Getting ready for 2006

Now that we have celebrated Christmas 2005 we are in that period between one year finishing and the new one starting. The new year is the time when many people make resolutions on how they are going to: lose weight / do more exercise / move house / get a new job etc, etc. It represents a new start, when the failures of the previous year can be forgotten and the excitement of a new year anticipated.

However, for Christians we don't have to wait until a new year to make a new start. This can be done any and every day of the year. In Lamentations 3:22-23 the NIV says:

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

So why wait until Sunday 1 January to make a new start with God...... do it now!!

The only God

I read the following verses in Isaiah 45 today:

verse 5 "I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God."

verse 6 ".... men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other."

verse 14 "Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god."

verse 18 ".... I am the Lord and there is no other."

verse 21 ".... And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Saviour; there is none but me."

verse 22 "Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other."

Some people may think that Christians are arrogant as they proclaim that their faith is the only true one. However, as I read the above verses I am encouraged to know that there is only one God. And as we prepare to celebrate the birth of his Son Jesus on Sunday let us remember this and rejoice in Him and not be ashamed!

Fear not!

I understand from Bible teachers that we are told 365 times in the Bible that we should not fear. That's once for every single day of the year. So why is this? Maybe because fear is a problem for all of us. We can struggle with different fears, for example: fear of man, fear of the future, fear of the past, fear of failure, fear of death, fear of something we done being discovered. The list is endless.

Over 2000 years ago the angel Gabriel appeared to a young teenage girl, who was told that she had found favour with God and was going to give birth to a son. This son would be the Son of the Most High and he would reign over the house of Jacob for ever. How did the young girl respond to this. Was she scared? Did she show fear? Her response was simple:

"I am the Lord's servant, may it be to me as you have said."

What a response! Let us also respond to God in the same manner and not give in to fear which can hinder us from following and obeying God.

Good advice from 1 Peter 3

In the first part of this section of the chapter, Peter gives some good advice to both wives and husbands. In particular looking at this from the male perspective verse 7 is a challenge to all husbands. Peter instructs his male readers to "be considerate as you live with your wives" and to "treat them with respect." He then goes onto say "so that nothing will hinder your prayers." Could it be that one of the reasons that our prayers are not as effective as we wish is that we do not obey this instruction from Peter?

Whenever I read this chapter, I'm always aware how Peter instructs his readers to always be prepared and ready to tell others about their hope in Christ and to do this with gentleness and respect. Something that is not always easy to do. Sharing your faith is not always easy, but to do it with gentleness and respect takes some doing.

Perhaps the key and biggest challenge in the whole chapter is found in verse 15 where Peter instructs his readers to set apart Christ as Lord in their hearts. When we do this it will effect all aspects of our life.

The Reason For the Season

Title: The Reason For the Season

Author: Ruth Andrews Garnes

Article:
No one gives away something for nothing these days. There always
seems to be a catch. This is our current thought process today,
even in this season of giving. Sometimes the deed of the
deceiver overshadows those of noble intention. Even when we
cannot see a clearly defined scheme, we believe in our hearts
that it is there. Is this because as a society we have become
people that look out for our sole interest? Have we become so
depraved we cannot decipher honesty, truth and love? We acquired
this way of thinking based on society's current trends. Only a
fool or a very naïve person would allow someone to rob them
twice. How many of us would take home a gangster and love him as
equally as much as our own children after he put a knife at our
throat? If by some miracle your life was spared, would you not
do whatever you could to get such a menace taken off the street?

On a regular day we do not even for a moment think about people
who make it their life long career to rob and steal. Yet I could
say we have become a cautious people. Consider the ratio of such
people in comparison to those that are honest? Which group out
number which? Do we care? Or are we allowing the minority to
influence the way we look at things as a whole? I would like to
hold fast to the belief that we are not going to allow our
thought process to be formed by the actions of a few. As the
most advanced civilization we should ask questions and seek to
find truth. This holds true even for the holidays we celebrate.
Why should we take on the mob mentality? I'd say question the
reason behind the things we celebrate as a world. Not because
the masses choose to go along with it, you should too.

The majority of the world will be celebrating the birth of a
child that was born to give us life, but what percentage of
those celebrating his birth knows this? How many of us seek to
know the real reason behind the celebration of Christmas? We are
taught that the giving of gifts symbolizes the gifts given Jesus
by the wise men, but are we aware that it goes beyond that? The
baby whose birth we will be celebrating was a sacrificial gift
given to man by God. Unlike a gangster, God will never hold us
captive or force us to accept his gift of life. He wants us to
freely choose to have life, the choice is ours. All we have to
do is believe and accept this gift, or choose to die in our
ignorance. Choose to open your gift this Christmas season. It is
too good to be true, but it is truth. It is yours for the
taking; seek to know the reason behind the season.

About the author:
Ruth Andrews Garnes was born in Belize the second of six
children. She moved to New York City at age eighteen. After
studying nursing she worked in the emergency room in Bellevue
Hospital. She currently resides with her husband and seven
children in the Houston Texas area. Having always had a heart
for hurting children she adopted four sisters. Through her
writings she hopes to be able to make a difference to hurting
children everywhere by giving

Numbers 26 - Men of faith

In this passage God instructs Moses and Eleazar to take a census of the whole Israelite community by familes and count those over the age of twenty who can fight in the army. If we are being honest it's one of those parts of the Bible that we may not find that exciting. However, the last three verses are interesting in that it is revealed that not one of those people who were counted in the previous census by Moses and Aaron had survived. God had allowed that generation to die in the desert, but with the exception of Caleb and Joshua. These were the two men of faith who believed that God would lead them into the promise land and were not scared of the giants in there as detailed in Numbers chapters 13 & 14.

Caleb was certainly an exceptional man and in Numbers 14:24 God had said, ".......my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly." How we need those sort of believers today!

Christians urged to stir up a storm in a tea cup

Churches, development groups and advocacy organisations are today urged to brew up a head of steam over the way Britain’s favourite drink, a beverage popular throughout the world, is made and sold – and who benefits.

Campaigners say the price of tea has been falling steadily in all producing countries and it is the global brands and supermarkets that benefit from the lower prices, while poor tea farmers producers suffer and their markets are eroded.

Full story

Vicars to get performance appraisals

Church of England ministers are to be subject to business-style performance appraisals for the first time in the church's 500-year history, reports Personnel Today.

The new "ministerial reviews" are part of a raft of Human Resource measures designed to improve employment practice in the church.

Full story

Christian Aid warns of trade talks walk-out after leak

International development agency Christian Aid is today urging poor countries to prepare for a walk out of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) talks in Hong Kong this week unless the European Union (EU) executes a dramatic change in its aggressive liberalising trade policies.

According to leaked documents obtained by Christian Aid, the EU is continuing to push developing nations to privatise sensitive services such as water, healthcare and banking. This runs counter to EU rhetoric that these talks are primarily about pro-poor trade policies.

Full story

Why do the wicked prosper?

In Psalm 73, Asaph is wrestling with the issue of the riches of the arrogant and wicked. He comments that they seem to have less problems than the righteous and that they get away with their sin. After struggling with these issues over a number of verses he then enters God's sanctuary. It is at this point he is able to say, "then I understood their final destiny" in verse 17.

The glory and riches of the arrogant and wicked will only be for a short period of time. He then compares the joy of knowing God for all time with the temporary joy of riches.

This passage is still very relevant today. It can be easy for Christians to look at others who seem to have a comfortable lifestyle and envy them. However, once we take a step backwards and look at the bigger picture, we can say repeat verses 25 and 26 with the Psalmist:

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

Santa tells Tony Blair to Make Poverty History

Though the chimney was blocked for security reasons, sackloads of cards were hand-delivered to Number 10 Downing Street yesterday by Santa and his trusty elf helpers to make the case for seasonal goodwill towards millions of people whose lives are threatened by poverty and global inequality.

The early delivery of goodies to Prime Minister Tony Blair from the Make Poverty History coalition totalled 750,000 postcards. They arrived from campaigners all over Britain calling on the UK Government to deliver trade justice in the upcoming Hong Kong world trade talks.

Full story

Aid agency says disaster prevention 'better than cure'

Disaster prevention must become part of emergency work if the world is not to see a repetition of the death and destruction caused in 2005 by a litany of disasters: a tsunami, floods, hurricanes, mudslides, earthquakes and severe food shortages, Christian Aid has said.

In a report released today (Thursday), ‘Don’t be scared, be prepared’, the aid agency calls for disaster risk reduction to be part of all future emergency and development programmes.

Full story

Fellowship with God

In the first chapter of his first letter John reminds his readers that if they claim to have fellowship with God, yet walk in darkness they are lying and not living by the truth. These are tough words that should challenge all Christians.

If we are being honest, we all know that there are times or have been times in our live when we have not lived the truth. We may be able to deceive others but not God. It is not possible to walk in darkness and have fellowship with God. This might not be comfortable for us to hear, but it is true.

However, there is hope. John shows us the answer at the end of his first chapter. We must confess our sins to God and receive his forgiveness and purifying touch. And then, walk in the light and have fellowship with our fellow believers and know the reality of the blood of Jesus purifying us from all sin. This is indeed good news!

Advice for Christian Husbands

Peter gives some good advice to both Christian wives and husbands in the third chapter of his first letter. In particular looking at this from the male perspective verse 7 is a challenge to all husbands. Peter instructs his male readers to "be considerate as you live with your wives" and to "treat them with respect." He then goes onto say "so that nothing will hinder your prayers." Could it be that one of the reasons that our prayers are not as effective as we wish is that we do not obey this instruction from Peter?

Knowing the Peace of God

In the Amplified translation verse 3 of Isaiah 26 reads:

"You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You."

This is a very encouraging verse as it reminds Christians of the importance of keeping their mind focused on God. We can be assured that we will all face various problems and difficulties in this life. If we try to sort these out under our own strength we will not get very far. However, if we focus on God and place our hope and trust in him we can know his help. This does not mean things will be easy! But it does mean that we can know God's peace which transcends all understanding that Paul mentions in Philippians 4:7.

This is a tremendous privilege for us to know his peace. In spending time focusing on God, whether that be bible study, prayer or praise and worship we can know his peace in our life.

As the classic hymn written by Joseph M. Scriven says:

What a friend we have in Jesus,
all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
all because we do not carry
everything to God in prayer.

Reflections on 1 Peter 5

Peter draws his first letter to a close with specific instructions directed firstly to the elders, then to the young men and finally to all Christian believers.

To the elders he encourages them to serve as overseers of the people. This should not be done as a sense of duty, but because they are willing, which is what God wants. As is so often the case in Scripture, God sees the heart and it is important that we have the right Godly attitude motivating us.

Peter exalts them not to do this for money but because they are eager to serve. How different this approach and attitude is to what we encounter in the world. It is the same attitude that Jesus adopted, one who came to serve and not to be served.

The next group that Peter addresses are the young men. He instructs the young men to be submissive to those who are older than them. Sometimes young men think that they know everything and do not need to listen to advice. But again, as with the elders, Peter gives them instructions which are different to the way the world operates.

Closely linked with being submissive is humility which Peter moves onto next. The apostle says they should clothe themselves with humility.In fact this should be an attitude that all the believers should have for one another. And the reason he gives for this is taken from Proverbs 11 v 31:

"God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

All of us need God's grace in our life and therefore humility should be an attitude we desire for ourselves. I wonder how many church splits could have been avoided if we had more of this quality in our churches?

Peter reminds his readers that if they are prepared to humble themselves, then in God's timing they will experience the blessing of being lifted up. If we sow humility we will reap the benefits.

One of the benefits is that we can cast all our anxieties, worries and cares on God because we can be assured that he loves us. And once we have done that the weight of them shifts from us to God. What a tremendous promise! Sadly it is so easy to give them over to God and take them all back the next day! I expect that we have all done this on many occasions. We need to learn the liberating joy of leaving them with God once and for all, and then moving on.

As Peter closes this letter he reminds his readers of the spiritual attack that they can expect to receive from the devil. They are encouraged to be ready and alert and to also be self controlled. Although we cannot avoid the risk of attack from the devil, Peter encourages us to resist him and to stand firm in our faith. He reminds the readers that throughout the world all their fellow brothers and sisters are undergoing this battle. For many of them this would have meant imprisonment and death. Most of us will probably not have to face this, but many of the early church did. In fact in some countries today believers are going through this and we need and should support them in prayer.

Peter then reminds his readers that God will give them the grace to be strong. We may stumble, slip or fall over but God's grace will see us through to the end.

Britons opt for ethical Christmas gifts

Natural disasters such as the Boxing Day tsunami and tragedies like the London terror bombs have made people more compassionate and willing to give ethical and charity gifts this Christmas, reports the Independent newspaper.

One in four Britons has already signed up with a charity or is more likely to volunteer to help in the sector over this Christmas compared to other years.

Full story

Interpreting the Bible

How should we interpret the Bible? Some Christians believe we should interpret literally, whilst others would disagree with that. It's not unusually for Christians to have two or three differing viewpoints on a particular passage of the Bible. The following article may be helpful in us understanding how we should interpre the Scriptures.

Title: Pass It On - A Rule For Good Bible Interpretation

Author: Rev Michael Bresciani

Article:
With dozens of bible translations available today and a myriad
of voices preaching and teaching from theses bibles how do we
know which is trustworthy? It is simpler than you think.

During the dark ages the scriptures were chained to pedestals in
the major cathedrals of the world. The common people could not
read the bible and even the clergy were limited to reading it
only where it stood. Those days have been eliminated by the
courageous efforts of clergy and reformers like Luther, Calvin,
Tyndale and a host of others who in some cases gave their lives
in the effort. We now enjoy the fruit of their labors throughout
most of the free world. Not only are all the versions of the
bible available here in America but one publisher has begun
offering the bible bound and covered in your choice of designer
colors!

Yet for all of this profusion of bibles one of the flimsiest
excuses for not reading or trusting the bible is still being
used everywhere throughout the land. Who has not heard someone
say, "The bible is open to interpretation and that's why it
can't be trusted"? If honestly examined, this excuse will be
found to be just another one of those "common wisdom of the day"
utterances that has no more truth in it than water in the
desert. It is grown out of ignorance, watered by indifference
and harvested in laziness. It is used glibly but has dire
consequences; in fact it could cost a person their entire future.

The first rule of interpretation says that no one has the right
to interpret the scripture in a merely personal or private way.
...Knowing this first that no prophecy of the scripture is of
any private interpretation. I Peter 1:20 If the bible is not
open to private interpretation then it must only be open to
public interpretation. That is the key. The universal bible
believing church the world over has an interpretation that
qualifies this fact, the minor doctrinal differences and the
trend toward liberalism notwithstanding. Whether Pentecostal,
Evangelical, Baptist, Methodist or any other major historical
denomination the bible is interpreted the same. Jesus death and
resurrection is the key to salvation and his teachings are the
key to our best behavior. When people stray very far from this
kind of interpretation of the bible they are bordering on
heresy, cultism or something worse.

Another great rule of sound biblical interpretation is to let
the bible interpret itself. Let the whole bible reflect on any
part of it in particular. You will rarely ever go wrong by
applying this rule. This of course implies that you would have
to study the whole bible. That alone would just about eliminate
any problem with bible interpretation you will ever encounter.

An old preacher from Vermont once told me of a basic rule of
interpretation he had learned while attending Bible College. I
have never forgotten it and I've never failed to use it. He
said, "If the scripture makes plain sense, seek no other sense".
Being complicated is not a prerequisite to being a bible student
so don't bury your self in hidden meanings and obscurities, just
get on with what is known and apparent.

Finally take a lesson from the smallest child. Ask them what
Jesus meant when he said we should love each other, or that we
should forgive others. They know what these things mean even
when those who hide behind the idea that the bible is riddled
with too many interpretations don't. Some passages are simple
but that does not mean they aren't profound. Other passages are
more complex but can be clearly understood by the simplest
approach, much like that of a child. The child like approach to
scriptural interpretation is the shortest route to
understanding; in fact it is also the shortest route to
salvation itself. Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, Whosoever
shall not receive the Kingdom of God as a little child, he shall
not enter therein. Mark 10:15

We must cease to view the bible as some deep manual of religion
only to be known by the initiated or specially trained. Someone
once said that the bible and more so, the New Testament is a
letter from God the Father to his children. Who would think a
letter from your father was meant to create confusion. It would
speak of his love, his intentions, his ongoing plans and his
final return home. It would give instructions and details on
what to do until he returns. No one would throw a letter from
their father in a corner and say I don't understand any of that
so I'll just do what I want to until he returns home and take it
up with him then.

The words of the bible never create confusion. In fact it is the
dismissing of these words that creates confusion. If we hide
behind the worn out cliché about "it is all open to
interpretation" we will find ourselves with no where to hide in
the final day. Jesus said the very opposite about his words, He
said they would illuminate our lives and bring peace to us, not
confusion. In fact they would produce life itself within
us...the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they
are life. John 6:33

About the author:
Rev Bresciani is the author of two books and of many articles
both online and in print. Please visit his website at
www.americanprophet.org

Present Aid

Present Aid is an interesting idea from Christian Aid. Basically you buy a "virtual" gift for someone and that gift then goes to the poor. This is a novel idea and is a good counter for the commercialisation of Christmas.

Full details of Present Aid

True Forgiveness

On 29 July 2005 Anthony Walker was tragically murdered. The following day his sister and mother said that they forgave the people who killed him. Why did they do this? They did because they are Christians and they knew that this is what Jesus commanded them to do. Despite all the horror of what this family have been through they have been radiant lights reflecting the mercy and forgiveness of God.

It's difficult for any of us to really understand what they have experienced. We all easily say the words of the Lord's prayer, "forgive us our sins as we forgive those who have sinned against us." Yet so often we hold grudges against people for years for very petty things they may or may not in fact have done against us. Sadly us Christians are often as bad if not worse at this than people who have no faith.

Forgiveness can be difficult to show to someone if we feel we have been wronged. For the Walker family it must have been difficult as they battled with all the grief and emotional turmoil of this tragic event.

Even today when the murderers were sentenced Mrs Walker was asked by the press if she forgave them. Her reply was "Do I forgive them? At the point of death Jesus said, ‘I forgive them because they do not know what they do’. I have got to forgive them. I still forgive them."

What a tremendous Christian witness in the midst of a tragic situation. We need to remember this family in our prayers.