2nd Chapter Of Acts Mansion Builder

Prescott Conference Announcements

 The announcements from the July 2022 Prescott conference have been posted on the Prescott church's site. I copied them and you can link to them from here if you want.

https://www.prescottpottershouse.com/_files/ugd/660e1c_455056c597f849298f532a46d1a5de07.pdf

A Rare Experience

 A regular thing happens to me while I am out riding my bike. People say hi to me. Ladies smile and wave. I will never see most of them ever again. Let a lady say hi to me and I'm good for the rest of the day.

Why is it only at church  where this interaction is so rare? 

Pastor Warner on Elder Needs

 My friend in Prescott told me that Pastor Warner's sermon at conference was very good and it spoke to us as aging saints. I found it and watched it this afternoon since I missed it live. It would be worth watching especially if you are over 60 years old and in a Fellowship church.

At the end of his sermon pastor Warner mentioned four things that we can focus on to help us navigate this season of our lives in Christ. I cannot expound on them like pastor did, so I will just list them and you can pray over it to see how the Lord will speak to you.

1. We need to stay excited. We need to still not only support but be enthusiastic in our support for the church's vision. Our part to play may change but our enthusiasm for it all need not diminish.

2. We need to dump the junk we are carrying around. Anyone who has lived very long will have hurts and disappointments and wrongs to deal with. Often we let those negative experiences linger in our minds which stops our spiritual and emotional growth. It's like Naomi who called herself bitter. Naomi got rid of her bitter attitude and so can we.

3. We need to fill our thoughts and our hearts with God's promises concerning our lives for this season of life. The Bible has promises for the elderly that can give us hope and faith and abundant life until life is actually over.

4. We need a healthy sense of self. Not what we do, but who we are. Your role may change, but you need a confidence that never changes. We are more than what we do. Our strength comes from our confidence in a God who never fails and the hope that God will finish what He started in us.

The balance between young and old is what will keep our church and our Fellowship on track as we power on into the future.

Lost things Restored

 Last night pastor Rubi ministered on the story of Elisha and the lost axe head. It was not dull, it worked fine. But it came lose and it was lost in the water. But God worked a miracle and the iron axe head floated to the surface and they were able to recover it. Conference this week involves an element of the miraculous where pastors who have lost the ability to be useful and effective are restored to what God in Christ has called them to be.

God seems to be interested in restoring lost things. Jesus told the story of lost things restored; a lost sheep, a lost coin, a lost son. Jesus declared his mission to seek and to save those who are lost. Pray that lost pastors and missionaries will be found this week in Prescott.

A lot of our young people who have grown up in the Fellowship attend conference in Prescott. My prayer is that they will find someone that will become their husband or wife. I tried this and it did not work for me. But these are young people and I pray that this week they will meet someone who they can learn to love. I was 18 years old when I got married in 1974. It's time for these young people to find out what they are missing.

It was funny to hear pastor Rubi warn of the danger of virtual church and then encourage us to tune in to watch the Prescott conference on TV. I get it. And he is absolutely correct in stating that virtual church is no substitute for meeting in person.

We watched pastor Greg from the Tucson conference in Sunday school. I miss pastor Greg's ministry. And I noticed the wisdom he has in dealing with people where they are and applying Biblical truth to real life situations. 

Being Considerate Of The Elderly

 One thing to point out on this most recent stream that I have been writing on. The Prescott church has brought on staff an assistant pastor whose primary function is ministering to the senior citizens in the Prescott church. They do not go on outreach. They pray but do not fast. They worship but they feel left out by modern music. But they are a valuable asset to the Prescott church and to the Fellowship at large.

There are saints in Prescott who felt the need to leave to be close to their children. I am one of those people. I am not the first and I will not be the last person who will be driven by loneliness to move from their home church to live near their grown children.

Please be considerate to the needs of us who have stayed faithful through the aging process even though we often feel that we do not matter anymore. Be considerate of the needs of those who used to be on the front lines and who now are bringing up the rear. We still have years to fill and we still love the Lord and His church. This church is not mine yet but with God's help it will be one day.

Growing Up Or Staying Childish

 "I write to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name's sake. I write to you, fathers, because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the wicked one." 1John2:12-13

In these verses I see three distinct groups of people. I see little children, young men, and fathers. And each group has a unique position and experience in Christ.

I have met people in Fellowship churches who seem to be stuck in the little children phase of their faith. These are older people who have been saved for a long time but who still talk and act like brand new converts. Everything is exciting to them. Everything is the best it has ever been to them. Everything seems brand new to them. I have wondered why, since I don't feel or act that way, what is wrong with me. Is it me or is it them who is off track?

I used to work in an office and I remember a young lady telling me about the old men at the club trying to act young and hip and trying to pick them up. The young lady was disgusted. I have seen adult men dressing and acting like teens and they look pathetic. I have seen this behavior at Prescott conference and in local churches.

I wonder if in church there are some people who never grew up in the faith and who don't know how to act as an adult with mature faith so they in desperation try to recapture an experience that once a long time ago worked for them. I see old men trying to disciple young unmarried boys and trying to be one of them. In our churches there is a definite youth focus since that is where revival happens and that is the pool of disciples who get sent out.

In the text it simply says that little children are forgiven. Nothing more. Fathers have a deep sense of understanding and knowledge and experience that makes their faith secure. They are not soon shaken by anything. Young men have strength and power with an outward focus. The secret to a long and satisfying faith is to grow in Christ and to rest in faith and to seek direction for the future looking forward, not looking backward. If you are stuck in spiritual diapers, ask the Lord to help you to grow.

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ..."2Peter3:18