Things I Learned in 2023

Well, it's the end of the year. 2023 is mere hours away from being over.
As it comes to a close, I decided to list some of the things I learned this year.

1. I don't have to say "yes" to every stranger who makes demands of my time. Saying "no" is perfectly valid if there is no established relationship. Some people do not respect you or your time. They are simply takers or problem-dumpers... and that gets exhausting very quickly.

2. Communication is important (in marriage, in business, in church, etc). How we say things is as important as what we say. 

3. Marriage is a blessing when married to the right woman. Mutual respect, mutual love for each other and a mutual love for Jesus go a long way. 

4. I am perfectly fine to slow down and rest in between work-days or after hours. Additional tasks and non-urgent messages will still be waiting for me in the morning... they can wait until then. :-)  

5. I learned to simplify life by deleting unnecessary commercial/mass communication inbox messages without opening them. 

6. I learned that I enjoy painting for fun on occasion. My wife also discovered painting this year and she enjoys it even more than me. 

7. I discovered a new digital piano I really enjoy playing... the Yamaha P125. I have already uploaded several piano videos to my youtube channel using this piano. See my channel here.

8. I learned to turn off the notifications from certain social media platforms. I no longer allow those messages to be sent to my email or to my phone. I shut that option off. It helps me focus and declutter my mind during the day. I may have actually started this practice in the previous year, but it really came to help me in 2023. 

9. I learned that the New Testament Book of Revelation has more references to the Old Testament than any other New Testament book. (I counted at least 330 OT references!) 

10. I have discovered the joys of being a middle-aged man who has more wisdom than his younger self did. Some of the things concerning relationships and life that were unclear to me in my youth are much clearer now that I am older and more experienced. 

11. I reaped the benefit of waiting 13 years to get remarried to the right woman - it was (and is) important to not settle for the wrong person (as I did the first time). Jenny and I got married June 7th 2022 and now we are over 1 1/2 years into the marriage and very happy. 

12. I really enjoy being an uncle to my 2 neices (10 and 7 yrs old) and 1 nephew (1 yr old), even if we are far apart most of the year! 

13. Spiritual fatherhood: I learned that the years of ministry, Bible instruction, and prayer I poured into my spiritual children at church are really starting to show fruit. One of them has now grown up to be a fine young man who participates on his own free will in various church activities including leadership events. I am very blessed to invest in the young generation. 

14. After nearly a decade of ministry to the Christian adult singles (my singles ministry began in July 2014), I learned that this group I lead is still very much needed and appreciated by the singles in our church.

15. After more than 23 years at Church On The GO, I have discovered, with guidance from the Holy Spirit and our lead pastor Stephen Coates, some key topics to teach, such as Historicism, Young Earth Creation, the Melchizedek priesthood, and Kingdom of God Theology.
16. Speaking of Kingdom of God Theology, this is the year it really sunk in for me how central the Kingdom of God is and was to the message of Jesus. I did have an understanding of the Kingdom of God already, but our studies at church this year really helped cement and advance my understanding of this core doctrine of Christ.

17. Having common interests with my wife has really made us best friends as well as lovers. We both love walking, reading, discussing Scripture, playing musical instruments, and playing board games like Scrabble. 

18. I learned that a manual I wrote and printed 21 years ago still has relevance today. It was called "Science and the Bible". I originally wrote it to teach a 2 part seminar in the church in 2002. It then got left in a box in my house and forgotten. A church goer recently asked me this year to see if I can find any copies I might have of it. Well I did find one copy of it left. It was dusty and the binding was falling apart. So I scanned the pages, readjusted the alignment, updated the info and resources, and then made it into an online PDF file that anyone can read or download for free on my website. This person at our church then printed it, bound it, and shared it with someone in public recently. They were happy to read it. So my work from 21 years ago is still making a difference today! It was all through the combined work of the Holy Spirit and the members of the Body of Christ.

I am always grateful to the Lord Jesus for His faithfulness to me this year and every year!
Happy New Year!
Pastor Curtis

Assistant Pastor at:
churchonthego.ca in Newmarket ON.
If you would like to read my 39 page manual, please visit my website: curtisjalexander.wordpress.com
and click the download button.

Sun Dec 31 2023 10:32PM Eastern Time.

The Promoted One Christ is in YOU - New Year 2024

DID YOU KNOW?

There is double fulfilment of promotion and exaltation in Josh.3:7 and Josh.4:14. And it affects us believers today!

Joshua 3:7 NKJV
The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.

 

Joshua 4:14 NKJV
On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him just as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.

Not only did God fulfill this historically through Joshua when he led Israel into the promised land, but God fulfilled it again when He exalted and promoted JESUS! God promoted Joshua in the natural. Now, God eternally promotes Jesus in the Spirit! This means you have the promoted One in your spirit when you believe Jesus. (You are a spirit, you have a soul, and you live in a body, 3 in 1. See 1 Thes. 5:23 and Heb. 4:12. There is a difference between soul and spirit. We must feed our soul (mind, will emotions) with what God deposits in our spirit (our God-conscious core being.)

The name "Joshua" from the Old Testament Hebrew is the same name as "Jesus" from the New Testament Greek. They both mean "Jehovah is Salvation".

Matthew 1:21
New King James Version
21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Jesus Christ is our ultimate Joshua - our leader and the Captain of our Salvation!

Hebrews 2:10 NKJV
For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

We stand in awe of JESUS! God exalted Jesus!

Now... Jesus is forever alive from the dead, and forever exalted as King over the Kingdom of Heaven in earth. The Kingdom of God is what Jesus preached. It was His main message in the Gospels. Today, we can continue to share the Gospel of the Kingdom knowing our Leader, Lord and King - JESUS CHRIST - is highly EXALTED!

Acts 5:30-32
New King James Version
30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree.
31 Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.
32 And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.”

And He is exalted in the hearts and lives of His kingdom citizens. He has exalted His citizens (believers in Jesus) to be kings and priests, just like HIM!

1 John 4:17 NKJV
Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.

As He is, so are we. So what is Jesus? He is King and Priest! 

Rev 19:16 NKJV 

And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

KING OF KINGS AND

LORD OF LORDS.

Hebrews 5:8-10

8 though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 

9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 

10 called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,” 

Jesus is High Priest, NOT after the Levitical order, which was fulfilled and finished in the death and resurrection of Christ. Instead He is after the much older, more ancient and eternal order, the Priestly Order of Melchizedek. (Gen 14:18-20 shows us our first glimpse at the pre-Levi order of Melchizedec.) 

Thus He makes us and promotes us like God promoted Jesus:

Revelation 1:5-6

New King James Version

5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth.

To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, 

6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Rev 5:9-10 NKJV
9 And they sang a new song, saying:
“You are worthy to take the scroll,
And to open its seals;
For You were slain,
And have redeemed us to God by Your blood
Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
10 And have made us kings and priests to our God;
And we shall reign on the earth.”

Verse 10 says God has made us "kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth." We are destined to gain back paradise on earth through rulership under the King of Kings Jesus. He gave us the kingdom on earth and Jesus rules it all from Heaven. His Holy Spirit is in our hearts guiding us. This is a heavenly government operation, not a religion. You can begin to practice serving as kings and priests, the same way Jesus did when He walked the earth.

Let us press into the new year, 2024, and beyond, with the knowledge from Scripture that God has exalted Jesus and thus He is exalted IN YOU the believer. He is THE King thus you are A king. He is THE PRIEST (after Mechizedec's order) thus you are A priest after the same order!

His promotion is in you!! His rising is in you. His resurrection power is in you. His advancement is in your spirit. 

This is all because of "CHRIST IN YOU the hope of glory".

Colossians 1:27

New King James Version

27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Let it filter into your soul (your mind) today! Take inventory of the Word in your heart and know that Christ is with -and in- those who call on Him and believe Him.

God has deposited the PROMOTED and EXALTED ONE JESUS in your spirit! 

Happy New Year! 2024 in Jesus!

Pastor Curtis.
Sun Dec 31 2023.
1:58pm Eastern Time

Assistant Pastor

churchonthego.ca 

Newmarket, ON. 

Read my Science and the Bible manual for FREE at:

curtisjalexander.wordpress.com

6 Things I have Learned as a Mid-aged Adult

What I've learned during mid-life so far.

It has been a special and wonderful journey with the Lord. 

So many life lessons, some were easy, some were difficult.

Yet I have learned, and continue to do so. And hopefully, you can glean some insight from my experiences thus far.

Speaking only of numbers, midlife is something that people loosely define as the period between the late 30's to mid 60's. Some say 40-60. Others widen the range. Whatever the numerical definition is, it is clear I am well into my mid-life by age as I am in my mid-40s. But part of mid-age life cannot be defined by a number. It can only be defined by our mindset. 

Truth be told, I felt that I was entering the mid-life around the age of 35. Why? Well let me get into my list of lessons learned and I will be happy to elaborate. Allow me to share why I believe mid-life is not necessarily a set number, but a combination of internal factors (including mindset and maturity) that may vary from person to person: 

1. Mid-life is the time when you become more clear about setting, and communicating your boundaries. A number of years ago, at age 35, I learned what my work limits were. I was trying to add an extra business into my life because someone else asked me to. I wasn't fully sold on the idea but I went along with it because I wanted to help. And it eventually caused a lot of stress. My day off was no longer a day off. And the business project spun its tires so-to-speak. The people we were trying to help with this business did not take ownership or really press into what was being offered. So after a year, I was happy when the other partner decided to let go of it. I also quit that venture. And the person who originally recruited both of us dropped us like a hot potato. I will never allow that kind of boundary breach again. I am happy as a bivocational pastor. I enjoy working in retail and in ministry. I put in many long hours at both vocations. I have been doing retail work for nearly 28 years now. And I've been in ministry leadership for almost 23 years. I know the Lord called me to be in both of those areas. It has been tried and tested.
 But trying to add a third thing in there was detrimental to my peace and ability to rest. I was out of my element. So it was at age 35,  when began to truly identify and enforce what my personal boundaries were for work and rest. 

God has told us that boundaries are a good thing! 

Psalm 16:6 HCSB

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

2. Mid-life is the time when you begin to notice physical changes.  I was getting white hairs even at age 30. But they were very unnoticeable. These days, I have visible silver streaks in my sideburns and beard. And I am glad to have them. The Bible even says we should see them as a good thing if we are living a wise life in right-standing with God:

Proverbs 16:31 NKJV

The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, If it is found in the way of righteousness.

Also, I have noticed little signs of aging on my body, such as tiny age spots on my hand, extra wrinkles, and a varicose vein. (Yay). 

But I look to the Lord.
Jesus is the Healer, and as a believer, we have His healing power within us. 

So aging should not be a scary thing when we know God has unlimited strength and healing for those who believe in His Son Jesus. And God never runs out of power! He never changes! He is always able, in every generation. 

Mark 16:17-18 NKJV

17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 

18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

3. Midlife is the time when you begin to show a bit of age, but it isn't always apparent to others. They may even consider you "young" due to their lack of context. For instance, they do not know your decades of experience or see those tiny age spots or varicose veins or silver hair streaks. Rather than try to correct them, and point out my age, I decided it is better to accept the kind compliment!! Enjoy being percieved as "young". I do enjoy it, because I know I eventually won't look as young and the compliments will stop.

 So my habit is to THANK people for the "young compliments" and to tell them to "keep em coming"! I make sure these kind folks know how much it means to me that they still see me as young, when in fact, my young days are well behind me. Understand, I am not one of those people who clings to youth and denies my age. No, I embrace my age, no matter what it may be. I do not fear getting older. I refuse to try to hide my age.
 But, hey! I also cannot refuse a GREAT "young man" compliment from random customers in the store either! That really makes a mid-ager's day!! 

 I don't always feel as young as they perceive me to be. (I work with many young adults, and I am more than double their age- old enough to be a "dad" to them. I also don't have as much boundless energy as I did in my youth.) 

4. Midlife is the time when you personally come to realize you are neither "young" nor "old". You are in the middle. So we should not see ourselves as "old". I know it can be a fun joke to call ourselves that. But we are not seniors. And we are not youth. We are mid-aged.
 So, we should view mid-age as a time of opportunity. It is a prime time of life. No age bracket should be minimized or dismissed. No matter how old or young a person is, all people deserve respect and dignity as human beings (inside and outside the womb). God can and does call people of any and every age bracket.
 But sometimes I think mid-aged people panic and think their life is over at age 35 or age 40 or age 50 etc. In Christ, your life is just beginning. He is your life. 

Don't talk to yourself as if you can't learn or do anything new, or that you are "getting old". God may be just getting started with you! 

5. Midlife is the time when we begin to moderate and control ourselves more. We have generally matured and grown up. Now, this one is more subjective to the individual. Maturity is not found in a number, but in the quality of your personal traits, habits, and mannerisms. The traits of a mature adult are found in the Bible. (See Bible references including: 1 Cor 13, James 3:17, and the Beatitudes of Matthew ch. 5.)

Are you able to yield to another person's view? Are you able to let go of a fruitless argument? Are you willing to slow down and consider other people's perspectives and needs? Are you good at listening to understand?

Are you gentle and merciful?

These are just some of many examples of mature character. No one is perfect and we should all be growing more mature throughout our lives. But mid-age can be seen as a time when we generally get a good handle on maturity. 

6. Mid-age is a time when we truly hit our "rhythm" in life. We have a metronome - a pace in our life. And we keep that pace at a healthy level. Young people tend to rush too much. But by the time we are mid-aged, we are more prone to stop and think things through more, and pray about it. Not that young adults cannot have a steady pace or good decision making skills. And it's not that mid-aged adults have perfect decision making abilities either. Far from it.
But as a mid-aged adult, you are generally better at decision making than you used to be. You can think things through, and still be decisive. Experience has a lot to do with it. Again, this kind of even-paced lifestyle is not determined by what age you are. It comes when an adult has reached an equilibrium and now has a generally steady pace in life. You have a strong routine, and a steady, stable approach to new changes and challenges. 

   

God bless!
PC

Apr 2 2023 4:00 am Eastern.

What is God resisting?

James 4:6 NKJV
But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”

1 Peter 5:5 NKJV
Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”


WHO is doing the resisting in these verses? God? or People? According to the Bible, It's God who resists. How do we unlock the blessing and grace of God? The Bible tells us:
Humility is the KEY!

Exodus 10:3

So Moses and Aaron came in to Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me.

Numbers 12:3

(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.)

2 Samuel 22:28

You will save the humble people; But Your eyes are on the haughty, that You may bring them down.

2 Chronicles 7:14

if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Matthew 18:4

Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 23:12

And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Luke 18:14

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Philippians 2:8

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

1 Peter 5:6

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,

 And what does He resist? The proud and arrogant attitudes of people! So instead of getting grace (God's gift of unearned favour), those people get resistance. This is confirmed by the writing of two witnesses, James and Peter plus many other passages of Scripture!

The question is not "is God's grace resistible?". Rather, the question is, "who is doing the resisting?" and "what does that One resist?" Another way to start the asking questions is: "is it pride or grace that is resistible?" or "how do I unlock God's grace?"

If you are humble, God will give you free, unearned grace. The humble will never choose to resist God's grace. Why? Because they know they need the Saviour, Jesus Christ, our God and King.

If one is proud, then God is resisting such a person! It's less about man's free will and more about God's free will. The two wills are at play, true. BUT as always, God is aware of more choices, and is able to utilize more options than us. His will is more informed and able than ours. So the old debate between Calvinists and Arminianists is moot. Grace is neither resistible nor irresistible. It is a a free gift given only to the humble. Humble, meek people will always gladly accept the free unearned favour of the Lord. God doesn't "force" His grace or favour on anyone. And He doesn't waste His grace either. 

 And Pride? well Pride is the only resistible thing in these 2 main verses James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5... and God is the one who resists the haughty, high-minded, arrogant person. But if we stay meek and lowly, God is willing to help us.
And the good news? God can save ANYONE! The proud can humble themselves, forsake Pride, and call on Christ! God is sovereign. And anyone can call on the Lord and be saved! Grace is for ALL who call on the Lord! And guess what? In order to call on the Lord sincerely, one must be humble. 

Romans 10:13

For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Blessings


Pastor Curtis

March 25 2023 Sat. 1:48am Eastern.

Christ-confidence, Not self-confidence

Put your confidence, trust and faith fully in Christ, not in self and not in the world and not in things or people. Trust in Him and follow Him as He leads you. Obey His Word and His Holy Spirit. Christ is pure, holy, perfect, sinless, holy, kind, loving, and beautiful. He is alive and on the Throne of God's Kingdom. And God's Kingdom is in the hearts of those who believe!

Luke 17:21b

"behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

2 Corinthians 3:4-6 ESV
4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God.
5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God,
6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

Self-confidence can get damaged because we as fallen human beings often make mistakes! But trust in the Christ who is IN EVERY BELIEVER. Trust in Christ who is in you and you will never be let down by Him and His promises in Scripture. Christ cannot and does not fail. But sometimes, we do not allow Him to influence us enough and we live by the soul (mind/will/emotions) instead of living by the Spirit of God. So we sometimes fail at our given task or we fall short and sin by mistake. YET... when we practice letting Him lead daily, we will succeed in all things God has called us to accomplish!! SO take heart and be encouraged! Christ is already perfect within you. You must simply let Him lead from the Spirit inside you. 

John 1:12 ESV

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

Colossians 1:27 ESV

To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

If you received and believed Christ, then Christ, the perfect One, is in your spirit.

Yes, mankind is 3 in 1, just like the Creator God is 3 in 1. 

We are a spirit (with a God-consciousness), we have a soul (mind/will/emotions- self consciousness) and we live in a body (5 senses, conscious of the world around us).

1 Thessalonians 5:23 ESV

23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 The King of the Kingdom is acting in your spirit and is able to help you overcome the obstacles of your circumstances! 

Let Christ, who is perfect and dwelling in your spirit, filter into your soul (mind, will, emotions). Let Him change your mind and emotions to His thoughts and feelings. In short, be led by the Holy Spirit of God!

Romans 8:13 ESV

For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Galatians 5:25 ESV

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

 See how your confidence in Him will alter your whole life for His good purpose and glorify God! Your life has purpose and meaning in Christ! Your actions matter! Your attitude matters! Let God's Spirit and God's word shape your mind and your actions and your words! Don't trust in your self or place confidence in your self. Place your confidence in CHRIST within YOU!
Abide in Jesus the Vine. Let Christ's power in you flow from your spirit, through your soul, and out into the world you interact with. That is the power of the KING, Jesus Christ! 

John 15:4 ESV 

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 

Blessings

~PC

Fri Feb 24th 2023 12:25am Eastern. 

PS: Below is my latest song "Many Crowns". It's all about Jesus and His Kingdom being on earth, in you!