Jesus

Alpha: Kat’s Testimony

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Kat’s Testimony

Alpha, 2018

When I first started Alpha I was very sceptical about everything: God, Jesus and Christianity as a whole. I was very set in the way of that in order to believe, I had to have hard evidence. I had to see it to believe it. I also desperately wanted to have an experience like I felt that everyone else was.

Alpha for me was one of the best experiences I ever had. I met people with similar questions to me and felt like I was not alone but part of a family. Being part of Alpha completely changed me and doing it in a group was wonderful because we had different questions and different views.

On Alpha I found my own path and started my own personal journey. I gave my life to Jesus and since then have started the most wonderful journey with God. I was blessed with a real experience with the Holy Spirit. My life changed for the better and I just know now, how real God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are and am so grateful they are in my life.

I truly recommend this course for anyone with question and who wants to develop a better relationship with our Lord. Alpha for me was the first stepping stone into my own personal journey with God and Jesus.

The revealing of a role model for all humanity

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by the Venerable Brian Newing.
Fr Brian has been a priest of this Diocese for over 50 years, faithfully serving the South West.

We are all living through a breathtaking revolution in electronic communication which is changing almost every aspect of our life. Nearly all communication is through the written word and not face to face conversation. This change is being driven by business and picked up by institutions such as Centrelink and Medicare. Have you ever tried to speak to a police officer in the middle of the night? By the time you have pressed two sets of number buttons, confusion reigns supreme. Even worse, trying to get your NBN phone to work when it has failed.

Comments fly to and fro on Facebook making all sorts of comments and allegations. All this communication takes place without seeing the face of the other person. There is no way of knowing how the other person is feeling, laughing, crying, disappointed or even in shock. Things are written that can never be retracted. I recently attended a Supreme Court trial where the judge addressed the jury and instructed them to disregard all they had all they had experienced using social media because it had led people to making snap judgements on limited evidence. He further stated it had cost people their jobs, destroyed relationships and driven people to suicide.

I am not trying to say all in the social media are wrong, but I do believe there are very real danger signs and it is against the way God wants us to live in the community.

The incarnation

In the fullness of time the God of all creation chose to communicate with His beloved people to reveal Himself to the world for all generations. The wisdom of God was to communicate with His people face to face in the person of Jesus Christ. The scriptures reveal to us Jesus was the exact image of God. “Not what God looks like but what is”. Jesus lived in community first with His family and later with His disciples and followers. He spent countless hours teaching them and preparing them for their ministry.

He taught them stories centred on everyday experiences they could easily remember. The shared His frustration and disappointment when so many people failed to comprehend or refused to hear His simple message of salvation. The disciples experienced the pain of Jesus trial and crucifixion. Following these events, they also shared the joy of His resurrection and the birth of the Christian church on the day of Pentecost. The Christian faith has come down through the centuries because people have shared their faith stories from generation to generation.

The Epiphany of Our Lord

The Epiphany means the revealing of Jesus to all people throughout the world. Peter declares, following Pentecost, that he now understands that God has no favourites but loves all people equally. This was the theme the disciples and Christian converts carried throughout the known world, from India to Britain, from Africa to northern Europe. Despite persecution, the Christian faith flourished and transformed the lives of millions of people. The new Christians were recognised by the love they shared with one another.

Down through history we have been called to shape and mould our lives on the role model of Jesus Christ. To look at the world through the eyes of Jesus. To make our decisions in accordance to the moral values of Jesus. To love sacrificially as Jesus loves us even to the cross. To forgive one another as Jesus forgave the repentant thief crucified with Him.

The word Christian means to be a Christ-like person. May we all strive to be a little more Christ-like during 2019 and reflect His glory to a world that is in need of a perfect role model to follow.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

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A Prayer for Christmas and Epiphany

Blessed are you, Lord our God,
our eternal Father and David’s king:
You have made our gladness greater and increased our joy
by sending to dwell among us
the Wonderful Counsellor, the Prince of Peace.
Born of Mary,
proclaimed to the shepherds,
and acknowledged to the ends of the earth,
Your unconquered Sun of righteousness
destroys our darkness and establishes us in freedom.
All glory in the highest be to you:
through Christ, the Son of your favour,
in the anointing love of his Spirit,
now and for ever and ever.
Amen

From the Prayer Book for Australia (p.436)

Prayer Changes Things

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‘If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land’ (2 Chronicles 7:14)

The thing that struck me the most about St Nic’s when I first started attending almost 2 years ago, was their heart of prayer. Prayer that supports, prayer that heals, prayer that changes. It changes circumstances, it changes hearts, it changes relationships and it changes lives! All we need to do is call upon the Lord, pray to Him and He will listen to us (Jeremiah 29:12). There are so many promises throughout the Bible of God promising His people (that’s us!) that if we engage in a relationship with Him through prayer, He hears us and responds. Although that response may not always be in the way that we imagine or hope for, we can trust that ‘as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are [His] ways higher than your ways and [His] thoughts your thoughts’ (Isaiah 55:9).

Recently I have been wonderfully blessed by two separate events at St. Nic’s: The Australian Prayer Network (APN) Foundational Level prayer course, and the Churches Together united prayer evening. I just wanted to share some of my experiences, some of what I’ve learnt and how I have been encouraged me in my own prayer life in the next two blog posts…

Prayer Changes Things

The APN has several ‘levels’ of different prayer courses and this was the first one which focuses on the beginnings of really learning about how prayer works and how we can put into practice some Biblical truths. I want to focus on HOW prayer works. The main thing that I took away from this session was that prayer only changes things if we do what God tells us to do in response to our prayers to Him. There is no point in us praying and hearing a response from God then completely ignoring what God is telling us to do! Prayer requires action.

Prayer requires action

Prayer is an activity of God and it requires our cooperation: to be ‘totally available and radically obedient’! He wants to work through people – through you and me – to change the world. There’s a thinking that prayer requires God’s cooperation; that when we pray we want God to do exactly what we want and exactly how we want it. But that’s where we’ve got it completely wrong! God is far bigger, far greater than our circumstances, and if we focus on trying to simply find the right words to say, or believing that we have the answers then we’re losing sight of WHY we pray. Prayer is praying into God’s plans and purposes which are already known; ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).

You know that feeling of when you’re praying for somebody or something, and you just can’t find the right words to say? That you don’t really know what to pray for? That the circumstance feels too big or too out of your own depth that you are lost for words? I want to encourage you and reassure you that THIS IS OK. It is not our words in our prayers that change the world. We need the power of God to change the circumstances. All we need to do, in every aspect of our lives INCLUDING our prayer lives, is to ‘trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding…’ (Proverbs 3:5-6) And prayer is one beautiful way that we can reach out and touch the power of God, and allow it to flow through us in our lives! While I am aware not all of us pray in tongues, I have found this I have found that using this gift can really help me personally when I don’t know what to pray for – but that’s for another day!

Prayer and your passions

One of the big questions that many people have is ‘what do I pray for? There’s so much to pray for: my own family, friends, my community, my nation, the world… Where do I begin?’ Don’t worry. God has it covered. Start by understanding the passions of your heart; those individual talents and passions, remembering that He created you in His image (Genesis 1:27) and that He knit you together in your mother’s womb and that you are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:13-14). This is where to begin. God wants to use these things that He has given you to make changes in your life and others’.

I spent some time in prayer after this challenge and I wanted to share one of my biggest passions – people. For people who are hurting, people who are in need or who are suffering. And also just to love people, to connect and encourage people as they are, where they are. For those of you who know me, this may not surprise you (ha!) but I’ve been really following God’s passion and trying to take every opportunity that presents itself in action and in prayer whenever I can, on a whole new level. It’s something that comes very naturally to me and I just love meeting and connecting with others wherever I go. But this is what God wants to use! He wants to use what we already love and are already passionate about to increase His kingdom here on earth!!

What you need to pray for every day

So I want to encourage you to seek God’s face and to ask Him what He wants you to pray for. Consider what are your passions? What gets you out of bed in the morning? What encourages you to keep going? These are the things that are God’s call on your life – and what you need to pray for every day.

Lift these things up to the Lord. Place them before Him and then ask Him want He wants you to do – then act on it! Remembering that faith moves the hand of God. Passion moves the hand of God. God searches for our hearts and uses those passions. So keep praying – passionately praying. We can’t NOT pray if we carry God’s heart for something. And we can stand secure in the faith that God will hear us, and He wants to work in us and through us to change the world. All we need to be, is ‘totally available and radically obedient’. That’s my challenge to you today.

Blessings, Zoë x

God-incidences

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Last month, I had a phone call from my specialist; I was due for an annual check-up. It just so happened there was an appointment available at 8.30 the very next morning. After the test, I was talking to the young specialist – he was new, I hadn’t seen him before.

He asked me what I did for a living and I told him I was a retired Anglican priest. “Is that like in a church?” he asked. “Yes” I said, “in the Anglican church”. He asked me how I got into a job like that and I explained that it wasn’t a standard career option that was discussed at school; that for me it was a realization later in life that God was calling me to ordained ministry. He got that! “Ah, so it’s like a vocation,” he said.

He continued, “Does that mean you found Jesus? A friend of mine found Jesus and his life turned around.” I asked him what that meant. He told me that his friend was severely depressed and on his birthday he had decided to commit suicide. He then had an experience of feeling at one with the world. From that day, my specialist told me, his friend started to live a healthier life, lost a lot of weight and wanted to find out more about what his experience meant. I asked how his friend was doing that and he told me that he was using the internet and reading the Bible. I told him about St Nicholas and Alpha and how important it is to find out more about Jesus in a safe group setting. I gave him the St Nic’s website address.

As a Christian I don’t believe in coincidences. I believe in God-incidences. God puts people in our way for a reason. I encourage you to reflect on the ‘coincidences’ in your life. Could they be ‘God-incidences?’ How are we being asked to be ‘salt and light’ for others? Perhaps you might like to reflect on Matthew 5:13-16.

‘You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled underfoot.
‘You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

We are so blessed with the vibrant community at St Nic’s. We can have confidence to invite people to deepen their faith with our community whether that is through prayer or worship, Wednesday dinners, bible studies or group discussions.

Let us pray (adapted from David Adam Complete themed intercessions)

Lord God, help us to be aware of the God-incidences in our lives.
Teach us to walk in your way and to rejoice in your truth.
We ask your blessing on all in this parish that we may be salt and light for others.
We pray for all who are new to the faith
and all who are growing in a deeper awareness of your presence.
May we all know that wherever we go and whatever happens
you are with us and ready to lead us. Amen.

by Carol Reid

Encountering Jesus now?

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Last week, Paul wrote about the truth of God’s presence in our suffering. Jesus drank the cup of betrayal, rejection, physical torture, abandonment, tasting for a moment a profound separation with His Father. He did so for the joy set before him (Hebrews 12:2).

One of the hardest things for the disciples at the time of Jesus Passion was losing him. His promises of being with them seemed to die on the cross. Where was he now? Many people ask that question in the face of suffering and understandably so. The Psalms articulate the same question many times.

After rising from death Jesus appeared to a number of witnesses in the time between the Passover and Pentecost. See Paul’s account in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8; He appeared to Simon, James, the apostles and then a crowd of 500 people at one time.

Jesus said he would not leave us or forsake us. He fulfils that promise through the Holy Spirit, the one who walks alongside us, comforts advises, guides (John 14-16 references this).

In returning to the heavens Jesus opened the way for the Holy Spirit to come and to make His presence, Immanuel, known to them and us. Learning to welcome the Holy Spirit of Jesus is welcoming His presence into our lives. We can live, literally, inspired lives!

As we now celebrate the resurrection, and look forward to the celebration of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we are running another Alpha course beginning May 2nd. Alpha allows us to explore honestly the basics of the Christian faith and enables opportunities for encounters with the Holy Spirit. We share a meal from 5:45 pm and the course will start around 6:45 pm.

Will you be joining us?

Shalom,
Jamie

An Easter Reflection on Psalm 22: The Suffering God for Suffering People

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On the cross Jesus cried out ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’

Jesus, the Son of God, had been rejected, tortured, insulted, humiliated and left to die. In the midst of excruciating suffering and approaching death, Jesus quoted Psalm 22. This is a psalm of suffering. An expression of loneliness. A pleading to God for help.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?
My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
by night, but I find no rest.

However, it is also a psalm of hope. The psalmist is turning to God for answers in his time of need. It is a psalm which expects God to come. It expects God to act in times of suffering.

I will declare your name to my people;
in the assembly I will praise you.
You who fear the Lord, praise him!

For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.

On the cross Jesus revealed more than the depth of his suffering. He revealed more than his agony. Jesus revealed his trust in God his Father. He experienced the mystery of how God uses suffering to accomplish good. The cross is the revelation of the holy love of God dealing with the sin and evil of the world, and it is utter agony. But it brought life, healing and hope. We see this in the resurrection when Jesus conquered death itself.

Suffering is a problem we all face. It takes many forms. Rejection. Loneliness. Illness. Grief. Loss. Humiliation. Jesus shared in our suffering and invites us to bring our suffering to God and ask ‘why?’ Why are we suffering? Why is God not removing our suffering? Why does God appear far away?

We can ask ‘why’ because we know that our loving God is present in our suffering. He has suffered, he understands our suffering; he is never far away. We can expect God to act. But the deep mystery is the God can, and will, transform even our worst sufferings into good. His action may not be what we expect, it may be much more.

Written by Paul King.

Receiving the Word

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A few weeks ago at our Wednesday service our reading was Mark 4 the parable of the sower. I spoke about receiving the word into our lives like good soil and the harvest that comes.  The key word we receive is Jesus himself, described by John in his gospel opening chapter as the Word made flesh. In receiving Jesus into our lives we are receiving life, light, bread, the way and so on. We are reconnected, reconciled to God and, through the life giving presence of God’s Spirit breathing into us, become spiritually alive, new creations.

However when we talk of receiving God’s word into our lives I mean putting the weight of our lives on it, our trust, our mindsets. All of this became evident to me on Tuesday evening. Returning from All Saints Donnybrook after a lengthy PC meeting I was stopped at a road works traffic management point in Boyanup. I glanced in the mirror and noticed a car racing towards me, I glanced again and realised there was no sign of it slowing down, I braced and it crashed into the back of me at some speed.

The driver was DUI , heavily intoxicated. Sadly she would not stop to reason and pulling back and swerving round nearly ran over the traffic flow person as she ‘ made her escape. ’ Fortunately I had pictures on my mobile and the police swiftly identified her. I prayed for her and others on the road to remain safe and for her to be quickly apprehended. That did happen although she did have a second crash. Remarkably the driver of the car in front was one of our Nourish members, a nurse. She helped me sort out a tow truck and drove me to the hospital for a once over. She was grateful I was between her and the car that crashed into me. I was grateful for the  blessing of my sister in Christ being there to help.

As I waited in hospital I was aware of the underpinning of several scriptures, especially Psalm 34:19 ‘A righteous person( i.e. someone in a right relationship with God ) may have many troubles but the Lord delivers him from them all.’ What scriptures are you placing the weight of your lives upon?

Shalom

Jamie

How do we follow Jesus?

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A blessed and Happy New year to everyone. My hope is that you have gained refreshment and created some good memories over the 12 days of Christmas. I have enjoyed a blessed break with family and come into this year looking to Jesus to guide us. I want to know His purposes for His Father’s kingdom here and in our diocese and I want to walk in them. Do you? So that’s a goal and aspiration. New Year is often linked to resolutions and goal setting. However there is a growing body of research suggesting goal setting handled incorrectly leads to self defeat and actual avoidance of change!
We know here at St  Nick’s that growing things change and we are invited into ongoing transformation by God to bear the fruit of His Spirit and to do His works. Yet how we frame things impacts what we actually do i.e. setting goals can be good but we tend to forget transformation takes time and involves daily rhythms and choices. It’s easier to set a goal than make a daily change. So if I am serious about looking to Jesus to guide us what does that mean in practice?
Today I will be exploring a little of what it means to follow Jesus. The bottom line is recognising He wants to be close to us and then choosing to be close to Him, learning to look and listen for Him through the day. Beginning and ending the day with Him; pausing and inviting Him into the moments of the day, thanking Him, asking Him, praising Him complaining to Him, groaning with sighs beyond words ( on a bad day) . We don’t do this alone. We have the Holy Spirit who walks alongside us and is within us who can enable us to do just that. Looking to Jesus to guide us and walking in His purposes is the outcome of a series of small continuous steps…. That’s how we follow …steps, foot fall by foot fall, day by day, month by month until our last day here and then the glorious step into eternity with Him.
Shalom Jamie

Epiphany 2018

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The Epiphany and Baptism of Jesus
The visitation of the Kings also referred to as the Wise men and also the Magis signifies Jesus universal claim to be the Messiah for all peoples of faith. For the Jews this was intolerable because they were the chosen people of God with sole access to Him.  For the gentile people (the rest of us) this claim was very hard to comprehend.
The setting of Jesus birth was to set the foundations for the Christian Faith for all history. The God of all creation chose a young woman to bring His only Son into the world. The birth in a stable reveals the humility of God.  Peace will only come to this world when people humble themselves and listen to one another’s point of view in love.
The Shepherds’ greeting of Christ’s birth reveals God’s embracing of all people no matter what position
they hold in life, Jesus Mary and Joseph become refugees in the foreign land of Egypt before His second birthday. These simple facts reveal the nature of God and His love for all.
The Baptism of Jesus
Jesus comes out of the wilderness to be Baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordon. Following this great event Jesus goes out to a lonely place to face the temptations of life. Following this experience Jesus ministry commences which we all share in today.  It is through Baptism we all commence our journey with Jesus through life.
May 2018 be a year of growing in faith and unity for all who worship in St Nicholas Church. May it be a year of healing for the Christian church in general.
Yours in Christs Service. Ven. Brian Newing