“For where two or three are gathered in my name,
there am I among them”
- Jesus in Matthew chapter 18, verse 20
NOTE: Keen to learn how to fast for spiritual reasons? Read a previous email on learning to fast.
One of the most beautiful promises Jesus makes to his followers is to be "with " them, "among" them, and to make his "home" in us.
However, this is not just a wonderful promise. It's a truth designed to impact the way we live individually and as a community of followers.
In Matthew chapter 18, verses 10 to 20, Jesus outlines that when (not if) offences take place within our Christian community, they are not to be hidden away. We're not to allow them to take over by 'taking offence', but by resolving the offences. Aside from the process he outlines and the context (interestingly, the parable of the lost sheep), he grounds the strength of his teaching in the fact that he is present in the midst of any group of his followers.
Imagine two toddlers fighting over a small, selfish disagreement. When mum or dad enters the room, they immediately halt their fight because neither wants to be seen as the "bad guy". Rather, they want their opponent to take the blame: "They started it, not me!"
Similarly, maybe two teenage siblings are yelling over an equally selfish disagreement, and the one that "loses" the fight loudly declares, "I'm going to get mum!" Once mum turns up, things settle down, and everything returns to normal.
Similarly, Jesus lays out that forgiveness and reconciliation are critical, not simply because they are a great ideal (many non-Christians would agree with him), but because he lives amongst us. We are to treat each other well because Jesus is not just watching but participating in our community.
As I shared recently, our faith is not just a conceptual set of ethical, moral or religious ideals. Our faith is to be embodied. To be lived. To live the values of heaven while we still are on earth. We are to take on the life, spirit and mind of Christ.
This week, may we all learn to live as though Christ walks amongst us, because he does.
Much love, and see you Sunday,
Dan
Simple ways to start fasting with us
Keen to fast, but haven't started yet?
August - Fasting Phase #1
Try fasting one meal, one day/wk in August.
- Choose which meal you'll fast: breakfast, lunch or dinner.
- Choose some part of your life to give to God (concern, grief, illness, etc)
- Plan the meals on either end, so you know what's coming. For example, have a decent breakfast, and prep (or plan) your evening meal, if you're fasting lunch.
September - Fasting Phase #2
Choose a day each week to fast. For 2,000 years Christians have chosen Wednesdays and Fridays for fasting. You can bring your own sacred moment or season (sickness, grief, sin or transformation) to God on those days, but Christians often remember Christ's betrayal on Wednesdays, and his sacrificial death on Fridays.
- Choose the day in advance. Wednesday or Friday if you can't decide.
- Choose some part of your life to give to God (concern, grief, illness, etc)
- Choose your fast:
- Single meal: breakfast, lunch or dinner
- 24hrs: Dinner to dinner, lunch to lunch, breakfast to breakfast.
- Other: Sunrise to sunset, evening till 3 pm the following day. Your choice!
- OPTIONAL: Ask a friend to fast with you. Encourage + pray for each other.
Coming Up
August - 9am [Home] + 3pm [Moffat]
Mondays - Young Adults - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Fridays - 6am Men's Prayer - Fred 0431 437 080
Aug 30 Sunday Gatherings: Home + Beach
September - 9am [Home] + 3pm [Moffat]
Mondays - Young Adults - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Fridays - 6am Men's Prayer - Fred 0431 437 080
Sep 07 EHD: "Emotionally Healthy Relationships" Ends
Our Mission
To help people find and follow Jesus.
Our Vision
Fully Alive through faith in Jesus. To see this 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: $11,459
Last month's expenses: $10,033
Balance: $64,673
Giving in : Oct 23-Jul 26: $5,000
Giving out : Oct 23-Jul 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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