Faith Baptist Church

I continue to thank God for the privilege of serving Him here at Faith Baptist Church, and for the spiritual leaders I get to serve alongside. This week we're blogging about Chapter 6, "Confession Brings Freedom". I think confessing sin on a person to person level, is a very frightening prospect to most of us. Though it's hard, it's not hard to see the benefits of that kind of honesty. There are benefits both for the person confessing sin and the one being asked to forgive. It is also so consistent with the definition of godly sorrow (and the repentance it brings) in II Corinthians 7:11.

"For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter." NKJV

I find the author's Seven 'A's of Confession to be so helpful, and I'm thankful that he does not promote them as a magic formula. I like his acknowledgement on pg 133 "Any time we use a process like the Seven A's, we can turn it into a meaningless ritual and completely miss what God wants us to do (see Mark 7:5-13; Luke 11:42)."* By God's grace I've attempted to employ the Seven A's many times in my life, but as I read them again - I was surprised how much further I have to go in my implementation of these Biblical principles.

Depending on God,
Pastor Craig

*Reprinted or adapted from The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict, Ken Sande (Baker Books, 3d ed., 2003). Peacemaker® Ministries. www.Peacemaker.net.

Thank you to all who are reading along with the FBC leadership as we blog about a well written book titled "The Peacemaker" by Ken Sande. This week we're discussing chapter 5, and the author describes the typical progression of an idol in the human heart - helping the reader see where conflict originates.

I was particularly challenged by the part of the progression where we start to judge other people for not serving our idols. The author tells how it can be good and right to have expectations of other human beings. The problem comes with this quote from page 108, "But if we are not careful, these expectations can become conditions and standards we use to judge others. Instead of giving people room for independence, disagreement, or failure, we rigidly impose our expectations on them."

In the sovereignty of God, our church is experiencing some conflict as it relates to my imperfect leadership as we attempt to implement a culture of peace. Chapter 4 is titled "Is This Really Worth Fighting For", and it's a question the leadership was asking itself tonight. As it relates to an impassioned pursuit of the unity of God's people, and a devotion to the Biblical instructions for resolving problems - the answer is YES!

As it relates to my reputation as the pastor, my timeline for implementation, my feelings being protected from probing questions, or any of the things that I want that God has not required - the answer is no.

I'm encouraged by these lines from pg 85, "...Lord, I rejoice that this conflict has not happened by accident. You are sovereign and good, so I know that you are working through this situation for your glory and my good."

Leaders of Faith Baptist, God has called us to faith and courage. Let us be diligent to cry out to God for His grace and wisdom. Let us be committed to only moving ahead according to Biblical wisdom, and without doubting. Let's speak the truth in love. May God help us.

Quotations are from: The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict, Ken Sande (Baker Books, 3d ed., 2003). Peacemaker® Ministries. www.Peacemaker.net

Another Tuesday, and another chapter of Ken Sande's book The Peacemaker. I continue to take great comfort in knowing that the leadership of Faith Baptist Church is reading this book. The author has put together a tremendous systematic theology on resolving conflicts in a person's life. In chapter three Ken discusses trusting God. It is wonderful to know we serve a God who is both all-powerful, and good. These two sentences from pg 63 are my favorites, "The fact that God is good does not mean that He will insulate us from all suffering. Rather, it means He will be with us in our suffering and accomplish good through it (Isaiah 43:2-3)."

I'm asking God to help the members of Faith Baptist to trust Him in trials and conflicts. Trust in His power. Trust in His goodness. Trust in His wisdom.

Quotations are from: The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict, Ken Sande (Baker Books, 3d ed., 2003). Peacemaker® Ministries. www.Peacemaker.net.

I am thanking and praising God for the encouraging comments posted under chapter one. I'm blessed to be serving alongside these faithful and hardworking men. As the leaders post their comments to chapter two, we want to open the discussion to anyone who might be reading along. Feel free to post a comment or a reply.

I was struck by these two sentences on page 46 in chapter two. "This peace, which is often referred to as 'unity' (Ps. 133:1) is not simply the absence of conflict and strife. Unity is the presence of genuine harmony, understanding, and goodwill between people." These statements were in a section titled "Peace with Others", and it reminded me of how low I'm tempted to set the bar when it comes to resolving problems in a relationship. I also was stopped by the phrase on page 53 "...unity does not mean uniformity (Eph 4:7-13)."

Hi everyone. The leadership at Faith will be using our blog to discuss Ken Sande's book The Peacemaker. For the next twelve weeks we'll be discussing one chapter a week. You're welcome to tune in, and if you'd like to learn more - come join us on Sunday Mornings. Starting March 7th many of our Sunday School classes will be going through The Peacemaker Small Group Study. Call or Email for more information.

To the Faith Baptist Leadership, I hope you enjoyed the first 43 pages of The Peacemaker. Please click the comment link below to let us know what you found to be most encouraging or helpful from this weeks reading. I was most helped by this statement from pg30 "Therefore, although we should seek unity in our relationships, we should not demand uniformity (see Eph. 4:1-13)." I'm hoping we can all take the additional time to apply the questions at the end of each chapter to any conflict we might be dealing with personally. I'm certain that will enrich our understanding of these principles. Praying for you. Pastor Craig