[0:00] Amen. Amen.
[1:00] Come, Lord Jesus, in your glory. Come and fill this place.
[1:12] Come and have your way among us as we seek your face.
[1:24] When we lay our cares before you, may our striving seas.
[1:37] As we worship and adore you, lead us to your feet.
[1:54] Amen. Play from glory into glory.
[2:30] Fill with face to face. Answer, rescue, live and holy.
[2:43] By your saving grace. Come, Lord Jesus, King of heaven.
[3:05] Come in victory. Now the darkness is defeated.
[3:17] You have set us free. It is finished. Death is beaten.
[3:28] The darkness of the cross. Every tear will turn to gladness.
[3:41] Every battle of honor. Join in. Join in. Joining with the saints and angels.
[3:53] Praising you alone. There will be with you forever.
[4:05] Our eternal home. My god who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past who has the past Amen.
[5:11] Amen. Amen.
[6:11] Amen. Amen.
[7:11] Amen. Amen.
[8:11] Amen. Amen.
[9:11] Amen. Amen.
[10:11] Amen. Amen.
[11:11] Amen. Amen.
[11:43] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Hallelujah, praise the one who set thee free Hallelujah, death has lost its grip on thee You have broken every chain There's salvation in your name Jesus Christ, my living hope Jesus Christ, my living hope Amen Good morning everybody
[12:47] Let's try that again Good morning everybody Great to see you all Welcome to Union Baptist Church It's really good to spend this time together In God's presence as his family Welcome to our service this morning I'd like to welcome you here in the building Welcome especially if you're new to us Or if you're visiting with us this morning You're very welcome Do hope you enjoy the time that we spend together And we look forward to having an opportunity to get to know you a bit after the service as well Welcome also to those joining us on the live stream this morning from wherever you are It's great to have you with us from where you are as well My name's Andrew, I'm one of the pastors here I'll be leading us through our time this morning It's so good to gather as God's family And it's so good to be part of a church family who love each other and pray for each other As a family my wife Miriam and I are very grateful for your prayers for Miriam's mum
[13:47] Who some of you will have heard has been very ill She remains very ill but is very confident of her destination beyond this life And we continue today to pray for others who are feeling weak or suffering loss at this time And what's been happening in my family this week has prompted me particularly to think about What lies beyond death for those who trust in Jesus And I've taken great encouragement from reading some of the accounts in Revelation Of what it's going to be like when we meet Jesus Revelation chapter 7 says this After this I looked And there before me was a great multitude that no one could count From every nation, tribe, people and language Standing before the throne and before the Lamb They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands And they cried out in a loud voice Salvation belongs to our God Who sits on the throne and to the Lamb All the angels were standing round the throne And round the elders and the four living creatures
[14:49] They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshipped God saying Amen Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honour and power and strength Be to our God forever and ever Amen What we have when we gather as a church family like this Is a very, very small taste And a very incomplete taste of our eternal future With Jesus Where we will join with people from all tribes and nations Giving praise to the Lamb on the throne Which is Jesus Let's be thankful for that as we come to worship the Lord now So I'll lead us in a prayer And then the music group are going to lead us in song Let's pray Lord God, thank you for the hope that you give us And that picture of people from every nation, tribe and language Completely united and unified in giving you praise Thank you that today we are gathered as people of many different ages And cultures and backgrounds
[15:50] Thank you that we are united by being loved by you And being saved by you Fill us with joy and hope and faith As we gather around your throne to worship you now In Jesus' name Amen Amen I invite you to stand and the music group are going to lead us For the love that you have done Oh, Lord, in the day of the world I love you, I love you, I love you Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, you speak of love Oh, Lord, in my soul, sing
[16:55] All in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world I love you, I love you The Lord is all in me Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world
[17:56] Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, in the day of the world Oh, Lord, who triumphs all the way And those victorious in the shot For those in need to see In glory shall we see Though thy hand blows on high The who died so long My son who fades In the years that I have been past
[18:58] For those who have gone In glory was the past Grounding the King to do this in the wondrous thing of love.
[19:23] Oh, there will be my hell, for Thou hast died for me.
[19:35] Thy praise shall never give a friend throughout eternity.
[20:05] Dear Father God, we come to you this morning. We've just sung the word, his glory is now we sing.
[20:18] Who died and rose on high. Who died eternal life to bring. And lives that death may die. We thank you for the words that you've given the authors this morning.
[20:31] And now we come to sing another wonderful song. What a beautiful name. You were the word at the beginning. One with God, the Lord most high.
[20:45] And we praise you dear Lord this morning. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. You were the world at the beginning, born with God the Lord most high.
[21:30] In a glory creation, now revealed in you our Christ.
[21:42] What beautiful name is, what a beautiful name it is, the name of Jesus Christ my King.
[21:55] What a beautiful name it is, nothing else it is, what a beautiful name it is, the name of Jesus.
[22:08] Jesus, you were brought in the ground.
[22:25] The sin was greater, what a beautiful name it is, what a beautiful name it is, what a beautiful name it is, the name of Jesus Christ my King.
[22:49] What a wonderful name it is, nothing else it is, what a wonderful name it is, the name of Jesus.
[23:03] What a wonderful name it is, the name of Jesus. who has the name of Jesus Christ my King.
[23:24] Thank you.
[23:54] Thank you.
[24:24] Thank you. Thank you.
[24:56] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
[25:08] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. What a powerful name it is.
[25:23] The name of Jesus Christ my name. What a powerful name it is. Nothing can stand in us.
[25:36] What a powerful name it is. The name of Jesus. What a powerful name it is. The name of Jesus.
[25:48] What a powerful name it is. The name of Jesus. Good morning.
[26:16] For those of you who don't know me. My name is Jackie. And this morning we're starting a series on prayer. And sometimes when I can't quite find the right words for a prayer.
[26:30] I have maybe something that's bothering me. I know that turning to the Psalms is a really good place to go. So this morning I wanted to share with you something the children did a while ago when we were looking at Psalm 23.
[26:45] They might not remember this because it was quite a long while ago. But hopefully when you see your beautiful work you will remember that you did it. So I set them the challenge that we were going to think about what Psalm 23 actually meant.
[27:00] And then they were going to illustrate it using Lego or Play-Doh or drawings. I have to admit sometimes when I set them these challenges I'm not quite sure how they're actually going to do it. But luckily they are super creative children that we have in this church.
[27:15] And they generally come up with something much better than I could ever imagine. So we have a PowerPoint with their work on it. And I'm going to read Psalm 23 as a prayer for us all.
[27:29] And as I read it I hope that their illustrations will just help you to focus on what the words really mean for us today. However we are feeling this morning. So here's Psalm 23.
[27:40] The Lord is my shepherd. I have everything I need. He lets me rest in green pastures and he leads me to calm waters.
[27:53] He gives me new strength. He leads me on paths that are ripe for the good of his name. Even if I walk through a very dark valley I will not be afraid because you are with me.
[28:06] Your rod and your shepherd's staff comfort me. You prepare a meal for me in front of my enemies. You pour oil on my head.
[28:18] You fill my cup to overflowing. Surely your goodness and love will be with me all my life. And I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
[28:30] Amen. Brilliant. Thank you so much for Jackie.
[28:45] Thank you to all the kids who built the Lego and did the Play-Doh. And let's give them a round of applause. Amazing creativity. Isn't it great that we can combine two fantastic things.
[28:56] Prayer and Lego. And yeah, just encourage you families, parents, kids. If you've got Lego at home, Play-Doh. You can use the Lego to make your prayers and build your prayers and help your prayers to come to life.
[29:07] I love that. That's brilliant. Going to invite the musicians to come up again. Now we're going to continue our worship. Not only can we praise God with our creativity. We can praise God with our whole bodies.
[29:19] And our next song is a bit of an action song. Now I'm going to attempt to lead us in some of the actions. It's going to be a simplified version. So I wonder if, Stephen, can you just bring up the chorus? I'm just going to show you the actions for the chorus because that's the bit that I remember.
[29:33] So it's got three claps. So it goes one way. Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for. And on the I could live for, we can do it.
[29:44] If you're up for it, you can do a little 12. So that's it. So it's one way. Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for. Can you get on your feet? We'll practice that together.
[29:57] If anyone would like to come and help me on stage to do the actions, that'd be great. So let's just practice those. So it's one way. Do with me. Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for.
[30:10] With a swell. Amazing. Take it away, please, musicians. My life down at your feet.
[30:34] You're the only one that I need. Telling you when you've always been Shrugged times in school I see When you first had saw me And all the law I am, all to you One way, Jesus You're the only one that I've given him for One way, Jesus You're the only one that I've given him for You were always, always there Every hour, every day There's a balance to deeply within
[31:36] Ever, ever, ever change It's the day to day to day to day to day Ever to forever be seen One way, Jesus Jesus, you're the only one that I've given him for One way, Jesus You're the only one that I've given him for You are the only one that I've given him for My son who will be who will be who will be who will be who will be who will be who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who who
[32:43] We'll be right back for you. One way, Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for.
[32:56] One way, Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for. One way, Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for.
[33:09] One way, Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for. Sit down.
[33:22] And Vicky is going to come and bring our necklaces. Hello, everyone.
[33:41] I'm quite with my glasses on. Okay. So, our first notice today is about the midweek services. This is a new short communion service starting on the fourth Tuesday of every month.
[33:56] It starts at 2 o'clock. There'll be a service in the chapel and the refreshments next door. And everyone is welcome, and we look forward to having you here. Then, next up, we are Can You Believe?
[34:10] Coming into May. I felt like January lasted forever, and now we're May. So, next week is the first Sunday of the month. So, we have our evening communion service at 6.30.
[34:23] So, it's a great time to meet together, worship, grow deeper in faith. And again, all welcome, and we'd love to have you join us. Thirdly, Job Club.
[34:34] Our Job Club Cafe is starting soon. It starts on the 6th of May at 10.30 in the welcome space. It's an opportunity to get together in a more informal setting.
[34:46] If you're looking to get guidance on job hunting or career development, or just hear from different people from different industries, or just meet together and have coffee, it's a great place to come.
[34:58] Rachel has printed some leaflets. Are they in the welcome area? No, not yet. There will be leaflets. We will have leaflets. And once we have them, you can grab them, distribute them, or just come along for yourself.
[35:14] Then, on the 10th of May, our week of prayer begins, which is very, very exciting. So, this is the time where we encourage each other to spend more time praying, trying new ways to pray, and growing our own prayer life.
[35:26] More details will come, but there will be opportunities to access the chapel during the week. We'll have a prayer labyrinth and different prayer stations set up, and there'll be a bookable prayer room, as well as prayer walks, and just chances to be together.
[35:41] I really recommend you putting this date in your diary, and really think about how you can carve out time that week to spend time with God, growing deeper in faith, growing deeper with prayer, and just praying for the church family and the work that we do.
[35:54] And finally, the notices are almost over. Don't worry, everyone. We have our Christianity Explored course starting. So, this starts on the 1st of June.
[36:05] Mike, the lovely Mike Birmingham, is leading it. It'll be a daytime course. Every Monday, it starts at 2 o'clock. It's a great opportunity to learn more about Jesus.
[36:17] So, whether you're a seasoned Christian, brand new to the faith, or just curious, it's a way to learn more about who Jesus is, and how he's relevant in your life today. You can sign up via the link that was in the This Week sheet, or reach out to myself or Jane via email, and we can send you the details.
[36:34] Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you so much, Vicky. Now, we've talked about this morning already, and we're praising God through our song, which we've done already, praising song through our creativity, through the Lego and drawings and what we can create, and praising God through our bodies in action.
[36:58] Another way that we can worship God is through how we use our money and the wealth that God has blessed us with. And for those that have decided to follow Jesus as part of our worship and the way we honour him in our lives is how we use our money and through regular giving for Jesus' work in building his kingdom.
[37:17] There's various ways that we can do that here at the church. We can give electronically through our website. There's more information on our webpage. And right here in person, we have a donation box, an offering box that's on the ramp, just through on the way to the welcome area on my left there.
[37:33] And then in the welcome area, we have a card reader as well if you'd like to make a gift while you're here today. Let's just pause for a moment to consider how we're worshipping God with the wealth that he's blessed us with and however we do that and give thanks to God for the gifts that we present to him this week.
[37:48] Let's pray. Father God, we thank you that you are so big and that you are so awesome and that you are so worthy of our worship in many, many different dimensions.
[37:59] And we thank you that you give us another way to worship you in how we use our money and you give us opportunities to give to your work. And we pray for ourselves as we consider how we do that, that you would guide us in how we can do that and how we can honour you with our finances.
[38:14] And we present to you now the gifts that we give to you this week or this month, however those are given. We thank you that you bless us far in abundance of what we need. And what we present to you is just for your building of your kingdom, Lord.
[38:28] And we pray that you would use it effectively for building your kingdom here in High Wycombe through this church and far beyond as well to reach all four corners of the world. We pray that in Jesus' name. Amen.
[38:39] Amen. Now it's almost time for the children and young people to go to their groups. We're going to pray for them. If you haven't already registered your child or young person, please take them through into the welcome area here on my left.
[38:52] The lovely people there, Karen and her team, will meet you there and will register you and show you where to go. Just one announcement is that for Salt and Light, that's our secondary age young people, you're going to be meeting in the main hall today.
[39:05] So it's a slight change of venue. In the main hall, that's the one with the blue carpet to stop on level from here. Let's pray for our children and young people and then we'll send them off. Father God, we thank you so much for all our children, for all our young people and for those that serve them.
[39:21] And we pray that the groups this morning as they go out and spend time having fun, learning about you, using their creativity that we've already seen some of this morning to express that joy of knowing you.
[39:33] And we pray that you'd help them to grow in the faith. Bless the leaders as they serve our children and the young people and we pray that you'll draw them all closer to you by your Holy Spirit. We pray that in Jesus' name.
[39:45] Amen. So children, young people, leaders, it's your time to go. Maybe we'll make a place lightly. And we'll see you later. Thank you.
[40:24] Thank you.
[40:54] Thank you. Good morning, brothers and sisters. Let us come before the Lord in prayer as we come together as a body, as a congregation in the name of Jesus.
[41:08] And Father, today as we come, we come to you, Lord, with our praises and our thanksgiving. For your word tells us, when we come before you with praise and thanksgiving, we glorify you, Lord.
[41:22] And Lord, you are God. Although you said in one of the Psalms that you've given us dominion over the whole world, over your animals and the things of the earth.
[41:34] In another Psalm, you said that you preserve it, man and beast, and that we should remember without you we are nothing. So today, Lord, we give you all the praises, all the honor, all the glory due unto your name.
[41:45] Remembering that you are sovereign, you are Lord. And when we come to you with our prayers, we have to remember that you are sovereign and that you do whatever you do.
[41:57] And as we wait for our results, Lord, let us hope in you. And at the prayer meeting this morning, Father, our thoughts were that we should pray big. And Lord, this morning as I come before you, I remember your conversation with Job.
[42:13] And you asked Job, were you there when I made the world, when I made the heavens? Were you there when the sun came up? Were you there when I looked at the dragon in the sea and I formed him so strong?
[42:25] And Lord, we must remember that if we are to pray big, you are a big God. You are the same God that we serve who brought your people out of Egypt. All those miracles, Lord.
[42:37] And today, this morning, as we come before you, let us keep that in mind, that you are a great God. You are sovereign and your providential mercies are with us as we wait upon you, Father.
[42:49] We thank you this morning for bringing us to church. We thank you, Lord, to our families. We thank you, Lord, for providing for us in the congregation. We thank you for providing for us, for our needs, for our resources.
[43:07] We thank you for those who run the administration. We thank you for our leaders, Lord. We thank you and we bless your name. We bless you because you have given us good leaders.
[43:20] We thank you for Andrew. We pray that you continue to bless him, that you give him wisdom, Lord, that you give him a sense of discernment as he guides Andy. We pray for Andy, too, that you continue to be with him.
[43:34] And all the leaders, all the elders and the deacons, Father, we pray that you continue to, as he leads us and teaches the way, as he guides us over your doctrine.
[43:44] Be with them, O Lord. And for us, as a congregation, Father, help us to be in unity, Lord. Your word tells us how good it is when veterans dwell in unity.
[43:55] It's like that ointment that run down Aaron's bread. Father, pass, we can't visualize that. But help us to be together. Help us, O Lord, to walk in your light because you are light.
[44:07] So we can be a light to our society, Father. We thank you, Father, for your goodness. We pray, Lord, that that mind of Christ would be in us, Father. As we love one another.
[44:19] As we obey your words. As we support. As we go together. As we walk this way, Lord. Knowing, Father, that if we are walking in your light, we have to be your light.
[44:32] Let us be examples to one another, Father. Father, this morning, it's very important that we praise your name. It is good that we praise your name this morning, Father.
[44:45] And we thank you for your goodness. God, be merciful unto us. And cause your face to bless us, Lord. Cause your face to shine upon us and bless us. As we remember those of us who are anxious, who are worried.
[44:59] Those of us who are grieving. Remember Susan at this time and others. Those of us who are sick. Remember Jean. Remember Miriam's mother. Kim's mother. And all those who I might have forgotten.
[45:12] We pray, Lord, that you continue to be with us. As we hope in your word. As we grow with you, Father. We thank you, Lord, for your goodness. We pray, Father, that as we continue to be a light on our society.
[45:23] As we spread your word. That great commission that you've given us. To spread your word. Help us, Lord. As we go further afield, Father. The world is in chaos and we don't understand.
[45:34] But one thing I know, Lord. You are in control. Help us not to worry too much. But leave everything in your hands, Father. We pray for our government. When the whole world is in, seem to be in turmoil.
[45:48] We pray that you bless our leaders. That you give them wisdom as they lead, Lord. We thank you again. And I forget to thank you for our young people. For our children. For our musicians.
[45:59] For everything that come together here, Lord. We thank you for your goodness. And as we come before you, Father. As we end our prayers. Your word tells us. It is good to give praise.
[46:11] It is comely. And it is pleasant. So as we wait upon you. And as we ask you for these blessings. And these petitions. We come together. And we say, thank you, Lord.
[46:22] Amen. Praise the Lord. Hallelujah. Thank you so much, Veronica.
[46:37] For leading us in prayers. Now I want to say a little bit about what we're going to be doing for the next few weeks. Our prayers reveal a lot about us. What we pray.
[46:48] How we pray. Who we pray for. We pray for. Reveal a lot about what we believe. And what's important to us. One of the great things about the letters of Paul. In the New Testament of the Bible.
[47:00] Is that we get to read. What Paul was praying. For the people that he was writing to. Paul. The first century. Apostle. Evangelist. Church planter.
[47:10] Theologian. Clearly loved to pray. He was passionate in prayer. He was excited. He was excited. He prayed. And he prayed big and bold prayers. And I think.
[47:20] And I hope you would agree. It would be great to learn from Paul. How he prays in his letters. To help us to grow. In our own prayer lives. Now I don't know about you. But I would love to pray.
[47:31] With more boldness. More passion. More commitment. And more excitement. And that would be something. That would transform this church. If we were all able to do that. Now in two weeks time.
[47:42] As Vicky shared. We're going to be starting our week of prayer. And that will be a special time. With special opportunities. To help us. To grow. In our prayer lives. Today. And over the next couple of Sundays.
[47:53] We'll be doing this. Mini sermon series. Called Pray Big. We'll be learning from. Paul's prayers. In his letters. To the Philippians. Colossians. And Ephesians. Now to help us.
[48:05] On this journey. I'd like to recommend. A book. And it's called Pray Big. By Alistair Begg. The Christian author. This book particularly focuses. On Paul's prayers.
[48:16] In Ephesians. That we'll be looking at. In a couple of weeks time. Its chapters include. How to pray for focus. For hope. For riches. For power. And for love.
[48:27] These are awesome things. To pray for. Now I read this book. A few years ago. And I found it really helpful. I'm reading it again now. As a refresher. And I encourage you to. To read this book. Now if you buy this book online.
[48:39] Or in a bookshop. It will cost you. About eight pounds. We are selling it. Here today. For the amazing bargain price. Of six pound fifty. So this is available. In the. Welcome area. Just on the information table.
[48:50] On the far side there. I'd encourage you. To take a copy. As part of. Kind of helping you. To develop. To develop. Your prayer life. You can pay for the book. By making a donation. On the card reader.
[49:00] Which is. Which is just there. Paul's prayers. Are underpinned. By amazing truths. About who God is. And his purposes for us. And.
[49:12] Part of my prayer. Over these next few weeks. Is that these truths. That we learn about. Will motivate us. To pray. And to help us. Each one of us. To pray big. Paul prayed big prayers.
[49:22] Because he believed. Big things. And we're going to learn. From him. How to. How to do the same. So. On that note. We're going to have. The first of our Bible readings. For the series. I'm going to invite Brenda. Who's going to come and read.
[49:33] To us. From. Paul's prayer in the Philippians. Thanks Brenda. Philippians chapter 1.
[49:52] Verses 1 to 11. 1, 1, 7, 8. In the Bibles. Paul and Timothy. Servants of Christ Jesus.
[50:04] To all the saints in Christ Jesus. At Philippi. Together with the overseers. And deacons. Grace and peace to you. From God our Father. And the Lord Jesus Christ.
[50:16] I thank my God. Every time I remember you. In all my prayers. For all of you. I always pray with joy. Because of your partnership. In the gospel. From the first day.
[50:28] Until now. Being confident. Of this. That he who began. A good work in you. Will carry it on. To completion. Until the day. Of Christ Jesus. It is right for me.
[50:41] To feel this way. About all of you. Since I have you. In my heart. For whether I am in chains. Or defending. And confirming the gospel. All of you share. In God's grace.
[50:51] With me. God can testify. How I long for all of you. With the affection. Of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer. That your love.
[51:02] May abound. More and more. In knowledge. And depth of insight. So that you may be able. To discern. What is best. And may be pure. And blameless. Until the day of Christ.
[51:13] Filled with the righteousness. That comes through Jesus Christ. To the glory. And praise of God. Amen. Amen.
[51:24] Thank you so much. Brenda. I'd like to invite Pete. So we can pray for him. Before he brings us. A message on that passage. Amen. Welcome Pete.
[51:37] We're looking forward. To hearing more about this. So let's pray for you. As you bring us this message. Father God. I thank you for. Yeah. The amazing truths.
[51:47] And these amazing prayers. That we're starting to. To study. In your word. And I pray for Pete now. That your words. Would be his words. I thank you for the way. That you've already been speaking.
[51:57] To him. As he's been preparing. And I pray that you would speak. Through him very powerfully. And very effectively. By your Holy Spirit. As he brings us this message. Give us open hearts. And minds and hearts.
[52:09] That are ready. And willing to listen. To what you're saying to us. And to know how to respond. To you in obedience today. We pray that. In the power of your Holy Spirit. And in the name of Jesus.
[52:19] Amen. Thanks Pete. Thank you Andrew. For your prayers. It's lovely to be sharing.
[52:31] Around this incredible passage. Of scripture. Before us. This morning. My name's Pete. And along with my wife. Wendy. We lead one of the church's.
[52:43] Life groups together. The life of a football supporter. Is a roller coaster ride. Of emotions.
[52:54] Particularly when you think. Your team is heading. To a glorious win. And then just before. The end of the game. Manages to snatch defeat.
[53:05] From the jaws of victory. In a single moment. We can go from. A euphoric state. Of joy. To the depths. Of despondency.
[53:17] Our joyful moments. Are conditional. On how well. Our team. Is performing. As we look at the first. Eleven verses. Of Paul's letter.
[53:28] This morning. Verses that. Encourage us. To pray big. We can see. That he writes. About joy. But not the joy. Which the world.
[53:38] Experiences. Which is temporary. At the mercy. Of our feelings. And dependent. On our circumstances. He writes. About the joy.
[53:48] We experience. As Christians. Which regardless. Of the difficulties. Of life's ups. And downs. Is lasting. And permanent.
[53:59] Because we are. In relationship. With Jesus. And have an eternal. Future. In our heavenly father. You may not feel.
[54:11] Like it this morning. But if you. Are in Christ. Jesus. You have. His grace. And peace.
[54:22] Wherever you are. Emotionally. And spiritually. Today. Hold on to that. And allow that. Truth. To shape your life. The words.
[54:33] Before us. Are one of the great. Joys. Sorry. One of the great. Prayers. Of the Bible. And in the letter. The word joy. Is mentioned. 14 times.
[54:45] There are issues. In this church. At Philippi. But Paul. Is full of joy. Because he sees. Their faith. Growing. And being lived out.
[54:56] In real. Life. The letter. Was written. By Paul. Whilst. In prison. In Rome. It's a thank you.
[55:06] Letter. To from him. To the Philippine. Church. For the gift. Of money. He had received. From them. But as Paul. Is want. And never to waste.
[55:16] A moment. He gives also. A report. On his circumstances. An encouragement. To the Philippine. Believers. To stand firm. In the face. Of persecution.
[55:27] And to rejoice. Regardless. Of their circumstances. To exhort them. To humility. And unity. To commend. Timothy. And Epaphroditus.
[55:38] To the church. And to warn them. Against those. Who were trying. To impose. Legalistic conditions. On their faith. And the first.
[55:48] Eleven. Verses. Of chapter two. Contained some of the most. Impressive. Theologically. Profound. Statements. And who Jesus is. In the whole.
[56:00] Of Paul's. Writings. We won't deal. With those words. This morning. But can I encourage you. Later today. When you have a quiet. Moment on your own.
[56:11] To make a cup of tea. Other beverages. Are available. And sit down. For ten minutes. And allow the incredible. Truths. Of these words.
[56:22] To wash over. And refresh. Your souls. That you might rest. In the Lord. And know who he is. That you might know. Jesus Christ.
[56:33] To the glory. Of God. The Father. Back to the passage. In hand. We're going to look at this. Incredible prayer of Paul. In three sections.
[56:46] It's a prayer. Of humility. A prayer. Of thanksgiving. And a prayer. For growth. At first look.
[56:56] It appears to be a letter. With a standard greeting. In the culture. Of the time. Normally. The writer. Would give the name. Of the sender. The name. Of the recipient. The sender's.
[57:07] Thanks to their gods. And prayers. For the recipient's. Well-being. But if you dig. A little under the surface. Paul is making.
[57:17] Some subtle points. In these words. Simple words. Of introduction. He has an infect. Compressed. The theological truths. In this letter.
[57:29] Into the first. Two verses. He describes himself. And Timothy. As servants of Christ. Which gives overtones. Of humility.
[57:39] And submission. He addresses. The leaders. Of the church. In a special way. By using their titles. But by using. The term saints.
[57:50] He wants his readers. To know. That he is addressing. The whole. Of the church. The word saints. Is a reference. To the believers. Being called out.
[58:00] From others. And being set apart. By God. Paul doesn't play. Favorites. He reminds them. That they are united.
[58:11] Together. As the whole church. His writing. Shows. Humility. He doesn't reference. Himself. As an apostle.
[58:22] He is only concerned. With the needs. Of the church. And in giving. The leaders. Dignity. In their roles. He shows concern. Not for his interests. But the interests.
[58:33] Of others. Being humble. Is something. We all. Struggle with. But as C.S. Lewis. Has said. Humility. Is not thinking.
[58:44] Less of yourself. But thinking. Of yourself. Less. And as Paul. Mentions further. In chapter 2. Verse 14. In this simple greeting.
[58:56] He is encouraging. He is encouraging. The believers. To stop their complaining. And arguing. And adopt an attitude. Of humble service. To each other. And what of us.
[59:10] Letter writing. Does not happen. So often. These days. But we still communicate. Through texts. Emails. And comments. And social media.
[59:21] Does the way. In which we write. Reflect the glory. Of God. Do we write. Only to complain. And criticize.
[59:31] Or does the way. In which we use words. Both written. And spoken. Bring compassion. Love. Kindness. Building each other up.
[59:42] In Christ. And incidentally. Letter writing. Is still such a great way. Of communicating. Isn't it? There are those of you. In this fellowship. Who have the wonderful gift.
[59:54] Of watching. Observing. Writing. And giving. Encouragement. Thank you. For using the gift. That God has given you.
[60:04] And you are blessing. Others with. Paul was encouraging. The believers. To adopt. An attitude. Of humble service. To each other. May we be like this.
[60:15] In our relationships. And fellowship. Together. By giving. By giving. The greeting. Of grace. And peace. To the believers. From the father. And the Lord Jesus.
[60:27] Paul is reminding them. Of their blessed. Forgiveness. Of sins. That they have received. Their broken. Relationship. With God. Has been reconciled. By his gracious work.
[60:38] Through Jesus. May we. Together. Know. What it is. To receive. God's undeserved. Love. And forgiveness. And live.
[60:49] Live. In the knowledge. Of that peace. With each other. And then. In verses. Three to eight. We see. That this is a prayer. Of thanksgiving.
[61:02] We have some keen. Gardeners. In this fellowship. It's lovely. Isn't it? To plant things. And watch them grow. Last autumn. Due to some fencing work.
[61:13] In our garden. I dug a new flower bed. Some daffodils. And tulips. Were planted. And I watched. And I waited. And earlier this spring. Once the winter monsoons.
[61:24] Had abated. I kept going out. Into the new border. And looked almost daily. For the expected growth. From the plants. Bit by bit.
[61:35] The bulbs grew. And it was lovely. To see colors. Of yellow. Pink. And red. Over the last few weeks. The color pink. Wasn't supposed to be. In the packet. But they were there.
[61:45] That was a pleasant surprise. In the natural world. Growth. Is expected. As new plants. Put roots down.
[61:57] And it is the same. For us. Spiritually. As we feed. From the word. Of God. As we listen. To Jesus. And let ourselves. Daily be filled. With the Holy Spirit.
[62:09] Growth. Is expected. In these verses. Paul affirms. His affection. For the Philippians. His joy. Comes from seeing.
[62:19] The growth. Of the gospel. In his own life. And that. Of the Philippian church. Paul had planted. This church. And is seeing fruition. In their partnership.
[62:31] With him. They have stood. By him. Through the times. Where he freely. Declared the gospel. And his times. Also in prison. They have financially.
[62:42] Supported him. And as a result. They hold a special. Place. In his heart. For a church. That wasn't wealthy. They had made.
[62:52] A costly expression. Of their commitment. To the gospel. Through their practical. Sacrificial support. Paul is rejoicing. Because the Philippine.
[63:03] Believers. Have demonstrated. Evidence. For their faith. Buoyed. By their love. For him. And the Lord. And their good works. Paul is confident.
[63:14] That they will continue. In their lives. Until the day. Of Christ's return. They are living lives. Consistent. With the gospel message.
[63:25] There's a challenge here. Are we supporting. Our leaders. Do we delight them.
[63:58] By our faithful. Spiritual growth. And responses. To the gospel. As we work. In partnership. Together. Through the life. And ministry. Of this church.
[64:10] Is there anyone. We could give a gift to. And bless them. At this time. Paul's assumption. Is that the Christian life. Shows a progressive.
[64:21] Transformation. Until that day. When the believer. Meets Jesus. Face to face. Yes. And he prays. Confidently. That they may continue. To grow in the Lord.
[64:33] God. In his grace. Has taken hold. Of the Philippians. And works with them. To produce a life. Consistent with the gospel. And the holiness.
[64:43] That characterizes. Their life. Is God's work. May that be true. Of our relationships. Together. As a fellowship. As Marilyn Baker.
[64:55] Sang. You are the potter. I am the clay. Help me to be willing. To let you have. Your way.
[65:06] May we live our best lives. For the sake. Of the gospel. And then we see. That these verses. Written by Paul. Are a prayer.
[65:17] For growth. Verses 9 to 11. And in these three verses. Paul prays specifically. For three things. Verse 9. And this is my prayer. That your love.
[65:28] May abound more and more. In knowledge. And depth of insight. In the case of the believers. At Philippi. Paul prays. That they will grow. And mature.
[65:38] In knowledge. And wisdom. As Christians. That their love. For the Lord. And each other. Will continue. To express itself. In their relationships.
[65:49] Growth. Growth. In knowledge. In a biblical sense. Refers to growing. In an intimacy. With Jesus. And God. Depth of insight.
[66:00] Refers to practical. Discernment. And sensitivity. In a church. Where fault finding. And disunity. Reared its head. These two qualities.
[66:10] Were needed. To bring harmony. In the fellowship. You see. Love isn't just. Expressed. In emotion. And affection. But also.
[66:20] In wisdom. And in understanding. If we do not. Immerse ourselves. In God's word. Both individually. And corporately. And see how much.
[66:31] He loves us. How can we love him? And vice versa. The more we love him. The more. We will know him. Can I encourage you.
[66:43] If you don't. Already. To join a life group. And together. Together with others. Immerse yourself. In God's word. And grow in knowledge. And understanding.
[66:56] It is possible. To have knowledge. Without growing. As a Christian. That's why we must have insight. As well. The Greek word. Used means. To grasp. The significance of.
[67:08] As well as knowing the truth. We must apply it. To our lives. On the 1st of July. This year. There is a notable. Anniversary.
[67:19] Which we celebrate. As a nation. It will be 30 years. Since the theory. Driving test. Was introduced. Before then.
[67:32] If you were learning. To drive. You only had to read. And remember. The highway code. And on the day. Of the actual. Practical test. Answer a few. General questions.
[67:43] Before setting off. Down the road. Some of us. Remember those. Good old days. I'm sure. Many of you. Would have experienced. Or seen. Family members. Have the trauma.
[67:54] Of going through. The theory tests. And then also. The practical test. It would be quite. Dangerous. Wouldn't it. If after passing. The theory. We were told.
[68:04] That's okay. Don't need to do. Anything else. You've passed. Here's your full license. Get on with your driving. An intellectual. Understanding. Of the theory.
[68:15] Of driving. Needs to work. In tandem. With the real life. Practical aspect. Of it. You need to get in a car. And drive it. You may have come.
[68:26] This morning. To an intellectual. Understanding. Of who Jesus is. But do you trust him. In your heart. Do you allow him. And his love. To shape.
[68:36] And motivate. Your life. Love. Maybe the Lord. Is calling you today. To step out in faith. And rest in him. Let go of your fear. And jump into his deep lake.
[68:48] Of love. And grace. You see. Knowledge in our heads. Of who Jesus is. Needs to pass. Into daily obedience. And experience.
[69:00] Love shows a commitment. To look out. For the spiritual health. Of other believers. As making sure. They don't stray. From the bath. God has put us on. As Paul loves them.
[69:12] He wants them. To love each other. And as they grow. In God. In his ways. They will grow. In unity. And a clearer. Understanding. Of what it means. To be fellow believers.
[69:22] Together. May that also be true. Of our lives. As a fellowship. And then Paul moves. Into verse 10. So that you may be able.
[69:33] To discern. What is best. And may be pure. And blameless. For the day. Of Christ. Our grandchildren. Are at the age. Where they're constantly.
[69:44] Asking questions. Never stops. Some of you know. And are experiencing that. But it is always good. Always good. To ask questions. We are to discern.
[69:56] What may be the best way. To live our lives. So that on the day. Of judgment. We can stand blameless. Before the Lord. You see. It is only by being.
[70:08] In relationship. With Jesus. That we can stand. Pure and holy. Before the Father. You will know. That banknotes.
[70:18] Contain security features. Some of them unseen. During the paper. Manufacturing process. Or the extrusion. Of plastic banknotes.
[70:28] Different colored. Small fibers. Are incorporated. Into the product. There needs to be. Specified amounts. Of them. Per unit area.
[70:39] Of the paper. That way. If the product. Does not have these. Or the right amount. It gives a clue. As to the paper. Being a forgery. These four fibers.
[70:52] Are ultraviolet. Light sensitive. They cannot be seen. With the naked eye. They can only be revealed. In a darkened room. Through the use.
[71:02] Of a strong. UV light. In our lives. There are things. That we might wish. To hide from view. In our secret places.
[71:14] But through the spotlight. Of God's love. His perfect love. In his presence. All is revealed. God sees into our hearts.
[71:26] What motivates us. But when we trust. In Jesus. We are clothed. In his. Sinless righteousness. The slate.
[71:38] Is wiped. Clean. God doesn't see. Our impurities. But sees us. Lovingly. Restored. In the Lord. Jesus.
[71:50] Paul prays. That as we grow. In Jesus. We will be presented. To God. Clean. And pure. And by discerning. What is correct. And only considering. The things that really matter.
[72:02] The Philippians. Wouldn't be swayed. By false. Teaching. Discernment. Enables them. To keep their eyes. Upon Jesus. And then we move on.
[72:19] To verse. Eleven. Sorry. Another story. A considerable number of years ago.
[72:31] Wendy and I traveled to Bournemouth. For the wedding of my youngest cousin. We met up with the family. At the hotel. Where the reception. Was to be held. Before traveling.
[72:42] To the church. It was in the days. Before mobile phones. And sat nabs. Were in use. So we arranged. To follow my sister. And brother in awe. In their vehicle.
[72:54] To where the service. Was taking place. No problem. I thought. I'll just keep an eye. On their car. In front. Everything.
[73:04] Was going superbly. Until we came. To a roundabout. They entered the crossing. And I briefly paused. To allow traffic. To proceed. From the right.
[73:16] That was where. It all began. To fall apart. When I joined. The roundabout. Because I'd momentarily. Taken my eye. Off their vehicle. I lost sight.
[73:26] Of which exit. They'd taken. I began to follow. What I thought. Was their car. But then I realized. After a few meters. That my brother-in-law. Was now wearing.
[73:36] A very nice hat. I was following. The wrong vehicle. However. I doubled down. On my mistake. By continuing.
[73:47] To follow the car. Hoping. That they were going. To the same wedding. Which of course. They were not. I'd also. Compounded. My mistake. By not having.
[73:57] The details. On me. Of which church. We were going to. To. And I also. Had neglected. To share that information. With my dear wife. After driving around.
[74:09] Bournemouth. For a further period. Of time. Looking at a number. Of churches. Getting hopelessly. Confused. That's me. Not Wendy. We decided. To return. To the reception hotel.
[74:19] Which thankfully. We remembered. To find. And wait. For the guests. To arrive. Lessons. Were duly learned. Hopefully. Are you at a junction.
[74:32] In your life. Where are you headed. Are you keeping. Your eyes. On Jesus. Are you allowing him.
[74:43] To lead. And guide you. Or are you following. The wrong path. Paul prays. For discernment. May we pray. Also. This for ourselves.
[74:54] And those. We are in relationship. With. That we may be able. To keep our eyes. Upon Jesus. Without. Any. Distraction. Filled. With the fruit.
[75:05] Of righteousness. That comes. Through Jesus. Christ. To the glory. And praise. Of God. We need discernment. What is fruit?
[75:17] It is evidence. Of a healthy. Growing. Plant. Or tree. Like many of you. I love a good apple. Or a banana. When we eat fruit.
[75:27] We are nourished. We are nourished. By it. The fruit. Of righteousness. Comes. As we grow. In relationship. With Jesus. And our lives. Are made right. With God. Through him. The basis.
[75:38] For Paul's prayer. Is that the believers. Continually grow. Rooted in Jesus. And as his spirit. Affects our lives. In our words. And deeds.
[75:49] And nourishes our souls. The evidence. Of that. Will be clear. For all to see. Our wrong actions. Our sin. That were a barrier.
[76:00] And separated us. From God. Has been removed. Through the death. Of Jesus. On the cross. And as we said earlier. The slate. Is wiped clean.
[76:11] By him. We have a new beginning. And because he rose. Gloriously. To new life. Conquering sin. And death. We can know. And experience.
[76:21] That spiritual renewal. In our own hearts. And lives. As we trust in him. Can I give you. A word of encouragement. This morning. You might be feeling.
[76:34] A little down. Perhaps worn out. Sensing that you've. Let the Lord down. Wondering how you can. Fulfill. His calling. In your life. You need not be.
[76:45] In despair. At your circumstances. Christ died. On the cross. For you. The words of Romans 8.
[76:57] Verse 1. Say to you. Right at this very moment. There is now. No condemnation. For those. Who are in Christ Jesus. If you are in Jesus.
[77:08] This morning. You have a new. Spiritual life. And a right. Relationship. With your father. In heaven. That cannot be taken. From you. In any circumstance. Or by any circumstance.
[77:21] You are his child. Doubts will come. But you are clothed. In the breastplate. Of the righteousness. Of Christ. That will protect you.
[77:32] From the flaming arrows. Of the enemy. And the work. God does in your life. Will bring glory. To God. God. And if. As of yet.
[77:42] You are still undecided. Can I encourage you. To take that step of faith. Towards Jesus. And receive his love. Into your hearts. He wants to embrace you.
[77:55] In his arms. And if you allow him. To do that. You will never. Be disappointed. As individuals.
[78:05] And as a church. As we step out. Trusting the Lord. God will use our lives together. For his kingdom. And glory. His abounding love. Will become known.
[78:16] To us. That was Paul's prayer. May it be ours too. Follow his example. And as you come. In humility. And thanksgiving. Pray for each other.
[78:29] That together. We would grow in the Lord. Filled with his love. Knowledge. Discernment. And righteousness. Wouldn't it be amazing.
[78:39] To pray that. For each other. Grace. And peace. To you. From God. Our Father. And the Lord.
[78:50] Jesus. Christ. Amen. Thanks Pete. Bless you.
[79:00] Thank you. Amen. Thank you so much. Peter. For. Leading us through that. Really helpful. And I'd like to just give us a bit of. A bit of space for us to respond to God.
[79:12] And to respond. In prayer. And in our own hearts. To what we've. What we've heard. What has inspired you. This morning. From what we've heard in.
[79:22] In that prayer of Paul's. I'm just going to ask. The musicians. Just to pray quietly. As we spend some time. Just praying into that. And responding. We'll just have some. Yeah.
[79:33] Just some moments of reflection. And then I'll lead us in a prayer. Amen. Just encourage you.
[80:24] To allow God to. By his spirit. To speak into your heart. As we. Reflecting what we've heard. As we respond to him. Lord.
[80:44] We thank you. For. Everything that you've done for us. And everything that you bless us with. And I pray that. As a church family here.
[80:55] That we could be. People who express. Thankfulness to you. In everything that we do. And say. And there would be people.
[81:05] Who could express our thankfulness. To each other. And express that encouragement. We've heard about. To each other. That we'd be thinking. Of ourselves less. And giving all the praise to you.
[81:16] I thank you. For all the evidence. Of the faith. And you. Working in people's lives. That we see around us. Here in this place today. And we pray that you'd help us. To encourage one another.
[81:28] As we meet together. As we seek to grow together. And that is our prayer. As it was Paul's prayer. That our. That our love. Would grow. As we grow. In faith of you.
[81:38] And that our love for you. Would abound. More and more. I pray that for. For each one of us. Give us your spirit. To be able to. To discern. What is best.
[81:50] And what your worth is. For every situation. That. That we face. And Lord. We pray. That you would produce in us. Fruit. Evidence of.
[82:02] Of healthy growing. Evidence of. Of your spirit. At work in us. Making us more like you. Thank you. That. It's not ourselves.
[82:13] That put us right with you. But. You could only do that for us. You have done that for us. Through Jesus. Thank you for. The gift of righteousness. And we pray. That we can express. That gift.
[82:23] That you've given to us. That you've put us right with you. That we can express that. As we give you praise. As we gather together. But as we. As we go into the situations. That you've.
[82:34] That you've called us. Into. In our daily lives. And we pray. That you would use us. Every day. Use our lives. In expressing.
[82:45] Who you are. In building. Your kingdom. That we would. Abound. In love. As you. Abound. In love. That you pour out on us. We're so thankful.
[82:56] We want to express. That praise to you now. Amen. I invite you to. To stand. As the musicians. Lead us now. In a couple of songs of praise. Let's stand. And worship God. In the name of the Lord.
[83:07] In the name of the Lord. In the name of the Lord. In the name of the Lord. In the name of the Lord. In the name of the Lord. In the name of the Lord. I dare not trust in Peter's man, but I only trust in Jesus' name.
[83:48] I dare not trust in Peter's man, but I only trust in Jesus' name.
[84:18] I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[84:48] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[85:04] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[85:16] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[85:28] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[85:40] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[85:52] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[86:04] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name.
[86:16] I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. I dare not trust in Jesus' name. We shall come with trumpet sound Oh, may I let him be found Dressed in his righteousness alone For the standing wall and all As the Lord, all the strong We may strong, Savior's love With a strong, he is the Lord Lord, all the strong
[87:21] Christ, Lord, all the strong We may strong in Savior's love Through the strong, he is the Lord Lord, all the strong Lord, we thank you for that promise That we can make strong in the Savior's love We thank you for your Savior's love Which you've demonstrated to us In dying on that cross for us That by your blood we can be called your sons and daughters By your body broken, we can be reunited to you We are so thankful for that We're so thankful that you've done that for us That we can stand confident In your presence, confident That we are loved by you Confident that we are made righteous
[88:22] Because of your blood And we thank you that you've won the victory for us Over the sin that holds us back Over the power of sin And over the power of death And we're so thankful for that victory And we proclaim your victory And we praise you for it Amen Let's continue to worship Amen O, since my kingdom of ages Great heart of God God of heart By the blood you have redeemed us
[89:24] Let us live And your heart My heart My heart Our stone, our sure foundation Now to the Lamb of our throne Be blessed, honor, glory, power For the Lamb you have won Hallelujah Oer, cycle, and love us Summer, and simple sinners By your blood you are near us
[90:31] Sparkling, sparkling, light Is day in the earth We're always in the darkness We're always in the darkness Now to the Lamb upon the throne Be blessed, honor, glory, power For the Lamb you have won Hallelujah In every time and every time Enjoy the anthem of angels In the triumph of the Son Hallelujah My name is the Lord
[91:52] On that day you will not tremble when you stand. Christ the King is alive.
[92:04] He walks and lives forever to the Lamb on the throne.
[92:16] He blessed the honor and glory of all the Father. He will have a heart. Hallelujah.
[92:31] With every child and every tongue. We join the anthem of the angels in the triumph of the Son.
[92:45] Hallelujah. Hallelujah. My god My god As you have upon the throne.
[93:36] In blessing, honor, and power. For the power you have won. Hallelujah. With every child and every child.
[93:54] In the joy that the ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl ampl I'm aware of the Holy Spirit just working among us and just the sense that he's got some business to do with some of us today.
[94:48] I'd just like to invite Geraldine. I'm just going to invite Geraldine to share what she's sent to the Holy Spirit saying just as we've been worshipping and responding to God's Word. Thank you, Geraldine.
[95:00] Do please sit down. I've spoken in many places and I don't get nervous.
[95:13] But when the Spirit falls on me like he just did, I am so nervous. I believe that God is saying for some here, you have the Holy Spirit, but you're afraid.
[95:29] You're afraid that he's going to control you. And he's not like that. He invites you to partake in the many blessings that he has for you.
[95:42] I'm on the prayer team this morning in the corner there. If you want to pray about that with me, I'd love to pray with you. Thank you so much, Geraldine. I really appreciate you sharing that.
[95:54] And yeah, as Geraldine said, Geraldine and husband Alan are going to be in our after-service prayer. You've seen the signs there. We're officially launching that today as part of our kind of Pray Big series.
[96:05] And so every Sunday starting this Sunday, there's going to be at least a couple of people in that after-service prayer area. So it's the pillar just on that side over there.
[96:17] Do please make your way over there. And Alan, Geraldine, others as well would love to just minister to you. And if you sense particularly what Geraldine shared, if that's you, please don't leave here today without praying with someone about that.
[96:32] And Alan, Geraldine, others would love to pray for you, to give thanks with you for what God is doing in your life and to pray for God's strength for you, for anything that's challenging that you're going through.
[96:43] And I'm certainly going to take that opportunity today because I really sense that I need to receive prayer from others today as I serve here as well.
[96:53] And we all need that. So I do really encourage you to take that opportunity. As well as having that opportunity for prayer after the service, there's refreshments in the welcome area through this way and through the entrance, through the back that way as well.
[97:09] Please do grab a tea or coffee. If you've got children in the children's groups, please go and collect them first. And remember to thank the leaders of those groups and offer to help them if you're able to.
[97:21] And then come down and join us for refreshments and a great time to get to know each other. Let me pray. A prayer that's inspired by Paul's prayer in Philippians.
[97:32] Lord, as we go from here, we pray that our love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight. Give us the ability to discern what is best according to your will.
[97:44] Help us to grow in obedience that we may be pure and blameless and fruitful for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ. To the glory and praise of you, our Heavenly Father.
[97:58] In Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. God bless you. Amen. Thank you.
[98:32] Thank you.
[99:02] Thank you.