28 February 2016 - ENCS

Pastor Larry continued the series on “Heart of the Matter”

About spiritual parenting, from a child’s first pitter patter

There are lots of struggles and even panic for every parent

But through it all, the joy received is of course heaven sent

“Wake Up and Raise Up” was the title of tonight’s sermon

Whether to raise sons or monuments is for us to determine

The Corinthian church wanted knowledge more and more

Paul rebuked them for not sharing, per First Corinthians four

Similarly, if we do not share, we end up building monuments

Larry said focusing on raising kids makes much more sense

He then focused on King David, a man after God’s own heart

Unfortunately, for a long time, as a father he did not do his part

Per Second Samuel three, he had six sons from six different wives

Chapters thirteen and eighteen tell how messed up were their lives

David knew what was going on, then got angry and even cried

But correcting their bad behaviour is not something that he tried

Of course David did not have a good earthly role model father

He was shunned by brothers and even King Saul did not bother

So David loved God dearly but still needed to make some change

Which came about after he and Nathan had a strong exchange

David wrote Psalm sixty eight, as God is father to the fatherless

This is a critical point which Pastor Larry took pains to express

But as can be clearly seen in both Proverbs four and twenty two

With Solomon, as a spiritual father David now knew what to do

He provided instruction from the Lord God as well as discipline

And in First Kings two, David provided guidance to his next-of-kin

Telling Solomon to act like a man and to always God above obey

Then he would be successful in all his efforts, so David did say

In conclusion, Pastor said that to God the Father we can look

For His guidance is worth far more than any self-help book

Elijah wanted to connect fathers and sons, per Malachi four

Or else a complete destruction of the land would be in store

He then showed a trailer from the movie entitled “War Room”

We should pray to God for others we can rescue from doom

24 February 2016 - BSF

At BSF we are starting the study of John's book of Revelation

“God is in control and wins” was Clarence’s strong proclamation

Howe Lai’s lecture centred on the core concept of prophecy

What it is, its characteristics, and its purpose quite clearly

“Prophecy is God confiding in His people” was the first summary

For it is a foretelling of future events that have or will come to be

In Revelation, God unveils worlds both physical and spiritual

General and specific revelations that are so clearly veritable

God does this so that believers do not feel clueless or alone

He provides God-centred confidence for tomorrow’s unknown

“Prophecy proves that God is in charge of yesterday, today, tomorrow”

Helping us deal even in times that are challenging or filled with sorrow

God will not act without revealing through a prophet His plan

Prophecy can be both foretelling and forth telling for all man

As it contains truths about both the present and the future

With warnings, there is time to repent and change for sure

One-quarter of the Bible is prophecy, half has been fulfilled

Those are facts on which our faith and actions can build

“Fulfilled prophecy gives God’s people assurance of future fulfilment”

Changing our heart and actions is one reason prophets were sent

In terms of the Bible, fulfilled prophecy shows its accuracy

And reveals God’s power and wisdom, for everyone to see

God’s plan and purpose through Jesus Christ is also revealed

The overarching purpose is faith to be produced and sealed

In conclusion John received visions and wrote them down

We should take them to heart and obey God with crown

We cannot create our own future but must heed the warning

Allowing this study to transform our lives from each morning

21 February 2016 - ENCS

Tonight Pastor Josh covered “Heart of the Matter” part three

Though the first part of “Why marriage?” came from wife Nani

Three “C” reasons to get married she proceeded to outline

Based on biblical passages, the list was more than just fine

The first is children, as per Genesis one verse twenty eight

“Be fruitful and multiply” God did say to Adam and his mate

For God was seeking godly offspring, per Malachi chapter two

Bringing life and light to this world is one thing we should do

Children are a heritage from God says Psalm one twenty seven

And He will provide for them because His love is from heaven

The second is companionship for God knows who we need

Although not all are to be married, as from Paul we do read

Ecclesiastes four talks of a man alone with no end to his toil

And that two are better than one even when working the soil

The third is a love beyond all others, Christ and the church

His sacrificial love is a paradigm and example we can research

Per Ephesians five, marriage helps cleanse each other’s heart

Making for a union much stronger than each individual part

To add some more comments on how, the stage Josh took

And into Paul's letter to the Ephesians he did carefully look

He pointed out that of God’s standards we have all fallen short

Remember the Pharisees with the adulteress and Jesus’ retort

It is not for us to condemn those who in Jesus do not believe

We should show love and pray that His grace they do receive

For per Ephesians chapter one, Christ’s blood gives us grace

We all need this as we attempt to navigate in our lifetime race

Per Ephesians three, we need to be strengthened by His might

For God is the perfect role model, a loving father emitting light

As believers, we need knowledge of the heart, not just the head

For the all-important love comes from the heart, Josh then said

Per Ephesians four, we should not walk as others in darkness

But must live the truth first before highlighting others’ mess

In conclusion, marriage is impossible for us, Josh did say

Unless of course God is involved and central every day

14 February 2016 - ENCS

Pastor Josh delivered “The Heart of the Matter’ part two

On the topic of “Courtship and Dating” what we should do

With a reference to a seventy five year study he did start

For happiness, meaningful relationships are a key part

There are no specific bible verses on dating or courtship

But there are still guidelines to help everyone on this trip

“Do unto others…” is Jesus’ exhortation in Matthew seven

That summarises all the Old Testament laws from heaven

For when our relationship was broken with God above

We needed laws guiding us in the absence of pure love

But now the Holy Spirit tells us how best to approach

Relationships in a manner which is above all reproach

First Timothy chapter five says not to rebuke others

“With absolute purity” treat brothers, sisters, mothers

In Mark chapter ten to God’s words Jesus did refer

Two wholes, not halves, become one, we can infer

We should not look to another person to fill a gap

Only God can complete us, anything else is a trap

This is repeated in Colossians chapter number two

We “have been given fullness in Christ” in all we do

Being happy and complete with God is a precondition

Before moving on to marriage, per Josh’s admonition

From First Corinthians six comes additional sage advice

Do not be yoked with unbelievers even if they are nice

Two cannot walk together, per Amos chapter three

Unless in terms of what to do, they both do agree

If both are following Jesus in their walks individually

Then much easier their joint walk will of course be

Per Ephesians five, we should imitate God above

Beware life’s impurities and always walk in love

Meditating on things pure, per Philippians four

Ensures the God of peace will us never ignore

7 February 2016 - ENCS

The “Heart of the Matter” series last night Pastor Josh did start

Our relationship with God and others are critical, he did impart

There are four elements of a relationship, with trust as the foundation

Love is the motivator, forgiveness, and then of course communication

Josh said we can look to God and the Bible to learn about all four

Into each one, with power and emotion, he did then for us explore

When talking about trust, we should look to our Father in heaven

God is faithful and keeps his covenants, per Deuteronomy seven

In Numbers twenty three, Moses points out that God does not lie

Learning to trust God is a lesson about others that we can apply

Turning back to Deuteronomy seven, His people God does love

Promises were made to the Israelites by God from heaven above

These now apply to all believers, along with the reasons for this

As such, we should love others and live with a feeling of bliss

We are unable to do as God instructs, per Isaiah chapter one

All of us need forgiveness for words we said and acts done

Per Ephesians one, through Jesus’ blood we have redemption

His grace should compel us to forgive others, without exemption

Isaiah forty one provides a framework for good communication

When getting feedback, we should listen in silence for the duration

We should have no hesitation in honestly talking with God every day

For He clearly knows everything about us and our thoughts anyway

Pastor Josh then did conclude by referring to Isaiah chapter four

When things seem really bad, God cleanses us from the core

Then for us a tabernacle and a shelter of refuge He will provide

For the glory of God is in our relationship with Him magnified