Well, we’ve almost made it to the end of our mammoth journey through the Old Testament book of Judges, but not without one more display of just what life is like when people walk away from the true and living God. This weekend we’ll see two, dramatic examples of idolatry and immorality, and it’s pretty full-on, to be honest.

But God has given us this bit of the Bible to help us know him and ourselves a whole lot more, so we’re going to bite down on the mouthguard, buckle up our seatbelts, and hold on! I’ll be preaching on the final five chapters of Judges.

As a follow-up to last week’s talk on Samson (and Delilah), we have a bunch of questions. I’ll be answering these on Saturday and Sunday:

1 What does the name ‘Samson’ mean?
2 Since Samson was bad, why didn’t God leave his side?
3 Was Samson literally ‘sick to death’ of his wife’s nagging?
4 How did Samson not realise that the Lord left him as soon as his hair was cut?
5 As Samson’s hair regrew, was his relationship with God also being restored?
6 Since the Lord is outside of time does that give insights into the ‘intermediate state’?
7 Since Christians are immediately with Christ after death then are non-Christians immediately in Hell, and will they be re-judged on the final day?
8 Why are there so many cases of mental illness and suicide if God truly loves us?

So, come along and be part of the action this weekend at 5pm on Saturday, which is ideal for all ages (featuring a creche and two kids’ programs), followed by a hearty dinner, then our youth group program. Or come along at 9am on Sunday morning for a more ‘classic’ Anglican-style service, followed by delicious espresso coffee.

If you’ve not come before or for a long time, then this will be a good weekend to join us. And if you’re a regular, why not bring along a friend to check out our great, little church in Jamberoo!

Grace and peace, Jodie.

One of the Bible’s most famous ‘power couples’ is Samson and Delilah… but for all the bad reasons. This dysfunctional couple represent so much that is wrong with the way that God’s people have acted in their worst moments of history. Yet, our Lord God worked through the extraordinary circumstances of Samson to bring deliverance to his troubled people.

This is the topic of this weekend’s Bible talk, as we consider Samson, who was both sinner and saint, and who acts as a most-unlikely saviour to God’s people.

During our church services we’ll be having answers to these questions which you asked over the last week or two:

1 Since Jephthah was foolish to make his oath, why did he still keep it instead of admitting his folly?
2 Why didn’t God provide an animal for Jephthah instead of his daughter?
3 If a spouse leaves the marriage without mediation should the deserted spouse seek to negotiate?
4 If someone bullies you then should you negotiate or retaliate?
5 What happens to Christians in the time between when we die and when Jesus returns?
6 Why is it so hard to forgive people when they say sorry, but keep doing the wrong thing?
7 What do you do if your friend shuts you down when you try and talk to them about God?

We’re also looking forward to celebrating ‘CMS Sunday’ at our services this weekend, which is a great way to help keep global outreach to the whole world on our agenda.

So, please come and join us. The action begins at 5pm on Saturday, with all-age church and a kids’ program, followed by an awesome dinner and then youth program. Or be with us at 9am on Sunday for a more classic kind of Anglican service, followed by terrific espresso coffee.

If you’ve never joined us before, then this is the perfect weekend to break the ice and be part of the special things that God is doing in our awesome village and valley of Jamberoo.

Grace and peace, Jodie.

Someone asked me this week about how church is going, and I was delighted to share that lots of people are joining us every week. If you’re thinking about coming along for the first time, then it’s likely that others will be new, too!

Our Bible Talk for this week is the topic ‘The Limitations of Negotiations’ from Judges 10:6-12:15, as we continue our series from the book of Judges in the Bible, in our series ‘Hope Beyond Chaos’. It certainly was a time of chaos in this era more than twelve centuries before Christ. In this episode we see how one guy tried some fancy negotiations with others and with God, and how they turned out to be a tragic disaster.

We’ve got a bunch of questions that have been asked by you over the past two weeks, and of these, here are seven that I’m going to answer this week (with the other five carried over to later weeks):

1 Why did God lead his people into battle when it’s a sin to kill or murder?
2 Why did Abimelech scatter salt over the ground after he captured the city?
3 What is going to happen in the ‘end times’?
4 Can people predict the second coming of Jesus?
5 What is ‘the Rapture’ and the seven years of tribulation?
6 When we pray “your kingdom come” are we praying for the coming of the Millennium?
7 How can you rebuke someone if they won’t listen?

So, please come along and join us this weekend, and tell your friends to come, too! We meet at 5pm on Saturdays, with creche, kids’ program, dinner, then youth group. Also we meet at 9am on Sundays, with a more ‘classic’ Anglican service, followed by tasty morning tea with espresso coffee.

We’d really, really love to see you this weekend!

Grace and peace, Jodie.