9-12 October – Sligo Baptist Church hosted a team of workers from Frisco, Texas for a week of ministry and outreach. In the three days they were here, they visited our emerging ministry centres in North Leitrim and South Donegal. They helped to host a golf tournament at Rosses Point that raised €1200 for the Aughamore Day Care Centre and visited that centre to share some music and personal stories. They packed and distributed hundreds of gift packets for our neighbours in Sligo Town. AND they led in worship and teaching at our weekly Bible Study gathering. WHEW!   God bless Stonebria ..read more

2 & 3 John The problem with idealizing the Early Church Acts 2:42-47, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. An ..read more

“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” Titus 3:4-5  He is just AND He is love. These unchangeable facts about God’s nature lead to this unchangeable reality: God has mercy toward sinners. He comes looking for them. He takes all the initiative to reconcile with them. He goes after the lost sheep. He waits expectantly for the prodigal to come home. He becomes flesh and dwells among us. He judges our sin in Jesus the righteous substitute. He offers salvation because of his MERCY! Mercy m ..read more

Titus 1:1-4 teaches us that we need faith to enter our new life in Christ AND for every day thereafter. It is the same with grace. We need grace to come into our salvation, but that is not the last time we need it. We need God’s grace as Christians when we sin, We need God’s grace  to seek him. We need God’s grace to serve him and others, to love the family of believers, to minister to one another across the generations. We need God’s grace to live a godly life. Thankfully, we have all the grace we need in Jesus. Titus 2:12-15 assure believers that we have both the initiating grace of sav ..read more

On Good Friday 2023, Pastor Matthew led a walk-and-talk on the theme of those who experienced Jesus through his suffering, death, and resurrection. To view the virtual walk, click on the image below.               This was the second series of meditations on this theme. The 2022 Good Friday Walk is available for viewing, too. Just click on the image below ..read more

Not all burdens are created equal. Paul used two different words in Galatians 6:1-5 to describe the weights Christians carry. The first describes a HEAVY burden carried for a long time; the second refers to a barrel or a crate taken out of a ship’s hold to be set down again on the dock. Some weight-bearing is helpful. That’s why people pay to join the local gym. They want to bear a load that will make them stronger. Some loads will build their muscles and increase their stamina. The kind of load mentioned here is like that, a temporary load like a box or a barrel being unloaded from a ship. W ..read more

Look at Hannah, one of the best parents in the Bible. · Have you ever felt that God has dealt you a bad hand, that He has acted unfairly toward you? · Have you ever been tempted to yell at God and then walk away in bitterness and frustration? · Do you sometimes doubt that He hears you when you pray to Him? · Do you pray once then give up hope before the answer comes? Hannah has much to teach us about endurance and about prevailing prayer and about sacrificial love for God. Out of the crucible of her pain and heartbreak eventually came great blessing, which spread outward to many people through ..read more

James 1:22-24 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. James suggests that there are a lot of believers walking around with spiritual bedhead. They merely hear the word. They don’t do it. They are like a person who thinks they are looking good because they own a mirror. They are like someone who thinks they are looking good because they noticed their bedhead. James ..read more

One Sunday, right after the morning service, Ramel and I drove down to the Oregon coast. We went to Lincoln City by way of Salem, then slowly made our way south down Highway 101 until we found a little motel with a vacancy sign. We rented a place right on the beach, overlooking the ocean. Our kitchen-suite had a fireplace and a big window where we could sit and watch the sun go down. It was beautiful and very restful. I woke up in the middle of the night with a bright light shining in my eyes. It was the moon casting its light over the water, making every wave look as though it were decorat ..read more

2 & 3 John The problem with idealizing the Early Church Acts 2:42-47, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. An ..read more