Ministers Desk 23rd September 2012

Today is a great day! I have the privilege of regularly attending all three worship services here at Emmanuel. In doing this I can honestly say that I have come to appreciate the different ways all three services help me to come before the presence of God. We are a diverse congregation so it’s no surprise there is a variety in our preference of worship styles.

It’s ok to feel more comfortable worshiping in one service over another but it’s really important that from time to time we gather together, as a whole community to worship God in one time and place. When we do this we are reminded that ultimately worship is not so much about what we do but why we do it.

In our purpose we have identified worship (Exalt) as an important part of growing as disciples of Jesus Christ. William H. Willimon is someone who I have found to be very helpful in articulating the nature and purpose of worship. Here is some of what he has to say;

The Christian faith is a matter of God’s offer of love in Christ and our response to that love. We respond to God’s love with our loving acts of service toward those in need in the church and in the world. And yet we respond to God’s love, not only by loving deeds of service to others, but also by simply doing the things we do for God because God is God and we are God’s children. We are called not simply to obey God but also to glorify God. Above all, we are called to enjoy God. We are called to worship.

Love is not love if it is simply a matter of obeying rules, running errands, and performing duties. Some things we do just because we enjoy being in the presence of our loved one. So we sing songs, write poetry, dance, clap our hands, share food, or simply prop up our feet and do nothing but enjoy being with one another. In these purposeless moments of sheer enjoyment, we come very close to what love is all about.

If someone asked a Christian, “What’s the purpose of your worship? Why do you gather on Sunday and sing songs, dress up, kneel, march in processions, clap your hands, shed tears, speak, eat, and listen?” We could only say, “Because we are in love.” (http://willimon.blogspot.com.au/2007/02/whats-point-of-worship.html)

Today is a great day because we have gathered together as one body to declare our love for God, and in doing so we affirm our unity in Christ.

Grace and Peace

Harlee  Cooper

Ministers Desk 16th September 2012

This week I share with you the final insights of Gordon MacDonald on how to spot a transformed Christian.  The call to follow Christ is a journey to become ever more like him and less like the world that we live in.  “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Cor 3:18).  For this reason we need some signs or markers to help identify how we are continuing to grow.  Please prayerfully reflect on these insights as they apply in your life. 

“Appreciates that suffering is part of faithfulness to Jesus. ‘I will show him how much he will suffer for my sake,’ God says of Saul of Tarsus. ‘Count it all joy (if you suffer),’ writes James. ‘He has given you the privilege to suffer for him,’ writes Paul.”

“‘Everything I know that's important,’ a friend said to me recently, ‘I learned in suffering. Suffering comes from many sources—even our own stupid mistakes. But whatever its source, the transforming believer does not complain, does not seek pity, does not become embittered. Rather he listens; he trusts; he offers his experience for the benefit of others.”

“Is eager and ready to express the content of his faith. Allow me to differentiate between those who select times to ‘do evangelism’ and those who are more likely to express their faith in the serendipitous events and encounters of everyday life. Of course, both are valid.”

“The transformed Christ-follower seeks, even prays for, opportunities to arise in the most natural of ways to communicate one's devotion to Christ and his capacity to offer a new way of life.”

“Overflows with thankfulness. And that implies prone toward cheerfulness.  Some of us (me, for example) needed to learn the exercise of thankfulness. Our default pattern is to simply receive, to take, as if we are entitled and deserve the generosity of others.”

“But now and then comes along that unusual transforming person who literally walks through the day looking for things to be thankful for. With each expression of thanks, they press value on what someone (or God himself) has done. They believe that no human transaction is complete until it is covered with appreciation.”

“Has a passion for reconciliation. This might be the highest characteristic of maturing believers. They bring people together. They hate war, violence, contentiousness, division caused by race, economics, gender, and ideology. They believe that being peaceable and making peace trumps all other efforts in one's lifetime.”

“’Something there is that doesn't love a wall,’ Robert Frost wrote. He could have been describing the transforming Christian who is mightily stirred into action when he sees those dividing walls that separate people, each of whom was made uniquely and loved by God.”

“It is here that you see Jesus living in others. You see his eye on the one others have ignored. You see him lifting the fallen one, elevating the insignificant one. What an incredible example he is to exploitive and arrogant people who walk through every day dividing and diminishing people all about them. The transforming Christ-follower knows this natural human tendency and seeks God's power to replace it with another tendency: redeeming, healing love.”

Ministers Desk 9 September 2012

Over the past weeks I have been sharing with you some insights that Gordon MacDonald has written that help us identify the characteristics of a transformed Christian.  My intention in sharing these is to ask you to prayerfully reflect on your own life as a growing disciple and ask where you reflect the life of Christ and the areas in which you are not yet transformed.  Remembering always a Christ follower is always on a journey and in this life we never reach the destination.  Here are points seven and eight.  I encourage you to read all of the points.  If you do not have them please contact the church office, or access past copies of the notice sheet on the website.

“Is aware of personal ‘call’ and unique competencies. In other words, ‘It's not about me, but about what has been entrusted to me and what can be offered to others’. The transforming Christ-follower believes he has been given a mission. Usually, if you ask, he can put that mission into words.

“We are not speaking of pastors and missionaries only, but all of us. Part of spiritual transformation seems to include a growing sensitivity to a ‘call,’ something ‘out there’ that needs doing in the name of Jesus.

“And with the sensitivity comes a capability often called a spiritual gift. It is exhilarating to watch a young Christ-follower awaken to a power given him by the fullness of the Holy Spirit. At first there may be reluctance, even fear. There can be awkwardness, even some failure.

“And then, like a young rose exposed to sunlight, the transforming Christian begins to blossom. God's Spirit anoints with unexpected power and vision, and sometimes you hear one say, ‘I was made for this’."

 

“Is merciful and generous. The amazing Barnabas is our model. We first meet him as the church's best example of generosity.

“We see him taking risks when he welcomes Saul of Tarsus to the circle of believers in Jerusalem. It's Barnabas who observes a fledgling church (Antioch) trying out new styles of church life and refrains from squelching them. In fact he applauds.

“Barnabas mentors Saul on their first missionary campaign, yet relinquishes his leadership position when Paul is mature enough to find his own way.

“Our last sight of Barnabas? Standing up for John Mark who needs another chance to rebound from an earlier failure. How typical of this man.
I wish the larger world of our day saw in Christians a more Barnabas-like spirit of generosity, encouragement, and mercy.”