destiny blog

Doing life together......

2010-04-22T23:41:00.002+01:00

After listening back to Sunday's message it was a great reminder of the need to make sure that you believe the right things, that you belong to the right place and that you also become the right person that God wants you to be. Along that journey there are times when you need to be challenged to change in order to change the challenges that you encounter.

Life is never plain sailing and the one thing that I am really thankful for is that I am part of a church that teaches great life application teaching. I know that at various stages of my life the teaching I have received has positively shaped and guided my life in the right direction. However, remaining planted, connected and committed to my church during the storms of life has also enabled me to remain anchored and as a result I know that I am where I belong.

Let's stick together....

2010-04-19T00:04:00.002+01:00

It is very easy to isolate yourself, or to withdraw from being around people during tough seasons. We don't have to choose to live like this however, as in Hebrews 10:25 it says: "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." I can see the importance of meeting together at church and I can also recognise that over the last few years the encouragement, love and support of my church family has been invaluable.

Connect Groups at Destiny are continuing to play an essential part in building and extending new and existing friendships within the church. Last Wednesday we received some excellent teaching about increasing your personal capacity. You can settle for second best and put limitations and ceilings in the way of your life, but God has bigger plans, higher thoughts and higher ways for you instead.

Write the vision down.....

2010-04-08T00:03:00.002+01:00

Habakkuk 2:2-3 reminds us of the importance of writing the vision down. You need to have a vision because otherwise, as it says in Proverbs 29:18, "Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the law." I have had these two passages on my heart in my personal life and they have really helped me to change my perspective on life. They also came to mind at tonight's creative ministries rehearsal when we rehearsed with two new members of the team for the first time. For many years we have been faithfully believing for and praying towards new musicians joining the church. There was a long period of time when we didn't see any tangible changes, but just as it says in Romans 4:21 we remained "being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised." God blesses faithfulness and because many people in the church have remained committed, loyal and planted God is now releasing new people and other blessings into our lives. Too many people quit in tough seasons instead of riding out the stormy seasons. Pastor Mike once said in his excellent "Don't Quit" message, "a quitter never wins and a winner never quits" and "tough seasons don't last, but tough people do". If you are reading this and are starting to waiver, stay faithful, remain planted and ride out the storm. God will reward your faithfulness in due season and will never let you go.

The power of the cross....

2010-04-05T20:08:00.002+01:00

What a great Sunday! I have not been impacted by a message in quite the same way as I was yesterday. Part of my responsibilities include editing the sound files for our website and so I get the opportunity to hear the messages more than once. It is amazing to consider what Jesus actually did on the cross. We learnt yesterday that Jesus showed us the power to love, to show compassion, to forgive, to serve, to pray, how to overcome and how he also gave us the power to live. It is quite amazing when you break it down in this way and it makes me very grateful for the freedom that we have because of Jesus.

What was also good about yesterday was the fact that we didn't just focus on the cross, but we also celebrated the resurrection, as Jesus died but he also rose again. There was such an excitement at the end of the experience and it is really encouraging to see God working in the lives of so many of our people. There is such a unity and togetherness amongst us and I know that each week I can't wait to get there as God is doing great things in our church right now. 2010 is going to be a great year for Destiny and so watch this space!

A great day in the house....

2010-03-28T23:25:00.002+01:00

God is doing amazing things here at Destiny. Today's experience was life changing with praise and worship that touched heaven and changed earth. Pastor Mike delivered the second part of the excellent "What's on the menu?" message series, which was thought provoking, challenging and excellent. I know that it caused me to reevaluate my thought processes and it also helped me to see how much I needed to see myself as God sees me. Please log onto our video stream later this week and be prepared to allow this teaching to challenge, encourage and change your life.

We also heard some fantastic testimonies of God's provision and blessings in different people's lives. The overlying message that impacted me however was the way that God has blessed people because they have remained faithful to God and have become planted in His church. Psalm 92:13 says "those who are planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God". I can testify to that myself as my life has flourished because I am committed to and I am planted in a great church. It is impossible to flourish if your roots aren't planted as you will wither and die. The sad thing is that there are too many nomadic church hopping Christians who chase after experiences, instead of planting themselves. If you want to see your life flourish then make sure you commit yourself to God and the local church.