11
Jan '19
What Are You Doing For God?
11
Jan '19
Dear Friend & Family of God At Grace Life:
What are you doing for God? Are you actively involved in God’s work? Contrary to what most people think, the work of God is not some activity you are involved in within a church or ministry setting. Rather God’s work is what you are becoming as you are involved in any activity, whether or not it is in a church or ministry setting. In other words, it is not what you are doing for God that is God’s work. Instead, you yourself are the work of God. That is, what you are becoming over time, that is the work God. The bible says in Ephesians 2:10 that “we (not the things we do for God like preaching, singing, evangelism, prayer) are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. You are the work of God.
15
Oct '18
Why GLC?
15
Oct '18
So I was recently trying to practice the four I’s – Identify, Intercede, Invest and Invite. When I got to the Invite part, I kind of froze up. I said to myself, “this person has probably gotten several invitations to multiple churches. What makes my own invitation different? What is it about Grace Life that makes us different from thousands of other churches out there?” Also I was concerned about how to present my invitation so I don’t come across as manipulative and as a user, a concern friends have expressed about church people. This got me thinking and what I am about to share with you is how I have learnt to present Jesus or our church that has worked for me.
But before I share it with you, let me make one point clear: if you follow the 4 I’s you will find that this is more about you being used by God to touch a life and make a difference in someone’s life than it is about even converting them to Jesus or to attending your church. Please evangelism – spreading the good news – is not about adding members to our church. It is PRIMARILY about you being the church to someone – the body of Christ, his hands, feet, mouth, ears and eyes to someone else. Jesus said “freely you have received, freely give.” Read more…
08
Sep '18
New Life In Christ Seminar
08
Sep '18
Jesus came that you may have life and you may have it abundantly (John 10:10). What this means is that God has given you New Life in Christ so that you may have a better life. God wants you to have a:
- better health
- better marriage
- better finances
- better relationships
- better character
Is there an area of your life you feel needs to be better? Then sign up for our New Life In Christ Seminars we will learn how to have a better life through receiving and growing in the New Life God has given us in Jesus. Read more…
08
Sep '18
The Power of Personal Invitation
08
Sep '18
Many times, as Christians, we look for a magic bullet for evangelism and for our church family to grow. We look for that elusive perfect pastor, guest minister, program, or youth director who is going to attract people in to our church. Yet, time and time again studies have shown that most people (85% typically), visit a church for the first time because of a personal invitation. Someone – a friend, a family member, a colleague – invited them to church. Yes, inviting people is the undisputed best method of reaching people for Jesus and increasing attendance in church, which is the first step toward building disciples for Jesus.
11
Apr '18
Growing In Grace Online Studies
11
Apr '18
Grace Life Center is founded on the Word of God’s Grace , the word that Paul states in Acts 20:32 is “able to build us up and give us an inheritance among the sanctified”. One way we summarized this “word of His grace” is this: because of the sin of ONE MAN, ALL MEN became rejected by God, no matter how good they may be. But, because of the righteousness of ONE MAN, ALL MEN became accepted by God, no matter how bad they may be (Romans 5:12 – 21). This is what makes Christianity different from all other faiths: while other religions is about what you must do to be saved, Christianity is about what God has done to save us. To help people better grasp this message, we have launched an online study series called “Your New Life In Christ”. You can access this bible study series here from our online study center at www.growingingrace.didacte.com.
30
Mar '18
Faith Comes…
30
Mar '18
Here is a fundamental truth people often miss about the Christian faith: Christianity is about believing a truth so deeply that it changes completely how you live your life. It is not about what you do. It is about what you believed that led you to do what you did. For example, in one of his not-too famous parables, Jesus told the story of two people who went to the temple to pray. One came to pray because he believed that God would answer him because he had been a good, religious person. He had given alms; he had paid his tithes; he had done is very best to live a godly life. The other person came to pray too. But this time he came to pray because he believed that God would answer him, not because he had been a faithful, religious person but because God was a faithful God. He believed that God was so full of grace, He would remain faithful even to his faithless servant. Jesus went on to say, one of these men would go home defeated in his life and faith and the other would go home justified and living a victorious life. Read more…
18
Apr '17
Receiving & Growing In New Life
18
Apr '17
Following Jesus and living the life God has called us and desires for us to live as Christians is not difficult. It is IMPOSSIBLE! We need the power of the Holy Spirit to live this life! Many struggle because they try to achieve by natural means what can only be by supernatural means – by the power of God’s Spirit.
At Grace Life Center, we have recently launched our Life In The Spirit Seminars, a seven-week course that will introduce participants to a life lived under the grace and power of God available to all in the Holy Spirit. The seminar helps participants discover the power and passion God has made available so that we can live our life to the fullest.
31
Mar '17
How Little People Bring Divine Solutions To Big Human Problems
31
Mar '17
“Don’t fear, little flock. Your Father wants to share his kingdom with you” (Luke 12:32, ERV)
Contrary to what many people think, Jesus did not come to solve the world’s problems. Rather He came to make it possible for God, through Jesus, to live in us and through us, solve the problems of the world around us. Jesus came so we could be a people who, in partnership with Him, are bringing divine solutions to human problems. In Colossians 1:27, Paul did not say that Christ is the HOPE of Glory; rather he said “Christ IN US is the hope of glory”. Our opening text confirms this truth and shows us how God works in and through His people to bring divine solutions to big human problems:
29
Mar '17
A Radical Thought
29
Mar '17
A skeptic once asked a pastor “where is this heaven you keep taking about”? And the man of God gave a wise answer: “Heaven is at the end of a life lived following Jesus”. Because as we follow Jesus, we soon quickly realize our need for salvation and we turn to him to save us. As we follow Jesus, we realize our need for the Holy Spirit and ask Him to baptize us with the Holy Ghost and Fire. As we follow Jesus, we come to see that following Him means walking in love, even love for those who hate us – and we call on Him to love through us. As we follow Jesus, we come to see that it is not our works but His love that saves us – and so we hold on to him with all we’ve got. As we follow Him, we see His extraordinary power unleashed in our ordinary lives – and we are never proud for we know it is He working through us!
So here is a radical thought: what if we changed our message from an invitation to make heaven to an invitation to follow Jesus? What if we stopped preaching the gospel of “the minimum requirement to enter heaven when you die” and started preaching the gospel of “the kingdom of heaven” i.e. bringing heaven to earth, through the power and presence of God available to the followers of King Jesus.