A number of people asked me for the Scripture references that I used in the Christmas Eve service, so I am providing them along with the corresponding ‘gift’ that we all have received through a relationship with Jesus Christ. We are abundantly blessed in this life and the next because of the birth and death of Jesus!

I am justified

2 Corinthians 5:21, “For God made him who never sinned, to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

I’m prayed for

Romans 8:26, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”

Romans 8:34, “Christ Jesus, who died and who was raised to life, is at the right hand of God interceding for us.”

I’m loved

Romans 8:35-39, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

God is with me

Matthew 1:23, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Emmanuel—which means, “God with us.”

Psalm 46:1-3, 7, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging…The Lord Almighty is with us.”

Psalm 23:4, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Isaiah 43:2, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you…”

I can talk to God

Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

God cares for me.

Matthew 6:25-34, “”Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For unbelievers run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.”

I have the Body of Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:27-28, “You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

I have a gift

1 Corinthians 12:7, “A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.”

I have purpose

Ephesians 2:8-10, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

I have the Spirit

1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”

I have the Word of God

2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…”

I have hope

Titus 3:4-7, “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”

Tim

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery’. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.”

If you want to hear the message, go to riveroaks.org media center and click on January 30th message, “Lust of the Eyes”.

In the message I mentioned some helps for men that I would put on my blog and here they are. I trust some of these ideas will be helpful to you in keeping a pure heart.

1.      A very helpful on-line accountability tool for men can be downloaded at x3watchfree.com. X3watch is a free accountability software program helping with online integrity. Whenever you browse the Internet and access a site, which may contain questionable material, the program will record the site name, time, and date the site was visited. A person of your choice (an accountability partner) will receive an email containing all possible questionable sites you may have visited within the month. For additional helps go to XXXchurch.com

2.      If you are in an accountability group or a small group Bible Study you might want to give copies of these questions from Chuck Swindoll to each man and ask one or two each week along with whatever else you do:

Have you been with a woman this week in such a way that was inappropriate or could have looked to others that you were using poor judgment?

Have you been completely above reproach in all your financial dealings this week?

Have you exposed yourself to any sexually explicit material this week?

Have you spent daily time in prayer and in the Scriptures this week?

Have you taken time to be with your wife this week/children this week?

Have you just lied to me?

3.      Two books that Scott Tilley, our Adult Ministries Pastor recommends for men dealing with sexual sins:

The Game Plan

Wired For Intimacy: How pornography Hijacks the Male Brain

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 6:18, “Flee from sexual immorality!” May we be men with a firm resolve to live our Christian faith out in our thought life!

Tim

The history of Silent Night is that it was originally written as a poem in 1816 by an Austrian priest named Joseph Mohr. On Christmas Eve in 1818 in the small alpine village called Oberndorf the organ at St. Nicholas Church had broken and was unable to be used. In preparation for the service Joseph Mohr gave the poem of Silent Night (Stille Nacht) to his friend Franz Xavier Gruber who he composed a melody for Silent Night. The song was completed in time for the midnight service and sung with the accompaniment of a guitar. Silent Night has become the most famous Christmas carol of all time!

Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace

Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Christ, the Savior is born
Christ, the Savior is born

Silent night, holy night
Son of God, love’s pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth

I hope you can either join us, attend your home church or find a church in your town or take a few moments in your home or apartment to celebrate this evening and join with Christians around the world to worship the birth of Christ, the Savior!

Merry Christmas,

Tim

“Jesus wasn’t afraid to talk about money. Outside of the Kingdom of God, stewardship was his favorite subject. He talked more about money and possessions than about faith and prayer combined! He spent more time dealing with the money than with heaven or hell. In fact, if we were to teach about money as much as Jesus did, we would have to make it the topic every 3^rd Sunday! Why? Because Jesus knew that this issue of money and possessions has the power to consume and derail us more quickly than anything else. He knew that where our treasure was, our hearts would be also. He knew that there was a fundamental connection between a person’s spiritual life and his attitude toward money and possessions.” – Nelson Searcy

“It is impossible to become a fully developed follower of Jesus without also becoming a fully developed steward of your resources.” – Randy Alcorn

“If Christ is not Lord over our money and possessions, then he is not our Lord.”  – Randy Alcorn

“Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.”  – Solomon (Proverbs 3:9-10)

“I never would have been able to tithe the first million dollars I ever made if I had not tithed my first salary, which was $1.50 per week.”  – John D. Rockerfeller

“By nature, the concept of generosity is in direct conflict with the concept of self-preservation.”  – Andy Stanley

“There are moments when loving God with all your heart won’t make financial sense. But those are the moments when you need to give hilariously, ridiculously, generously, and sacrificially. It won’t add up. But God will multiply it.”  – Mark Batterson

“If our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusements, etc., is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving away too little.  If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small. There ought to be things we should like to do but cannot do because our charitable expenditure excludes them.”  – C.S. Lewis

“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”  – The Apostle Paul (2 Corinthians 9:6-7)

“There is never any good economic reason to give.” – Ron Blue

“Giving should not be merely a pillar in your financial plan; it should be the cornerstone.”  –Ron Blue

“Good things that cannot be calculated or quantified are set in motion in your life and in our finances when you give generously.”  – Dave Ramsey

“If you give 10% of your money to the Lord, the remaining 90% will go further than if you had kept all 100%.” – unknown

“It is possible to give without loving, but it is impossible to love without giving.”  – Richard Braunstein

“He who gives when he is asked has waited too long.”  –Marcus Seneca

“It is more blessed to give than to receive.”  – Jesus (Acts 20:35)

“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry. But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”  – Jesus (Luke 12:15-21)

“The things of the spirit differ from things material in that the more you give the more you have.”  – Christopher Morely

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also…No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” – Jesus (Matthew 6:19-24)

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.” – The Apostle Paul (1 Timothy 6:17-19)

“Treasures on earth become treasures in heaven when they are used for causes on earth that matter in heaven.” – Tim Rowland

Tim

…At River Oaks, we don’t talk very much about money. That has been part of our culture from the very beginning. We have never passed an offering plate and have simply depended on God’s people to make their way to an offering box in the lobby and drop off their contributions.

This more passive approach has served us well and our silence has been appreciated by many. However, the time has come, and I need to apologize because it is actually past time, that we must speak about giving and our finances. Just as so many churches and other not-for-profits have been hit by the economic downturn, River Oaks has fallen on hard times financially and we need to ask you to respond, if you can.

• In August, we submitted a smaller budget than the previous year by about 5%. The budget was approved by 95% of members and non-members alike.
• The reality is that in the first two months of that new budget, our contributions have fallen behind by about 14%.
• Our cash cushion has dropped over the summer below what the elders and deacons feel is an acceptable level.

Therefore, in September, the elders commissioned a committee to cut $100,000 from the budget so that our budget would be more in line with our current giving.

Last week the committee presented the “Austerity Budget” to the Elders and they approved it. It will remain in place until our giving meets the budget that was passed in August.

What this means is that immediately:

• All ministry budgets have been cut by at least 10%, some by much more. This is on top of the 10% already cut for the 2010-2011 budget.
• Printing and postage has been cut by 10%. We will be printing less, sending less mail and using the web site and digital communication much more. 1^st hour attendees are asked to place their Program in a basket for 2^nd hour attendees to use – unless you plan to take it home. The Program is e-mailed on Fridays. If you are not on our e-mail list, please contact the Church Office and we will get you on.
• Giving to the local agencies that minister to the poor and needy of Elkhart County has been cut by 10%.
• All conference budgets and all professional expense accounts have been cut by 80%.
• The budget for the health insurance for the full-time staff has been reduced by 15%.
• The budget for matching staff retirement funds has been reduced by 15%.

Even after all of that, there was $30,000 that still needed to be cut to meet the $100,000 budget reduction. So, staff wages will be reduced by that amount.

At the same time, leadership is so encouraged by what is happening at River Oaks:

• Almost 50 baptisms in August.
• We had a wonderful Kid’s Night out this past Friday night.
• We will launch a worship and teaching ministry to Latinos this month.
• Your children enjoy high quality classes in a ‘first-rate’ facility.
• Our Student Ministry Sunday night gathering for worship and small groups takes place in a ‘first-rate’ facility.
• Our Generation has a weekly Bible Study and recently helped with a Habitat for Humanity project.
• We are hearing good reports from our new Grow Groups.
• We recently had a great Men’s Retreat.
• There are many wonderful Bible Studies throughout the week.
• 25 attended last Thursday night’s New Member Class.
• We enjoy high quality worship services.
• And I want to thank those who helped make our new lobby renovation possible! We had interior decorators, manufacturers, painters and laborers donate time and materials to the project and what would have cost us probably over $10,000 only cost about $2,500.

If you believe in this ministry, and you are not currently giving anything, we are asking that you begin. God expects his people to give to his work. If River Oaks is your church home, you should be supporting it financially at some level. According to our giving records and attendance records, we have many families who attend River Oaks who do not contribute anything financially to the ministry. Please reconsider.

If you are a regular contributor I want to thank you but ask that if you are able, give more. Unemployment in this county is 14% and underemployment may take that number to 20%, but that still leaves 80% of us with full-time paychecks!

If you are abundantly blessed and have extra funds that you would be willing to give, it would be greatly appreciated during this difficult financial time.

If you are unemployed or underemployed and you can only give the ‘widows mite’ we thank you and want to affirm you as Jesus does!

We even have a brand new way for you to give; starting in a few days you will be able to give on-line at our web site. If you want to give with your credit card and get the ‘points’, now you can. Just two words of caution: 1) Giving that way takes away 3% of your total contribution as we have to pay for that service and 2) Please don’t give that way if it means you are going to have to pay interest on your contribution.

You might want to try what Gloria and I do: Through our bank, we have set up an automatic payment to River Oaks. The day my paycheck is deposited our donation check to River Oaks is automatically sent.

Let me just say as I conclude with these thoughts:

• River Oaks is a blessed church. We have so much to be thankful for!
• We believe God is doing great things here.
• We do not believe that God is ‘resource challenged’.  I know our economy is soft. I also know that God is not hindered by an economy and he will give us the resources to do everything he is asking us to do.
• We are trying to be the best stewards of the resources you entrust us with and hopefully you believe your contribution here is helping to reach children, teens and adults with the Gospel and helping all of us grow in our faith.

Here is the link, if you would like to hear the entire message, entitled “I Will Build My Church“.

Tim

Let me add:

• If you are married, spend a little extra time with your spouse this week and make sure you let him/her know that you are in love with them.
• If you have children, give them a hug, send an e-mail, instant message or twitter to them letting them know that you love them.
• Ditto if you have parents who are still living.

James reminds us in James 4:14, “You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” We never know how much more time we have or those around us have. Live this week like life is fragile and precious, because it is.

Tim

Psalm 139:7-10 “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me; your right hand will hold me fast.”

Psalm 46:1-3, 7, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging…The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob in our fortress.”

Psalm 23:4, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Isaiah 43:2, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you…”

Hebrews 13:5, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Matthew 1:23, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”

“‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus”

I’m so glad I learned to trust Him, Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend;

And I know that He is with me, will be with me to the end.

Tim

I was immediately reminded of one of God’s oldest promises to mankind from Genesis 9 that he would never again destroy the earth with a flood. What a reminder of the faithfulness and trustworthiness of God. It was a great moment with the Creator. I hope you have one this week too.

Tim

I want to thank every person who chose to be baptized for giving me the opportunity to share in this experience with you. It is as good as it gets!

Tim

I hope you can join me either in person at River Oaks or on-line at the River Oaks web site!

Tim