Jesus is…

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This coming Sunday at our Sunday evening Bible Study; ‘Redefine‘, we will be starting a new teaching series as we look at who Jesus is. Hence the title of this blog post, ‘Jesus is..‘, which will be the title of the series, with us fleshing out the rest of the title for each week, to give an outline of what aspect of Jesus we will be looking at.

This Sunday we are specifically looking at the impact that Jesus has had on the world as a whole; so ‘Jesus is – the most influential person in history’. Some people might think that this is an outlandish and exaggerated claim; but as we study and look at it, I’m sure those that come to the study will see that it is not so, and that He is indeed the most influential person in history. As the Paul Oakley songs ‘Jesus lover of my soul’ says “For no one else in history is like You, and history itself belongs to You.” Or as the apostle Paul says “For in him (Jesus) all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.” – Colossians 1:16

The Bible makes a big deal of Jesus. God makes a big deal of Jesus: on the mountain of transfiguration, God the Father speaks audibly to the disciples – “While he (St. Peter) was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son (Jesus), whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!’” – Matthew 17:5

As Christians, we are followers of Jesus. We make a big deal of Jesus, because to us He is not only a big deal. He is THE big deal.

It is all about Jesus.

Even outside of the realm of the Christian faith, Jesus is a big deal. He is not a myth, or something made up to propel a religious movement. In his book, the Antiquities of the Jews, 1st century AD Jewish historian ‘Falvius Josephus, in books 18 & 20 of his writings, includes references to Jesus and the start of Christianity. This book was written around 93-94 A.D. Tacitus, another famous first century historians and also a Roman Senator, wrote in his ‘Annals’ (which are a history of the Roman Empire) about Christ, his execution by Pontius Pilate and the existence of early Christians in Rome. This work was written around 116 A.D. So we have historical evidence for Jesus. Living, breathing & making an impact.

Even the title A.D. or C.E. to denote the year we are living in refers back to Jesus, for A.D. stands for ‘Anno Domine’ which is Latin for ‘in the year of the Lord’ (Jesus), and C.E. (often mis-referred to as ‘Common Era’) signifies ‘Christian Era’. Jesus has influenced our world so much that we date years either A.D. or C.E for after His birth and B.C. (Before Christ) or B.C.E. (Before the Christian Era) fir before His birth.

So not only does history belong to Him; His coming to earth was of such impact that it divided history itself.

He also features prominently in other religions around the world; in Islam He is called ‘Isa’ and, though they do not believe that He is God incarnate, they recognise Him as the Messiah and one of the most important prophets in Islam after Mohammed.  Some Hindus see Him as an ‘Avatar’ (incarnation of a deity) or ‘Sadhu’ (religious ascetic and holy person). So again, even other religions are being impacted by Jesus.

He has inspired Art & Sculpture, Music, Films, Literature, Theatre, and so many other spheres of life. Famous leader and people that have impacted the world, such as Mahatma Ghandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. have spoken about Jesus. It seems that wherever you look, you can’t but help see Jesus having an influence upon the world in some form or fashion.

Indeed, He has turned the world upside down; but it is His world to do that with in the first place (See Luke 12 & John 1). And He came to change the world forever, and for good.

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross.” – Colossians 1:15-20

So this Sunday evening as we start our series ‘Jesus is..‘ pray for us at Llandudno Youth for Christ; that the truth of who Jesus is will impact the young people that come to our Bible studies, and they will have the opportunity to ask questions and discover for themselves all about Him.

We also have our supporters prayer meeting at 7pm in Ty Llywelyn Community Centre, so please do come along if you want to support us in prayer at this time.

Be blessed.

Fortified!

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Have you ever looked at a packet of cereal, on some of them, they say that the cereal is ‘fortified’ with vitamins & minerals. When food is enriched or fortified; trace elements of vitamins and minerals are added to the foods. This is sometimes done to increase the appeal of the food to buyers,  but it is also done from a health standpoint; aiming at reducing dietary deficiencies in people. Making the population in an area healthier.

The dictionary definition of fortify is ‘to provide (a place) with defensive works as protection against attack,’ ‘to strengthen (someone) mentally or physically‘ or as already spoken about ‘to increase the nutritive value of (food) by adding vitamins.‘ The word comes from late Middle English; which comes from the French fortifier, which came from late Latin fortificare, which is from Latin fortis ‘strong’.

The word ‘Fort‘ comes from the same root. A Fort is a strong defensive edifice.

It is a place that is build up to proved a strong and safe shelter from attacks.

“The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” – Proverbs 18:10. There is a children’s song that is based upon this proverb called ‘Blessed be the name of the Lord‘. It’s a bit of a blast from the past; and I remember singing it at open air church meetings when I was at University in the early 1990s.

That is not the only place in the Bible where it talks about God being a strong tower; in Psalm 61, the psalmist sings about this.

The other way to look at fortified, is not only a ‘fortified‘ building, but also something or someone that has been strengthened. We get the sense of the word ‘edify‘ from this. When we ‘edify‘ – encourage one another in our faith; we are building each other up. We are fortifying each other. This is an important thing to do for each other. At our last ‘Redefine‘ we look at the fact that God never intended us to do life alone. He wants us to do life in community with Himself and with each other. Part of that is encouraging one another, edifying and fortifying each other in our faith. The apostle Paul says this to the church in Thessaalonica “He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:10-11

This coming Sunday at ‘Redefine‘ we will be having a great night where the young people will be doing just that. They will be fortifying each other with our fantastic ‘FREDtalks‘. These are our take on TEDtalks. “TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world.” – excerpt taken from their website.

With our FRED talks we give the amazing young people that come to ‘Redefine‘ the opportunity to share a short talk about a topic and how it relates to their faith. These have always been well received and help to create and build community within ‘Redefine’ and also provide a platform for the young people to encourage and fortify each other in their faith.

This not only strengthens them, but also helps them with their resilience. Their ability to bounce back from some of the things that they encounter in life. A bit like with another type of castle; a bouncy castle!

So thank you for all of your prayers and financial support for the work that we are doing at Llandudno Youth for Christ; you, with God, are helping to make a difference in many young people’s lives.

Be blessed!

Sometimes you can’t make it on your own.

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Yes, it is another song reference for the blog post. This time it comes from a song by U2. It is the third track from their 2004 album ‘How to dismantle an atomic bomb’. Bono wrote the song in 2000 about his relationship with his father Bob Hewson who was at the time dying of cancer. To Bono, his father had always been a tough character, indeed the original title of the song was ‘Tough’. In his own words Bono describes his father as “A tough old boot of a guy. Irish, Dub, north side Dubliner, very cynical about the world and the people in it, but very charming and funny with it.” The song won the ‘Song of the Year’ award at the Grammy’s in 2006.

In the song Bono is crying out to his father to share relationship with his son, for Bono to be able to help his father through this tough battle he was having with cancer. The chorus of ‘sometimes you can’t make it on your own‘ is all the more poignant with the knowledge of what Bono & Bob were going through.

Last Sunday night at Redefine we had the last in our ‘We Believe’ series, looking at ‘You can’t do life alone’. As Christians we are called to live in community with other believers and with God. We are called to ‘bear one another’s burdens‘, to ‘not give up meeting together‘, to practice hospitality, and serve one another.

We were never meant to go through life isolated. Indeed, right at the beginning God said it was not good for man to be alone.

One way to ensure that we do not do life alone is to engage in community with a local church. Now, many people have negative viewpoints of church, due to many different reasons, most involving being hurt in some way or another by churches and the people in them. However, we are all imperfect, broken people, that are being healed and made whole by God, and as a result, hurt and offence does occur. Does this mean we should give up on church? Should we stop doing life with other believers because of past issues and hurts?

No.

Not at all.

Jesus told us offences would come, but we need to forgive and move forward. Continue to do life together. As the Jack Johnson song says ‘it’s always better when we’re together‘. This goes for doing life with each other, and its especially true of doing life in relationship with God. Life is definitely better with Jesus.

The Third Day song ‘When the rain comes‘ talks about how when we go through bad and difficult times, it is better to go through them with God, even if we still go through the tough times; God is with us, holding us.

So I encourage you, as we encouraged the young people last Sunday night. Don’t do life alone. You were never designed that way. God wants you to live life with Him and with each other.

Be blessed!

Mezzamorphis!

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As with soooo many of the titles for my blog posts; today’s post has a music theme. It is in fact the title of a Delirious? Album. The album was released in 199 and it was their second studio album, following on from ‘King of Fools‘. Mezzamorphis was a great album for me and brings back so many memories.

Stu G (the band’s guitarist) states about the album, specifically when talking about the track ‘Metamorphis’, that “the fact that out in the world, although everybody wants to be their own selves, we’re pulled this way and that. Everyone you meet wants you to be something or another. The song asks God to help us to be our own true selves, as God sees us, not the way folk pressure us to be what they want us to be.” In-fact the title for the album as a whole is taken from the track ‘Metamorphis‘ and the first track on the album ‘Mezzanine Floor‘, which is about how they as a band were moving towards new directions musically, but had not yet reached where they were wanting to go.

This idea of aiming towards a goal, and knowing that you are heading in a direction that God intends for you, but that you are not already there yet makes me think of the apostle Paul when he says “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 3:12-14

There is a sense of journey, of growth, of change in what Delirious and St. Paul are saying. Hence the title of this blog post ‘Mezzamorhpis’: change in transition.

All of our lives are filled with changes and trasitions, and sometimes it feels like we are stuck on a mezzanine floor in our transformation. We are not where we used to be, but we have not reached our destination yet.

This is especially true in our walk with God.

If we have decided to follow Christ, we are no-longer walking blindly in ignorance and alienated from God, but are now citizens of heaven, adopted sons and daughters of the King of kings and co-heirs with Chris. ‘Heaven is our home’ as Martin Smith so aptly sings, but we are still here on earth. Waiting for the fulfilment of all that God has planned for us.

But do we just sit and wait idly by?…

No, we live, we learn, we grow, we change.

In fact the 3rd week of our ‘We believe’ series at Redefine was ‘Growing people change’.

Which is so very true.

If something is alive and thriving, then it will naturally be changing. Even Jesus ‘grew in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.’

As did people like the apostles Peter & Paul. You can read about the change and growth that happened in their lives from encounters they had with the risen Jesus. Read their before (Mark 14:66-72, John 21:15-19 and Acts 7:54-60, Acts 8:1-3 & Acts 9:1-31) and after stories in the Bible.

I also used the title from the album ‘Mezzamorphis’ as I listened to it quite extensively in 1999 & 2000 whilst I was living and studying in Australia. I was going to Bible college there, and there was so much change and growth going on in my life, that this album helped me keep my perspective on what was happening and where God was leading me.

 

In your walk with God, I want to encourage you to keep learning, keep changing and keep developing as He transforms you into His likeness.

Be blessed!

Gratitude is a Great Attitude.

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What are you thankful for? Why are you thankful? To whom are you thankful?

This coming Thursday 21st September is ‘World Gratitude Day‘.

Gratitude is defined as the state of being grateful. Which itself is defined as ‘feeling or showing an appreciation for something done or received‘. It is from the Latin word ‘Gratus‘ which means to ‘welcome, greet or praise‘ and has the same root as the word ‘gratia‘ from which we get the word ‘grace‘.

All of this to me, links together to show that true gratitude comes from a place where we feel and show appreciation to God for the life He has given us and for all that He has done for us. Everything that we have from God is a gift of His grace towards us.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” – Colossians 3:15-17

This last Sunday 17th September, continuing with our ‘We believe’ series at ‘Redefine‘, we looked at ‘Everyone is a worship leader‘.

Too often we think of a worship leader as the person who stands at the front of a Church service and leads the singing. They’re skilled and gifted at what they do, but God has called all of us to worship. Indeed, as we realise all that God has done for us and all that we have received from Him as a result of Jesus’ death & resurrection, we will naturally be filled with gratitude that overflows into worship & praise (2 Corinthians 4 & 1 Peter 1).

This is not just making music or singing songs to God to thank Him, but also in the way we live our lives. How we treat others. How generous we are with our finances, our time, our lives.

When we realise how much God has given us and how everything we have comes from Him, then it really puts everything else into its proper perspective. “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” – Colossians 3:1-4 (Indeed read the whole of Colossians 3)

So in light of all of this, what are you thankful for? Why are you thankful? Who are you thankful to? and also How can you demonstrate your thankfulness?

One way you could demonstrate your gratitude to God is share with others the difference Jesus has made in your life.

You could also think about volunteering with us here at Llandudno Youth for Christ?

However you express your gratitude to God, have a great week full of a great attitude of gratitude and be blessed!

All in the serve

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Last night we had another excellent ‘Redefine‘ meeting. We continued to look at our ‘We Believe‘ series and spoke about how as Christians we are called to serve God and serve others.

‘Saved people, serve people‘ was the title.

Now when I say serve, I don’t necessarily mean playing tennis, unless of course by ‘serving’ someone in a game of tennis you are indeed ‘serving’ them….Like they need some help practicing their game for an upcoming tournament.

The title of this blog post is taken from a Michael W Smith song ‘All in the serve‘. I chose it as it links nicely into the Bible passage we looked at to see what God says about serving. We read from Mark 10:35-45. Here we see James & John being very presumptuous and audacious in asking Jesus for places of honour, power & privilege in the Kingdom of God. It is as if they were not listening earlier on when Jesus spoke about the children that they had tried to stop from coming to see Him: “Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” Children did not have much status, rights or power in 1st Century Palestine. They were dependant on others for food, protection, shelter, etc. They were humble and in a place to receive, not demand.

It is as if James & John had completely missed the point that Jesus was trying to make. So He makes it a lot more emphatic for them: “Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’“- Mark 10:42-45.

Jesus had and has every right to demand service. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, and yet he takes the lowest place to serve us all. We, the underserving ones are served by the one who deserves all glory, honour & praise. Jesus so lovingly demonstrated this by washing His disciples feet at the last supper; even His betrayer ‘Judas’ has his feet washed by Jesus.

Then Jesus demonstrates His love for all of us on the cross. He dies and gives His life as a ransom for many. Serving us to the end.

So, we, His followers cannot think that we can follow Jesus and be called His disciples if we do not serve. There is no exemption for us. We are to walk in our Master’s footsteps and serve others. Not out of a mentality where we do it to earn brownie points with God, but out of a heart of love. A heart full of Jesus’ love for us, which will spur us on to love Him in return and also love those around us.

One way for us to demonstrate that love is by serving others. “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfil the law of Christ.” – Galatians 6:2. Jesus’ law was to love one another – “‘A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” – John 13:34.

In what ways can you serve those around you this week?

How can you show Jesus’ love?

Helping put the bin out? Washing the dishes? Giving some food to the local food-bank? Giving up your seat to someone else on the bus or train?

Have a great week and look out for ‘Acts of everyday kindness‘ where you can show Jesus’ love to those who so desperately need it.

Be blessed!

International Bestseller?…Might be worth a read!

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According to the Guinness World Records, “the Bible is the world’s best-selling and most widely distributed book. A survey by the Bible Society concluded that around 2.5 billion copies were printed between 1815 and 1975, but more recent estimates put the number at more than 5 billion.”

Thursday 7th September was ‘Buy a New Book Day‘, and today (as I write this post) is ‘International Literacy Day‘, so I thought it would be good to extol the benefits of reading the world’s best-selling book – The Bible.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon famously said “A Bible that’s falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn’t.” The Bible is one of the most debated about, most praised and attacked, most read and neglected book in all of recorded history.

It is in-fact an anthology of books that span hundreds of years between the writing of the first book and the last. It records the history of God’s relationship with man.

Thousands of books have been written about the Bible and it seems that the more you learn and know about it, the less you realise you know about it; as St Augustine of Hippos states – “The Bible was composed in such a way that as beginners mature, its meaning grows with them.”

However, “The Bible was not given for our information but for our transformation.” – Dwight L. Moody.

That is why God gave us the Bible; it was not to be debated over, studied, dissected and read just to fill our minds with more and more information. The Bible is God revealing His truth to our hearts, to bring change, life & transformation. President of the U.S.A. Abraham Lincoln said “I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from The Saviour of the world is communicated to us through this Book.”

It is Jesus’ word to us.

“The New Testament is the very best book that ever was or ever will be known in the world.” – Charles Dickens. Jesus himself said “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”- Matthew 4:4

So we see that The Bible is mean to be nourishment/sustenance for our souls. It is something that is as necessary for life as bread. Like the saying it is our ‘bread and butter’: what we need.

The Bible, also called the ‘Word of God‘ is something firm and unshakeable that we can turn to in times of trouble. “Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.” – Psalm 119:89.”The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures for ever” – Isaiah 40:8. It also gives us wisdom and revelation, “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” – Psalm 119:130

In fact, the Apostle Paul, when writing to his young friend Timothy tells him the following, “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:14-17

God has given us His Word, the Bible to help us, to train us, to encourage us, to equip us, to transform us, challenge us, and above all else, to reveal Jesus to us.

Dr R. C. Sproul says the following in regards to the Bible; “I think the greatest weakness in the church today is that almost no one believes that God invests His power in the Bible. Everyone is looking for power in a program, in a methodology, in a technique, in anything and everything but that in which God has placed it—His Word. He alone has the power to change lives for eternity, and that power is focused on the Scriptures.”

At Llandudno Youth for Christ we are passionate about the Bible and about giving the young people that come to the events that we hold, not only access to the Bible, but also tools for themselves to read and study the Bible, and in doing so, get to know the author.

Please continue to pray for the work that we do sharing the gospel relevantly with young people in Llandudno and beyond, and also, I encourage you to open your Bible and get to know its author, God, for yourself.

Be blessed!

 

 

 

 

 

Singalong with me!

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This coming Sunday evening we will be having the second of our ‘God, Goats & Games’ evenings.

After our fantastic Box Fort night we are having a ‘Disney Sing Along’ event ?!

This should be fantastic; if only we had the famous actor Chris Evans (he plays Captain America amongst other roles) because, due to having so many nieces & nephews he is an expert in singing Disney songs. However even without Captain America to help us belt out a plethora of Disney’s best tunes; I know we are going to sing amazingly. We are after-all talking about a youth group in Wales, the land of song!

I grew up on Anglesey and fondly remember going to Cymanfa Ganu (Community Singing) meetings with my Nain (Gandmother in Welsh) and thoroughly enjoying the noise, celebration and sense of community that I felt. We all sang together; each person doing their part and all being led by the song leader. This was an important part of my upbringing and is also an important part of the Welsh heritage.

However, Wales is not the only country that has cornered the market on building community through singing. In Israel community singing was an integral part of their culture; it still is today. In the Bible we have a whole book of songs; to be sung in community; songs to be sung to foster & nurture community. Songs to be sung to strengthen each other in our walk with God. Just read some of the psalms; such as Psalm 95; Psalm 115 & Psalm 135. These Psalm encourage their hearers as a community to worship God together. They also remind the community of God’s faithfulness in the past and reassure them of His faithfulness in the present. They build unity by looking to God together for salvation.

There is something powerful in creating unity that singing together does. It joins hearts & minds into one purpose; and when that purpose is to praise God and give Him glory it is most powerful indeed.

Another aspect from the singalong is the fact that some people will identify with some songs more than others because they resonate with what is already on the heart of the singers. The same goes for songs we sing in worship to God. Some impact us more than others because they touch upon the song that God has already put upon our hearts.

What song has God put upon your heart?

if it is to see young people impacted by the love of God and their lives transformed by the good news of Jesus; then perhaps you should consider volunteering with Llandudno Youth for Christ?

And whatever song God has put on your heart; let us sing it with everything; and let us continue to encourage one another to worship God and give Him glory.

Be blessed!

Boxing Clever!

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We held the first of our ‘God, Goats & Games’ nights last night. A lot of fun was had as we battled around a box fort! ?

It was a great way to start off the Summer’s activities. It was also a perfect opportunity for us to test out our box fort building skills in preparation for a bigger box fort event that we will be holding in November.

In November, we will be holding our next ‘Spark‘ event at Gloddaeth Church and be building a big box fort. It will be a lot of fun and not to be missed.

Keep your eyes peeled to our blog post or our Facebook & Twitter pages for updates.

The building of the box fort also made me think of how we are called by God to encourage each other and ‘build each other up’. The other word often used for this is edifying or edification. It comes from the same root as the word edifice which means ‘a large imposing building’. The word comes from late Middle English: via Old French from Latin aedificium, from aedis ‘dwelling’ + facere ‘make’. So in essence it is to make a dwelling.

As disciples of Jesus; Christians are adopted into God’s family and become the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. So let us build each other up in the faith. Let us encourage each other in our walk with God. Let us help each other make a dwelling place in our hearts, lives, churches & communities for God’s Spirit to dwell. For Him to move amongst us and bring salvation, healing, restoration, life and transformation.

Be blessed!

Weeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

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Drum-roll please!

In 8 days time Tim Gough, our centre director will be leaping into the air from a 400ft high platform to raise much needed funds for the work of Llandudno Youth for Christ.

8 days!

400ft!

Pheweee!

Hence the title of this blog post.

“Weeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!”

Because I hope that the jump is a fun and exhilarating time for Tim, but also because although Tim is the only one doing the jump; so many people are supporting and encouraging him in this amazing feat. So it is a ‘we’ endeavour.

It is something for all the young people that come to our youth drop-ins, Bible studies, special events & other projects to support. It is an opportunity for churches and parents that have been blessed by the work that we are doing to get involved with supporting the work that we do. It is a time for us all to be praying for Tim as he makes the leap.

We are all involved in the jump in some way or shape and we will all benefit from the jump as people continue to sponsor Tim. We still have 8 days left to raise more money for this great cause.

Also, the money that is raised will be put back into all of the work that we do, and so many more young lives will be positively impacted by the good news of Jesus. Which in turn will have  positive affect upon their families, friends, neighbours and communities. Indeed it is a ripple effect that will effect the whole of North Wales and beyond. That is why it is so important for us to get behind Tim and be there supporting him in his Big Jump.

In effect on a certain level we will all be jumping with Tim. For we will all have a vested interest in him having a fun and successful jump.

This makes me think of how the apostle Paul gets us to think about how all believers; all followers of Jesus; were involved and part of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

“If I acted crazy, I did it for God; if I acted overly serious, I did it for you. Christ’s love has moved me to such extremes. His love has the first and last word in everything we do. Our firm decision is to work from this focused centre: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.” – 2 Corinthians 5:13-15 (The Message)

“If we are ‘out of our mind,’ as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.” – 2 Corinthians 5:13-15 (NIV)

He puts it another way in the book of Romans in chapter 6; where “all of us who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death” and “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” And in Colossians Paul says of Jesus’ death on the cross “For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God.” – Colossians 1:19-21

We were all included. Wow!

Let’s all get behind Tim as he jumps. Let us all support him, in prayer and with our finances.

And all this so that we can let others know of the great message of how God has opened the way for us all to live a new life at peace with himself through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

Be blessed!