A- Z of Gratitude

Abide in Christ and experience His joy with thanksgiving 

Believe in the power of the Cross for salvation and be thankful

Connect with people in community and be grateful for  every relationship 

Dwell in the love of Father with continuous thanksgiving 

Experience the personal presence of the Holy Spirit with thanks 

Find beauty in every person created in image of God with joyous gratitude 

Give without expecting anything in return - thankful that we can bless because we have  been blessed 

Hope in the future as promised by God with expectant gratitude

Invest in people for their growth and with your encouragement with thanks for the body of Christ 

Joy is in the fruits of salvation and thanksgiving in the nations

Kneel in humility and be constantly be awed at  the glory of God in His creation with shouts of thanksgiving 

Love God and love your neighbour out of a heart of gratitude 

Meet the needs of others with little surprises and a grateful heart

Never stop thanking God 

Obey Jesus, follow His Leading and be thankful as He constantly surprises us

Pray with a thankful heart

Question your doubt and before you doubt God and thank Him for the revelation of truth.

Receive undeserved gifts and rest in His presence and be thankful

Silent attentive gratitude  

Travel light and thank Jesus for carrying all my burdens

Value the power for forgiveness with deep gratitude for the Cross

Wait for the Lord with thankful expectation

X everything that hinders love and give thanks for His light

Yield every agenda to Him with gratitude 

Zealous gratitude in all situations and under all circumstances

Amazing Generosity

26/8/12 AM - Mike Hey "Amazing Generosity" from Clovercrest Baptist on Vimeo.

Reflecting again on:

Luke 18:18-30 and the failure of the rich young ruler.

1. He failed to be broken by the truth about himself, about his pride and about his idolatry.

2. He failed to be humbled by the power of God to meet him at his point of real need to be right with God.

3. He failed to be transformed by the generous and gracious love of Jesus. 

He was invited to make all his resources available to God's purpose among the poor and to simply follow Jesus

Jesus was on His way to the cross and the invitation was to follow him to the Cross. The Cross is the place of truth about our real brokenness, sin and need for mercy. It is the place of trust in the power of God for forgiveness and the gift of true righteousness. and it is the place of spiritual transformation through the generosity of God in pouring out his love in justice, mercy and grace.

Stay close to the Cross!

Christmas Sermon: Luke 1:26-38

4 December 2011 - Mike Hey - "Journey Of Favour" from Clovercrest Baptist on Vimeo.

Sharing the word

Fruitfulness in mission - Mike Hey

22nd May 2011 - Mike Hey - "Bearing Fruit in Mission" from Clovercrest Baptist on

8th May 2011 - Ann Hey - "Crossing Boundries" from Clovercrest Baptist on Vimeo.

>Vimeo.

Crossing Boundaries - Ann Hey

8th May 2011 - Ann Hey - "Crossing Boundries" from Clovercrest Baptist on Vimeo.

Our Passion

1. A fresh move of the Holy Spirit compelling us to radical action
2. A focus on God's priority to bring release to the crushed and the afflicted
3. An authentic faith that is demonstrated at home, work and place of worship
4. A foundation that is designed by God for fruitfulness in every area of life
5. A fight with the world, flesh and the devil to the end

Authentic faith

1. It is centered in our relationship with Christ

2. It will be tested through the troubles of life

3. It can be evident in our daily choices.

Seven touch points:

1. Live for His glory – True worship

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Romans 12:1

2. Discover the way of the humble

He leads the humble in what is right,

   and teaches the humble his way.

Psalm 25:9

3. Embrace  love and  forgiveness

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,  bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

Col 3:12 - 14

4. Trust in His Lordship and reliability.

 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
   and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
   and he will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
   fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.
It will be healing to your flesh
   and refreshment to your bones.

Proverbs 3:5 - 8

5. Walk together in the reality of His presence

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

1 John 1:7

6. Be filled with the Holy Spirit

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

Acts: 4:31

7. Live Good News everywhere and in everything

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one Spirit, with one mind, striving side by side for the faith fo the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents.

Phil 1:27 – 28 

Prayer

"And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints."

Revelations 5:8


Prayer is not simply bringing a shopping list to God.
Prayer connects us with the personal, holy, and loving presence of God.
Prayer is an honest attitude of heart towards the ways of God.
Prayer is difficult at times and true prayer is humbling as we face our own weakness and seek His strength.
Prayer moves us from self reliance to deeper dependence on God.
Prayer builds expectancy for His Kingdom to come.
Prayer discovers the supernatural provision of God.
Prayer brings victory over evil
Prayer is not an optional extra.
Prayer takes our eyes off self to seek Him.


Some characteristics of a growing Atmosphere of Prayer:

1. Awe in the presence of God's holiness and authority. Our God is a consuming fire. A small view of God will lead us to neglect prayer.
2. Amazing grace towards the humble when they are confident to come to His throne. (Heb 4:16)
3. Attitudes towards others are radically transformed through prayer.

An aspect of Kingdom culture

Kingdom culture on earth is orientated around Good News. We experience righteousness through relationship with Christ. We embrace peace towards one another through our relationship with Christ. We enjoy the presence of the Holy Spirit through our relationship with Christ.

On Thursday I shared from Matt 18:23 "The Kingdom of heaven is like..." Jesus told the story of the King (At the centre of the Kingdom) who forgave an impossible debt of one of his servants. In the response of this servant it is clear that he did not appreciate the extent of this incredible gift. He refuses to forgive another person who owed him a small amount compared to his own debt. He faced serious consequences for rejecting the mercy of the King.

We can learn some Kingdom principles from this passage for community life. These principles can only be embraced through the work of God's grace in our lives.

1. Take the humble place (Matt 18:4)

2. Ensure that our behaviour or attitude does not cause another to stumble (Matt 18:6 - 9)

3. Reach out with a shepherd's heart to the one who has gone astray and is struggling (Matt 18:10 - 14)

4. Deal with sin in the right way. Confront the offender personally and privately. Only involve others if it does not work out (Matt 18:15 - 17 )

5. Embrace the authority that you have when you pray with one or two others. The presence of the King is with you. (Matt 18:18 - 19)

6. Develop a habit of forgiveness (Matt 18:21 - 22)

7. A dimension of Kingdom culture is to forgive in response to His forgiveness.


When do I know I have totally forgiven (RT Kendall)

1. be aware of the wrong and still forgive
2. Choose to keep no record of wrong
3. Refuse to punish
4. Do not tell
5. Show mercy
6. Show grace
7. Know inner peace
8. Absence of bitterness

For healing and protection:

- Find someone to share with to help you through the pain of the hurt

- In cases of abuse, church leaders or government authorities need to be informed to help ensure protection of yourself and others.

Let's agree together to pray with authority in Jesus name for His transformational presence to break the chains and set us free to live as his chosen and forgiven people who are called to walk heaven's culture on earth.

Some questions:
Have I said anything to anyone about another person that did not honour that person?

Have I failed to go directly and personally to confront and restore the person at fault?

Have a found time to pray and seek God for spiritual authority to break the graceless culture that rejects the King's mercy?

Own personal responsibility for wrong. Repent (Change mindset) and choose to embrace these Kingdom principles

Leadership insight

Spiritual leadership is dependant on our walk with God.

1. Intimacy with God as we seek Him in the word and through our prayer journey
2. Investement in others as we walk alongside them in this life of adventure with Jesus
3. Involvement in His purpose as we become intentional about meetingthe needs around us
4. Integrity with His truth as we receive His revelation

The Message

We simply believe that the Bible is God's word. It has a message that is relevant for today's realities. Lives have been transformed by the impact of this message. The message is about forgiveness. It is about peace. It is about justice and reconciliation. But above everything else is a message about relationship. This relationship is defined in the language of love and the deeds of love. This love is willing to go beyond tolerance to reach out to our real need for truth and transformation. The truth is that everyone is valued by God. The truth is that our world is damaged. The truth is that 2000 years ago God broke into history to bring hope. Jesus lived and died and rose again. It is our relationship with him that defines who we are and how we live and relate to others. Let me give you an example of a thought from this ancient text that transforms the way that we live today.

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking on your own interests but each of you to the interests of others." Phil 2:2

"whatever happens, as citizens of Heaven live in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ."

Philippians 1:27

We live on earth to bring good news in a way that will help transform lives. Our values are rooted in the heart of God's love for all people.

As the Logos Hope sails

`Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy. How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth.´

Psalm 47:1


´Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands and all that is in them`

Isaiah 42:10

Loving God

1. We are connected to the God who is love. His love has transformed our lives through the work of Christ on the Cross. His love is poured out into our lives through the Holy Spirit. We can cry, "Abba Father!" At the heart of our experience of faith is this reality of the presence of the God who loves without condition except that of the sacrifice of His Son at the Cross. The work of the Cross brings us into relationship with Jesus. We have access to the Father and the Holy Spirit empowers us to live out His love.

"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them." 1 John 4:16

Love is evidence of His presence! God now!!

This life in Christ connects us to the ocean of His love.

a) It is so wide that He embraces all of creation and all eternity. His love embraces the whole world. Let's move from the shallow water experience of His love to the depth of what he has given to us in Christ

b) It is so long that it stretches to eternity past and to eternity future over our personal lives. Nothing can separate us from this love. Our debt is paid in full at the Cross. Our sin is removed as fare as the east is from the west. We are free to hope and live in righteousness because he has redeemed us through His blood.

c) It is so deep that it reaches to the deepest need of our heart and can bring healing and deliverance. We have seen that here in Deenmark. Ann and I had lunch with a couple today who have experienced traumatic pain in their family and now know miraculous healing. They said that there is poverty of the heart in Denmark and that it is a need that only Jesus can fill.

d) It is so high that there is nothing that cannot be overcome by this love. The love of God is higher than the mountains that you face today.

"Perfect love drives out fear." 1 John 4:18

"I pray that you being rooted and established in love, may have power together with all the Lord's people, to grasp how wide, and long, and high, and deep is the love of Christ, and know that this love surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:17 - 19


2. We now have the ability to make the choices of love. This love transforms our attitude and enables us to rely on His Holy Spirit to bear fruit.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." 1 Cor 13:4 - 8


What are the choices of love that you are making today? Does your relationship with Jesus define those choices? Or do you tend to justify your actions and blame others. The power and presence of Christ is with us to transform our attitudes in a miraculous way,. We can love our enemies.


3. We now have the capacity to love others.


"A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34 - 35

Jesus did not say that we should try to love. he definitely did not say we should pretend to love. The command is to believe in Him. We now have the capacity to love through the power of His presence in our lives. We have a new capacity to show good news through the way that we live together.


This love is the dynamic energy released in our lives through the presence of Christ. This love motivates us to be involved in the ministry of reconciliation

"For Christ love compels us, for we are convinced that one died for all and therefore all died. And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.2 2 Cor 5:14 - 15

The Cross is our motivation and power. We have capacity to love. He can bring transformation to others through our surrendered lives.

My prayer for us today is in the words of Paul to the Philippians church:

"And this is my prayer: that your love 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, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory and praise of God." Phil 1:9 - 11

As we pray His life will increase. As His live in us increases, our love will grow. Take one step at a time into the depth of His love or take the plunge and dive into the ocean, He can be trusted.

Leadership

When we submit to the strengths of the team we provide opportunity for others to grow. Learn to do less in order to do more.

Edmund Chan - Growing Deeper in God

"This is an invitation to life in Christ. For in Christ, we have a forgiveness that is real, a freedom that is radical, and a future that is redeemed."

Abide

Jeremiah 2:13

"My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. "

John 7:37-38

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."

John 15:4

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.

These three pictures impress on me the importance of the power and presence of God in our lives. An empty well serves no effective purpose. A thirst unquenched is unbearable. Branches disconnected from the vine bear no fruit.

Our lives are vessels for the presence of Christ. When we drink from the life of Jesus, streams of living water flow. When we remain in Him then His life bears fruit through us.

The warning is to be aware of the danger of digging our own wells instead of relying on the Spring of living water.

We need Him everyday .

Identity

In the Father we are sons and daughters with eternal value
In the Son we are servants for transformation in local and global communities
In the Holy Spirit we are vessels for His presence and power to touch the world with His Love

Peace

A fellow Christ-Servant on board shared the following:

"Have been impressed with the theme of 'peace' at this time.

Peace I leave with you . My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.

This is an actual participation in the peace that dwells within and between the triune God - WOW!"

Christ is our peace! Hope in the midst of devastating global situations is transformational when He brings wholeness to individuals and communities. He does this through His people who are sent as light and salt into society.