Spreading the Word – MCF 2017 review

Through the continued love of Jesus and ‘Making Christ First’ we look forward with anticipation to 2018 in the knowledge and faith that God will do wonderful things

Source: Moments With The Book

God has done some amazing things at MCF during the course of 2017 and it is fantastic to see how He uses what would seem to be a small group of people, (compared to other fellowships/churches) to do great things. Our Pastor, lovingly refers to us as a motley crew and Praise God that He has brought together a diverse range of people with different personalities and gifting’s to do His work and to bring His Kingdom here on earth. We thank God for all of the people in our Fellowship and we thank God for the honour of the Ministries that He has laid on our hearts. Through the continued love of Jesus and ‘Making Christ First’ we look forward with anticipation to 2018 in the knowledge and faith that God will do wonderful things. We thank God and give Him all the glory for everything He has done in 2017 and we look forward to 2018 in anticipation of the next stage of our journey.

As 2017 draws to a close we thought it would be a real blessing to share some popular blog articles that members of our congregation and some guests have posted throughout the year.  We have been publishing a new article each Sunday for just under two and a half years and God has blessed the blog to receive over 245,000 views from all over the World. Matthew 24:14 ‘And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come’.

The blog articles below are not listed in any order of popularity. If you click on the article title you will be directed to the relevant article. Why not also take the time to listen to some of the fantastic worship songs which you will find at the end of each article. You will also find other Words of God, Teachings and Testimonies in our blog archive at the right-hand side of the main blog page and if you would prefer to listen to our 2017 online sermons then take a look at our new MCF website (link) or go directly to the message online (link).  Be blessed.

Expect a miracle
A work in progress
Demonstrating the Lord’s Grace and Wisdom
Who determines the circumstances of our lives
The abundance of God’s Grace and Mercy
Seek first the Kingdom of God at all times
Choices, Choices, Choices !!
There is power in the name of Jesus
Do we miss the chance to love?
The joy of Salvation
Whoever has ears.....
How do I know I'm a Christian?
Who am I
Cast your cares on the Lord
Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you
God always shows up
What is your ‘Come to Jesus story’
Please forgive me
Courage
From Darkness to Light

As a fellowship, we pray that God's Word speaks into the hearts and minds of those who read and receive it and that lives are changed forever as a result. We give all Glory to God and pray that people Make Christ First in their lives. Amen.

Wishing everyone a happy and blessed New Year from everyone at MCF Life Church. Matthew 6:33 ‘But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well’.

Author: Gary O'Neill (MCF Blog Editor)

May God bless and enrich your life

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From Darkness to Light

When all hope seems lost, when things seems impossible, when life is just too difficult, then turn it all over to Jesus. There is nothing that He cannot resolve

Source: 1onONE with Damon Davis

I grew up in a Christian family, attending my local Sunday School with my sister and brother. However unfortunately, I do not remember too much of my childhood, but I knew in my heart that God was around me. My school days were not a happy time for me due to the dreaded bullies and nasty words which stuck with me for a very long time. When I think about those times now, I realise that I kept a lot of it to myself, not telling my parents as I did not want to burden them with my troubles. I now realise however that this was my downfall; not talking; keeping my mouth shut, and at 29 I had a complete breakdown. As you can imagine this was a particularly challenging time. I refused to leave the safety of my home, my safe place, not wanting to look at people, saying to myself 'If people cannot see me then they won't say anything bad.' Thankfully, after quite a few sessions with three different counsellors I managed to undo some very big knots, and I learned and developed a few techniques to help me.

Through all of this turmoil I had a sense of Jesus being with me, knowing that I had to deal with my anxiety in a way He wanted me to. I knew Jesus would not leave me, but sometimes I felt very alone to the point where I became lost in my despair. I reached for an end to it and taking a knife from its holder was what I thought was the answer. This is the point where I heard my mother’s voice in my head saying; 'suicide is a chicken’s way out', which momentarily stopped me, and I thought of the people I would be leaving behind. In that very moment I thought to myself that I should keep going but realised that I needed a hand. This I got from my family and a true family friend who got me out of my safe place and into the world I did not like. Eventually I got back to a way of thinking I could manage and settled into a job and life.

Source: Free Christian Wallpapers, HD Christian Backgrounds 

Recently when I lost my father and our family dog, whom I went through a lot of tough times with, I hit my limit again, but not to the extreme of last time. This was for two reasons:

Reason one -  I found that Jesus has put things in me, on my life's path that I took up and stored away for just these occasions, saying to me that I was not alone and that I would never be alone again, He was always here with me; Hebrews 13:5 ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you'.

Reason two - Jesus put me in the hands of my boyfriend Phil, who has taken me on a journey that has, and is, opening my eyes to the things I have missed out on due to me allowing my demons at the forefront of my life. Ephesians 1:18 ‘I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people’.

I have learnt from going to MCF Life Church with Phil and his Sister Juliet to leave the past where it belongs; in the past, and to look forward, to forgive my tormentors, which took me a long time to do, however recently I have achieved this again by talking with Phil and working it out. Today is a new start for me and my family, we have just moved from Worcestershire into Warwickshire and we are now turning to a fresh new page in our life book. 

When all hope seems lost, when things seems impossible, when life is just too difficult, then turn it all over to Jesus. There is nothing that He cannot resolve. Jeremiah 32:27 ‘I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?’ Praise God. If you are in a dark place at the moment, then do not despair, even though it might not seem like it now, there is a solution, there is an answer and there is hope. If you do not know Jesus then call on Him, He will hear your prayers. If you know someone who knows Jesus, then ask them to pray with you. My testimony show that Jesus turned my life around and He can do the same for you too.  Be blessed.

Hebrews 13:6 ‘So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?’

Author: Vicki Long

May God bless and enrich your life

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Search Me, O God

People crave ‘ministries', have pride in ‘their ministries’ hold on to them as personal territories and perhaps even fight over them! They can be regarded as rewards, prizes, position, recognition and entitlement without due regard to the mind of God on the matter and the way in which He holds us to account

Source: Calvary Baptist Church- Kinston

I suppose that this blog has sprung up from reading Jeremiah again and being astounded at the job he was given, the age at which God called him, where the job took him and what demands were made on his life over a long period of time. Just like Jeremiah; Gideon, Moses, Paul and Daniel are a few other characters in scripture who were not looking for a ‘ministry’. In fact, Jeremiah, Moses and Elijah – three of the biblical prophets went on record as being thoroughly ‘fed up’ with the task that the Lord had given them. For example, in Exodus 4:13 Moses asks: ‘please send someone else’ and in Exodus 5:22-23 ‘things have not got better only worse’, Elijah in 1 Kings 14:19 says; ‘I’m the only one left and they are trying to kill me too’ and in Jeremiah 15:10 ‘O that I had never been born’! These are by no means the only places where scripture points to suffering accompanying those who obey a calling from the Lord. (Read Hebrews 11:36–38 for yourselves).

In John 15:18-19, Jesus, our best authority on everything, said ‘If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you’. In Luke 6:26 Jesus also says that the opposite can be true; ‘Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets’. These biblical examples are a context not often associated with the idea of ‘ministry’ today. People crave ‘ministries’, have pride in ‘their ministries’ hold on to them as personal territories and perhaps even fight over them! They can be regarded as rewards, prizes, position, recognition and entitlement without due regard to the mind of God on the matter and the way in which He holds us to account. Scripture on the other hand provides significant warnings about the consequences of misleading the innocent, Matthew 18:6-7 ‘If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me - to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come!’ and in James 3:1 remarks that teachers will be held more responsible; ‘Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly’.

The Old Testament recounts a number of stories of prophets who either disobey or apparently make mistakes and pay severely. Jeremiah 29:31-32 includes a number of warnings for false prophets and false shepherds like Shemaiah; ‘This is what the LORD says… Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, even though I did not send him, and has persuaded you to trust in lies, this is what the LORD says: I will surely punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. He will have no one left among this people, nor will he see the good things I will do for my people, declares the LORD, because he has preached rebellion against me.’?Also, Hananiah in Jeremiah 28:15-17; ‘Listen, Hananiah! The LORD has not sent you, yet you have persuaded this nation to trust in lies.  Therefore, this is what the LORD says: ‘I am about to remove you from the face of the earth. This very year you are going to die, because you have preached rebellion against the LORD. In the seventh month of that same year, Hananiah the prophet died’.

Source: Daily Bible Readings - WordPress.com

We must be careful not to grab something and make it ‘our ministry’ rather than something that the Lord has simply asked us to do. If its ‘my ministry’ and we pursue our own path we may easily be seduced into seeking only those things that are seen to be successful in human terms. Success in man’s terms tends to be associated with things like popularity, influence, money, numbers, reputation and following. People are apt to forget that Jesus - the greatest man that ever lived - was forsaken by many later in His ministry when He told them the truth (John 6:66). Our temptation can be to encourage people by giving them good news, but the danger is that we give this out of our own hearts ‘in the name of the Lord’. Jeremiah and other bible authors in their turn remind their generation; ‘the prophets who preceded you and me have prophesied war, disaster and plague against many countries and great kingdoms. But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the LORD only if his prediction comes true’ (Jeremiah 28:8-9).

Success in God’s terms has often involved exclusion, injury, hunger, shipwreck, prison and martyrdom. Jesus warned His followers in Luke 9:23 ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me’. At one-point Jeremiah was so burdened by his ill treatment that he determined to say no more: ‘So the word of the LORD has brought me insult and reproach all day long. But if I say, ‘I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,’ his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot’ (Jeremiah 20:8-9). Baruch, Jeremiah’s scribe was warned not to seek favour for himself when all of the world was in chaos. God said in Jeremiah 45:5 ‘Should you then seek great things for yourself? Do not seek them. For I will bring disaster on all people, declares the LORD, but wherever you go I will let you escape with your life’. In other words, like today, the world as they knew it was being shaken and God rebuked Baruch for trying to seek a more comfortable place and position for himself – He said; ‘be content that in this chaos I will preserve your life wherever you go’.

So, what are we to make of this? In the West, our Christianity can easily follow the changing culture of the world. We seem to readily assimilate worldly values into our faith and churches. Those that are ‘successful’ - often seen, easily heard, assertive in making their giftings known, and competitive - are frequently regarded as being in the ascendance and attract imitators and followers. In contrast, in scripture the ‘man of God’ was often found in the jail, stocks, or cemetery! Paul said that people regarded him as being rather contemptible in appearance and flawed in speech. His sometimes sad second letter to Timothy finds him cold and in prison knowing that he was near the end of his race. The true gifts and callings of God are often associated with trials and tests of different kinds.

We must be careful not to be over-eager to speak over and into people’s lives as ‘thus says the Lord’ (read Jeremiah 23) without checking out that we are actually carrying a message from Him. There is every chance that the Lord will hold us accountable for words that spring from our own hearts. I guess that good ways to check include: ‘Do I really love this person with the love of Jesus?’; ‘Does the message tie up with scripture?’; ‘Am I willing to pay a price for being the Lord’s messenger?’ and ‘Is this word like a burning fire shut up in my bones?’

Let’s be aware always that we serve an awesome and Holy God and that his gifts (which Paul urges us to seek earnestly) and callings are not a route to recognition but rather to serve as warnings for this generation and the building up of the church.

Author: Chris Pearson

May God bless and enrich your life

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Jesus - The true gift of Christmas

MCF Life Church - Christmas Message 2017

It is a sad reflection of how society has made celebrating Christmas, anything other that what it really is. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ, the greatest gift you could ever receive and it's absolutely free to every one of us.

Source: Freedomborn's Christmas Blessings

As Christmas draws ever closer it reminds me of when I was a child and how excited I would get at the thought of Santa leaving me presents to open on Christmas morning. As with most children once 4am came along my siblings and I were up and out of bed, tearing through our stockings which were hanging on the end of our beds. I always used to wonder how Santa did that without me hearing him? The other thing I could never work out was why every year he would put a piece of coal at the bottom of my stocking and what on earth he expected me to do with it! I didn't mind the shiny sixpence though! (Just under 3p for those born after decimalisation). Then at 4.01am we would try to sneak past our parents room to get to the Christmas tree and all the presents without waking them up, something that we never managed to do however quiet we were. It wasn't until we had our own children, that we realised that our parents had only just gone to bed and hadn't actually managed to go to sleep, before we emerged trying to stealthily shoot past their bedroom door. It certainly explained why they would quickly fall asleep while we were watching the re-run of either 'Mary Poppins' or 'Chitty, Chitty Bang Bang', shortly after eating our Christmas dinner. These days it is films such as 'Home Alone' 1, 2 and 3 instead.

It now gives me as much excitement and pleasure to watch our grandchildren going through exactly the same anticipation and excitement (minus the piece of coal and shiny sixpence of course), at this time of year, as I did when I was a child. I also have the immense privilege of being able to contrast all the glitter and commercialism that bombards the youth of today, by telling my grandchildren the truth about Christmas and why it's so special. Each year my wife and I take part in 'Journey to the stable' which is the nativity story brought to life at the beginning of December at 'Southfields Farm' in Coleshill where local schools bring classrooms of children to see the story acted out by real people and real animals. This is an absolute joy as I get to see the look of amazement and wonder on the faces of the children when they not only see the people and animals but a real baby in the arms of Mary. (We've been blessed over the last few years with a child being born just before Christmas and the mom agreeing to play Mary in the stable with her child). We've heard a lot of the children when they see the baby say in amazement, ‘Look it's a real baby'!

Source: Google Plus

What do you look forward to at this time of year? So many people get caught up with wondering what to buy people for Christmas and hate the thought of pushing through the crowds at the shops as it all becomes so stressful and completely unenjoyable that they can't wait for Christmas to be over. It is a sad reflection of how society has made celebrating Christmas, anything other that what it really is. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ, the greatest gift you could ever receive and it's absolutely free to every one of us. Jesus has already paid the price for you to receive this gift which is Eternal Life, and along with it, to know His peace in your hearts, even through the greatest trials and tribulations in your life. So why not let the stress that society would put on you go, and accept and celebrate Jesus this Christmas. The clue is in the Name...CHRISTmas.

This is the truth of Christmas: 

Isaiah 9:6 ‘For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace’ 

Luke 2:21 ‘On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived’

Have a blessed Christmas and New Year.

Author: Kevin Hunt 

May God bless and enrich your life      
   
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God’s plans are always better than our own

If you are seeking direction, particularly regarding a work situation, be assured that it's not that you're not capable, it is that God has something else in mind for you. His plans are always so much better than our own!!

Source: Biblia.com

I remember a situation
where I was asked if I would consider applying for a position which was about to be re-advertised for a one to one helper with a child with very specific learning difficulties. I was also told that, to date, no-one who had previously applied was suitable for the position. The person added that because I had worked in lots of different capacities and environments that I had an excellent skill-set and my multi-discipline experience would be invaluable. I explained that I was really happy in my current job and had no desire to swap roles and to work with just one child. During the next few days both the person who had contacted me and one of her colleagues, badgered, coerced and pleaded with me to apply. Eventually I gave in and agreed to apply. I went to the interview and all seemed to go well. The Deputy Head (the person who encouraged me to apply), his colleague and a trustee were conducting the interview and at the end of I was told by the Deputy Head that he would let me know the outcome by two o’clock that day as they had one further person to interview. However, three o'clock came and went and by four o'clock I realised that it was highly likely that I hadn't got the job. At 4.30pm the phone rang and surprisingly it wasn't the Deputy Head’s voice that I heard but the voice of the person who asked me to go for the interview in the first place. After the pleasantry greeting of ‘hello’ there was such a long awkward pause that I put her out of her misery and said; ‘it’s okay I know I haven't got the job, don't feel awkward’. She was so grateful I'd let her off the hook and went onto explain that the parents of the child had taken legal action against the education department, for a place for their child and that this was being covered heavily by the press. Someone else had applied on the very last day who had years of experience dealing with this particular type of need, so they had no choice but to give her the position.

Source: Sweet Blessings

The next morning, I had lots of photo-copying to do before school began and practically every teacher that passed by told me very loudly that they were really upset for me and how I must be really upset and angry as I was more than capable of doing the job. My reply to everyone was the same; 'if it had been in God’s will I would have got the job, but He obviously had different plans for me'. I was located near enough to the Deputy Head Teacher’s office for him to hear all the conversations in my office. His door was open and eventually he beckoned me into his office. He looked really embarrassed and asked if I would like to have any feedback from the interview. I replied that I was more than capable of doing the job and that I had no problem that they had chosen someone else. I didn't want to waste his time, or mine by expounding on my interview and told him that I needed to get back to my job, and turning swiftly I exited his office.

The interesting part is that just as this child was about to start school I was off work with pleurisy (in 30 years of working history I had hardly taken a day off work prior to this), and I was absent for three weeks. I am so thankful that God knew what was going to happen because if I had been successfully in getting the job, I would have been devastated at being off sick and unable to fulfil my commitment at this really important bonding time. I was perfectly capable of doing the job, but God had other plans for me, plans to prosper me and not harm me; Jeremiah 29:11 ‘For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’.

So, if you are seeking direction, particularly regarding a work situation, be assured that it's not that you're not capable, it is that God has something else in mind for you. His plans are always so much better than our own!! Matthew 6:33 ‘But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well’

May God bless you.

Author: Lyn Hunt

May God bless and enrich your life

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