Ever feel like you’re on the outside looking in? Like it’s just too hard to read the Bible, raise your hands in worship or jump around in the joy of the spirit. That was me once. I lived life on the fringe of the church for about 6 years. Yes that’s right, 6 years; ridiculous hey. I’m not proud of it and definitely wouldn’t recommend it.

Do you know all it took for me to get away from the fringe and into the church community was the word ‘yes’. Yes I will come to your house for tea; yes I would love to come to that toddler group. Yes my husband and I would like to go to the cinema with you; yes we would love to help you decorate your lounge. Yes we will come to your Church in the Home, although they were called something else then. The wonderful thing about church community is the amazing opportunity we have to experience Jesus face to face every day, if we choose. Once I had let people into my life and allowed the Holy Spirit to direct me through them I found a new lease of life.

As Dave has preached so powerfully over the last few Sundays, you cannot be a Christian without being a disciple and being a disciple means being part of the community. You have to seek the Jesus you see in the people around you. The Holy Spirit helped me see that if I ignored my tendency to shyness, and accepted the hands of so many who were reaching out to love and grow me, then I would actually start to experience more than I could have hoped for. Once I saw Jesus in people I got a fresh revelation of God’s perfect gift.

It scares me to think where I would be without the love and care of those brothers and sisters who encouraged me away from the fringe. That was nearly 4 years ago now and I thank God every day for the family he puts around me. For the way he speaks to me and shows me how to live through the example of the lives of others.

Now I am rooted in the church community I am able to look out for others who need me to share the life of Jesus with them. It is much better to be inside looking out rather than outside looking in!

Jane Barrow

Matthew Harkness reflects on how we cannot follow Jesus Christ in isolation from one another in the community of the Church

God has been speaking to us about the importance of following him; it’s the very essence of being a Christian. Jesus promised us that if we follow him and die to our old lives then he will make us fishers of men, causing us to be disciple making disciples. Recently I’ve been meditating on some of the practicalities of this.

I think it’s crucial that when we follow Jesus we follow together. Jesus called disciples not a disciple. He called us be fishers of men, working in a team not as lone rangers. We work together and we learn from each other. The apostle Paul knew this when he told the Philippian church “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have seen in us” (Philippians 3:17 ESV). Paul urged the Philippians to imitate the Christ in him, to follow his example and learn from him as he had learned from Christ. The writer of Proverbs also knew of this truth when he wrote “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17).

This leads us to the importance of fellowship, of intimately sharing our lives with each other. We need to remember that Jesus has called us as a people not merely a group of individuals. We should realise that it isn’t all about ourselves, our own personal edification but we must think “what can I do for my brothers and sisters?”, knowing that if we don’t follow Jesus together then our brothers and sisters will be missing out on what we have to give to them. So next time you think “it won’t matter if I see my brothers and sisters this week”, consider what you’re robbing them of.

Let’s follow Jesus together, leading each other in discipleship to be closer to God and making new disciples from all the nations.

Matthew Harkness

Yesterday at Amplify we had a great time of worship and prayer. Over 40 of us came together to sing praises to God and pray out loud as a corporate body. Toyin led us in worship and Melissa played the guitar on songs like I Love You Lord, You Are Good, and Alpha and Omega.

Toyin really encouraged us to vocalise our praises and prayers, to hear from God and to respond to his word that comes through another person. It was a really practical time of learning to praise God by opening our mouths and declaring His goodness.

We also heard testimonies on how God provided jobs and restored a father and son’s relationship. Reuben brought the word that God’s heart is for His people to be well and complete, referring to the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4. He called us to pray in groups of 6-8 people, and so we prayed for the city of Manchester specifically – for God to break the bondages of loneliness, depression, illness, violence, and to restore broken families and the economy of the city.

We also prayed and thanked God for the authorities of Manchester – the police force, the City Council and law-makers so that God’s anointing, wisdom and grace will be upon these people to do their jobs. We thanked God for the Kid’s Club vision that he has put into the hearts of the elders, and that he continues to reveal specific details.

God is indeed good and everything we prayed that night will surely come to pass. We serve an awesome King, and I was really encouraged by everyone there that night.

This Friday at 7.30pm we have Nathan and Laura Whillans, coming to talk to us about the role of men and women in the church. See you there!

Wan Phing