2010-12-26: The Morning(after) Glory

Date: December 26, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Matthew 2
Recording: mp3

2010-12-19: Advent Love

Date: Dec 19, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 15: 11-32
Recording: mp3

2010-12-12: Advent Joy

Date: December 12, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 15: 1 - 10
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-12-05: Advent Peace

Date: Dec 5, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 10:25-37
Recording: mp3

2010-11-28: Lord of All Hopefulness

Date: November 28, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 18: 1-8
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Service of Praise: Jesus Loves Me & Friendship Song wma by Friendship Group and Joyful Noise Band

2010-11-21: Watch Your Stuff - The Rich Fool

Date: November 21, 2010
Author: The Rev. Brian Bork
Reading: Luke 12: 13 - 21
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Offertory: Joyful Joyful by Lloyd Larson wma as presented by Joyful Noise

2010-11-14: Our Own Security

Date: November 14, 2010
Author: Amanda Bakale
Reading: Psalm 127
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-11-07: The Fast God Chooses

Date: November 7, 2010
Author: The Rev. George Vander Weit
Reading: Isaiah 58: 1-12
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player) Read by Steve Bootsma
Offertory Song: God's One Song mp3 by Mallory Carson & Carolyn Lambert as sung by Laudamus Te

2010-10-31: Belhar Confession: Reconciliation

Date: October 31, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:14 - 6:2
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Offertory Song: Long Time Ago wma by Natalie Sleeth performed by Cantate Domino

2010-10-24: Belhar Confession: Justice

Date: October 24, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Isaiah 1: 10-26
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Offertory Song: He Reigns wma by Peter Furler & Steve Taylor as performed by Eric Fisher and the Youth Group Band

2010-10-17: The Belhar Confession: Unity

Date: October 17, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: John 17
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-10-10: Celebrating the Power of God (Enthusiastic Antenna)

Date: October 10, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: 1 Corinthians 4
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-10-03:Developing Discipline for God (Ascetic Antenna)

Date: October 3, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:19-27
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-09-26: Thinking Correctly About God (The Doctrinal Antenna)

Date: September 26, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Colossians 2: 6 - 23
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-09-19: The Mystic's Antenna to God

Date: September 19, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Romans 8: 18-27
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-09-12: The Race is On

Date: September 12, 2010
Author: The Rev. Brian Bork
Reading: Phillipians 3 - 4:1
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Offertory Song: We Will Walk in the Light wma by Don Besig and Nancy Price as presented by Joyful Noise

2010-09-05: The Last Word on Heaven

Date: September 5, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 21-22
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-08-29: The Last Word on Salvation

Date: August 29, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 19-20
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-08-22: The Last Word on Judgment

Date: August 22, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 15-18
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Offertory: Amazing Grace wma by Joyful Noise Band

2010-08-15: The Last Word on Politics

Date: August 15, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 12-14
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-08-08: The Last Word on Witness

Date: August 8, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 10 & 11
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-08-01: The Last Word on Prayer

Date: August 1, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 8 & 9
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-07-25: Hospitality: Not a Spiritual Gift

Date:  July 25, 2010
Author: Peter Schuurman
Reading: Hebrews 13: 1-8, 15, 16
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))
Offertory Song: Every Knee Shall Bow mp3 by Benjamin Harlan, sung by the Quartet: Laura, Catherine, Liane, Andrew

2010-07-18: The Last Word on Evil

Date: July 18, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 6-8:1
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-07-11: The Last Word on Worship

Date: July 11, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 4-5
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-07-04: God Wins!

Date: July 4, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelations 1-3
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-06-27: Is This What Jesus Told You Guys to Do? (The Sharing Antenna)

Date: June 27, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Acts 2: 42 - 47
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-06-20: The Invisible Becomes Visible (The Sacramental Antenna)

Date: June 20, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: John 1: 1-18
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-06-13: Eat This Book (The Scripture-driven Antenna)

Date: June 13, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Colossians 3: 12-17
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

Vacation Bible School is Coming

Vacation Bible School is coming to Waterloo Christian Reformed Church July 12 to 16, 2010 from 9am to 11:30.

This year we will be visiting with "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything, A VeggieTales VBS" and searching for kids who want to play games, make crafts and listen to stories about God's Word.

We are looking forward to having lots of fun talking and dressing like pirates and even singing a pirate song or two.

This year in addition to our Pre-Registration Sessions outside the church on:

June 24 6 to 8pm

June 25 9 to 11am

June 26 9 to 11am,

we have added an online registration which can be found here.

We hope to see your children in a few weeks!

The VBS Co-ordinators

2010-06-06: Lady Wisdom (The Rational Antenna)

Date: June 6, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Proverbs 3: 19-22, 8: 22-36
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-05-30: Creator Spirit

Date: May 30, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Psalm 104: 1-9, 24-35
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-05-23: When the World Was Set on Fire

Date: May 23, 2010
Author: The Rev. John Kersies, as read by Steve Bootsma
Reading: Exodus 3:1-15, Acts 2:1-21
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-05-16: Ascension: Filling of the Temple

Date: May 16, 2010
Author: The Rev. Paul Stadt
Reading: Luke 1:1-13, 24:44-53
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-05-09: Now What?

Date: May 9, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: John 21:1-25
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-05-02: My Lord and My God

Date: May 2, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: John 20: 19-31
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

For Discussion
What evidence of divine activity has Jesus left behind?  Where/when/how do you see Jesus?
Thomas responds with conditions for believing.  What’s the difference between doubt and conditions?
Should faith be based on some objective criteria? If so, where do we go for it? Or is faith an inner experience of hope and resolve unrelated to objective realities? Is faith entirely experiential and affective, an inner-emotional or psychological decision shaping how we live and think, but not anchored to specific events in history (such as the tomb)?
If one of Christianity’s chief claims—the resurrection of Jesus—proves to be unhistorical, what happens to our faith?
Comment on the following statement by William Barley: There is more ultimate faith in the man who insists on being sure than the man who glibly repeats things which he has never thought out, and which he does not really believe. It is doubt like that which in the end arrives at certainty.... Thomas doubted in order to become sure; and when he did become sure, his surrender to certainty was complete. If a man fights his way through his doubts to the conviction that Jesus Christ is Lord, he has attained to a certainty that the man who unthinkingly accepts can never reach.
Review the 4 stages of faith (below) and consider in which stage you find yourself.  If you have not yet owned your faith, what could help move you from searching faith to owned faith?

1. EXPERIENCED FAITH (preschool & early childhood) -- imitating actions, e.g., a child praying the Lord's Prayer without understanding the meaning of all the words -- "This is what we do. This is how we act."
2. AFFILIATIVE FAITH (childhood & early adolescent years) -- belonging to a group, which still centers on imitating what the group does -- "This is what we believe and do. This is our group/church."
3. SEARCHING FAITH (late adolescence) -- asking questions, "Is this what I believe?" Thomas is our example of this. He will not blindly accept what others have said, but needs to find certainty for himself. This stage of faith is adding the "head" to the "heart" of the earlier stages. Westerhoff comments:
4. OWNED FAITH (early adulthood) -- this stage comes only through the searching stage. After exploring the question, "Is this what I believe?" one, hopefully, discovers a Christian answer that declares: "This is what I believe." The Thomas scene ends with such a personal confession: "My Lord and my God" -- a confession we don't hear from any of the other disciples who did not go through the same questioning as Thomas. However, this is the strong, personal faith that one witnesses to and one is willing to die for -- the other disciples certainly ended up in this stage.

What is this "peace" that Jesus brings? Is it a type of relationship between people or a sense of personal inner tranquility.

2010-04-25: The Peace of Prayer

Date: April 25, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Philippians 4: 4-9
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player))

2010-04-18: Praise to the Lamb on the Throne

Date: April 18, 2010
Author: The Rev. Ron Fisher
Reading: Revelation 5
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-04-11: The Firstborn from the Dead

Date: April 11, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Revelation 1
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-04-04: Love as Strong as Death

Date: April 4, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Song of Songs 8:6-7
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Song: Easter Proclamation by John Ferguson and John Dalles mp3 as sung by the Easter Choir

2010-03-28: Palms, Psalms, Parades and Passion

Date: March 28, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Psalm 31
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Song: On That Day When He Rode Into Jerusalem mp3 by Mary Kay Beall as sung by Laudamus Te

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-03-21: But I Prayed for a Red Bicycle!

Date: March 21, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 11:1-13
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

2010-03-14: Darkness

Date: March 14, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Psalm 88
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-03-07: By Water and Blood

Date: March 7, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: 1 John 5: 5-12
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-02-28: The Kingdom is Coming! The Kingdom is Coming!

Date: February 28, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Matthew 3:1-12, Luke 17:20-37
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

The CRC in Haiti

The Christian Reformed Church has been working in Haiti for more than 30 years. Our ministries and partner organizations work collaboratively under the name Sous Eswpa (Source of Hope).

Our relief and development agency, Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC), works with local churches and community organizations to alleviate poverty, to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS, and to encourage local leadership. CRWRC was active in bringing relief to Haiti following a series of hurricanes in 2008.  Read more about CRWRC.

[click here to read about how over six million dollars has been raised in six weeks for Haiti relief]

Our global mission agency, Christian Reformed World Missions (CRWM) helps church and community leaders address the physical and spiritual needs of their people. This includes training of teachers, development of Christian school curriculum, and the development of Christian discipleship and Bible study materials.  Read more about CRWM.

Our electronic media agency, Back to God Ministries International (BTGMI) broadcasts Perspectives Reformees, a radio program hosted by Paul Mpindi. Approximately 900 students are enrolled in the BTGMI Bible study by correspondence ministry which is led by 37 Haitian volunteers.  Read more about BTGMI.

Click here or visit http://www.crcna.org/Haiti to learn more...

2010-02-21: Sifted as Wheat

Date: February 21, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 22:7-38
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-02-14: 20/20 Vision

Date: February 14, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 6: 37-42
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-02-07: Living as Forgivers - Following Jesus

Date: February 7, 2010
Author: The Rev. Adrian Van Giessen
Reading: Luke 17:1-10
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-02-07: Thirsty

Date: February 7, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Psalm 42 & 43
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-01-31: Living in the Loving Unity

Date: January 31, 2010
Author: The Rev. Paul Stadt
Reading: Philippians 2:1-11
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-01-24: God With Us

Date: January 24, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Psalm 46
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

Introducing the Waterloo CRC Podcast

Sermon recordings from the Waterloo CRC blog are now available as an audio podcast. By subscribing to the podcast you can easily and automatically download sermon recordings to your computer and copy them to your iPod, iPhone or other mobile device.
(For an overview of what a podcast is, click here to see what Wikipedia has to say)

We recommend using iTunes to download and listen to podcasts. iTunes is a free software program for the Mac and PC. If you do not already have iTunes installed on your computer, you can download it by clicking here.

Once you have iTunes installed on your computer, follow these steps to subscribe to the church podcast.

1. From the 'Advanced' menu in iTunes select the 'Subscribe to Podcast...' menu item
2. In the dialog box, enter 'http://feeds.feedburner.com/WaterlooCRCPodcast' as the Podcast URL and press 'OK'
3. Click on the 'Podcasts' link on the left side of iTunes to download one or more recordings from the church podcast.

After becoming familiar with podcasts, you may want to search for other interesting podcasts in the iTunes store. There are many interesting and free podcasts available.  For example, the CBC publishes dozens of interesting audio and video podcasts, listed here.

Questions, comments or suggestions? Please email webmaster@waterloocrc.org.

2010-01-17: What We're Made For

Date: January 17, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Ephesians 2: 1-10
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-01-10: Barely Believing

Date: January 10, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Matthew 6: 25-34
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)
Song: You Are Mine by David Haas sung by Joyful Noise mp3

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted

2010-01-03: Searching for Jesus

Date: January 3, 2010
Author: The Rev. Vicki Cok
Reading: Luke 2:39-52
Recording: mp3 or wma (Windows Media Player)

---

Click here to receive an email when new sermon recordings are posted