Category: This Week at The Centre

It is incredible that we’re already at Easter and next week is April! Where does the time go?! I’m sure the disciples felt the same way when they were with Jesus. It would have been a whirlwind of activity and excitement, hard to slow down and catch their breath. As He led and taught them, Jesus gave them opportunities to demonstrate their newfound gifts and knowledge (read Mark 6:1-13, Matthew 10, and Luke 9:1-6). Like a good teacher He offered them a variety of chances to put what they’d learned to the test, and to learn firsthand what it meant to serve and be a blessing to others. And as they went they were amazed at what happened! People were healed and set free, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God was shared! They were being the hands and feet of Jesus.

This holds true for us still today. What we learn and what we’re given, we’re not meant to keep to ourselves. We are called to put these gifts, talents, blessings to use in serving God and serving others. We are called to care for others, encourage others, and point them towards Jesus who is the only one who can save them. Jesus has prepared the way for us — He did this through the cross, His sacrifice and resurrection — and now He has called us to follow His example and go forward into all the world sharing the love and grace He freely gives. But we don’t do this on our own. We are a part of the Body of Christ (His church), we have His Spirit within us, and the promise from Jesus that He will never leave us or forsake us. So let us go forward together, boldly loving and caring for others in Jesus’ name!

Our gathering this Sunday is at the regular time of 6pm with prayer before the service starting at 4:30. We’d love to have you join with us and celebrate the Risen King!

Pastor Mike

So much of our lives run on schedules. From work and school, to appointments, to holidays, to having your vehicle serviced — pretty much everything we do is subject to time. And I often hear people say that there just isn’t enough time to get everything done in a day. We are bound to time. Even if we’d like to be free from it, it’s virtually impossible in our culture.

But this isn’t a new thing. Even in Jesus’ day people had their own schedules and agendas to keep, and often for a very good reason. In the story of Jairus’ daughter in Mark 6:21-43, Jairus comes to Jesus begging Him to help his sick daughter. Jairus has a schedule to keep in order for his daughter to survive. Jesus goes with the him, but along the way gets sidetracked by another woman who is in need. While Jesus is helping her one of Jairus’ servants comes to let them know that his daughter has died, and that they don’t need to trouble Jesus any longer. Jesus hears them, and says these words to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Jesus is letting Jairus, and the others, know that He’s not controlled by time or our schedules — He is the author of time, just like He’s the creator of the winds and waves, and the spiritual realm. When we put our trust in Him, we trust that His timing and schedule is better than anything we could come up with.

I won’t spoil the rest of the story for you — you should read it yourself! — but I will let you know that Jesus once again demonstrates that He is God, and that there’s nothing that stands outside of His control. And if He’s all powerful then there’s no where I’d rather be than standing next to Him.

Just a reminder that our weekly gathering starts at 6pm on Sunday, and we have a prayer time before the service from 4:30-5:30. Hope to see you then!

Pastor Mike

Do you ever feel like things go from bad to worse, like you’ve just weathered one storm when another one blows up right after it? After facing the craziness and chaos of the storm on the Sea of Galilee, Jesus faces a storm of another kind. He and His disciples have just landed on shore when they are met by a man who is simply out of control. The man’s family and friends had tried to subdue and control him but nothing worked, and so now he’s left to roam endlessly and recklessly among the tombs. When the man sees Jesus approach he runs to him.

Jesus is exhausted. He’s just spent an eventful trip coming across the lake, coming to a place He’d hoped to get away from the craziness of the crowds, but now He’s faced with yet another unpredictable storm. However, instead of dismissing the man and casting him aside, Jesus engages with him and heals him. Jesus takes what is broken and makes it whole; He takes what has been cast aside and returns it to it’s rightful place. Jesus brings stability and peace into the midst of chaos.

I know that each of us will face storms, or is facing storms in your life right now. Know that God understands and knows how all things fit together, that He has a plan and a purpose for you. It may not make sense at first, but it will become clear in His time. That man that Jesus healed, the demoniac from the Gerasenes, went on into the region of the Decapolis, a Gentile region, preparing the way for the Gospel that would be preached shortly after Christ was raised from the dead and ascended into Heaven. The man went from a chaotic, dangerous man to one who brought peace and calm and stability. Let Jesus do the same for you.

We will gather once again this Sunday at 6pm. If you’d like to join us for prayer before the service, a group meets downstairs from 4:30-5:30.

Pastor Mike

In his book, Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis said that there are only three responses to who Jesus claimed to be: he was either a liar, a lunatic, or Lord. He either was lying about everything, putting on a magic show, and fooling everyone around Him. Or He was deranged, and simply believed that He was God’s son, as many people since Him have claimed to be. Or He was telling the truth, and honestly demonstrating who He was through His actions and words.  The point that Lewis was making was that you cannot respond to Jesus by saying, “I like some of His teachings, but not all of them.” If Jesus was who He said He was, then we’re not able to pick and choose what we like or don’t like, or how we follow Him — we’re not given that option. We either accept Him as Lord and follow Him, or we deny who He was and face the consequence.

The Gospel of Mark is an explanation of who Jesus is as a human while also being a defense of His claims of divinity, and in Mark 4:35-41 we see this most clearly for the first time. This is the account of Jesus and His disciples, as well as others, as they cross over the Sea of Galilee and travel into the midst of a crazy storm. Everyone is afraid that they’re going to capsize and drown except Jesus because He’s asleep! They wake Him, crying out to Him to save them. He gets up, and calms the storm. It is at this point in His earthly ministry that those around Him, especially His disciples, come face to face with the reality that Jesus is not just a good teacher, a miracle worker, or a social activist — He is much more than that. And they were terrified.

This Sunday we will look at this passage, one that I love dearly, and my prayer is that all of us will have a deeper understanding of who Jesus is. I hope that you’ll be able to join us as we gather at 6pm.

Pastor Mike

As I write this, the rain is coming down and our backyard is starting to flood — not your typical February morning! It should be snowing out, and our backyard should be covered in snow, not drowning in water. But as I’ve come to realize, things don’t always go as expected. I was supposed to be going snowboarding tomorrow with my sons, but it doesn’t look like that will be happening! The Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:1-20) is a great reminder that things don’t always turn out the way you want them to. You can plan and plan and plan, but ultimately things are out of your control.

Once again, Jesus is teaching a large crowd of people, and He shares with them this parable. The same seed is scattered everywhere, but the ground it lands upon determines if it will grow or not. The seed on the path is quickly devoured by birds; the seed in rocky soil grows well at first, but has no root and dies; the seed that fell among thorns grows, but it gets choked out and doesn’t produce fruit; and the seed that lands in good soil has deep roots, and produces an abundance of fruit. The same farmer, the same seed, but four very different results.

So do we just give up because things don’t go as planned? Absolutely not!! Only one out of the four seeds produced (not a very good success rate), but those seeds that did grow grew to multiply up to a hundred times! That is amazing! As we are called to take God’s word into our neighbourhood, we don’t know what the results will be like, or where we’ll see growth. We can plan and plan and plan, but ultimately things are out of our control. But praise be to God, nothing is outside of His control! In another parable a little further on (see Mark 4:26-29) Jesus shares this same thought. The farmer doesn’t make the seed grow, God does, but the farmer is responsible for sowing the seed. Let’s be faithful in doing just that!

As always, you’re welcome to join us at our weekly Gathering on Sundays at 6pm. There is childcare available for kids up to age 4, although all kids are welcome to stay in the service.

Pastor Mike

Sundays were always a tricky day growing up. There were some things I could do, and others I couldn’t, and it didn’t always make sense to me. My parents wanted us to enjoy a day of rest, but some of the things that I found restful I couldn’t do! I know that my parents were doing their best to honour God, and serve Him with their whole lives, but if I’m being honest I wasn’t there yet. I didn’t know what it meant to honour God with my heart, and not just try to impress Him with my actions.

In Mark 2:23-3:6 Jesus is confronted for doing things that were traditionally forbidden to do on the Sabbath (I’ll let you read the passage to find our for yourself exactly what they couldn’t do). But instead of correcting His behaviour, and the behaviour of His disciples, Jesus uses this as an opportunity to teach the Pharisees and others who were present that they were the ones who had misinterpreted the law. He teaches them that the purpose of the law isn’t to impose strict rules and guidelines on people, rather it’s purpose is to free us from the burden of work and allow us space to worship and honour God. Sabbath rest was, and is, a gift to us from our Heavenly Father for our benefit, not a hoop to jump through in order to impress God. And this is still true for us today. I hope that you’ll be able to join us this Sunday to learn more about how we can honour God with the time He has given us. Our gathering begins at 6pm.

Pastor Mike

I really don’t like going to see the doctor, and I think most people are like me. The only time you go to see the doctor is when something is not right: there’s a pain where there’s never been one before, or a spot, or a fever, or any number of abnormalities. Something is wrong and we can’t fix it. We go see the doctor when we don’t have the answer or solution to our problem — it is a cry for help. If you’re like me (or most people in our culture), we don’t like admitting that we need help. It’s a sign of weakness, admitting that we don’t have it all together. We like to be able to fix things on our own, and be in control.

When it comes to our faith, Jesus says that there’s not much He can do for those who are “righteous”, for those who have it all together. If they’re fine on their own then they don’t need anything, or anyone, else. And to that Jesus says, “Okay.” Jesus never forces Himself on anyone. But to those who are sick and needy, to those needing a Saviour, Jesus says, “Here I am. Take my hand. Follow me.” The truth of the matter, what we only really see after we’ve taken His hand, is that everyone is in need of saving, everyone needs a doctor, there is no one who is righteous apart from Jesus, and in that way Jesus has come for all.

This week we’re continuing our series in the Gospel of Mark, looking at Mark 2:13-22. If you haven’t already read through the whole book I’d encourage you to do that this week. Hope to see you out this week!

Pastor Mike

It’s 2am.  Your car has just decided to stop going forward, and you’re 20 minutes away from home. Who do you call to come and help?  – – – – –  After working 14 years at the same place you’ve been handed your pink slip.  It’s nothing personal, they say, just restructuring. Who is the one that you can vent to, who will cry and be with you? – – – – –  You’ve just received the news that your mother who has been battling cancer for the last 16 months has passed away, just a few days after you’ve returned from visiting with her. Who is the first person that you share this news with, who will mourn and grieve with you?

If you’re married, the first person you would likely call would be your spouse, but I want you to think beyond marriage. Who is in your circle of friends that you trust, that is willing to walk with you through thick and thin, pain and joy? Who would continue to come around you even when you’re hard to be around?

In Mark 2 we have the story of four friends who brought a paralyzed man to Jesus. We’ll get into the details on Sunday, but one line that sticks out to me is in verse 5: “When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’” The actions of all the people involved, from those who carried the paralyzed man to the paralytic himself, contributed to the response of Jesus. He saw their faith in action and responded to that! My question for you today is, do you have friends like this? If you do, thank God for them and let them know you love and appreciate them! If you don’t, I’d encourage you look for some, and the best way to do that is to first be like those four friends — to put the needs of others before your own, to carry other people’s burdens, and help bring them to the feet of Jesus. To hear the rest of the story, come and join us this Sunday evening at our weekly gathering. We start at 6pm and would love for you to come and worship with us.

Pastor Mike