Sermons to Note

January 29, 2011 at 3:37 pm (Sermons)

                                   

                                Rev. E. Anderson

THE DIVINE PROSPECTS

READING     JOB 5:17-27

TEXT             v27

INTRODUCTION

A PROPHETIC WORD: Some prophetic words seem to be in some strange places and found to be coming from some rather unique mouthpieces. Here is one of Job’s comforters at the outset speaking some very choice, inspired words of truth that need to be taken note of. In fact this the climatic word at the conclusion of this part of an address – v27. They are of an inspiring and encouraging nature and require to be taken hold of, understood and believed. He also uses the word “Behold” in v17 thus drawing great attention as to what is now to be stated and recorded. It is a word also that is to beof an instructive quality that if listened to will reap tremendous consequences.

A BLESSED CONDITION:  A very choice, enviable condition is described of the person or individual who is God-blessed. The words used are “happy is the man . . .” This is one of the things that is greatly desired and coveted by the children of men, to be truly blessed and happy. It is good to know that God is interested in and committed to the well-being and happiness of all. This is an all-inclusive word – ‘man.’ The word man used here is enosh, frail mortal man. Jesus Christ revealed as a Master-Teacher the real basis of divine blessedness in His Sermon on the Mount – Matthew 5  “Blessed”  = Greek Makarios – “to be congratulated, envied . . . .” Makarios speaks of Cyprus = ‘the blessed isle.’  It has everything it needs for its life, growth, peace, fulfilment and blessedness. Everyone should desire to discover and know the real foundation and way of and to happiness.

A DIVINE RELATIONSHIP:  It affirms that happiness comes by the way of divine correction from God and this indicates that there is a healthy and wholesome union between the One who administers the correction and the receiver. This is illuminated and explained further by the writer to the Hebrews – 12: 5-11. It is in the context of a Father and son relationship. God is referred as to the one who is Almighty and this is used in relation to Him being El Shaddai, the All-Sufficient One. Rest assured, any corrective measures He introduces are always with good motivation and intent and for the increased blessedness of those to whom it is applied. This is the thing that has to be realised. It is always with a good end in view. Because of this knowledge, the one at the receiving end takes the right spirit and attitude: there is no despising of the actions that God takes to straighten out. God is neither mindless nor heartless when He takes us His children to task – v18.

A GLORIOUS PROSPECT: The divine prospect that is assured should make everyone desire to live under gracious government of the heavenly Father. What is extended through these means and measures is worth all the things that have to be passed through under the corrective and instructive guidance of God. The benefits far outweigh all the seeming conflict and hardship. The end results are the thing that must kept in mind and heart and must be known.

1/. THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF DELIVERANCE IN TROUBLE – v19 

  • Trials and troubles are part and parcel of life and existence – v7. There is no escape from the difficulties and distresses of life. They are an integral factor in this world scene. All have to pass the way through tribulation, affliction – John 16: 33. No one is rendered immune and free from these things. Many would like to be but they fail to see the significance of such. They are an essential process in the development of character and a preparation for something of major worth in the planning of the Lord. They are a schooling exercise in the scheduling of God.

Illustration   –   Job

  • In the midst of them it is possible to receive revelation and help from God – James 1: 2-8.  God in no way deserts those that are related to Him in the midst of their troublesome times. There are occasions when His own bring troubles and problems on themselves but even then he does not leave them to sink but seeks to teach amidst the adversities. He expects His children to call and to find out what is going on so that they may be helped in the situations so that they can come through better for the experience. These things can either embitter or sweeten us up and serve our growth and usefulness.

Illustration:     Naomi – Ruth 1: 20; Jacob – Genesis  42:36

  • There is deliverance in the time of extreme difficulty when everything has come to full development – Psalm 105: 17-22. God will never see His servants and offspring embarrassed and come out worse of their troubles. He always has them in mind and when the appropriate moment arrives there comes His miraculous and opportune intervention. Such turns out to be a testimony to His greatness and loving-kindness.

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2/. THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF PEROVISION AND PROTECTION -v 20

 There is this two-fold hope and assurance afforded to those who submit to the gracious dealings of the Lord in correction.

  • Provision in the situation of famine. As the El Shaddai the Lord has the ability to more than sustain His own in the time when the bread and water is not so sure and certain. All around may be most negative with regard to provision but He has always ways and means by which to supply.

Illustration:      Elijah – 1 Kings 17: 3, 9

  • Protection is also assured in time of war. The Lord is the LORD  PROTECTOR of His elect. He is able to defend the rights and well-being of those who live under His government and obedience. They have nothing and no one to fear or stand alarmed against.

Illustration:  Abraham – Genesis 17: 1 

3/. THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF SALVATION FROM EVIL SPEAKERS – v21

  • There will be occasions when people will say all manner of evil and wrong things about you which can be very hurtful. The tongue can be one of the most destructive and cutting edges in life and many people have been virtually assassinated by its employment. James reveals what a powerful instrument it can be for good or evil – James 3. It can be a well-spring of life or a poison fountain that destroys.
  • The assurance here is to “be hid from the scourge of the tongue.”  It means to say that when you are evil spoken of it will not have any inroads or impact upon your spirit or being because you will be hid in and by the Lord. You will be able to let all the false accusations level against you to ride over your head and heart and not be grieve. Your vindication will come from God and God alone.

Illustration:       Job had three people implying all kind of things/judgements

  • The lives and behaviour of those who are governed and controlled by the Lord can rest in the promise that he gives in this connection – Psalm 37: 1,5,6. This guaranteed promise of God’s Word more than compensates for any kind of evil thing that is spoken against the servant and child of God.

4/. THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF BEING AT PEACE WITH CREATIOIN AROUND –      v22, 23

It would appear that all around is in a contented state and in accord with the one who lives under submission to God. Beasts and stones are pleased to find an agreement and acquiesce to the individual that is in harmony with the Creator-Father. The animate and inanimate both blend and attest their oneness and are happy to serve the interests of God’s offspring. There is nothing to agitate or militate. Even they desire to be a blessing and contribute to the blessedness of the man.

5/.  THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF KNOWING GENUINE PEACE WITHIN ONESELF AND FROM EVIL – v24

One’s our heart and home is in the best condition possible. Shalom is known in both situations. One can relate it to the inner condition of one’s own heart or refer it to the actual dwelling place of one’s home.

  • Consider the former first, the tent of one’s own being. There is no doubt the God wants us to possess ‘peace in ourselves’ and that we should not be in pieces. He has left us in Christ the great legacy of peace – John 14: 27; 16: 33. The priceless blessing of peace ensures the whole prospect of life, hope and fulfilment and nothing could be better for a person to know this kind of peace.
  • Note the other consideration.  What a delight when one’s home is free from all the evil of conflict and strife and there is a state of peace because the divine rule has been firmly established. There is no doubt that God wills to bless the home base and where good things of a divine order are established and bear lasting fruit.

Illustration:     Obededom   –    2 Samuel 6  Serendipity

6/. THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF THE FAMILY SEED AND UNIT BEING ADVANCED AND BLESSED – v25

God wills to come into the family home so as to truly bless the family with all  of its membership. No one is to be left out. All are to enjoy in richest and fullest measure the blessings of faith, relationship and obedience.

  • Children are not only to be an heritage in the Lord, they are to be blessed by the Lord – Psalm 127:3. It is good to recognise that they are a gift from God and that they are to be brought up in the knowledge of God and His ways. This is to serve to the distinct advantage of the children. The Lord is not a liability but the principal asset to the offspring.
  • Children rightly taught and blessed are well able to exceed their parents because it is God’s will that they should become great.   God does not wish to minimise them as persons, their skills, gifts and personalities, rather to enrich and enlarge them in every way and make them a blessing to their parents.

Illustration:        Philip the Evangelist

7/. THERE IS THE DIVINE PROSPECT OF CONCLUDING LIFE IN GRAND STYLE  -v26

The final thought terminates in a fantastic assurance. The end is not something gloomy, one to give distress and sorrow but a sense of satisfaction and fulfilment. Many conclude their days and life with an awful sense of disappointment but those who fear God and act in line with His will and ways are given divine assurances. 

  • There will be no premature death –  “You shall come to your  grave in full age.” It is the desire of the Lord that we should live out our days and finish them well. There are indications of this factor within the Scriptures that this is so. For Abraham this was a definite reality. The testimony of the Word of God is in Genesis 25: “Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, and full of years; and was gathered to his people” – margin – Newberry = ‘satisfied.’ He could not have climaxed his life on earth in a better way.

Illustration:            Moses – Deuteronomy 34: 7; Job 42: 12,17; Psalm 91:14-16

  • There will be total fruition and fruitfulness of life.  There will be no decadence in the final years, only a further blossoming and further tokens of usefulness, fruitfulness and blessedness. Deterioration is not evidence only a spirit quickened, a divine inward fire and glow and the ability to live life to the full – John 15.

Illustration:            Caleb   – Joshua 14: 6-15

He was never a spent force in later life but serves as a glorious and glowing example of what life and work can be in the concluding stages.          “The Bible is filled with people  that lived on because they had something to live for.”           

 “No disease is more lethal than the boredom that follows retirement.”   Norman Cousins

  • There will be an enormous appreciation of accomplishment.  Life and labour will not have been a waste but at the end of the proceedings something to present to God with joy and delight. All the investment that God has placed within having been wrought out in faith and obedience will be both honoured and rewarded. They will be valued and compensated in such a way that will make all the ceremonial awards on earth look very ordinary and paltry.

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CONCLUSION

One could not conclude or apply this better than what is given in the ultimate verse of this chapter:

  • This is a very real fact of life that must be truly discovered: “Lo this, we have searched it, so it is.” The Word of God is given to enlighten and encourage in the best and most fruitful life and life-style to be adopted throughout the whole of life. The wise take notice and are instructed and see the sense of this way of living.
  • Full attention must be given to it if one would reap the personal and boundless benefits extended by God – “Hear it, and know thou it for thy good.” Not only are the ears open but the heart, too, to believe and accept and the will set to achieve what God makes known. Do not be like the poet who said: “When I came to die, I discovered I had not lived.” 

 “To me the greatest tragedy in life would be to grow old, and know that somewhere along the way I had ‘lost myself’ and never succeeded at being who God called me to be.”

                              

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Just a Thought

January 29, 2011 at 3:24 pm (Just a Thought)

                                        

                                    Rev. A. Linford

TIME RUNS OUT

A headline on the Sports Page of a National Newspaper reads, “Time runs out for careless caddie”. Miles Byrne was considered the most famous caddie in the world, but at the time of writing he is on the dole.

He overslept and failed to turn up for the early morning final round of the Scandinavian Masters. To make matters worse he had the golfers locker key in his pocket. And it was the second time that he had lapsed, he was sacked. He’s lost his high salaried job and the seven per cent of the played winnings.

The Bible says, “How long will you lie there you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little folding of the hands to rest and poverty will come to you”.

Someone wrote, “Imagine a bank that credits your account each morning with £86,400, and every night takes back what you didn’t use, what would you do?”

Today God credits you with 86,400 seconds (the numbers in one day). Tonight he’ll write of as lost what you didn’t invest, so make most of the day for the clock is running.

Keith Lavender wrote a song in his youth (many years ago) called “Time, God’s time is running out on you”. How true. Before you know you know it you’ll make your last withdrawal from the bank of time and stand before j God to give account of how you’ve spent it. Get serious about your life – don’t fritter the time away. Give God more time. Give the work of God more time. Do you need to give less time to your pleasures – your profits – your partner – your pals?

Mark 13 says, “If Jesus came suddenly do not let Him find you sleeping “ – Romans 13 verse 11 says, The hour has come for you to wake up from sleep”.  Let’s do it and we’ll not be sacked and lose the reward that’s promised to the faithful. Watch …

                            

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Great Stories

January 29, 2011 at 3:20 pm (Great Stories)

                                 

                             Rev. E. Anderson

TWO CHOICES

What would you do?….you  make the choice. Don’t look for a punch line, there isn’t one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the same choice?

At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves children with learning   disabilities, the father of one of the students   delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: 

‘When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does, is done with perfection.

Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do.  He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?’

The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. ‘I believe   that when a child like Shay, who was mentally and physically disabled  comes into the world, an  opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat  that child.’

Then he told the following story:

Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, ‘Do you think they’ll let me play?’ I  knew that most of the boys would not want someone   like Shay on their team, but as a  father  I also understood that if  my  son were allowed to play, it would give him a  much-needed sense of  belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of handicaps.

I approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, ‘We’re losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we’ll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.’

Shay struggled over to the team’s bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. I watched with a small tear in my eye and warmth in my heart. The boys saw my joy at my son being accepted.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay’s team scored a few runs but was still behind by three.

In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field.  Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as I waved to him from the stands.

In the bottom of of the ninth inning, Shay’s team scored again. Now, with two outs and bases loaded, the potential winning run was base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn’t even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.

Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn’t even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognising that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay’s life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact.

The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay Swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back at the pitcher. The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game. Instead the pitcher threw the ball right over first baseman’s head, out of reach of all team mates.

Everyone from the stands and both teams start yelling, ‘Shay, run to first!’ Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. Everyone yelled, ‘Run to second, run to second.’  Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to second base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball. The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher’s intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far above the third baseman.

Shay ran toward the third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home. All were screaming, ‘Shay, Shay, Shay, Shay all the way Shay’. Shay reached the third base because the opposing short-stop ran to help by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, ‘Run to third!’ As Shay rounded the third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, ‘Shay, run home! Run Home!’  Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team.

‘That day,’ said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, ‘the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world’. Shay didn’t make it to another summer, He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making me so happy and coming home and seeing Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day.

AND NOW A LITTLE FOOT NOTE TO THE STORY:

We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a  second thought, but  when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate.

The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.

If  you’re thinking about  forwarding this message, chances are that you’re   probably sorting out the people in address  book who aren’t the  ‘appropriate’ ones to receive this type of message Well, the person who  sent you  this believes that we all can make a difference.  

We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the ‘natural order of things.’
So many seemingly trivial itneractions between two people present us with a choice:

Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those  opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process?

A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it’s least fortunate amongst them.

                               

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Messages of Note

January 29, 2011 at 3:14 pm (Messages of Note)

                               

                            Rev. Ken Williamson

GREATEST NEED IN THIS GENERATION

The state of the nation demands nothing miss thin true revival, writes Ken Williamson 

These past few months of leading my local church have been some of the most interesting of my life as I, together with my leadership, have had to deal with some matters of almost unbelievable need.

I am privileged to be called to and minister in the East End of London. I absolutely love this place, but here knife crime is at a big time high. Even as I write this article, my youth pastor has just texted me with this message, ‘Hi -just been to visit Jonathan (name changed for security reasons) in hospital in London. He got stabbed in the chest. Doctors didn’t think he would make it, but he seems to be pulling through’.

Then I heard that one of the families in our church who have brought up their son in the ways of God all his life, are now having to handle the fact that he has been arrested and is on remand, awaiting sentence for attacking another boy.

If that wasn’t enough, my associate pastor  just announced he was onto visit a man that came to our church and is now serving a 12-year prison sentence for pedophile crimes against his own children. Sadly, this is the world that we all live in today.

I am not depressive by any stretch of the imagination, but I recently shared with some pastors that I sometimes feel overwhelmed by the need, and have started asking, ‘What, really, is the answer?’ It did not take me long to answer my own question: ‘ We need true revival in our land!’

As much as I love all that we do today in our churches: the worship, the music, the creative arts, contemporary youth and children’s ministry – and we have all this and more in our church – our greatest need in this generation is a wave of revival that will break over our land, turning back the tide of helplessness and hopelessness. In the times when I feel overwhelmed by the need around me l realise that this is our only hope.

The prophet Habakkuk said in chapter 3:2, ‘Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy’. I think he was saying that the only hope in his generation was in God, and that this kind of ‘God being made known’ could only come from above.

Zechariah 4:6 adds, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD almighty Our hope is in the Maker of heaven and earth. We must believe that the one who causes the natural tides to recede is also well able to turn back the sin that rolls over our land. Charles Finney said a lot about revival, but one thing that has captured me most in his writings is this: ‘A revival… is nothing else than a new beginning of obedience to God ‘. Wow, could it really be that this sort of revival starts with us? I feel an old song coming on… ‘O Holy Ghost, revival comes from thee; send a revival, start the work in me’.

True revival will, of course, firstly touch the Church with a number of things – conviction of sin, repentance, renewed love for souls – and that’s just for starters – but the overflow of all that is an ethical renewal and also a spiritual renewal that touches the lost.

Can I suggest that if you don’t already do this that we bring back onto our church agendas prayer that opens the windows of heaven? By all means pray for our programmes to be successful, pray for an increase in finance and pray for the sick, but, in these times of great need, let us pray for revival.

As a local church leader I am still determined to keep working hard at all I do to win the lost, but I am encouraged by Dr Martin Lloyd Jones’ incredible words about revival: ‘When God sends revival he can do more in a single day than in 50 years of all our organisation.’

My prayer in the light of this is as follows, ‘Lord, bring it on!’

Maybe as you read this article something new will be kindled in your heart to seek again for revival in our land.

                                

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Powerful Quotes

January 29, 2011 at 3:09 pm (Quotes)

                                                               

                             Rev. L. Goodwin

PURPOSE AND VISION QUOTES

“Two men look out from the same bars:One sees the mud and the other the stars” – Frederick Langbridge 

“Men are disturbed not by things but by the view they take of them” – Epictetus

“The Christian on his knees sees more than the philosopher on his tiptoes” – Augustus Toplady

“Only he who can see the invisible can do the impossible” – Frank Gaines

A S. American minnow fish called `4 eyes’ knows how to make the best out of two worlds. It’s secret is it’s large bulging eyes. The Creator designed them so that they can see above & below the water at the same time. The fish does this by cruising along through the water with the upper half of his eyes above the surface. This top half has an air lens & the bottom half has a water lens. Together the 2 lenses equip `4 eyes’ with a natural pair of bifocals allowing him to see predators from above and below. We have both natural sight & the spiritual  vision of faith. We are able to perceive spiritual realities but we are not so heavenly minded that we are unaware of the needs around us on earth”

“Vision without action is merely a dream; Action without vision just passes the time; Vision with action can take the world” – Anon

 “A vision without a task makes a visionary; A task without a vision is drudgery; A vision with a task makes a missionary” – N.G. Dunning

“A woman once asked Joseph Turner `Why do you put such extravagant colours into your pictures? I never see anything like that in nature!’ He answered `Don’t you wish you did madam?’ He saw them even if she did not.”“Poor eyes limit your sight; poor vision limits your deed” – Franklin Field

                               

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Sermon Starters

January 27, 2011 at 10:52 am (Sermon Starters)

                                    

                                   Rev. E. Anderson

This is a simple outline for you to think about and meditate on. The introduction, main thoughts and conclusion need further material to be added. It is an outline for you to expand, develop more fully and fill in to spiritual profit and inspiration.

BANKRUPT OF LOVE

Former U.S. Education Secretary William Bennett attended a contemporary wedding where the bride and groom pledged in their vows to remain together As long as love shall last’ Bennett said, ‘1 sent them paper plates as a wedding gift. if you want to build a great marriage, one that will go the distance, you must concentrate on doing these four things:

1/.  TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN HAPPINESS.

By blaming your mate you never have to face yourself honestly or change your own behaviour. That’s a cop-out! Relationships aren’t dumping grounds. Happiness is an inside job; it comes from having a healthy self-esteem and a growing relationship with God.

2/.   BE A FRIEND.

 Ever notice how easily we accept our friends as they are; yet have trouble doing that with the one we’re married to? Look out familiarity breeds contempt! Doesn’t your partner deserve at least the same respect, loyalty, patience, gratitude and appreciation you give others?

3/.   HAVE A SHARED GOAL.

You always need something to plan for and work toward together. Doing this will enrich your relationship and take it to higher levels. So, what’s your next goal?

4/.   HAVE COURAGE.

Dr. Theodore Rubin says, ‘The problem is not that there are problems, it’s expecting otherwise; it’s thinking that having problems is the problem!’ There are no perfect situations in life. You need courage to face whatever comes, to realise that what you can’t solve, you can out-last and out-love! So work on your marriage today!

                            

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Just a Thought

January 27, 2011 at 10:47 am (Just a Thought)

                                  

                              Rev. A. Linford

THE PARADOX OF FREEDOM

‘The law of liberty James 2:12

This seems a contradiction of terms: but it is true. All true liberty is based on law. Morally, the Ten Commandments stamp liberty on life. Sin, the essence of which is self- choice, is bondage. Materially, freedom is based on natural law. The freest creature, so we say, is a bird. But how can an heavier-than-air object float in the sky? By instinct it obeys the rules of aerodynamics, and is thus able to perform at pleasure aerial gymnastics. It obeys the law of nature, and is free.

And so spiritually. As Elton Trueblood avers: “We have not advanced very far in our spiritual lives if we have not encountered the basic paradox of freedom, to the effect that we are most free when we are bound”.

The hymn-writer, George Matheson, confirms this in his well-known words:

”Make me a captive, Lord. And then I shall be free’,

Force me to render up my sword,   And l shall conqueror be”

To submit to the will qf God brings joyful freedom; the chains that bind us to Him are fetters of delight. The yoke of Christ brings sweetest rest to our souls.

                               

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Meet the Christian Ministers

January 27, 2011 at 10:42 am (Meet The Ministers)

                        

                      Rev. Andy Holland

Born in Manchester, Pastor Andy was adopted at nine years of age after an awful childhood experience.

Pastor Andy has a great testimony for the youth of today and is a regular speaker at youth camps etc. Pastor Andy has pioneered three churches in (London, East End Hackney) and Wales, most from nothing and has an evangelistic heart.

He frequently travels to the Czech Republic where he teaches and preaches especially in small works to inspire and motivate. Pastor Andy is married Heather who originates from Hull, Yorkshire.. They have two children, David, and Louise.

We have a fine worship team and Youth and Children’s Work. Also we have a tremendous outreach to World Missions. The Church has a ministry team that cares for those experiencing divorce.

                               

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Message by Rick Warren

January 27, 2011 at 10:38 am (Messages By Rick Warren)

                             

                           Rev. Rick Warren

THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR DAY

“Lord, every morning you hear my voice. Every morning, I tell you what I need, and I wait for your answer.” Psalm 5:3 (NCV) 

Any doctor will tell you the most important meal of the day is breakfast because the way you start your day influences the rest of your day. That’s true not just physically, but spiritually.

‘Without review, I lose my view.’ Make sure you allocate part of your quiet time to review the vision God wants you to have

Any doctor will tell you the most important meal of the day is breakfast because the way you start your day influences the rest of your day. That’s true not just physically, but spiritually.

That’s why the most important part of your day is your time alone with God. Setting aside time in the morning to be alone with God will set the pattern of your attitude and response to every event and person for the rest of your day.

Whether it takes five minutes or thirty, there are four things you need to do in this time alone with God that will set your spiritual thermostat for the day.

  1. Read God’s Word. You don’t have to read a lot, just enough until God speaks to you. It’s amazing how God will use his Word in your life. As the prophet Isaiah said, “The sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom” (Isaiah 50:4). I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read something in my morning quiet time that was exactly what I needed to share with someone later in the day.
  2. Be quiet before God. Noise is one of the major sources of stress in peoples’ lives. Your body needs a certain amount of quiet, and you need to carve out time in your life for this quietness. You will be less stressed if you start your day with quiet time before God.

“In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength” (Isaiah 30:15 NIV). The worst thing you can do in the morning is get up and immediately check your e-mail or turn on the news. You need time to meditate on God’s good news before you fill your mind with bad news.

           3.  Talk with God. Notice it says “talk with God,” not “talk to God.” Prayer is a conversation, not a one-way street. And it’s not the amount of words you say in prayer that make it effective. It’s about sharing what’s on your heart with God – your feelings, concerns, thoughts, and adoration. Just talk with God and then wait on him to respond.

             4. Review your day and goals with God. Take time to go over your schedule, your goals and your day’s to-do list with God. There are dozens of verses in Proverbs that talk about planning with God and teaching you to number your days, which means looking at your time and pondering where you are going.

It’s easy to set goals, but if you don’t look at your goals every day, you will never accomplish them. Or as I like to say, “Without review, I lose my view.” Make sure you allocate part of your quiet time to review the vision God wants you to have.

                                  

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A Time to Laugh

January 27, 2011 at 10:32 am (Time to Laugh)

                                 

                        Rev. E. Anderson

A SINAI FUNNY

Smith climbs to the top of  Mt. Sinai to get close enough to talk to God.  

Looking up, he asks the Lord, “God, what does a million years mean to you?”

The Lord replies, “A minute.”

Smith asks, “And what does a million dollars mean to you?”

The Lord replies, “A penny.”

Smith asks, “Lord, can I have a penny?”

The Lord replies, “In a minute.”

A SKY DIVING FUNNY

 

A man is skydiving, enjoying his free-fall, when he realizes that he has reached the altitude where he must open his parachute. So he pulls on the rip cord, but nothing happens.

“No problem,” he says to himself, “I still have my emergency chute.” So he pulls the rip cord on his emergency parachute, and once again, nothing happens. Now the man begins to panic.

“What am I going to do?” he thinks, “I’m a goner…”

Just then he sees a man flying up from the earth toward him. He can’t figure out where this man is coming from, or what he’s doing, but he thinks to himself, “Maybe he can help me. If he can’t, then I’m done for.”

When the man gets close enough to him, the skydiver cups his hands and shouts down, “Hey, do you know anything about parachutes?”

The other man replies, “No! Do you know anything about gas stoves?”

                               

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