Mary knew what it was like when life goes nothing like YOUR plan.
Mary’s Plan A?
A quiet life.
A good marriage.
Honour in her community.
Mary had her plan. Until the day an angel appeared:
“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you shall call Him Jesus.”
Luke 1:31 God’s Plan A!
Fear tells you tomorrow is something to panic about.
Fear whispers that God won’t come through.
But Jesus says: “Do not be afraid, little flock.”
“It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
That means:
Nothing you face tomorrow surprises Him
Nothing comes without grace attached
No trial lacks the provision to overcome it
No need will find Him unprepared
Thought I’d throw out my recent sermon about why Advent is about more than waiting for Christmas – it’s about watching for Christ. Are you ready for Christmas?Probably not. Join the club. Are you ready for CHRIST?I hope so. From Bethlehem to the Beginning We all know the first Christmas happened at Bethlehem, but the truth is it was promised from the very beginning. Before the foundation of the world, God – who has good plans and purposes for us – knew we would need a Saviour. All of the Old Testament is the story of how He prepared the world for Jesus’ first coming. But Advent doesn’t begin at a manger.It begins with a message: He will come again. Every year at Ivy we like to do things a little differently, so we will talk about the second coming of Jesus before we rush to the Nativity, because we need to remember where the story is going: forward, not back. Knowing who Christmas is about helps us avoid going mad at Christmas. No need to plunge into the December debt spiral. Rein it in […]
Here’s a talk I did some while ago to encourage faith as we then went on to pray for HEALING. May the Lord bless you – even heal you – as you read!
When I first got started I learned a lot from reading other’s sermons, so now I’m going to start putting some notes from my own sermons on here. Subscribe is you don’t want to miss them. Go to ivychurch.org and look around a bit if you want to listen or watch on Youtube. This is from our recent INCREDIBLE Ivy weekend away, first night – so it won’t be on the site.
That’s the Christian life in one page:
At the start, peace and love.
At the end, great joy.
In the middle… well, things can get gnarly.
Whether you’re a church leader, part of a congregation, or just someone who cares about family and community, this conversation will inspire and equip you to take steps towards ministering more effectively to older people.
Where’s your focus right now?
On your problems, or God’s power?
On the distracting noise, or the quiet whisper?
On the voice of fear or the Word of faith?
When the heat is on and the ground feels dry, remember your life is not rooted in the season but in the stream. Seasons will change, but the water never runs dry.
“The Holy Spirit has been made like a drunk uncle at a wedding: still technically invited, but stuck in the corner in case he embarrasses us.”