The Inner Ring, by C.S. Lewis:

I’ll be speaking about this on Sunday evening. It’s fascinated me since I first read it 15 years ago Home | About Us | About C.S. Lewis | Events | Membership | Articles | Interviews Books | Video and DVD | Audios and CDs | Quotes | Links | Contact Us The Inner Ring By C. S. Lewis* May I read you a few lines from Tolstoy’s War and Peace? When you invite a middle-aged moralist to address you, I suppose I must conclude, however unlikely the conclusion seems, that you have a taste for middle-aged moralising. I shall do my best to gratify it. I shall in fact, give you advice about the world in which you are going to live. I do not mean by this that I am going to talk on what are called current affairs. You probably know quite as much about them as I do. I am not going to tell you—except in a form so general that you will hardly recognise it—what part you ought to play in post-war reconstruction. It is not, […]

Colossians 1 – Ivy Grow Group notes

I’m going to be kicking off a new evening series based on Paul’s letter to the Colossians tomorrow – and I’m really excited about the chance to dig in to one of my favourite books of the NT. It was written around 63 AD but it’s bang up to date for us   Read Col 1:1-8 Discuss: Here Paul lists the characteristics of an authentic, Christ-honouring church. Can you list them?    Discuss: Paul writes about fruit that is the evidence of true salvation (compare Mt 13:23). If someone is not bearing this fruit – are they still a Christian?    I’ve called our series ‘Inside Out’ because Paul is writing from prison to a church he didn’t found, but was a church plant started by one of his ‘spiritual sons,; Epaphras. Epaphras apparently had heard the Gospel of Christ from Paul at Ephesus and had taken this life-changing message back to Colosse (v. 7)   Colosse was in what today would be known as Turkey, in Paul’s day it was known as Asia Minor. Actually these days it doesn’t […]

Billy Gilvear at Ivy MCR; when the going gets tough.

Happiness is not determined by what’s happening around me but what’s going on inside me. You are about as happy as you choose to be. Life is tough. Jesus said Blessed are those who persist in times of persecution. Many throughout history have lost their lives for declaring that Jesus is Lord. Billy’s father was barely spared as a missionary in the Congo – he had to go home unexpectedly; the Simba rebels killed everyone on his station, because they wouldn’t say other than that Jesus is Lord. The men were shot, the women and children were marched into the rivers to be eaten by crocodiles as they sang ‘Jesus is very near.’ Billy himself went to preach in various places in Pakistan- where they put a fatwa on him. He had to be smuggled out in the boot of a car. He had just a taste of what ‘our brothers & sisters everywhere’ are going through. We can be dragged down by the inevitables of life. Jesus said ‘in this world you will have trouble but take heart, I […]

LOOK BACK WITH WONDER – TO LOOK FORWARD IN FAITH

Notes for Ivy Grow Groups based on my talk to be given Ivy Kingsway 4th November   (Actually it’s officially MOVEMBER and I’m going for it. Will you join my team or sponsor me please at http://uk.movember.com/mospace/4760473 )   Start the night with an online memory quiz like this one http://www.allthetests.com/tests/flipmatch/puzzle.php3 (Or do it with a pack of cards?)   Or even the Christian version!  http://www.biglightgames.com/-bible-games-for-christians/21339/12-apostles-quiz-and-memory-game.html   Who’s your GG Memory champion? READ Joshua 1;6-9 DISCUSS What promises has God given you recently or in the past that you need to remember?   Read Joshua 3:14-17 Discuss: In what ways do we have to sometimes get our feet wet in faith before we see the miracle? Why does God work like that? Read Joshua 4:1-7 All the ‘Memory techniques’ I’ve ever read about all boil down to three simple steps: and I believe you can see them in what God had Joshua do so the people would remember.   1. Concentrate   You have to pay attention. Lots of the time we spend our energy trying to remember what we […]

Matty Hawthorne – What’s the point of church

These notes from Matty’s talk at our new gathering at Ivy Sharston form our discussion notes for this week’s grow groups Church is about people with a purpose It’s not about a building Discuss: Why do people HATE church? One of the worst things Christians have done is make God boring One Internet thread Matty found described Christians as the most judgemental people Read James 2:14-20 Maybe it’s not about being more relevant but more real. We talk as if we have the monopoly on love – but the world wouldn’t agree. We talk as if we have the monopoly on generosity. People love to do good works and give. We should encourage and recognise that. Read Matt 5:14-16 What does ‘shine’ mean to you? The message version says be generous with your lives. It’s not (just) about the money! Discuss What makes a church a church? The Bible word ‘oikos’ we translate in the Bible as household is really a gathering of community, extended family. Is your grow group an oikos? What matters? 3 things Love one another Get […]

Michael Fletcher – rogue staff @thenines2012

How do fire a rogue employee Are you sitting on a tough conversion Plan it Practice it – out loud Pray it – ask God to step in and he may move them out. Have they got a heart for the house? Love vs. loyalty You want them to have your back My future vs our future – you want people who want to take US to the next level. How do I do it? 1.Document precisely 2. Discuss appropriately 3. Do it quickly

#thenines2012 Rogue Staff

Brian Tome: Love the Church more than you love your thing Say the hard thing before you say the hard things. 10x more encouragement than reproof. You have to earn your stripes. Play biblical not nice Public rebukes – ‘so that others will fear.’

#thenines2012 Moral Failure

Brad Powell Messy situation and he was the only one who knew So he had to confront it You have to confront it the right way You’re not protecting people by hiding the truth. Come alongside them and root out the problems that got them there And Help the church through it too. Goal is not to diminish the good they have done But what they’ve done doesn’t diminish the sin. People are watching- and your influence will grow or wane dependent on how you handle it.

#thenines Moral Failure

Moral Failure – Craig Groeschel Tell the church the truth early Name the sin without specific details Public leaders failure means public response – other party may be private This is how we are going to help the family through this. Lets support these fallen soldiers Take what the enemy intended for evil and turn it for good