but rather "Has God called me an imperfect person to this church to grow closer to Him with these other imperfect people?"
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Originial Purpose Statement
I am setting up this blog for the purpose having a place to share what the Lord has been teaching me. Many of these thoughts will also be shared in church or with people in my church, but I am putting them down here so I will be able to review them later. Of course this is all in preparation for writing a book that will of course redefine modern church and sell millions of copies :).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)