New Online Community Brings Christians Together

In today’s society, more people connect through online social networks than by the telephone or in group settings. The I Church Network Team is using that platform to unite Christians, church, schools and organizations with www.ichurchnetwork.com. Their mission is three-fold:

· To provide a way for churches and organizations to communicate with members, donors, and other individuals. Members can learn about events or leave a prayer request.

· To give Christian organizations and businesses a site to sell their goods and services and collect donations and tithes.

· To provide jobs to those who help market the site to Christian organizations in their area.

“This is the first of its kind social movement designed to reach millions of Christians who believe in connecting through faith, while uplifting the spirits of every man and woman,” said Mickey Jones, marketing director. “As a member you will be able to spread the word of God to all your contacts, including your friends and family, while earning extra income.”

Since going live on March 9, more than 240 churches, organizations and individuals have joined. Churches and organizations get a free 30-day trial membership. After the trial, members are charged $19.95 a month. Individual membership is free.

“This is the hottest website I’ve seen on the Internet. I am able to spread the word of Jesus Christ and reach a global network of individuals that I otherwise couldn’t reach using a traditional website approach,” said A. Darville, a U.S. pastor. “The price is phenomenal and provides our ministry with the privacy and safety we are looking for.”

“We expect to see hundreds more sign up in the next few weeks as our affiliates reach out to more churches, Christian schools, vendors and charities,” Jones said. “Our affiliates earn money every time they sign a new organization.”

And in this economy, providing jobs when so many people are out of work may be the biggest mission of all. According to the latest figures from the U.S. Department of Labor, the unemployment rate is 8.1 percent, a number not seen since 1983. More than two million jobs were lost in 2008.

“A lot of people dream of earning money while serving God,” Jones said. “Our dream is to give them that opportunity and to grow a strong online network where we make that happen.”

Registration on www.ichurchnetwork.com is free for individuals. For information on how to get a church or school listed, contact the I Church Network team at: 1-866- 730-5758 or contact Jones at mickey.jones@ichurchnetwork.com

Sheltering Families

“Reverence for the Lord gives a man deep strength; his children have a place of refuge and security.” – Proverbs 14:26

What’s a family for? Here’s a picture to consider: a family is a shelter in storms. A couple of months ago I was out golfing with some friends. While the weather was beautiful when we started, by the middle of the round storm clouds had gathered all around us. Suddenly an employee of the golf course came in a golf cart and told us a nasty storm was coming. He picked us up and quickly drove us to a shelter house. Just as we arrived the skies opened up and we experienced one of the most intense thunderstorms I have ever been in. The rain was torrential. The lightening was constant, with close strikes all around us. I love a good storm, but this one was frightening. I was awfully grateful to be in that little shelter house.

Life is tough. Jesus said, “In this world you will have many troubles,” and like in everything else, he was absolutely right. While some days are 72 degrees and sunny, most of us experience some pretty severe storms in life, storms that threaten to wash us away. Things don’t always go as planned. And in those tough times we need a place of shelter. We need a place of protection, stability, security.

Proverbs 14:26 says it well: “Reverence for the Lord gives a man deep strength; his children have a place of refuge and security.” Refuge and security – that’s what a family is supposed to provide. Our families can’t prevent every storm, but they can provide us shelter – refuge and security in tumultuous times.

Whenever I’ve had a tough day, I know that I can go home and ask my wife, Nancy, to sit on the back porch swing, or take a walk with me, and just let me dump. No matter how hard the day has been, no matter how wet I’ve gotten in the storms of life throughout the day, my family is a shelter, a place of refuge, a place of safety where I can dry off, regain perspective, and find comfort.

The family of God, the Church of Jesus Christ, is meant to serve the same function. The body of Christ is meant to be a shelter in the storms of life as well.

A little over a year ago, a storm of epic proportions tore through the lives of thousands of people in the Gulf region. Thousands of homes were destroyed. And while government infrastructure has struggled to respond, the family of God, brothers and sisters in Christ just like you and me, have become a very real shelter – a point of hope in a seemingly hopeless situation. Many of you have made a phenomenal difference in the lives of broken, hurting and frightened people through your generosity. What an awesome witness to the love the God.

The nuclear family – and the family of faith – are designed to be a shelter in the storms of life.

Bringing It Home
1. Whenever the family of God serves as a shelter in the storms of life it brings glory to God. Who can you reach out to this week?
2. Who in your family or church has served as a shelter in a storm? Send them a note of thanks today.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, ultimately you are our shelter and our strength in difficult times, but you have chosen to extend your love and grace through the lives of those who belong to you. Thank you for those who have held us fast and provided a refuge during the storms of life. Help us to extend that same gift of grace to others who are barely holding their heads above water. Amen.

Jeff Marian
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN
www.princeofpeaceonline.org

Protecting the Unity of the Church

Jesus prayed for his present and future disciples on the day before his crucifixion “that they may all be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us that the world may believe that you have sent me.” – John 17:21

The unity of the Body of Christ is a precious thing, something Jesus prayed for, and we are called to protect it. But how do we do that? Let me suggest a few things that you and I can do to protect and even enhance our unity as a body, and keep the body of Christ strong.

First, we need to be particularly aware of the power of our words, and use our words to build one another up, instead of tearing each other down. Encouragement is an essential vitamin in the health of the body of Christ, and each of us is responsible for making sure that we all get our recommended daily allowance. It says in the New Testament book of Hebrews, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”

I believe in the 10 to 1 rule in the body of Christ. For every critical thing we need to lovingly say to one another, we need to say 10 affirming things. That’s a good rule for home, work and church. Who can you encourage this week? Who can you thank? Who can you praise? Who can you write a note to that says, “I think you’re the best.”

Second, practice the art of forgiveness. We must exercise radical grace with one another in the body of Christ. The goal of community is not a lack of conflict. We can’t live in community and not have conflict. Where two or more are gathered, toes will be stepped on, that’s a reality of life together. The question is not whether there will be conflict in the body. The question is how we will live with one another in the midst of conflict.

If you’ve offended someone, confess your sin and ask for their forgiveness. If you’ve been offended by someone and are holding a grudge, go and make it right today. Make the first move. Die to your pride. Put away your fear. Go with the grace and love of God in your heart and on your lips and seek to make that relationship right.

Finally, to protect the unity we share in Christ we need to regularly get into the Word of God, so that the truth of God’s Word might get into us. In our own personal devotional life and in small group community, we need to allow the truth of God’s Word to transform our minds and conform our wills to his.

During the Last Supper, when Jesus prayed for the unity of his followers, he asked the Father, “Sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth.” You see, Satan would love nothing more than to undermine our unity and render us powerless to accomplish God’s mission. Satan would love to have us argue over things that don’t really matter, engage in power struggles and turf wars, squabble over issues of style and not substance. Satan would delight in having us so focused on our own issues that we lose sight of the world around us that continues to die without knowing Jesus Christ
as Lord and Savior.

And so, brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to arm ourselves against the enemy, and render him powerless against the unified Body of Christ.

Bringing It Home:
1. What threats to the unity of the Body of Christ can you identify in your own local church? What can you do to protect the unity?
2. If you have a broken relationship with someone in your local church (be honest with yourself and God!!) seek to make it right today. Make the first move.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, forgive me for my part in undermining the unity of your Church by my thoughts, words, and deeds. Help me to do all that I can to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. Teach me to use my words to build others up and encourage them, and stay grounded in your Word so that enemy might not find a foothold in my soul. This I ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Jeff Marian
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Burnsville, MN
www.princeofpeaceonline.org