“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”
- Luke 10:27
SCRIPTURE: Lachlan’s
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Order of Service, lyrics etc on YouVersion (not complete)
Lachlan, thanks for taking time to share with us last Sunday about loving God with our whole self, not justifying ourselves like those in the Good Samaritan story and allowing God to bring healing to our lives.
As God often does, he was speaking to me on this topic in many ways this week.
Given recent events, I decided to read Martin Luther King Junior’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. The second part of the book is a sermon he wrote about learning to live a Three Dimensional Life: length, breadth and height. He describes this life as one of purpose (length), loving our neighbour (breadth - as described in the story of the Good Samaritan) and loving God (height - loving God with our whole self).
The modern day version of this is to LOVE up, in and out. Or, as we say on the beach sometimes, Love UP, Love OUT.
While these slogans are well accepted and easy to remember, it can be quite challenging to live out and we don’t often hear personal stories from our own lives of how critical this can be to other people finding faith in Jesus.
On Sunday morning I preached at Maleny Baptist, where I heard many great stories of God’s work. One story in particular was of a man who came to faith 22yrs ago. He was living a wild life without God. One morning he woke up, hungover, and an inner voice said to him, “Go to church”.
He got dressed, attended church for the first time and afterwards a bunch of “young people” welcomed him with great kindness. They said, “you look like you could do with a cuppa, why don’t you join us”.
Their kindness was his perfect introduction to God. He became a Christian and now attends church, married a Christian woman and shares Jesus with others.
As many of us are noticing, there is a resurgence of interest in faith and attending church.
One online influencer I follow had never been to church. She attended with her husband this weekend after feeling a deep desire to get to know God.
During the ‘welcome time’ a middle-aged lady welcome her with a hug, the newcomer burst into tears. She doesn’t know why. She thinks maybe it’s the Holy Spirit. Maybe it’s the love she felt. Whatever it was, she said she walked home holding hands with her husband for the first time she could remember.
In each case, love broke through in the form of God’s people loving others.
What Lachlan shared isn’t just a great ideal or a good idea. It’s our invitation from God to not only become Fully Alive, but to share this life with others.
As Colin challenged us with the gift Bibles. Take action, in love, and make Jesus known one way or another.
It could be an invitation to a coffee.
It could be a hug, appropriately given.
It could be a Bible, gifted with no strings attached.
I know our love towards those who come on Sundays is not only constantly required, but constantly making an impact.
However, let’s branch out. Let’s experience the full breadth (as MLK calls) of those God is calling us to reach out to in love.
Much love, see you Sunday!
Dan
PS. As per below, a Memorial service for Ruth Morris will be held on Friday 10th October at 11am.
Celebrate Ruth Morris - Fri 10th Oct, 11am
Ruth’s life and New Life in Christ will be celebrated at a service in the Auditorium, Church of Christ Residential aged Care:
11am on FRIDAY OCTOBER 10th
211 PARKLANDS BVD, LITTLE MOUNTAIN
Please come if you are able and stay for a finger-food lunch at noon.
John Morris and Family.
Coming Up
October
Mondays - Emotionally Healthy Relationships, Kings Beach - Katie 0412 500 940
Mondays - Young Adults - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Thursdays - Dads Coffee, Bible + Prayer - Dan 0402 301 568
Fridays - 6am Men's Prayer - Fred 0431 437 080
Sundays - Home Church - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Sun 05 - 3pm Monthly Worship Gathering - CityLife, 7 Gregson Place, Caloundra
Fri 10 - 11am Ruth's Memorial Service - Little Mountain Church of Christ
Sun 12 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats
Sat 18 - 430pm Blokes Bonfire, Bible + BBQ, 286 N Maleny Rd, North Maleny
Sun 19 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats + Armstrong, Jack + __ Baptisms
Sun 26 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats
November
Mondays - Emotionally Healthy Relationships, Kings Beach - Katie 0412 500 940
Mondays - Young Adults - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Thursdays - Dads Coffee, Bible + Prayer - Dan 0402 301 568
Fridays - 6am Men's Prayer - Fred 0431 437 080
Sundays - Home Church - Marcello + Mariela 0428 986 423
Sun 02 - 3pm Monthly Worship Gathering - Venue TBA
Sun 09 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats
Sun 16 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats + Baptisms
Sun 23 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats
Sun 30 - 3pm Beach Gathering at Moffats
Our Mission
To help people find and follow Jesus.
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?
Our Giving
We are slowly being led to needs for our giving kitty! Please take time to ask God if there is someone in need around you whom God wants you/us to help!
Last month's giving: $8,960
Last month's expenses: $11,974
Balance: $79,361
Giving in : Oct 23-Aug 25: $5000
Giving out : Oct 23-Aug 25: $14.082
"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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