Trinity Christian Church

What We Are Learning, by Heather Van Wyk
For a little over a year now, we have been applying ourselves to memorizing God’s Word. Each Sunday morning, we have a brief portion of the service in which church members can walk to the front and share a memorized Bible verse. During this time, there is no commentary, preaching, or apology for words stumbled over – just a pure recitation of scripture. Some of us have committed whole passages to memory, and others have memorized the Word in bite-sized pieces, one scripture at a time. In either case, this attention to the Bible and the commitment to trace over it, time and time again, in our minds has proven to be valuable. In recent weeks, as various church members have faced fears and uncertainty related to the coronavirus pandemic, God’s word, quietly stored away in our hearts through this exercise has brought us comfort, strength, and hope. Moreover, the pattern that we established of memorizing, meditating on, and speaking God’s Word to one another has been a welcome and familiar activity that has provided a fruitful place for our minds to go when they could easily be overrun with fear and unfruitful imaginings. Indeed, the proverb is true that says, “He who gives attention to the word will find good” and we are so grateful to God for helping us understand that in a real way! (Proverbs 16:20).

What We Are Learning June 2019

​Recently, we have been tracing the footsteps of the apostles in the book of Acts. By cross-referencing the epistles and surveying maps, we have been learning – in a fuller sense – that the early church was made up of ordinary people who relied on the Holy Spirit as they lived, served, and proclaimed the gospel in a world sometimes receptive but often hostile to it.
By carefully notating references to the Holy Spirit, we have noticed that He acts as a catalyst for much of the action in the early church. We have also noticed the Holy Spirit comforting and encouraging believers. As the book of Acts progresses, different apostles and disciples come in and out of the storyline. However, one constant “character” in Acts is the Holy Spirit, whose movement is continuous from beginning to end, advancing God’s kingdom through numerous people in differing and often surprising ways.
As we have applied our minds to understanding the acts of the apostles and the work of the Holy Spirit in the early church, two ideas have emerged:
The power of Almighty God is more than sufficient to accomplish His purpose and His will, not only in the face of opposition, but also by using the opposition to His advantage to further His purpose.
Although it may seem that our lives are a series of haphazard events, when we love God and submit to His will, His Holy Spirit carefully guides us through each day to accomplish his will and do his work.