Save us we pray – often in OT prayers were made due to impending danger. Saved from circumstances, but also saved from sin. Greek is harmartia – sin is both ‘to miss’ and also ‘a personality flaw which will inevitably lead to your downfall.’ All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Sin is something that you are and not just something that you do. Jesus came to save us from what we do, but also from what we are. Salvation is to equip us to live in complete harmony with God....
Apr 30, 2023•36 min
What doxology do you give when you sin and have been found out? We look at part of King David's life. He certainly was a man after God's own heart, but still did wrong from time to time. The important truth is that when David asked for forgiveness from God, it was given. We need to seek forgiveness from God too. It might be baffling that God, who knows everything about each of us, still loves us and wants us to seek Him with all of our being. God is a shield about us and the lifter of our heads....
Apr 23, 2023•31 min
We all make many decisions every day. Some are very important and some are less so. In this Talk we look at several people in the Bible who declared that 'even if' things weren't great for them, they would still praise God and obey Him. In other words they would give an appropriate doxa to God irrespective of external circumstances. Possibly in our lives we say 'only if' too often to God. It doesn't have to be like that, but we do need God to help train us to think differently, speak differently...
Apr 16, 2023•32 min
We were powerless to do anything about our salvation. We totally lacked the necessary resources to help ourselves. God didn't dilute His love when He decided to save us. Jesus came to redeem us, totally paying the penalty for our sins through His death and resurrection. What a sacrifice. No wonder heaven is vibrant with doxologies about Him!
Apr 09, 2023•21 min
The English language has many 'ologies' - it simply means words about something that is often studied. A doxology is often words about the glory and splendour of God. It is our fitting response to His actions. Using words from a song or a Scripture is only a partial resonse to who God is and what He does. Our obedience to His commands are just as important. Let's aim to recapture the importance, centrality, mystery and power of God in our lives. Our personal doxologies to the living God will cer...
Apr 02, 2023•31 min
We hear news about Nuneaton's CAP Job Club and the Here 2 Help service. Many people in crisis have been served and blessed through these ministries. What dream(s) has God given you? What action are you taking to extend God's Kingdom?
Mar 26, 2023•39 min
On our Family Care Sunday we focussed on why safeguarding others is vital to what we do both indiviually and collectively. Our main thought was that as God opened His hands and heart to us, so we need to do the same for other people. Several people took part, with all of these components featuring in the audio file for today. Here is the running order: 00:00 Opening Scripture 00:26 Prayer 1 01:04 Scene Setting 04:40 Talk 1 13:20 Survivor's Reflective Prayer 17:56 Talk 2 23:03 Prayer 2 24:55 Inte...
Mar 19, 2023•36 min
Jesus came to earth so that we could be reconciled with God and be changed. Now we can come to Him and go to others. Spending time with Jesus makes us want to do things for Him, because we become more like Him. Let us at least peep into other peoples' lives and intentionally bless them. Let us remember that Jesus is sufficient for us, but we are not self-sufficient. It is God who annoints us to work for Him. Let us become more child-like in our faith.
Mar 12, 2023•29 min
Why did Jesus come to earth? What did He have to say to the people He met physically around Galilee and in Jerusalem in the first century AD? What does He say to us now? Come! Don't stay where you are, but come to Jesus and do as He does.
Mar 05, 2023•34 min
Do we tell the truth and consider the reputation of other people in our conversations? Do we exaggerate? There is no need to exaggerate anything about God. He doesn't need that, but we do need to believe what He says. It's quite easy to exchange the truth about God with our own ideas. This might in the short-term make our lives seemingly easy, but we definitely need to obey God and not sacrifice who He is to our own pleasures and engrained habits. The Ten Commandments are not the Ten Suggestons....
Feb 26, 2023•27 min
We consider how things balance, or don't, in life. How much joy do you have from the stuff you already have, verses the desire for the stuff you don't have? The society around us tells us to grab, take and get. Jesus says, give, sacrifice and cherish. We all have plenty. How can you be a blessng to others through your plenty?
Feb 19, 2023•31 min
You may not considering murdering anyone or having sex with someone you're not married to, but this Talk reminds us that we can dash people to pieces with our words. We all have weaknesses that can lead to sin. We need to be patient with each other and encourage rather than belittle.
Feb 12, 2023•29 min
The Ten Commandments tell us how to live our lives in relationship with God, but they also tell us how to live well with other people. For many of us, honouring our parents is (or was) quite easy because they did so much for us. Do we show honour and respect to those who we deem don't deserve such a position though? Honouring others is seen throughout the Bible. The Parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us that everyone is our neighbour and we should show mercy and compassion in a practical way ...
Feb 05, 2023•29 min
God loves us very strongly and wants us to know Him much more than we currently do. If we're honest, even if we've been walking with God in our lives for many years, we hardly know Him at all! God instigated the Sabbath, first for the Jewish people and then for Christians, to give us a day for extra helpings of the Divine. Sometimes, like with Rabbis from centuries ago, we might taint the Sabbath with our good ideas. Let's use it to experience not only God's power, but also His kindness and gene...
Jan 29, 2023•32 min
God is bigger than everything as He created all things. We have chosen to have a relationship with God, so we should enter into a Covenant with Him. We need to understand both the blessings and warnings in such an agreement. God is jealous. We should not bow down, worship and serve other gods and idols. There will always be consequences to our attitudes and actions.
Jan 22, 2023•27 min
Who is God? There is no one like Him! Do we try to suggest that He serves us and our needs, rather than us serving Him?
Jan 15, 2023•27 min
We begin by looking at the context of when, why and how The Ten Commandments were originally given. They are certainly still relevant to learn about and to put into our lives in 2023. Most of us can hear physically quite well, even if we might need to use some type of aid to help us. As God is still speaking today, we need to concentrate on hearing God speak in our lives. As we spend regular amounts of time with God, so our lives will become radiant for Him. Let's not stand at a distance from Go...
Jan 08, 2023•36 min
Emmanuel was born in Bethlehem. God is still interacting and speaking with us. Nothing can separate us from His love! Emmanuel is still with us. Let us learn to become more familiar with His voice.
Dec 25, 2022•10 min
We have all experienced dramatic events in our livetimes - some were well known international events and others were of a more limited and personal nature. All of them were real and not made up. Jesus' birth in Bethlehem was dramatic, but was also real and not made up. Ask Jesus, our Immanuel, to be your personal Saviour. He is real and is still touching the lives of many around the world today.
Dec 18, 2022•19 min
We all hear annoucements through different mediums. One of the brilliant things about God is that He announced how He was dealing with the problem of sin in a loud and obvious way. When we have problems, it is often good to seek the help of someone else. Let's seek God as we consider our own problems with sin. God loves us all and has done everything to make it possible for us to have a relationship with Him.
Dec 18, 2022•19 min
God can step into lives when and wherever He chooses. He stepped into the lives of a barren couple and John the Baptist was later born. Let us make our life's intent to glorify God however He step into our lives.
Dec 11, 2022•36 min
Joshua 4:1-9 The Israelites had to get out of the mindset that they were in. They had to stop thinking about a Promised Land and live in the Possessed Land. What happened to the stones that were placed in the River Jordan? They were important, as they showed that God had brought them from something to something else. They were not a memorial, but a point of remembrance for what God had done. It was a marking in the land. God is here. God is present. God is inflation proof. He is not diminishing....
Dec 04, 2022•50 min
We briefly revisit what we have explored in previous Talks about Nehemiah's life and then we consider how when Nehemiah returned to Susa he was still ready to listen to God. Perhaps he might have hoped that his Mission to Jerusalem was complete, but when he heard that further problems were occurring back there (due to the people compromising with God) he went back and took drastic, yet appropriate action. Whatever our age, abilities or health, we probably haven't finished the Mission that God ha...
Nov 27, 2022•32 min
Nehemiah met three types of people when he went to Jerusalem to fulfill the mission God had given him. These were: those who helped him, those who opposed him and those who were not sure at that moment. We all have walls to build. What we do affects other people. How can we encourage other people in their wall building? We might often be weak, but let's use the opportunities that God gives us and seek to grow in the Fruit of the Spirit. May God help our attitudes to mature and not just our actio...
Nov 20, 2022•27 min
God shows His kindness, mercy and love to us. How should we respond? Is it ok to be wishy-washy with our faith or should we commit to follow and obey God wholeheartedly like the People of Judah did? Let's dedicate our lives to God, choosing to serve Him and be a blessing to others. Let's be ready for anything that God calls us to. God inclines Himself towards us in grace, let's taste and see that He is good!
Nov 13, 2022•35 min
How strong are you? Perhaps your inner strengths (of various qualities) are stronger than your physical strength? We look at various people in the Bible who showed great inner strength - perhaps even unexpected and realise that it is the joy of the Lord that gives us strength. This means knowing God well and wanting to be close to Him. We need to meet together regularly, to understand what the Bible says and to listen to the Holy Spirit. Let us pray that we will know God's unexpected strength in...
Nov 06, 2022•31 min
The response that Nehemiah's enemies gave about the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, were not the final response. Listen out for God even during times of opposition.
Oct 30, 2022•33 min
Nehemiah had to tackle the external problem of opposition and the internal problem of people not showing mercy and compassion to others. He was a good leader, as he saw both the physical reality and the divine reality. With the current problems we face as a nation and as individuals, it is simply not enough to say that we can rebuild our walls through good ideas and money. We desperately need God's ideas, God's power and God's tenacity. Let us put our trust and hope in Him. Whatever is coming ou...
Oct 23, 2022•34 min
Everyone is needed. Everyone is important. Everyone can be fruitful as they work for God. Opposition is likely to occur. A ruined wall doesn't glorify God, but as we stand and work together improving our skills and characters, then God will be glorified.
Oct 16, 2022•32 min
Nehemiah was very troubled by the news from Jerusalem. Things weren't going well there. He was in exile hundreds of miles away from his homeland and yet he wasn't powerless. He turned to God in persistent prayer. He waited and waited and after around four months God gave him the opportunity to do something practical about it. God gave him hope and so he persisted. As we pray we should not give up. Allow God to give you hope in your life, by keeping close to Him. Let the perspective of God's imme...
Oct 09, 2022•36 min
