Category: Pastor’s Notes

Article updates from the Pastors of Believers City Church, Menomonie, WI.

December 22, 2021 Pastor Tim Dodson | Menomonie

Recently I saw a covenant member and elder leave his church and will not be returning. And it was beautiful…

Certainly, over the years we have seen and been on the receiving end of the mayhem of someone who said they were a part of us and loved us only to eventually wreak havoc as they firebombed the church spiritually speaking. We all individually and corporately have been stunned by what can only be seen as demonic behavior come forth from people who feigned unity and love and played on until they wanted a power position they did not get, wanted a sin they could not resist, wanted attention they were not getting, etc. The list of reasons is quite long and sordid, and not really the point of this article. The question we all were, and perhaps are left with is this: Can a person leave a church without having to roll a grenade into the room on their way out? I for one was beginning to doubt. The lies and evil behavior that I witnessed throughout 3 decades of ministry certainly would excuse my skepticism. I even remember one woman telling me that Satan told her and her husband to leave. And then she left. Ya,  creepy for sure…

Paul Simon sang a song back in 1975 called “50 Way to Leave Your Lover” that maybe we apply to this issue and put out as a church tri-fold:

You just slip out the back, Jack
Make a new plan, Stan
You don’t need to be coy, Roy
Just get yourself free
Hop on the bus, Gus
You don’t need to discuss much
Just drop off the key, Lee
And get yourself free

Hmmm. Nice worldly mantra. It even rhymes. One is left wondering where Jesus…the Holy Spirit…yes even rudimentary Christianity is on all of this. But back to my initial remark about the beautiful departure…

While visiting a church in Louisiana during a recent missions trip down there, we happened to attend on Sunday when the church…especially their Covenant Body, was saying goodbye to a family who were Covenant members, active church participants, founding participants, and he was even a church elder and board member. Over what we understood to be a lengthy period of prayer… with the church fellowship, seeking counsel… with the church fellowship, they had come to the conclusion that God was directing the man to take a position as a federal law enforcement officer and would be moving to Washington DC. On that Sunday we were privileged as outsiders, to witness a deeply insider event. The family came upfront and the pastor and elders laid hands on them in prayer. There were emotional words of memories and thanks. There was embracing. There was weeping. There was unity and love and most of all, there was God.

I know that some might be uncomfortable exposing this dirty laundry that certainly is a quiet pain and an embarrassing reality within almost every church in America. But I am reminded that God seemed to never sweep such mud under the rugs of history. There we have it in black and white…in the most published book in history: David’s adultery and murder, Moses’ anger, and sin, Noah got drunk which led to some messy family issues, Peter’s fearful denials of Christ, etc, etc! The reality is that there will always be those who will find their way into a church fellowship with a lot of different reasons to be there and faithfully loving, serving, growing, discipling is not on their list. Perhaps we could say that being in a church doesn’t emphatically declare one’s salvation standing, but their departure certainly casts a bright light! (Not my judgment…that is the emphatic declaration of scripture itself!)

Truth be told, the way that people who call themselves Christians treat others who call themselves Christians is tainting the pool for sure. Really…if that’s the way it is inside, who would want it? The fact is, church people are notorious for bad behavior. Some church people are just downright mean. Why is this? In some recent surveys, it appears that most people in our culture believe that Christians are about as trustworthy as car salesmen and lawyers.

I myself am certainly far from a perfect man and many of the greater church people I know behave in far worse ways than many of the unbelievers I know. I am always amazed at the grace, love, support, and forgiveness that is found among the “unchurched” which is rarely found among those who go to church.

Sometimes our behavior is a result of our understanding of God’s grace and forgiveness. We feel that because God forgives us for all our sins, we can treat others in terrible ways, and God will still forgive us. It’s “pre-planned forgiveness.” We’ll just square it with God after we burn down the village. While it is true that God will forgive us for such behavior, we need to know that such is not a “get out of jail free card.”

Scripture speaks much about our relationships and right standing with one another on matters such as this: Matthew 5:23-24, Luke 17:3-4; Ephesians 4:32; and Colossians 3:13 are just a few. We cannot argue that if our relationship with the Lord is right, then our relationships with other people will fall in line. Thus if relationships with other people fail to be Christ-like, then why should we think that He is indeed a part of us?

In the Jewish world, on Yom Kippur, Jews ask God for forgiveness, but “on the day before” Yom Kippur, called Erev Yom Kippur, Jews ask forgiveness from one another. It seems that there is something to the understanding that “you can’t ask forgiveness of God until you’ve asked forgiveness of people you sinned against.”

The events of that day in that Louisiana church were both sad and joyous. I felt their pain…all of them…but I also felt their love and unity. I felt Jesus in their midst and in their handling of all of it. And if I wasn’t a Christian and had stumbled into that service that day, I undoubtedly would be left thinking… “wow, these people have something different than the world.” And maybe, “I think I would like to have some of that please…”

December 1, 2021 Pastor Jason Gilbert | Menomonie

The Struggle

One of the biggest struggles we face as Christians is ourselves… our flesh… our carnal nature.  We often see the world as our oyster.  We buy food, to feed our flesh.  We shop for clothes, to adorn our flesh.  We set up our homes, to comfort our flesh. We put together albums and videos, to commemorate our flesh.  We work jobs and earn money, to secure our flesh.  We engage in sex, to satisfy our flesh.  We have children, to propagate our flesh.  Let’s face it, the very bodies we live in are made of flesh.  Carnality is our default.  Combating Carnality seems hopeless.

If you find yourself in this struggle, you are not alone.  Paul highlights the struggle with his flesh concluding “that in me (that is, in my flesh), dwelleth no good thing”.  Shortly after he exclaims “O wretched man that I am!  Who will deliver me from this body of death” (Romans 7:18, 24)?  Concerning our carnal attachment to this world, John warns, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.  And the world is passing away…” (1 John 2:15-17).

Often we combat carnality with a worldly mindset. We establish rules, boundaries, budgets, and diets. None of these things are bad. In fact, some are quite beneficial.  But none of these things have the power to transport us out of our flesh and into the spirit… None of these things can lift us out of the muck of this world and into a heavenly land (Colossians 2:23).

The Escape

How do we get out of our flesh?  How do we escape our earthly carnality?  We need some sort of portal… something that can transport us out of our flesh in this world… into the spirit in another world…  God gave us access to such a portal.  He gave us something that is made of earthly material (i.e., leather, paper, ink), which can be accessed by our flesh (i.e., our eyes, our mind), that can supernaturally transport us into another land, a spiritual world, a heavenly kingdom.  He gave us our bible… the word of God. 

The word of God pre-existed the world, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).  The word of God is eternal, “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the LORD endures forever…” (Isaiah 40:6-8, 1 Peter 1:24-25).  The word of God transports us to another land, so we can say with Paul, “We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal…” (2 Corinthians 4:18).  The word of God is our portal out of this world… into the kingdom of heaven.

Look back at the current season of your life… the time you’ve invested, the money you’ve spent, the effort you’ve exerted. Is it primarily to satisfy your flesh, with the things of this world, and that which is transient? Or is it for that which is spiritual, the things of heaven, and that which is eternal? 

The Future

As you look to next year, how will you combat carnality?  What’s your plan?  Will you spend more or less time in God’s word?  What will your devotional life, your prayer time, your study, your meditation look like? 

What land will you be spending your time in?  Will it be an earthly kingdom or a heavenly kingdom?  Who will you become?  One who is carnal, blinded by the trappings of this world?  Or one who is spiritual, freed from the bondage to your flesh and its appetites.

It’s our choice. We have open access to both worlds… And our life will reflect which world we are in. Let us choose that land that is eternal, unfading, and full of God’s glory.

For Further Reading:

3 Things We Must Believe about God’s Word | Crossway Articles

October 1, 2021 Pastor Jason Gilbert | Menomonie

The Bait

There was a recent blog post from Crossway titled “4 Ways to Fight Sexual Temptation”.  I had struggled with this issue heavily in the past… I am also keenly aware of how foolish it is to think myself beyond falling to this temptation in the future. So I was immediately intrigued.  Then I recalled several recent conversations with Christian brothers and sisters (some single, some dating, and some married), who had all revealed this was a real struggle for them as well.  The longer this email lingered in my inbox, the more tempting it bacame to click on it…  What did this blogger have to say… about such a secretive and sordid subject?

The Hook

After a few days… and further revelation of how treacherous this problem can become for those in the church… It was too much. I could wait no longer. Resistance was futile. I had to click and see what was behind the link “4 Ways to Fight Sexual Temptation.” 

4 Ways to Fight Sexual Temptation | Crossway Articles

The Catch

I was pleasantly surprised.  If you read it, I bet you were too.  Rarely do you come across something so concise on how to fight sexual temptation, yet filled with practical and down-to-earth solutions. 

But isn’t that often how God works?  His desire is to help us.  He doesn’t overcomplicate it.  Quite unlike our adversary, God’s bate is for our good. Taking His hook only leads us into spiritual well being. Perhaps it’s time to be pleasantly surprised… by what God has in store for us.

August 2, 2021 Pastor Jason Gilbert | Menomonie

What is Received…

When we adopted our cats from the humane society, they were in a small cage with a water bowl, food dish, and litter tray. All they knew of life was being incarcerated in a cell, with the bare necessities to survive…

Today, they have an unlimited supply of ‘science diet’ duck mixed with salmon. On Saturdays, they get fancy feast tuna, white fish, or chicken in a creamy sauce with vegetables. During the week, they get to roll around in catnip, wear it, and lick it off themselves.

They also live in 900 square foot house, full of wide window sills to lay on, providing a 3D high-definition view of birds, bird feeders, birdhouses, trees, flowers, squirrels, rabbits, etc. While their masters are away, a laser turns on and flashes patterns across the floor for 15 minutes out of each hour… They also have dozens of toys to play with and cat-ghans (i.e. small afghans crocheted by Faye’s mom) to nap on.

They have received a lot, since their humble beginnings, in a confinement, with little to no creature comforts.

I wonder how many of us could make a parallel illustration in our own life? Have we stopped to consider what we have received from God…? Has not God given us more than we deserve… more than we need… sometimes more than we even hoped for…?

“He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

Romans 8:32

“His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory to virtue.”

2 Peter 1:3

“…God, who richly provides us all things to enjoy.”

1 Timothy 6:17

What is Returned…

When we come home, our cats are jostling for the window closest to the door, meowing as if in great pain until we enter. When we come in, they rub up against us, then roll over so we can pet their bellies. When we sit down, they snuggle on us and close their eyes purring. When we say ‘bedtime’, they race up the stairs and jump into the bed. One forces himself between Faye and I, throwing his back against me, pushing off of Faye with his feet. The other wraps herself around Faye’s head on the pillow… If we sleep too late or are too still, one will paw at our faces and the other will meow an alarm, to see if we are ok. When we get up, they plop down the stairs in front of us, while we are half asleep. They know they are likely to get stepped on, but they don’t care… They just want to be close…

I wonder how many of us could make a parallel illustration in our own life? Have we stopped to consider how we return our affection and thankfulness to God? Maybe this illustration is not as easy to identify in our lives…

Here is what scripture says about thanking God,

“Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”

Psalm 34:8

“Give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.”

Psalm 107:21

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

1 Thessalonians 5:18

But often our thankfulness is more like a parent telling a child to write thank you cards. The child may oblige out of duty but has little heartfelt desire to do so…

Thankfulness…

What does heartfelt affection and thankfulness really look like?

Much like our cats’.

When we wake up, we would desire intimacy with Him, meditating over the His Word. When He seems distant to us, we would search for Him in earnest prayer and pleading. When there is an opportunity to gather for worship, or service, to hear His voice, we would run to the door to meet Him. When we retire in the evening, our hearts and thoughts would push up against His…

Does that describe our appreciation… for our Master?

As David exclaimed,

“I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.”

Psalm 9:1-2

It’s time to give Him thanks… with our whole heart…

June 1, 2021 Pastor Jason Gilbert | Menomonie

Imagine sitting down in a lawn chair in a beautiful backyard on a temperature-less afternoon. You have the best job in the world… doing what you love every day. You come home to a beautiful house and property that you wouldn’t trade with anyone. You are married to the spouse of your dreams. You are healthy and have money in the bank. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the squirrels are playing, and the rabbits are resting in the cool of the pines. You lack nothing. You have everything you could ever want… and much, much more…

Yet there I was… miserable. Not because of any external circumstance. Not because of any known sin I needed to repent of. I was just sitting there… sad and frustrated. I didn’t know why or at what. It didn’t make any sense. And then it did…

The Problem

The bible says, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells” (Romans 7:18). Often we think the cause of our problems is outside of ourselves. If we could only have that job, or own this property, or be married to that person, or be this healthy, or have that much money, or go to this kind of church… then our problems would… well… be negligible…

Yet Solomon availed himself of all these and more (Ecclesiastes 2:1-11). He was King, built a magnificent palace, married anyone he wanted, was healthy and wise, was the world’s wealthiest, and was the chosen head of God’s people, with their full support. He writes, “Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure” (Ecclesiastes 2:10). Yet in the next verse concluded, “Indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind” (Ecclesiastes 2:11).

Do we know this Christian? Will we concede that no career, no person, no church, no external circumstance can fix what is wrong with us? Can we just admit it? “The problem is me… I’m the problem!”

“The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?”
Jeremiah 17:9

The Solution

If the problem is me… how do we solve it? Just because we can say, “I know… I need to change…” doesn’t help matters. We don’t have the ability to change. Paul said, “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice” (Romans 7:19). We can’t change ourselves. It’s impossible! That’s the point. Romans 7 ends with “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?“

Thankfully, Paul continues on in the next verses to give us the solution. He tells us the answer to our problems is “through Jesus Christ” (Romans 7:25) in the form of the “Spirit of life” (Romans 8:2). Through Jesus Christ’s death, we can now have His Spirit, His vitality, His mental disposition, His power, His life… We don’t have to be us. We can be Him, completely changed from the inside out.

But even as Christians, we are never free from the conflict between our flesh, and His Spirit. “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other” (Galatians 5:17). The Holy Spirit is not pushy. We must continually choose to go His way, to be led by Him, to live according to His will. We can experience his love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and self-control. But these results will only come by killing our flesh… with its passions and desires (Galatians 5:16-25). They cannot both survive…

“For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”
Galatians 6:8

We must surrender all…

Imagine

Imagine sitting down in a wet camp chair. It’s cold. You are a long way from snuggling up in your warm home. You brought your tent and are committed to camping, though it has all the potential of being a miserable night. And your spouse isn’t too excited about the idea either. A lot of your friends have already bowed out of this adventure (and for good reason). Then you realize you forgot your pot for heating your coffee in the morning… And on top of that, all the food items you brought are cold serve (i.e. salads, nuts).

Yet there I was… perfectly content. Not because the weather was going to change. Nor because of any external circumstances. I was just sitting there… so thankful and so blessed. It really didn’t make any sense. And then it did…

April 1, 2021 Pastor Jason Gilbert | Menomonie

I have a vivid memory of being a young boy, riding in the back seat of my parent’s car, traveling through one of the Dakota states, on our way to somewhere… for vacation. My walkman was the only thing I had to pass the time, other than looking out the window. Someone (likely my older sister) had given me a cassette tape of Amy Grant. I think Amy Grant was one of a half dozen Christian artists at that time… Christian music really wasn’t a thing yet… for anybody… but I had nothing better to do.

Looking back, I don’t remember that vacation… But I do remember listening to the lyrics of Amy Grant on the way to it. One song really caught my attention. It was titled “Thy Word”…

The Lyrics

I played that track over and over. I think I began to sing it out loud… until I realized my parents were in the car too, and that wasn’t cool. But the lyrics went like this…

Our Questions

Often we argue that God’s word doesn’t give specific direction to our life’s questions. Where should I live? Should I stay at my current job or not? Is this hobby ok? Should I buy this? Am I supposed to pursue this relationship? How should I deal with my family? Who should I confide in? Where should I go to church? How much should I be a part of it?

And God’s word doesn’t answer those questions… if we are only looking to it for specific names and places (i.e., Jane in Menomonie). At this point, many of us neglect God’s word, assuming it doesn’t have all the answers we need (2 Peter 1:3). We decide on a way that seems to be right for us, only to discover its bitter end later on (Proverbs 14:12).

His Answers

But if we pay close attention, God’s words warn us of a path we are not to take… and reveal a direction we are to take…

Consider any of your life’s questions in the light of His words below. In what way do these words lead you?

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1 John 2:15

You shall have no other gods before me.
Deuteronomy 5:7

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.
Mark 12:30

If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away… And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away…
Matthew 5:29-30

For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.
Mark 8:35

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 6:33

These words don’t give us any specific names or places… But they guide us in the path we are to walk.,. and what ways to avoid. And if we follow the right path, we will eventually discover the specific names and places we were looking for (Psalm 16:11).

The Impact

I have no idea of the cumulative impact those words in the car that day had upon my life, but they certainly weren’t lost on me. They would take me somewhere… I just didn’t know where.

Would those words prompt me to seek a Christian campus organization? Did they help me find Believers Church? Would they lead me to step into ministry? Did they bring me to a godly spouse, to my life’s soul-mate? Would they guide me into my life’s calling? Will they end in the fulfillment of my life’s purpose? I believe they have… and they will…

What about you? What path are you on? Where is it taking you?

We cannot overestimate the impact of God’s Word upon our life’s direction. May we carefully examine it before taking our next step. May it provide the light we need for our path ahead. And may it lead us into all that God has destined for our life here and forever after.