Happy Holidays

Right so its Christmas time.

Everything needs to slow down and this blog too.

We'll pick it up again in the second week of January.

Our prayer is that you have a blessed time over the next couple of weeks remembering that the greatest gift we can give is ourselves to God and to each other.

True Fasting

Who fasts today?

I mean, fasting’s a Biblical discipline which many Christians find very beneficial to their growth and development but in essence it’s not a discipline which might be associated with necessity.

I fasted as a discipline for about two years every Tuesday and found it very beneficial to my development at the time and I’ve colleagues who continue to use this discipline.

Fasting, as I understand it has two parts to it:

- self denial
- honouring God

It’s not for 'religious piety', manipulation of God or Christian elitism.
In other words fasting's not meant for us to become super spiritual or to try to manipulate God to our way of thinking.

In fact, the right way to fast, I believe, is in solitude and privacy.
In a space which is reserved for ourselves and God. A space where God can meet us at His initiation. A space meant for our growth and nurturing as Christians.

Of course, fasting’s one way of doing this; there are others, like mediation, retreats and praying with clay.

If you’re in a place that you feel the need to deepen your spiritual growth, then fasting, managed responsibly, may be beneficial.

Friends

I wonder: Just how necessary friends are.

Do they add to our lives? Is it just some fear of being alone that makes it so important that we have friends? How many of us can honestly live without friendship on some level?

I guess that we all need friends. Someone to talk to, share with, fight with, travel with…whatever.

Jesus wants to be our friend. Or rather, He invites us to be His friend.

And just like our friendships with each other, Jesus friendship has parts to it. Possibly because Jesus, like us, is looking for people with common goals and purposes. You’d agree, those are the ones we make friends with the easiest.

Well Jesus says, if you do as I do, then you can be my friend.

You know:
- love the outsider and care for them;
- give of yourself in complete service to God – spiritually, financially and emotionally;
- live with one main purpose in everything that you do – to honour God.

Everyone’s invited to be Jesus friend, no exceptions, including you and
me. If you want to be Jesus friend then go to the Tell Me About Jesus Link
and pray with us.

Playing it safe.

One of the most dangerous things we can do as Christians is to play it safe.

You know, avoid those difficult topics and questions that people may ask, argue with, highlight or just jolly well be difficult about.

For most of us, when having to answer, may want to gloss it over or pretend we know the answers or use extremely difficult theological language.

But the truth is that for someone wanting to understand or learn about the Christian faith, those approaches are not always helpful.

The Bible is alive. Made so by God’s Spirit.

It’s not just some historical or chronology record of people long ago.

It is the countless stories of God’s self revelation in the lives of His people. Highlighting how God works to save, heal and transform His creation.

Now, take that definition and apply it to you life.

And suddenly, we encounter exactly what the people of old did: a wonderful story of God’s love and Will for His creation.

So don’t avoid the difficult issues, God is much bigger than our limited understanding. Rather engage with the issues and allow God, by His Spirit, to lead you to greater understanding.

When we do this, I believe, we open ourselves to receiving a glimpse of God’s heart for ourselves, others and His creation.


If you have any questions, suggestions or issues you need help with, then email us on – nrmcmeth@telkomsa.net .

Love Means Everything

There’s a song; (you may have heard it) that begins like this:

Love, Love Changes Everything.

How true!

Yet if love changes everything:

Why does evil still exist?

Why do people who love each other, bring the worst out in each other?

Why do… why do…why do..

It would easy to say that people don’t understand what it means to love. But I not sure that’s the real issue.

I think people love as much as they can.
Some love with depth, others with strength, others with imagination, other with determination and so on…

Jesus will always stand out as the role model for love.
For various reasons but the main one for me, is that He was prepared to allow God to use Him to show how much God loves me.

I mean, think about it, Jesus says: Yes Father, despite the fact that I need love, use Me to show the world that You love them.

Bottom line: Jesus loved You enough to die for you!!

Second bottom line: You can love because you are loved first!!

Third bottom line: Love really does change everything – try it!!

If you don’t know the love of Jesus or maybe don’t feel it anymore, click on this link Tell Me About Jesus and pray with us.

Hearing the Right Thing

I like to think my hearing’s pretty good now-days.

Not only the external sounds but my internal voice as well. Some may call it a conscience and others the Spirit.

Now, let’s say I have a decision to make. My modus operand’s to sit quietly and listen and/or to listen to others and/or read the Scriptures.

What I’m listening for is in fact, Jesus.

However, I’ve learned to do so. And this means I’ve need to be tuned into Jesus’ frequency. I’m just like a pet or domestic animal who listens to frequency of its owner voice rather words.

Some ways to practice listening for Jesus’ voice.

That’s right: you can start right now or start the day tomorrow at little earlier.

Sit quietly for at least twenty minutes (no, don’t get hung up on time or step numbers – they’re’ just guidelines).

1. Say nothing.

2. Think about who Jesus is to you.

3. What’s He saying to you right now?


If you can’t answer that question and really want to: go to our link Tell Me About Jesus and pray the prayer at the bottom of the page with us.

Right now, repeat steps 1 - 3

Faith

Here’s a thing.

It’s amazing how many definitions, interpretations of the term faith there are. It’s equally amazing how emotive talking about faith can become.

Just try telling someone that their concept of the term faith is wrong!

Or that they don’t have faith!

Or that you do have faith and it looks like …!


For me faith has to do with a simple word called BECOMING.

Okay not so simple because here we go again. Becoming means this…Becoming means that.

How do we go forward then?

I’m not sure but for me becoming has to do with living or more to the point:

Changing:

From a life based on rules: social restrictions: control: guilt: peer pressures: fear and all the other emotions that can control our lives:

To

One of trust in the Creator of all that there is.

Kinda like – I’m at one with all that is past and all that is future and I trust that my life has meaning and purpose just like Jesus’ life had meaning and purpose.

Are you struggling with your faith then pray the prayer on the Tell Me about Jesus link and start your road to BECOMING.

God's Family

Usually when someone mentions God’s family, it’s immediately assumed the church is being spoken about.

On one level that’s true, the church is God’s family, but surely there must be more? What about those outside the church who are believers, are they not also part of God’s family? And what about creation – are not the birds, animals, fish, plants and trees also not part of God’ family?

I believe they are.

So what does that mean then?

Perhaps a beautiful flower, studied closely can reveal the immense imagination of God or the way animals relate to one another as they protect their young, nurture their family life and instinctively know what is good or bad for them can teach us where we have gone wrong.

When someone gives their life to Jesus, not only do they discover God’s love but also God’s love for His creation.

God’s family waits to welcome you.

If you want to be part of God’s family the first step is to ask Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour. Click on the link Tell me about Jesus and pray with us.

THE BLESSING OF THORNS

Here’s a touching story (long but amazing!)

Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes as she pushed against a November gust and the florist shop door.
Her life had been easy, like a spring breeze. Then in the fourth month of her second pregnancy, a minor automobile accident stole that from her.
During this Thanksgiving week she would have delivered a son. She grieved over her loss. As if that weren't enough, her husband’s company threatened a transfer. Then her sister, whose holiday visit she coveted, called saying she could not come for the holiday.
Then Sandra's friend infuriated her by suggesting her grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to empathize with others who suffer.
She has no idea what I'm feeling, thought Sandra with a shudder.
Thanksgiving? Thankful for what? She wondered. For a careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-ended her? For an airbag that saved her life but took that of her child?
"Good afternoon, can I help you?" The shop clerk's approach startled her.
"I....I need an arrangement," stammered Sandra.
"For Thanksgiving? Do you want beautiful but ordinary, or would you like to challenge the day with a customer favourite I call the Thanksgiving "Special?" asked the shop clerk. "I'm convinced that flowers tell stories,"
she continued. "Are you looking for something that conveys 'gratitude' this thanksgiving?"
"Not exactly!" Sandra blurted out. "In the last five months, everything that could go wrong has gone wrong."
Sandra regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the shop clerk said, "I have the perfect arrangement for you."
Just then the shop door's small bell rang, and the shop clerk said, "Hi, Barbara...let me get your order." She politely excused herself and walked toward a small workroom, then quickly reappeared, carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and long-stemmed thorny roses. Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly snipped: there were no flowers.
"Want this in a box?" asked the clerk.
Sandra watched for the customer's response. Was this a joke? Who would want rose stems with no flowers! She waited for laughter, but neither woman laughed.
"Yes, please," Barbara, replied with an appreciative smile. "You’d think after three years of getting the special, I wouldn't be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it right here, all over again," she said as she gently tapped her chest. And she left with her order.
"Uh," stammered Sandra, "that lady just left with, uh....she just left with no flowers!
"Right, said the clerk, "I cut off the flowers. That's the Special.
I call it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet."
"Oh, come on, you can't tell me someone is willing to pay for that!" exclaimed Sandra.
"Barbara came into the shop three years ago feeling much like you feel today," explained the clerk. "She thought she had very little to be thankful for. She had lost her father to cancer, the family business was failing, her son was into drugs, and she was facing major surgery."
"That same year I had lost my husband," continued the clerk, "and for the first time in my life, had just spent the holidays alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too great a debt to allow any travel."
"So what did you do?" asked Sandra.
"I learned to be thankful for thorns," answered the clerk quietly.
"I’ve always thanked God for the good things in my life and never questioned the good things that happened to me, but when bad stuff hit, did I ever ask questions! It took time for me to learn that dark times are important. I have always enjoyed the 'flowers' of life, but it took thorns to show me the beauty of God's comfort. You know, the Bible says that God comforts us when we're afflicted, and from His consolation we learn to comfort others."
Sandra sucked in her breath as she thought about the very thing her friend had tried to tell her. "I guess the truth is I don't want comfort. I've lost a baby and I'm angry with God."
Just then someone else walked in the shop. "Hey, Phil!" shouted the clerk to the balding, rotund man.
"My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving Special....12 thorny, long-stemmed stems!" laughed Phil as the clerk handed him a tissue-wrapped arrangement from the refrigerator.
"Those are for your wife?" asked Sandra incredulously. "Do you mind me asking why she wants something that looks like that?"
"No...I'm glad you asked," Phil replied. "Four years ago my wife and nearly divorced. After forty years, we were in a real mess, but with the Lord’s grace and guidance, we slogged through problem after problem.
He rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she learned from "thorny" times, and that was good enough for me. I took home some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one for a specific "problem" and give thanks for what that problem taught us."
As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, "I highly recommend the Special!"
"I don't know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life."
Sandra said. "It's all too...fresh."
"Well," the clerk replied carefully, "my experience has shown me that thorns make roses more precious. We treasure God's providential care more during trouble than at any other time. Remember, it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might know His love. Don't resent the thorns."
Tears rolled down Sandra's cheeks. For the first time since the accident, she loosened her grip on resentment. "I'll take those twelve long-stemmed thorns, please," she managed to choke out.
"I hoped you would," said the clerk gently. "I'll have them ready in a minute."
"Thank you. What do I owe you?"
"Nothing. Nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart. The first year's arrangement is always on me." The clerk smiled and handed a card to Sandra. "I'll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you would like to read it first."
It read: "My God, I have never thanked You for my thorns. I have thanked you a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my thorns. Teach me the glory of the cross I bear; teach me the value of my thorns.
Show me that I have climbed closer to You along the path of pain.
Show me that, through my tears, the colours of Your rainbow look much more brilliant."
Praise Him for your roses; thank him for your thorns!
-- Author Unknown

Living Wisely

Wise Living:

Here’s an awesome thought!

Christians have access to the secrets of the universe.

No, believe it; we have at our finger tips, the key unlocking greater wisdom than Solomon.

Just take a moment to read Proverbs 3:1-10. (The Word is our key to wisdom.)

Right!!!

Wise living is power filled living.

Richard Schuller says:

Power thinkers are Creative thinkers - when left with nothing - you think of something new.

Power thinkers are Global thinkers - you see the small details as well as the 'Big Picture'.

Power thinkers are God thinkers - God-Speaking, God-Touching, through you.

Power thinkers are Empowered thinkers - you believe the best about others and yourself.

Power thinkers are Process thinkers - you say, "If it works, improve it!"

Power thinkers are Team thinkers - pulling together toward a common goal.

Power thinkers are Generosity thinkers - where can I give of my time, my talents, my tithe?

Power thinkers are Impact thinkers - you see beyond success to significance.

Power thinkers succeed at higher levels of thinking - you ask: How? Why? Why not?

Power thinkers are thankful thinkers - you count your many blessings one by one.

Power thinkers are Transforming thinkers - you break through barriers to find positive solutions.

Power thinkers are Reflective thinkers as well as Progressive thinkers you look back to the beginning to find the way to the future.

Compassion

Here’s the story of Tokichi Ishii as told by William Barclay.

A man who had sunk to the lowest depths of crime and degradation.
One would imagine that in him all fine feelings had been obliterated. Anyone who stood in his way, whether man, woman or child, was ruthlessly murdered. Finally, this bestial criminal was captured and put into prison under strong guard. There he awaited death.

He was visited in prison by two Canadian Christian women who tried to talk to him through the bars of his prison cell. He glowered at them like a savage animal and would make no reply. Defeated in their effort to speak with him, they gave him a Bible in his own tongue, which he flung across his cell in a paroxysm of rage. But when the ladies had left him, bored and having nothing else to do, he read it. Providentially he did not start at Genesis, nor did he hit on a brutal massacre or a revengeful Psalm.

He started with the story of the Crucifixion. When he came to the words of Christ on the Cross, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do,” he stopped.

“I was stabbed,” he said afterwards, “as if pierced by a five-inch nail. Shall I call it the love of Christ? Shall I call it His compassion? I do not know what to call it. I only know that I believed, and that henceforth my heart was changed.”

Later, when the jailer came to lead him to the scaffold, they found, instead of a surly, brutish man, one with a great light upon his facer and a composure and serenity that surprised everyone.

In the last hours of his life he had been born again through reading the Bible.

How Big is God?

Check this out. (When you push play, please wait for show to play - it takes a few minutes to get lined up - its definitely worth the wait!)

When we pray for ourselves and others we tap into God's power!

Awesome!

Renewing Our Minds:


Paul, in Romans, talks about us renewing our minds.

I believe that in order to do that, we need to give thought to time.

How we spend it, why we need to consider it and when we need to balance it.

When last did you take time to consider where you are with the Lord?

When last did you take time to talk to your family? (I mean on a real intimate level).

Renewing our minds has three keys areas:

Humility – never be too clever to learn.

Be in fellowship – we have special gifts which can only be used when we are in fellowship with others.

Use your spiritual gifts (all believers have them) for the building up of others.

Right!

Gone is our inbred selfishness and self –indulgence and in its place is a mind which God can use to fulfil His purposes.

Awesome!

Come to Jesus

Sin!

A word you don’t hear often today even in church. Maybe because it’s offensive or it’s hard to define exactly what sin is!

Yet Jesus came to the world to save sinners.

So there you are: the Bible is clear on what sin is and we all fall short in this regard. But fortunately for us Jesus knows what to do with our sin. Far from being judgemental and condemning, He forgives our sins.

Wow! Imagine that, Jesus wants to forgive our sins.
And the only thing we need to do is to acknowledge our sins, repent of them and we are forgiven.

And here’s the real gift we receive – Peace!

Some time ago, I was talking to someone who had been feeling that he was trapped in a joyless life. Nothing seemed to work out for him and the harder he tried to make things go right, the worse it seemed to get.

Then one day a friend spoke of how Jesus had set him free.
Sensing he had nothing to lose, he prayed and asked for forgiveness and in his own words: “I cried for a long time and it was as though a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I felt free to live. All the bad things I’d done in my life seemed to be washed away by my tears. Today I live knowing that God loves me so much, He gave His Son Jesus to die for all the rotten things I’ve done.”

Are you feeling trapped by things you fear may have power over your life? Maybe they are things like pornography, alcohol or drug addiction, hatred, fear or guilt.

You can be set free, go here and pray the prayer or email us and we’ll help you.

God's Concierge

Imagine God saying to you, I have made promises to My people in My Word and I want you to be the one who brings My promises to fulfilment. (Read Ezekiel 34: 11-16).

Scary?

Exciting?

Well it’s true! God has chosen His church (you and me) to look for the lost, bind up the broken and shepherd (care for) the flock.

Look around you (in the office, traffic…)….

Think a bit….(about family,… friends,..someone you know..)…

Write their name/names down in your Bible, devotional book…

Pray for them each day….ask for an opening to talk to them personally about Jesus, to pray with them for healing or to care for them in some way.

It would be great if you could share your experience with us. Click on ‘Comments’ and type in how God used you.

If you need to pray with someone, you might like to use the prayer at this page.

How Great is Our God

An old Scotsman was once asked whether he was worried about dying.

No he replied, not really,

When die I go to be with Jesus and right now I know Jesus is with me!

What wonderful words. Imagine living with that kind of attitude.

Well it’s possible. Living a life with Jesus means allowing Him to be the centre of our lives. Living a life of faith rather than having faith in life.
The key to this living for me is intentionally dedicating each and every day to God.

I usually start my day like this:

Here I am Lord, use me today!

God wants to use you. Wherever you are now, in the office, at home, in the bath…pray this prayer. And do it again every day.

Lord, here I am.

Use me despite my own misgivings and shortcomings. If You can use me to touch someone’s life, if You want to make changes in my life , if you want me to give of myself, my resources, my time…..whatever Lord, here I am.

Amen.

Amazing Grace

Sunday was a great day!

Here at North Rand, we had the biggest morning service in the history of the church. Combined with the privilege of baptising five children, was the opportunity to offer Christ to an estimated ninety visitors (some of whom are already in a relationship with Jesus I’m sure.)

Awesome!

We are fast becoming a church for both the churched and the unchurched.

The wonderful thing is that God uses our stories to tell others of His love.

No, believe it! You have a story to tell: How or why you became a Christian and what Jesus does for you in your everyday life. Your story has little to do with theological words and everything to do with your personal experience.

Ask God to give you opportunities to tell your story and then know the Holy Spirit will guide you as you share about Jesus.

Maybe you feel that you don't have a story to tell because you don't have a relationship with Jesus. Click here if you want to find out more!

If you feel called to share your story on this site then click on 'comments' and type it in.

86,500

God has a plan for our lives!

Being LOST means missing the mark.

Not living out Gods plan for our lives is sinful because God gives us opportunity, talents and abilities and at the same time He uses our personal passions and life experiences to fulfil His purpose. Once we respond to God’s gift of GRACE in Christ Jesus, we are raised to a new life.
This, in every sense, is the essence of what it means to be a Christ follower:

To Live with purpose!

We have been given 86,500 seconds a day to use.
Living with purpose means living inside every opportunity, embracing our passion for life and making a world of difference.

As you read this, have you or are you wasting precious time?
Then follow these steps: CONFESS and ASK God’s forgiveness, ACCEPT His offer of a full life in Christ Jesus, SEEK His guidance and then LIVE with purpose.

Living Righteously

Friday was a good day. Roxy and I went for a bike ride out to Hartesbeespoort dam. Over breakfast, we had time to chat about a lot of things. It’s interesting to hear of the carefree life of University (makes me yearn!)
Anyway, along the way, we spoke about what young people her age (18) talk about. I was amazed (not sure why) to learn that some of her friends grew up in homes where morals were not so clear and so they are constantly checking their own behaviour (I hope Roxy is too!)

The next days at our FATHERS meeting Ron lead us through a discussion on communicating with our children. And as part of the discussion came this:

Say what you like, they (children) will do what you do.

Scary!!!

The same is true for our witness as those who have responded to God’s gift of grace in Jesus Christ.

How are we living?

The bottom line is that our behaviour as Christians should speak of faithfulness, trustworthiness and love. It should be evident in our giving, our prayer life and our self control.

Bless you as you seek to live righteously!

Active Love

Have you ever been in a relationship where you felt that there was just no real connection?

You know the kind where no matter what you said or did or when you said or did it, it just seemed to be wrong at the time.
Some of us may identify a relationship with our mother-in-law, our boss, a love interest or school friends.
The sad part about this kind of lack of connection is that it does happen and seems to be part of our understanding of the world we live in.

Yet deep down, if you are like me, you might want so badly to be friends with everyone you meet. We want to understand and be understood by them. We want to be inspired by their stories of tragedy overcome, intense joy lived and above all the way they experience the gift called life.

I wasn’t always so keen to know people. I chose to go farming because I feared people. But one day God touched my life in a very powerful way and slowly He changed my heart. And He taught me about active love.

We all have stories (life experiences) to share (telling and listening).

Telling our stories, when we’d rather be private, is not blowing our horn, but rather helping others to be inspired, encouraged and challenged.

For me that is active love.

Sharing our stories helps break our selfish nature and in the process discover our humanness and that really, we all want to love and be loved. By sharing we place ourselves in a ministry opportunity.

May God open your heart to share with others.

Why does God use us?

Have you ever wondered why God chooses to use us?

For the past three weeks we have run our annual stewardship series, which is really around what God says about money.
During this journey (as with every time we embark on this teaching) I have been amazed that God chooses people to fulfil His purposes. He uses us to spread the Gospel. He uses us to disciple one another. He uses us to care for the sick and lost. He uses us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and visit the prisoner.
The truly amazing part is that we are often naked, lost, hungry, sick and so on ourselves, yet He uses us!

As we grow in our faith, we learn that God wants to reach us and others by using our spiritual gifts, personal style, passions and the faithful giving of our resources and money.

However, one of the great inhibitors of our being able to be used by God is feelings of guilt. Feeling guilty for not doing enough or having the wrong motivations or – whatever.

If you are feeling guilty, my prayer is that you would open yourself to God’s call for you to make this world a different place, however small or limited you think your contribution might be.

God wants to use you in a powerful way!

If you have a story in which God used you, please share it with us.

Where we are!

One of the greatest difficulties (and the most powerful) in our relationship with God, I believe, is acceptance.

Acceptance of who we are and who God is!

In Scripture, there are various Greek words for acceptance (important because our modern English translations are based on the original Greek New Testament), like: dechomai – meaning a ready reception of what is offered; apodechomai – a stronger readiness to receive heartily and lambanō – meaning to receive without necessarily signifying a favourable reception.

The point being that we are encouraged to apodechomai, to receive God’s love through His Son Jesus Christ. (You will hear us talk often in this way – the real meaning being that our acceptance by a Holy and Righteous God is made possible by the sin offering of Jesus. I’m not sure why God has chosen to do it this way but Scripture teaches us that God, by His own choice, revealed His plan for salvation in Jesus.)

Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour places us in a position to know exactly who God is and who we are. Amazing.

So essentially, after accepting Jesus, we can have a real sense of our place in the vastness of the universe, that God has a plan for our lives and that we are not just here by chance.

Imagine that! God has a plan for our lives.

Perhaps you have a story to tell how God has accepted you and how your life has changed since accepting Jesus. Click on comments and share it with us.

And perhaps you want to accept Jesus right now then go here.

My Choice!

Last week, my daughter Roxy-Leigh, passed her drivers licence.
Leigh-Ann and I had been praying that all would go well and by God’s grace she passed first time.
At first I was elated that she had achieved this milestone, but the more I began to think about the significance of it, the more my joy turned to quiet concern. Now she would be out on the roads on her own and pictures of breakdowns and accidents rolled across my mind.

Then one morning in my quiet time, it suddenly dawned on me what God must go through with us human beings. He created us with the ability to make choices. More importantly, it’s the only thing we really own – our free will. And although we own it by God’s grace, it does put us in a position of tremendous power mainly because we can choose to love God or not.

Scary!

Then I began to realise that if I wanted to ban Roxy from driving because of my fears, how very soon she would start to despise me. Because I would have taken away her God-given ability to make her own decisions!
So after some time I read Daniel 2:20-21 and realised that I needed to trust God, not only with Roxy, but with every part of my life. So I prayed, not for the first time, and gave my will over to God. Suddenly I felt free, as though a great weight had lifted from my shoulders.

Awesome!

Are you struggling with choices, perhaps a work or family issue - whatever?
My prayer is that you will first choose God’s love and as Scripture says - seek first His Kingdom and all these things will be given to you as well, (Luke 12:29-31).

Have you got a story about a choice you made that will encourage someone? Or any other comment? Click on comments. Type in your comment. If you don’t have a Blogger Id just click on ‘anonymous’. Go on do it!

Some things just make no sense

Mention the word tragedy and just about everyone has a story to tell.

Some will talk about death, others may tell about divorce or a rough childhood or losing a job. Whatever the story, tragedy occurs when things go against the natural assumption that life will be smooth and fair.
Those who have encountered tragic events soon realise that life isn’t always fair and things don’t always pan out according to plan.
Done!

So here we are then, faced with a choice.
To allow tragedy to become our focus or to allow it to focus us!
Some of the most inspiring people are those who have overcome and are still able to focus. Big names like Mandela, Mother Theresa and Paul the Apostle.

Then there are those who don’t make the headlines, like you and me.
Yet we connect with the world everyday, at work and in our relationships.

Can we possibly know how others watch us make our choices?
Not for morbid fascination, but for inspiration.

The Cross turned from tragedy to focus when the disciples discovered that Jesus defeated death but a deeper sense of focus came later when they began to understand His Gethsemanic choice to trust God.

We are not called to die for the world, Jesus has already done that.
But we are called to inspire others through our trust in God. That is the most precious gift we can give when things don’t make sense.

If you are reading this, perhaps you want to share your story of trust. Click on ‘comments’ to type in your story!

Doing the Deed!

When last did you do ‘a good deed?’

You know that thing that makes others feel good about themselves or the thing that makes you feel you are changing your world or maybe the thing that changes your family life!

Did it make you feel connected?
Jesus calls us to live a life of deeds. He, when He sits on His throne on Judgement day, will separate those believers who did deeds from those believers who did nothing. Feeding the poor, clothing the naked and visiting the prisoner are some of the deeds He identifies.

Now here’s the thing! Believers are called to do good deeds, not because we have to, but because we want to!
That’s the Jesus way.
He died for you and me not because He had to, but because He wanted to……awesome!!

If you could think of doing one thing right now that gives you a warm sense of being, then that’s what Jesus wants you to do.
Don’t wait! Start working out how to do it and ask the Spirit to help you.

Your Spirit inspired deeds will change the world!

If you want to share a good deed that might inspire others, go to the Blog link and place your comment.

[Click where it says Comments. Read any other comments. Type in your message. Click Anonymous (unless you have an id) and then click Publish Comment.]

You are Special!!!

Here’s a thing! Find a place right now where you can see your reflection.
Maybe in the computer monitor, kettle, hand mirror…whatever.

Now…look at yourself.

No, really look. Don’t be shy. Take your time.

Now picture Jesus standing in front of you.
Try to imagine the look in His eye as He smiles at you.

No, don’t turn away or laugh it off. Allow Him to look at you.
That’s better.
Relax.

I’m sure just the very the very thought of being examined so closely is uncomfortable. Maybe you’re checking around now to see if anyone’s watching you. Forget them.
Focus on this one thing. Jesus loves you. Feel the Holy Spirit testifying into your life. You are special and God has a plan for your life.
No, don’t say anything just take this moment to feel God’s love and presence.

Now you are living by the Spirit.
You matter and your life counts.
You are a child of God.

Do this exercise as often as is needed.

Do You Know Where You Are Going?

I don’t know about you but I detest getting lost!
But do you think for one minute I’ll plan my journey or better still, stop and ask for directions?
Never!
Some may say it’s a man thing; others may use more descriptive language.
However, my modus operandi is to set off and then work out how to get there, as long as I have a vague idea of where I’m headed, of course. Leigh-Ann, however, is totally opposite. She plans way ahead, making sure she has all her bases covered and then only will she set off.
This does lead to some interesting en route discussions, but I console myself with the knowledge that somehow we both reach our destinations eventually.
But when it comes to my life journey, I am very careful with knowing exactly where I stand. I want my destination to be an eternity in God’s presence. No compromise. So I live each day in His will for my life.
How about you?
Are you living as one who knows their destination?
If not, then today’s the day to start! Start by asking God each day what His plan is for your life and then live out that plan. By doing so you will live a purpose driven life because when it comes to eternity, getting lost in not an option.

Excitement is:

On Saturday morning, we held a leaders’ breakfast at North Rand. We met expressly to discuss the dreams formulated at the leaders' retreat in January.

With some sense of anticipation, I began to prepare the sessions on electronic format. Included were a time of worship, an inspirational video, Scripture reading and a time of reflection. Even though I say so myself, I was quite prepared and quietly excited.

Saturday dawned softly and checking my cell phone I discovered a message from Ron that the church had no electricity. My first thoughts were for Vanessa, who was preparing breakfast and then for all the hard work with the electronic presentations. This was going to be a disaster, I thought.
On arriving at the church, to my amazement, Ron and Norma were calmly boiling water and had set up skottels to cook the eggs etc. Awhile later, the leaders arrived and amazingly each calmly focused immediately on the job at hand of making things work.
What a blessing!
As we sat down to our HOT breakfast, there was a real sense of oneness and fellowship around the table. Our discussions later continued much in the same way.

Excitement for me is to be involved with deeply committed Christians who understand God’s call and despite the obstacles placed in their way, still give of themselves in service.
North Rand is blessed to have such committed leaders!

Excitement is knowing that I belong to a motivated, inspirational church family that is going to fulfil God’s plan and purpose.

The Holy Spirit Will Never Embarrass You!

Last Sunday was Pentecost Sunday and North Rand for the preceding week we prayed that in all our services, we would experience a powerful movement of God’s Spirit in His people.
At first I expected people to fall over, be slain, to sing, dance etc.
But there were precious little visible signs: only the odd tear.
Was God working I could hear a small voice asking - perhaps you’ve missed the thing altogether!

To be honest I had been praying all week that God would not embarrass us and we were not disappointed! In all the services God ministered to His people as they came forward to receive prayer. I was fortunate to be praying with folk and for the most part I prayed for the Holy Spirit to pour into people’s lives.
We might never know the consequences of our ministry but I have absolute peace that God is in control. He knows us better than we know ourselves. Indeed He will work in us according to His purposes.

Do you want more of God in your life?
The first step is to become a Christian by asking Jesus into your life. The next step is to open your heart to Him, wait upon Him with constant prayer and reading of the Scripture and He will reveal Himself. He has promised and He always delivers on His promises.

If you are needing help, go to our link Tell Me About Jesus and pray the prayer with us. If you want to share your story of God’s work in your life then go to the blog comment. Your testimony could change someone’s life!

Power-Filled Living

Imagine living and accomplishing all the things you ever dreamed of doing. Perhaps you wanted to climb Everest, parachute over Hartebeestpoort dam, own your own company, nurse the sick, be a professional sportsman, be the best parent to your child, write a novel, paint a dramatic picture or whatever wonderfully inspiring thing you dreamed.

Well, Scripture says that we can do all these things!
1 Corinthians: 12: 1-11 speaks about the gifts (talents) that are given to every believer. Some are given gifts of healing, some gifts of miraculous powers and so on.
Couple these gifts to our natural abilities, personal style and passions and you have the perfect recipe for Power-Filled Living. It is only when we discover all of these, that we will be enabled to understand what our unique purpose and contribution to God’s creation is.
Scripture says we are given the gifts as determined by the Holy Spirit to enable us to fulfil our God-given purpose for our lives. Although Paul was teaching about the gifts used to glorify God and to edify (encourage moral living), there is no doubt in my mind that once we live in this way, the benefits will spill over into every area of our lives and we will be able to accomplish more than we ever dreamed possible.

POWER-FILLED LIVING IS PURPOSE-DRIVEN EXISTENCE.

Do you know what your gifts, passions and unique style are?
Are you wanting to live with purpose and meaning?
Then take the following steps:

1. Make sure that you are able to claim – Jesus is Lord of my life:

And

2. Pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal them to you and join a course
such as Network, which will enable you to discover your servant
profile.

If you need help with number 1, go to our web page http://www.northrandmeth.org.za/ and click on the link – Tell Me About Jesus. You can also email us for information on our courses at nrmcmeth@telkomsa.net .

Energy…..

Just last week, a friend whom I hadn’t seen for awhile phoned me in the middle of a busy morning. You know those mornings when you glance at your watch and it’s 8h45 and when you look at it again it’s 13h00.
To be honest, I wanted to say I’d call him back but something in his tone made me sit back and listen.
“John I’m absolutely exhausted” he began.
“Why?” I asked politely.
“My church is making me tired,” he replied.
“Are you sure it’s them and not yourself?”
“You know, at first I thought it was me and then in my quiet time this morning, the Lord showed me the areas in my work where the energy was literally being sucked out of me. People complaining about the young children making noise in the church, others moaning about the choice of hymns and others concerned about the kind of tea served on Sundays.”
“How can I help?” I asked
“I overheard you telling someone awhile ago that you have regular altar calls in you church…”
“Don’t you?” I asked
“No…” he replied
“Well don’t you think you should?”
“What difference will it make?” he said tiredly.
“It makes all the difference in the world.”
“You really think so?” he replied, his voice starting to reflect a newness of purpose. “We used to do it often but somehow we lost our way. You know I feel better already….”

Another word we can use for energy in the life and calling of the believer is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit’s work is to make us bold, give us strength, guide, counsel and empower us in our calling.

Are you struggling with energy levels when it comes to your ministry at work, in your family or at home?

If you are: pray and ask the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of your heart to God’s calling on your life. The power you receive when doing His will, will overflow into every area of your life as you live out your unique purpose for living.

(PS Some of you reading this letter will be able to testify to this and your testimony on the Blog in the comment box may change someone’s life.)

Regrets:

How often do you look back and think about the opportunities you’ve missed or dreams that you had and didn’t live out?
I think most of us can say that there were at least one or two things that we regret not having done, but how many of us can definitely pain at not having a dream come true.
When Leigh-Ann and I trained for the Comrades Marathon in 2001, I think we knew deep down that we were never going to finish the race, mainly because I was too slow (Leigh-Ann always managed to finish before me).
But that never stopped us. We ran approximately 1000 kilometres of training from January to the start of the race in June, getting up at 4 am some mornings to get to races etc. And most mornings I wondered whether I was crazy!!!! (My friends seemed to think so).
I believe our faith journey can often be just like that!
Jesus calls us to live for Him, in Him and asks that He be allowed to live through us. In other words, we are called to strive to a way of living that very few of us will be able to achieve. Perhaps some of the time our friends (AND OURSELVES) may think we are crazy.
However, one thing that kept me running was the thought that one day I would regret not having tried. And when I think of my faith, I remember a captain in the army who was asked, “What will you do if one day you get to heaven and find out that God doesn’t exist?”
The captain's answer was, “More to the point - what are YOU going to do if God does exist?”

Leigh-Ann and I were stopped at the halfway mark on the Comrades route. We missed the cut off by nine seconds!
Later that afternoon, as we waited in the stadium for friends to finish, we bumped into my brother, who up to that point had run and finished thirteen races and the look on his face when we told him we had not finished was one of : Why did you waste your time?

I have no regrets about not finishing the race, only the peace of knowing that I gave it my best shot and the joy of knowing that Leigh-Ann and I grew closer as we shared time on the road together.

Can you say the same about your life?
Jesus doesn’t want you to have any regrets. He wants to draw you closer to Him!

If you feel that He is calling you right now, turn to the link, Tell me about Jesus on our web page (www.northrandmeth.org.za) and pray the sinners’ prayer and live from this moment on without regrets.

More than….

Just a week ago Leigh-Ann and I were looking forward to a week end off from our hectic life in Johannesburg, but we were really not sure where to go. I love to leave things open, she needs to have them planned well in advance. Being the loving person she is, I usually get my way when it comes to holidays and week-ends away. Mainly because if I don't, I have the tendency to make the entire event unpleasant for everyone.
However, we were still undecided until two days before we were due to leave. A colleague I worked with in Grahamstown, who now lives in White River (near Nelspruit in Mpumalanga), phoned to invite us for the week end. An answer to prayer I thought. Little was I to know just how much!
After an interesting trip and formal re-uniting with our friends, we relaxed and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the “slow-veld.” We also spent time in deep and heavy theological discussion, particularly around the church and its mission.
Finally, Sunday evening eased in and our hosts informed us that they had invited friends over for a braai (barbeque for those not South African). At first I felt slightly irritated at the “intrusion”, but after ten minutes we began to share on the merits of rural living versus city life.
Slowly it dawned on me that for two weeks prior to our departure, the Lord had been challenging me about the ‘unchurched.’ It seems that we (the church) are very good at looking after those familiar with church and all its many facets. But the Lord said to me: John, what about those who are unfamiliar with my church?
In truth, all I wanted to do was relax in good company and not think too much. Well here was a couple who had little experience of church or God. So suddenly in the conversation God led me to convey the message, in ‘normal’ conversation, that He loves everyone including those who don’t know him. In fact He loved me long before I knew Him. I now realise that church is important but never more important than a personal relationship with God through His Son Jesus Christ.
Do you realise that God loves you? You may know it already which is wonderful and now God wants you to tell others about Him or perhaps you are afraid or disillusioned by church, which can seem complicated and cold.

Know this: God is warm and loving and wants a relationship with you: He wants to tell you that He loves you and hear you say you love Him too.
If this is where you are now, here are two easy steps to change your life: (1) go to our webpage (www.northrandmeth.org.za) and click on our link “Tell me about Jesus” and pray the sinners’ prayer and (2) find yourself a church near where you live. Trust God to show you and help you to come to know a loving caring family. Give it some time, the more you attend, the more familiar you’ll become with all its facets and like our week end away, you will receive more than you ever imagined.

First Post

This is the NRMC blog. Watch this space!