Ministers Desk 14 August 2011

During the past week we have spent time in our daily devotions dwelling on our response to God through worship.  Our proposed purpose (Growing Disciples who Exalt, Explore, Embody, Engage) calls us to expand our capacity to worship where we surrender ourselves to God, praise his name and experience transformation by the Holy Spirit.

As with any activity that we do frequently over a long period of time, we can lose the sense of awe and anticipation and instead we can allow worship to become a stale ritual.

Psalm 51:15 – 17 says, “open my lips Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.”

Growing disciples are people who continually push themselves beyond stale rituals and tedious routine in worship and look to find fresh and inspiring experiences of God in worship.  Our worship can be in our corporate gathered times on Sunday or at any other moment that we encounter and respond to the divine presence of God.  For instance on my day off this week I went walking in the bush land around Mt Coot-tha.  In prayer I was able to praise and thank God for his work in creation.  That praise though led me to a renewal in my commitment to be a steward of God’s creation, as a response and act of worship to the God who has given us the gift of creation.  This year our combined services have featured one of our three styles of worship, rather than a combination of all three.  It has meant that for two out of three combined services we have worshipped in a style that is not our usual, or preferred style.  This has been a growing time for many as they have reflected on the meaning and purpose of worship.  Worship takes place wherever we are and whenever we respond to the glory of God.

The proposed purpose for our congregation (Growing Disciples who Exalt, Explore, Embody, Engage) envisages us placing emphasis on worship as a means by which we grow as disciples of Jesus.  In the very action of surrendering ourselves to God, we learn to think less of ourselves and more of God.  Worship helps us reorient ourselves to the otherness of God and to the life that he calls us to.  Isaiah 6 is a classic text about the nature of worship and our response.  When God calls out “Whom shall I send?  And who will go for us?” Isaiah’s response is “Here am I.  Send me!”  Isaiah’s response to God should be our response to God in worship - a renewed response to the life that he calls us to.

Our proposed purpose will see our congregation continuing to offer and develop worship in our three styles, at our three current times.  At the same time we will grow our capacity to worship God throughout the week, responding to his ongoing outpouring of love and grace.

The proposed purpose also affects us personally.  We are each encouraged to find ourselves regularly and frequently in corporate worship and to live with an ongoing worshipful response to the love and grace of God in all aspects of our lives.  please continue to pray, reflect and consider our proposed purpose.

Shalom

Minister’s Desk

 At our congregational meeting on Sunday 31 July we introduced a new purpose for our congregation.  The purpose that we are proposing is Growing Disciples who Exalt, Explore, Embody, Engage.  This purpose comes as the next step on from the work we did in naming our Core Values.  These Core Values are important to our move into the future as they link us to the past and identify our DNA.

The Great Commission (Matthew 29:16 – 20) tells us that the role of the church is to make disciples.  Traditionally, and rightly so, this has been interpreted as meaning evangelism to bring others to faith in Jesus.  But the Great Omission is that we have failed to continue to grow as disciples.  Our faith and relationship with God is something that is to grow so that we are able to embrace more of the future that God has for us.  The parable of the mustard seed in Mark 4:30 – 32 show us this dynamic nature of growing faith.   Elsewhere in the New Testament we find other verses that remind us that faith is to grow.  Look up passages such as: 1 Timothy 1:6; 2 Peter 3:18; 1 Peter 2:2, 3; 2 Thessalonians 1:3.

Coming from this, it is proposed that our purpose as a congregation be to facilitate and encourage all people to grow deeper in faith as they enter more fully into the future that God has for them.  We propose to do this by focussing on four specific areas.  These were key features of the ministry of Jesus, were commanded of his to his followers and have been essential aspects of the ministry of the church throughout history.

We Exalt God in worship.  In worship we surrender ourselves to God, praise his name and experience the transformation of the Holy Spirit.

We Explore what is means to be a disciple by being part of a small group.

We Embody our faith where we are led by the Holy Spirit, to an area of service that stretches and challenges us to use our spiritual gifts.

We Engage with others by having at least one intentional relationship where we will share our faith, in the hope God will lead them to faith in Jesus Christ.

Should we adopt this purpose, it will see the energy of the congregation put into four activities – worship, small groups, supporting people in their service and relationship evangelism.  At the same time each member of the congregation will be asked to focus on four areas:

Find yourself frequently in worship

Be part of a small group

Have at least one role of service for which you need the Holy Spirit

Have one intentional relationship in which you can share faith.

Whilst this can make it look as though these are just four activities that need to be done, they are not.  These are four aspects through which we will grow in our relationship with God and enter more fully into his future.  The activities are not ends in themselves; they are the means through which we experience God’s transformation and growth into the new creations we are in Jesus Christ.  As such this purpose is more about the people and church we are becoming, than about the things that we will do.

Shalom

David Fender

Fervent Prayer

At a worship ministry meeting yesterday, we talked about the power of prayer and the potential that God has to change our worship, ourselves, our church and our community as we surrender all to him in prayer.  The video above reminds me of what can happen as we commit to God in prayer.  What ideas does it give you?

Speaking words that benefit others

Ephesians 4:29

Don't say unwholesome words

We know that we should avoid lying, gossipping, slandering, using angry words to manipulate.  If we're still doing these things (as I know I and everybody else does at times) my advice is STOP IT.  But we also have a practice of saying some very cutting and offensive words, that are presented in the form of a joke, and for which our intention is that they are not to be taken seriously.  Again, I say STOP IT.  These words can be misinterpreted, they can avoid expressing what we really mean, they can hide genuine feelings and they can communicate the wrong message to outsiders.  If we want healthy relationships are words should not be unwholesome, whether meant or not, whether funny or not.

Say what is helpful for building others up

Words of confrontation are included in this category.  To be helpful to others, these words need to be specific and grace filled.  We also need to make sure we have adequate time to talk through the issues and that we are in a confidential space.  Healthy relationships come from confrontation, as we commit to the other and help them grow in their self awareness.

Only say what is according to the needs of the other

To help us focus on what the other's needs are we listen to them, ask clarifying questions and in all circumstances show them grace.

Minister's Desk

“The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone’” (Genesis 2:18).


When you read this do you sometimes think that God got it wrong? We come home after struggling with a work colleague who gets on our nerves. People are constantly demanding our time and attention. Extra Grace Required people wear us down and exhaust our supply of patience and tact. There are times when we feel that life would be better if we were alone. But unless we live on a deserted island, we are going to encounter others and our interpersonal relationships are going to be an important part of our daily existence. We live in a social world, one that can only be negotiated by communicating with, and relating with, other people. Our ability to do this in a healthy way is a reflection of both our inner self-understanding and self-awareness. This comes as we allow the Holy Spirit to do his ongoing work of transformation and growth in us.

At its very simplest level, an interpersonal relationship is a complex mix of two people who happen to be connected at a particular point in time. What grows out of this interpersonal merging depends not only on what is said, but on what isn’t said; not only on the choice of words, but on the choice of expressions; not only on what each person hears, but on what each person thinks he or she hears or wants to hear; not only on what actually happens, but on what each person expects to happen.

There is no such thing as a perfect interpersonal relationship, but there is such a thing as an improved one. That is why we name our core value Healthy Relationships. Using the adjective healthy reminds us that these are relationships that have the capacity to grow over time. It means that the people who make up the relationship are aware of the state of the relationship, are aware of the feelings, needs and condition of the other, and are self aware of their own feelings, needs and condition, and that they have the capacity to adapt and respond to the other.

Our relationships with others are largely what we make of them and what we want them to be. Most of us have more control over the course and destiny of our relationship than we may realise. The old idea that what it takes to have a good friend is to be one may seem trite, but both research and common sense tell us is that it is true. So my encouragement to each of us is to give attention and work toward bettering our relationships with each other. It doesn’t require that we become best friends with everybody else, but we can grow in our enjoyment and appreciation of others.

Healthy Relationships - putting aside falsehoods and speaking truthfully

Ephesians 4:25

This week we begin a new four week series on healthy relationships.  When we live with, and interact with others, relationships are inevitable.  However, healthy relationships take time, effort and attention.  Healthy relationships are worthwhile for our own sense of person hood and are an expression of the kingdom of God breaking through into this world.  Recognising this we have identified Healthy Relationships as a Core Value of this congregation. 

In his letter to the Ephesians Paul encourages them to "put off falsehood and speak truthfully."  Throughout the Bible there is powerful emphasis on God's people speaking from a position of truth and honesty. In Psalm 15:1, 2 we read “Lord, we may dwell in your sanctuary? ...... Those...... who speak the truth from their hearts.”   The foundation of healthy relationships is the ability for us to speak truthfully, without falsehood to others, God and ourselves. When our ability to speak truthfully is absent we conceal things from each other and ourselves and we put up false facades that mask who we are and what we’re really like.  Through being open, genuine and speaking the truth about ourselves we are able to deeper our relationships with others and develop healthy/ier relationships.

But this does not mean that we should share every detail of our life with every person we meet.  Healthy relationships require a healthy dose of guarded communication with those we don't know well, with those that are unable to cope with what we are sharing and those for whom it would be rude.

Though this is healthy, we need to be finding opportunities with those we know and trust and what to know better to push down our facades and reveal that which is hidden about ourselves.  Sometimes this takes great courage and can result in our being hurt.  But it is only through our willingness to place ourselves in a vulnerable position that our relationships with others will grow.

There is also the need to recognise that with a very few people, maybe two or three in our lifetimes, that we can be nearly totally open, revealing deep secrets and confessions about ourselves.  Sharing to this level communicates how much we value these others in our lives and how important they are.

A challenge for all of us is to recognise when we are putting on a facade with another and to ask ourselves whether we need to do this.  Or whether for the sake of healthy relationships we need to take the opportunity and pull down the facade and reveal a little more of ourselves.  It is only by our taking the first step that others will respond and lead us into deeper intimacy with each other.

 

The evil interlude

Esther 3:1 - 15

Evil is a part of every one of our lives and is a theme that goes right through the book of Esther.  In this section, we see it rear its ugly head in a very real and evident way - the plot of Haman to eradicate the Jewish people.  Whilst we might say that this evil comes about only because of Haman, we need to look deeper to see the way that the characters in the story, and we ourselves are all responsible for the evil in this world.  In Job 14:1 Job admits, “mortals, born of woman are of few days and full of trouble.”  He goes on to ask, “who can bring what is pure from the impure?” (Job 14:4).

There is a long running feud between Haman as a Agagite and Mordecai as a Jew (see 1 Samuel 15 for the origins of this feud).  This unresolved conflict has become exaggerated.  Mordecai acts in unreasonable ways and it leads to a disproportional response on behalf of Haman.  We need to consider how our unresolved conflict with others, our long term prejudices and even attitudes that we have inherited allow us to introduce evil into this world.

Xerxes allows evil to occur not through what he does, but through what he doesn't do.  In giving his signet ring to Haman and saying "do what you want" he abdicates his responsibility.  We need to explore our actions and ask where we're looking the other way and refusing to act when we should be taking a stand for justice, on behalf of the weak and powerless.

Finally, the unnamed court officials who dob on Mordecai for not bowing to Haman introduce evil.  There is a blurred line between telling someone something they need to know and telling them something we want them to know.  We need to make sure that we're not passing on stories for the sake of our own entertainment, but that we're seeking the best for the person we're speaking to.

Evil is always going to be a reality in this broken world.  That's why we wait in this period of Advent for the return of the king who will bring about a new heaven and earth that is free of evil.  Until then, as new creations in Jesus Christ, we have the Holy Spirit who leads us to holiness, where we say no to evil and yes to the good of God.