Pete's Story

So you may or may not know me. My name’s Pete, I’m American, and I’ve just moved here to serve at the church. You’ll be seeing a lot of me as I’ll be helping out a lot with youth stuff. Rachel asked me to give you a bit of my story.

Rewind 6 years. It’s 2007, I’m 17, and I arrive in Eastbourne to do Impact at Kings for the year. God had told me to come, and I didn’t quite know why. I spend the year getting stretched, shaped, and grown and have time of my life. In August of 2008, I return to the US and go to university.

Fast forward to spring break of 2011. I’m on a ski trip to Canada, and feel God put Eastbourne back on my heart. I had always wanted to come back, but this is when God really begins to confirm it.


A year later, in April 2012, I’m about to graduate from uni and email Kings church, telling them about my desire to come back and wondering if they can help. They tell me they’d love to have me back and we embark on the visa process.

August 2012 rolls around and Kings says that the visa is taking a longer time than they anticipated, but they want me here before it’s estimated date. I buy my tickets, intending to come as a tourist for the first couple months, until my visa comes through. I make it to the border in London and they deny me entry, put me in a detention facility for the night (complete with real live terrorists—yikes!), pack me onto a plane, and send me home.

I go home and get two new jobs, and wait for the visa to come through. After 9 months of wondering if in fact this was God’s plan (God speaks to me in some amazing ways including some amazing dreams), my visa finally comes. I give my two week’s notice at work, pack my bags, and move over! Now I’m here and excited to get stuck in. I can’t wait to get to know each one of you.

Also, please bear with my accent. I know I sound weird, but I can’t help it. :)

Attitude to work

The season of coursework deadlines and exams has got me thinking, but with all the typing I've done lately this won't be a long post...I hope!

I used to get pretty stressed about coursework, the worst was my A level history when I struggled to sleep. On one occasion I was so upset about it I started hyper-ventilating from crying too much. But I have become far more peaceful through uni with my deadlines, which I put down to a number of things. My housemates are pretty chilled too, so there's not an atmosphere of people being stressed. I have learnt more about my style of working and how I work best. And finally I have learnt to trust in God's peace and strength, knowing that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" - Philippians 4:13.

What I want to write about is now I know how I work best I have also learnt that this means I cannot compare how I am doing with other people's progress. This can cause you to feel stressed when someone else has written far more of an essay than you, or they're not bothering to revise for an exam till the last minute because they're really confident. Know that God has given us each unique gifts (Romans 12:3-8) which I think can be applied to this context too. We have different abilities and strengths, so don't compare yourself to others God made you differently, that shouldn't be something to worry about. Some people may find the comparison motivates them. That's fine, if that works then great.

A final verse I've found encouraging is Micah 6:8 - All that God requires of us is to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with God.

The Message translation says:

"But he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do,

what God is looking for in men and women.

It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbour,

be compassionate and loyal in your love,

And don’t take yourself too seriously—

take God seriously."

So if it gets to the end of the day and you've not done the work you had wanted to do, don't beat yourself up about it, that wasn't what God requires of you.

Although  I'm not saying it's a get out of work, as Colossians 3:23-24 says:

"Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ."

God, Me and the Future ...

Soooo when Rachel asked me to do a blog, I thought eeeeekk scary times! But I realised that people are probably going through the same things that I have gone through, so I would really like to be able to encourage people that these situations are not permanent! They do end, and with the power of God we can get through tough times and doubts etc.

For me the thing I have always struggled with since I've been a christian is what is God's plan for me? Where do I fit into his world? Why hasn't he shouted in a booming voice, “NAOMI I WANT YOU TO BE MIDWIFE AND YOU SHALL WORK AT THE DGH”?? I never felt a really calling or belief that God had any role for me, any specific job, any specific thing He wanted me to do. I wasn't one of those people who has known since they were 5 that they wanted to be a firefighter or a teacher or an engineer or a train driver or something. Actually I used to want to be a vet until I realised I didn't really like dogs, so that plan went straight down the drain...

One verse that has really stuck with me the last few years is Jeremiah 29 v 11, [God was speaking through Jeremiah to his people who had been exiled from Jerusalem] and it says...

 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, they are plans for good and not disaster, to give you a future and a hope”.

Another is Psalm 139 v13...

“You created every part of me. You put me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”

These verses really spoke to me when I was doubting God, in that I knew that God knew me, I knew that God has always had a plan for me and that he will show me his plan when the time is right!

So yeah, just a quick encouraging word that God HAS got a plan for you and that he always had! I've had many doubts over the last few years, especially end of year 11, going up to college and not having a clue what on earth I wanted to do with my life. Persisting with church and going to True, has really helped me see that it's not what I want to do, it's want GOD wants to do!

Yeah, so from finishing GCSEs and not having a clue, I'm now hopefully going to university in September, I know where I want to go after that, I have been blessed by God with an absolutely amazeballs group of christian buddies and have a hope and future with the holy spirit guiding me through it all!

Make GOD the centre of your life and the rest will happen :)

xxx

Living for Jesus?

By Shereen Shafiee

The word "Christian", what does it actually mean? How do we live it? 

We live in a world that is becoming increasingly secular. How are we supposed to maintain a "Christian" status? How do we live our lives for Jesus whilst everyone seems to be doing the opposite?

It's not easy, walking with Jesus. In fact it's one of the hardest things I've ever experienced. You become an outcast, to the world, to your friends and sometimes you think "Is this whole Jesus thing really worth it?" because you don't see results.  I just want to remind you to keep standing. Just keep pressing. Don't give into your past for comfort, let's DO something different. Let's really, authentically seek CHRIST. You've probably heard that one before. But this isn't some little Christian cliche that I'm saying - I'm telling you to go and get on your face before God and just pour your heart out. Take each day, day by day and you will find that your entire perspective will CHANGE. It's not that it will make life any easier and suddenly all your problems will disappear... its just that when those problems come they'll look a little different. You will still smile as if you have this secret between you and God. You'll smile because you're comforted by your Father's arms.  You'll SMILE because... you know that deep down, these attacks are making you better and not bitter.

So, I want to encourage you to be bold. Take a stand for Christ. You shouldn't have to just tell someone you're a Christian, they should see it in you. This is something I have to constantly work on and God is still moulding me. You see, this Christian life, it shouldn't just be words. Let today be the day that you decide who you will serve. Will you serve the living God, Jesus? Or will you continue to live for the god of your emotions,  indulging in a life of selfish ambitions? God doesn’t want us to just attend church, ministry begins outside of the church. Christianity is more than singing or playing instruments, it’s having a relationship with the Creator. When Jesus said “follow me”, He didn’t mean “look at me from a far”, “life will be easy”, nor did He say “watch others”. Jesus simply bids us to follow closely beside Him, having an intimate connection to Him and His presence. So let’s put aside the games and distractions and start actually living what we read. 

Salvation is free and available to all who accept the invitation. Unfortunately, so many “accept Jesus as their lord and personal savior”, but never allow Him to reign on the throne of their hearts. So I want to encourage you today to really live this out. It's okay to be different to the world, Jesus said we would be. But that's what makes us so special! God chose us, loves us and knew us before we were even born. He even knows the amount of hairs on our head  (Luke 12:7)! Sometimes I think, how amazing is it that the same God who called the universe into existence would invest into me?! One person among the billions of people, stars and galaxies- One soul in the entire universe and history of people who ever lived. That's not something you can really fathom. But it does make you think, the least we can do is live for Him. Like really and truly, let Him have our whole heart. 

Now this is something that I have to constantly remind myself as well, I'm always falling short and making mistakes. But I know that He's always there to pick me right back up. 

Luke 12:6-7 "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." 

 Ephesians 1:4 "Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes." 

"You did not choose me, but I chose you..." John 15:16.

He loves us, He knows us and He chose us! Let's rejoice in that. Let's allow Him to have His will in our lives. SO, let's start today! We will DESIRE what we constantly give our attention to. So let's start giving our attention to the only living God. Amen

         We're in a battle

Fight,  Charley, fight!

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a Facebook status saying this:

"Sometimes it's easy to forget we're in a battle. We lie down and give up trying because things get tough, and life is tough! We then ask ourselves why we are weary and weak, because we've just let ourselves been trampled all over. But what we need is to get up and fight! God gives strength to those who ask! Let that be your strength to carry on."

What God has really been revealing to me over the past few weeks is that life is indeed hard. I never really had to work for anything when I was younger, I took life as it came and to be honest, it was a breeze. But my eyes are being opened to the trials we have to face - and that life isn't a dream. We don't always get what we want, or have things go the way we want them to. But I am learning that when trials come, I know that God is good! The verse that has been implanted firmly in my mind lately has been this:

Matthew 22:37

And Jesus said: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind."

These instructions are giving us strong advice and providing us with a form of protection. What we need to do is love God with all of our being. It is then that we will know the beauty, faithfulness, goodness and love of God. We need to believe all of the things that we read about God in the Bible - for he is so good! I am praying for the spiritual armor of God to clothe me against the enemy, and I am asking God to be my strength throughout the storm. I am going into battle; and I will fight against all of the evil thoughts that attack my mind and aim to blur my vision. Let us cling to the truth.

Understanding God’s Love Part 2 (Verses)

Understanding God’s Love Part 2 (Verses) 

 By Jacob Dann

So in my earlier blog (Understanding God’s Love) one of the things I talked about was how we can use the bible as a weapon against the devil, and use it to fight the lies he puts in our mind that God doesn’t love us. There are so many verses in the bible that tell us God loves us, and reading and memorising these verses can really help us to understand God’s love more, and go to God in confidence when the devil tries to shake us. So here are some verses I’ve found about God’s unending love.

Romans 5:8- But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Zephaniah 3:17- The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

Psalm 86:15 - But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

Proverbs 8:17 - I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.

Psalm 136:26- Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.

John 3:16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Ephesians 2:8 - For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God

 

The Father’s Love Letter – By Barry Adams

My Child…

You may not know me, but I know everything about you (Psalm 139:1)

I know when you sit down and when you rise up (Psalm 139:2)

I am familiar with all your ways (Psalm 139:3)

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered (Matthew 10:29-31)

For you were made in my image (Genesis 1:27)

In me you live and move and have your being (Acts 17:28)

For you are my offspring (Acts 17:28)

I knew you even before you were conceived (Jeremiah 1:4-5)

I chose you when I planned creation (Ephesians 1:11-12)

You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book (Psalm 139:15-16)

I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live (Acts 17:26)

You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14)

I knit you together in your mother womb (Psalm 139:13)

And bought you forth on the day you were born (Psalm 71:6)

I have been misrepresented by those who don’t know me (John 8:41-44)

I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love (1 John 4:16)

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you (1 John 3:1)

Simply because you are my child and I am your father (1 John 3:1)

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could (Matthew 7:11)

For I am the perfect father (Matthew 5:48)

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand (James 1:17)

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs (Matthew 6:31-33)

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11)

Because I love you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3)

My thoughts towards you are countless as the sand on the seashore (Psalms 139:17-18)

And I rejoice over you with singing (Zephaniah 3:17)

I will never stop doing good to you (Jeremiah 32:40)

For you are my treasured possession (Exodus 19:5)

I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul (Jeremiah 32:41)

And I want to show you great and marvellous things (Jeremiah 33:3)

If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me (Deuteronomy 4:29)

Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)

For it is I who gave you those desires (Philippians 2:13)

I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine (Ephesians 3:20)

For I am your greatest encourager (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)

I am also the father you comforts you in all your troubles (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

When you are broken-hearted, I am close to you (Psalm 34:18)

As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart (Isaiah 40:11)

One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes (Revelation 21:3-4)

And I’ll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth (Revelation 21:3-4)

I am your father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus (John 17:23)

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed (John 17:26)

He is the exact representation of my being (Hebrews 1:3)

He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you (Romans 8:31)

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you (1 John 4:10)

I gave up everything that I loved that I might gain your love (Romans 8:31-32)

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me (1 John 2:23)

And nothing will ever separate you from my love again (Romans 8:38-39)

Come home and I’ll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen (Luke 15:7)

I have always been father and will always be father (Ephesians 3:14-15)

My question is… will you be my child (John 1:12-13)

I am waiting for you (Luke 15:11-32)

Love, your Dad. Almighty God.

 

I hope these verses and the ‘love letter’ have helped inspire and strengthen you, I wanted to end with a lyric from one of my favourite Christian songs, ‘you love me anyway’ by The Sidewalk Prophets… ‘I am the thorn in your crown, but you love me anyway. I am the sweat from your brow, but you love me anyway. I am the nail in your wrist, but you love me anyway. I am Judas’s kiss, but you love me anyway.’

Understanding God’s Love      By Jacob Dann

Almost every Christian book I’ve read, song I’ve listened to, bible verse or preach I’ve heard have mentioned something about God’s love. In fact phrases like ‘God loves you’ are thrown around so much they can sometimes go in one ear and out the other. Or sometimes we just simply don’t believe it. I can definitely relate to that one! From the day I became a Christian to very recently I really struggled to believe that God loved me, every time someone would say ‘God loves you’ I would think ‘how!? How could God love me?’ But in the last few weeks I’ve started to understand that God does love me, and it’s changed my life! Now I get it I just want to shout it from the roof tops, which is why I’ve braved it and decided to write a blog on it. So if you struggle to believe God loves you, please keep reading, because when you get it, it really does change your life!

Firstly it’s important you know where that little voice in the back of your head saying ‘God doesn’t love you!’ comes from, it’s the enemy, the devil, and he wants to do all he can to destroy your relationship with God. But it’s also important that you realise that you have God on your side, who really is greater, stronger and wiser! So what do we do when those thoughts come about? Well it can be very easy to just believe it, give in and give up, but believe me, that helps no one! Instead, pray! That can seem very obvious, but it’s not always that easy, for months I would give in and give up but when I started praying regularly that God would help me to understand his love, he did! The more time is spent with God and the more I got to know him, the more I started to understand that he loved me. Think about it this way, in all relationships it takes a while to truly trust the other person, and believe that there love is genuine, and without spending time with them, how are you going to believe this? It’s the same with God, you can listen to all the preaches and songs telling you that God loves you, but until you start spending time with him yourself, it’s likely that it will just go over your head and that’s when those thoughts can start creeping in. Also spending time with God can strengthen our foundations, and when the devil does attack us, we are more confident to go to God and fight, instead of feeling like we can’t go to him.

Like any battle, you need weapons, prayer can be a very powerful weapon, another one that we sometimes forget about is the bible. The bible is a brilliant source that God lovingly created for us to get to know him better, so use it! Just like praying helps to understand Gods love more, so does the bible, and a lot of the time the answers to our prayers can be found in the bible. So how do we use the bible as a weapon against the devil? Well like I already said the thoughts that God doesn’t love you comes from the devil, but there are loads of verses in the bible that say the opposite, these verses are the weapons I’m talking about! Reading verses about Gods love for me regularly have really helped me to believe it, and when those thoughts do come creeping back instead of listening to them and believing them I can go back to these verses and use them as weapons against those thoughts. This is why it is really important to know some verses, so you can fight!