Praying to our Sovereign Lord

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As we launch a new year, it’s a perfect time to recommit to a deep dependence on our sovereign Lord, as individuals and as a church.

Recently our staff have drafted a mission statement that seeks to help our church focus on three areas that we know will lead us towards our vision to see each person in our village, valley and region know how to follow Jesus and why it matters.

The first of the three phrases says we will “pray to our sovereign Lord.”

Since we believe that our Lord God brings all growth and that he is the one who brings a person to trust in him, this means that we want to be active and enthusiastic in asking him to deliver his promises.

As we grow in prayer, we find some great inspiration in Paul’s letters.

So, in Philippians he prays, “that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding.” (Philippians 1:9)

And for the Ephesians he ask them to pray for him, that God would give him, “the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.” (Ephesians 6:19)

And in Colossians he asks them to pray that, “God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ” and that he “will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.” (Colossians 4:3-4)

As we launch into 2023 may our church be passionate in praying that our love will overflow, that we’ll grow in knowledge and understanding, and that we’ll have many opportunities proclaim God’s message clearly.

Will you join us in praying like this in 2023?

JODIE McNEILL

(Photo credit: t-bet via Flickr.com)

Coming up this Sunday 1st January 2023

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This Sunday we are going to be hearing from God’s word as Stephen Holmes preaches to us on ‘I believe in The Holy Spirit’.

After our 9am service we’ll be enjoying brunch together, and after our 4pm service we’ll be having dinner.

We’d love you to join us in-person if you’re able, or watch our livestream at watch.jamberooanglican.com.

We’re really looking forward to seeing you on Sunday!

The Thrill of Hope – Christmas Day – Luke 2:25-32, Romans 8:18-25 – Jodie McNeill – 25 December 2022

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What gives you a thrill?

The thrill of hope follows _________

Simeon was _______ for the Messiah

Their waiting made them _____

Simeon knew the Messiah would come in his ________

God sent Simeon to the ______

Mary, Joseph and _____ were in the Temple

Simeon held his _______ in his arms

Simeon’s ______ had begun with the coming of Jesus

The world still feels ______

The whole creation is _____ with waiting

We long for the day when there is no more _____

We wait with eager ____

In our waiting we have the thrill of ____

We long for the return of Christ

The-Thrill-Of-Hope-Jodie-McNeill-Luke-225-32-Romans-818-25-Christmas-Day-2022Download

Church news for the week beginning 25th December 2022  

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OUR SERMON

This weekend we will be hearing from God’s word as Jodie McNeill preaches to us from Romans 8:18-25 on ‘The Thrill of Hope’.

CHRISTMAS DAY SERVICE

We are having a combined service at 9am on Christmas Day. There will not be a 4pm service on Sunday 25th December.

YOUTH GROUP

Our weekly youth group is in recess over the holidays but we’re still getting together with everyone each Sunday at church.  

MORNING PRAYER

Join us at 7 am every day (except Sunday) at zoom.jamberooanglican.com as we gather to read the Bible, pray, and encourage each other as the new day dawns.

DECEMBER & JANUARY BOOK OF THE MONTH

‘Enjoying God’ By Tim Chester.

We believe in God, we serve God, we trust God, but would we say that we enjoy God on a day to day basis?

What exactly does a personal relationship with God look like, and how is it even possible?

Tim Chester shows us how we can enjoy God in every moment of every day, whether we are experiencing good times or hard times; whether we are changing diapers, or stuck on a train. He explores how the Father, the Son and the Spirit relate to us in our day-to-day lives, and how to respond.

We have physical copies available for purchase over in the church hall. However, if you wish to order your own copy online or read via Kindle, you can do that here.

GIVING UPDATE

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. Last month, our average weekly giving was $5509.00, leaving a gap of $791.00. Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $273,000. Compared to that total we received $245,588, leaving a gap of $27,412.

Electronic giving is a great way to give! It helps us prayerfully plan our giving, and then the bank will help us keep that commitment, even when we may be unable to attend. To give by direct transfer then these are the NEW details. Account name: Jamberoo Anglican Church. Account number: 356831. BSB: 032605.

To give to our tax-deductible MTS Scholars Fund to support our apprentice youth minister, head to mts.com.au/give/jamberoo-anglican-church/

The Star of Bethlehem

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When most of us think of the star of Bethlehem, we think of the special astronomical event that happened at the time of the birth of Jesus, that alerted astrologers to the birth of a special king.

For we read in Matthew’s Gospel:

About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”

Matthew 2:1b-2

If you travel today to Bethlehem, you’ll see a much-newer star that is made out of metal on the marble floor of an underground room in the Church of the Nativity.

The image here is a photo I took of that location when Mandy and I visited a few years ago.

As with so many of the ‘holy sites’, this has little resemblance to the original setting at which the historical events of the Bible took place.

There was no stable, no manger, and nothing at all like the well-known nativity scenes that pop up at this time of the year around shopping centres.

Yet, if this location is correct, this site is the place where the creator of the universe breathed his first breath and cried his first cry.

The site is not to be revered, but as a physical location on a map, it reminds us afresh that the events of Christmas really took place.

The Son of God truly became man, and this man Jesus lived a life without sin so that at his death, he could take the punishment for our sin, in our place.

The star of Bethlehem is more of an ‘X Marks The Spot’ of the birth place of Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us!

That’s the greatest treasure in the world!

JODIE McNEILL

Coming up this Sunday 25th December 2022

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This Sunday on Christmas Day we are going to be hearing from God’s word as Jodie McNeill preaches to us on ‘The Thrill of Hope’.

We are having a combined Christmas service from 9am on Christmas Day.

There will not be a 4pm service on Christmas Day.

We’d love you to join us at 9am in-person if you’re able, or watch our livestream at watch.jamberooanglican.com.

We’re really looking forward to seeing you on Sunday!

1 Corinthians: A Loving Church – 10: Tough Love – 1 Corinthians 5 – Jodie McNeill – 18 December 2022

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The joy of community

We often talk about ourselves as a ______

Paul talks about us as being like the ______

God is now _______ in us by his Holy Spirit

As his temple, we must be ____

We prefer to be ____ rather than holy

Sexual __________ was in the Corinthian church

They boast in a sin that the world finds ________

Paul tells them to _____ this immoral man

The _______ disobedient person must be removed

Paul will have a ________ at the special meeting

This will help everyone see the ___________ of sin

They need to stop the sin from _________

They need to _______ the community

The death of Jesus dealt with ___ forever

Be like ____, not pigs!

Christians should ____ the sin and seek to stop

It’s right for us to ______ with our world

Don’t associate with Christians who _______ in sin

We must keep the church ____

We need to keep _______ our doors to unbelievers

We need to take sin _________ as Christians

A healthy family is ______ with each other

We are God’s presence in a world that needs Jesus

Tough-Love-Jodie-McNeill-1-Corinthians-5-18-December-2022Download

O Come All You Unfaithful

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I love the classic carol, ‘O come, all you faithful,’ but the sense of being ‘joyful and triumphant’ sometimes feels artificially upbeat.

I know that the song taps into the excitement of coming to Bethlehem to behold the one who was born the king of angels—the Word of the Father now in flesh appearing.

Yet, in our moments of weakness and weariness, this confident chorus can clash with our cries for help.

Indeed, we recall the words of the baby who grew to be a man, who said:

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

With this in mind, we have welcomed the creation of a new carol entitled, ‘O Come All You Unfaithful,’ by Bob Kauflin and Lisa Clow.

Here are some of the phrases in the song:

O come all you unfaithful, come weak and unstable, come know you are not alone; O come barren and waiting ones, weary of praying, come see what your God has done; O come bitter and broken, come with fears unspoken, come taste of His perfect love; O come guilty and hiding ones, there is no need to run, see what your God has done; So come though you have nothing, come He is the offering, come see what your God has done.

The sentiment is completely different to the triumphant cry of the classic carol… and this resonates with us in a way that touches our weary and troubled hearts.

This Christmas, come to the boy who became a man, who invites you today to find rest from your burdens as you trust in him and experience afresh the freedom of forgiveness and the certainty of eternity.

JODIE McNEILL

(Photo credit: Takashi Hososhima via Flickr.com)

Church news for the week beginning 18th December 2022 

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OUR SERMON

This weekend we will be hearing from God’s word as Jodie McNeill preaches to us from 1 Corinthians 5:1-13 on ‘Tough Love’.

OUR QUESTIONS

1 Is the Timothy in 1 Corinthians 4 the person Paul wrote his letters to?
2 What did you mean when you said that the Corinthian ministers had fancy teeth?
3 Are miraculous spiritual gifts still around today, and how do we know what’s genuine?
4 How can we discern between the work of the Holy Spirit and our feelings?
5 Can people be possessed by demons today?
6 Why does Jesus look like an earthly king on our church windows?
7 When he was on earth, did Jesus know what the future would like?
8 If you doubt God just before you die, will you go to hell?
9 Why do we celebrate Christmas if the Bible doesn’t tell us to?

CHURCHILL CAROLS

This Christmas Eve 24th December we’d love you to bring your friends and family to carols! Come along at 5pm for a free sausage sizzle with all-age outdoor games, then at 6pm we’re gathering for an hour-long, all-age carols service on the lawn, followed by gingerbread cookies and supper, plus more outdoor games.

If you are keen to serve our church and community at this event then please fill out the ‘Serve at Churchill Carols’ form. There are so many ways to serve and we need your help!

TOYS AND TUCKER

Please consider partnering with Anglicare for their annual Toys ’n’ Tucker appeal. Everything is online this year and it’s easy to help out. Gifts are purchased through the online store. Anglicare then collects the gifts and distributes them for you! You can purchase a gift from the online store here.

YOUTH GROUP

Our weekly youth group is in recess over the holidays but we’re still getting together with everyone each Sunday at church.  

MORNING PRAYER

Join us at 7 am every day (except Sunday) at zoom.jamberooanglican.com as we gather to read the Bible, pray, and encourage each other as the new day dawns.

DECEMBER & JANUARY BOOK OF THE MONTH

‘Enjoying God’ By Tim Chester.

We believe in God, we serve God, we trust God, but would we say that we enjoy God on a day to day basis?

What exactly does a personal relationship with God look like, and how is it even possible?

Tim Chester shows us how we can enjoy God in every moment of every day, whether we are experiencing good times or hard times; whether we are changing diapers, or stuck on a train. He explores how the Father, the Son and the Spirit relate to us in our day-to-day lives, and how to respond.

We have physical copies available for purchase over in the church hall. However, if you wish to order your own copy online or read via Kindle, you can do that here.

GIVING UPDATE

Each week we need to receive $6300.00 in order to meet our commitments. Last month, our average weekly giving was $5509.00, leaving a gap of $791.00. Up to the end of the last calendar month we needed to have received $273,000. Compared to that total we received $245,588, leaving a gap of $27,412.

Electronic giving is a great way to give! It helps us prayerfully plan our giving, and then the bank will help us keep that commitment, even when we may be unable to attend. To give by direct transfer then these are the NEW details. Account name: Jamberoo Anglican Church. Account number: 356831. BSB: 032605.

To give to our tax-deductible MTS Scholars Fund to support our apprentice youth minister, head to mts.com.au/give/jamberoo-anglican-church/

1 Corinthians: A Loving Church – 9: Loving Leadership – 1 Corinthians 4:14-21 – Jodie McNeill – 11 December 2022

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Who do are your spiritual parents?

Spiritual parents are a ________ from God

The apostles looked ____________

Paul said hard things because he _____ them

Their view of following Jesus was _____

When prosperity fails, _____ can be shattered

We need to know how to ______ well

Through the gospel they became ______

Paul wants them to _______ him

If you’re a ______, people will imitate you

We must treat Paul’s _______ as God’s word

Paul sent _______ to remind them of his ministry

They acted like Paul had ________ them

It’s best to say ‘God _______’

We need to see people living by God’s _____

Paul ___________ them as their spiritual parent

Loving church has _____ love

Loving-Leadership-Jodie-McNeill-1-Corinthians-414-21-11-December-2022Download