If you’re interested in going on our summer missions trip, please download this form and get it back to Ben. Trip dates are July 30-August 6, 2011. Let us know if you have any questions!
I’m teaching a series on Tuesday nights based on “War of Words” by Paul Tripp, and last night we talked about Jesus’ statement in Luke 6:46, “Out of the overflow of his heart the mouth speaks.”
In the same way that fruit comes from a tree, every thought, word, and action comes from the heart. Bad fruit (or sinful words) prove that we have a heart problem.
In James 4:1, we learn that our fights come from the “desires that battle within.” This is a heart problem. We have conflicting desires, and we are double-minded, as James puts it again in verse 8.
In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus responds to the Pharisee’s question by telling him that all the scriptures can be summed up with two simple commands:
- Love God
- Love People
If we love God with all of our heart, we will love our neighbor as we should. If we are not loving our neighbor, if the fruit is bad, what’s wrong? Our love for God is deficient. An idol has taken God’s place in our heart.
I think David understood this. He knew he was double-minded, he knew he had conflicting desires, so he prayed, “Give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name” (Psalm 86:11b). I encourage you to make this your prayer! May I love the Lord with all my heart, and not commit spiritual adultery by loving an idol instead.
Read Psalm 139 this week, and pay special attention to verses 23-24. Ask God to examine your heart, and show you what you need to repent of. Take note of your words this week, and remember the promise of 1 John 1:9, that “if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
Wednesday
Read Proverbs 2:12, 2:16, 6:2-3, 6:16-19
Thursday
Read Proverbs 7:21, 10:19, 12:6, 12:17-19
Friday
Read Proverbs 16:28, 17:4, 17:7, 17:14, 17:19
Saturday
Read Proverbs 18:2, 18:8, 18:21, 19:28-29
Sunday
Read Proverbs 21:9, 22:10, 25:9-10, 26:20-21, 27:15-16
Monday
Read Proverbs 28:23, 29:5, 29:8, 29:20
80′s Night was a lot of fun this last Friday. 80′s costumes, Petra, cassette towers, air guitar… it was an eerie reminder of a decade gone by. On Tuesday nights we finished our series on justice, and last week we began a new series based on Paul Tripp’s book “War of Words.” We highly recommend reading it!
Here’s a few things to add to your calendar:
Saturday, March 26 – Senior Outreach
We will be visiting the senior residents of Westminister at Lake Ridge for an afternoon of outreach ministry. Remember to dress neat, be friendly, ask the residents questions about their past, and share the love of Christ! We will be leaving OBC at 1:30pm, and we should be back around 4pm. Bring a few $ for Dairy Queen on the way home! Sign-up tonight, and ask Alicia if you have any questions.
Saturday, April 9 – Care-Net’s Annual Walk-for-Life
Come walk with us to support Care-Net’s ministry and stand for life! Registration is at 8:30am, and the walk begins at 9am. If you’re able to, get sponsors to fill out a pledge form and turn it in on the day of the walk. Call Care-Net if you have any questions at (703) 330-4572.
This last week was busy! On Tuesday night, Rolland shared with parents on training their children in discernment, which is done through example and God’s Word (Hebrews 5:11-14, Proverbs 2, and 2 Timothy 3:10-17). While tools for internet/media safety are important, they are no replacement when it comes to fear of the Lord. There’s a world of difference when it comes to external controls on behavior, versus God’s Word transforming the heart to desire righteousness. Recommended resources: Focus on the Family, and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
We had 51 in attendan
ce at this year’s youth retreat! We returned to Greenwood Hills Bible Conference up in Pennsylvania (up near Gettysburg). We studied the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) over the weekend, and learned a lot about how (and why) we should pray. You can see retreat pictures on facebook, and I highly recommend reading “The Lord’s Prayer” by Ezekiel Hopkins. You should be able to find a full-text version for free on Google Books.
Tonight we’re hosting a guest speaker from the International Justice Mission! We’re excited to hear about IJM’s ministry, and how we can partner with them in what they do around the world.
Register for the Retreat Now!
Posted: January 4, 2011 in UncategorizedOur 2011 Winter Retreat is approaching fast! We will be returning to Greenwood Hills this February (18-20). This year will be a great weekend of reflecting on the Lord’s Prayer, with lots of fellowship and ridiculous games thrown in. Two nights, five meals, $110. Scholarships are also available.
Download the form and register now!
My wife Ricki and I spent Christmas with her family in Hudson, New York, and our return trip will be a little delayed as road conditions have us snowbound. Over the last 24 hours, a snowstorm has blanketed the Northeast with snow, and six states have declared a state of emergency.
Even though snow disrupts our schedules (and our nation), I have always enjoyed watching the outside world’s transformation as the ground is covered with freshly fallen snow. What a beautiful seasonal reminder of God’s grace! The prophet Isaiah wrote, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow.”
When we come to the Lord in confession and repentance, we have the promise that our sins will be forgiven, and we will be cleansed from our unrighteousness. As Eustace in “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” is incapable of undragoning himself, we are incapable of cleansing ourselves or making atonement for our sins. But in the incarnation, the Word become flesh, we have a Savior, Jesus Christ, who took our sin upon Himself, giving us the incredible gift of His righteousness.
This winter, let the snow remind you of God’s amazing grace towards us, that God makes our sins as white as snow, and that He indeed does make all things new!
Isaiah 1:18, 1 John 1:9, 2 Corinthians 5:17
This last Tuesday night, we talked about “Joy to the World,” one of our oldest and most popular Christmas hymns. First published in 1719, this beloved hymn was written by Isaac Watts. Interestingly enough, this song was not intended to be a Christmas song, but a song about the Messiah’s glorious return! If you pay attention to the lyrics, you will notice that they are not about a baby in a manger, but that they are based on Psalm 98.
This song was first published in a collection of hymns w
ith a lengthy title typical of its time – “The Psalms of David, Imitated in the Language of the New Testament, and Applied to the Christian State and Worship.”
If you look up this volume (I found an edition from 1801 on Google Books), you may also be surprised to find that we only sing the second half of the hymn. The first part of the hymn is “Praise for the Gospel,” and the second “The Messiah’s coming and kingdom.” If you have a hard time reading it, you will soon notice that in older forms of English f = s.
I want to encourage you, as Isaac Watts wrote, as you think and meditate on the first coming of our Savior this advent season, to also be reminded and encouraged by the promise of our Lord’s second coming, when all creation will rejoice, the rivers clap their hands, and the mountains sing. May your Christmas this year be full of rejoicing because of our Savior!
It’s hard to believe we’ve already made it to the last month of the year! Here’s what we have coming up…
Christmas Party 
Our annual Christmas party will be held at the Brown’s home this Friday night (7-10pm). Guys, bring a dessert, and girls, please bring an appetizer. And bundle up for Christmas caroling! We’ll also be having a “white elephant” gift exchange. Remember, nothing too expensive (used is okay, but not trash). Have fun with what you bring, but remember to keep your gifts anonymous (don’t put your name on it!).
Christmas Decorating
Come help decorate the church this Saturday (December 4th) at 9am. We’ll be decorating upstairs, downstairs, everywhere! We’ll have coffee and pastries for early birds.
Senior Outreach
Minister to lonely and disadvantaged seniors this next Wednesday (December 8th), from 2-7pm! Come wrap gifts for lonely and forgotten seniors in Prince William County at the Prince William Realtor Association building (4545 Daisy Reid Avenue, Woodbridge, VA 22192). You don’t have to bring gifts to come wrap. If you would like to bring gifts, go to “Be a Santa to a Senior” for guidelines. For more info, contact Kendra Kielbasa (703.530.1360). Don’t worry if you can’t come for the whole time, just drop by when you’re free. Hope to see you there!
On Saturday, November 20th, at 7pm, our youth ministry is hosting our first ever Talent Showcase & Coffeehouse! Please invite your friends and come for a night of coffee, dessert, and entertainment. There will be singing, instrumental performances, Irish step dance, breakdancing, and more!
This event is also a blanket drive for the homeless of Prince William County. If you would like to help the needy stay warm this winter, please bring new or gently used blankets. If you can’t come on the 20th, please drop the blankets off at the church during normal office hours.
“If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:17-18).
Worship
Posted: November 4, 2010 in UncategorizedThis Sunday we’re talking about worship in our class on spiritual disciplines. The following is a powerful prayer and meditation on worship excerpted from “The Valley of Vision,” a collection of Puritan prayers.
Glorious God,
It is the flame of my life to worship thee,
the crown and glory of my soul to adore thee,
heavenly pleasure to approach thee.
Give me power by thy Spirit to help me worship now,
that I may forget the world,
be brought into fullness of life,
be refreshed, comforted, blessed.
Give me knowledge of thy goodness
that I might not be over-awed by thy greatness;
Give me Jesus, Son of Man, Son of God,
that I might not be terrified,
but be drawn near with filial love,
with holy boldness;
He is my Mediator, Brother, Interpreter,
Branch, Daysman, Lamb;
Him I glorify,
in Him I am set on high.
Crowns to give I have none,
but what thou hast given I return,
content to feel that everything is mine when it is thine,
and the more fully mine when I have yielded it to thee.
Let me live wholly to my Saviour,
free from distractions,
from carking care,
from hindrances to the pursuit of the narrow way.
I am pardoned through the blood of Jesus –
give me a new sense of it,
continue to pardon me by it,
may I come every day to the fountain,
and every day be washed anew,
that I may worship thee always in spirit and truth.
“I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread” (Job 23:12). Do we value God’s Word like Job?
We need to eat food each day, or we’ll starve. We need water to drink, or we die of dehydration. We need air to breathe, or we suffocate. What is the condition of our souls? Are we feeding ourselves on the Word of God? When Jesus was hungry, Satan tempted him to turn stones into bread. “It is written: Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God,” Jesus replied (Matthew 4:4).
Read your Bibles!
This Saturday, October 9th, is Festifall!
Come to OBC from 12noon-4pm for our annual autumn festival and community outreach!
Come enjoy games, food, live music, entertainment, children’s activities, a cake walk, moon bounce, face painting, and more!
Also, coming up on Saturday, October 23rd, we will be going to Belvedere Plantation in Fredericksburg! The night will include a hayride, cornmaze, bonfire, hot dogs/s’mores, and more! We’ll meet at OBC and drive down together.
To see more about Belvedere, go to www.belvedereplantation.com, and talk to Louis Mingo for more details.
In Jeremiah 22:11-17, God speaks through the prophet Jeremiah to predict that king Shallum will die in exile. Even though Shallum was the son of Josiah, he had failed to follow his father’s example of ruling justly.
Jeremiah 22:16 speaks of Josiah – “He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me? declares YHWH.”
Do you defend the cause of the poor and the needy? According to this verse, this is what it means to know our Father. Our care for the poor and needy are indicators of our relationship with God. Do we truly know Him? Do we care deeply about justice as He does?
