10-07-12 Deacon Jason Kanz – Transformational Church

October 5th, 2012
Greetings,

Last weekend was a challenging and emotionally draining one for me. I did a funeral service for a young man that was good friends with my son Dan. He was only 31 years old when he died. This young man had started to attend our services and youth group in high school. This situation caused me to reflect on life and I wrote the following for the message:

At this time of a tragic loss of life, I think it is important to remember that God is the Author and Giver of life. Life is a precious gift that He has given to each one of us. Every day we get up there are no guarantees. All too often we live our lives without thought to God. But then death robs us of a loved one. Like a thief breaking into our home, it leaves us feeling hurt, angry and victimized. But it can be a time to shake us, the living, from our composure and confront the most significant issues that we should be asking ourselves. Why did God give me life? What is the purpose of life? Is God real? If so, who is He? How can I know Him? Death brings us face to face with the fact that we are utterly helpless to maintain our lives or our loved ones. In that helplessness is an opportunity to turn to Him and to find Him. He is the only one who can give us hope beyond the grave, beyond this life.

I hope today that you will think about and live out God’s purposes for your life.

This Sunday October 7th, Jason Kanz will be teaching on the topic of “Relational Intentionality” in our series entitled “Transformational Church”. We were never meant to live the Christian life alone. Christianity is an interdependent, community oriented faith. Healthy churches have a culture where people are constantly invited by others to get connected on a deeper level.

If you want to prepare your heart read Romans 1:11-12:

• What is it that other believers do that encourages you most?
• What are some ways that you are an encouragement to other believers?

Pastor Dave