Perspective is everything..

I’ve been thinking a lot this week about perspective, the perspective we have on life. Have you noticed how ‘everything’ can change in a microsecond - one moment all is sunshine & smiles, then a thought, a call, a text, a tax bill, a pain, a possibility, and suddenly it’s gloom, doom, worry, racing pulse and sweaty palms. It’s incredible how quickly our outlook on life can change, and here’s the tragedy, 90% of the time, our fears are totally unfounded; we’ve just got way ahead of ourselves, explored all sorts of possibly nasty scenarios. Result? We’ve just been robbed.

This last year I have really learned the importance of ‘taking my thoughts captive to Christ’, that is, not allowing stray thoughts or fears - those ‘what if’s’ - to run wild in my thinking, because they can literally rob & wreck you. Jesus Christ is Lord of my life, because I am a Christian, and so my day and destiny is in his hands and therefore I am totally secure - whatever.

But what about the other 10% of the time, when there is real substance to our fears, when our health, wealth or wellbeing really is under threat? Well that’s when our perspective really does matter. If we have ‘ground level’ perspective, and by that I mean short-sighted, nose-to-the-tree perspective, then our situation will very soon appear to be hopeless and therefore miserable. But again, as Christians, we need to remind ourselves that there is a far bigger (higher level) story that our lives are a part of, and quickly step back from the brink of short-sighted collisions with challenges & obstacles at ground level. The Bible says that we are overcomers! This great word is a favourite of the apostle John. Look at these verses from 1John 4&5.
Little children, you are from God and have overcome... for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world...... everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Do you get the picture? Christians (that is, those who have been born again, have put their trust in Jesus Christ and have a new life and destiny in Him) can ‘come over’ even the very real challenges and obstacles that come our way, because we are now a part of the greatest story in the universe - the story of God’s redeeming love and grace - and as such, we need fear nothing!

Perspective is everything!

Goff

Who need's help?

I guess lots of people are blogging about the Chilean miners this weekend. As well as being a good news story (and there’s not enough of those around) it’s also a very powerful illustration of being rescued out of a very dark, life-threatening place, and being brought out into the light. And that’s the Gospel! That’s what Jesus does!
The parallels are close; Jesus, God in human flesh, came down into our murky world in order to identify himself with us, take our predicament upon himself, rescue us from a situation where we were powerless to save ourselves, and lift us up, giving us a new start with a bright and lasting future!

Perhaps the most difficult thing for us human beings to admit is that we can’t save ourselves or that we need help at all. You could say that this a reflex built in from birth: “I want to do it!.... Let me do it!” - heard that before? In fact, the doorway to the whole ‘Christian’ deal lies right here. The access to authentic Christianity is paved with the words “Jesus, I need you in my life!” One writer put it like this: ‘The first sign of spiritual life is the realisation that you are spiritually dead.’ Think about it! And we never move on from that place, in fact, if you are a Christian and you feel that you’re doing just fine & don’t really need to pray too much or often, then it’s probably a sign of spiritual decline.

I knew a guy who worked the following routine into his thinking: If at the beginning of the day he found he was convincing himself that didn’t need to get time alone with God to pray etc, or that he didn’t really have time, then he’d say to himself “So you don’t need God today then?” That usually got him thinking straight - and praying!!

So here’s two health checks: If you feel little or no dependence on God, then you are probably in a dangerous place. If however, you are only too aware of your need for sustaining help, then fear not! Just ask! That’s what the apostle Paul meant when he said ‘when I am weak, then I am strong’ 2Cor12:10

Keith Hazell reminded us this morning of the pleasure of hearing God’s voice...... and the importance of taking time to listen!

Goff
(You can now follow Goff on Twitter)

Coffee matters!

I was speaking with a guy today in the city (Norwich that is!), and when we got to the subject of what I do & where I work, it didn't take long to make the connect with the King's Centre... "that place down King Street with a glass frontage..?" "Yes", I replied, and invited him to come and have a cappuccino on the house. It reminded me of the years I dreamed of a local church right in the heart of the community that was accessible and very inviting, because church never used to be like that!

When we got the premises in King Street, in pursuit of that dream, we teased out the question: "What do we want the shop window of Kings to be?" Now I remember the days when you had to circumnavigate heavy, squeaky doors and thick curtains just to get into a church building - how inviting is that?? Shop windows always say something about what & who's inside, and what does that say? So I was determined that our shop window would say something like: "friendly", "inviting", "sociable", "enjoyable" because I firmly believe that the church should be good news as well as tell good news!

Now, 10 years on, The King's Centre is a very busy place - every day - with literally hundred's of people, all sorts of people coming & going, and our shop window is a coffee shop, "King's Coffee", making it the easiest thing in the world to come in. And that's just how it should be! And as well as a warm welcome from Mel & her team, the coffee is great too - I know because I've appointed myself as the head of quality control, which means that I just have to check it every day!

Today I'm grateful to God and living the dream - part of a church family that it's great to be a part of, enjoying a shop window into the city that is inviting, welcoming, serves great coffee (and more!), and that says something about the amazing grace & goodness of the God we serve!

Keep up the good job Mel - but no chocolate on my latte thanks!

Goff

The hopping, skipping, dancing Body of Christ!

One of our key staff at Kings had an operation last week. Dave Less who plays a major role on our conferencing team (as well as doing a host of other tasks!) fell off his bike last winter, tore a ligament in his shoulder that needed to be stiched back together again. It doesn’t sound like much fun, and David assured me that it wasn’t! Result? Well, apart from being sore, the worst of it is that he has to keep his arm in a fixed position 24 : 7 for 6 weeks - and that’s the biggest pain! And we’re minus a key player!

Something that set me off on the course of life & ministry that I am on today was the realisation, some years ago now, that the church is far, far more than a bunch of people siitting in the same room for an hour or so on a Sunday morning. Important though the preaching of the Bible and corporate worship is, nevertheless, if that’s all we’re doing, I would go as far as saying that we haven’t got church.

I remember God impressing on me that the church is to be the Body of Christ - a living, moving, hopping - skipping - dancing - thoroughly alive body, and not a paralised, passive body being kept alive artificially by the life support system of a one-man-ministry. What a revelation that was for me - to think that every single person in the church family has a God-given and Spirit-energised gift; a part to play in the dynamic of church life, without which, the whole body of the church family just won’t work right!

Right now I am very well aware that David’s immobility is affecting life at Kings on a daily basis. How much more could your immobility be restricting all that God intends for us at Kings? I remain passionate about the fact that the church is a dynamic, mutli-faceted, multi-gifted body of believers, each rising to the challenge to play their part, and living out their lives together under the Lordship of Jesus Christ for His glory and fame!
And hey, we’re not just any body - as we all come alive and serve together with the gifts that we have been given, we are the Body of Jesus Christ, visible to the communities around us!

So whether you are brand new to Kings or have been here for years, let me encourage you to stir up the God-given gift within you and start using it, serving for the glory of God - and get well soon David!

Goff

The hopping, skipping, dancing Body of Christ!

One of our key staff at Kings had an operation last week. Dave Less who plays a major role on our conferencing team (as well as doing a host of other tasks!) fell off his bike last winter, tore a ligament in his shoulder that needed to be stiched back together again. It doesn’t sound like much fun, and David assured me that it wasn’t! Result? Well, apart from being sore, the worst of it is that he has to keep his arm in a fixed position 24 : 7 for 6 weeks - and that’s the biggest pain! And we’re minus a key player!

Something that set me off on the course of life & ministry that I am on today was the realisation, some years ago now, that the church is far, far more than a bunch of people siitting in the same room for an hour or so on a Sunday morning. Important though the preaching of the Bible and corporate worship is, nevertheless, if that’s all we’re doing, I would go as far as saying that we haven’t got church.

I remember God impressing on me that the church is to be the Body of Christ - a living, moving, hopping - skipping - dancing - thoroughly alive body, and not a paralised, passive body being kept alive artificially by the life support system of a one-man-ministry. What a revelation that was for me - to think that every single person in the church family has a God-given and Spirit-energised gift; a part to play in the dynamic of church life, without which, the whole body of the church family just won’t work right!

Right now I am very well aware that David’s immobility is affecting life at Kings on a daily basis. How much more could your immobility be restricting all that God intends for us at Kings? I remain passionate about the fact that the church is a dynamic, mutli-faceted, multi-gifted body of believers, each rising to the challenge to play their part, and living out their lives together under the Lordship of Jesus Christ for His glory and fame!
And hey, we’re not just any body - as we all come alive and serve together with the gifts that we have been given, we are the Body of Jesus Christ, visible to the communities around us!

So whether you are brand new to Kings or have been here for years, let me encourage you to stir up the God-given gift within you and start using it, serving for the glory of God - and get well soon David!

Goff