You can find out here by watching our short 3 minute videos on a range of topics. The latest are:

The Holy Spirit and The Church.

James writes: “Anyone who listens to word but does not do what is says, is like a man who looks at his face in the mirror and goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.”

In church we sometimes talk a lot.

In church we sometimes listen a lot.

We believe to Be The Church means that it’s now time to Do What It Says…

Think about some of these things that it says:

Follow me as I follow Christ (1 Cor 11:1)
(Are you living your life in a way that others could follow right now?)

The Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power (1 Cor 4:20)
(Are you asking for and seeing the power of God in your life right now?)

Go into the world and make disciples (Matt 28:19-20)
(Are you making a disciples right now?)

Love the Lord your God with all you heart, all your soul, all your strength and all your mind (Mark 12:29)
(Are you loving God with everything you have in every part of your life right now?)

Love your neighbour as yourself (Mark 12:30)
(Are you reaching out to someone who might be difficult to love right now?)

Are you Doing What It Says right now?

Be The Church

We do church inside – but we also do church outside. We want to be a community of people in the community – us coming to you.

So from Sept 19th we will be at Brighton Park from 12.30 – 2pm on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month. There will be a free sausage sizzle and organised family activities (with giant games!). It’s a chance to connect, ask questions and meet people – no strings attached – we just want to do something positive in our community so we have put this on – just for you.

We would love to see you there.

Be The Church

There is some pretty amazing stuff that God used him for, but some of my favourites are when he challenged the prophets of Baal to a dual and called down fire from heaven to burn up the water-soaked alter and offerings that they had made. He followed that up by announcing that it was going to rain and break the drought and famine in the land that had been there for three and a half years.

That’s cool.

Sometimes I think about that story and wish I could be like Elijah.

Sometimes I look around at other Christians, that God is using in amazing ways, and I wish I could be like them.

And then last week I was reading James 5:17: “Elijah was a man just like us.”

Elijah was a person just like you – and God wants to use you in this world, to help make disciples, to expand His kingdom and to live the supernatural life that Jesus died for and that you were intended for.

God wants to use you and me like He used Elijah – a man just like us.

Be The Church.

I think one of the reasons this happens is because we normalise our behaviour – we convince ourselves that it is OK. Think about some of these examples of everyday stuff that maybe reflects those things we normalise:

• It’s OK for me to spend more time watching TV than reading my Bible – and while I am at it, given I watch so much TV it is probably time I upgrade to the new 3D, LED thin screen model
• My iPhone 3 is 2 years old now so it’s probably time to upgrade to the iPhone 4 and while I’m there I can think of lots of good reasons why I could use an iPad as well
• I’m running late for work so it’s OK to speed to get there
• Someone in the workplace or school is being picked on for the way they look or dress, I won’t join in because I know that is not right – but it’s probably safer not to say anything to stop it – that might cause too much attention on me
• I really don’t like that person because they…
• It’s the government’s job to provide welfare services for the sick, homeless and needy people of our society, so I don’t need to worry about it

Now these are probably some really simple examples – but it’s all about the heart attitude and how much we desire as well as live out our life to be a follower of Jesus. That life is about constant transformation – changing things in our own life to be more like Him. Ultimately Jesus says we need to lay down our own life to receive our best life and I think that partly means not normalising the things we do just because it’s the same as everyone around us.

So if we are not normalising our life against the pattern of the world but seeking a rhythm that follows Jesus, have a think about some of the things He said to people about how we should live (make sure you read the linked verses and don’t just take my word for it…):

- Leave your job and follow Jesus
- Love the people that you don’t like
- Look after the sick, feed the hungry, give shelter to the homeless, visit the prisoners
- Sell your possessions and give to the poor
- Pray for healing anywhere, anytime

So let’s not be normal.

Be The Church

iHelp is an online community for people connected with us that aims to bring together someone who needs help  (i Need Help) with someone who can help (i Can Help) – that’s iHelp.

iHelp has now been launched and you can find out more information here.

To follow Jesus is to try and live like the example He set. That’s probably hard enough as it is for most of us, but have you ever stopped to think about who is following you?

When Paul was writing to the Corinthian church he said “Follow me as I follow Jesus…” In other words – if you want to know what it looks like to be a follower of Jesus then just look at my life and that will point you in the right direction. It’s the ultimate model of discipleship…

Right now you might be thinking – I don’t want anyone following my life – there’s too much that isn’t right about it – then here is the ultimate challenge – why not?

As a follower of Jesus we must be prepared to be followed. Having someone follow you is discipleship – and we are called to go into the world and make disciples. Being followed therefore is a positive thing but we must be prepared to re-orient our lives to reflect what Jesus has done for us.

We believe the time for talking is done and the time for action is now. Paul says the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. If people follow us, shouldn’t the way we live lead them to the power of God? Shouldn’t they see us trying our best to live like Jesus and as He said you will do all the things I have done and more?

If you are reading this, then for some reason you are following us (and thanks for that by the way ). If you have a twitter or facebook account which you comment on, then you are participating in a world that says “follow me…”

So what does our life say, what do people think as they watch us… who is following you?

Be The Church

When Paul is writing to the Roman church he says not to pretend that we love others, but to really love them.  Now this sounds pretty obvious, but when I really thought about it, it’s actually quite challenging.

It doesn’t say really love your family or really love your friends and people you like, it says really love others.  Others is everyone and anyone that you come across in all parts of your life.

So what does that look like – how should my life look if I am really loving others?

Others includes the bus driver and taxi driver, the person serving me at the grocery store, the person who just pushed in front of me in the queue at that grocery store, the car that cut me off on the way to work, the child who bullies my children – you get the picture.

At first it seems easy, until you consider who others are and what it means to really love them.  This isn’t just a passing glance, this is LOVE. Some great descriptors of love are when Paul wrote to the Corinthians and he said it is patient and kind, not jealous, proud or rude.  It doesn’t demand it’s own way, it doesn’t get irritated and it keeps no record of wrongs.  It delights in the truth, it never gives up, never loses faith, always hopes and endures through every circumstance.

We can love because God first loved and by us loving others we are giving them a chance to see what God has done in us. John says that when we do this we live like him in this world.

So every time you come across others as you’re going about your daily life, ask God to help you to really love them, because otherwise they might miss out on experiencing it, if they don’t see it in you.

Be The Church.