Join us on March 8th for a great evening together!

PLEASE JOIN US FOR DELICIOUS HONDURAN COFFEE , DESSERT AND AN EVENING TOGETHER ON MARCH 8TH. 

How does a dessert and coffee sound along with a fun night of listening to some stories from Honduras from the lives of Alexandra and Mateo?   They are working through SOR Mission to bring hope and life to those who are so needy in Honduras.

They will be in Whatcom County in March for a few weeks and they would really appreciate if you would join them for a fun night of dessert, friends, pictures and some stories of what they have been doing through their ministry in Honduras, Central America.  This event is to inform you as to what they are doing as well as helping them to raise some needed capital for their support and work once they return.

Please send an email to their address in the box “Contact us” or simply make a comment below for us to contact you.  We would like to have a RSVP to allow the gracious hosts at Lynden United Methodist Church to have a well planned evening together.

Our missionaries will provide delicious Honduran coffee for the evening and if you are able to provide your favorite dessert for this fun night, it would be greatly appreciated.

We look forward to seeing you on March 8^th at Lynden United Methodist Church at 500 14^th Street in Lynden, WA 98264.   Remember to RSVP

 

Is the rose the symbol for Valentine’s Day in Canada and the United States?

In my research from various sources on the Internet, I find that Saint Valentine of Terni, (Rome, Italy) from whom we named this special day was martyred during the reign of the Roman Emperor Aurelian somewhere around the year 196 A.D.   There is also mentioned  St. Valentine from Africa; however, I think St. Valentine from Rome is the most reliable source of this saint.

Little is known of his life except that he was appointed bishop of Interamna (now Terni near Rome) in the year 197AD and died shortly thereafter.   He was apparently imprisoned, tortured and beheaded on the Via Flaminia in Rome for his Christian faith on the order of a Roman prefect named Placido Furio.  Interestingly enough his first name means calm in Spanish, but his last name might give us a better clue as to his real nature….Furio…meaning Furious.  The  decapitation of Valentine supposedly occurred on February 14^th but that is not certain.  Hence St. Valentine’s Day is celebrated on February 14th.

The feast of St. Valentine on February 14 was first established in 496 by Pope Gelasius I of Rome, who included Valentine among all those “… whose names are justly reverenced among men, but whose acts are known only to God.“  To pursue further his sketchy history in 1836 some items (remains)  were exhumed from the burial site of St. Hippolytus from the Via Tiburtina near Rome.  These remains supposedly  were identified in part as those of St Valentine and were subsequently placed in a casket, and transported in a religious procession to a church for a high mass which was dedicated to those in love.  Thus today  we celebrate St. Valentine’s Day as the the day of love and friendship in Canada and the USA.

However, the question still remains with me as to what is true love.  Is love merely celebrating a day on which we gift roses, chocolates, items of endearment and such or is there a deeper significance of love as shown to us from the  antiquity of the past? Let’s examine this for a moment before we leave this subject and the day passes to the 15th of February.

1.      The Bible says that God so loved the world that he GAVE.

Yes he gave his only Son so that those who believe in Him will not be eternally separated from God’s presence when we pass from time and space to Eternity.

2.     The Bible defines exactly what true love is. 

It says in I John 3:16-17 that “We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?”

3.     Perfect Love is manifested when we love our neighbor. 

I John 4:11-12 says that, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we too should love one another. For God has never been seen by anyone, but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is realized in us.

4.    Are we afraid to love more? 

I John 4:18 says that, “Where there is love there is no fear. Rather, perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment. So if someone is afraid, they have not come to love perfectly.”

1. The Conclusion:  In reviewing what love is I find in I Corinthians 13:4-7 that the characteristics of love are:

Love is patient and kind, not envious or boastful, not arrogant, 5 does not do anything improper, not selfish or angry, not hateful, 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but clings to the joy of the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres.

Our love then, if we truly possess it, is to give our love away in action and sacrificial living in helping others.  We quoted from I John 3 in Point 2 above that true love is to give our lives for our brothers and sisters.

I am not saying that we need to follow St. Valentine’s example of dying a martyr’s death, but I believe a daily dying to self is what the Bible is making clear to us.  By putting others as more important than we ourselves, we are in fact dying to our own personal desires so that we can help those in need.

Are you willing this Valentine’s Day 2013 to ask the Creator God to help you die to yourself so you can begin to understand true love and the depth of this love we feel as we give our lives to serve others?

Today is your day to embark on this journey.  Millions have done it before and they have entered into the joy and rest of their Almighty Creator God.  Will you join me in giving your life to God as a living sacrifice to be used in helping others as he leads you?

Joyfully Submitted,

Mateo