Grace Lutheran Church, Redcliffe | Community organisation

Grace Lutheran Church, Redcliffe

Phone: 3883 1144

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24.01.2022 Start or finish every day in God's word In Jesus’ name by Ruth Olsen... If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it (John 14:14). Read John 14:114 Wow, what a promise Jesus gives us! And what an invitation, opportunity and responsibility! Jesus invites us to work with him! He invites us to pray the kind of prayers that change us and reach beyond ourselves, the ones that touch the Father’s heart for others, reflecting to the Father the heart of Jesus for those being prayed for. He desires to bring glory to the Father through us! Jesus is the way to the Father. Jesus is our home base, our safe place and our security. The more we grow in trusting and knowing him, the more we will be enabled to see through his eyes, as it were. He reveals the Father to us as someone who is for us because that’s how Jesus is for us! He said anyone who has seen him has seen the Father. We look to Jesus, and we are awakened to God as the Father who is for us. And we come to the Father through Jesus’ relationship with the Father. Wow, isn’t that worth taking time to ponder, to chew over? As we grow in knowing Jesus, we will also know the Father as well. And we recognise what the Father is like by how Jesus is. He earnestly desires for us to know the Father. Tucked into that relationship of love, acceptance and belonging, is an overflowing heart of prayer. In trusting Jesus to meet our needs (including through others), we are increasingly set free to focus away from self and recognise how he wants to bless others, also in answer to our prayers, words and actions. Amazingly, Jesus says anyone who believes in him will also do what he has been doing and even greater things. And in the verses following our reading from John 1416, he introduces us to the promised Holy Spirit, his Spirit of truth, who is our enabler, helper, teacher and trainer. Holy Spirit of Jesus, only you can enable us to do and pray what Jesus desires so that Jesus can give glory to the Father through us also. Open this up further to us. Give us insight, and draw us into a closer relationship and communication with you. Amen. 'Reproduced with permission: Lutheran Church of Australia 2021'. Daily Devotion archive page www.lca.org.au/daily-devotion

21.01.2022 Start or finish every day in God's word A new song by Ruth Olsen... Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvellous things (Psalm 98:1a). Read Psalm 98 This psalm is a call to celebrate with joy the righteous reign of the Lord, extending out from the worshipping congregation to all the people of the earth and the whole of creation. The footnote in my NIV Study Bible says it recalls God’s revelation of his righteousness in the past (verse 2), and it speaks confidently of his coming rule ‘in righteousness’ (verse 9), framing the shout for joy that is called forth in the middle verses. No matter what is going on in the world around us, no matter whether some people ridicule Christianity and the message of Jesus, the followers of Jesus are aware of a bigger picture. We can take God at his word. His word is reliable; when he speaks, something happens (Genesis 1), and when we take him at his word, something also happens! We are no longer empty or easily blown about, for he is our anchor, our light in the growing darkness. Because Jesus is the light of the world, his followers will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life showing us the way (John 8:12;14:6). The media and social media frequently feed out things that promote darkness and self-centredness. Are we walking in his light, receiving from him, reflecting his light, life, love and care into our situations? Yes, the Lord has done marvellous things, and he continues to do marvellous things! Many new songs can continually be written, inspired by the Holy Spirit, revealing fresh insights into what the Lord is like, his character, faithfulness, love, mercy and forgiveness, available to all through Jesus. Maybe if we let ourselves get ‘lost’ in worshipping him in Spirit and truth, joining with creation in singing to him, we will be awakened in trusting and knowing him more. Have you tried singing your own ‘new song’ to him in spontaneous praise and thanksgiving? Lord God, you alone are worthy of all honour, worship and praise! There is none like you, Lord! Amen. 'Reproduced with permission: Lutheran Church of Australia 2021'. Daily Devotion archive page www.lca.org.au/daily-devotion

19.01.2022 Start or finish every day in God's word Be intentional by Ruth Olsen... Exercise your freedom by serving God, not by breaking the rules (1 Peter 2:16). Read 1 Peter 2:1120 Yesterday we considered Paul’s admonition to ‘Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature’ (Galatians 5:1621). Our spiritual enemy has had centuries of practise observing and targeting human weaknesses for his purposes of turning people against God. His purpose is to rob, kill and destroy (John 10:10). He doesn’t care how it happens, but he will promote it any way he can, appealing to human cravings, lustful eyes and proud boasting (1 John 3:1517). He specialises in deception, falsehood and truth distorted to his purposes (see Genesis 3:113; John 8:44 etc). None of us is immune to our enemy’s guile. But the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s works (1 John 3:8)! Jesus paid a huge price for us! His Spirit now lives within his followers (John 14:1521), and the One who is in us is greater than the one who is in the world (1 John 4:4). Peter learned the hard way that his human nature was not sufficient to withstand the enemy. He urges us to abstain from desires that wage war against our soul our mind, will and emotions (1 Peter 2:11). These are strong words. But strong words are needed for us to take notice and be alert to our giving way to self-focus because sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit (Galatians 5:1621). We all have our blind spots. But we can ask the Holy Spirit, our Helper, to enable us to recognise what we are blind to. We can ask him to reveal to us the truth that sets us free to increasingly walk in the freedom of Jesus (John 8:32,36). This requires us to be honest with God and ourselves to be intentional in living honourably in all that we are and do. In the process, we glorify God. That’s amazing! Holy Spirit, continually reveal to us our freedom in Jesus, to serve the Lord and others wherever we are. Help us exercise in our lives the authority Jesus gives us. Amen. 'Reproduced with permission: Lutheran Church of Australia 2021'. Daily Devotion archive page www.lca.org.au/daily-devotion

19.01.2022 Start or finish every day in God's word Humble service by Neville Grieger... ‘Whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater’ (Matthew 11:11). Read Matthew 11:1115 The concept of genuine humble service to others is perhaps a signature characteristic of the Christian life. Servanthood does not come easy, because it is hardwired into human nature to look out for number one (in triplicate) me, myself and I. Like so many teachings of Jesus, they are upside down in comparison to the way the world thinks and works. The concept of leadership provides us with an excellent example. In the corporate world, and even in government, huge amounts of power and authority rest with the person at the top. Servant leadership, on the other hand, inverts the pyramid of power, with the leader operating at the bottom of the pile, working for and with (serving) the people in the levels that sit above. I worked in Lutheran Education for many years. One incredible act of service and consideration for others still stands out in my mind. A young female student in Year 9 had just been diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. Despite being a superbly fit, elite athlete, it was quickly becoming clear that the cancer would win the battle, and it was likely that this girl’s life was going to be cut tragically short. The Make a Wish Foundation became involved. What happened next stunned our school community. The girl requested that her rowing club be gifted a state-of-the-art lightweight quad scull boat. The boat duly arrived, but the girl was so ill that she did not get to row in it herself but she left a wonderful legacy for her teammates, her club and her community to enjoy. What an incredible example of selflessness! Lord, we thank you that you turned the world upside down with your thinking. Thank you for modelling servanthood for us. Help us in these difficult times to sharpen our focus on others and to look out for the needs of those around us in gratitude for what you have done for us. Amen.

13.01.2022 Start or finish every day in God's word How are your certainty levels? by Neville Grieger... ‘How can I be sure of this?’ (Luke 1:18). Read Luke 1:525 In the deep distant past, I can vaguely recall trying to understand Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle. I am quite sure that I never really understood it, other than it was something about not really being able to be certain about what was going on! That rather poor, lay-person summary of quantum mechanics, would reflect that it is perhaps not surprising that I rather ingloriously bowed out of university physics quite early in my academic studies! On the other side of the certainty ledger, multiple references have been made, dating back at least two centuries, to the two things in life that are certain: death and taxes. Many contexts have added additional certainties to those two. In education, we built on the saying by adding a third: change. Change usually encompasses a degree of risk-taking. For organisations to stay at the forefront in a rapidly changing world, the greatest risk is to take no risk at all. With risk comes uncertainty. How can we be sure that the proposed change will lead to improvement and efficiency in the way that we do things? Or the bottom line, in the case of education, better outcomes for students? But I have digressed slightly. One can’t help feeling a touch of sympathy for Zechariah in his extraordinary conversation with an angel who was trying to tell him that he and his ageing wife Elizabeth would give birth to a son. Zechariah wanted to know how he could be certain that this was true? Centuries later, how are our certainty levels? Do we always reflect high levels of certainty in our Christian belief? As I mentioned in a previous devotion, we can have all the certainty in the world through the profound words of Jesus from the cross: ‘It is finished!’ Lord Jesus, strengthen our faith and help us to eliminate any doubts in our belief that you are the risen Lord. Move us into action to spread the good news, and help us respond with love and gratitude to reach out to anyone in need who crosses our path. Amen.

12.01.2022 Grace Lutheran Church Worship Times for Sunday 20th December - 4 Sunday of Advent 8:30am Worship Service with Holy Communion 5:30pm Worship Service with Holy Communion Come for everything is eady!... You may wish to listen to this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWI4ZCCylxQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_iixWJo-7k See more

12.01.2022 Grace Lutheran Church Redcliffe Worship Service Resources for 9th May Sixth Sunday of Easter Church@Home... https://gracelutheran.org.au//2105-Church-@-Home-9-May-Six Bible Readings https://gracelutheran.org.au//2105-Bible-Reading-9-May-Six Sermon Manuscript https://gracelutheran.org.au//298-1-John-5.1-8-6-Easter-Yr Sermon Video: Video available Sunday after worship (10am) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLF3FQaFJsa_W0DZcUOQYQ Growing Faith at Home: https://gracelutheran.org.au//24_GFH-2021_9-May-single-sid Sermon 4 Kids https://sermons4kids.com/love_one_another_bulletin_2 See more

07.01.2022 Grace Lutheran Church Redcliffe Worship Service Resources for Sunday 20th December - 4 Sunday of Advent Sermon Manuscript: https://mcusercontent.com//277_2_Samuel_7.1_11_16_Advent_4 Children's Bulletin: https://mcusercontent.com//728/name_him_jesus_bulletin.pdf Sermon Video: Video available Sunday after worship (10am) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbLF3FQaFJsa_W0DZcUOQYQ... Church@Home: https://mcusercontent.com//Church_Home_20.12.20_Advent_4B_ Growing Faith at Home: https://mcusercontent.com//4_GFH_2020_21_20_December_singl Bible Readings: https://mcusercontent.com//9/BR_20.12.20_pm_Advent_4B_.pdf See more

06.01.2022 Start or finish every day in God's word Sweet fruit by Ruth Olsen... If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit (Galatians 5:25). Read Galatians 5:2226 Last Sunday, we considered branches in the vine bearing fruit. In these verses today, Paul spells out what this fruit looks like. There’s a diversity of characteristics the characteristics of Jesus to match any occasion. We might joke about asking for patience and wanting it now. We might be reluctant about asking the Lord to enable us to grow in patience or self-control, but those times will surely come anyway. If we recognise those testing times as opportunities to rely on the Spirit’s power and help, the outcome might just be a sweeter attitude in dealing with the situation, resulting in sweeter fruit. The Holy Spirit brings his fruit with him when he is given to us, and each time we practise love, joy, peace and self-control, the fruit grows in us, available to nurture others as we draw life from the Spirit of Jesus at work in us. It’s no ‘fly by night’ deal but a process over time, practice, learning, giving, and replenishing from God each day. Paul urges his readers, ‘Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature’ (Galatians 5:1621). Do you recognise that inner battleground? None of us is a passive observer in this process but a participant! We choose which direction we will follow. Some translations use ‘if we live by the Spirit’, and some use a more definite ‘since’, but let us be intentional in following the Spirit’s leading. The pull of sinful nature grows when we give way to it. But by our prayerful act of submitting to God in the authority that Jesus has given us, we are resisting the devil and our old sinful nature (James 4:7). The Spirit is the power of God at work in us! He will patiently teach us how to keep in step with him so that we may honour Jesus. Spirit of God, make us more like Jesus in all that we are and do. Amen 'Reproduced with permission: Lutheran Church of Australia 2021'. Daily Devotion archive page www.lca.org.au/daily-devotion

01.01.2022 LYQ is launching a brand new camp for year 12 Graduates on Feb 13th &14th 2021 called EMERGE. This is a great opportunity for students who were in the class of 2020 to catch up on friendships and experiences that they may have missed and connect in with a new community as they emerge into a new phase of life. Click the link below to register http://www.lyq.org.au/camps-events/2021/emerge