Taking Personal Responsibility For Your Growth In Godliness
“No Spiritual Discipline is more important than the intake of God’s Word. Nothing can substitute for it. There simply is no healthy Christian life apart from a diet of the milk and meat of Scripture.” - Donald Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines For The Christian Life
Are We Chasing With As Much Fervour?
The Apostle Paul states it most sharply when he says: Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever (1 Corinthians 9:24-25) Are we running with as much fervour in the Christian life?
Good Friday 2019
Our order of service for our 2019 Good Friday Service that you might like to use for your personal worship, prayer and Bible reading
Studies in 1 Peter 2019
1 Peter has much to say to a Christian community feeling the weight of living as outsiders, exiles and strangers in culture and society. The church as the people of God have and will always be a counter-cultural community, and historically have always lived on the margins of society and culture. How do we navigate life as God's people in a culture that's hostile to the Christian faith and way of life? How do we respond when we're unfairly treated as God's people?
Who's Responsible For My Growth At Church?
Who’s responsible for MY growth as a Christian at church? It’s a great question and sometimes it’s driven by the common misconception that the church needs to cater for ‘my’ growth as a Christian. So unless I’m getting something out of the preaching (it’s too long), or unless the worship moves me (it’s not very exciting), or unless I have friends (I haven’t got any close relationships), or unless there’s programs that meet my needs and my children’s needs, this church is not catering for my growth as a Christian! Can I say to you that to make your growth as a Christian solely dependent on your Sunday’s at church is not only a mistake, but far from what the Bible teaches. In fact, I would go as far as saying that it’s foolishness.
God's Amazing Grace For The Undeserving
Sometimes we think that God operates on the principle of our performance. Getting right with God or securing God’s approval depends on our work and our effort. Let me say to you that the Bible never teaches that. You cannot earn your way into his family and you cannot work your way into his good books. God doesn’t work on a performance scale where he judges you on the basis of whether your good works in life outweighs your bad works. God actually works on the principle of grace i.e. he gives us what we don’t deserve.
The Welcoming Work Of The Gospel Makes Us A Welcoming People
If we’re a community gathered together by the ‘welcoming’ work of the gospel through Jesus, then it shouldn’t be a surprise that God’s people would also be a ‘welcoming’ people i.e. a people who welcome all who visit our church community and a people who are actively seeking out those who would not normally be welcomed. The work of welcoming the newcomer isn’t the work of the welcoming team or those with the gifts of welcoming, it’s actually the work of all believers in a church community who have experienced the ‘welcoming’ work of the gospel (2 Cor.8:9)
The Disruption Change Brings
Change is often painful because it disrupts our comfortable normality. Change can also sometimes brings out the worst in us because change can makes us resentful and angry. The fact that we are subject to seasons in life that we don’t always choose or want is actually a reminder to us that we need a firm and secure anchor. Navigating the changes you face with courage, joy and godliness is only as good as the place you’ve anchored in life.
Compassion Christmas Collection 2019
This year our Christmas Day collection will be going towards the work of Compassion’s critical intervention program. We'll be helping fund recovery assistance to support an Income Generation project following the Mayon volcano eruption in Albay, the Bihol province of the Philippines. Our giving will help create long-term, sustainable impact for 302 Compassion assisted children, their families and communities. All giving is tax-deductible and donation forms will be available on Christmas Day.
The Power To Love & Serve In A Church Community
The power to love and serve others in a church community is actually grounded in the power of a greater love that we’ve first experienced. We read in 1 John 3:16 - This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. Christian people love and serve because they’ve been loved first.
