JOHN SHIRK – With initiative, we have the incentive to begin or follow through with a plan.

For the follower of Jesus, initiatives should have their starting place with God’s Word. God speaks, and as we listen, we are moved to take action. It might be something we read in the Bible. It might be through a burden or passion that God is placing in our heart. If that is the case, the initiative that God calls us to do will be consistent with the mission of Jesus to bring about freedom and healing for people in His name.

Initiative is not about what we are able to do for God on our own strength. It’s about God working in us to act according to His good purpose. His love for people stirs us to a mission, so that we become active participants rather than passive bystanders in the way we live life. James 1:22 says, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

Initiative is a character quality that enables us to represent Jesus in the world today.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

STACEY GAGNE –

Yesterday I was sitting in the Passport Health Office realizing it had been almost exactly a year (off by one day) that I was there!  Some of you may remember my trip to Ethiopia with Compassion International last October.   It was my very first missions trip on my very first passport and really was life changing.   Yesterday  it was time to update some immunizations for another adventure!

I’m excited to tell you that I am preparing to travel this October to Jacmel, Haiti!  I will be traveling with a team going to work with Joy in Hope, a ministry whose vision is to:

“support, encourage and build Haitian families in order to provide them with the spiritual, educational cultural and physical foundation needed to impact their community, their nation and the world for Christ.   Joy In Hope accomplishes its mission through three branches of ministry: children’s homes, churches and schools and numerous outreach efforts such as educational programs, evangelism, feeding and nutritional programs and medical clinics. Each of these avenues allows Joy In Hope to provide a Christ-centered model for serving in the local community.”  

Our team of 9 from several different states will be joining together to bless this community that is still recovering from the earthquake.   It’s also a special trip for me because I’ll be traveling with some friends I have made through volunteering at Creation Festival as well as making some new ones.  Also,  my friends Gwenn and Nick and their family are on staff with Joy in Hope and live in Jacmel.  The leader of our trip is Denise, Gwenn’s mom.   I expect that it will be a special trip in many ways and I’m thrilled to introduce the WJTL audience to my friends at Joy in Hope.

Some things we’ll be doing there as a team may include home construction,  distribution of diapers,  formula and other supplies,  working on the land where the Children’s Home is to be built and just generally being an encouragement to the community there in whatever ways we can as we share the Love of Jesus.

I am excited to have the opportunity to serve on this team and share my experiences with the WJTL listening audience.   Tune in during the week of October 24th as I report to you live from Jacmel, Haiti!  .   Thanks for keeping our team in your prayers.

Preparing for the Adventure!

Stacey

JOHN SHIRK – In harmony, relationships can be like a song.  Different notes blending together to form a beautiful song. While they are different, the notes are compatible to one another. This is how healthy relationships function:  Two or more individuals, with different personalities and talents that are compatible for relationships to thrive.

Romans 12:16 urges believers in Jesus to “live in harmony with one another.”  If everyone in the church were supposed to be playing the same note, the Bible would have instructed us to live in uniformity, rather than harmony. However, the church is described in First Corinthians 12 as “having many parts, but one body.”  When we blend together in a spirit of cooperation for the purpose of glorifying God, diversity becomes a dynamic force for unity, rather than disunity. The important factor that keeps harmony in place is for each part to stay in tune with Jesus. “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.”

Harmony is a character quality that enables us to represent Jesus in the world today.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Serenity is the state of being calm and peaceful.  Sometimes, serenity might reflect a gentle sunrise over the horizon.  However, serenity might also look like the eye of a hurricane, with calmness in the midst of a raging storm.

Jesus is the one who spoke to a storm and said, “Quiet! Be still!” And the wind died down, and it was completely calm.  Jesus is the source of our serenity.  He can calm our fears and breathe peace into our troubling circumstances.

Philippians 4:6 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Serenity is a character quality that enables us to represent Jesus in the world today.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

FRED MCNAUGHTON – We are excited to announce that WJTL was voted “Favorite Radio Station” in the Lancaster Newspapers 11th Annual Readers Choice Awards!  Thank you to all our listeners and thank you Lancaster Newspapers for giving us this opportunity!

JOHN SHIRK – To be authentic is to be believable or trustworthy. Another definition of authenticity is the quality of being genuine and not corrupted.

This is the kind of faith that God is calling His people to live out.  The call to authenticity shows up in places like Romans 12:9 which says, “Love must be sincere.”  And First Peter 1:7, which explains that God permits trials in our lives so that our faith might be proved genuine, and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

The perfect example of authenticity is Jesus.   He did not just say that He loved us. He expressed it at the cross, and continues to reach out with His love to invite us to know Him as Lord and Savior. With the focus of our faith on Jesus, His authentic love will become our brilliant influence.  His Word challenges us to walk the talk. First John 2:6 says, “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”

Authenticity is a character quality that enables us to represent Jesus in the world today.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – A good melody is a tune that is pleasant to the ears.  One of the key elements in many worship services is music.  That is because God’s people have been given a song in our heart, and that song reflects gratitude to God for His saving grace and His highest glory.

Psalm 40, verse 3 says, “He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.”

Christian music can be used of God as an instrument of praise to bring glory to the name of Jesus. Songs can also be words of instruction to people, explaining the message of forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Melodiousness is a quality that enables us to represent Jesus in the world today.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

WJTL’s Kristi Leigh is introduced to Shine Bright Baby, their special skills, and their awesome music.

KRISTI LEIGH — Today when I got to work, Eddie was pretty excited to show me what came in the mail.  It was a thank you note from the new band Shine Bright Baby!  (It was our first-ever thank you note from a band interviewed at a festival, so it really meant a lot!)  We met and interviewed them at Creation this year and had an absolute blast!  They’re lots of fun and to top it all off, their music is pretty impressive.  You’ll have to check out their interview video when Eddie posts it in the next couple of days.  Good times indeed!

Kristi Leigh

Kristi@WJTL.com

JOHN SHIRK – One definition of “evaluation” is “an assessment of strengths and weaknesses.”

When taking a look at our own strengths and weaknesses, it takes  honesty and humility to get to the truth of the matter.

Sometimes, we get a better understanding of where we are in our relationship with God by reading the Bible. We can take a look at certain passages that talk about God’s will for our lives.  Then ask ourselves, “Is this true of me?” Or we can go directly to God in prayer for His perspective on our hearts.  This is what David did in Psalm 139.  He prayed in verse 23, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

An honest evaluation of ourselves is a productive exercise for spiritual growth, helping us to see through our blind spots that need attention, so that we can better live out the true virtues of the Christian faith.

Honest evaluation of ourselves is a quality that enables us to represent Jesus in the world today.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com