And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. 1 Corinthians 12:28

I was thinking about gifts recently. No, not the kind that you find under the tree, but the spiritual gifts that God has placed within each of us. Do you know what your spiritual gift is? In his book ‘Revolution in the church’ Burrill (1993) suggests there are 5 steps to discovering what your spiritual gifts are.

1. Pray. This may seem an obvious starting point, but how often do we forget to talk to God, especially when it comes to the important decisions in our lives? The other aspect of the praying dynamic, is to listen!

2. Explore the possibilities. There are so many gifts mentioned in the bible and ours may not be the obvious one we think we have. The gifts inventory is not just limited to Romans 12:6-8. There are mentions in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 28, Ephesians 4:11 and I could go on. Find out about as many gifts as you can and don’t limit the Holy Spirit.

3. Experiment with as many gifts as possible. Do you have just one gift? If so, how can you be sure? Try out as many as you think you are have. Receive training in that area and be realistic in your expectations.

4. Examine your feelings. Feelings are not the best criteria when it comes to deciding if you have a ministry in that gift. Nervousness or uneasiness the first time doing something can be confused with lack of satisfaction when it is done. However, this could led to enjoyment and confidence the more we use this gift and learn to understand how the Lord is leading in us.

5. Evaluate your effectiveness. Spiritual gifts have a specific purpose. God given gifts, when affirmed by insightful church brethren, can often lead to a stronger church and a more fulfilled life.

So, perhaps the best gift you could give this holiday season, is a prayerful word to someone to help them identify their spiritual gift.  Think about it.

Heritage Singers sing ‘Holy Spirit Rain Down’. Click on the picture to listen.

^“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;” 1 Peter 2:9

Proverbs can teach us many things. Some of these lessons we do not learn or even see until years later, when maybe we are in the right place to receive them. There is an African proverb which says ‘a fish never rots from the tail’. What I take this to me, as there are many lessons, is that in a practical sense once a fish comes out of the water it will physically rot from the head – not the tail. In an organisational context this means that no matter how good the front of house or face to face workers are, if the director or head of the organisation is not a good leader, the company is going to struggle to thrive. I see principle in some schools. The secretary is welcoming, warm and effective as are the teachers yet the school is failing, why? Because the head teacher isn’t approachable or are rude and run the school as a dictatorship. Similarly in the business world, once the director demonstrates both by word or action that they do not regard the workers, then productivity suffers and the workplace becomes a battleground.

The proverb which sits hand in hand with this one is the ‘trickle down’ effect. Like rain trickling down from the top apex of an umbrella, influence which trickles down from the top is wider reaching than that which tries to come up the other way. For example, if the cook is happy, the restaurant thrives as people will come far and near for the quality of the food. Conversely if the boss is a tyrant there will be a high turnover or staff.

If we are Gods representatives on earth, what is our influence? Do people want to serve or even know the God we serve because of what they see in us? In our families or circle of friends are we spiritually the head or the tail?

Let us embrace all that God has to offer as we seek to make our election sure.

Philips, Craig and Dean sing ‘Shine on us’. Click on the picture to listen.

December 25-26 – Giving season

“This how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about : His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins” - Matthew 1:18-20

Last Friday I felt like Scrooge! My mood was very much 'bah humbug!' The last thing I needed alongside all the Christmas expenses was for the car to break down. In this case it wasn't my car. It was my wife's. No matter. The clutch was gone. The MOT was due. It needed a new exhaust and a few other things which, along with the annual service was presenting me with a bill roughly five times what the 11-year-old Vauxhall Corsa was actually worth. We took the painful decision to scrap it.

Friday morning saw me at the local office of 'Webuyanycar'. By forcing it into second gear before starting the engine, I managed to limp it into their car park. In generous mood they then offered me a full £75.00. It should hopefully appear in my bank account some day before Christmas.

That was the bad news. On the brighter side, Robin, the man who actually took the car off my hands was a very pleasant chap. He chatted as we went through the paperwork and eventually the question came, "What do you do for a living?" Within the next 30 seconds he discovered I was a Seventh-day Adventist  

He clearly knew nothing about the Church to which I belong – despite his office being less than two miles from Newbold College where 1,000 church members worship each weekend. Yet that didn't stop him asking questions and over the next few minutes he asked all the normal ones – and then the harder ones about God and ISIS, why all the suffering – but more importantly, how can you have hope? I shared stories, pointed him towards http://adventist.org.uk and wished I'd had the latest Focus magazine with me as that seemed to have the answers to a lot of his questions, including his ones on evolution – and all in a format he'd be inclined to read. He now has a copy. I dropped it to him today. I hope as he reads it that it will make a difference.

I left his office feeling more cheerful than I expected. Luisa's car was gone, I was about to spend a lot more than £75 on a replacement, but somehow, that positive conversation with Robin, a man I would never otherwise have met, became a highlight of my day. Like Scrooge in Charles Dickens', A Christmas Carol, I somehow managed to move from the 'bah humbug' to the, "I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a schoolboy..."

Somehow that is what sharing faith can do. I was impressed, last Sabbath, to meet with a 17-year-old schoolgirl who plans to head for a psychology degree at university   She wants to help disturbed children. I talked with her about the challenges of the job and how emotionally draining it could be – despite the reward. She gave me that all-knowing look and explained that she already volunteered, working with disturbed youth She had already met the wrong end of a sharp knife. She knew what she was facing. She was committed. Her faith shone through in her actions.

It is meeting people like her that has brought me the greatest joy in my 35 years working in Christian Communication. It is what I have loved most about my last nine years as editor for BUC News – and is perhaps my greatest sorrow in letting go of the job and moving on. Stories like hers are ones I love sharing.

Which makes me wonder about Joseph   He must have had his 'bah humbug' moment when Mary shared with him that she was pregnant. The Gospel accounts written from his perspective would make for interesting reading. It might even give my 17-year-old psychologist friend something to think about. Scrooge needed three ghosts to appear to him before he moved from 'bah humbug' to "I'm as happy as an angel." Joseph just needed the angel. Matthew 1:20-21 simply explains,

"While Joseph was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, 'Joseph, the baby that Mary will have is from the Holy Spirit. Go ahead and marry her. Then after her baby is born, name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.'"

How must that have been for Joseph – watching that baby develop in Mary's womb, walking with her the long miles to Bethlehem, seeing the shepherds and the magi, escaping with the little toddler to Egypt? How must it have been searching for the 12-year-old Jesus in Jerusalem, or working with him in the carpenter's shop until those years came when Jesus started his ministry – when he turned up in Nazareth, proclaiming, "The Lord's Spirit has come to me, because he has chosen me to tell the good news to the poor. The Lord has sent me to announce freedom for prisoners, to give sight to the blind, to free everyone who suffers, and to say, 'This is the year the Lord has chosen.'"

We hear Mary's story. We love the accounts of Jesus, but I have a growing admiration for the stalwart Joseph. The man who stood by Mary, who supported Jesus, who listened to the angel: "Call him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

As I reread the Nativity story over the next week or so I want to put myself in Joseph's shoes. Then I want to think, "How can I best represent his character and his legacy today?"

Maybe it is a simple conversation with a car salesman. Perhaps it is handing out an appropriate magazine or tract.  It might be my choosing a career of helping others. It may be focusing my mission and the mission of my Church on reaching out more consciously and directly to share hope and a positive future with the community surrounding me.

This Christmas season I'm taking the challenge. I'm sharing the joyful hope of the Apostle Paul, "I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings." [1 Corinthians 9:22-23]

On that basis, if you wish to join me, I believe I really can wish you a 'Happy New Year!'

[Victor Hulbert]

Music today is provided by “The Saviour of the World has Come” - (LIVE)

December 23 – Where is He?

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” - Isaiah 9:6

The air of the night is clear and sharp and resounding with the shouts of soldiers and the sound of gunfire. Throughout the day, and now on into the midnight hour, explosions can be heard, screams of pain, and running feet, as people flee for their lives. The acrid stench of fire is choking. Families huddle together in now derelict buildings, and somewhere in the town a young woman goes into childbirth. This is Nazareth, Christmas 2015. Ask them what they most want and they will tell you “peace and safety.”

Here in the West the two words we will hear most repeated at this time of year are “I want” as children and adults excitedly look forward to finding that special gift under the Christmas tree, only to find something entirely different when they open the parcel. What should have been a memorable family occasion to tell their children and grandchildren about, is then often marred by sullen silences or tantrums.

The circumstances and environment around the holidays make it all too easy for us to forget the true meaning of Christmas, and that of all people, it is Christians who should be full of joy and thanks at Christmas. Why? Because this is the celebration of our story, the fulfilment of “our want – what we need - how God moved dramatically to rescue His creation by sending Jesus to live, first as a baby, then as a growing boy, and then as a man. Christmas is good news. It is God's entrance into the world. God didn't stay in Heaven as a detached deity, he moved to become flesh. What a powerful story. Our Saviour, our guarantee of peace and safety.

It was God who gave the first Christmas gift. God so loved that he gave. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NIV). On the first Christmas, God gave the greatest gift of all — he gave his Son. He gave his Son to die on the cross so we can have our past forgiven, a purpose for living, and a home in Heaven. Jesus is the original Christmas gift. We only give because God gave to us first.

“We are saved because the Master Jesus amazingly and out of sheer generosity moved to save us” (MSG). Acts 15:11

Go back to the chapters in Isaiah and Matthew and Luke. Remember why we celebrate - meditate on the story. Remember its about love, about giving, about peace. Give back this Christmas. Is there a needy child or someone alone, a program at your church, a community center or OAP home that needs you're time and perhaps your money? Let us determine to show genuine, Holy-Spirit-led Christmas cheer.

Tonight, at midnight, in the towns and cities where we live, a young woman will give birth to a child – a gift from God – give birth with someone to care, in peace and safety.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 NIV)

Music for this Christmas Eve is “Changed by a Baby Boy” - (LIVE)

“Be ye therefore ready also, for the Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not.” Luke 12:40

Are you ready? No not for Christmas but for Jesus to come. What does your faith mean to you? In this time of festivities when the world stops to celebrate Santa Claus and the giving of gifts under the guise of the Christmas story, we would do well to ponder our stance. Even if you don’t celebrate Christmas, give cards, over eat as tradition suggests or treat it like a special day. What does your faith mean to you?

Whilst you are thinking about that question kindly spare a thought for the 7 evangelical Christians in Mexico who were recently imprisoned for refusing to convert to Catholicism. I imagine that you’re their faith is ‘real’ right now as they contemplate time behind bars.

My friends’, persecution has indeed started. So, what does your faith mean to you? Is it somehing that just comes out at this time of year so you can either celebrate or not?

Think about it seriously.

'Are you ready for Jesus to come?' is the song or today. Click on the picture to listen.

¹⁶ And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: ¹⁷ And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Revelation 13: 16 -17

I was speaking about end time prophesies with a friend today and ironically was sent this youtube link later on in the evening. Please take the time to watch it in light of what is happening around us. I read a lot to keep myself updated and listen to the news stations on the radio to try and keep myself abreast of current and happening situations. At the same time I find it interesting to see and hear what other people, who do not necessarily share my view, think.

Some things have a normal explanation, something which can be explained either by science or causal effects. When things happen which clearly fall outside of this limited parameter, then you really have to look to the bible. Click here to watch the youtube link.

Let us be aware.

December 18-19 - Hurt by hurt

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:31-32 NIV)

What is true forgiveness? We struggle through all kinds of misconceptions about what it means to forgive others. I’m convinced that if more people knew what real forgiveness looked like, they’d be much more willing to forgive instead of holding onto past hurts.

I know someone who, whenever I see her, retells, in minute detail, all of her feelings of hurt and resentment. One small event that was held and cherished long ago, has resulted in close on sixty years of bad feeling that has affected relationships with entire families.

The Bible clearly calls us to forgive others. Galatians 6:1 says, “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently” (NIV).

So if God expects us to forgive others, what does healthy, biblical forgiveness look like? Rick Warren suggests this four-part process that we should walk through as we’re dealing with pain caused to us by others.

1. Recognise no one is perfect. When we hate somebody, we tend to lose our perspective about that person. When we’re filled with resentment and bitterness and hurt, we tend to dehumanize the offender. We treat them like an animal. But we’re all in the same boat. The Bible says, “Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins” (Ecclesiastes 7:20 NLT, second edition). We’re all imperfect.

2. Relinquish your right to get even. This is the heart of forgiveness. The Bible says, “Never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for he has said that he will repay those who deserve it” (Romans 12:19a TLB). You deserve to retaliate, but you must commit not to do so. It’s not fair, but it’s healthy. This isn’t a one-time decision but a daily one that may even require moment-by-moment decisions.

3. Respond to the evil with good. This is how you know you’ve fully released someone from the wrong that has been committed against you. Humanly speaking, it’s nearly impossible to respond to evil with good. You’ll need God’s help. You’ll need the love of Jesus to fill you up. Why? God’s love doesn’t keep track of wrongs (see 1 Corinthians 13).

4. Refocus on God’s plan for your life. You stop focusing on the hurt and the person who hurt you. Instead, you refocus on God’s purpose for your life, which is greater than any problem or pain you might be currently facing. As long as you continue to focus on the person who has hurt you, that person controls you. In fact, you can take it a step further. If you don’t release your offender, you will begin to resemble your offender.

So don’t sit another day in your resentment. If you’ve been holding onto pain caused by someone else, go through these four steps and move on to the rest of the life you were created to live!

. “We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother” -

1 John 4:19-21 ESV

Acknowledgements Rick Warren

Music today is sung by Sanda Isaacs Yeary “Hurt by Hurt” (LIVE) Click on the picture to listen.

December 17 - Memories

The LORD God commanded the man, saying, "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die" – Genesis 2:16,17.

The Christmas season has the effect of making us reminisce. Our minds cull over the years that have gone, the people who were in our lives, and the things we did together – some good, and some regretful. That has been me this week. But it hasn't been Christmas alone that has been foremost in my mind.

Way back in my mind is the memory of one beautiful autumn day as a child, catching a bus with my brother into the countryside – we were on an adventure (actually our destination was only four miles out of town, but I thought we were on a safari!). I was six years old, and Ray was thirteen, my hero – we defended each other through thick and thin. We lived not far from the sea front and should have been spending the day on the sands, but when he suggested the countryside – well, it was a no brainer!

I had seven brothers and one sister, and out of us all Ray was the rebel of the family – no-one kenw what he was going to get up to next. This day turned out to be one of those days. The bus ride was an education as Ray aired his 'knowledge' of all things rural....I'm still trying to figure out some of the information, but at the time to me, if he said it, it was as solid as the Oxford dictionary.

We travelled as far as our ticket money allowed then clambered off the bus to investigate the village we had landed in. I remember it well. A beautiful, peaceful atmosphere with flowers everywhere, in the hedgerows and gardens, and there was the clearest blue sky I think I have ever seen. Yes, it was a lovely day – then, Ray spotted the apples – gorgeous, ripe eating apples, just ready for picking.

I like to think he tried to resist temptation, but if he did it was a flashpast event because the next thing I knew he was climbing over the fence....he was going scrumping, and to make it worse, he was intending to scrump the local vicar's fruit! It wasn't that he didn't know it was wrong, he did, because he wouldn't allow me to follow him (I always stuck to his heels), but I was to keep look-out and warn him if I heard the vicar coming – apart from that he said, I would tell the truth if I was questioned when we got home. Sounded logical to me at the time, but I didn't realise that meant he was already planning to lie to save his skin, and I was an equally guilty partner by keeping 'watch' .

Centuries ago there was another garden – beautiful, peaceful atmosphere with flowers everywhere....not a cloud in the sky. There was also another tree with gorgeous, ripe fruit hanging from it's boughs, juicy and ready to eat. This time the Vicar was God, and the garden was the Garden of Eden – the fruit forbidden to eat as it was the Tree of Knowledge, of good and evil (Genesis 2:9; 16,17). This was the start of temptation, and Eve like my brother, fell hook line and sinker for the whispered words of Satan, picked the fruit, took a bite then offered it to Adam who, by his own choice did the same (Genesis 3:1-11). Did Adam take a bite of the fruit because it was offered to him by someone he admired and loved – as I did? Was it that he didn't want to be parted from Eve if he stood his ground and obeyed the command God had given to him? Was Eve more precious to him than his loyalty to Jesus?

Rules are there for a reason. Break them and there will be a penalty (Genesis 3:14-19). Keep them and peace and happiness is ours. In the case of me and Ray, the penalty was the sharp end of my mother's tongue, straight to bed, and grounded for the rest of the week. How did she know about the scrumping? No, neither of us said a word, but my brother's stomach ache gave him away – he was in agony!

The effect of disobedience is like the ripples created by a stone thrown into a stream. So many people are hurt and disillusioned by our actions. We fail ourselves, we fail those who love and trust us....but above all, we fail God.

My choice of music today is “God Never Stopped Loving Me” - Keith Rath. Click on the picture to listen.

"They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads." Revelation 22:4

I was teaching a class last week on real life heroes. I asked the children, aged 7, to draw their hero or heroine. Some children got right to it and began drawing either their parents or in one case, an uncle who was a soldier in the army. One girl, however, sat with a perplexed look on her face. I went over and kneeled down to ask her what was troubling her. She replied,

“How do you know what God looks like?”

An excellent question I thought and told her to draw when she imagined him to look like. I was interested to read however that Forensic Scientists have revealed the most ‘real’ face of Jesus ever according to their research and reconstruction. Obviously no one alive has seen the face of Jesus but many artists have tried to capture what they imagine what he would look like. My personal favour is by a child prodigy called Akiane who drew this picture when she was aged 8.

The best way to see the face of Jesus though is to plan to be there with him in heaven. Why don’t you make that your desire?

Larnelle Harris and Sandi Patti sing ‘I’ve just seen Jesus’. Click on the picture to listen.

‘I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord.”’ Psalm 122:1 NKJV

People stay away from church for many reasons. Sometimes they feel bad because their faith isn’t working as well as they think it should. Or they’re still struggling with certain problems. Or they’re depressed because it looks like everyone else is doing well except them. Don’t let discouragement keep you away from your spiritual family.

You need their love and support. You need to hear them say, ‘We made it, and by God’s grace you can too.’ The Bible says, ‘Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is’ (Hebrews 10:25 KJV). The word ‘forsaking’ is taken from three Greek words which could be translated ‘out’, ‘down’, and ‘behind’. It pretty much describes someone who feels left out, spiritually and emotionally down, and far behind everyone else. The moment you feel that way Satan whispers, ‘Just stay home from church today; you don’t need to go there with all those good people.’ If Satan can separate you from other believers at the very time you need them most, he can rob you of what God has in store for you. Sure, you can stay at home, read your Bible, and turn on Christian radio and television. But surrounded by your spiritual family you’ll get answers, experience joy, and receive encouragement you can’t find anywhere else.

Church is the last place the devil wants you to go when you’re feeling low. He knows if you go, you’ll be touched by the presence of the Lord and be able to crawl out of the hole you’re in. So, go to church!

Courtesy of UCB

David Phelps sing 'Come to Jesus'. Click on the picture to listen.