Remain in God and Bear Fruits - Part II
After my 1st post, I'm certain many of you are asking, "So Sister Gwen, how do we walk through such difficult times???" Well, the answer is found everywhere in John 15 – Remain/ Abide in God
Remain/ Abide is to stay in God’s word/promises/commands/ instructions. It’s not a ‘weng weng’ thingy, it’s not a manipulative emotional roller coaster either. It’s the simple lifestyle of humility and inviting God into your life constantly.
With His word/promises/commands/instructions inscribed in our hearts and minds, going through life difficulties would be much easier and joyful. Amen?Try this – count the number of ‘remain’ or ‘abide’ in John 15:1-12.
John 15:4-12 (NIV)
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. You know God really means it when He repeats the value of remaining in Him in almost every other verse or sentence in this short passage! So IGNYTE ministry, don’t give up and be discouraged when life seems to be going no where. Perhaps God wants you to just remain in Him.
James 1:2-5 (NIV) Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
So…. What do you think? =)Blessings!Sister Gwen!
Stare. What? Stare!
Stare. What? Stare!
Ready for an exciting game show?
Ready to spot the difference?
Invite your friends this week for Stare. What? Stare!
Saturday 04/07 at 4.45pm
Sunday 05/07 at 11.15pm
At LT 1
See you there!!
By Stare what Stare committee
Remain in God and Bear Fruits - Part I
Hello IGNYTE!
How many of you love gardening? **umm I don’t see many hands risen up**Jesus taught an important value to His disciples through the parable of The Gardener and the vine. Let’s look at John 15 to explore more on the value of remaining/abiding in God.
John 15:1-12 (NIV) "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
God wants us to be fruitful. However, to be fruitful does not always mean going through a smooth and easy life most of the times. Every victory in life comes with a battle, no matter how big and small. But today we can rest assured that it is God’s promise for us is to bear fruits (= [abundant living], and so what do we do then??? The answer is in John 15 – REMAIN IN GOD.
Every plant that bears fruit would first need to go through the process of pruning or change in their life cycle. The flower petals have to drop and wither; the branches with weeds and algae need to be cut off so that healthy fruit can be bear.
Likewise, it is the same for our lives. Sometimes, God will allow us to face difficult situations; not to torment and make us suffer, but to give us the opportunity to make Godly decisions and grow from it. The result of pruning/molding is FRUITFULNESS.
Fruitfulness = Abundant Living = Godly Character and a Blessed Life.
So don’t shrink or run away when you have storms in your lives.
But know that such situations are inevitable, yet we don’t resign to it, but start to see such occurrence as God pruning our character, pruning our lives so that we can fulfill His purpose in our lives. God bless!Sis Gwen!p.s. stay posted for "Part II" of this blog entry yar!
Calling EVERYONE who is interested to take photos!
Join us for a time of fun while learning!
Do send in your name, centre, section, adult leader, level and contact number to ignyteweb@gmail.com so that we can estimate the number of people coming!
See you there! :)
It's about the God of Abundance.
Four months. Four EXCITING months in this journey... and it's gonna climax tonight at the opening. I've been moved by the unity and the sacrifice of everyone in this project - from the leaders to the youths - you are
AMAZING! And let's not forget those who really rallied around the project in
prayer and support, even though you are not directly involved - it made a huge difference!
It has been quite a roller-coaster ride... with some personal challenges... but yet again - God never fails - your Grace is SUFFICIENT...
We're all ready to go...all excited.... but let's stay focus what this is all about. It's about reaching the needy for God. It's about offering our two copper coins in gratitude, and watching God do the rest. It's about you Lord. :')
Your tired but elated Pastor,
PDa
P.S. The music blurb is up! Those of you who want to catch a glimpse of the music, check it out
HERE!
Jesus, My Guide to Focus
Man! June is such a busy month! I don’t know about you but mine’s jam-packed! There’s rehearsals every night and a lot of work to be done! Man! There is so much work to do!
Are you feeling the same as me? Maybe it’s not rehearsals for you, maybe its school, maybe its CCA, maybe its enrichment classes, tuition classes or ALL of that and more! And maybe it’s getting you down and making you really tired! Well friends, I want you to know, Jesus has a solution to this!
Matt 11:28-30 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Kinda funny that God would say to the weary and burdened that he would give them rest by getting them to take up his yoke! Isn’t it interesting? =)
Well you see, this yoke that Jesus is talking about is his guidance in our lives. When an oxen straps on a yoke, he is easily maneuvered by his guide. Oxen in general like to move and roam everywhere, having a lot of energy but achieving nothing much with it. But when its energy is harnessed to plow the ground then it becomes very purposeful, powerful and productive!
Like the oxen, we need to do just that. We need to strap on Jesus’ yoke. When there are so many things going on in our lives that burdens us, so many things to do that wearies us out, it seems like we’re running all over the place. And as humans, over time we tend to lose focus in the things that we do. But when we come to Jesus, He will focus us on what’s most important.
So come to Jesus and be refreshed in His presence. His gentle and humble presence and allow Him to guide you back, to focus on the important things in life.
Be refreshed by His Word
Psa 109:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
Be refreshed as you Worship Him
Psa 67:4
May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth.
Your fellow oxen-in-Christ
Kah Fei
Fun Jam!
Fun Jam for all is back!
If you're interested in singing or playing instruments, do come down this Sunday to join everyone in a time of fun jam!
Date: 24th May 2009 (This Sunday!)
Time: 2:30pm - 5:30pm
Venue: LT1, Trinity @ PL
Help us spread the word around to your friends too!
Cya there this Sunday :)
P.s. Guitarists, please bring your guitars along
