This Sunday I will have the privilege of serving our Wahroonga church and preaching for them, albeit on Zoom! And so I have asked Joel Seric to preach for us this week. He will be addressing us from the book of Ecclesiastes and looking at the fleeting nature of life in light of who God is! Thank you Joel and the Seric’s!
A recent article from the latest Sovereign Grace Journal caught my attention, and I wanted to share it with you all as a church. Currently, we have a number of single men and women in our church community, and this article will help those who are single to treasure Christ more and those who aren’t to have a better understanding of this circumstance. Notably, Jason makes this profound point: “The truth is, we all started our lives single, and many of us will end our lives single . We will certainly all spend eternity without earthly marriage, fully to enjoy the one eternal marriage between Christ and the church.” Therefore, this topic is vitally important for us all.
As the Statement of Faith for Sovereign Grace Churches affirms, “Single men and women are no less able to enjoy and honor God and no less important to his purposes . They also are to give ex- pression to God’s image in distinct and complementary ways, flourishing as his image-bearers and bringing him glory in their singleness .”
Read the article here, and if you would like to chat about it, I encourage you to read it through with someone!
MY SOUL IS SATISFIED: SINGLENESS AND THE SUFFICIENCY OF CHRIST by Jason Stowell
Some Christians view singleness as a bad thing, an unwanted gift, understanding singleness primarily through the lens of the trials it may bring or the blessings it deprives us of . The New Testament, however, presents both marriage and singleness as unique blessings and gifts from God . Yes, each brings challenges as well . Many are unhappily married or unhappily single . But God has graced each of us for the situation we are in presently .
As a single man, I’ve learned that my situation provides unique opportunities to serve Christ and display his sufficiency in my life . And I am eager for the lives of all Christians who are single to testify to the satisfaction that Christ alone can give .
Access the whole journal here: https://www.sovereigngrace.com/journal
Loneliness is very real for many people at the moment. And in God’s kindness SINGLE MINDED have offered a live webinar on the 14th of August from 9:00 - 10:30 AM and the topic is brilliant; “Finding God in my Loneliness”.
Please book your tickets here: Single Minded 2021 Conference
You could even organise to watch this with some people from church and discuss the content together
This Sunday we were pastored by Jesus through his counsel to Peter, while they were walking on water! Amazing! In the text, Matthew 14:22-36 we saw that the only way to weather the winds and waves of our life is to focus fully on Jesus. When Peter looked around at his circumstances and lost concentration, he began to sink. So it is with us. So quickly our confidence and joy and peace dissolves as the wind and waves pick up. We can turn inward to ourselves, outward to others, but ultimately we need to look upward to Jesus, the divine one who alone is control of all things for our good.
Friends, if you are in the storm, walking on water by faith, focus on Jesus and you will float! Listen to the message here: https://sgparra.org.au/sermons/prayer-matthew-14-22-36
Starting Point continues this Sunday via Zoom at 8:45am.
Interested in learning more about our church? Or know someone who might want to find out more? Why not sign up or sign them up!
Starting Point is designed to help you figure out who we are, what we believe, and whether you want to jump in and become a member of our church.
We are going to gather online for a Church Family Meeting, August 1st, 8pm on Zoom.
The purpose of this meeting is a chance for us to be reminded of all that God has done so far this year, get updates from key leaders, and hear what is in store for the rest of the year.
If you are new to SG Parra, this would be a great meeting to attend and you are welcome to come!
We will gather on Zoom on Friday Night 8pm-9pm for Mission Prayer.
We will use the Sunday Morning Zoom Link, click here for that.
Please consider joining us as we RELY on Jesus to save our friends and family.
Your LG leaders will let you know all the details!
We saw on Sunday that Jesus, the Good King, provides FOR His People and THROUGH His People. Because He provides FOR us with his care and compassion, we should run to Him with our problems and pains. Because he also provides THROUGH us we should rely on Him to do all that he commanded us to do!
Friends, we all have a purpose in life, to do what He has called us to do. It will look different for each and everyone of us, but we share one thing in common: we can’t do it without Him! “Our complete insufficiency for the task is meant to lead us to complete dependency on Him for success.”
Let’s RUN to him and RELY on Him!
Listen to the message here
At our Church family meeting a month a go, I mentioned that we would go back to the basics of why we mission.
So the question I have for you is… Why do we need to mission? If God is in control of everything, why cant we just sit back and not bother?
This is one of the many questions we hope to unpack as we start (an optional but highly recommended) book club:
Who: You’re all invited
What: Book club - Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (J.I Packer)
When: Sunday nights, from 8pm - 9pm starting 2nd Oct - 23rd Oct (4 week)
Where: Zoom
And for those who are saying - I don’t read, here’s an excerpt from a book called “Lit” by Tony Reinke:
“Perhaps you love to read. You get the same feeling from a new stack of books as you get from looking at a warm stack of glazed donuts. Maybe not. For most, reading a book is like trying to drink down a huge vitamin. You know you need to read - you’ll be healthier for it - but everything within you refuses to swallow!”
Well, I exhort you church - join us. It will be good for you :)
Email richard@sgparra.org.au to sign up if you are keen and I can send you the Zoom link and order a book for you.