This past Sunday I had the privilege of filling the pulpit all day at the Central Valley Baptist Church in Manteca, California. I was able to take my family with me and we had a wonderful day. We were with the teens and young adults for Sunday school, and I was impressed with the tremendous spirit of the young people jammed into the classroom. The Lord is obviously doing something great with this youth group! The main auditorium was packed for both morning and evening services and many decisions were made in the invitations.

We have many students from Central Valley and, because it is nearby, several of them are able to go home on the weekends and be involved in the ministries there. It was wonderful to see them serving in their home church.

The church is very excited because this coming Sunday, March 1st, they will welcome their new pastor, Dr. Eric Tharp. They are expecting a great crowd of visitors, and the mayor and several other dignitaries have promised to be there as well. Please pray for that the Lord will bless these dear people as they welcome their new pastor.

Of course, this holiday began as a celebration of George Washington’s Birthday, which is actually February 22. It was eventually moved to the third Monday of February in order to also include Abraham Lincoln, whose birthday is February 12, and conveniently create a consistent, long weekend.

The character and courage of these men is a wonderful example to all of us today. Many of the crises facing our nation today would never have arisen if our people in general simply had more personal character and morality. Imagine what would have happened if either of these men had been opportunists, seeking only to increase their own power and wealth. If Washington and Lincoln had no more character than many of our political and private sector leaders have today, the United States of America would not exist.

Suppose everyone in America decided to be honest. What would happen? What if every citizen was committed to standing for what they believed was right, instead of what would benefit them personally? What if everyone simply told the truth? How much different would our country be?

May God give us more people of character and courage!

Golden State Baptist College is an exciting place to be, and those of us who are here all of the time have some excellent resources for spiritual growth and encouragement.

1. Our Services
In church and in chapel we are privileged to hear excellent Bible preaching on a daily basis. You must hear Pastor Trieber’s message on prayer from last night.

2. Our Instructors
Our students could tell you what a blessing it is to sit in classes here on our campus each day, but there are other ways that you can connect with our teachers. If you go to the February 2009 edition of the North Valley News, you can read several articles written by our professors.

3. Our Students
It is a blessing to me to interact with the young people that God has sent our way. We have so many godly students who have a sincere desire to serve the Lord, and they are a tremendous source of encouragement to me.

We are in a series of revival meetings this week with Dr. Mike Johnson, pastor of the Shasta Baptist Church in Redding, California. Pastor Johnson preached at North Valley Baptist Church yesterday in the morning and evening services. You can hear these messages and also hear him live for the remainder of the meeting by clicking here.  Dr. Johnson preached a powerful message in college chapel today as well. Click here to hear the messages from college chapel. We are praying that the Lord will do a mighty work in our midst this week.