Author Archives: Pastor Bill Finch

Hello! Thank you for dropping by to check out the blog! My goal is not to pretend to be an expert but rather to be an encouraging companion on the road of life! If what you read is helpful to you, please share with others who you know could use some encouragement! God bless!

The Reality of the Storm

Human beings have the tendency to group together according to language, race, religion and even sports teams!  We like to be with people who think like us and like the same things we enjoy and experience. Resultado de imagen para storms

There is one category of experience that all human beings go through that ties us together. Every person passes through some kind of negative experience. From health, to relationships, to finances, to difficulties at the place of employment, or with the government,  or the sad experience when someone we love suddenly dies, and those who suffer persecution for what they believe.  Job 5:7 expresses it in the following way: “Yet man is born to trouble as surely as  sparks fly upward.”

Here is the question: How do we survive the trouble? How can we make it through? And, what is God after when bad things happen to good people? I think there are 3 things that we need to keep in mind:

  1. The storms of life are common to all people. They will come to everyone on the planet in one form or another.
  2. When we pass through life’s storms we learn who really is in charge.  Every human on the planet likes to think that he/she is in total charge of everything. We believe we are little ‘gods’ who rule and reign. When the storms come we learn quickly that we are not independent creatures left to our own design. We learn that God has a reason for everything that happens and for when it happens.
  3. We learn that when we do pass through the storms of life that we need God! The great biblical example is Job. He needed to know that God could intervene at any time for any reason. Job needed to know that God was God! The storms in life teach us that God is so good that He reminds us our need for Him everyday. So don’t try and go it alone! Ask for His wisdom to teach you the lessons He is trying to have you learn.

In Mark 4, the disciples are with Jesus in a boat! Wouldn’t you love to have Jesus in your boat? Suddenly a storm explodes around them, their become afraid, but Jesus is in their boat! Why were they afraid? They thought, like we do in the storms of life, that Jesus doesn’t care! Here are His words to these trembling sailors, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith.?”

Disciples should know their Master. You and I should know the Master. But we often forget who is in the boat of life with us. God is reminding us that He is always showing us how much we need Him. I am just beginning to learn that lesson. How are you doing with this, my friend?

God is Always Good


Have you ever made plans that were full of dreams and hopes? You thought to yourself, “This is it, it is exactly what I need tohappen!” Only to find out that for one reason or another it is not going to happen. Just this week, I am wrestling with just this topic. I find myself again sitting quietly before the Lord worshipping Him for His goodness and divine sovereignty.  

Many people wrestle with the question of the goodness of God in situations much worse than what ai am currently experiencing. I could spend the rest of the blog mentioning them but they are obvious to us, Life hurt, it is hard and sometimes, quite frankly, just stinks!
So I come back to Psalm 118 today and park my life beside it. I read that God is good and that His mercy endures forever, and that I should praise Him with that mercy in the front of my thoughts. I come to realize that what I need most is not to have my own dreams and desires granted but live in the wonder of being a sinner who has fallen short of the glory of God and been granted mercy! That is true goodness! That is a gift that I ought to meditate on and rejoice in everyday of my best life!

Today, the sun came up, and God continues to show His mercy to you and me. He invites us to cast our care upon Him because He cares for us! Today is a good day, my friend, because God continues to be God and His love endures forever! Therefore, if we apply 1 John 2:27 to remain in Him, we will be able to live rejoicing in His goodness!

Is God trustworthy 

Is it worth the risk to trust God? Or to put it another way…

Is common sense “common” in Christians?
It is often said, “I will not believe it until I see it for myself!” Even one of the most famous characters of the Bible said, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Thomas has been severely criticized by preachers and other believers alike for his unbelief however many of us act in the same way when it comes to the practical issues of life. Can I trust God with my future? Can I trust God with my children? If I am faithful financially in my local church, will God be faithful to me?
More than 20 years ago, our family went out as fully supported missionaries. But when we started the project we didn’t have any money and no one who was going to pray for us. But we can share that because of God’s faithfulness to us, we never lacked anything in our service for God.  
We often want the guarantee first before we respond to follow the plan. But it never works that way with God. Even in the work of salvation, God says, “Trust in me, believe what I have said to you!”  
God is always faithful to His Word, Always! If you think there is something that He has missed, hang on, God has it all under His control. It is always worth trusting what He has said!

The Priorities of Life

The Priorities of Life
There are many demands in life. Demands for our time, our attention, call to us at the most inappropriate time. These things are not bad in and of themselves but at times distract us.
The great problem we face is that we have a limited amount of time available. We cannot be everywhere, and it is impossible for us to help all those who need our help. Everyone of us has a limit of 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. That is it, there is no more.
The question we face is, “How are we going to invest that time?” In Matthew 6, Jesus explains to the disciples what ought to be number one in our lives. In the midst of all the voices calling for our attention, there ought to be one that stands out.
Personally, I have decided to put God in the first place of priority in my life. 
 I have determined that I will serve Him as the Person of Priority. At the same time I will serve people out of that priority. There are certainly challenges but that is the line I have drawn.

How are you doing? Who has priority in your life?
  

The Secret that is Not

You often here that there is a secret formula for a restaurant item, or a secret to becoming rich and famous! Unfortunately, some who claim to be Christians have reduced success in the Christian life to the same foolishness.

It would seem that some believers may have a special inside track to spiritual success when we look at them from the outside. Here is a news item for you toIn Times Like These's photo.day, a secret formula for walking with God and being successful in your profession does not exist!

The Apostle Paul told the Christians at Corinth that to live a life that honoured God five attitudes they needed to develop. The longer I live for Christ, the more I observe that Paul’s pastoral counsel is right on!

Everyday you and I must be on guard because there are enemies that want to destroy our walk with God. We must stand firm in the truth of God’s Word! We must be courageous to live out our faith in the midst of people who love sin. We must maintain our strength in the Lord. Finally, we do all of this marked by and marking others with the same love God has for us!

If we repeat these attitudes everyday, we will be successful in God’s eyes. No secret here, only obedience and trust is required!

The Best News Ever

You and I are bombarded with thousands of messages every single day! With all of those, it is very easy for us to lose our way in everything we hear everyday.

Continue reading “The Best News Ever”

Why We Celebrate

If you take a quick look around on this 24th day of December you would think something big is going down!

Today, we are on the cusp of celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Over the past month we have been rehearsing the events and the characters in the drama of his birth. We could fill many books studying these important characters in the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy, and we would be right to do so. However, all of this reading, studying and putting ourselves in the shoes of these characters would be an empty pursuit if it were not for one thing.

The thing that makes Jesus birth so important is the reason for which came. If he was just a good example for us on how to live then we are kind of wasting our time, for many people are worthy of following their example. But only one person ,the God man, the Messiah, the son of God was born to reconcile God and man.

The good news of the gospel is that Jesus Christ born of woman, born without sin, and born to become the sacrifice for our sin. This is what makes Christmas important. If we divorce our celebration of the events of Christmas from the reason for which Jesus came then we are left with tinsel, wrapping paper, and a quote on quote “nice holiday”.

We can sum up the Christmas story with this verse from Romans chapter 6 verse 23, “for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.” And we live in the attitude of gratitude, “thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” (2 Cor. 9:15)

That is what gives Christmas it’s meaning!

The Age of Being Disagreeable

We are living in an age where everyone believes they are right.  Have you noticed?  There is a war of ideas, thoughts and words that makes enemies of friends and separates the closest of friends.  Pick any topic and the debate can quickly erode into name-calling and hard feelings.  Unfortunately, this is even true in the church.

Here is the question that I have been asking myself,  “How can we demonstrate love even in the midst of disagreement?”  Is that even possible?  I believe that it is.  Now, before you call my psychiatrist and book an appointment for me, let me tell you what I mean (I don’t have one, sorry to worry you!).  There are very few issues that are so black and white that I need to draw a line in the sand to dare others to cross it.

It seems to me that we who confess the Name of Jesus Christ, have neglected the role of prayer and the Holy Spirit.  If I am walking with integrity of character while seeking to glorify God in my relationship with Him and in my relationship with others, I am equipped with what I need to love others the way God has loved me.  In the name of openness and honesty, I need to tell you that I have not always thought this way. I was a huge proponent of drawing a line in the sand! And, as a result it cost me at least three ministries that I love very much!  Yes, I am a slow learner!

Our model for this type of attitude is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.  He often taught that we are to love our enemies and pray for those who treat us disrespectfully. He was quite the revolutionary to say the least!   I have been in church congregational and missionary meetings where the words of Jesus were not the ideal! In fact, they were down right laid aside and forgotten!  They were painful meetings to be a part of, very painful!

We must remember to practice the ethic of God’s love, His agape love, His selfless love in the midst of those situations. God is working out His plan in both you and the person or situation you are dealing with.  I read recently that we will never be able to say that we are right when we are wrong in the way we express ourselves.  There are very few situations that allow me to treat another person with disrespect and not miss the blessing of God in my own life.

In every situation God is working out His plan. It is His plan that we love one another and seek the greatest good in the lives of others.  I always want to ask myself in whatever situation that I am in, “How can I best express the love of Jesus in this situation?”  Sometimes, that means I need to be quiet and let the Spirit of God do what He does best!  I am learning that every person I meet, every meeting I participate in, God’s plan is of greater importance that my own personal agenda!

It is my prayer that you and I learn to express ourselves in such a way that people are left with the aroma of the gospel of Christ, an aroma that is sweet, encouraging and filled with His love!

Running to Win the Race

running to win

 

As often as I have watched the Olympic games, I have never seen a medal ceremony that included just the participants! It is those who finish, and finish well that are standing on the podium. There are examples of this all through the Bible.  One such example is King Uzziah.

Continue reading “Running to Win the Race”