BOB JONES

"Holding Onto Hope" records the reflections of Nancy Guthrie, a mother whose daughter, Hope, passed away from Zellweger Syndrome in June 1999. Hope lived for 199 days. Nancy gave birth to Gabriel in July 2001 and he too was diagnosed with Zellweger's and passed away 6 months later. I echo Joni Eareckson Tada's view of the book - "If you are stymied about God's goodness amidst life's heartaches, then this book is for you." Nancy's book records her experiences contextualized around the experiences of Job. She subtitled her book, "A pathway of suffering to the heart of God." She writes it to all who "feel their world is falling apart...hurt, and helpless and hopeless in the midst of loss." After…

Hope expects God to be good. It’s an attitude that says and believes, “Something good is going to happen today!” Psalm 27:13 - "I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living." (NASB) Be a good finder - see God at work in your life, today.

Did you make a choice to make in impact?  Did you choose to invest in your own development? On Friday May 4th, North Pointe is going to be electric and eclectic. Just under 200 people, of all ages and from all walks of life will be participating in Leadercast 2012 - a seven hour encounter with some of the world's best leadership practitioners. Over 125,000 people around the world will be on the same page of learning through a live satellite feed from Atlanta, Georgia.  Every participant will have one thing in common - they made a choice to learn. You can still register today - call 452-5566 or go online to www.northpointechurch.ca and click the Leadercast 2012 link for…

The Kony 2012 revolution - viral in March; virtually invisible in April. It was a good idea that started so well. It had a 2 month run. What a difference after two millenniums with the Jesus revolution. From 120 followers in 33AD to 2.2 billion believers today. Its the difference between a good idea and God's idea. The Jesus revolution is not without its challenges, but when Jesus is kept the main thing, the revolution works. The first recorded prayer of the new Christians kept Jesus the main thing. They were facing persecution, imprisonment, beatings and death threats. But their request of God? Acts 4:24-31 - "...they raised their voices together in prayer to God. 'Lord, consider their threats and…

On Sunday we referred to some of the great April Fools Day hoaxes: Taco Bell's "purchase" and renaming of the Liberty Bell in 1996; the "Left-Handed Whooper" of 1998; Starbuck's “Plenta” and “Micra” sizes in 2010; 2012's Google's "Street Roo" in Australia and crushed cochineal bugs in Starbuck's Strawberry Frappuccinos. O wait. That last one isn't a hoax. It is true. Starbucks has gone all natural and replaced artificial colouring with all natural ingredients by using the residue from crushed cochineal bugs to add a pink hue to their Strawberry Fraps.  The move is bugging Vegans because the Fraps aren't Vegan anymore. Bugs from mainly Mexico and South America are dried out before they are ground and used in the…

Its always too soon to quit. When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit- Rest if you must, but don't you quit. Life is queer with its twists and turns, As every one of us sometimes learns, And many a fellow turns about When he might have won had he stuck it out. Don't give up though the pace seems slow - You may succeed with another blow. Often the goal is nearer than It seems to a faint and faltering man; Often the…

Submission holds! No, not the WWE kind. The raw truth is that submission is the glue that holds relationships together and in particular, marriage. “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:21) Mutual submission - the Church to Christ and Christ to the Church; a pastor to their congregation and the congregation to their pastor; a wife to her husband and a husband to his wife – is the single most binding factor in relationships. Submission is not subservience. Submission is about problem-solving and getting along; its God’s common sense for success in life. When we work submission, submission works. Ephesians 5:22 says, “Wives submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.” The…

I first heard of Kony when I was in Uganda in 1988 leading a missions team from Montreal to Kampala. His use of the 10 Commandments and “holy oil” to protect himself and his child-soldiers against bullets was ironically, a Satanic strategy. On March 5th, 2012 a video released by 3 young professionals and their organization, “Invisible Children” went viral and absolutely exceeded their expectations of exposure. Many teens, young adults and young professionals from North Pointe saw and forwarded the video. Some have been inspired to take action. Invisible Children has come under intense scrutiny and criticism and have responded with humility and transparency. The following links are informative. http://visiblechildren.tumblr.com/ http://www.fastcoexist.com/1679471/invisible-children-responds-to-the-kony-2012-viral-video-controversy?partner=homepage_newsletter Taking action – that has impressed me the…

I've developed it too. Linsanity. Even if you don't like basketball you've gotta love the story of Jeremy Lin. Graduate of Harvard...wanting to play in the NBA...cut twice in his young career by two different NBA teams...given a third chance by the NY Knicks in Dec. 2011...sat on the bench and played minimal minutes...until...February 4, 2012 when he was given a chance to start by the desperate coach of a losing team and scored 25 points in a win...and followed that with a 6-game win streak where he scored more points than any rookie in NBA history...which garnered international attention...and spread "Linsanity." The Knicks then signed him to a 6-figure deal, making him the first American player of Taiwanese descent…

"The MRI shows you have a brain tumor." When you are 27 years old, a wife and mother of two little girls under the age of 4, that kind of news is unimaginable. To think that 7 months later you would be standing a platform in front of a 1,000 people sharing your story of recovery and singing a song about how hardships can be the source of blessings, has God's fingerprints all over it. Hear Amber MacNeil's story and song by going to: http://www.northpointechurch.ca/video.shtml and clicking on the February 5th entry. Ephesians 1:3 says that we have been "blessed...with every spiritual blessing in Christ."  Those "blessings" include "mercy" and "healing" in hardships.   The chorus to the song Amber…