GVCC Church Retreat
God poured out His rich blessing upon us at the Grace Valley Christian Center retreat of 2013. Pastor Mathew called it the best retreat we have ever had! We were built up in our most holy faith through the preaching of the word of God, worshiping the Lord in singing, and in fellowshipping with the saints. Here are a few highlights:
In the power of the Spirit, Pastor Mathew preached a number of challenging messages. He preached two sermons from his ongoing series on the book of James:
- On Friday evening, he spoke about the blessed man and the cursed man from James 1:12-15. The blessed man endures and overcomes in trials, knowing that his God is with him. The cursed man, on the other hand, makes excuses for his sins, instead of repenting of them.
- On Sunday morning, Pastor Mathew closed the retreat with a message entitled “Our Father in Heaven” from James 1:16-18. We learned that our heavenly Father is the source of all our good, but He is only our Father if we are truly born of His Spirit.
Pastor Mathew’s other messages focused on God’s authority:
- He preached Friday morning about how sinful man seeks autonomy and hates God’s authority as it is exercised in the home, the church, and the state. No one, however, is truly autonomous. To serve oneself is actually to serve the devil.
- On Saturday morning, Pastor Mathew spoke from John 10 on “The Good Shepherd,” Jesus Christ. The true sheep listen to the Good Shepherd and to those under-shepherds whom He appoints to represent Him. God’s sheep will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run from him.
Dr. Gary Wassermann and Dr. Gregory Broderick did a two-part series on the Ten Commandments. They highlighted that we worship God only by living in accordance with his Word. On Friday morning, Dr. Wassermann taught about the first four commandments, stressing that we are to worship the one true and living God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. On Saturday morning, Dr. Broderick covered commandments five through ten. He especially focused on the fifth commandment, calling children up to anticipatory obedience (doing before being asked) and exhorting parents to teach their children that there are consequences for sinful decisions.
On Saturday night, we were also blessed to hear practical tips for successful Christian living:
- Dr. David Spencer spoke about how to be a successful student, emphasizing that we are to define success biblically and then give God glory for the success He gives.
- Mr. Johnny Council said that one important key to being a successful Christian worker is to honor authority at the workplace. He said we should do all that we can do to make our employers look good and lighten their load.
- Mr. and Mrs. David and Martha Haynam noted that a key to successful Christian parenting is to center life around Christ’s church. David emphasized that fathers need to train the children to work hard and not ignore disrespect that children show to the mother. Martha appreciated her husband’s standing firmly for Christ when her children were being difficult, and she warned parents not to idolize their children. She also testified about the need of the mother to show respect to the father.
Missed the Retreat? Read a transcript of the concluding message from Pastor Mathew, “Our Father in Heaven: The Source of All Goodness,” here.