"Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?" - 1 Corinthians 3:16
Ahoy Church,
At our last monthly gathering, we read through a bunch of wonderful scriptures about God's presence with and within his people.
Depending on your experience with church and faith, you may or may not bristle when you hear someone talk about experiencing God's presence.
Our Western, rationalist culture tends to consider such language as a bit radical, risky, or mysterious. Some of us can acknowledge that God's presence is somehow with us, but to accept a tangible, experiential presence can feel like a bridge too far.
Defensively, some of us may even consider or quote Bible verses to protect from ending up disappointed that we do not sense God's presence with us. However, rightly used, the Bible encourages us to run to, not from, a radical, risky and mysterious faith.
While there is no one way to experience God, and our faith is not founded on feelings or emotions, the following scriptures make it clear that God truly is present with each of us!
“...the world cannot receive [the Spirit of truth], because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” - John 14:17
“Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.’” - John 14:23
“And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” - Acts 2:38
“If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” - Romans 8:11
“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” - 1 Cor 3:16
“13 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” - 1 John 4:13-16
I want to encourage you to both believe and live as though God is present with and in you. May this truth change the way you think, decide and act. May you grow to become aware of his presence with you - maybe slowly and quietly at first. In time, may you begin to sense the presence of the one who guides, comforts and fills us with his self.
Much love, see you Sunday!
Dan
One-Offs
One Prayer - Tuesday, June 2nd
Qld Baptists are encouraging their churches to take Monday June 1st to Sunday June 7th as "Prayer Week". The goal is to focus our attention on deepening our commitment to prayer, especially for revival in our state and nation. Part of this is a combined prayer meeting at Bridgeman Downs Baptist on 7pm, Tuesday June 2nd. I'll be going, along with some of our Young Adults, and you're welcome to join us! It will likely be a very large gathering of worship, prayer and ministry.
Church Camp - June 19-21
Don't forget to register for camp if you haven't already. If you need financial assistance, hit REPLY and let me know.
ABIDE Women's Conference - 21-23 August, QCCC Mapleton
The very first Women's Collective is coming to QCCC, Mapleton from 21–23 August 2026. Join with women from every church, every generation, and every walk of life come together in unity – to worship Jesus wholeheartedly, to grow deeply in faith, and to be inspired to live out His compassion and justice toward those in need across the globe.Registrations are now open and places are already filling quickly.
To learn more and register, visit: Abide – The Women's Collective Registration Page or email abide.registrations@gmail.com
Coming Up
This Week
- You're wondering, "How can I encourage someone this week?"
- Sally is hosting and praying over us.
- Renee is sharing a story of how she prays and why.
- Dan Harding is preaching for only the second time at Beach Church.
- A few of you will hear from God's Spirit something brief + encouraging to share! So good.
May - 9am [Home] + 3pm [Moffat]
Mondays - Young Adults - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Fridays - 6am Men's Prayer - Fred 0431 437 080
May 24 Home + Moffat Gatherings
May 31 Home + Moffat Gatherings
June - 9am [Home] + 3pm [Moffat]
Mondays - Young Adults - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Fridays - 6am Men's Prayer - Fred 0431 437 080
Jun 01-07 Qld Baptist Prayer Week
Jun 02 ONE PRAYER: Bridgeman Baptist Prayer Night
Jun 19-21 Church Camp @ Cobb & Co
Jun 22 EHD: "Emotionally Healthy Spirituality" Ends
Our Mission
To help people find and follow Jesus.
Our Vision
Fully Alive through faith in Jesus. To see vision come to life, we developed FAM, our Fully Alive Model. Ideally, you can work through FAM with someone else.
Our Rhythms
Get to Know Jesus: how are you getting to know Jesus this week?
Invite people into your life: who can you intentionally open up your life to?
Gather and get involved: who can you connect, listen, share, or pray with this weekend?
Giving Up, In, and Out
Our church follows the same simple pattern of giving that we encourage each other individually: UP, IN, and OUT.
Giving UP
As a church, we give 2.5% to our denomination to support what's happening in churches like ours statewide and show appreciation for all the support they provide. We encourage each follower to consider giving "up" to support their local church - in this case ours :)
Giving IN
We give to personal/family needs within our church from our $5,000 Giving Kitty. Please alert us if you know someone with genuine needs that you're unable to meet out of your own resources.
Giving OUT
This term, we are encouraging our church to give to the family who visit us each year from the country where they share Jesus. We'll give to them as a church, and we encourage you to give to them too.
BSB: 923100
Account #: 37443010
REF: KyleG GIFT
Last month's giving: $10,856
Last month's expenses: $12,540
Balance: $70,307
Giving in : Oct 23-Apr 26: $5,000
Giving out : Oct 23-Apr 26: $20,293
"Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed." - Proverbs 19:17
If you would like to support what we are doing and our giving to those in need, you can get started giving to Open Road to meet the needs of our church or get in touch with any questions you may have.
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