Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category

Ambassadors Little Futsal, Thursday 16th April

by Colin Dexter

Ambassadors Little Futsal Futsal is a Ministry of Ambassadors Football, it great way for boys and girls (5 – 7 years old) to develop their coordination, foot skills and social skills in a positive environment with Christian coaches.

The sessions run for approx. 60 minutes including 5 minutes for refreshments and prayer at the end of the session. We are running an 8 week course in association with Agape Community Church Ty Sign at St David’s Church hall and on the field if weather permits.
Starting Thursday 16th April at 5:00pm
Cost £2 per week (Concessions for extra children from the same family home)
Contact Mark Jones on 07836 608085 or email mgordonj68@gmail.com to book on the course, or sign up at the TLC cafe

The course will be led by Jorge Pinheiro
Jorge’s CV is as follows
Profession: Soccer Coach
Professional Qualifications:
Ex-Professional Footballer
Professional Soccer Coach Brazilian Football Association
Modern Football Instructions Brazilian Football Association/FIFA
UEFA C Licence Welsh Football Association
UEFA B Licence Welsh Football Association
UEFA Futsal Coach Welsh Football Association

Professional Experience:
Soccer Camps Organizer in Wales, Spain, Jordan and Poland (since 2010)
Voluntary Soccer Activity in Zaatari Refugee Siria Camp in Jordan July 2013.
Coach Coordinator at Centro Esportivo do Jorginho (ex.Brazilian footballer World Cup) in Guadalupe Favela for 900 kids. (2000 to 2002)
Coach Coordinator at Deportivo Jaen Escuela de Futbol/ Spain (2002 to 2006)
Match Analysis Coach of Wales Futsal National Team 2012/2013
Cardiff City Football Club U10s Development Coach (at present)

We got married in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1994. Jorge worked as a missionary with the local Baptist churches in Rio for 9 years, setting up football schools in the churches as an outreach ministry. In 2002 God took us to Jaen, a small town in the south of Spain, where we worked for 4 years with a football ministry.
We have been living in Risca for almost 9 years. During this time we have been involved in the work at Moriah, setting up football activities and visits from our Brazilian friends, amongst other activities. For the past 6 years Jorge has been working in Brookes and using his holidays to organise outreach activities using football in Risca, Spain and more recently Jordan. He has also organised, but couldn’t go to the trips to Poland, Morocco and India.

“why I’m coming out as a christian”

by Colin Dexter

Her recent blog for the Daily Beast broke the news: “Why I’m Coming Out as a Christian.”  Ana is emphatic: “To be clear, I don’t just believe in God.  I am a Christian.”  She adds that “decades of mass culture New Ageism has fluffed up ‘belief in God’ into a spiritual buffet, a holy catch-all for those who want to cover all the numbers. . . . Me, I’m going all in with Jesus.”

What led her to him?  She explains: “One of the most painful and reoccurring stumbling blocks in my journey is my inability to accept that I am completely whole and loved by God without doing anything.  That’s accompanied by a corresponding truth: There is nothing so great I can do to make God love me more.

“Because before I found God, I had an unconsciously manufactured higher power: I spent a lifetime trying to earn extra credit from some imaginary teacher, grade-grubbing under the delusion that my continued mistakes—missed assignments, cheating, other nameless sins—were constantly held against me.”

Ana (Washington)

Vision Of Hope

by Colin Dexter

Just wanted to say how much I enjoyed today’s service, the boys from Vision of Hope are a real eye opener to how far Gods love can reach, can’t wait to be able to go and visit the farm and meet more of the boys and thank the staff for what they are doing there.
God Bless you all

Romans Chapter 12

by Colin Dexter

And so, dear brothers and sisters, a I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice — the kind he will accept. When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask?

2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.

3 As God’s messenger, I give each of you this warning: Be honest in your estimate of yourselves, measuring your value by how much faith God has given you.

 

“Be the wind in my sails”

by Colin Dexter

Praying that as we start a new year w will only move when God’s wind moves us and in whatever direction He chooses.

Also recognising when He is moving us.

The analogy is of a sailing boat.  The Holy Spirit (the third person of the trinity) is sometimes described like a wind .

The key is to recognise that wind(or recognise the moving of God through the Holy Spirit) and move in the right direction.

John 5 V 19 

Jesus said to them, “I assure you that the son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing.What the Son does is always modelled on what the Father does.

The Good News

by Colin Dexter

The Good News-the word we translate “gospel”-is that this world as we know it is not the whole story. There is another realm.

The good News is especially that this world -the kingdom of God- is closer than you think. It is available to ordinary men & women. It is available to people who have never thought of themselves as religious or spiritual. It is available to you. You can live in it now.

Extract From “The Life You’ve always wanted”  John Ortberg

USEFUL?

by Colin Dexter

Revelation Chapter 3 V 14  The Church of Laodicea

Told to be Hot or cold, not tepid

The water supply to the Laodicea was lukewarm. This is in contrast to the hot springs  at nearby Hierapolis and the pure and cold water of Colossae . The viaduct for Laodicea carried water from hot mineral springs would have become tepid before entering the city.  The imagery gained from the Laodicean aqueduct suggests both hot and cold water are useful, whereas lukewarm water is tasteless and useless. This is the very imagery that Revelations uses for the Church of Laodicea.

The Laodicean church said,

‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’

But God said,

” you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.

20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me

It seems to me that four things are requested.

A diligence & honesty about coming to God

An honesty in a willingness to repent

A listening ear – what is God saying

A welcoming heart – Come Holy Spirit , enter into my life .

Thanks  TC 8th Feb 2015

Family Engagement Project (CCBC)

by Colin Dexter

HOW DOES IT WORK ?

The FEP provides support to families through three main elements of provision. These provide a means to engage with families whilst introducing them to other specialist services, universal services or the Team Around The Family:

FAMILIES TOGETHER

  • This is an outreach programme designed to secure the engagement of families in their local community
  • The sessions aim to get families working together to improve relationships and build confidence, and importantly engage families to access other services
  • A Families Together programme will run in 6 areas across the borough (2 in Rhymney, 2 in Islwyn, 2 in Caerphilly) in 8 weeks blocks, each block running four times through a year
  • Other service providers attend sessions to raise awareness and provide information

NEW & EXPECTANT PARENTS

  • This element secures the engagement of new and expectant parents under the age of 25 years, supporting those who are either very young, or who are having significant difficulty in dealing with having a new baby
  • Sessions enable the delivery of qualifications for pre-16 young parents and a variety of learning opportunities for pre and post 16 young parents
  • Weekly sessions involve young parents on an on-going basis, depending on their needs

INITIAL HOME SUPPORT

  • This enables families to receive support in the home
  • It is family focussed and responsive to individual needs
  • Support may include helping families through key transition points or with basic help with various aspects of parenting. Importantly, it enables support to be provided to families where there are issues with parents not being able/ willing to leave the home

INTEGRATION INTO UNIVERSAL SERVICES

The project also supports families to access universal provision and engage in community based activities. This may include activities provided through the Communities first initiative, local youth projects, play schemes, parent forums etc.

HOW CAN YOU IDENTIFY FAMILIES TO US?

If you know of a family that is in need of support but reluctant to engage with services, contact us to discuss how we can support you to secure engagement.

This is a bespoke and tailored provision and therefore discussions will need to take place before any action in relation to the family can be agreed.

INFORMATION FOR PROFESSIONALS

The FEP project engages families with ’emerging needs‘ through community outreach sessions and through links with other service providers.
The project aims to identify and engage families that have little or no contact with services.
Families are supported to engage in outcome focussed activity that raises aspirations and supports families to access specialist or universal provision.

The Family Engagement Project is a partnership service provided by:

CCBC Youth Service
Right From The Start
GAVO Play Service
CCBC Mobile Crèche Team

CONTACT:

Lisa Davies for Families Together, Home Support and Integration into Services
01443 863194
daviell1@caerphilly.gov.uk

Pam Harvey for New & Expectant Parents
01443 864407
Harvep@caerphilly.gov.uk

Clare Ewings
Project Lead 01443 863033
Ewingc@caerphilly.gov.uk

Message from Elfed Godding , Evangelical alliance

by Colin Dexter

A message from the National Director 

Dear leaders

A Happy New Year to you all. Blwyddyn Newydd Dda!

Once again it was my privilege to meet many of you during 2014 – thank you for your support,

encouragement and prayers.

It is now over fifteen years since I took up my post as National Director of Evangelical Alliance Wales and articulated the vision and mission God has given us:

Uniting for mission to proclaim and demonstrate the Gospel across Wales by:

·          Engaging with the National Assembly and Media through a united voice of Evangelicals

·          Enabling the evangelisation of individuals

·          Enabling the transformation of communities

What’s been happening? …

I’d like to take this opportunity to update you with some of the ways in which God is

answering prayer in fulfilling this mission:

·         Jim and I have been representing the evangelical constituency on the

‘Faith Communities Forum’ since 2005. This is a twice-yearly meeting of the First Minister with the representatives of the main religions in Wales and affords an opportunity to raise important issues with politicians.

·         Through Jim, Evangelical Alliance Wales also provides the Secretariat for the Assembly’s

‘Cross Party Group on Faith’ chaired by Darren Millar AM.

·         Media opportunities have continued with invitations to participate in Radio interviews as

well as writing for some of the national newspapers and issuing press releases.

·         The National Prayer Breakfast of Wales along with Evangelical Alliance Wales

presented a facsimile of the William Morgan Bible in Welsh to the Assembly

which was received by the Presiding Officer and will be on permanent display in the Pier Head building in Cardiff Bay:

Elfed, Watcyn James, Dame Rosemary Butler AM and William Graham AM

·         In preparation for the Assembly Elections in 2016 Evangelical Alliance Wales and Gweini have produced a

manifesto in consultation with over 300 Christian leaders across the nation to be presented to each of the main political parties.

We have continued to develop strategic coalitions with organisations, denominations, networks and churches across Wales that help extend the Kingdom of God in our nation www.eauk.org/wales  …

(Evangelical Alliance Wales working with Care, Tearfund,

Cornerstone Church, Housing Justice, CAP, Hope, Care for the Family and Prospects) www.gweini.org.uk

Cymru Institute for Contemporary Christianity (Evangelical Alliance Wales working with the Bible Society

in Wales and the South Wales Baptist College) www.cicconline.org.uk

Pursuit of God

by Colin Dexter

Canon Holmes of India who years ago said to most people God is an inference, not a reality. He is a deduction from evidence which they consider adequate, but he remains personally unknown to the individual.  He must be they say therefore we believe he is. 

Tozer  :The bible is a self-evident fact that men can know God with at least the same degree of immediacy as they know any other person or thing that comes within the field of experience.

(extract from Pursuit of God by Tozer)