Sunday, March 29, 2015

29 March 2015 - ENCS

The 'Grace Changes Everything' series was continued by Rachel Ong
She spoke about "Encounters With Jesus" with a sermon quite strong
Starting with Zacchaeus the tax collector in Luke chapter nineteen
To the short wealthy man in the crowd, Jesus was unable to be seen
So Zaccheaus climbed a sycamore tree in order to get a better view
Jesus saw him and shocked all with what he said he was going to do
At the tax collector's house that night He was going to eat and stay
The sinner Zaccheaus' entire life was thus transformed right away
No more shame and guilt, Jesus has healed Zaccheaus' soul
Which, whether a person was rich or poor, was Jesus' goal
The public and the Pharisees did not fathom this amazing grace
But Jesus knew what He was doing for this was not a test case
Once Zaccheaus' life was transformed, he made it up to the poor
Doing the math, Rachel said, he eradicated poverty and then more
 
Rachel then shared a video on Reena, who at 28 lost her sight
It took Reena quite a long time to accept her unfortunate plight
But once she used a cane, allowing God to provide the guidance
Her attitude changed, refusing to let the blindness be a hindrance
Reena now believes that her blindness is actually a blessing
Helping others and making a difference is far from distressing
 
Reena joined in person so her own testimony with us she did share
She grew up a Hindu but now to God and Jesus she goes in prayer
When she first heard John 3:16, Reena first felt inner peace
Now, per Psalm 119, God's guidance for her does not cease
She finds she is able to use her other senses better now
She is courageous, as Deuteronomy 31 tells her how
Once she learned Braille, the Bible she was able to read
Reena says that God is now with her, fulfilling every need
God enables her to bless others and impact many lives
Helping the poor, orphans, and sick wherever she arrives
For her daily encounters with God ensure His light shines
And that her daily activities are consistent with His designs
 
In summary, it can perhaps be said that man's disappointment
Often times provides an opportunity for a Godly appointment
But an encounter with Jesus does not mean no suffering
In fact, some suffering is often what glory does to us bring
But when that happens, as Rachel and Reena discussed
Per many verses in the Bible, in God we must fully trust

Monday, March 23, 2015

22 March 2015 - ENCS

The "Grace Changes Everything" series Pastor Josh did continue
"Is Change Really Possible" was the sermon topic he did pursue
Grace is something God gives us that we do not deserve
It must be given by Him, and can not earned, we do observe
Many of us ask for forgiveness instead of for help to change
Repentance actually involves a complete directional exchange
Many of us do as Josh's professor said and turn 360 degrees
But by turning to God He can change us and forgive with ease
Remembering that we should be driven by a relationship
Not an encounter with God every time we may sin or slip
 
Before talking about the core passage of John chapter five
Josh shared how Jesus kept the royal official's son alive
For the lesson in John chapter four from verse forty three
Is that believing Jesus, not merely hearing Him, is the key
The Holy Spirit allows each of us to have Jesus inside
And thus always be available to act as a trusted guide
The enemy will challenge us about what God did say
We should remember that following God is the best way
What changed Josh was seeing that this was the case
We don't need to fall off a cliff to receive God's grace
For hearing His voice helps us to understand His love
And reminds us of the path that pleases Him above
The Sermon on the Mount are guiding words from heaven
Which provide us with steps of happiness numbering seven
In relationships with God and others we should invest
That matters more than career, money, and the rest
 
Josh then moved onto the healing of the invalid by the pool
For thirty eight years he waited, others may have been cruel
Over time, if our identity becomes linked to a disease
It becomes a stranglehold and our heart it does seize
That often allows the devil to a place in our heart reside
Which can sometimes lead hope from our hearts to hide
Instead of letting our pasts freeze us and prevent change
Remember from grace and mercy God will never us estrange
Jesus knew the man's situation and was willing to fix it
It turned out that a simple act of belief was the ticket
Jesus told him to get up, take his mat, and to walk
In other words, to stop the excuses and mere talk
For excuses need to be silenced for change to occur
To Jesus' life-empowering words we can then defer
 
One word from Jesus overcame thirty eight years
Available to all, His power can overcome our fears

Sunday, March 8, 2015

8 March 2015 - ENCS

Scott Douma from EN Japan gave the sermon today
He spoke on hope, which everyone wants every day
He said buying lottery tickets is not the way to go
For as Christians, we have real hope, that we know
Interestingly hope and rope share the same Hebrew root word
For rope can connect us to whatever we want, we then heard
Connecting with God links His promise to our reality
Per Hebrews six nineteen, like an anchor hope will be
An anchor is large and brings stability in every storm
Having hope in God means stability will be our norm
God is with us and He cannot lie, Pastor did go on to say
He keeps His promises, not always in the expected way
Our hope in finances and relationships will eventually disappear
We should put our hope in Jesus, for He will always be near
 
If we are not connected, per Hebrews two verse one
We end up drifting, which is more dangerous than fun
To God and His promises, we need to connect every day
Life is not meant to be drifted, at least in a spiritual way
For ups and downs and movement, a ship's anchor does allow
Similarly Romans eight verse thirty nine is still quite valid now
Whether hoped-for miracles happen or not, God is always there
Despite the reality of a world of broken people everywhere
Without such hope, our rope would soon get very frayed
Jesus' purpose was to connect us to God, so He prayed
He became that rope to God when He died on the cross
And since God now lives in us, His death was not a loss
 
Pastor referred to Jeremiah chapter twenty nine verse eleven
"Plans to prosper...and not harm" come from God in heaven
What is oft forgot is that these words came during dark days
Israel was in decline and exile as a result of its errant ways
But we have "hope and a future" because of God's great nature
He is with us and cannot lie, so of His promises we can be sure
Per Ephesians one eighteen, we should enlighten the eyes of our heart
Getting rid of our blinders of hopelessness is the perfect way to start

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

2 March 2015 - Stardom vs. servanthood

Calvin Hong spoke on a topic near and dear to my heart
How to excel like a star and yet always servitude impart
We are told to try to excel in all that we do all the time
And succeeding with passion is of course not a crime
But we must guard against having an air of superiority
And from self-centered ulterior motives we must flee
Calvin said that one way to do this is to start out small
Because as things grow, pride can cause us to fall
Calvin said to remember that all gifts come from God above
If He takes them away, God we should still worship and love
Because of this, we should not let talents get above character
For character remains whereas talent may over time blur
Servanthood is not about ourselves but empowering others
So they can do a better job even if it is not our natural druthers
 
From Jeremiah seventeen verse nine Calvin did then quote
"The heart is deceitful above all things" the prophet wrote
Second Corinthians ten seventeen should not be ignored
This passage warns us not to boast, except about the Lord
"Humility is not thinking less about yourself", CS Lewis said
"But thinking of yourself less" and affirming others instead
For no matter who others praise, God sees our good deed
His affirmation provides all the security we will ever need
But if we say that we are not good enough in any given space
We are doubting God's ability and effectively slapping his face
For God has given each of us a set of gifts and talents unique
We should be good stewards of them throughout each week
 
In summary, Calvin shared Jesus' words from Mark ten forty five
Jesus Himself came to serve, not to be served, when He was alive
And He gave His life as a ransom for many, despite being divine
Surely His heart of servitude is something to which we can align

Sunday, March 1, 2015

1 March 2015 - ENCS

The "Family" series was extended a week by Rachel Ong
Talking on "Singles Rock" in a voice that was quite strong
This demographic group is often overlooked, she did say
But its mission is to honor God at the workplace each day
Rachel based her sermon on Colossians one verse ten
We are to "bear fruit in every good work", Paul said again
She pointed out that God only ever authored one book
So it is to that book, the Bible, that we should always look
From reading the Bible daily, sin will keep us from doing
But keeping us from sin we get from daily Bible viewing
And for us to be fruitful in every good work, Rachel stated
Jesus Christ needs to be present in our lives unabated
 
Steve Murrell said that to 'honor' is to know one's place
For commandments one and five, this is indeed the case
In order to honor parents, with them we should spend time
For singles, this is easier to do when all are in their prime
Rachel added that since honor stems from one's heart
Worshiping and praising God is how we fulfill that part
 
For most singles, it can be said that work is a calling
Which cannot be found with your best effort installing
There is no such thing as secular work, Rachel said
As secular means 'without God', something we dread
And since we have God by our side, as well as His grace
We are effectively full time ministers in the marketplace
It is interesting that God introduced labor before worship
When we are working, God's pleasure should us grip
As we were created in His image, we should try to be great
Whether married or single, our effort should be first rate
 
It is important that we find time daily to be with God alone
Since we need Him constantly, this we should not postpone
In doing so, He will equip us for our workplace ministry
More than our church, the inside of our office we do see
We must make the most of each and every opportunity
Our actions there speak louder than words or a plea
God entrusts us with opportunities if we walk in excellence
With greater purity, even greater influence He will dispense
 
Whatever season we are in, we should exercise contentment
Timothy said contentment brings God to life in the present
We should not walk in the counsel of the wicked, per Psalm one
We will prosper if meditating on the Lord is what we have done
So in closing tonight, Rachel reiterated her primary exhortation
We should honor God and study His word through life's duration