Job's Friends

Where then did Job's three friends go wrong? They reduced all evil to "retributive suffering," which is caused by sin and disobedience to God. But there are seven other types of suffering mentioned in the Bible...

Have you ever asked yourself, "If I'm following God's way, why am I going through these tough times? Doesn't the Bible say we'll be rewarded for doing right?" Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. has written an excellent article about the book of Job that tackles these tough questions:

Reductionist Justice - Where Job's friends went wrong about suffering

For Parents

Do you have kids that you expect may go to college one day? Here's a very interesting and encouraging article for you: Why College Doesn't Turn Kids Secular

Uh, is that a lock I see on that gate?

What's "next" in church these days?

Attenders looking for the “next” must realize that a church, no matter how innovative, is not the provider of spiritual formation. Individuals must dig deep into the core disciplines of the faith which have been with us for centuries and own their own spiritual development through prayer and study, fasting and retreats, worship and solitude.

This quote comes from a thought provoking article called "The Next, Next Church" by James Emery White. I think it has some good application to our church and to each individual follower of Christ. Check it out!

Anagrams!

Did you know that if you mix up the letters in Dewey Bertolini's name you get "one weirdly bite"? Or "Noble wire deity"?

Of course, Rebecca's name can be rearranged to "Electric Iron Babe", but is that a surprise to anyone?

You can plug in your own name (or any other words) at the Internet Anagram Server (from wordsmith.org)!

Repent!

Repentance is the doorway to heaven and there is no other entrance. That’s a bold statement to make — yet I believe it is entirely biblical. If we fail to preach repentance, we are leaving out a vital part of the gospel message. Our failure in this regard has produced an anemic gospel, stripped of its power to change human lives.

This quote comes from a terrific article by Ray Pritchard entitled "Repent! The Forgotten Doctrine of Salvation", and I encourage you to read it by clicking here.

Day Camp, Days Two and Three

New Hope's first ever Summer Day Camp for children is all finished, and it was a blast!

On Day Two, Wednesday, we all went down to Rogers Landing on the Willamette River (Newberg) and spent the day on the river shore swimming, playing in the sand, water skiing/tubing, hearing a Bible lesson and singing some fun songs. The weather was spectacular, and it looked like everyone had an awesome time. Rick Myers was nice enough to handle the boating duties again, and God answered our prayers in giving us a safe trip on the road and on the water. Of course, there were a few sun burns...

Day Three, Thursday, we transported about 40 bicycles along with all the kids and adults to Champoeg State Park for the day. We spent time biking, hiking, frisbee-ing, singing and hearing more stories from God's Word. The kids also completed three different crafts and played some group games together. It was great!

Ashley and Rebecca did a terrific job organizing the whole three-day event. As a new church we don't have any facilities or buses, which makes it a challenge to put on a big children's program! But the week was great. Molly and I had three girls from our neighborhood come along with us, and they really enjoyed themselves! As I talked to their moms yesterday they commented that it all sounded very fun, and they and I decided that next year we want an Adult Day Camp for all of us grown-ups to go on! One of the moms told me they'd be coming to church sometime soon, so I look forward to having them visit on a Sunday.

Thanks Ashley and Rebecca for all your hard work, and thanks to the many other volunteers who came along to help. May God bless our ministry to children at New Hope Christian Fellowship!

[I'm sorry I don't have pictures right now. I'm afraid my digital camera disappeared in Maine last week, so I need to round up photos from other adults who came along. I'll try to get them here soon, so keep checking back.]