LesLamb.ca

Life Story – Wendell Sosa

Les Lamb — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 03:29:14 +0000

On Sunday, we baptized Wendell. Wendell is fairly new to the church, and he’s a great guy, with a beautiful family. God has done a lot for him! Check this clip out to hear his story:

Life Story – Stephanie Greene

Les Lamb — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:03:10 +0000

This past Sunday, we had two great baptismal services at OCC. If you weren’t here, you missed some great stories, as people shared what Christ has done in their lives. I still need to obtain permission from some of them before I can share their videos online, but for now I can start with Stephanie’s:

Personal Cleansing

Les Lamb — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 19:03:37 +0000

This morning, Pastor Frank preached on this passage, talking about our need for personal cleansing. As I was reflecting on this story, I realized we often try to cleanse ourselves the wrong way, as Naaman wanted to do, and complain there is no change in our lives.

Naaman was from the kingdom of Syria, or Aram. As the commander of its army, his loyalty was to his own nation. This is why he was offended when Elisha told him to wash himself in the Jordan river, in Israel, for cleansing. He was used to raiding Israel, and taking its children as slaves, not coming to its rivers for healing, as though his own kingdom could not solve such problems.

This story isn’t just about rivers and washing. It’s also about two kingdoms. We demonstrate Naaman’s attitude when we come to the kingdom of God seeking blessing, then opt for the rivers of Aram anyway, because we like them better. Funny how we know they don’t work, but we’d rather return to the rivers of psychiatry, philosophy, entertainment, materialism, good works, and denial time and again.

When he humbled himself, Naaman experienced something in the rivers of the kingdom of God that he had never found in all the rivers of Aram. What else could make a proud Syrian patriot proclaim that there is no god in any other nation than in Israel?

“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.” (Ps. 46: 4)

Have you sought cleansing, and been left feeling as though you still were not clean? Even after all these years, there is STILL power in the blood of Christ. Only He can wash away guilt, shame and regret, and truly cleanse us on the inside, where we need it most.

All or Nothing Thinking

Les Lamb — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:26:15 +0000

Dr. David Burns has identified 10 thinking distortions that get us in trouble. One of them, he calls “all or nothing thinking.” When I was younger, I used to do this all the time, but I learned over time to let it go. Maybe you’ve done this before, too:

If I don’t have one hour for my devotional time, I won’t do it at all.
If I blew my diet once, the whole week is a write-off.
If I can’t clean the whole house at once, why just do part of it?
If I can’t do a perfect job, I won’t do it at all.

My guess is, you’ve already blown it this year. But one or two failures doesn’t diminish your other successes. So give yourself a break, and don’t let anyone steal your initiative. Don’t be an all or nothing person. Be a do-what-you-can’er, and you’ll be surprised at how much more you accomplish. And with a lot less stress.

The Spirit of Entitlement

Les Lamb — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 14:01:01 +0000

The other day I was approached by a young, able bodied stranger who caught me outside the church as I was picking up my daughter from a music practice. We had a strange conversation, but unfortunately it was not an unusual one. He asked me for some money, and told me he attends the church. Funny, I had never seen him there before. When I didn’t give him what he wanted, he presumed it was because I had money on me at that moment and refused to give it to him. I asked him why he actually seemed to expect me to give him money. “Well you’re like a brother to me,” he said. Hmmm. “But I’ve never met you before. How can we be like brothers?”

He then became quite sarcastic, saying he wasn’t going to come to the church anymore “now that he knew what we’re all about.” He went from appearing extremely polite and humble, even feigning kinship, to becoming presumptuous, rude, judgmental and insulting. All because I didn’t give him a couple bucks. I guess my hunch was right all along…..I wasn’t “like a brother” to him at all.

Have we as a society taught people like this that they somehow deserve a handout from others, that it is their inalienable right?

Thanks from E.A. Lovell

Les Lamb — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:50:59 +0000

This Christmas, we gathered food and household supplies to help the returning education students at E.A. Lovell School. This week, I received this thank-you letter from Monica McClure, of E.A. Lovell’s staff.

Hi Les: On behalf of the students and staff at Durham Continuing Education, we would like to thank you and the members of your church for thinking of us again this year.
Because of your generous donations we were able to add 19 more food hampers to our raffle, with a total of 27 food hampers. The food hampers were very popular with the students and they were grateful for your support.

The Durham Region Police Services also donated toys, and the staff at the school donated gift baskets. All together we had 270 students who benefited from the raffle. The raffle also served to get all of us in the festive spirit!

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year. Thank you for being such caring neighbours! Monica

Thanks to everyone at OCC who pitched in and helped once more to make a difference in our community.

New Blog for Young Adults!

Les Lamb — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 20:07:14 +0000

Our Young Adults at OCC just started a new blog. Check it out!

If You Need It, He’ll Give It

Les Lamb — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:47:41 +0000

Of all the things Pastor Harold MacLaryea said this past weekend, I can’t get this statement out of my mind:

If you need it to serve Him, He’ll give it to you.

In context, Harold was talking about our compulsive seeking after the latest gadget, convenience and comfort.

Last week I did a funeral for a lady who’s been coming to our church for a few months. Her life personified this attitude. I learned from her family that though she was on a disability pension, she would buy dented cans at the supermarket and deny even a corn dog for herself at the fair, so she could save every penny to spend on missions trips to preach the gospel. The week before last, I was praying with her on her deathbed. Her prayer? She prayed not for herself, but for souls.

Thanks to a timely word of truth from a man of God, and the godly example of a devout woman, I’m beginning to reconsider my attitude toward material things. Instead of rushing out to buy the latest thing I want, I’ll be asking myself the question: “Do I need this to serve Him?” And I’ll be reminding myself, “If you need it to serve Him, He’ll give it to you.”