Dear friends,
Loving and sincere greetings in the name of Christ our Saviour and Lord.
We are celebrating the Epiphany season. This is the season where we consider the ways in which God began to unveil and reveal His glory through the gift of His own Son – Jesus Christ. One of the readings often considered during Epiphany is Jesus’ first miracle in Cana of Galilee where he turned water into glorious wine at a wedding feast. At the end of the story,John brings in his punchline concerning one of the first Epiphany moments.
He thus revealed (unveiled) his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
John 2:11
That glory was initially manifested when he was baptised in the river Jordan.The Father declared the glory of His Son, and the Spirit came down in power and rested upon Jesus. The glory of Jesus was also manifested in the call of the disciples and in the teaching and healing works of Jesus in those early days of his ministry. God’s unique glory was being revealed through our Saviour who had come to seek and save the lost. The Light of the world was shining powerfully and darkness was being subdued.
Let us pray that the light of the Lord Jesus shines upon us, in us, and through us and all the ministry and worship within Christchurch throughout this year. Let 2023 be a year where more and more people of all ages see something of the glory of the Son of God being unveiled in our mission and through our prayers. Christ’s glory can transform us in the most liberating ways. Let it be so now – (Matthew 3:15) to quote the title of the sermon of a sermon I preached on the 8th January.
Whilst we are still in the very early part of 2023, can I ask for prayer for myself and the Church Council. This year will be busy – but we want the activity to be purposeful, meaningful, and fruitful. We want the mission and ministry here to be truly helpful and uplifting. We want lives to taste and see that theLord is good. Please pray for those who lead areas of our vision for growth:
- Val Stephens – Prayer
- Alison Apperley – Fellowship
- Gordon and Di Dale – Youth and Children
- Barry and Anne Bishop – Evangelism and Discipleship
- Audrey Staite – Pastoral
Sadly, Daniel Tuck and his dear wife Cath and son Robert will be leaving us soon to move to Scotland. We wish them every blessing! Everyone is aware that Daniel had done some brilliant pioneering work for us in the area of Communications.We thank him for all he has done – especially his fantastic work on our new website. Daniel’s work in leading and inspiring Jubilate has also been an immense blessing and joy to us all over many years. His loss will leave a gap – a big gap. So, we need to pray for our ministry of Communications.
We also need to pray for our ministry of Compassionate Outreach.This is an area where we have never found a leader to take charge. At present, all members of Council work on development here. We all offer what we can. We do pray though that God will raise up people to lead, and people to join Council later this year. May God hear our prayers. We now have the exciting new initiatives of Little Angels (Tuesdays) and Warm Welcome (Mondays) offering new and caring works of service to our local community. May God strengthen and establish the work of our hands. (Psalm 90:17)
We are grateful to see new people in our midst and we warmly welcome them. May God surround us all with His amazing grace as we press on into all that He has for us in this year of challenge and hope.
Yours in Jesus,
Peter
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen
Philippians 4:23
