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?

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.

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-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

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

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

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)

Fiona Bruce MP has this week laid an amendment to the Serious Crime Bill, which makes clear that abortion on the grounds of sex is illegal, and provides an opportunity for the Government to make regulations aimed at combatting the practice. If selected, it will be debated at Report Stage in a few days’ time.

Grace will disagree with our sense of Justice

Grace puts our sin into perspective

Grace looks to restore & not condemn

(EG)

Imagination is not faith. The two are not only different from, but stand in sharp opposition to each other. Imagination projects unreal images out of the mind and seeks to attach reality to them. Faith creates nothing; it simply reckons upon that which is already there. (A.W.Tozer)