Why not Come Back to Church?

Did you once come to church? Do you miss it? Have you been meaning to come back but life go to busy? Well follow me. I came back aged 19 some 18 years ago and have never looked back. Being part of a loving community where you can grow and be nurtured in your faith is wonderful. Join us this Sunday, 30th September 2012 at 10.30am. Venue: St James United Reformed Church, Palmerston Road, Buckhurst Hill, Essex, IG9 5NG.

Time Away from Church?

I once spent time away from church. When I was 11, my grandmother died and it too painful for me to go back to the place where I had so many happy memories of her. During my time away I believed in God but I now realize the value of a community of believers who help you grow. It is a lot harder to be Christian outside the church than it is inside. I had a hard time in my teens; I was bullied, suffered glandular fever and was not in a good place. However at 19, after prompting from God I went back and it is the best thing I ever did.

Re-Creation

The seasons are so interesting to me as go through a constant cycle of recreation. Autumn reflects life withdrawing either by animals hibernating, or by leaves going brown and falling of trees, winter is bare and barren but has its own beauty, spring sees life returning to plants and animals waking up, Summer see life in fall flow. Jesus was part of Gods plan for recreating, a pivotal stage from which God woul push forward. We too are to be part of Gods ultimate plan. Jesus was and is a remarkalble person who showed a new way to be and want us to follow him. In doing so we draw closer to God and to one another.

Do you know who Jesus was?

Sometimes when I see someone for the first time in years, often in a setting where I would expect to meet them, I often cannot remember their name. If they have had a makeover since that time it makes them even harder to recognise. You feel embarrassed because it is someone who has recognised you and you are trying to bring to mind something about them, sometimes from the distant past. Afterwards, and it is often afterwards, you remember a number of things when the pressure is off. Now I want you to imagine you are out in the street. It can be any street and Jesus comes walking up to you and greets you. Now you do not know this man and he may not fit in with your image of what Jesus looks like and you reject him. Jesus disciples may have known Jesus by sight but they had not recognised who Jesus truly was. Certainly Jesus was not the warrior king who was going to lead them into battle against their Roman oppressors. He was gentle in his manners but radical in his teaching. So no he was not a warrior king. He was man of peace. He had confronted the scribes who had become over legalistic and set down many rules for people to follow so they did things the correct way but Jesus told them they were wrong and were too controlling. We were to love one another as he loved us, and to love God with all heart, mind and being. Jesus did this in his life loving the many that the scribes made outcasts and brought them healing and wholeness again. He included them when others excluded them. Jesus was remarkable man then. Perfect it would seem and still they did not get it. In Mark 4: 35-41 Jesus calms a storm. He has power over creation. They will not truly get who Jesus is until the Ressurrection. The perfect man, who has power over creation and rises to new life after dying a painful and humilating death. Who do you think Jesus was?

What does nature tell us about God?

Can we tell what God is like by looking at nature? What will it tell us of God if we do? Let's look at it from a human perspecitvie first if I look at a chair what I can tell of its maker? I can tell the chair had a design which the maker put together. I might also ascertain from looking at the chair, that the maker was a good craftsman. However I cannot tell whether the maker was loving or cruel to his family. In other words I cannot tell from looking at the chair the personality of the maker. I would need other things and other sets of knowledge. I might need to meet the maker themselves. We meet God, through the Bible. It tells of our journey of understanding God. We meet God through Jesus. We can experience God in our daily lives. So while looking nature may point us to God it does not take into a relationship with him or give us clues to what he is like in any great detail.

New Year Resolutions

We are now in 2012. I am sure some of us have made new year resolutions. It is often our intention to keep them but how long before we stop going to the Gym or starting eating chocolate again? We all need discipline and help. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is not easy to do on one's own. We can waver as we need the support of other Christians to build us up and we need Jesus. We get that through looking through the pages of the New Testament and especially the gospels to help live as he would have us. We can also pray for the strength and courage to follow Christ in todays world.