Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
NEW LIFE CHURCH CANTERBURY
LIFE TIMES
ISSUE 11 : MAY - JUNE 2015
Be transformed
Message from Pastor Aaron
BE TRANSFORMED
A few years ago I watched a movie called
transformers in which a young man bought himself
his first car, an old Chevrolet. He thought this car
was a wreck that didn't give him much "street cred",
so he drove around in it, almost ashamed & not knowing that the car
was an alien robot with incredible power until one day the car
transformed into its true nature. The boy's life changed forever and he
became a hero who literally saved the universe.
The lives of many Christians are like this. We walk around in our old
nature though a powerful being resides in us waiting for
transformation so that we can step into our destinies; to be the salt and
light of the world. Christians are destined to be world changers but
this will not happen unless our lives are transformed and what often
restricts this transformation is our mind-sets. The way we think can
have profound effects on how our lives are lived. The Bible says that
as a man thinks in his heart so he is (Proverbs 23:7), in other words,
what we will become depends on how we think.
We are told that "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old
things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” ( 2
Corinthians 5:17 NKJV) Yet we find the old nature raising its head far
too often for our liking. This paradox seems to exist in the life of many
Christians and often is as a result of the dominance of our flesh and
the un-renewed nature of our minds.
Many Christians have the desire to live a life worthy of their call but
often fail to know the perfect will of God. Like Paul stated in Romans 7,
they find themselves doing what they hate doing and this is so because
their minds are still conformed to the precepts (general rule intended to
regulate our behaviour) of the world and not of God. Until our minds
are renewed and we begin to know and understand the precepts of
God, we will continue to live as we did before we became Christians.
H ow do we renew our minds? It is the word of God
through His Spirit that renews our minds and this
renewal of mind is what leads to a truly transformed
life. This is why Paul made a plea in Romans
saying, “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and
acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2)
We have to study the word of God and allow it to have much purchase
on us. We also need to encourage and challenge each other to live like
Christians and to allow our life to be truly transformed in order for it to
be profitable to God's Kingdom.
So, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching
and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you
do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
to God the Father through Him.” (Colossians 3:16-17 NKJV)
. SOCIAL ISSUES BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE
Would you sacrifice
your job and
livelihood if it
threatened to make you
denounce or compromise your
confession of Christ’s lordship?
Would you be wiling to embrace
rejection from friends and family in
order to make a stand for the hope you
confess in Christ?
Would you be willing to risk
imprisonment or even death rather than
conform to contrary beliefs and
confessions about your relationship with
Jesus Christ?
Y ou may not have asked
yourself these questions
in the past few months,
year or even at all, but
these questions are being faced by
believers all across the world many
whom are coming to terms with the
consequences of their convictions and
confessions of faith in Jesus Christ.
Did you know that Christians are the
most persecuted religious group in the
world, and that ”an average of 180 Christians around the world are killed each month for their faith” while over
100 million others are facing various
other forms of persecution?
Christian persecution, that is, "any hostility experienced as a result of one’s identification with Christ; recent examples of which include imprisonment, torture, beheadings, rape, drowning, terrorist attacks and loss of home and assets.” is all over the news
these days. Media platforms are
inundated with reports of the violent
atrocities directed towards believers and
while this is not in any way a means of
magnifying Christian persecution above
the suffering experienced by people
from all walks of life, sadly, it does
amplify the fact that despite global
awareness of these atrocities, they still
seem to be going unchecked,
snowballing out of control and what’s
worse, running the risk of becoming an
accepted norm.
* ‘Christian Persecution’ The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
http://erlc.com/article/5-facts-about-christian-persecution
SOCIAL ISSUES BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE
As far removed as most of us may be
from the violence, there is another side
to this double edged sword which
comes in the form of non-violent
persecution
Reports show that non-violent
persecution despite not receiving as
much press, is also increasingly being
experienced by Christians the world
over “in their personal lives, through family, community and national spheres of life. Christians are often ostracized by family exclusion, the loss of a job or even rejection from a community.”
In an age where godlessness and
extremism seems to take centre stage, it
can become easy for many confessing
Christians to adopt a passive attitude
towards the harsh realities of what it
means to be a follower of Christ in this
day and age. However, we are not called
to bury our heads in the sand but to
recognise the signs of the times and act
accordingly. Scripture presents a
sobering reminder that all who would
wish to be considered faithful followers
will undoubtedly have a share in what
the Apostle Paul calls “the sufferings of
Christ” [Romans 8:17] so be it violent or
non-violent we all will face persecution
in this life. How then are we to live in
response to the knowledge of these
realities?
Be sober minded and vigilant - 1
Peter 5:8:9 “your enemy the devil
prowls around like a roaring lion
looking for someone to devour.
Resist him, standing firm in the
faith, because you know that the
family of believers throughout the
world is undergoing the same kind
of sufferings.
Be prayerful - Ephesians 6:18 “pray in the Spirit on all occasions
with all kinds of prayers and
requests. With this in mind, be alert
and always keep on praying for all
the Lord’s people.”
Be prepared - 1 Peter 3:15-18 ”to
give an answer to everyone who
asks you to give the reason for the
hope that you have.
Be persistent - Matt 10:22 ”You
will be hated by everyone because
of me, but the one who stands firm
to the end will be saved.
NEW LIFE @ THE HUB
The Hub is our city centre base
intended to be a place of blessing for
those in the church as well as a
resource and platform from which we
can serve and impact our City and
local community.
Strategically located at Unit 15b,
Roper Close, the building is within
easy access to the high street,
Canterbury West train station and
along a main bus route serving the
heart of the city. As well as using the
space for much needed ministry within
the church, we seek to facilitate
bespoke programs that will help the
church spread the gospel to our
community.
Scripture reminds us that “the Harvest
is plentiful but the labourers are few.” I
therefore ask that you pray for the
Lord of the Harvest to send in more
labourers. I also ask that you all step
forward and offer your service in the
Lord’s harvest field and in helping us
minister God’s love and Grace to our
city .
Here are some of the programs that
will be running from The Hub; I hope
you will take full advantage of them
and where possible volunteer to help
run them.
Café Church. Every 2nd Sunday of
the month.
Cre8ive Youth Night. Every 4th
Friday of the month
Daughters of Destiny. (Women’s
ministry) – Dates to be announced
Ignite (18-25 evening service). Every 2nd Thursday of the month (term time
only)
Inspire Dance Academy. (Dance classes for under 18s) – T.B.C
(volunteers needed)
Men of Integrity (Men’s ministry) .
Dates to be announced
Prayer and Praise Service. Every 3rd
Sunday of the month
Relate or the Married/Engaged Couples Gathering. Every last
Sunday of the month
Family Brunch. hosted by Praisers.
Every 2nd Saturday of the month
Firm Foundations Discipleship Programme - Seven week course every Monday. Oct/Nov, Feb/Mar
and June/July.
Pastor Aaron
Youth & Sunday School meet every Sunday morning and all our workers
are DBS checked.
Every third Sunday of the month .
Join us for an extended time of prayer,
thanksgiving, praise and intercession.
HIGHLIGHTS
Monday 4th May: Corporate prayer and fasting. 6am—6pm with early morning prayer at The Hub.
Saturday 9th May: Family brunch. 10:30am at The Hub
Sunday 17th May: Evening service @ The Hub
Saturday 23rd May: CONNECT Leaders Training @ The Hub
Sunday 24th May: Volunteers Lunch: 2pm - 4pm @ The Hub
MAY 2015
HIGHLIGHTS
Monday 4th May: Corporate prayer and fasting. 6am—6pm with early morning prayer at The Hub.
Saturday 9th May: Family brunch. 10:30am at The Hub
Sunday 17th May: Evening service @ The Hub
Saturday 23rd May: CONNECT Leaders Training @ The Hub
Sunday 24th May: Volunteers Lunch: 2pm - 4pm @ The Hub
HIGHLIGHTS
Monday 1st June: Corporate prayer and fasting. 6am—6pm with early morning prayer at The Hub.
Wednesday 3rd June: Baptism Service. 7pm @ St Andrews URC
Sunday 7th June: Empowered For Success Leavers Service & Networking Event. 10:30am - 2pm, Woolf Lecture Theatre
Saturday 13th June: Summer Fete. 12noon - 4pm, St Stephens Junior School.
JUNE 2015
There are several ways to serve
and participate in the life of
the Church on a regular basis.
Contact any ministry leader to
see how you can get serving.
Admin & Comms: Caroline Agoi
CONNECT Groups: Joanna Addison
Men: Pastor Shadreck Chikomba
Missions: Nicholas Stephenson
Multimedia: Pastor Will White
New Life Choir: Josh Sebu
New Life Drama: Lanre Kassim
Prayer Ministry: Ronke Adeyanju
Sunday School: Judith Stephenson
Welcome/Hospitality: Akua Berko
Women: Violet Chikomba
Worship team: Pastor Will White
Youth: Lanre Kassim
SERVE IN MINISTRY
CONNECT GROUPS
These are a GREAT place for
developing meaningful relationships as
you CONNECT with GOD, with
OTHERS and with the VISION for the
Church. We encourage everyone to take
part, grow and reach out as a blessing.
Groups meet on Tuesdays and
Thursdays at different locations across
the city led by the following leaders:
Amanda Naude & Rebecca Odunaike
Caroline Agoi
Daniel Acheampong & Sheyi Kuyinu
David Kasule & Jennifer Amani
Francis Darko & Christine Ofosu-Ampadu
Jed Nkansah-Yeboah & Aaron Thompson
Joshua Sebu & Bukunmi Taiwo
Justice & Joanna Addison
Linda Mathe & Andrew Bonsu
Nii Noi & Kafui Osuteye
Shelly Anne-Fung & Abigail King
Email [email protected] or
contact [email protected] for
more information on joining a group
RACE TO 1000 GRAND TOTAL!
T his year’s race has yet again been a successful fundraising drive for
the church. With a focus on the Herne Bay Church plant , these
funds will go towards necessary resources needed to offer ministry
and set up community programmes in the area . Many thanks for
being a part of this and Congratulations to all the groups and individuals who
made this possible.
Jesus at the Centre | Everyone Growing | Everyone Taking Part | Loving one another | Reaching out as a blessing
On Sunday mornings we come together in
a big two hour celebration service to
worship God and hear dynamic teaching.
We want Jesus to be at the centre of
everything we do and we believe every
service should be a life changing
experience for all those who attend. You
are very welcome to join us; refreshments
are served from 10am.
Woolf College, The Pavilion, Giles Lane.
University of Kent. Canterbury. KENT.
CT2 7BQ
01227 827524
We run a minibus service all year so feel
free to hop on board if you would like a lift
to and from service on Sundays
9:45 am: Parham Road
9:50 am: Dominos car park
10:10am: Canterbury East Station
The return journey leaves campus at
12:50pm every Sunday. Please be at the
pick up points at least five minutes before
time to avoid delays.
TRANSPORT SERVICE
We are here
KEEP INFORMED - KEEP IN TOUCH
WWW.newlifecanterbury.org l @NLCCanterbury l /NLCcanterbury
HOW TO FIND US
