I had a great time at the “Meet Jesus…this Christmas” Concert on 8th December 2007. The neatly dressed musicians and singers were all brilliant and the choice of music was excellent and relevant.

The atmosphere was breath-taking as the Youth choir started off with their electric songs accompanied by flashing lights. The Senior Choir then took over with several songs including very moving solo pieces which undoubtedly moved many hearts. The presence of the Lord was in the place and the whole assembly joined in praise with Christmas carols.

No one was left sitting as the concert closed with the last dance hit “Not Forgotten” I was sitting next to a couple of visitors who had no words good enough to describe their enjoyable experience; it was an outstanding performance!

I would definitely recommend a similar event some time soon. Many thanks to everyone who worked so hard….don’t grow weary in doing good, brothers and sisters!

Catherine Muyeba

The prophetic word last Sunday exhorted us to give to God one hundred percent of ourselves. God has promised that as we consecrate ourselves He will do amazing things among us. Richard brought God’s word to us from Romans 12 (verse 1&2), where Paul longs for the church to offer themselves as living sacrifices, not being conformed to the way of the world, but rather transformed by the renewing of our minds.


To consecrate yourself is to set yourself apart for God. Ephesians Chapter 5 gives really clear instructions on how we set ourselves apart. Paul writes that as beloved children we should imitate God. We should walk as children of the light, knowing that once we were darkness, and we should find what is pleasing to the Lord.

In order to consecrate ourselves there are things we should not do and things we should. God is a holy God and if we are to give ourselves one hundred percent to God then we must realise that our personal morality matters to God. Paul wants the people of God to understand that they are utterly different. He warns them against sexual immorality, covetousness, crude joking and getting drunk. This sounds like a description of an office Christmas party!

It is not enough though to simply not do the things that the world does. To consecrate ourselves fully to God, to live as living sacrifices, we must live out our part in the family of God. We must keep on being filled with the Spirit, live lives submitted to one another, and as we meet the language we speak will be characterised by praise, thanksgiving and testimony and we will not be able to help but begin singing of God’s goodness. As we give ourselves fully to meeting in each others’ homes, we give ourselves more fully to imitating God.

Let us be a people together set apart and ready to be amazed by our wonderful God.

Each month in our Sunday meetings we have a second offering, which is given to Keri Jones to use as he sees needs. Many also have signed up for the “£2 a week” scheme. Each year we see a report on how this money has been used at Bible Week. Yambalu Mposhi though, was keen for us to know now just how blessed he is with the way some of that money has been spent. The photo below says it all!

Yambalu is grateful to Keri and to all who have contributed in enabling this brand new Toyota Landcruiser to be sent to him to be used for visiting the ever-increasing number of local churches he leads in the Congo. Roads are non-existent in some of the places he has to visit so any vehicle has to be a 4 wheel drive and very robust to cut through the bush and thick mud. The Toyota Landcruiser arrived in Kinshasa (the capital of Congo) via the sea port of Matadi. It was then flown on a cargo plane from Kinshasa to Mbuji Mayi. In the picture Yambalu is standing with it in the town of Kabinda.

Already Yambalu has made a tour of some of his local churches and is planning another January tour into 4 centres where there will be conferences for church leaders in each centre. Since Richard and myself were there in September another 5 local churches have been planted. The church in Kabinda have also witnessed a spate of miraculous answers to prayer in terms of married women who had been praying to become pregnant for years seeing their prayers answered.

Praise God for the part we as a local church, along with all who contribute to the £2 a week scheme, have been able to play in blessing our brothers and sisters in Congo. May they carry on cruising!