We have been offering Sunday evening courses to members of our congregation and the community over the past two years, and we're about to begin a new fourteen-week Sunday evening course that I'm very excited about. So far, we've done an Old Testament survey course, a course on the attributes of God, and we're coming to the end of a course in the history of the early church. We'll pick up the church history course some time in the future, and at the rate we're going, we may reach the period of the Reformation by, oh, about 2015.

But on October 3rd, we're beginning a course called "How People Change," using group study material produced by the Christian Counselling and Education Foundation. How People Change is a book written by Timothy Lane and Paul Tripp (which I highly recommend), and CCEF has also produced a DVD series and study guide to go along with it. If you're in Prince George (or if you're planning on moving here in the next couple of weeks!), you're welcome to join us for what promises to be an exciting exploration of the power of the gospel to bring real and lasting change!

Here's the text of the newspaper ads we've placed:

CHANGE


Either:
a) this word scares you, or
b) this word reminds you of something you want to change in your life, or
c) you don't really think about change, but the large bold letters above just caught your eye.

The fact is, we all need to change, in one area of our life or another. We struggle, we deal with the negative results of our behaviour and attitudes and actions, and we deal with the same things in those we relate to.

In this How People Change seminar, we will be guided in understanding how Christ's life, death, and resurrection bring lasting change. Through the introduction, twelve sessions, and conclusion, you will be challenged to experience the deep-down change that the gospel of Jesus Christ brings, and you will be given the tools to understand, and change!

We welcome you to join us, Sundays at 7 PM, beginning on October 3rd, on the corner of 15th Ave. and Ospika Blvd. Space is limited to to fifteen individuals or couples, and pre-registration is required. A registration fee of $15.00 per person or couple covers the cost of study guides and workbooks, and refreshments will be provided each night.

How People Change is a presentation of the Canadian Reformed Churches' Mission in Prince George (www.canrc.org). For more information and to register, contact Pastor Jim Witteveen:

(250) 562-9542
pastorjim@pgchurch.ca
www.pgchurch.ca

Scripture Reading: 2 Kings 5:1-19a
Sermon Text: Numbers 9:1-14

Scripture reading: Numbers 3
Sermon text: Numbers 3:5-10
Sermon theme: The task of the Levites: "To Serve and Protect"

Never before has the sound of a steady, Fraser Valley-like rain been as welcome to me as it is this morning. I love rainy days anyway (go figure), but for the past couple of weeks we've been dealing with terrible air quality in Prince George (which is not unusual, but it's never this bad!) due to the large forest fires burning in the region. I have trouble in the summertime at the best of times due to allergies, but the equivalent of sitting around a campfire 24/7 has not been pleasant.

So we're very thankful that the Lord has sent his rains to water the ground and provide relief!

He covers the heavens with clouds; he prepares rain for the earth; he makes grass grow on the hills.
- Psalm 147:8

Scripture reading and sermon text: portions of Numbers 1 and 26.

Yesterday we began a new series of sermons, as we move back to the Old Testament once again. This was the introductory sermon on the book of Numbers, dealing specifically with the censuses that were taken at the beginning and the end of the wilderness wandering.

"Little children, keep yourselves from idols."

Scripture reading: 1 John 5:13-21
Sermon text: 1 John 5:21



This past Sunday we rejoiced to welcome Teresa Grounds and her eight children into membership in the church, and this was the sermon I preached on the occasion. It was truly a blessing to have the privilege of baptising Thomas and Luke, the two youngest children, and experiencing in a visible and tangible way what it means to become a part of the body of Christ!

Last week I began another round of studies (it never ends), this time by Distance Education - I'm taking a course called "Dynamics of Biblical Change," an introductory counselling course from CCEF, the Christian Counselling and Educational Foundation.

So I thought I would take a blog post to highly recommend CCEF, their publications (by David Powlison, Paul Tripp, Ed Welch, and others), and the resources available on their website. According to CCEF's mission statement, their goal is to restore Christ to counselling, and to restore counselling to the church - an admirable goal, and they do a great job of it.

So check out their website:

www.ccef.org

"Test the spirits!"

Sermon text: 1 John 4:1
Scripture reading: 1 John 3:24-4:21; 1 Corinthians 2

Tools are an important part of the pastor's trade. Some pastors swear by BibleWorks. Others just can't do without their Logos Bible software. And still others love their Kindles and their Blackberries.

Today I bring you the latest in Pastoral Technology: "Pastor Jim's Self-Serve Counselling Device" (TM).

Some recommended reading:

http://episcopos.blogspot.com/2010/08/personal-assessment-of-2010-urcna-synod.html