Gods Grace never fails to amaze me. When I consider how undeserving I am, how frequently I let Him down, how I stumble and fall again and again, how I let selfish desires dictate my life time and time again; it never ceases to amaze me that the God of all creation welcomes me back with open arms because of Jesus. He allows me to stoop at the foot of the cross, crying for mercy and forgiveness; and I’m accepted into His presence because of Jesus who bears the full weight of my sin and judgement. I can’t help but ask the question “Why?”… The scandal of Gods grace in my life should compel me to surrender all of my being to Him in service to the one who has removed the burden of sin from my shoulders. He is worthy of all my praise and more, “How Great is our God!!”
The message translation of Ephesians 2 vs. 3-6 sums up these thoughts of wonder:
“It’s a wonder God didn’t lose his temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, he embraced us. He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah”
Friday, September 30, 2005
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Some sad News
Some sad news this week, Mike Summer (the director of Agape Puppet Ministry which is who Sam Shaw serves through) was tragically killed this week in a traffic accident. His wife Linda was serving in Moldova with Sam and fellow puppeteers, and had to make the tragic journey home to bury her husband, while Sam and the remainder of the puppet team complete the remainder of the programme in Moldova before returning home in a few weeks. I had the pleasure of spending a week with Mike and Linda along with Sam a few years back, and their passion for Jesus, and willingness to serve him in this unique ministry was an inspiration to me at a time when I was coming to faith in Christ. They have become dear friends to me, and the shock and pain I feel can only be a fragment of what was experienced by his loving wife Linda, his family, and the wider family of believers whose life He impacted. Remember Sam especially in Moldova, and the rest of the team at present fulfilling the ministry they were undertaking when the tragedy happened. Pray that God would sustain Him especially at this time, and drop him a comment of encouragement on his blog.
Monday, September 19, 2005
THE TEMPLATE GREMLIN STRIKES AGAIN
Well as you can see my template is not as it used to be, somehow I managed to completely kill my blog by changing a few links in my template, so I decided a change would do me good. So i have gone for this design, not sure how much I like it, but it will do for now. Just have to add the links again, and make sure I don't screw up the template completely again.
Dunno how I managed to do it, i'm convincedc it was the same gremlin as Justy
Well as you can see my template is not as it used to be, somehow I managed to completely kill my blog by changing a few links in my template, so I decided a change would do me good. So i have gone for this design, not sure how much I like it, but it will do for now. Just have to add the links again, and make sure I don't screw up the template completely again.
Dunno how I managed to do it, i'm convincedc it was the same gremlin as Justy
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Quiet on the blogfront
Well as you can see things have been abit quiet on the blogfront with me, postings have been somewhat sporradic and less frequent than I have intended. I'm sure many of you guys have been the same, when work starts eating away at more of your time, and with organisations starting up again the associated meetings occur on whatever free night you have. And before you know it, one week has rolled into the next and it all begins over again. One thing I have noticed is that when I blog more regularly, its at times when i've spent more time in Gods word, thinking through things. Guess it's the difference between "skim-reading" a passage in your daily notes just so that you feel like you've it done, something ticked off your to-do list; and really meditating on Gods word and thinking through it's application for your life as you dwell on it, listening for Gods voice. So I guess i'm challenging myself in how I approach God, is it simply another thing to tick off the to-do list, or is it something I long for each day. As the psalmist says in Psalm 119 vs.14-16
14 I rejoice in following your statutes
as one rejoices in great riches.
15 I meditate on your precepts
and consider your ways.
16 I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.
Thank you Lord for your grace and mercy that I experience daily as I continue to fall short of your benchmark to live by that is Christ. Help me to spend more time daily meditating on your word, and to make that the priority. Help me to make time for you first and foremost in my life, and forgive me for the times I fail to do so.
Well as you can see things have been abit quiet on the blogfront with me, postings have been somewhat sporradic and less frequent than I have intended. I'm sure many of you guys have been the same, when work starts eating away at more of your time, and with organisations starting up again the associated meetings occur on whatever free night you have. And before you know it, one week has rolled into the next and it all begins over again. One thing I have noticed is that when I blog more regularly, its at times when i've spent more time in Gods word, thinking through things. Guess it's the difference between "skim-reading" a passage in your daily notes just so that you feel like you've it done, something ticked off your to-do list; and really meditating on Gods word and thinking through it's application for your life as you dwell on it, listening for Gods voice. So I guess i'm challenging myself in how I approach God, is it simply another thing to tick off the to-do list, or is it something I long for each day. As the psalmist says in Psalm 119 vs.14-16
14 I rejoice in following your statutes
as one rejoices in great riches.
15 I meditate on your precepts
and consider your ways.
16 I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.
Thank you Lord for your grace and mercy that I experience daily as I continue to fall short of your benchmark to live by that is Christ. Help me to spend more time daily meditating on your word, and to make that the priority. Help me to make time for you first and foremost in my life, and forgive me for the times I fail to do so.
Monday, September 05, 2005
Wouldnt it be great if it was like this all the time ........
Think this was the tag line of something a while back, can’t remember what, but these have been my thoughts as I reflect on ReachOut. When I consider the awesome week we shared in, watching God at work, it gave me a glimpse of what “church” should all be about. A passage that has always impacted me when I consider how church should be was one that was considered at Ballynahinch Baptist last night, and it spoke to me again. I’ve posted before on how this vision of the early church in Acts 2 42-47 represents what we should be striving for in the community of believers we refer to as “church”, yet as I look at the church as it stands today I cannot see much resemblance of this pioneer community. And this to me underlines the fallen state of man, and I am as guilty as the next in that category. I’m selfish and self-centered, at times I don’t even think twice about the needs of those around me. Yet I’ve surrendered my life to God, and I’m asking Him to change my heart daily, giving me a heart like Jesus, eyes that see the pain and suffering in the lives of those around me, and feet and hands that act out His grace and love.
I believe this generation can bring revival to these shores, if we play our part and inspire this current generation to live radical, passion filled lives for Jesus who saved them by His grace. The interesting thing in this passage in Acts is the environment which brought about the growth of the early church, and that was one of devotion. Devotion to God, his word and teaching; building relationships where honesty and accountability with fellow Christians prevailed; sharing together regularly in worship and fellowship in one another’s homes; the underlying necessity of prayer; and the community aspect of sharing and providing for those who were in need.
And that’s the vision we’ve gotta put before this generation, and I believe we captured this somewhat through the ReachOut week.
The difficulty comes when we return to the Real World situations we face every day, be that work, school, tech, whatever. But I hope that through these blogs, and the friendships that have developed through ReachOut that we can carry on some of these aspects of being a community of believers as we share in fellowhip, express honesty and accountability to one another, and most importantly pray for one another.
Anyway that’s enough of me rambling on, trust everyone is well, keep shining bright wherever you may be
I believe this generation can bring revival to these shores, if we play our part and inspire this current generation to live radical, passion filled lives for Jesus who saved them by His grace. The interesting thing in this passage in Acts is the environment which brought about the growth of the early church, and that was one of devotion. Devotion to God, his word and teaching; building relationships where honesty and accountability with fellow Christians prevailed; sharing together regularly in worship and fellowship in one another’s homes; the underlying necessity of prayer; and the community aspect of sharing and providing for those who were in need.
And that’s the vision we’ve gotta put before this generation, and I believe we captured this somewhat through the ReachOut week.
The difficulty comes when we return to the Real World situations we face every day, be that work, school, tech, whatever. But I hope that through these blogs, and the friendships that have developed through ReachOut that we can carry on some of these aspects of being a community of believers as we share in fellowhip, express honesty and accountability to one another, and most importantly pray for one another.
Anyway that’s enough of me rambling on, trust everyone is well, keep shining bright wherever you may be
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