If we are the Body. A Challange to the church today

 Read and listen to the lyrics of this song. I believe it challenges the church to a higher level. Two parts of the song stood out to me.

“CHORUS
But if we are the Body
Why aren’t His arms reaching
Why aren’t His hands healing
Why aren’t His words teaching
And if we are the Body
Why aren’t His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way”

The chorus of the song reminded for me of the truth that the Church is the body of Christ, and that the parts of the body have specific, very important purposes. I was reminded of 1 Corinthians 12:19-25.

“If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.”

Let us remember that the church is the body of Christ, not that the Baptists are the body of Christ and the Pentecostals are another body of Christ, but that we are all the body of christ, " Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. (1 Corinthians 12:27)”

Christ is the head of one body, and that is the Body of Christ.


 It's crowded in worship today
As she slips in
Trying to fade into the faces
The girls' teasing laughter is carrying farther than they know
Farther than they knowCHORUS
But if we are the Body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the Body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way
There is a wayA traveler is far away from home
He sheds his coat
And quietly sinks into the back row
The weight of their judgmental glances tells him that his chances
Are better out on the roadCHORUS
But if we are the Body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the Body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a wayJesus paid much too high a price
For us to pick and choose who should come
And we are the Body of ChristChorus (2x)
If we are the body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a wayJesus is the way

PRAYER REQUESTS from Quebec City regarding Gospel distribution

God used the recent outreach in Quebec to stir-up the hearts of the people in Quebec City. The following is a list of prayer request received by the prayer lines.

Please prayer for these people. Although you may not know them, they have reached out to the Church of Jesus Christ to make their requests known unto God. Pray for them as requested, but please also pray that they would come to know the Christ who by his death bought for them the mercy that sustains their lives and the way the father.

Pray also for many others who received bibles. Declare that God’s word never returns empty, that these bibles WILL bring people to Christ.

Below are the detailed request from a small percentage of respondents;

Aline from Beloeil, is asking for our prayers. Robert, her 44 year old son is depressed and doesn¹t enjoy life anymore.

Carole, also from Beloeil, is a Christian, but she has a problem with alcohol. She says she keeps falling in this old sin, these days. She is very sad. Part of her problem resides in the fact that her husband drinks too. She would like the Lord to help her stop drinking. May He give her strength.

Gilles from Longueuil, a Christian, stays with an unsaved woman. His pastor knows about this situation. Please pray that the Lord gives him courage and wisdom in this situation, as he seems to be torn apart between his pastor and that woman.

Mrs Therrien from Terrebonne, wants us to pray for her health. She is suffering from arthritis. The pain is very severe from her lower back, down to her feet.

Pierre from Chicoutimi asks for our prayers. He would like the social worker to find him another place to stay, as his actual landlord acts violently towards him. He would like to move out.

Richard G. from Montreal. Please pray that the Lord delivers him from the covetousness of his eyes. He wants to remain faithful to Him and constantly asks forgiveness. He wants to grow in His grace and be filled with His Holy Spirit.

Mr. Geoffrion, a Christian, would like us to pray for his daughter Judie. She is a Christian, but she now has a boy in her life. She is slowly drifting apart from her assembly and from her Bible reading. She has even gone away to stay with her unsaved friend. May the Lord protect and keep her, give her wisdom, and finally bring her back to Him.

Sophie from Iberville, is a Christian and an epileptic. She is very discouraged. She would like to start reading the Bible again, be more concentrated when she reads, be positive, and also get outside the house to make some friends. Let us pray for Sophie.

Therese from St-Jerome, is a Christian. But before her conversion, she was involved with occultism, and was in contact with Œshamans¹. Today, she is suffering form acute pain in her side. She thinks it is a punishment from God. She asks for our prayers, so she may be relieved of this pain.

Yannick, a lady from Longueuil, is asking for our prayers so her fellowship with God may be restored. She feels very far from him, but she does not know why.

Fellowship French Mission Financial Needs

Make a difference in French Missions

As an individual: Your prayers and financial support will contribute to the spread of the gospel. Would you consider a one-time gift or signing up to give on a regular basis? You could also make a contribution in the future by including the Fellowship French Mission in your will.

As a church: We trust that as a church or missionary committee you will prayerfully consider including the Fellowship French Mission in your church budget. It’s one way to fulfill the Great Commission and gives you a window into the life of a missionary and a French church on Canadian soil.

Missionary Support Needs
Updated January, 2009 (Next update April 2009)

The amounts listed in red represent a monthly shortfall in the missionaries’ support needs. 

Sylvain and Carmen Belval (Saint-Liboire, QC) $480/month
Jean-Pascal and Jeanne Besrest (Baie-Comeau, QC) $685/month
Ricardo and Ingrid Castro (Côte-des-Neiges, QC) $845/month
Robert and Jackie Charpentier (Montréal-Nord, QC) $185/month
Jacob and Philomène Chéry (Haitian-Montreal, QC) $165/month
Maurice and Vicky Cloutier (Sainte-Anne-des-Monts, QC) $2475/month
Gabriel and Nita Cotnoir (Resource Person) $220/month
Terry and Elaine Cuthbert (Church Planting Director) $655/month
David and Ruth Dobson (Director) $635/month
Daniel and Chantal Gagné (Saint-Constant, QC) $585/month
Jean-Pierre and Julie Gagné (Saint-Césaire, QC) $330/month
Réjean and Danielle Joly (Charlesbourg, QC) $260/month
Cléo and Huguette Leblanc (New Richmond, QC) $305/month
Éric and Sonia Leblanc (Cowansville, QC) $460/month
Israël and Nadia LeGuédard (Gaspé, QC) $995/month
Daniel and Marie Marcoux (Sainte-Thérèse, QC) $340/month
Marianne Petit-Clerc (Translator/Montreal, QC) $1145/month
Gilles and Monique Saulnier (Saint-Hubert, QC) $375/month
Claude and Carole Vachon (Hochelaga/Maisonneuve, QC)  $60/month
Renald Veilleux (Waterloo, QC) $705/month
Michel and Julie Vincent (Laval-Est, QC) $190/month

The following missionary couples are currently fully supported. If a missionary that you support is listed as fully supported, it does not mean they no longer need your support. Your faithful support has helped them reach full support and will help them to remain there.

Claude and Vinca Beaulieu (Rimouski, QC)
Yves and Lise Décary (Sorel/Tracy, QC)
Hugo and Lyne Éthier (Rivière-du-Loup, QC)
John and Lise Francis (Chibougamau, QC)
Israël and Agnès Godfrey (Matane, QC)
Michel and Annette Houle (Bury, QC)
Guy and Manon Lavoie (AGEEQ/JBEQ)
Gilles and Michelle Paquin (Châteauguay, QC)
Alain and Jacinthe Ringuette (Grand-Sault, NB)

Click here to  give to French Missions!

In closing we want to say a special thank you to all who faithfully support our missionaries.  We want to remind our missionaries and our financial partners who invest in God’s work that “My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:19)

Reposted from http://www.frenchmissions.org

Prayer requests from the Ligue du Testament de Poche du Quebec

I received a prayer request email from  Benjamin Bellemare the Chairman of the ”Ligue du Testament de Poche du Québec” To learn more about the ministry check out their website http://ltp-quebec.ca/fr/node/53 He sent the following requests; Pray for:

-Members of the league, because the league is its members that compose it, so that we may always build on the rock that is Jesus. That we may persevere and be humble remembering ourselves the commandments to love God and love one another, growing constantly by the knowledge of God.

-All the people touched in a way or in another by God through the LTP-Q, that God may save many and that He may make them grow. 1 Corinthians 3: 6-9, Colossians 1: 9-11

-That we may create and keep solid links with the others Pocket Testament Leagues in the world.

-That the communication and correspondence may be clear and effective.

-That the LTP-Q gets to be more known in the Christian milieu in order to exhort and encourage Christians to evangelize according to the will of God.

-That God direct all collaborations with the different churches and ministries so that the glory of God may be manifest through Christians in deed and truth. 1 Peter 4: 11, 1 John 3:18

-The LTP-Q team, so that God directs each decision for His glory. Psalms 115:1

-That we may be considerate to the word of God.

A Report from Daria Tomiuk from 24-7Prayer.com

2009 is off to a great start within 24-7 Prayer Canada – a lot is happening! We’re only 12 days into the year and there has already been 7 prayer room set up and more on the way. This week a church in Weyburn, Saskatchewan and

Greenfield Park, Quebec are praying non-stop all week. The church in Greenfield Park is praying specifically for transformation in Quebec, currently the largest mission field in

North America. Please keep these two communities in your prayers this week; God has been doing amazing work through these prayer rooms.

I just got report from a church who prayed last week; this is what the pastor wrote: Our week of prayer has been going great. We have had a great response for the church and community around us. We don’t need anything specific just a few prayers that things continue to go well and positively. We are seeing people who have never come to church - come and experience God. Last year at this time our church went through a horrible death of a youth within the church - due to an overdose. But family members have been coming regularly and I prayed with one youth who is about 14 and said that he felt like their was a rope around his neck, and he couldn’t breathe or barely handle living. After we prayed and he spent time in the room - he came to me and said that the rope is gone and he feels free and can finally move on. So God is being gracious and good. Thanks for checking in, grace and peace,This is just one example of how God is working through these focused times of prayer, it’s truly amazing!

Gospel of John Distribution in Trois-Riviere

The outreach in Quebec City this summer has helped produce the vision for similar outreach projects in the future. Next summer, July 28 through August 2 2009, there will be another distribution of the Gospel of John in French in Trois- Rivieres, (hopefully 100,000 copies) a city with a population of approximately 130,000. However, with the surrounding region considered, the outreach would include a population of 200,000 - 250,000. In 2010 the focus will be Paris, France, July 15 through 25. The greater metropolitan area of Paris is about 12,000,000. Finally, though not yet in any planning stage, would the Lord allow for the distribution of one million copies of the Gospel of John in Montreal in French in the near future? The greater Montreal area has a population of over 3,500,000.

Pray for wisdom, discernment and insight as these visions are considered, planned and carried out.

Pray that this vision of spreading God’s word would be carried out in all cities in Quebec

Pray for the hearts those who will receive the Gospel that there hearts would be led to Christ in repentence.

This article is reproducted from the Fall 2008 Issue of Quebec Alive.

Praise and Thanksgiving - 380,000 Gospel of John copies distributed in Quebec City

Praise and Thanksgiving-

380,000 copies distributed

Though the actual data has not been compiled yet, some general

results of this outreach in Quebec give much reason for praise

and thanksgiving. The goal of distributing 350,000 copies of the

Gospel of John was surpassed with nearly 380,000 copies actually

being distributed. More than 1,000 people participated in this

distribution, including 13 churches from the Quebec City region

and at least 8 churches from other areas of Quebec. Still other

churches from Canada were represented in the some 150 people

from those areas. More than 35 people from the United States

represented at least 5 churches. Finally, 10 churches from Europe,

represented by 40 some people, also participated. Not only did

the Lord bless this outreach with such a large participation,

but also by the fellowship, cooperation, service and love which

was readily observed. Praise and thanksgiving are lifted to the

Lord for allowing much seed to be planted during this outreach

in Quebec City. Some harvest of fruit was immediate, but most

of the seed needs to be watered, cultivated and nurtured. Pray

that the Lord will give the area churches the means, power,

wisdom and desire to follow-up and disciple what has already

been planted.

This article is reproducted from the Fall 2008 Issue of Quebec Alive.

Billy Graham Evangelistic Association Special Event

There is a new extensive outreach to the families of Quebec that will take place at Easter. Congregations will be contacted throughout the whole province to partner with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association on this “Godrocks” event. We encourage your prayers as this effort gets off the ground.  The National House of Prayer facility will be used for a special prayer meeting for this effort on Jan. 21st at 7:30 PM.  You are welcome to attend.

• Please pray that God would prepare the hearts of those to whom this Event will reach.
• That his Glory and supreme value would be made known.
• That Gospel seeds would be planted throughout Quebec
• Pray for the Church in Quebec, that it would be prepared to water and harvest the seeds planted by this event.
• Pray people would meet Jesus.

Please See the Flyers below in both English and French

http://nhop.ca/media/PDF/BGEA%20-%20Easter%20postcard%20English.pdf

http://nhop.ca/media/PDF/BGEA%20-%20Easter%20postcard%20French.pdf