Covers all categories.
Many years ago I was preparing to do something very big, and very foolish. I had convinced myself that God wanted me to do it but it took the wise words of Leon van Daele to prevent me from making a big mistake. Read more
Ah! The excitement of new horizons is in the air. We kicked off with our first Sunday meeting at Uptown last week. ‘twas wonderful. We had a load of friendly new visitors and we all crammed ourselves full of cake and coffee. Hooray! God’s hand is clearly on what is happening down Uptown way and we cannot help but feel his approval and encouragement. And so we continue to take ground.
Sundays @ Uptown caters for families with kids and those who are around on the weekends. Thursdays will remain our main meeting for the time being but it’s great to expand our sense of community and permanence in Braamies.
Uptownies really appreciate visits from Centralies, so please consider a visit. 6.30 for 7pm on Thursday evenings. 9.30 for 10am on Sunday mornings. Come see what God is doing in the city! We’re lovin’ it.
25 June 2011
It all started on a very, very cold Saturday morning at 9:00am. All of us were freezing but excited for what the day had in store for us. We were all relishing the chance to spend the day in fellowship, praising, worshiping and meeting with the Lord and for some, the amazing chance to experience God’s power and grace for the first time!
I have been expounding Hebrews to myself for the better part of a year now. I am now on chapter 10, which happens to be very pertinent so I include you in a few verses of the work.
Adele and I recently returned from our trip to Europe. Four countries in three weeks meant lots of travelling but the Gospel energises us to push on. We started in Portugal, moved on to Italy, attended to the Europe team time in Germany and ended off spending some time with our friends, Alexis and Dalene Wadman in Amstelvijn in the Netherlands. Read more
To a great team of deacons,
Whilst we all feel the many pressures that we continue to face, in the light of the economic, material, mental and physical environment in which we live, there is a promise from God which must ‘undergird’ our experiences. 2 Corinthians 12:9. “My Grace is sufficient for you.” Read more
The time in Botswana showed us all in many ways how God can work through a youth who is on fire to change a city and even a nation. Throughout the time spent there we saw healing after healing. Many had words of knowledge which proved to be accurate. yet we were still all impacted by God’s voice that is just as vital to the miracles we encountered. During the outreaches we were the ones ministering to the lost, but over the 3 days of the Equip each of us were touched by God in a unique way. The friendships we built and the lives we saw impacted by God’s awesome power will never be forgotten. Read more
It’s been pretty cold lately – particularly early in the morning – and it’s got me thinking. Church musicians, why do you do what you do? Why practice an ever-changing bunch of songs to play and sing with people in your Life Group, your Youth Group, your church meeting or wherever you do it? Why do you rehearse on a Saturday when friends and family are relaxing? Why do you get up at 6:00am on a Sunday morning in the middle of winter and try to warm up your fingers and voices to a point where they work to some semblance of fluidity before standing in front of a crowd of people to sing and play music. It’s fun? Yeah, I guess it is, but if it’s for some sort of gratification, whether the recognition of people or your own entertainment, it’ll be short-lived – especially when your delicate musician hands are so cold.
We have to be worshippers of God first before we are musicians. The Westminster Shorter Catechism says, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever”. Now, I’m not entirely convinced that that’s our purpose in it’s entirety during this life but I do believe that it is, at the very least, a very big part of it. God has created us for relationship with Him and our most natural way of relating to Him is in worship.
Ok.. So, if we are to be worshippers and if we try as far as possible to take our lead from the bible then I’d like to look at a biblical character that models a worshipper and attempt to learn a few things from this person. No prizes for guessing who I’m about to look at. Ok, so maybe a small prize: a chocolate to the first person who names the character. I’ll even double the stakes if the answer comes with a good explanation. Ok, go!
For those who are able to take a breather over the July holidays, enjoy. For those who can’t, I trust you will still find time to recoup physically, emotionally and spiritually. Probably the greatest gift you can give to your family and your people is a happy and fresh you!
It’s been said that if your output exceeds your input, then your upkeep becomes your downfall. Your “input” therefore is most important. That’s why Jude encourages us to “build ourselves up in our most holy faith”. No one can do that for you; you have to know how to dig your own spiritual wells, to resource yourself spiritually! He goes on to say, “and pray in the Holy Spirit”. Martin Luther knew the value and power of praying in the Holy Spirit: “Prayer is the single most important thing in my life. Should I neglect to pray for a single day, I would lose a great deal of the fervour of my faith”. Jude then urges us to “keep ourselves in God’s love…” (Jude 20-21). It’s our responsibility to do that! God’s love is always reaching out and available to us; we’ve got to embrace it, receive it and hold onto it.
One of the greatest lessons we can learn from David is that he knew how to encourage and strengthen himself in the Lord (1 Sam 30:6). It’s this lesson that will put us in good stead for longevity in ministry. My plea is stay connected to the Vine (John 15:4) and keep tapping into the Spring of Living Water (Jer 17:13).
We so appreciate who you are and all you do for the King and His Kingdom.
Fondest regards,
Mark
Wow – what a God given opportunity to run our parenting course at Edenvale High School. It came about after a series of conversations, and the school, along with us, were not too sure on how a slightly modified version would be received by the parents.
Well the first night was somewhat lively, but it quickly got to the point where we all recognised that we need a little help in the responsibility and privilege of raising children, especially the teenage kind!
The 4 evenings gave us time to explore different aspects of parenting, and with biblical truths as a base, we managed to teach Godly principles that work in the family.
The end result was a group of parents that really appreciated the course, and almost all asked that we run something for their children as well. The vice principle and I are busy investigating how we can do this for all the learners via normal schools hours.
To me the best feedback was from one of the dads when he said “When I came to the first night I thought we were just going to be hammered again about what we must and must not do, but now I see that what is taught here is really to help us, and I really needed and enjoyed it”.
That is the gospel hey, when we do things Gods way it “helps” us – hugely – eternally!!!