Category Archives: Bible

Building Healthy Community

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In an increasingly fragmented society, young people are desperately seeking a place where they can experience and participate in real community. God has placed within every human being the need to belong. Our society emphasises the role of the individual, God’s focus is on us becoming more self-less and more ‘brotherly’ in our lifestyles.
How do we create a real sense of community in our cells, a place where young people are able to grow and contribute, a place where they feel ‘safe’ to try out new things, ask difficult questions, a place where when they are challenge don’t run away and hide, where everyone feels valued?
Pray
Jesus prayed for his disciples. Pray for those in your cell. Pray for God’s life to flowing between them during the week.
Teach
Talk about community, what it is, how it feels, how to achieve it. Brainstorm community words – together, sharing, co-operation, love, peace, listen etc.. Find stories. Identify community values. Don’t run from conflict, address it together.
Model
It is so important that you as the leader model what you hope to see built. Be open, honest and encouraging. Make the time to phone cell members. Arrange evenings out. Show interest in others’. Check up on yourself to see if you’re living it out.
Have fun!
Make time to hang out, do crazy things, eat together. A lot of what Jesus did was in a relaxed informal setting. It’s a great way to develop friendship.
Discussion:
When was the last time you all had an evening out?
How much is your cell a meting rather than a community?
How can you cultivate community in your cell?
Who in your cell has a gift for building community? How can you use them to develop cell community?

Biblically Functioning Community

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Acts 2 v 42 47

What are we trying to build? Rich care for the poor, Bible study, cell groups, evangelism, worship, discipleship all of these things make up a biblically functioning community.

What is the foundation of the church?

Biblical teaching the Word of God. Study and teach the Bible and ask people’s behaviour to conform to the Bible. Only people with a spiritual gift of teaching will be able to teach in the service and after each preach there will be a written evaluation by leaders.

Intentional about evangelism

Go REACH and then TEACH. This should be the mission of the church. So do your evangelism and then get those that are saved into small groups, etc. where they can learn about gifting, etc. How?
Get all believers to start building relationship with those that don’t know God.
Train them to give a presentation about how to come to God.
Run seeker services at weekends for those in (a) to come to.
Be culturally relevant but doctrinally pure. Minister in the decade that the church is happening in.
Manifest authenticity no pretending relate with sincerity of heart.
Unified community of servants with men and women using their spiritual gifts.
Loving relationships should permeate every aspect of church life. What would be the loving thing to say/do in this situation?
Life changes happen, best in small groups.
Excellence honours God and inspires people.
Church should be led by people with leadership gifts.
Full devotion to Christ and his cause should be normal for every believer.

Worship

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How do we worship?
Ask your group to write a list of the things they and their friends ‘worship’, e.g. TV, sport, fashion, money and pop groups.
What do they do to show their ‘worship’ for these objects and people? (Consider merchandise, clothing, and season tickets, particularly for football)
What do they see others ‘worship’? (Money, power, technology)
Suggest that we can tell what people’s priorities are by what they worship, and how much they value something by how much they are willing to give for it.
Key point: Our priorities will influence and affect how we spend our time and make decisions.

Music -

The Bible
Now let’s look at the biblical words. In both Hebrew and Greek, there are two major kinds of words for worship. The first kind means to bow down, to kneel, to put one’s face down as an act of respect and submission. Our body language is saying, I will do whatever you want me to. I am ready to listen to your instructions and I am willing to obey. The other kind of biblical word means to serve. Roughly half of the time these words are translated as worship, and the other half as serve. It carries the idea of doing something for God — making a sacrifice or carrying out his instructions.
Of course, word meanings don’t prove what worship is, but they do illustrate three kinds of worship. There is
worship that involves speaking, and worship that involves listening, and a worship that involves doing.
There is a worship that expresses the heart, and worship that involves the mind, and a worship that involves the body. There is a worship that is giving praise upward, a worship that is receiving instructions from above, and a worship that carries out instruction in the world around us.
We need all three types of worship. Some people focus primarily on speaking or singing praise to God. Praise is good, but if all we do is praise God, without ever listening to what he says, we have to ask whether we believe the words we are saying. If he is really all wise and all loving, then we need to be attentive to what he is telling us, because he is worth listening to.
Similarly, all talk and no action does not show God the respect he deserves. Actions speak louder than words, and if our behaviour isn’t changed by God, then our actions are saying that God isn’t important — he’s a nice idea, but not relevant to our day-to-day lives. When we really believe that God is worthy of every praise, then we will be willing to listen and to change the way we live in response to such a worthy God. We will trust him and seek him and want to please him as much as we can. Worship should affect our behaviour.
Questions?
1. Do we want to please God?
2. Do we see worship as simply singing songs?
3. How can worship affect our behaviour?

Responding to God
Worship is a response to God. We can’t know God’s worth, much less declare it, unless God reveals himself to us. So God initiates worship by revealing himself to us. Then we respond, and the proper response is worship. The more we grasp his greatness, his power, his love, his character, the more we understand his worthiness, the better we can declare his worth – the better we can worship.
Our worship is a response to what God has revealed himself to be, not only in who he is, but also in what he has done and is doing and will do in the future. Worship includes all our responses to God – including a response with our mind, such as our belief in God’s worthiness, our emotions, such as love and trust, and our actions and our words. Our heart expresses itself in words and songs; our mind is active when we want to learn what God wants us to do, and our bodies and strength are involved when we obey and when we serve.
Both Old Testament and New Testament tell us that our relationship with God should involve our heart, mind, soul, and strength. It involves all that we are. Worship involves heart, mind, soul and strength, too.
Now is our chance to respond to God….

Community or Alone
We can worship God all by ourselves. But it is also something we do together. God has revealed himself not just to me, but to many people. God puts us in a community, he reveals himself to a community and through a community, and the community together responds to him in worship, in declaring that he is worth all honour and praise.
I just want to point something out here. Something I believe is important. When we sing in church it is simply singing songs to God – part of our worship. So we don’t have a worship leader, we have a song leader.

The Early Church
Acts 2 tells us how worship was done among the people who saw Jesus’ example and followed it. “Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about 3,000 were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (vv. 41-42). This is their response to God, their devotion, their worship: they accepted the message — they believed, they were repentant, they were baptised — and they devoted themselves to
being taught,
sharing with one another,
breaking bread, and
prayer.
Luke is giving a summary description, not a formula for worship services.
“Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people” (vv. 46-47). They worshipped in the temple, and they worshipped in their homes. They praised God, they were happy, and they were sincere.
When we examine worship customs, we need to distinguish between what is required, what is permissible, and what is helpful. Few things are required, and few things are forbidden. The many things in between are permissible – if they are done for the glory of God. Luke doesn’t tell us much more about worship. To learn more about worship, we turn next to the writings of Paul.
Paul is a primary source for what first-century churches did and how they operated. But Paul says very little about worship. Words for worship are found only a few times in Paul’s letters. He doesn’t tell us how we should worship. Perhaps that is because Paul sees worship as something we are to do all the time. John Piper expressed it in this way: “What we find in the New Testament, perhaps to our amazement, is an utterly stunning degree of indifference to worship as an outward ritual, and an utterly radical intensification of worship as an inward experience of the heart…. The very epistles that are written to help the church be what it ought to be in this age [are] almost totally devoid of…explicit teaching on the specifics of corporate worship”
In these verses, preaching the gospel is an act of worship. Paul was not a Levite, but he had a priestly duty, and that was to worship with all his heart by preaching. In our worship services today, the sermon is just as much a part of the worship as the songs are. Whenever the gospel is preached, worship is being done. God’s greatness is being proclaimed. Worship is in the listening, too, as people seek to learn what God wants us to be doing. A worshipful attitude toward God is one that respectfully listens to what he may be saying to us.
Every act of obedience is an act of worship. It declares that God has worth. And whenever we share the gospel with someone, we are declaring God’s worth. We are engaging in the priestly service of preaching the gospel, the worship of being a witness to God’s grace. We tell what a great thing God has done in Jesus Christ, and how that has been good news in our life. We are declaring his worth. We are giving worship in everyday life. We don’t have to wait for a church service.

What is worship?
Worship can be defined as adoration. Christians would say that all humankind feels drawn to worship because we were created to worship God.
The first time the word worship is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis 22 when Abraham is asked by God to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. Read up to verse 18 and make the point that God’s request was not cruelty, simply part of his plan to test Abraham and see if he was prepared to obey God in everything.
How can Abraham’s actions be seen as a good illustration of true worship?
Does worship have to include surrender?
What would you find impossible to surrender as an act of worship?
What do you find easy to worship?

Bible bit
Read Romans 12:1 and ask the group:
What does it mean to ‘offer your body as a living sacrifice’?
Is worship something that must involve music?
If not, why is it so central to our church services and why do the Psalms so often encourage us to ‘sing to the Lord’?
What, if anything, is special about musical worship?

Activity
Give each young person paper and pens and ask them to draw a pie chart of their day, giving time to each activity such as sleeping, eating, walking to school etc. Discuss how they could potentially use each activity and each time of day to worship God.

Key point: Worship is not limited to certain activities, days or times. God doesn’t only want our worship on our lips but on our hearts. Our worship should be done daily in every part of our lives. The proper response to worship is not emotion but action.

To analyse our worship practice, we need to ask these questions:
Does it glorify God? That is one major purpose of worship.
Does it build up the body of Christ? That is another major purpose.
And third, does it help us be what God wants us to be in the world? Does it have practical results in our lives?

Prayer

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There is a simplicity about prayer:

Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Matthew 7 v 7-8

This is a very simple promise.

If we had been asked to make a promise about prayer, how would we have put it. Probably stopped after, “Ask and it will be given to you.”

Yet while this promise is so full, so deep, so broad, so precious in every way, we need to stop and examine other parts of Scripture to ensure we get the full benefits of prayer.

Are there conditions we best not neglect.

1. Our requests must be according to God’s will.

2. We mustn’t ask on account of our own goodness or merit, but in the name of Jesus Christ. John 14 v 13-14.

3. Don’t cherish sin in your heart. Psalm 66 v 18. The Lord won’t listen. Or more bluntly, if you live in sin, God won’t answer your prayer. Notice, I didn’t say won’t hear you. God’s ear is always waiting to hear from a sinner seeking repentance.

4. Exercise faith. Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11 v 24. In God’s time you will get it.

We must be believe that He is willing and able.

Is God able – look at the power of the resurrection – an almighty power.

Look to the cross to see His love in action – He didn’t spare His own Son.
You see that is what we rely on – God’s fruit – His love and power. Rely on these and you will receive.

5. Wait patiently on God until the blessing is received. There is nothing in our text that gives us the time we will receive. Do you need to bring it before God, once, twice, three times? Well technically – never – because God knows what we want before we even speak it.

God wants us to prove our dependance and confidence in Him, by asking. We are placing ourselves in the right place before God, as His creatures.

Never lose sight of the fact that there may be a particular reason why prayer is not being answered.
a. Exercise of faith – by trial is faith strengthened
b. To glorify God in a show of patience
c. Your heart might not be prepared for the answer

Therefore, go on waiting upon God, go on praying, only be sure to ask for the things that are according to God’s will – one thing – God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Pray, expect an answer, look for it and in time you will have to praise God for it.

Steps to Dynamic Relationships

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The Word of God illuminated by the Holy Spirit is the only true means for transforming the human heart. Salvation by faith is a specific occasion, while the renewing of the mind by the Word is a continuing process. The disciple devotes himself to God’s Word to be transformed into a holy person, radiantly Christ-like and radically different from the world. Spiritual disciples devour God’s Word because in it is the key to a more dynamic relationship with their living Lord and a greater availability to the Holy Spirit.

10 v 17 Be constant in your reading and study of God’s Word. Recognise that your faith will grow only as much as you feed on God’s Word.

12 v 1, 2 Let God’s Word and His Holy Spirit radically transform your way of thinking. Renew your minds to know and do the will of God, giving your body a living sacrifice.

15 v 4 Recognise that the OT was written through the Spirit for the church. Incorporate the OT into your daily Bible study.

Old Testament

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We are going to look at the OT over the next two weeks. We are going to spend some time studying the chronology of the OT and we are going to look at why we should be reading the OT.

Let’s start with a simple question.

How do we read the OT?
We could start at the beginning – Genesis and finish at the end – Malachi! But it would be a difficult read. There are places where we would probably get bogged down. Numbers for a start!
We could try picking out themes and reading through like that.
We could try characters!
Whatever way we choose, I really want to encourage you to develop a desire and a passion for the Bible and particularly the OT.
The OT is full of exciting people, exciting times and a huge number of times where God speaks directly to his people.
If you want to know what the word of the Lord is…..
Read Leviticus, it is about 90% direct speech from God. It really is God’s word.

Here three observations on the Bible:-
1.The Bible IS a children’s book.
2.It is NOT a presentation of a logical system of thought!
3.The Bible contains NO neat formulae.

When we read the Bible we need to be aware of the way we read the Bible! We can avoid all the unpleasant bits, the bits we don’t understand and just read the nice stories. Well let me tell you a story.
Two ways to tell the story… The selfish giant story.

But when we read the Bible we cannot leave bits out.
How would you explain the story about Jephtha?
Two ways to tell the Samson story? It is a story about a biblical hero, someone we should aspire to or is about a sexist, racist, hypocrite that did nothing for his own people just for himself… but who came good at the end.

When we read the Bible we must become theologians!
1.What is the genre being used?
2.Torah (Genesis to Deuteronomy): Communicated as given. Law is taught unequivocally. Do not steal is not up for debate!
3.Prophetic material (History books etc.) – Use as a challenge. Where is justice? What is idolatry? What does God want us to do about it?
4.Wisdom material: Use re practicalities of faith and life, etc. What does God require of me here? What would Jesus do?

From the age of 6 children can be introduced to some of the different literary forms of the Bible and assisted to distinguish between them. Stories, poetry and letters can be identified.
So if children from the age of 6 can be introduced to the Bible so should we. Questions to ask when we are reading the Bible:-
1.Was this a story which someone told or does it record a real event?
2.When and where were the events happening?
3.What was happening elsewhere in the world at that time?
4.What were people’s everyday lives like then?
5.Are there any particular words which need explanation?
6.Psalms, etc…
6.1.What was the writer feeling?
6.2.What did they want to express?
6.3.What are some of the key images/pictures being used?
6.4.Why?
6.5.How would I express the same feelings?
7.Letters, etc…
7.1. Questions need to be asked about the situations of both the senders and receivers?
7.2.Try to piece together the issues which brought about the letter?
7.3.Get them to write their own letter about the issue?
8.Older children and youth can be introduced to prophetic material…
8.1.When was the prophet speaking?
8.2.What was the situation which was being addressed?
8.3.Why?
8.4.What might the prophet want to challenge today?
8.5.What could we do about it?
9.Of dreams, questions could be asked about imagery and what it might mean, as well as the historical context of the ‘dreamer’.
The idea is that they play with the texts so that thoughts and questions can surface. Frame ‘open’ questions. Children and young people will have new insights to give to us.

Why do we read the OT?
Reading the OT brings shape to the NT. Without reading and understanding the OT we will never understand the NT. If I can refer back to Leviticus, I can bring you a classic example. Much of Hebrews needs to be understood in the context of Leviticus. Why? Well for a start there are a lot of quotations from the OT many of which are from Leviticus. But look at the themes of Leviticus. A major theme is worship, this is the same dominant theme in Leviticus, God’s plan for salvation can only really be understood when you read about God’s salvation plan in the OT. This salvation plan was set up in Leviticus. You could say Leviticus sets the standard by which we need to live if we are to get to heaven by the Law. Leviticus is also a lifestyle book. Hebrews sets the standard if we are to get heaven by grace. It is also a lifestyle book.

The OT was the book referred to by Jesus, Paul and all the disciples. When they talk about Scripture, they were talking about the OT.In the transfiguration story Jesus is seen with two men – Moses and Elijah. Do you know who these men represent and why they were stood with Jesus?
Jesus’ often refers to the OT as three sections, the Law, the Prophets and the writings. But we have four sections to our Bible. We have the Law, the History, the Prophets and the writings. The Jews however don’t have the history part. Why? Because when we read the OT we are reading history from a very different perspective. All history books are written by someone who looks at history and then tells it from their perspective. What is unique about the Bible? It is history written from God’s perspective! Have you ever thought about that? That is why the Jews see the history writings as prophecy. It is God’s slant on history. And it is very interesting.

LAW (TORAH, PENTATEUCH)
* Genesis
* Exodus
* Leviticus
* Numbers
* Deuteronomy

PROPHETS
Former:
* Joshua
* Judges
* 1 & 2 Samuel
* 1 & 2 Kings
Later:
* Isaiah
* Jeremiah
* Ezekiel
* Hosea
* Joel
* Amos
* Obadiah
* Jonah
* Micah
* Nahum
* Habakkuk
* Zephaniah
* Haggai
* Zechariah
* Malachi

WRITINGS
* Psalms (Praises)
* Job
* Proverbs
* Ruth
* Song of Solomon
* Ecclesiastes (the preacher)
* Lamentations (How?)
* Esther
* Daniel
* Ezra
* Nehemiah
* 1 & 2 Chronicles (The words of the days)

Do you know who the Jews are? Take a few answers here!
The Jews are not Israel. This is a very important thing for us to understand. For us to get some richness out of the Gospels we need to understand the OT. Did you know that around 945BC just after the reign of Solomon ended there was civil war in Israel. That civil war ended with the nation of Israel separating into two parts. Israel and Judah. Israel was the 10 northern kingdoms and Judah two southern kingdoms of Judah and Benjamin. This is important for us to know. Why? Because in the gospels Jesus’ journeys are split into two sections. The first part of the gospels tend to focus on Jesus’ travels around the northern kingdoms where many miracles are accomplished, there is much faith and many follow after the Messiah. The second half Jesus has travelled south and is now in different territory. This is the territory of the Jews or the people of Judah. Here there is much hostility, very little miracles and Jesus is constantly telling people off! It is the jews of the southern kingdom that crucify Jesus. Why you might ask? The origins again refer back to the OT. Jerusalem is the place from where the Kings ruled and the temple was built. Jesus took away from Judah there claims to be where the Messiah or Kings would come. He also took away from them the priesthood. He did in fact threaten there very livelihoods. And they didn’t like it. You need to go and have a look at the reasons for the civil war just after Solomon’s reign.

The OT is very interesting. Many of the OTs books have very interesting shapes. And the series of books have interesting shapes. The Israelites are commanded to read through the Law (who knows what the books of the Law are) every year. Genesis has a wide audience – it is written over a long period of time and written about a wide area. Exodus centres in on a particular people on a particular journey at a particular time. Leviticus centres on a single people group over a small period of time. Numbers centres on a particular people on a particular journey at a particular time. Deuteronomy widens out to a wide audience and a long period of time!
Shape is very important.

Let’s look at a very quick Biblical timeline……

Ok I am going to leave it there. I am next week going to try to race through the whole of the OT books so we can get a feel for each book! and how it fits in the Biblical timeline. Have you ever wondered why Kings and Chronicles were written. They cover much of the same period and even largely talk about the same people! So why were they written. Well if we go back to the start of what I was saying, the Jewish scriptures were split into law, prophets and writings, we can get a clue. Kings was placed in the Prophet section of the Jewish scriptures and Chronicles was placed in the writings section. Kings is classified as prophetic insight into history. It is the prophets who interpreted history and showed what God was doing in it. Quite simply that is the major difference, Kings is prophetic, Chronicles is not.
There is a lot more to be understood about the OT, far too much to cover in two weeks. In fact it will take you a lifetime to cover the whole of the Bible.
My challenge to you is to start this week. Take a book of the OT and start to read it this week a chapter at a time. Feel the richness of its language and the beauty of its construction.
But most of all know that it is God speaking to you from out of the history of a small group of people that God chose to follow Him.

The Narrow Gate

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Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7 v 13-14
Tonight is decision time. Tonight is your chance to make a judgement call on Jesus. The decision is to follow Him or not follow Him.
What is the difference?
The Broad Road
The broad road means exactly that broad, no boundaries, spacious, roomy. You don’t have to give up anything. You can live a life of ease. You can be proud and angry. Hate your enemies and get revenge. You can have sex with who you want. You can earn lots of money and keep it for yourself. You can do and be whatever you want.
There is a problem with this. We give children boundaries. Why?Because it means they don’t hurt themselves. If I don’t live with boundaries, I drive on any side of the road and couldn’t care about the consequences. My freedom means others get abused, bullied, they may even be killed.
The Narrow Road
This word means ‘restricted, confined, compressed’. This is a pressurised road and there are boundaries. Humility is the order of the day. This road is virtually impossible to walk down. But on this road Jesus walks with us. The Christiian life is an adventure.
The narrow road is where you give up all your rights. You cannot have unrighteous anger, you can only have on sexual partner – your husband or wife. You can’t just go out with anybody. You can’t divorce. You can’t lie or cheat or steal. You have to love your enemies, yes even if they bully you. Your money is not your own – all your money is Jesus’. You have to pray and fast. You have to get your relationships right. This means not being rude to your parents – respect them. The narrow path is a hard path.
But it is the life of adventure. The broad path is destruction. The narrow path is life and life in all its fullness. What do I mean by that?Well in the future we can live with Jesus on the new earth and enjoy life without tears and trouble. But I also mean now. Our lives can be full of joy now. Despite troubles we can know peace and courage in our hearts. When we choose the narrow path – we are going the best way. Life was meant to be lived like this.
I want to tell you a story about a young man called Will. Will had been saving for a number of months for Dr Martin’s boots. They were the ‘in’ thing and a number of people had them. His parents had said if he wanted some he would have to buy them. So he saved. And eventually he had enough money. So off he went and purchased his DM’s. If you had seen his face you would have known how happy he was. He decided to save wearing them until that evening.
That evening we went out to the pub and while we were sat there Will and another friend Dan decided to go and get some chips. So off they went. When they got to the chip shop there was a homeless guy sat out side begging for money. Dan and Will decided to buy him some fish and chips and a drink of coke. As they were handing them over they decided to sit and eat and drink with him. As they were chatting Will asked him, “If you could ask God for one thing, what would it be?”
The young man thought and replied, “A new pair of shoes.”He went on to explain that in all his life he had never had a new pair of shoes. He had always had somebody else’s hand-downs. They asked if they could pray for him. And then….
Will undid his shoe laces and handed over £50 worth of DM’s. They had been worn for maybe an hour and retained the sticker on the bottom showing how new they were. £50′s worth of shoe. But as he explained to the homeless young man how new they were, they suddenly became a lot more valuable than that. His face showed they were worth a whole lot more. They prayed for that young man that night and then with just his socks on, Will walked home.
When he got home he had to explain to his parents who weren’t Christians what he had done. So he told them and as he talked his father started to cry and when he had finished, he looked and his dad and asked what is the mattter. His dad replied that he couldn’t believe that he had a son that could be that generous and that nice. He was proud of his son and he asked him if he could go out and buy him a new pair of DM’s.
For Will that is life lived to the full.
And for Huw my best man. He knows life to the full because of his friends. Huw and I were at Soul Survivor together having an excellent time, when I got a call from work. I needed to return leaving Huw on his own. He got quite lonely that day and so rang a friend called Ian. A good friend. And as he talked Ian sensed how lonely he was.
So Ian decided to surprise Huw. It cost £15 to spend a day at Soul Survivor and that was all Ian had. He lived 18 miles from the camp site and so he set his alarm to waken him at 2 in the morning and he then walked all the way. He arrived at 8 and Huw awoke that morning listening to breakfast being cooked from him. Huw know his friend love him.
And me, I have had the privilege of being involved in so many lives. One young man is alive today because I got involved. So many stories it is hard to count. That is living life to the full. So go the broad path, do what you want.

Wisdom

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Bible

The most intimate knowledge of God is only possible on one condition -that we search the Holy Bible – prayerfully and habitually – and then translate what we find there into obedience. If we want to know about money it is all in the Bible.

Prosperity

You see money and prosperity seem to go hand in hand but this is not true for anybody and particularly not for the Christian. God’s promise from the book of Joshua is clear:-
“…to him or her who meditates on God’s law day and night, who looks and continues looking into this perfect law, they shall prosper..”
Or as James puts it, “they shall be blessed”
Both Old and New Testaments confirm it, meditation not money brings prosperity. So if you want to know how to get rich – meditate!

Bible

Put it another way – God having condescended to become an Author, inspiring holy men to write the Scriptures, He would in them impart the most vital truths; His message would cover all matters which concern our welfare, and therefore under the double impulse of duty and delight we should instinctively and habitually turn to the Bible.

Challenge

Let me challenge you and challenge you hard – for every page of a paperback you read, you should read five pages of the Bible; for every five minutes of watching the TV, you should spend twenty-five minutes reading the Bible. Why is your life out of balance? It is because your study of the Bible and your prayer life is out of balance.

Cost of Discipleship

You want to know about managing your money – its all here in the Bible. But remember this, as I hopefully unfold the Scriptures and present to you the truth of how to manage your money, it will cost. Being a disciple of Christ is costly. Jesus did not say to you, “Take up your matrice” or “Have your cake and eat it…” No what he said was, “Take up your crossl”
Say after me… “Take up my cross!”

The Cross

Your cross – the most disgusting and cruel way to die, so cruel the Romans eventually banned it. The Cross where naked – yes naked – people mocked Jesus’ genitals – He was without nothing – where over time He died. The same cross you are asked to take up – you bring nothing – and where you are called to die.

Daily Die

Only by dying daily, taking up your cross, can you move closer to Jesus – daily denying yourself and letting God have the whole of you. That means every part of yourself – time – in prayer and study of the Word and money

Quote

Money – someone once said that your wallet is the last thing to be converted! Today we are going to hopefully die to our wallet and live for Jesus alone!
Rich young ruler and the widow
Jesus challenged the rich young ruler to sell everything he had and give it to the poor… and people say today well we have to apply wisdom and carefully pray about it, blah blah blah…
Well what about the widow. In Mark 12 Jesus says of the widow that, “She gave her all.” Where’s the wisdom in that? She’s a widow, no husband to provide for her, but in her love for God, in her desire to worship God, she gave everything. She didn’t hold anything back. What about breakfast the next day – we don’t know what happened – but if she gave her all – well it seems like she had nothing for the next day. She is an example of God loving a cheerful giver!

Hypocrite

Wait a minute this is hard and I stand before you ready and willing to be called a hypocrite. I am – I say these things but I find it hard to do them.
I would name myself as dishonest, I have stolen from my father, my brother and my friends, I have cheated on others, but thankfully God never once wrote me off. He was always ready to hear my cry for help and hold out his hand of salvation.
The gospel is not about being perfect but about recognition of your imperfection. What is central to our faith? That in dying Jesus gave me life. At times I think Jesus wasted his time – well it would be a waste of time if we allow anything to get in the way of that. This is core to our faith and when dealing with people you must remember this.
George Muller
Let’s get back to money – have you heard me mention George Muller at all? Well when I’ve talked about him, something I have not told you is this – that before becoming a Christian and indeed for many years after becoming a Christian he was a swindler, a cheat, he stole from his father, anybody, even his own mates on a camping trip, and yet as he surrendered his will to God he was changed. Years later he died, owning nothing but a Bible, a suit and a rocking chair. Indeed to me it sounds like he surrendered his all – his will.
Re-Cap
So have you got the picture:
1. To know how to live your life (manage your money), you have to read the Bible.
2. Being a disciple of Jesus is costly – it will kill you.
Money Points
So lers look at money:-
1) None of it is yours – not a penny – you can’t take it with you when you die – it never has been and never will be yours.
‘The Lord said to Moses, “You and Eleazar the Priest and the family heads of the community are to count all the people and animals that were captured. Divide the spoils between the soldiers who took part in the battle and the rest of the community…’ Numbers 31 v 25-26
The numbers of how the spoils were divided do not matter, the point that this passage is making is that it is all God’s and he can decide what is done with it. You can fight it or choose to obey but at the end of the day – everything you have is God’s.
2) “Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury”.
Just as an aside – Jesus watched them – I think most of us would think that was rude nowadays but I can tell you a story about a guy at my old church who handed out the money collection bags. He passed the money along the first row and it duly returned down the second row and when it got to him, he was obviously surprised at the weight of it and when he looked in it probably wasn’t full enough for him because he went back to the first row and indicated to people to put more in!!!!!!
Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling His disciples to Him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth, but she, gave out of her poverty, put in everything – all she had to five on.” Mark 12 v 41-44
It is not what you give but what you have left. I don’t believe that a tithe applies anymore. It seems to me that God gave the Israelites commandments to get them going. What I mean is this “You shall not murder.” That commandment is the starting point but Jesus says however, that if you call someone a name or get angry with them you have murdered them. Likewise with the tithe. A good place to start is to give 10% of all your earnings to God – that is what it means to tithe but in the case of the widow she gave 100%. She didn’t give symbolically or say well everything is God’s and He has blessed me and I get to blah blah blah. She physically gave everything. So a tithe of 10% is a good place to start but in reality nothing short of 100% is what God wants. And I believe God means it literally!
3) Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generousIy will also reap generously Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 6-8
This is exciting – God wants to say to you guys give abundantly because He wants to meet your needs. He loves you and He loves giving to you but if you have all you need then God can’t give anything to you. Why was the widow in such a good place? It was because she trusted that God knew where her next meal would come. Hallelujah – Praise God that He is a giving God.
4) Give what you can give because God can use it! You all know the story of the feeding of the five thousand – well it was probably more like twelve thousand because in those days they only counted the men, and the chances are that there was a lot of women and children there too – so it might be even more! Well in that story a little boy comes and gives Jesus his packed lunch. Two loaves and five fish. What a meagre offering but not to God – he turned that little boys offering into a feast… Story about Lockleaze Baptist Church and me giving l2pence.
5) “My son, if you have put up security for your neighbour, if you have struck hands in pledge for another, if you have been trapped by what you have said, ensnared by the words of your mouth, then do this, my son, to free yourself since you have fallen into your neighbour’s hands; Go and humble yourself press your plea with your neighbour! Allow no sleep to your eyes, no slumber to your eyelids. free yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.” Proverbs 6 v 1-5.
Guys if you’re in debt – pay the debt first – God wants us to be good stewards of our money and use it wisely – don’t get into debt – but if you have, then pay the debt off. God wants to help us and encourages us to help others but He does not promise to help or cover the costs of every unwise commitment we make. So here’s some practical suggestions from the Bible about managing our money:-
a) Keep good records. Know what you have got. “Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds…” Proverbs 27 v 23 You need to know what you owe and what you earn.
b) Plan spending. “The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.” Proverbs 21 v 5 Our financial freedom is not governed by what we earn but how we spend it. There are three types of people in the world:
i) The haves
ii) The have nots
iii) The have not paid for what they have!
A budget is telling our money where we want it to go!
c) Save for the future. “In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.” Proverbs 21 v 20 Make goals – to give, to save and to spend.
d) The principle of contentment is to enjoy what you already have! Even if you win the rat race you are still a rat!!!
e) The most sensitive nerve in your body goes from your heart to your wallet.
I use to be a Management Accountant – I managed millions for British Rail and I am freely available to help people budget – to understand how to manage their money. God wants to bring freedom in all areas -and that sometimes means a whiz and a bang and other times patiently sorting it out.
6) “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Deuteronomy 25 v 4.
Basically this is saying that while the oxen was working – that is separating the kernels from the chaff, to muzzle it would be to prevent it from eating while it was working – you are encouraged to let it eat while it works. Paul uses this illustration in the New Testament to argue that people productive in Christian work should not be denied its benefits – they should receive financial support. The fact that they are in Christian ministry doesn’t mean he or she should be unfairly paid. A broader application is that you shouldn’t be stingy with those who work for you. What I am trying to encourage you to think about is this. Jerry and Angela have generously funded the church for years and they continue at this present time but in a short while that funding stops. The church will need your money – to run the Pastors, the building, etc… At the moment, Graham and I do all our own admin – are we best serving the church doing this or does the church want to fund the paying of a secretary…

Anyway to sum up…

1) None of it is yours
2) Not what you give but what you have left
3) God wants you to give so He can give back
4) God will use whatever you give
5) Budget
6) Give to the church
What I am saying is this:
1) Use the Bible for wisdom
2) Honour God in how you use your money
3) Have faith that He will provide
4) Be practical – seek help if you need it (use your common sense)!
“Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” 2 Corinthians 9 v 10-11
Believe God and believe His Word you will be free indeed.

Intimacy with God

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Do you know what I most want in life? A father. I want God to father me, to love me but I have this wound that gets in the way. I want to surrender this wound to Jesus ‑ but I’m scared. I received the wound from my own dad ‑ not his fault he got a similar wound from his dad. My dad never fathered me.
Now I want God to father me. To love me, to guide me, to be the one who I look up to. I want to play cowboys and indians with Him and I need Him to help me deal with the bullies of this world.
I want to sit intimately in His arms and be loved by Him. But my wound festering away prevents me from getting too close.
So what do I do? I play games. I try to be someone I’m not. I start thinking negatively about myself. There are other reasons why people think negatively about themselves ‑ try these:‑

What causes negative thinking about ourselves?

Focussing on appearance ~ 1 Samuel 16 v 7
What does God look for when choosing a servant? An interesting experiment is to try describing yourself without using physical attributes. e.g. He is an excellent encourager with an ability to make people feel at home, etc…
Focussing on abilities
Focussing on our backgrounds ~ Judges 6 v 15
Gideon says, “I’m the youngest and I’m also from the lowest tribe.”
Problems in the past from rejection
Failure in projects e.g. Marriage, football team, ‘A’ levels.
Comparing our weaknesses with others strength Matthew 25 v 14‑30

What happens when you view yourself wrongly?

Sometimes we are not able to receive love.
Sometimes we lack genuine friends.
Sometimes we try to grab on because we want to feel love.
Sometimes we have an improper reaction to criticism.
Sometimes we take instruction as criticism.
Sometimes we find it difficult to make decisions. Not self‑assertive.
Sometimes we become people pleasers. We become yes men. We join the in‑crowd. Problems of dropping our standards to get into the in‑crowd.
Sometimes we find a lack of faith, of trust.
Sometimes we turn to perfection.
Sometimes we have excessive shyness.

Let me throw some definitions your way. Again they might touch a nerve.
Pride ~ To be known as who we are not.
Negative pride ~ Thinking we are useless.
Losers limp ~ When you realise you are going to lose and suddenly develop a limp.
Prisoners of hope ~ If only I could be like him/her then God could use me. But what would you do with someone else’s talents when you are not using your own? Nothing. We steal from ourselves and God by not using our own talents.
Humility ~ To be known as who we really are.

“I discovered first of all that for the monastic teachers’ humility is the key virtue that is both the starting point and the enabler of the whole Christian experience. What they meant by humility, however, had little to do with the modern, everyday use of the term. For them, humility was not about grovelling before God or other human beings. It had nothing to do with being passive, being a doormat, or glorifying having a poor self‑image. It was certainly not a virtue recommended to women or poor people so that they would accept their place in society.
No, humility for the ancient teachers meant accepting ourselves and others just as we are, limitations, vulnerabilities, and other major imperfections included, as already equally valuable and beloved of God without our having to prove our worth by what we accomplish, what we own, what we do right, or by our status in society and in the church.”

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4 v 7.
You need to learn to guard your minds. Sift through things you are told. Do not let what you do not have prevent you from using what you do have. Do not allow the negatives in.
These things happen when we are self‑negative about ourselves. When we understand who we are we will change. We are the sons and daughters of God.

So what about God?

This is where we turn to the Bible. I have said it before but if God condescended to become an author, I think we ought to read what He wrote and well it is pretty awesome. I mean think about it, God Himself chooses to put in print what He thinks of you. Worth a read!!!

How does God view us?

Genesis 1 v 26‑31 ~ You are utterly valuable to God. He made you to be like him, and everything he made was good and pleasing to him.
Isaiah 43 v 4 ~ Because you are precious to me. You are honoured and I love you.We are precious.
Ephesians 4 v 15‑16 ~ His (Jesus) very breath and blood flows through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.This is talking about the body. As Christians we are part of His body ‑ have you ever thought what that means! Each part in the body is important.
Psalm 139 ~ Read the whole BUT “Body and soul, I am marvelously made!”God formed us together ‑ as he wanted us to be. You are noticed by God. He knows and understands every action, thought and feeling.
Romans 15 v 7 ~ So reach out and welcome one another to God’s glory. Why? Jesus did it; now you do it! Christ accepts us.
Ephesians 2 v 10 ~ God does both the making and saving. We’re in God’s hands. I’m not what I want to be nor even what God wants me to be, but praise God I’m not what I use to be.
1 Peter 2 v 9 ~ But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen to be a holy people…. We’re God’s own possessions.
Psalm 18 v 19 ~ He led me to a place of safety; He rescued me because He delights in me. God delights in us.
1 John 3 v 16 ~ You are loved perfectly. God loves you completely and totally. He could not conceivably love you more. Even if you became a Christian today for the first time, he would not love you more than he does now. He could not, because he already loves you perfectly!
1 John 4 v 10 ~ God loves us.
Matthew 10 v 29‑31 ~ You are of great worth. An average human has 140,000 hairs on his or her head (although red‑heads have only a measly 88,000). You are worth so much to God that he has noted the exact number on your head.
Even if you have never been valued, noticed or loved by a human being, you are not unvalued, unnoticed or unloved, for God does all these things for you personally and perfectly.

A mouse and an elephant were walking along hand in hand and they crossed a bridge and it really shook. When they got to the other side the mouse looked at the elephant and said, “Boy we really shook that bridge!” This is like our walk with God.

Psalm 18 tells us that God delights in us. Let’s look at it again but this time The Message version.
God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before Him. When I got my act together, He gave me a fresh start. Now I’m alert to God’s ways; I don’t take God for granted. Every day I review the way He works; I try not to miss a trick. I feel put back together, and I’m watching my step. God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.

Guys to wrap up, you want intimacy with God ‑ well work at it. Relationships take time… You need to work at them, you need to develop your relationship with God, I’ve told you what God thinks of you by showing you in His word, now read it for yourself, keep a short account with God, examine where you’re at with Him and talk to God. Walk with God ‑ get to know Him and let Him get to know you.

So what about my wound? Well if I believe these things of God and I do, it is time to allow God into these wounds. How am I going to do it.

Steps to freedom

  1. We need to be honest, with ourselves and with God.
  2. The way we view ourselves upsets God.
  3. We need to renounce world values.
  4. We need to be renewed in our minds. Romans 12. John 8 v 31.
  5. We need to forgive the people that have hurt us.
  6. We need to ask for a revelation of who we are. I want God to name me!

Statements you can make

Thank you Father because you love and accept me the way I am.
Thank you Father you love me just as much as you love Jesus.
Thank you Father you’ve made me a unique person.
Therefore I refuse to compare myself with others.
I the son of the King of kings and Lord of lords.
There is many more we can make but make them we should.

The Women at the Well

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John 4 ~ A Battle to Fight – The Strategy

What is the battle?The battle is for souls. How many will go God’s way and how many the devil’s way?There is even a battle for your soul – oh you might think you’re safe but how safe are you? And what about doing all that God has planned for you. Well this morning we are entering the battle.

The equipment for the battle is alreally there, in the spiritual, unseen realm. We don’t see it, but the angels and our enemies do. Start by simply praying through the passage in Ephesians as if suiting up for the arena:

“Therefore put on the fulI armour of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist.”

‘Lord, I put on the belt of truth. I choose a lifestyle of honesty and integrity. Show me the truths I so desperately need today. Expose the lies I’m not even aware that I’m believing.’

“With the breastplate of righteousness in place…”

‘And yes, Lord, I wear your righteousness today against all condemnation and corruption. Fit me with your holiness and purity – defend me from all assaults against my heart.’

“And with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace…”

‘I do choose to live for the gospel at any moment. Show me where the larger story is unfolding and keep me from being so lax that I think the most important thing today is the soap operas of this world.’

“In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming anows of the evil one…”

‘Jesus, I lift against every lie and every assault the confidence that you are good, and that you have good in store for me. Nothing is coming today that can overcome me because you are with me.’

“Take the helmet of salvation…”

‘Thank you, Lord, for my salvation. I receive it in a new and fresh way from you and I declare that nothing can separate me now from the love of Christ and the place I shall ever have in your kingdom.’

“And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…”

‘Holy Spirit, show me specifically today the truths of the Word of God that I will need to counter the assaults and the snares of the enemy. Bring them to mind throughout the day.’

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

Finally, Holy Spirit I agree to walk in step with you in everything – in all prayer as my spirit communes with you throughout the day. (Ephesians 6:13-18)

There is a scene in a film called ‘The Mask of Zorro’ when the old master swordsman saves his young apprentice – who at that moment has had too much to drink – from rushing upon his enemy. “You would have fought bravely, he says, “and died quickly.” This what we have to remember – get dressed in the armour and be ready for the fight but don’t rush in. Be aware of who or what you are dealing with.

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18). He tells us this before he gives us the Great Commission, the command to advance his kingdom. We’ve never made the connection. The reason is, if you are going to serve the True King you’re going to need his authority. We dare not take on any angel, let alone a fallen one, in our own strength. That is why Christ extends his authority to us, “and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority” (Col. 2:10). Rebuke the Enemy in your own name and he laughs, command him in the name of Christ and he flees.

One more thing: Don’t even think about going into battle alone. Yes, there are times a when you must face the battle alone, in the wee hours of the morn, and fight with all he’s got. But don’t make that a lifestyle of isolation. This may be our weakest point, because principally that is how society teaches us. Be an individual, take up your own rights!!!

John 4

These verse teach us so many things but I am going to look at just a very few. My overall stance is going to be mission and I am principally going to be talking to us as warriors – we all need to be warriors. For me at heart I want to be a hero and it is to this that I appeal. I am sure you will all find points that you can understand and pick up on but there will be times when I will talk to the warriors out there and maybe, there are no warriors. Shall we see?!

For me, I am an out and out warrior. I would love to be St George defeating the dragon or Maximus in the film the Gladiator crying out, “My name is Maximus and I stand before you ready to fight…” We are in a battle that is why we put on spiritual armour! And so… to the battle we go.

The lady at the well was technically Jesus worst nightmare… A woman, a samaritan, an adulterous person and not really very popular in town! But Jesus doesn’t have nightmares!

Will you fight for her? That’s the question Jesus asks us. Are we on the fence, are we wanting to be the nice guy and be like society wants us to be or are we going to be like a warrior.

A Person to Rescue

Jesus chooses to be the warrior. He steps out between her and the forces of darkness that had been coming against her. He asks only a simple question but look at the reaction. “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman.”

All hell broke loose. Was Jesus prepared to fight for her. Are you willing to take up the challenge and began to truly fight for her? You see the woman’s reply is a direct challenge to Jesus’ authority. Can you really do this?Are you sure you should be talking to me?What will society think? What will your friends think?Your wife, your family, etc…

And it’s not just once, but again, “Sir, you have nothing to draw with…” Some people are willing to go in once, twice, even three times. But a warrior is in this for good. Oswald Chambers asks, “God spilt the life of his Son that the world might be saved, are we prepared to spill out our lives?”

The question is simply this: What kind of person do you want to be? Maximus? Or maybe William Wallace? Or Judah? A young pilot in the RAF wrote just before he went down in 1940, “The universe is so vast and so ageless that the life of one man can only be justified by the measure of his sacrifice.”

Life is not a problem to be solved, it is an adventure to be lived! That’s the nature of it and has been since the beginning when God set the dangerous stage for this high-stakes drama and called the whole wild enterprise good. He rigged the world in such a way that it only works when we embrace risk as the theme of our lives, which is to say, only when we live by faith. A person just won’t be happy until they have got adventure in their work, in their love and in their spiritual life.

Are We asking the Right Question

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive.

And that is what Jesus was doing that day he was talkiing to the woman at the well. What makes me come alive – his answer is easy to know – doing the will of my Father. And so he asks the question, “Will you give me a drink?”

An Adventure to Live

You see are you living a script written for you by someone else. Up to now have you been asking the world to tell you what to do with yourself. What do you want – freedom from responsibility and especially freedom from risk? Do you really want someone else to tell you who to be. Can a world of posers tell you to do anything but pose yourself? As Buechner says, we are in constant danger of being not actors in the drama of our lives but reactors, “to go where the world takes us, to drift with whatever current happens to be running the strongest.” Do you want to find a life worth living?

Well it is there at the well. What questions are we going to ask?Of ourselves, of the world… Of Samaritan women caught in a tangled web and with little or now way out unless Jesus touches them. How will they meet Jesus?Only if we’re prepared to ask the right questions.

Ok so at the moment you have your career plan before you, a house, a family, or maybe you don’t… Is that all you want in life?Ask yourself where is the risk in that?Where are the women at the well in my life?

I know a guy, he had been offered a job in computing, one that in 1989 would have paid him £24k and then some. He was at the forefront of computer technology. Imagine the life that lay before him – But this guy is a warrior. He wants to risk and so he does. He quits and for the next twelve years lives almost on starvation money. He is in and out of debt, sometimes he lives only on handouts and at times he can afford a car. He can’t afford to buy a house and so he moves a lot. The cost over the years has been immense emotionally, physically, spiritually… but going the computer route would have meant a loss of his soul. Over the years he has seen so many young men become Christians – hundreds – he has been involved in the lives of young men who would be dead now if not for his intervention and now with the respect of quite a few people, he could rest on his laurels become an itinerant speaker but no… He is a warrior and so what will he do?This man I speak of is me and I am not prepared to allow any more women at the wells to be abused by the devil, no more men to be trapped by society. I am a warrior. I have a vision to build a retreat centre – I don’t know where and I don’t know how – I’ve got no money. I don’t know what it will look like – I just know that I already have several people to care for – a young man who has been so badly treated he jumps at his own shadow, a homeless guy called Kev, someone I call friend. Prostitutes that want out… The list goes on. I will fight for the lives of these people. Are you willing to join me?Count the cost because it will be immense. Every day I start to enter the battle for these souls it hurts – it hurts my marriage, my sleep, my very soul, but I have Jesus on my side! I am absolutely uncertain about the future. But I do know I don’t want my soul to die.

You can carry on the way you’re living your life right now – it is not a sin (unless of course your life is not right before God) or you can come and conquer the world. But I plead with you don’t let the tentacles of this world bleed the life out of you – fight for your soul.

What are you Waiting for?

Do you want to find out God’s will for your life. Go to the mountains for the weekend to sort things out. Life makes more sense standing alone by a lake at high elevation. Or maybe go and sit on your own in a field – I don’t know. Take time out. No time, then make time… This could be the most important time of your life.

Two roads diverged in a wood and I,

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

Where would we be today if Abraham had carefully weighed the pros and cons of God’s invitation and decided that he’d rather hang on to his medical benefits, three weeks paid leave and retirement plan in Ur. What would have happened if Moses had listened to his mother’s advice to “never play with matches” and lived a careful, cautious life steering clear of all burning bushes? You wouldn’t have the gospel if Paul had concluded that the life of a Pharisee, while not everything a man dreams for; was at least predictable and certainly more stable than following a voice he heard on the Damascus road. After all, people hear voices all the time and who really knows whether it’s God or just one’s imagination. Where would we be if Jesus was not fierce and wild and romantic to the core? Come to think of it, we wouldn’t be at all if God hadn’t taken that enormous risk of us in the first place.

Most people spend the energy of their lives trying to eliminate risk, or squeezing it down to a more manageable size. Their children hear “no” far more than they hear “yes”; their employees feel chained up. If it works, if a person succeeds in securing their life against all risk, they’ll wind up in a cocoon of self-protection and wonder all the while why they are suffocating. If it doesn’t work, he curses God and redoubles his efforts and his blood pressure.

Our false self wants to have power over experience, to control all events and consequences. But you literally sacrifice your soul and your true power when you insist on controlling things, like the guy Jesus talked about who thought he finally pulled it all off, built himself some really nice barns and died the same night. “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Mark 8:36 NKJV). You can lose your soul, by the way, long before you die.

Too many people forsake their dreams because they aren’t willing to risk, or fear they aren’t up to the challenge, or are never told that those desires deep in their heart are good. But when they do lose those dreams I believe they die. Jesus when he says to the woman at the well, “Give me a drink”. Yes he was challenging all of societies perception and value systems but he was also following the desires of his heart. Placed on his heart by God. Psalm 37 v 4

We’re not made to control, we’re made for adventure. Something in us remembers, however faintly, that when God set man on the earth he gave us an incredible mission – a charter to explore, build, conquer; and care for all creation. It was a blank page waiting to be written, a clean canvas waiting to be painted. God has never revoked that charter. It’s still there, waiting for us to seize it.

If you had permission to do what you really want to do, what would you do? Don’t ask how, that will cut your desire off at the knees. How is never the right question, how is a faithless question. It means “unless I can see my way clearly I won’t believe it, won’t venture forth.” When the angel told Zechariah that his ancient wife would bear him a son named John, Zechariah asked how and was struck dumb for it. How is God’s department! He is asking you what is written in your heart? What makes you come alive? If you could do what you’ve always wanted to do, what would it be?

“My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness… Legalism is helpless in bringing this about, it only gets in the way” (Gal. 5:16, 23 The Message).

Your life will become an adventure when you let go of the how and just go for it. Today, if you see the woman sat at the well, will you go and ask for some water?Are you willing to live the adventure?

There are no formulas with God. Period. So there are no formulas for the man who follows him. God is a Person, not a doctrine. He operates not like a system – not even a theological system – but with all the originality of a truly free and alive person. Take Joshua and the Battle of Jericho. The Israelites are staged to make their first military strike into the promised land and there’s a lot hanging on this moment – the morale of the troops, their confidence in Joshua, not to mention their reputation that will precede them to every other enemy that awaits. This is their D-Day, so to speak, and word is going to get around. How does God get the whole thing off to a good start? He has them march around the city blowing trumpets for a week; on the seventh day he has them do it seven times and then give a big holler. It works marvelously, of course. And you know what? It never happens again. Israel never uses that tactic again.

There’s Gideon and his army reduced from thirty-two thousand to three-hundred. What’s their plan of attack? Torches and water pots. It also works splendidly and it also never happens again. You recall Jesus healing the blind, he never does it the same way twice.

I hope you’re getting the idea because the church has really been taken in by the world on this one. The Modem Era hated mystery, we desperately wanted a means of controlling our own lives. We take the latest marketing methods, the newest business management fad, and we apply it to the church.

So Oswald Chambers warns us, “Never make a principle out of your experience, let God be as original with other people as he is with you.”

Indiana Jones, has found the Ark of the Covenant but lost it to the German army. He is desperate – it looks like all is lost but Indiana is not finished, oh no, the game has just begun. He says to his friends:

Jones: Get back to Cairo. Get us some transport to England… boat, plane, anything. Meet me at Omars. Be ready for me. I’m going after that truck

SAULACK: How?

Jones: I don’t know… I’m making this up as I go.

So are we ready to fight the good fight – are we ready to let go of control and just, “Make it up as we go along.”Please I invite you to join me on a roller coaster – I don’t know where we’re going – I don’t know where we will end up.

But let’s look at the woman at the well one last time.

‘Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony.’

Excellent – I want to save the whole of Lostwithiel and Fowey school and the list goes on….

The battle will be intense, it will be a steep ascent that will take everything you’ve got. The stakes you will be playing at will be immense – financially, that will definately be a course, but even more so spiritually and relationally. It will require a concentration of body, soul, and spirit that you willl have never before endured. But it will be an adventure.

If you want to come on the adventure with me stand and start it together – I can’t promise anything other than the cost but it will be fun and I believe you will die a warrior.