I am in Dunedin at a Youth Conference hosted by Nations Church. It is going great. Camille the Youth Pastor is doing such a good job. Ben Little, a friend of mine from Hillsong is the key speaker - he is doing really well. All the youth shared about their hopes and dreams today which was so inspiring. I love the testimonies of people just clicking with God.
We are being hosted by Bob and Bridget Brown in a house with an amazing view over the harbour. It is stunning. We are being looked after so well by them.
I have been so impressed with servant heart of the people here and the passion for God and the church. Dunedin is such a good place!!
I head for Oamaru (O-Town) tonight whwere I preach in the morning, then on to Timaru for a night meeting and a youth Leaders meeting.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Church Bulletin Bloopers #2
For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
This evening at 7 pm there will be a hymn sing in the park across from the Church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin.
Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10. All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B.S. is done.
The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare's Hamlet in the Church basement Friday at 7 PM. The Congregation is invited to attend this tragedy.
Weight Watchers will meet at 7 PM at the First Presbyterian Church. Please use large double door at the side entrance.
Mrs. Johnson will be entering the hospital this week for testes.
The Associate Minister unveiled the church's new tithing campaign slogan last Sunday "I Upped My Pledge - Up Yours."
This evening at 7 pm there will be a hymn sing in the park across from the Church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin.
Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10. All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B.S. is done.
The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare's Hamlet in the Church basement Friday at 7 PM. The Congregation is invited to attend this tragedy.
Weight Watchers will meet at 7 PM at the First Presbyterian Church. Please use large double door at the side entrance.
Mrs. Johnson will be entering the hospital this week for testes.
The Associate Minister unveiled the church's new tithing campaign slogan last Sunday "I Upped My Pledge - Up Yours."
What will I do with my life?
The second Question that Phillip Yancy posed while he lay somewhere between death and life was "What have I done with my life?" We can turn that around a little but to "What will I do with my life". Here are some quotes to get you thinking on this topic:
Proverbs 29:18
Where there is no vision, the people perish
When Alexander the Great had a vision, he conquered countries; when he lost it, he couldn’t conquer a liquor bottle. When David had a vision, he conquered Goliath; and when he lost his vision, he couldn’t conquer his own lust. When Samson had a vision, he won many battles; when he lost his vision, he couldn’t win his battle with Delilah. When Solomon had a vision, he was the wisest man in the world; when he lost the dream God had given him, he couldn’t control his own evil passion for foreign women. When Saul had a vision, he could conquer kings; when he lost his vision, he couldn’t conquer his own jealousy. When Noah had a vision, he could build an ark and help keep the human race on track; when he lost his vision, he got drunk. When Elijah had a vision, he could pray down fire from heaven and chop off the heads of false prophets; when he lost the dream, he ran from Jezebel. It’s the dream that keeps us young; it’s the vision that keeps us
“Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop and I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will, and He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over and I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight, that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. And I’m happy tonight; I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”
Martin Luther King
I don’t buy the romantic notion that my life has been somehow richer or more interesting because of all the times I screwed up; nor that the mistakes were “put” there to help me learn. I made them myself—through ignorance, fear, and a dumb wish to have everyone like me—and life and work would have been less stressful and more enjoyable (and certainly more successful) without them. So here are some of the things I wish I had learned long ago. I hope they may help a few of you avoid the mistakes that I made back then.
Be Planted
Psalm 92
The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
planted in the house of the LORD ,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
Mark 8:34-37
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
I refuse to accept the idea that man is mere flotsam and jetsam in the river of life unable to influence the unfolding of events which surround him.
Martin Luther king
Psalm 139:3
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
Eph 1:23 The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.
"Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes, and look to the fields, that they are white for harvest." (John 4:35)
Proverbs 29:18
Where there is no vision, the people perish
When Alexander the Great had a vision, he conquered countries; when he lost it, he couldn’t conquer a liquor bottle. When David had a vision, he conquered Goliath; and when he lost his vision, he couldn’t conquer his own lust. When Samson had a vision, he won many battles; when he lost his vision, he couldn’t win his battle with Delilah. When Solomon had a vision, he was the wisest man in the world; when he lost the dream God had given him, he couldn’t control his own evil passion for foreign women. When Saul had a vision, he could conquer kings; when he lost his vision, he couldn’t conquer his own jealousy. When Noah had a vision, he could build an ark and help keep the human race on track; when he lost his vision, he got drunk. When Elijah had a vision, he could pray down fire from heaven and chop off the heads of false prophets; when he lost the dream, he ran from Jezebel. It’s the dream that keeps us young; it’s the vision that keeps us
“Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop and I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will, and He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over and I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight, that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. And I’m happy tonight; I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”
Martin Luther King
I don’t buy the romantic notion that my life has been somehow richer or more interesting because of all the times I screwed up; nor that the mistakes were “put” there to help me learn. I made them myself—through ignorance, fear, and a dumb wish to have everyone like me—and life and work would have been less stressful and more enjoyable (and certainly more successful) without them. So here are some of the things I wish I had learned long ago. I hope they may help a few of you avoid the mistakes that I made back then.
Be Planted
Psalm 92
The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
planted in the house of the LORD ,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,
Mark 8:34-37
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
I refuse to accept the idea that man is mere flotsam and jetsam in the river of life unable to influence the unfolding of events which surround him.
Martin Luther king
Psalm 139:3
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
Eph 1:23 The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.
"Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes, and look to the fields, that they are white for harvest." (John 4:35)
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
More quotes for the question "Who do I love?"
Love is like pi
natural,
irrational,
and VERY
important.
Ovid
To be loved, be lovable.
Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, it's what you are expected to give — which is everything
Robert Lois Stevenson
Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, it's what you are expected to give — which is everything
Billy Graeme at 87,
“I cannot imagine living a single day without her by my side. I am more in love with her today than when we first met … as students in college.”
Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that. - Martin Luther King
C.S. Lewis put it, ‘To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.’
Ephesians 5:1-2 Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.(TNIV)
Acts 2:42-47 The Fellowship of the Believers They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 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 favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
natural,
irrational,
and VERY
important.
Ovid
To be loved, be lovable.
Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, it's what you are expected to give — which is everything
Robert Lois Stevenson
Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, it's what you are expected to give — which is everything
Billy Graeme at 87,
“I cannot imagine living a single day without her by my side. I am more in love with her today than when we first met … as students in college.”
Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that. - Martin Luther King
C.S. Lewis put it, ‘To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.’
Ephesians 5:1-2 Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.(TNIV)
Acts 2:42-47 The Fellowship of the Believers They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 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 favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Church Bulletin Bloopers #1
Scouts are saving aluminium cans, bottles, and other items to be recycled. Proceeds will be used to cripple children.
The outreach committee has enlisted 25 visitors to make calls on people who are not afflicted with any church.
Evening massage - 6 p.m.
Low Self-Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 to 8:30 p.m. Please use the back door.
Ushers will eat latecomers.
For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Methodist. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa.
At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be "What is Hell?" Come early and listen to our choir practice.
The outreach committee has enlisted 25 visitors to make calls on people who are not afflicted with any church.
Evening massage - 6 p.m.
Low Self-Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 to 8:30 p.m. Please use the back door.
Ushers will eat latecomers.
For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Methodist. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa.
At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be "What is Hell?" Come early and listen to our choir practice.
History of Coffee
The history and development of the beverage that we know as coffee is varied and interesting, involving chance occurrences, political intrigue, and the pursuit of wealth and power.
According to one story, the effect of coffee beans on behavior was noticed by a sheep herder from Caffa Ethopia named Kaldi as he tended his sheep. He noticed that the sheep became frisky after eating the red "cherries" from a certain plant. He tried a few himself, and was also overcome with happiness .
There are a couple of different accounts of what happened next. One version of events is that a learned man from a local town named Aucuba came by, he was sleepy, tired, and hungry. Aucuba saw Kaldi acting wildly. He saw the goats acting wildly too. Because he was hungry he tried the berries. He became wide awake and was instantly ready to keep traveling. He took some berries back to his town and used it with other foods. He mixed the berries with drinks at his monastery which kept people awake during prayer. It then spread to other towns and monasteries. Aucuba became a rich man. No one knows what happen to Kaldi.
Another version of the same story is that Kaldi took the "magic" berries to a nearby monastery where the Abbot believed them to be the work of the devil, threw them into the fire. This released such an aroma that the beans were quickly rescued from the flames and the monks eventually learned how to make the hot black beverage we know today. The monks considered coffee as a gift from God because it kept parishioners awake during prayers. Hallelujah!!
Another legend gives us the name for coffee or "mocha." An Arabian was banished to the desert with his followers to die of starvation. In desperation, Omar had his friends boil and eat the fruit from an unknown plant. Not only did the broth save the exiles, but their survival was taken as a religious sign by the residents of the nearest town, Mocha. The plant and its beverage were named Mocha to honor this event.
Originally the coffee plant grew naturally in Ethopia, but once transplanted in Arabia was monopolized by them. One early use for coffee would have little appeal today. The Galla tribe from Ethiopia used coffee, but not as a drink. They would wrap the beans in animal fat as their only source of nutrition while on raiding parties. The Turks were the first country to adopt it as a drink, often adding spices such as clove, cinnamon, cardamom and anise to the brew.
Coffee was introduced much later to countries beyond Arabia whose inhabitants believed it to be a delicacy and guarded its secret as if they were top secret military plans. Transportation of the plant out of the Moslem nations was forbidden by the government. The actual spread of coffee was started illegally. One Arab named Baba Budan smuggled beans to some mountains near Mysore, India, and started a farm there. Early in this century, the descendants of those original plants were found still growing fruitfully in the region.
Coffee was believed by some Christians to be the devil's drink, because it came from Muslim countries. Pope Vincent III heard this and decided to taste it before he banished it. He enjoyed it so much he baptized it, saying "coffee is so delicious it would be a pity to let the infidels have exclusive use of it." Coffee today is grown and enjoyed worldwide.
According to one story, the effect of coffee beans on behavior was noticed by a sheep herder from Caffa Ethopia named Kaldi as he tended his sheep. He noticed that the sheep became frisky after eating the red "cherries" from a certain plant. He tried a few himself, and was also overcome with happiness .
There are a couple of different accounts of what happened next. One version of events is that a learned man from a local town named Aucuba came by, he was sleepy, tired, and hungry. Aucuba saw Kaldi acting wildly. He saw the goats acting wildly too. Because he was hungry he tried the berries. He became wide awake and was instantly ready to keep traveling. He took some berries back to his town and used it with other foods. He mixed the berries with drinks at his monastery which kept people awake during prayer. It then spread to other towns and monasteries. Aucuba became a rich man. No one knows what happen to Kaldi.
Another version of the same story is that Kaldi took the "magic" berries to a nearby monastery where the Abbot believed them to be the work of the devil, threw them into the fire. This released such an aroma that the beans were quickly rescued from the flames and the monks eventually learned how to make the hot black beverage we know today. The monks considered coffee as a gift from God because it kept parishioners awake during prayers. Hallelujah!!
Another legend gives us the name for coffee or "mocha." An Arabian was banished to the desert with his followers to die of starvation. In desperation, Omar had his friends boil and eat the fruit from an unknown plant. Not only did the broth save the exiles, but their survival was taken as a religious sign by the residents of the nearest town, Mocha. The plant and its beverage were named Mocha to honor this event.
Originally the coffee plant grew naturally in Ethopia, but once transplanted in Arabia was monopolized by them. One early use for coffee would have little appeal today. The Galla tribe from Ethiopia used coffee, but not as a drink. They would wrap the beans in animal fat as their only source of nutrition while on raiding parties. The Turks were the first country to adopt it as a drink, often adding spices such as clove, cinnamon, cardamom and anise to the brew.
Coffee was introduced much later to countries beyond Arabia whose inhabitants believed it to be a delicacy and guarded its secret as if they were top secret military plans. Transportation of the plant out of the Moslem nations was forbidden by the government. The actual spread of coffee was started illegally. One Arab named Baba Budan smuggled beans to some mountains near Mysore, India, and started a farm there. Early in this century, the descendants of those original plants were found still growing fruitfully in the region.
Coffee was believed by some Christians to be the devil's drink, because it came from Muslim countries. Pope Vincent III heard this and decided to taste it before he banished it. He enjoyed it so much he baptized it, saying "coffee is so delicious it would be a pity to let the infidels have exclusive use of it." Coffee today is grown and enjoyed worldwide.
Who do I Love?
The first important question to consider is, "Who in life do I love?" The challenge for each one of us is are we actively loving them. I find it is those closest to us that we can neglect the most. Here are some quotes on love to encourage you as you ponder this question:
Doc Childre
Our true identity is to love without fear and insecurity. Our higher potential finds us when we set our course in that direction. The power of love and compassion transforms insecurity.
Doc Childre and Sara Paddison
Love is not automatic. It takes conscious practice and awareness, just like playing the piano or golf. However, you have ample opportunities to practice. Everyone you meet can be your practice session.
Jason Jordan
True love does not come by finding the perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.
Mother Teresa
There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.
Christopher Morley
If we discovered that we had only five minutes left to say all that we wanted to say, every telephone booth would be occupied by people calling other people to stammer that they loved them.
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
I have never met a person whose greatest need was anything other than real, unconditional love. You can find it in a simple act of kindness toward someone who needs help. There is no mistaking love. You feel it in your heart. It is the common fiber of life, the flame of that heats our soul, energizes our spirit and supplies passion to our lives. It is our connection to God and to each other.
Swedish Proverb
Fear less,
hope more,
eat less,
chew more,
whine less,
breathe more,
talk less,
say more,
love more,
and all good things will be yours.
Doc Childre
Our true identity is to love without fear and insecurity. Our higher potential finds us when we set our course in that direction. The power of love and compassion transforms insecurity.
Doc Childre and Sara Paddison
Love is not automatic. It takes conscious practice and awareness, just like playing the piano or golf. However, you have ample opportunities to practice. Everyone you meet can be your practice session.
Jason Jordan
True love does not come by finding the perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.
Mother Teresa
There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world than for bread.
Christopher Morley
If we discovered that we had only five minutes left to say all that we wanted to say, every telephone booth would be occupied by people calling other people to stammer that they loved them.
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
I have never met a person whose greatest need was anything other than real, unconditional love. You can find it in a simple act of kindness toward someone who needs help. There is no mistaking love. You feel it in your heart. It is the common fiber of life, the flame of that heats our soul, energizes our spirit and supplies passion to our lives. It is our connection to God and to each other.
Swedish Proverb
Fear less,
hope more,
eat less,
chew more,
whine less,
breathe more,
talk less,
say more,
love more,
and all good things will be yours.
Monday, September 17, 2007
3 Life Questions
I recently heard about author Philip Yancy's close-call with death after a car accident. He said three questions went through his mind in the moments immediately after the crash as he lay somewhere between life and death ...
Who in life do I love?
What have I done with my life?
Am I ready for what comes after this life?
These are great questions. Perhaps the key to a great life is to ponder such questions daily rather than only in moments of grave need. Over the next few days I will attempt to share a few thoughts on these questions.
Who in life do I love?
What have I done with my life?
Am I ready for what comes after this life?
These are great questions. Perhaps the key to a great life is to ponder such questions daily rather than only in moments of grave need. Over the next few days I will attempt to share a few thoughts on these questions.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
21 Suggestions fo Success
By H.Jackson Brown Jr.
1. Marry the right person. This one decision will determine 90% of your happiness or misery.
2. Work at something you enjoy and that’s worthy of your time and talent.
3. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
4. Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
5. Be generous.
6. Have a grateful heart.
7. Persistence, Persistence, Persistence.
8. Be forgiving of yourself and others.
9. Discipline yourself to save money on even the most modest salary.
10. Treat everyone you meet like you want to be treated.
11. Commit yourself to quality.
12. Commit yourself to consistent improvement.
13. Understand that happiness is NOT based on possessions or prestige but on the relationships with the people you love and respect.
14. Be loyal.
15. Be honest.
16. Be a self starter.
17. Be decisive even if it means you'll sometimes be wrong.
18. STOP blaming others, take responsibility for every area of your life.
19. Be bold and courageous. When you look back on you life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did.
20. Take good care of those you love.
21. Don't do anything that wouldn't make your Mum proud
1. Marry the right person. This one decision will determine 90% of your happiness or misery.
2. Work at something you enjoy and that’s worthy of your time and talent.
3. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
4. Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
5. Be generous.
6. Have a grateful heart.
7. Persistence, Persistence, Persistence.
8. Be forgiving of yourself and others.
9. Discipline yourself to save money on even the most modest salary.
10. Treat everyone you meet like you want to be treated.
11. Commit yourself to quality.
12. Commit yourself to consistent improvement.
13. Understand that happiness is NOT based on possessions or prestige but on the relationships with the people you love and respect.
14. Be loyal.
15. Be honest.
16. Be a self starter.
17. Be decisive even if it means you'll sometimes be wrong.
18. STOP blaming others, take responsibility for every area of your life.
19. Be bold and courageous. When you look back on you life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did.
20. Take good care of those you love.
21. Don't do anything that wouldn't make your Mum proud
Lifting our community
Bringing a lift to our Community
In Matthew 26, Jesus who is reaching the pinnacle of his ministry choses not have a big evangelistic rally for an prayer meeting…he goes to a party! The party is at Simon the Leper’s. He chooses to spend his time with those who were considered the outcasts of society.
As a side - imagine the practice of referring to people by their ailments:
Peter with Dandruff
Sharon with pimples
Alan with hemorrhoids
This was a mark of his ministry. He is on his way to an important feast and he ministers to a Samaritan women. He enters Jericho, a crowd gathers but he looks up a tree for the individual – Zaccheus
Lessons for us:
1. Consider the poor
Psalms 41:1 - 45:17 (NKJV)
Blessed is he who considers the poor; The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive, And he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. The LORD will strengthen him on his bed of illness; You will sustain him on his sickbed.
People may be poor in spirit, poor in health, poor in relationships. They may have poverty of heart, soul, or mind. Do we consider them? Do we consider the underprivileged, the needy, the hurting?
Christianity isn’t just about my relationship with God. It is just as much about others.
C. S Lewis said “The opposite of love is not hate it is indifference.”
How are you treating others?
2. Bring a lift
This is the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a gospel that lifts the poor and needy. We want to lift people into the purposes and promises of God.
The outworking of our Christianity is to lift others.
Psalm 113:7
5 Who is like the LORD our God, the One who sits enthroned on high,
6 who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?
7 He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
8 he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people.
Here is a test of our attitude to the poor:
1. Judge them
2. Ignore
3. Sympathy
4. Charity - give to sallies
5. Help - regular commitment.
6. Take responsibility
7. Lift the poor
U.N determines poverty means:
the inability to afford to heat the home, buy clothing, bedding, soap and towels
the inability to pay for phone and transport
the inability to pay for participation in sport
the inability to pay for visits to the doctor and prescriptions
the inability to pay for education.
For 300,000 New Zealand children in poverty it is not possible to afford all these things.
Poverty means doing without
In a survey for the Wellington Anglican Diocese of 100 households living on benefits, Waldegrave & Stuart (1996) found:
• 77% had problems paying for food
• 64% went without meals
• 60% had problems paying for housing costs
• 17% were living in officially overcrowded housing
• 14% had no washing machine, 33% had no carpet, 9% no electric jug, 6% noheater
• 68% had been unable to pay their power bill by the due date in the last year
• 25% sold household items to pay bills
• 59% went without necessary clothes or shoes
• during the last 6 months at least one household member could not afford a doctor (43%), a dentist (53%) or a prescription (32%).
3. Be Religious
You don't have to be in the Christian circles long to hear the phrase, "It's not about religion, it's about a relationship." And while I agree, to an extent, it still seems like there's more depth to the Gospels than making your personal peace with God and taking it easy until the second coming.
The two greatest commandments—love God and love others—are connected in a mysterious and authentic way. We make our love for God complete by loving others, and we make our love for others complete by loving God. The two work together.
James 1: 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
That's where religion comes in, not the stuffy holier-than-thou, follow-the-rules religion, but the pure caring-for-widows-and-orphans kind (James 1). To complete the cycle of spiritual formation, we have to give tangible actions to religious beliefs. We have to get beyond the personal-relationship stuff to the doing-justice stuff.
We need to live a life of blessing to the poor.
How?
1. Ask Him to help you recognize the true worth in every person and situation; the diamond hidden in the coal and the cry for understanding behind the defiant glare.
2. Look for opportunity.
Bring someone to church
Give a meal
Help a senior or a family with babysitting
Food banks
There are real needs all around
Make opportunities – bake some cookies for your neighbour.
3. Make a commitment to be consistently active. It’s great to be available when tragedy strikes, but a useful religion is integrated into life on a regular basis.
4. Help those who can’t return the favour. Don’t look for any return favours—just help others because it’s the right thing to do. Help in secret or behind the scenes when possible. Become an obscurity. Real religion isn’t flashy; it’s subtle. That’s why James listed widows and orphans-they aren’t in a position to return the favour.
5. Speak out. Don’t expect everyone to understand your passion for justice, but don’t let it stop you. Be passionate about God and be passionate about people—all people. Religion isn't really about candles, ceremonies and rules; it's about acting out and becoming the hands of Christ in a poor and marginalized world.
Its about walking across the street and embracing a hurting world and acting out—no matter how small the gesture.
In Matthew 26, Jesus who is reaching the pinnacle of his ministry choses not have a big evangelistic rally for an prayer meeting…he goes to a party! The party is at Simon the Leper’s. He chooses to spend his time with those who were considered the outcasts of society.
As a side - imagine the practice of referring to people by their ailments:
Peter with Dandruff
Sharon with pimples
Alan with hemorrhoids
This was a mark of his ministry. He is on his way to an important feast and he ministers to a Samaritan women. He enters Jericho, a crowd gathers but he looks up a tree for the individual – Zaccheus
Lessons for us:
1. Consider the poor
Psalms 41:1 - 45:17 (NKJV)
Blessed is he who considers the poor; The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive, And he will be blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. The LORD will strengthen him on his bed of illness; You will sustain him on his sickbed.
People may be poor in spirit, poor in health, poor in relationships. They may have poverty of heart, soul, or mind. Do we consider them? Do we consider the underprivileged, the needy, the hurting?
Christianity isn’t just about my relationship with God. It is just as much about others.
C. S Lewis said “The opposite of love is not hate it is indifference.”
How are you treating others?
2. Bring a lift
This is the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a gospel that lifts the poor and needy. We want to lift people into the purposes and promises of God.
The outworking of our Christianity is to lift others.
Psalm 113:7
5 Who is like the LORD our God, the One who sits enthroned on high,
6 who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?
7 He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
8 he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people.
Here is a test of our attitude to the poor:
1. Judge them
2. Ignore
3. Sympathy
4. Charity - give to sallies
5. Help - regular commitment.
6. Take responsibility
7. Lift the poor
U.N determines poverty means:
the inability to afford to heat the home, buy clothing, bedding, soap and towels
the inability to pay for phone and transport
the inability to pay for participation in sport
the inability to pay for visits to the doctor and prescriptions
the inability to pay for education.
For 300,000 New Zealand children in poverty it is not possible to afford all these things.
Poverty means doing without
In a survey for the Wellington Anglican Diocese of 100 households living on benefits, Waldegrave & Stuart (1996) found:
• 77% had problems paying for food
• 64% went without meals
• 60% had problems paying for housing costs
• 17% were living in officially overcrowded housing
• 14% had no washing machine, 33% had no carpet, 9% no electric jug, 6% noheater
• 68% had been unable to pay their power bill by the due date in the last year
• 25% sold household items to pay bills
• 59% went without necessary clothes or shoes
• during the last 6 months at least one household member could not afford a doctor (43%), a dentist (53%) or a prescription (32%).
3. Be Religious
You don't have to be in the Christian circles long to hear the phrase, "It's not about religion, it's about a relationship." And while I agree, to an extent, it still seems like there's more depth to the Gospels than making your personal peace with God and taking it easy until the second coming.
The two greatest commandments—love God and love others—are connected in a mysterious and authentic way. We make our love for God complete by loving others, and we make our love for others complete by loving God. The two work together.
James 1: 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
That's where religion comes in, not the stuffy holier-than-thou, follow-the-rules religion, but the pure caring-for-widows-and-orphans kind (James 1). To complete the cycle of spiritual formation, we have to give tangible actions to religious beliefs. We have to get beyond the personal-relationship stuff to the doing-justice stuff.
We need to live a life of blessing to the poor.
How?
1. Ask Him to help you recognize the true worth in every person and situation; the diamond hidden in the coal and the cry for understanding behind the defiant glare.
2. Look for opportunity.
Bring someone to church
Give a meal
Help a senior or a family with babysitting
Food banks
There are real needs all around
Make opportunities – bake some cookies for your neighbour.
3. Make a commitment to be consistently active. It’s great to be available when tragedy strikes, but a useful religion is integrated into life on a regular basis.
4. Help those who can’t return the favour. Don’t look for any return favours—just help others because it’s the right thing to do. Help in secret or behind the scenes when possible. Become an obscurity. Real religion isn’t flashy; it’s subtle. That’s why James listed widows and orphans-they aren’t in a position to return the favour.
5. Speak out. Don’t expect everyone to understand your passion for justice, but don’t let it stop you. Be passionate about God and be passionate about people—all people. Religion isn't really about candles, ceremonies and rules; it's about acting out and becoming the hands of Christ in a poor and marginalized world.
Its about walking across the street and embracing a hurting world and acting out—no matter how small the gesture.
Quality Coffee
The world's rarest (and most expensive) coffee is Kopi Luwak from Indonesia. Why? The Luwak is a cat-sized, fruit-eating mammal. It feasts on ripe coffee berries but the beans inside pass through undigested. The beans are gathered and lightly roasted to preserve the ‘complex flavours’ believed to be caused by enzymes in the stomach of the Luwak – the resulting taste is said to resemble chocolate.
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