Wesley Zinn
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Phil. 2:12,13 says "...continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."

Here's my questions:

1. What does it mean to 'work out' our salvation? Isn't salvation a result of an act of faith, a once for all decision?

2. What does it mean by 'fear and trembling'? Shouldn't our salvation come with joy and peace?

3. What does it mean that 'it is God who works' when it just stated that we are to work out our salvation?

so there you have it...any thoughts?

Reflections on Value

Wesley Zinn
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Here is an article I recently wrote for our church enewsletter. Thought I'd share it here also...

VALUE – The intrinsic God ordained worth of each and every individual first and foremost, and all of his creation as well.

Isn't it wonderful when you feel you are valued, when it seems to matter that you matter? One of the core principles here at Wellspring is that everyone has value. Whether young or old, whether new to Wellspring or a lifetime attendee, our understanding is that you matter to God and you matter to us. There is a tendency in our nature (and therefore in churches) to place a value on people based on their status or accomplishments. God does not measure us by our status or accomplishments. He calls us to a life of purity and substance, but his value upon us is that we are his creation. We are his sons and daughters.

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (Gen 1:26-27).
Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? (Matt 6:26).

Our desire is for Wellspring to emanate an ethos of valuing each and every individual. We are all on a journey to draw closer to God. We are on a journey to be the sons and daughters he desires, to become like Christ in his character and his heart. Our value is not a reward for this journey. Rather, it is the undergirding of that journey. Because we are of such value to God, he leads us into a journey to integrity with him and significance of our lives. I trust that you find the principle of value being taught at Wellspring. I trust you find it in the fabric of Wellspring. I invite you not only to receive that value, but to extend that value to others, helping to create the very fabric of Wellspring for all to experience.

You are of great value,