Celbration of Freedom

As an Americans we enjoy our freedom. In one week the 4th of July we celebrate our independence and our freedom as Americans. Far too often we can take things for granted and do not realize all the sacrifices people have made so that freedom can be experienced by the many. I encourage you to enjoy this holiday but also to thank our founding fathers of America who made this all possible. Their vision and work set the foundation to make USA the greatest nation in the world. As a believer in Jesus Christ I experienced freedom from a life of sin and now I am headed to heaven. The freedom that I have is due to my founding Heavenly Father who sent His Son to come to earth and then die on a cross to take away my sins and the sins of the world. Let us not take for granted what was accomplished 2,000 years ago but let us celebrate the our freedom in true worship and service to the one who did what I could not do. Galatians 5:1 "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." I owe everything that I have to Jesus. May we be a people who understand the price of freedom and then be thankful people. May God shed His grace upon America and may God enlighten the eyes of our hearts that I will know how to live out my freedom in a manner that is pleasing to the Lord.

May God's blessings be upon your celebration of freedom both as an American and as a Christian.

Pastor John Backes

Church - God's Way

There was an interesting thing that happen at the Heritage Days parade on Saturday for me. A new church is going to open and it is called Rethink Church. I did not think of it much initially but then I started to think about what I was to rethink and that caused me to come to a simple conclusion. What I have think about is whether or not I am trying to do church life God's Way or am I going to try to do church using man's thoughts and methods. I am OK to rethink church life as long as I am going to put my energy in doing church life with God's strength and power along with doing what God wants us to be doing. Jesus said that He would build His church, Matthew 16:18. It is all about cooperating with God and being His servant by obeying and walking in His ways. This is not just to be a public statement to look good but we must be committed to the Lord Jesus in ways that we are working alongside Him when He is building His church. That is my desire and goal and trust that You will join with me in building His church in this community by working under the authority of Jesus as the Head of His church.
May the love of the Father, the grace of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit be with us.

Pastor John Backes

Our Heavenly Father

When the Lord taught the disciples on prayer He encouraged them to begin the prayer this way. "Our Father in heaven.." Matthew 6:9. This coming Sunday we celebrate Father's Day in which we honor our earthly fathers. Everyone has a father but unfortunately not everyone had a good earthly father and that makes days like this a little tough. Many though have had good fathers, not perfect fathers but fathers who loved and cared for their families. I encourage each person who has a father to honor them on Father's Day. Our Father in heaven is not only a good Father but He is a perfect Father. Many people struggle with that thought because they at times view how our Heavenly Father is through the eyes of our earthly father. God does not need me or anyone else to define Himself. He has revealed Himself through nature and through the words of the Bible. Everyone has seen God through His creation but the question is did everyone recognize God through nature. Open up your heart to see His beauty, majesty, creativity, provision, designs and etc. that speaks to the truth that there is a God and all this did not nor could have happen by mere chance. Receiving a revelation of who God is through the Bible comes when we open our Bible and actively seek to know Him through the stories, history and teachings of the Bible. Whether it is through nature or through the Bible our Heavenly Father can be known but I must be willing to listen and to change any thought that is not consistent to the revelation that God is giving to us. Our Heavenly Father is full of compassion and slow to anger, He is all loving and faithful to all His promise and He cannot change. I could say much more on who our Heavenly Father is through His character and essence but you will learn more when you begin to seek Him through your own search to know God and His ways.
I encourage you this Sunday to not only honor your earthly father but to spend some time to honor the King of Kings and Lord of Lords for He is the best Father ever and He is so willing to help us that it grieves His heart when we will not allow Him to help us. To my Father in Heaven I honor You today and on this Sunday may I honor You above all else for You deserve it. May our Father in Heaven bless you.

Pastor John

Filled with the Holy Spirit

Sunday is Pentecost Sunday. This is when the church world celebrates the first time that the followers of Jesus Christ were filled with the Holy Spirit. Jude 20 encourages us to pray in the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 5:17 encourages us to be filled with Holy Spirit, the apostle Paul in I Corinthians 14:1 encourages us to seek the gifts of the Holy Spirit and Jesus took the disciples that they needed the Holy Spirit to be His witnesses. What has changed from the 1st century to today? We still have great needs and the lack of personal ability to solve our own problems just like the those in the 1st century. May we take heed to the scriptures that encourages us to foster an intimacy with God through the power of the Holy Spirit and may we learn to accept by faith what God has said rather then trying to figure it out in our minds. God is the author and the finisher of our faith which means He sets the guidelines on how our faith in Him is work. He promised to send the Holy Spirit to all His disciples because we need the Holy Spirit to comfort, to teach, to empower, to help us discern, to give us peace, to give understanding and many other things. We need Him, therefore throughout this week ask Jesus to fill you afresh with the Holy Spirit.

Pastor John

Filled with the Holy