Planning on Leaving Your Church?

Before You Decide to Leave

1) Pray

2) Let your current pastor know about your thinking before you move to another church or make your decision to relocate to another city. Ask for his counsel.

3) Weigh your motives. Is your desire to leave because of sinful, personal conflict or disappointment? If it’s because of doctrinal reasons, are these doctrinal issues significant?

4) Do everything within your power to reconcile any broken relationships

5) Be sure to consider all the “evidences of grace” you’ve seen in the church’s life–places where God’s work is evident. If you cannot see any evidences of God’s grace, you might want to examine your own heart once more (Matt. 7:3-5).

6. Be humble. Recognize you don’t have all the facts and assess people and circumstances charitably (give them the benefit of the doubt).

If You Go

1) Don’t divide the body.

2) Take the utmost care not to sow discontent even among your closest friends. Remember, you don’t want anything to hinder their growth in grace in this church. Deny any desire to gossip (sometimes referred to as “venting” or “saying how you feel”).

3) Pray for and bless the congregation and its leadership. Look for ways of doing this practically.

4) If there has been hurt, then forgive–even as you have been forgiven.

Mark Dever, What is a Healthy Church? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2007), p. 57.

Toronto Baptist Seminary Residence Ribbon Cutting

Having lived in the Toronto Baptist Seminary residence from March 2007-December 2007 (the top floor of House 18) I can readily say how much it badly needed to be gutted and redone. If I had been sending my children to TBS I don’t think I would have after I saw the residences!

But that has all changed through the blessing of God and the generous giving of His people. The ribbon cutting ceremony for the residence renovation will be on Saturday August 29 from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM. Be sure to go, tour the residences, and see how God worked in the midst of Canada’s strongest theological school in the heart of Toronto!

There are still some funds that need to be raised to cover the costs of this radical transformation so please consider donating now here. For more details on what has been done in the renovation including pictures go here.

Click the link below for the details! Praise God for His many blessings! We trust the Lord would continue to provide for TBS as it is used to raise up more men and women for the Gospel ministry.

TBS Residence Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

HT: Keith Edwards