On 24th April 2015 my life was turned upside down and inside out. I went from 5th gear to reverse, with no gear changes in between. I was diagnosed as having oesophageal cancer, which was widespread and therefore inoperable. There was absolutely no possibility of a cure, so I was offered palliative treatment – effectively “we will try and give you some quality of life, and help you die well.” My life expectancy was 6-9 months (deadline day is 24th January 2016.)

I underwent radio therapy, then chemotherapy, which nearly killed me, as I was in the verge on kidney failure. I had a five day stay in hospital as I was badly dehydrated, and my weight had gone from a chunky 90kgs down to a skinny 60kgs.

Fourteen weeks ago I came home and cried my eyes out as I told my family that I wanted to die. I could not eat solid food and was being fed entirely liquid nutrition through a tube which went down to my stomach via my nose. I had constant diarrhoea. Going to the toilet was an enormous effort, so I waited until I was desperate. Drinking a glass of water a day was in the “too hard” box. I could hardly walk, so started using a wheelchair. Seeing people for longer than 15 minutes utterly drained me. Life was simply too much effort, and I genuinely wanted to die.

Since then I have been put on a different chemotherapy regime. Today I am eating proper food again, and the nose tube has been removed. My weight has shot up to a healthy 73kgs – very unusual in cancer sufferers. My bowels are functioning normally. My kidneys are no longer on the “at risk” register! I returned the wheelchair, and walked a half-marathon a few days ago to raise money for the Cancer Society.  I attended a Conference which Church Army NZ hosted recently, and even managed to speak at one of the sessions!  I don’t know if this improvement is mainly due to chemotherapy or prayer – I suspect both – but either way God is deeply involved.

So what exactly is going on?  My chemotherapy nurse today said “you are a completely different person. It is like a whole new life for you.” But I have not yet been cured of cancer. I had a CT scan on Monday, and my oncologist told me the results today – all positive, the cancer is responding well – but he would not say WHAT it is responding too, chemo or prayer! He was not willing at this stage to change my prognosis – officially I have a maximum of 7 weeks left.

I do not know when I will die, but I have faced the reality of my own death, and I am at peace with that reality. I have enough faith for today. I have a far greater awareness of and appreciation for the tiny things which make up my life on earth – people (family, friends and strangers) food, drink, walks, meercats (courtesy of Emily and Auckland Zoo), good books, being able to poo properly, doing the ministry I love so much, bird song, the affection of pets, the incredible depth of my relationship with Jesus…I love life here and now, and I long for it to continue for a good while yet! I desperately want many more people to know and experience the love of Jesus which has sustained and upheld me during the darkest days, and which enables me to live life to the full now, a multi-coloured roller coaster adventure which contained moments of deep stillness and contentment.

Jesus in Johns gospel answers with the phrase translated into English as ” I tell you the truth”.

In effect he says “Amen, Amen  I say unto you”

Amen means confirm, establish, verify something as truthful.

In the Verse in John 8. Jesus answered , ” I tell you the truth(Amen,Amen), before Abraham was I AM.

This was in response to the question I believe we all should ask   “Who are you?.

Jesus in effect is saying

• I am eternal
• I was there at the beginning
• Through the words of my mouth creation came into being
• I am  YWWH
• I am the self existant one
• I have always been and will always be
• I am He who is

Silas is a 25-year-old Iranian convert to Christianity now living in Berlin. Why did he come to Christ? A friend loaned him a copy of God’s word. “When I started to read the Bible, it changed me. . . . At first, I didn’t want to be a Christian, I just wanted to understand it. But the more answers I got, the more I . . . realized I was finding God.”

He says that even if he were to be deported back to Iran, he would never give up his faith in Christ. Jesus changed his life, and he will pay any price to serve him now.

Do I Have a Problem?

• Internet Addiction
• Gambling
• Alcohol
• Addictive substances
• smoking

Come to a CAP Release group

Contact Jon Rowlands (Release group manager) jonrowlands@capreleasegroups.org

or Mark jones (Release Group Coach) 07836 608085

https://capuk.org/connect/blog

It’s been about 20 years since Agapé’s “ACCTS” logo was first introduced to the masses!

A lot has changed since then – we’ve moved buildings, seen people ‘move on’, or ‘move through’ and others ‘move in’; but there are also things that have remained the same, such as:

• Jesus at the centre
• Church in the community
• Agapé (sacrificial) love amongst each other and those we meet
• Sticking to the mission: Luke 4:18-19

So when it came to updating the logo, a couple of things were there for the keeping:

The Cross – in the new logo this is much more prominent

The ‘C’ Church – still sitting neatly within the ‘C’ Community, affecting the places we go and the people we see with God’s love and compassion. This has greater meaning as we build up our partnerships, working with churches, agencies and residents to see changes in the hearts and lives of the community.

ACCTS – we are part of the new New Testament Church with a heart to move as God moves us and take him wherever we go.

So what’s changed? Actually, not a lot!

Straight away you’ll notice that the ‘A’ is smoother, the curve perhaps being a little bit more modern, more inviting than the old, sharper shape, and leading nicely into the rest of the logo. The font used to create the logo makes it ‘sit up taller’ and is easy to read.

As already mentioned, the ‘T’ as the cross is more prominent, and more of a focal point, there’s no mistaking what we believe, even if someone’s not sure what the logo means!

There are fewer colours in the logo. Did you notice?! Fewer colours can make a logo look cleaner and clearer; the continuity of the colour is pleasing on the eye and, again, makes the red cross stand out.

So what do you think? Do you like Agapé’s new logo? Feel free to leave a comment!

A new community centre in Abercarn held an open day on September 12 to showcase its plans to the public.

New Life Community Church plans to spend over £1 million on the Pant Pennar Project to ensure the facility reaches its full potential for being a community base in the heart of Abercarn.

They hope to create six unisex toilet cubicles, a disabled toilet and wet room with shower, and a lift for better access between floors, as well as other plans.

They will also create a dedicated children’s room for after-school clubs and parents and toddlers coffee mornings and open a coffee lounge and games room and conduct renovation work.

A spokesperson said: “These changes will help us expand our current projects, plus create a vast array of new ones and will also expand our partnerships with other organisations.”

With the Rugby World Cup upon us, we’re delighted to report a new ‘signing’ to the Tearfund team – South African Ruan Pienaar.  A familiar figure in the world of rugby, he’s also a committed Christian and now he’s working with us on our No Child Taken campaign.

Ruan says he was challenged by fellow player Paddy McAllister’s accounts of what he’d seen during a Tearfund trip to India.  As a father of two, he says ‘trafficking breaks my heart – it needs to be tackled head on’.