HIGHLIGHTS - WEEK 1  

Four groups totalling 27 people highlight the start of Unbinding Your Heart. One group meets after church on Sundays, another on Monday nights, one on Wednesday afternoon, and a first for Tansley (and maybe all of Halton Presbytery) an on-line discussion group arranged through Google.  This is an exciting new venture and perhaps a way into the future.  This week the focus is on telling our faith stories.  This is important because we may be the only Bible, people will ever read!

HIGHLIGHTS - WEEK 2  

This week the focus is on Real Life.  Here is a quote from Unbinding Your Heart by Martha Grace Reese Week 2:

1. People are real. They are honest. They share their lives with each other in significant ways rather than putting on a "perfection show".
2. People see each other for who they are, and show respect by telling the truth lovingly.
3. Relationships are not sentimental. People acknowledge their own frailties and sinfulness. They may have disagreements, but they find ways of resolving them without undue conflict or long resentments.
4. Visitors can feel it when they walk in the door!

HIGHLIGHTS - WEEK 4  

This week the focus is on what New Members Want!

An excerpt from Unbinding Your Heart by Martha Grace Reese:

Why do new members join a church?

At the point of joining a new church, the reasons are much more about what’s going on in lives, and less about the first issues of being comfortable and feeling welcomed. First time visitors need an invitation to get in the door. Visitors come back because of the warmth of members, the pastor and what they are learning.

At the point of joining, however, look how even the human relationships drop to the bottom of this list.

New members are particularly thinking about questions about the meaning of their lives, like “What is missing in my life?” In the written comments, new Christians usually point to missing a relationship with God, but also describe some aspects of a maturing faith. New members with church backgrounds usually don’t say that something was missing from their lives. That is not surprising.  They already have some sort of faith life. The established Christians point instead to growth of their relationship with God or Jesus.

HIGHLIGHTS - WEEK 5  

This week the focus is on How’s Your Church Doing?

An excerpt from Unbinding Your Heart by Martha Grace Reese:

 There is great news:  God is in the business of healing us and our churches; Christ will stand at our elbow and point out our entrenched positions, our towering battlements and those legions of yeomen who are always retipping arrows and heating oil.  The Spirit can lead us to drain moats, open drawbridges, and build wheelchair-accessible bridges! We slam the door shut on the Gospel, but Christ opens windows in lives and in churches.

HIGHLIGHTS - WEEK 6  

This was the last week of our six week program …. This past week the focus has been on Smart Sailing. 

An excerpt from Unbinding Your Heart by Martha Grace Reese: 

 Your only job is to let Jesus love you, do the best you can pretty much of the time, and be willing to listen to the Spirit so that you can be used by Christ.  God can work unimaginable miracles with that!

FINAL THOUGHT

An excerpt from Unbinding Your Heart by Martha Grace Reese: 

We understand anything better when we try to say it out loud. Could this be one reason Christ asks us to share our faith? Is the Great Commission (Mt.28: 18-20) a cosmic “Help me help you” from God?

Many thanks to all those who participated in the six week Unbinding Your Heart program.   We look forward to more faith sharing opportunities in the future.

I hope everyone is taking the opportunity of visiting Tansley’s Prayer Wall.  All are welcome to sit and pray, meditate, or observe silence. Please note that there are Prayer Request forms in the basket by the wall and this week there are Prayer Request forms in the Friendship pads that are passed around during the service.  Please leave your prayers in the basket at the back or in the collection plate.  The prayers will be collected weekly, added to the Prayer Team’s  daily prayers and then placed in the wall on your behalf.  All prayer requests will remain confidential or you may use initials only.

What is Unbinding the Heart?
U B the Heart is a congregation study to help Tansley members grow in their faith and how to talk openly of their faith and religion.

It is a 6 week process includes individual, small group, and congregation study of prayer and growing in faith sharing.

What is the timing?
Experience during the 6 wk process
   • daily individual prayer
   • Discuss prayer with prayer partner, or family members
   • meet with small group weekly
   • worship and pray together as a congregation
   • Experience sermons, children’s sermons, lessons, prayers, Testimonials, music
   • Hear members of Tansley share their faith stories
   • participate in all congregation prayer and faith sharing activities
   • read stories from the groups or other testimonials, coaches
   • attend all special events for the Unbinding the Heart process
   • prepare for the final invite your friends celebration 1 to 2 wks after the event

Is it Evangelism?
It is not the TV Evangelism. Unbinding the Gospel and Unbinding the Heart teaches that evangelism is anything you say or do to help someone move into a closer relationship with God and the Christian Community.

Why is it important to Tansley?
The Program fits within the stated goals of our vision and purpose to deepen faith experience of congregation. Secondly, doing a congregational wide study has tremendous potential for growing relationships.

What it means to be a Christian?
A Christian by definition is a “follower of Jesus”. Jesus did not create a new philosophy or a new set of doctrines and beliefs but a movement. His way places demands on his followers and is a call to action.

What if I choose to not participate?
The Inquisition ended long ago, no penalties!! Questions to ask yourself: Why do I go to church? What do I hope to get out of it?

Participation is an individual/ family choice. We hope those not participating will continue to worship and participate at Tansley weekly.
Members can do an individual study on their own. Unbinding the Heart as a guide leads one through the process. However, the true benefit of this study is to share the learning and experience with someone.