Oct 19 2009
Pastor’s notes
Hallelujah! This is the Day of the Lord.
Don’t forget! Our Planning Day is on Saturday, hope to see you all there. Its going to be a lot of fun seeing just how far we can go in God’s plan. Much of what we will do relates to discovering who we are and defining the strengths which God has already given us as a congregation. I believe that God draws together groups of His people with a specific intention and purpose and gives them foundational strengths to fulfill the task of the Kingdom right where they are. As we discover these foundational strengths that God has given us we can move confidently into our future with Him. I have the results from a similar exercise conducted in our Parish in 1996 and 2006 through the National Church Survey. That study does not have the same depth which we will seek but will certainly support the results of this exercise. My experience is that congregations are all different; we are gifted differently and God has given us different goals. When we move outside of our gifting and/or decide to determine our own goals we lose track of God’s intention. The Church Growth Movement has tended to define this losing track of God’s intention using medical conditions. The one I like (coming from a Presbyterian background) is “Presbyopia” – the inability to see things in the distance. We need to be far-sighted with God, to see and recognize His intention for us – and, believe me, it is always “exceedingly, abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine”.
That’s the focus of the sermon this morning which I have called, “Discovering God’s Plan.” It is specifically a preparation for the Planning Day next week. You may want to remember the five points which I will make, and to mull over them in the week. Here they are:
- Be open to new possibilities
- Be objective enough to see other points of view
- Be observant enough to know your support team
- Be obedient to whatever God says
- Be optimistic about the future.
You might also like to consider using these five points in steering the direction of the life which God has given you. I have discovered, from the time I became a Christ Follower at the age of 27 that there is so much more to this life than I ever imagined. I cannot imagine being bored with life, not being expectant of some new wonder, or not having a clear sense of direction. As I follow in the footsteps which our Lord has set before us, I am, and must, be open to His newness and the refreshing of His Spirit.
In the book of Acts we read that after Pentecost when Peter and John went to the Temple to pray, they met a lame man at the Beautiful Gate. He was at the entrance to God‘s glory but he was not inside. As well as being physically lame, this man was spiritually lame – and many people today are just like that. Peter called him to stand up and walk and that man’s life was changed – he went “walking and leaping and praising God” right into the Temple precinct from which he had previously been excluded. He was given new life and new opportunity. Peter later spoke to the crowd who gathered in response to this wonder saying, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord…” God is, I believe, inviting us to be part of His great refreshing. Repent – turn to God – so that – sins wiped out – times of refreshing = God’s eternal pattern for revival.
The Planning Day next Saturday will begin at 10.30am with Tea and Fellowship, following after the Parish Council Meeting which begins at 9am). I have a burial at the Merredin Cemetery early on but as soon as I get back we will begin with our program. Can you please bring a shared lunch. We will finish in the late afternoon with a Sausage Sizzle and the Variety Concert. Kevin has put together 10 items which promise to be great fun with lots of laughter and mirth. It is also a Fund Raiser for the School Chaplaincy. A good way to end a time of intense planning. And then next Sunday I will preach on God’s Grand Vision for His Gospel – ‘“Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men”. So they pulled up their boats on shore, left everything and followed Him.’ (Luke 5:10,11) I am excited!!
The website www.merredinunitingchurch.org has some new innovations designed to improve information flow from the church. Besides having my weekly letter and all sermons posted up, we now also have the list of Bible Readings for the week in an easy to find tab. In addition the Prayer Diary is also available as a tab at the top of the page. These additions will be especially helpful to you if you are away and don’t get a copy of the Newsletter.
I have also begun to comment on the Morning and Evening Readings in my own blog at www.faith2face.wordpress.org . You may find it useful to refer to those in your own devotion time. For years I had a brief sermonette each Wednesday morning at our midweek Communion service back in Howick which was based on the morning reading and folk often asked me for copies but it tended to be an off-the-cuff reflection so my notes were pretty unintelligible to anyone else. However I have been prompted by several people to write a devotional book using the Daily Lectionary Readings. Perhaps the writings in my blog will provide the foundation for that. I want to try and keep the spontaneity of “first impression” of the text which was the hallmark of the Wednesday morning sermonettes, so don’t expect any deep theological renderings – its just the musing over what God seems to be saying to me through the text. It might also give you some insight into one way in which you might do your own devotions. I do not necessarily refer to each of the texts – just that which “jumps out at me”.
God bless, be at peace and know the peace which comes from the God of Peace. Amen
No responses yet