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Great is Thy Faithfulness
My grandfather-in-law passed away last week at the age of 95. He was much loved and will be very missed. He was a wonderful man, very caring and gentle. He was a man who showed great integrity and strength. And he was a faithful servant of God, and so it brings us comfort to know that he is now free of his earthly, broken body and with His Saviour. At the funeral we will be singing, Great is Thy Faithfulness. I just love this old hymn. The words are so rich and powerful, and they declare the very character of God. They speak of God’s unfailing faithfulness to us, His unending mercies, His provision in our lives daily and His unchanging nature. We live in a world of constant
Nothing New Under the Sun
I’ve always loved history; I find it fascinating to learn about what has happened in the past and how our world got to where it is today. And I’m especially fascinated by how history keeps on repeating itself; every few generations people keep on making the same mistakes, trying the same things, and encountering the same problems. And each time, we act under the assumption that we are making our own unique advances, because we haven’t learned from the past. Studying early church history this semester has shown me the same thing. The modern New Age movements are expressing the same ideas that were evident in the Gnostic sects that plagued the early church (they believed human beings are divine souls trapped in the physical world). Or the hard-line
A Prayer for Pentecost Sunday
This Sunday is a significant day in the Christian calendar; it is Pentecost Sunday. Originally, Pentecost was an annual Jewish festival that occurred seven weeks after Passover. However, it became an important Christian celebration after God poured out the Holy Spirit upon the church in Jerusalem on the first Pentecost following Christ’s resurrection. We read about this momentous occasion in Acts 2: When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak
Honouring Mothers (Even When it’s Hard)
It is Mother’s Day this weekend, a day I always look forward to. My children are always so excited to give me their hand made crafts, sweet cards and personally chosen gifts. If you see me on Sunday I may be donning a pasta necklace or a pair of ‘very expensive ruby earrings’ (which probably cost them $3 at a Mother’s Day stall). Mother’s Day is very special for me, however I’m very aware that isn’t the case for everyone. As I have been preparing for Sunday’s family service, I came across the following article written by author and speaker Jen Wilkin. I think it beautifully captures that as Christians we are part of God’s family which means we all have an opportunity to show honour and love to
Jesus and the Outsider
You never know why someone walks through the door on a Sunday; some have reached a breaking point in their lives and want to ‘give this God thing a try’, others have been involved in church in the past and want to reconnect with God and his people. You just never know. One of the exciting things about this though is that every new person who connects with our community might just experience God for the first time. Don’t we all long for people to hear the gospel, respond to it and experience restoration and forgiveness? Isn’t this what we are about as God’s people? What excites me even more is that we actually have newcomers in our Sunday services every week! Every week there is someone who is
Five Things Every Child Needs
I’ve recently been re-reading a book by Reggie Joiner called ‘Think Orange: Imagine the impact when church and family collide’. In it, Reggie includes a list of five things every child needs. I found them quite thought-provoking and helpful in my role as a parent and a leader of children’s ministry. I’d like to share them with you, along with my own thoughts. It’s my hope and prayer that you, too, will be encouraged. 1.A really big God they can trust—no matter what We want our kids to grow up with a close-up view of God; a God who captures their imaginations. We as the church and their parents need to show them the wonder, mystery, and power of a God who is too big for them to define,
Responding to the Gift of Scripture
“I have hidden your word in my heart…” (Psalm 119:11) We really are so fortunate to have access to the Bible. In India, just delivering Bibles can be seen as trying to convert people to Christianity, and in several Indian states this is against the law! Not only are we fortunate because we can buy and distribute Bibles freely in our country, we are fortunate because God has provided us with the Bible in the first place. Our God is so gracious, that he has revealed himself clearly and concretely through the Scriptures. Think about that for a moment. What would life be like if we had to guess about God? I feel sorry for the countless pagan cultures who attempted this. They would try their best to link
So Loved
One of the most quoted and well-known verses from the Bible is John 3:16: ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life’. (NIV) I am certain that this verse was quoted, written, and spoken about last Easter weekend. In my reflection upon Easter, I have been reading a devotion plan called ‘The Reason for My Hope’, a devotion based on excerpts from Dr Billy Graham’s book ‘The Reason For My Hope: Salvation’. Dr Graham writes about a time in 1934, which was when he gave his life to Jesus at the age of 16. As I read what he wrote, about being loved by God and that, truly, all we need
