Evangelism is defined as ‘the spreading of the Christian gospel by public preaching or personal witness’ and is one of the most important functions of the church. The church is not meant simply to be a social club or a place where like-minded people gather, though fellowship and teaching are vitally important. It is the only ‘organisation’ that exists for the benefit of others, someone has said, and certainly the church that does not reach out will wither and die. We desperately need the passion and conviction shown by the early disciples to preach the word wherever we go and to reach out to our local communities with the love of Jesus and the good news that He brings.

Acts 8 shows us the importance of evangelism to the early church and also demonstrates the involvement of God in this outreach. We see Philip and others preaching to crowds in Samaria, but we also see the need for personal evangelism (Philip’s outreach to the one Ethiopian eunuch had huge consequences not only for the individual, but also for his country.) As a church, we need to be involved in corporate outreach (our youth club and Parent & Toddler group are examples of this, but there is also the Franklin Graham mission in Sheffield in June 2020 which could involve many of us and we need to ask God for revelation about other means of evangelism) and in personal outreach. Philip is an example to us of a man full of the Holy Spirit who was sensitive to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. The things he achieved as a result were astounding. May 2020 be a year of sowing and reaping as we heed God’s call to make disciples of all nations, teaching others to obey all that Jesus has commanded, baptising them (as Philip did with the Ethiopian eunuch) and seeing darkness turned to light.

At a particularly tumultuous time in my life, Aaron Shust’s song ‘Mighty Fortress’ became a vivid reminder to me of who God is compared to how I often think He is and was the lifeline which held me up when I felt I was sinking under the weight ot doubt and uncertainty.

‘He won’t abandon,

He won’t deceive.

He won’t desert us,
He won’t ever leave.
He’ll never forsake us,
He’ll never run.
He’ll never reject us,
The faithful one.

Your love will remain
Your love will remain.’ (‘Mighty Fortress’, Aaron Shust)

The reminder that God will not forsake us (Heb 13:5) is something which acts like a buoy to our faith when we may well feel we are drowning in stormy waters. He holds us up and carries us through the storms. No matter what other people may do, God is the one sure certainty in life.

Many of us struggle with a sense of hopelessness and meaninglessness. Those without jobs can easily feel that their lives are pointless; those with jobs can easily feel that life is just a meaningless round of work, with no time to enjoy anything. Without a sense of purpose and destiny, our humdrum existence can very quickly spiral into depression and even despair, making gratitude and thankfulness apparently impossible. ‘What have I got to thank God for?’ people will say. If life is mere existence, then we can feel we would rather not exist.

The Bible teaches us that we are made in God’s image and for Him: ‘all things have been created through him and for him.’ (Col 1:16) It teaches us that ‘we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.’ (Eph 2:10) This gives purpose and meaning to our lives beyond our earthly jobs, beyond our human relationships and beyond our own understanding. Being God’s creation, loved by God and made for Him, gives us a reason to live.

Our last Bible study of the year will be on Thursday 19th December at 7:30 p.m., when we’ll be looking at Philip’s evangelism in Acts 8. Our services on Sunday will be at the usual times of 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

We are very excited about our carol service on Sunday 22nd December at 6 p.m. Entitled ‘Christmas: God’s Great Rescue Plan’, we’ll be involving the children in a rescue and looking at how Jesus came to earth to be our Rescuer as well as singing carols old and new. There will be mince pies and other festive refreshments served after the service, so please do come along and invite friends and family as well!

We’ll be holding a short Christmas Day service on Wednesday 25th December at 10.30 a.m. and look forward to celebrating the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. Take some time out from the busyness of family celebrations to focus on the reason for the season!

There will be no midweek meeting on Boxing Day, but our services on Sunday 29th December will be at the usual times of 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Don’t forget our New Year’s Day party on Wednesday 1st January 2020 at 4 p.m. Come along for food, fellowship, quizzes, games and fun! If you can help with the food for the party, see Julie.

Looking ahead to the New Year, here are a couple of additional dates for the diary:

• Team Building Day on Saturday 18th January, 4-6 p.m.

• ‘Churches Together’ Prayer meeting on Tuesday 21st January, 10.30 a.m. at GPCC

God is described as omniscient, a long word meaning that He knows everything. Ps 139 reminds us that this knowledge extends to us; God knows our thoughts before they become words and our intentions before they become actions. This knowledge can be both reassuring and terrifying, but ultimately we can be grateful for such intimate knowledge.

Often in our work situations, particularly if we work for a large corporation, we can feel unknown and unvalued. In the film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, the main character (Clark Griswold) is constantly upset by the fact that his boss does not even know his name (he calls him ‘Mark’ and ‘Greaseball’, for example). Many of us feel like that, as though all our efforts and work go unnoticed. God, on the other hand, has summoned us by name (Is 43:1) and knows every hair on our heads. (Matt 10:30) We are not just a number or another nameless problem to Him; we are His sheep and He is the shepherd who goes looking for the one lost sheep.

One day, Paul says, we shall know even as we are fully known (1 Cor 13:12), but for now, we can be thankful that God knows us and still loves us!