Almost every week, Pastor Garrett writes an article for our church bulletin. Here are the last several articles, reprinted for you to read.
(If you would like to discuss these issues with him, please drop an email, or give him a call. He would be glad to interact with you more personally.)
Financial Thinking
January 29, 2012
A lot is
going on in the financial life of our church.All of it is reason for praise to God.Let me explain a bit more.
First of all,
we ended 2011 in a very good financial position.Our income, though not as much as we budgeted
for 2011, was more than expenses.This
is especially encouraging because from Jan – Aug, 2011, we were far behind both
budget and expenses.I don’t know what caused
our giving to dramatically increase in September, but that increase meant that
our year ended very well financially.I
PRAISE THE LORD for your generous giving to the Lord and to Temple Baptist
Church ministry.
Second, we
discussed and changed our 2012 budget during our January meeting.Discussion was healthy and the church body
moved ahead confidently to continue our mission giving and even increase some
budget categories.When I see the church
body engaged in decisions and in faith it powerfully models the headship of
Jesus.Jesus is the Head of Temple
Baptist Church and that includes finances.
Third, our
Finance Committee continues to take strong leadership in church financial
responsibility.One excellent example is
today’s internal audit.For many years
we have talked about the value of doing such a financial review.Today we are doing it.It is certainly not a “fun” project, but it is
very important in maintaining financial responsibility.Being a good steward of the Lord’s money is
not a matter of fun or entertainment.It
takes serious commitment to responsible financial management.Our Finance Committee members have stepped up
to a greater level of stewardship responsibility.
Fourth, Joel
and Katie Peck are excited about helping our families use and manage their
money better.One cannot read the Bible
without recognizing that it takes money matters seriously.Money is important because it is a reflection
of our personal values.Jesus said, “Where
your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).He was not just putting together a nice
thought, He was teaching us that money is important.It has strong influence – powerful pull – on
our hearts.Let me challenge you to
participate in the Financial
Peace University
program that the Pecks will lead for us.It could literally change your life and the way you use money.
I hope these
observations encourage you.God is at
work in the financial life of our church.Join us and find Him working in your personal financial life too.There is no better investment than “storing
up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” (Matthew 6:20)
Your Pastor,
Dude Garrett
Why I Hate Sanctity of Human Life
Sunday
By Russell Moore
January 18, 2009
"Don’t get me wrong, the call
to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ is a joy. Yesterday I pronounced a godly
young couple husband and wife. This morning I baptized a brother in Christ.
Nothing is more thrilling than opening the Word of God to the people of Christ
week-by-week. But it provoked my spirit this morning to preach the Sanctity of
Human Life Sunday emphasis this morning.
"I don’t hate Sanctity of
Human Life Sunday because I think it, somehow, unbiblical. No, indeed. The
entire canon throbs with God’s commitment to the fatherless and to the widows,
his wrath at the shedding of innocent blood. I don’t hate it because I think
it’s inappropriate. Just as every Lord’s Day should be Easter, with the
proclamation of the Resurrection of Jesus, and Christmas, with the announcement
of the Incarnation, so every Lord’s Day should highlight the worth and dignity
of human life.
"I hate Sanctity of Human
Life Sunday because I’m reminded that we have to say things to one another that
human beings shouldn’t have to say. Mothers shouldn’t kill their children.
Fathers shouldn’t abandon their babies. No human life is worthless, regardless
of skin color, age, disability, economic status. The very fact that these
things must be proclaimed is a reminder of the horrors of this present darkness.
"This morning as I opened the
Bible to preach, I looked out and caught the eye of my sons. I prayed that
their children wouldn’t have to hear a sermon against abortion and euthanasia.
I prayed that my grandchildren and great-grandchildren would grow up in an age
when abortion is, as the Feminists for Life organization put is some years ago,
not just illegal but unthinkable. I prayed for my (yet to be conceived but not
yet to be conceived of) great-grandchildren that a Sanctity of Human Life
Sunday would seem as unnecessary to them as a Reality of Gravity Emphasis
Sunday.
"I hate Sanctity of Human
Life Sunday because I’m reminded that as I’m preaching there are babies warmly
nestled in wombs who won’t be there tomorrow. I’m reminded that there are
children, maybe even blocks from my pulpit, who’ll be slapped, punched, and
burned with cigarettes before nightfall. I’m reminded that there are elderly
men and women languishing away in loneliness, their lives pronounced to be a
waste.
"But I also love Sanctity of
Human Life Sunday when I think about the fact that I serve a congregation with
ex-orphans all around, adopted into loving families. I love to reflect on the
men and women who serve every week in pregnancy centers for women in crisis.
And I love to see men and women who have aborted babies find their sins
forgiven, even this sin, and their consciences cleansed by Christ.
"We’ll always need Christmas.
We’ll always need Easter. But I hope, please Lord, someday soon, that Sanctity
of Human Life Day is unnecessary.
I wish I’d said that…your pastor,
Dude Garrett
(If
you would like to talk more about this, give Pastor Dude or Pastor Lon a call.)
Tools and Character
January 15, 2012
There are many in our church who do not know that my
wife Karon is in a graduate nursing program at NDSU.Once finished she will receive her doctorate
in nursing and will be a Nurse Practitioner.Karon was accepted into the program last summer (a great honor in
itself) and she has finished her first semester.This week she began classes for semester
number 2.
Karon also decided that she would be a graduate
assistant in the nursing department working with the NDSU student nurses at Essentia Hospital.In this position, she will be a clinical
supervisor, helping the students fulfill the clinical requirements for their
nursing degree (BSN) and preparing them to be the next generation of Registered
Nurses(The same program that Linda Uong
completed a few years ago).Needless to
say, things are very busy for our household.
As Karon prepares for this busy semester, yesterday
she mentioned to me that she wanted to get email on her phone, knowing that
students would need to communicate with her during their clinical experience.As I see young adults operate in our world, I
totally agree that Karon is right.
HOWEVER, that means that she needed to have a “smart
phone.”So comes the rub…I have avoided
smart phones.I’ve not wanted to get one
for myself and I have resisted Michael’s appeals to get one.My reasoning went like this….smart phones are
expensive, smart phones are time stealers, smart phones are the “in thing” to
have (yet seldom needed) – therefore, I
do not need a smart phone.
While that may be true for me, I could immediately
see the logic and importance of Karon getting a smart phone.To do the job she has signed up to do, a
smart phone could be a very important tool. So, yesterday, Karon got her smart phone.When she told our adult children, they were
all amazed.They never dreamed we would get
Mom a smart phone (even though most of them have their own).
Still, a smart phone will not make Karon a good
clinical supervisor for young nurses.Her experience, her skill and her character will make her a good
supervisor, not a smart phone.Tools are
helpful, but the person behind the tool is the important part.
I think there is a lesson for life here.Let’s be careful, we must never substitute
tools for skill.Skills are the
important part and skills are rooted in character.Tools may look good (and even be “cool”), but
they are only as valuable as the person using them.
Your Pastor
Dude Garrett
Championship
January 8, 2012
Like many across North Dakota, yesterday I was caught up in
NDSU’s bid to win a National Football Championship.I thought I could listen to the football game
with one ear and do Sunday preparation with the rest of my attention, but I was
wrong.Once the game started, I was
totally caught up in it.I really could
not focus on anything else as I listened to the play by play announcer on the
radio and as I found myself rooting for the Bison.I am not a big football fan, but this was NDSU’s
biggest game of the year and I was carried along in the excitement.
After a rather lackluster first half (we were behind
6 to 3 at halftime), the Bison came out in the second half and won the game
with the final score of 17 to 6.In
post-game interviews, the president of NDSU, Dr. Dean Bresciani described the
game as a victory for all of North
Dakota. I’m
not so sure I would say that, but I would admit that the Bison victory was a
few minutes of glory for our city and state.(Kind of goes along with the newspaper article on Christmas day, “It’s
hard to be humble when you’re from Fargo.”)Yes, I was excited that the Bison won!
Still, I am always surprised at how short lived such
excitement is.The thrill of victory is
intense for a day or two, but soon, life goes on and the victories of the past
fade.(Can you remember the last NDSU
National Championship football team? Or even the year?)
It reminds me of Matthew 6:19-20 – those verses
about laying up treasure in heaven.Jesus warns us that earthy treasures fade and dissolve, so we need to
accumulate heavenly treasure because it will last.Maybe a fair paraphrase is “spiritual
championships never fade.”
Then again in Matthew 10:41-42 Jesus tells us that
we will not lose our reward for even the small things we do for others because
we are Jesus’ disciples.Our memories
are fleeting, even for “important” things, but the Father’s memory is
perfect.What we do for Him is never be
lost.
Such thinking leads me to ask, “What am I doing for
my Heavenly Father?” Earthly championships (even national ones) fade quickly,
but heavenly work is never lost.What am
I doing to make a lasting impact?Do we
really understand just how valuable heavenly treasure is?If we did, we would work harder to accumulate
it because it is even better than a national football championship.