Women on Mission is a ministry to serve the women of Central Baptist and to build up the Church toward the goal of the Great Commission. Women gather for prayer, devotions, and mutual encouragement. The ministry focuses on how women better serve their homes and the Church at large.
Central Baptist Church is a multi-cultural congregation so the gatherings provide the women the opportunity to broaden their cultural horizons. This is critical as we learn to make the Gospel of Jesus Christ understandable to our neighbors because we often do not account for how much our own culture colors our perceptions of what is normal for the Christian Church.
Wives and mothers draw upon the lessons and encouragement of these monthly events, which enables them to better train their children, serve their household, and love their neighbors as the Gospel of Jesus Christ has equipped them for every good work.
2009 January notes
How many of you like gardening? I have a small veranda garden with a few flowers and herbs that I use in cooking.
In Eph. 3:14,15 we are reminded that God is the Creator of all…He’s the Master Gardener.
We are plants…planted into Christ when by faith we repent of our sins and believe in Christ as
our Saviour. (3:17)
From that time the growth phase begins and continues throughout our lives. We need to put roots deeper and deeper into the love of Christ. (3:17)
How do we do that???
For children to grow good food, exercise and rest are needed. We all need those three things to be healthy physically. Christians also need those three things to grow in faith.
1.FOOD
Our food is the Word of God. Just as the body needs food daily, the spirit needs the nourishment gained from reading, memorizing and meditating on the Word every day. Start and end the day with God’s Word.
*Regular devotions lead to spiritual growth. The roots go down deep and anchor us in Christ. Those roots help us withstand the contrary winds of temptation and wrong teaching.
*As we read the Word we come to know the Lord better and to understand how great His love is. (3:19)
*Only when the roots go deep will we have a full and power-filled Christian life. (3:19)
2. EXERCISE
Our “old nature”, inherited from Adam at birth, is constantly at war with the “new nature” which we received when we were saved. The choice as to which is in charge is ours to make! As Christians we need to do some basic exercises.
* Resisting temptation is a battle:
- It might mean changing the TV channel when language is offensive or pictures are inappropriate.
- It will mean avoiding gossiping on the phone…saying something positive instead of negative about
someone.
- Angry words or sarcasm are other problems to overcome.
* Determining to edify others with loving encouragement. (Let’s choose to be like Barnabas!)
* Serving the Lord is a wonderful exercise of faith! As we trust the Lord to help us serve Him and others
our faith grows and we show the love of Jesus who gave His all for us.
* Sharing our faith in a word of witness is our duty.
3. REST
We can’t always be giving out…we have to take in too!
* Refreshment comes from regular Bible study and worship.
* Fellowship with others brings fulfillment and joy.
I pray that 2009 will be a year of growth for us all.
Let’s put those roots deeper and deeper into the love of Christ.
