Jesus began His parable with the words “A certain man had two sons…” It has been said that this is the greatest parable of all, and for good reason.

Here we find a remarkable puzzle.

What did these sons really want?

Were they really all that different?

Down the long hall of human history, human beings have been reacting to each other — and calling this reaction “righteousness.” Is this really the case? In this fascinating parable, Jesus Christ pulls away the mask from humanity, to reveal what we really are.

Click the player here to listen to part two

For part one of this message, click here.

Jesus began His parable with the words “A certain man had two sons…” It has been said that this is the greatest parable of all, and for good reason.

Here we find a remarkable puzzle.

What did these sons really want?

Were they really all that different?

Down the long hall of human history, human beings have been reacting to each other — and calling this reaction “righteousness.” Is this really the case? In this fascinating parable, Jesus Christ pulls away the mask from humanity, to reveal what we really are.

The highway to heaven is hidden in humility, but the path to punishment is paved with pride.

Click the player here to listen to part one

For part two of this message, click here.

Have you ever felt like giving up on your marriage?

Have you had it? Are you tired of your spouse?

In this audio message, Pastor Dickson explains Ephesians 5 and the connection of 1 Peter 2 and 3. Jesus Christ gave us the Example to follow (1 Peter 2) that guides us around the pitfalls in marriage.

Using the Lord’s instruction about how to escape from blind, self-deception (Matthew 7), this message guides Christians toward a Spirit-filled Marriage.

To listen to this message, please click here.

For the entire series on marriage, click here.

Saturday, January 31, 2010

Dear Friends of ORH,

In Matthew chapter 9, we learn so much about Christ’s compassion for the multitudes:

“But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were ??scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. Then saith He unto His disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; ??pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will ??send forth labourers into his harvest.” (Matt 9:36-38)

Please pray for the hearts of the people throughout Haiti. Those laboring with ORH seek to give a Gospel witness, even as we do the “good works” of distributing emergency food and water.

From your comments, question and appeals, it is clear that the Lord has stirred up His compassion in the hearts of Christians. How we thank the Lord for the many contacts and offers of help we have received in the ORH project, Haiti Hope! We are praying for the Lord’s rich blessings upon you as you seek to help these island people. We are delighted to be “your servants, for Jesus’ sake” in this endeavor.

We are attempting to give you the most accurate a picture as possible of the work going on.  We hope that you understand that the situation there is fluid and changing constantly.  What we are writing has come from very reliable sources.

The Situation in Haiti

The government of Haiti has declared that 150,000 people have perished in the devastating earthquake and aftershocks. We received a call from someone who told us that 70,000 hungry refugees were descending upon their village and they had nothing to offer them! Use your imagination to put yourself into a situation such as this, and you can begin to see their desperate plight.

We have received heartbreaking stories from pastors who know that the bodies of church members lie under the rubble of their church buildings. Please pray for these men, that they would know the “sufficient grace “of God for the trials ahead. At the end of this letter, we would like to appeal to you about the urgent need for tents for the survivors. Read the rest of this entry »

Update from Rev. Jan Milton with Operation Renewed Hope

“Haiti Hope” Update, January 27, 2010

Dear Friends of ORH,

Thine own friend, and thy father’s friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off. (Proverbs 27:10)

The leaders and workers in the church in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic are  true brothers and helpers to the churches in Haiti.  Thank God for Iglesia Bautista Christiana and Pastor Rodriguez.  His son, Yadin, a pastor at the church, has proven himself to be a real neighbor to those in Haiti.

Air Hope

On Monday, four planes departed from Opa Locka, Florida, fully loaded with people and cargo. These planes encountered a fierce headwind that slowed their progress to a speed of 90 kts at times.  Flying through this headwind consumed a great deal of fuel.

One of the planes, flown by Jack Hunt, had to divert from its primary site (Les Cayes) to Santo Domingo, DR. We now know that if he had proceeded to Les Cayes he would not have been able to make it to Santo Domingo due to the scarcity of fuel. Another pilot, Dave Spangler (of Flying for God) had to carry passengers and relief supplies to Les Cayes (according to the plan laid out in our earlier update).

Children’s Home

Dave’s passengers, Greg Rife and Valerie Stancil had to travel to Les Cayes in order to help Connie Anderson with Macedonia World Baptist Missions Children’s Home. With the Lord’s help, they were able to reach the children’s home over a difficult land route after landing in Les Cayes. We are rejoicing that they were able to take a generator and much needed food supplies to this ministry!

Answers to Prayer

Because there was no fuel in Les Cayes, Read the rest of this entry »

Tuesday, January 26: Jan Milton from ORH told us today that two of the planes made the trip from Opa Locka, FL through customs in Cap Haiten and on to Les Cayes, Haiti. They were able to deliver the food to Les Cayes.

Pilot Dave Spangler then attempted to fly on to Santo Domingo, DR, but encountered fierce headwinds. He had to land in Port au Prince and he has not been able to locate aviation fuel. Please pray that he would be able to locate fuel.

Answered prayer: Update for Wednesday morning, January 27:

Dave Spangler was able to get aviation fuel! Thank you for praying for him. Jan Milton will be sending out an update later today, but it appears that the Lord is already sending some wonderful blessings:

ORH now has up to 58,000 lbs. of food and water ready to go in Santo Domingo, DR. In addition, ORH has been given the use of a very nice warehouse in Jacmel. When the update is available this afternoon, it will be posted on this blog.

For the ORH plan of action for this week, please click here.

Glimpses of Calvary

Our Ministry of Music

The December 2009 edition of the Calvary Baptist Church newsletter, Glimpses of Calvary, describes important aspects of our church music ministry.

Looking Through Windows into the Ministry of Music Gene Trantham

The Servant-Leader Accompanist Harriet Dickson

Serving the Lord as Choir Librarian, Teacher, and Ensemble Member Karen Frost

Christmas Caroling and Hymn Caroling Cathy Gons

Praising Him in the Church Orchestra Brad Yoder

Singing in the Choir Tim Hoag

Musing with One Mind and One Mouth Laura Lindwall

To download this edition, click here.

What is God’s highest and greatest purpose for marriage?

In this audio message, delivered on Sunday, January 24, Pastor Dickson examines Ephesians 5:16-24 to find the answer to that question.

In Scripture, we learn what to do, why to do it and Who gets the praise for what we do (Matthew 5:16).  It’s important that we connect what we do (practice) to why we do it (principles); it’s even more important that we determine Who is really getting the praise for our lives: Who is the person behind it all?

By looking at this text in this way, we can learn a lot about marriage. There are a lot of good reasons for marriage, but what is God’s highest and greatest purpose?

Click here to listen to this message.

To listen to Spirit-Filled Marriage, Part 1, click here.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Dear Friends of ORH,

Thank you for praying for Operation Renewed Hope and our project called Haiti Hope.
Here is an extended update, including our plans for this next week.

As the Lord has answered your prayers, He has enabled us to make some tremendous progress in Haiti. As you can see from the news reports, the quake zone is still a dangerous area. By God’s Grace, we have been able to contact Bible-believing Christians there who will help us in Gospel-centered disaster relief.

Please pray, first and foremost, that the Gospel can be made plain to everyone we meet. Our highest goal is that everyone would be delivered from eternal miseries by the finished work of Jesus Christ, as we help them with physical needs (John 3:16, Matthew 5:16).

Contact with Pastor Cherubin and Pastor Rodriguez

With the Lord’s help, we have been able to make indirect contact with Pastor Dieupie Cherubin, pastor of the Hosanna Baptist Church in Jacmel, Haiti. He has been in contact with Pastor Yadin Rodriguez of the Iglesia Bautista Christiana in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (on the other side of the large island of Hispaniola). Pastor Cherubin is the president of an association of Bible-believing pastors in southeast Haiti. He is also working with the man who is responsible for the Jacmel airport. That will allow us to distribute supplies quickly when our flights are cleared for Jacmel!

Pastor Rodriguez writes, “Because the help from the government has not really gotten to Jacmel, due to the roads being blocked, the pastors in the area are planning to settle a camp for the families that have lost their homes. Pastor Cherubin told me that their most urgent need is for tents right now, preferably some big tents for administrative work and then some smaller tents to put people by families. Pastor Cherubin is willing to help in any way possible and is very thankful for the help you could provide.”

We are so grateful to the Lord for the help of Pastor Rodriguez and the believers in Santo Domingo at the Iglesia Bautista Christiana (Christian Baptist Church). They have cleared the way for Operation Renewed Hope to position planes at the Santo Domingo airport. A grocer in the church has also agreed to allow us to purchase supplies at a very low cost. While food is available there, this will allow us to purchase available food in Santo Domingo and fly it across the island to Les Cayes and Jacmel.

Plan of Action for Haiti Hope

Here is the plan of action for the next few days. You can see a map of the flight plan here  for the planes used by Air Hope : Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s face it. Some marriages are full of misery.

Why? And how can this change?

In this new series entitled, “Spirit-filled Marriage,” Pastor Gordon Dickson  will examine marriage from Ephesians chapter 5.

As this first message demonstrates, God is able to work in your marriage in a way that is infinitely beyond what you could ask or think.

Believers are given the privilege of being filled with all the fulness of God. With this kind of power, Spirit-filled believers can fulfill

the Biblical purpose for marriage and find great joy in their marriages.

To listen to this message, click here.

To listen to Spirit-Filled Marriage, Part 2, click here.