Every Small Thing- Tom Maynard
Mondat 1st March 2010
Following on from Howard’s previous blog, I want to carry on with the small things theme -
God is very big – but what I like the most about God is that He is also very small, and interested in the smallest of details. He became identical to one of us, in today’s world that would be the equivalent to 1 in 6.721 billion people – back in Jesus Christ’s day I am unsure of the amount of people in the world (I did try and Google it but to no avail) –anyway, even in His day it would still be a huge figure. Jesus Christ was as small and seemingly insignificant as one of us.
What message do I want to translate in this blog? Well, quite simply – 1/ Be content in the small things and 2/ Be powerful in the small things.
In Matthew 17:10 Jesus replied to the disciples (who asked him why they had been ineffective in driving out the demon from the boy), "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." According to Wikipedia (the online place that tells you everything you need to know about most things) mustard seeds: “…are among the smallest of seeds. The seeds are about 3mm in diameter…” Every small thing you do has significance. Every small prayer you pray has significance. Every small act of kindness you show has significance. Every small step towards a change in character is of importance. Every small act of love has immense power.
Quite simply, when we walk in the smallest amounts of faith we can move mountains. What challenges are you facing today? Face them with prayers of faith and you will see change. I have seen it in my own life: the Lord leads me along an increasingly adventurous pathway and there is no limit to the power that can be unleashed through the smallest amounts of faith in action. Do not put yourself down as being insignificant – your influence is greater than your authority – whoever you are, whatever you are doing – be content and be powerful in every little thing. Eat some mustard seeds today; you never know what might happen tomorrow!
Best,
Tom Maynard
Music Man
Crumbs of Comfort- Howard Davenport
Friday 1st January 2010
As the New Year begins I am full of excitement about what it may bring. I’d like to think we’ll do some big things just like last year, for example interviewing Mr T, or our shopping centre baptism service. At the same time I’d also like to draw everybody’s attention to the small things that happen…little covert demonstrations of people displaying God’s love. I remember one of the joys of my youth was a very small thing indeed - but even recalling it 30 years later I still long to relive it. It was……CRUMBS! Actually crumbs of wedding cake. Let me explain. Every few weeks a friend of my parents would visit and would bring three white paper bags of crumbs….one for my sister Paula, one for my brother Matthew and most importantly one for me. She worked at a hotel that had a lot of wedding receptions. This lady (whose name escapes me) used to cut up the celebratory fruit cake for the happy couple and their guests and lots of royal icing and cake and marzipan fell as crumbs – the crumbs were collected and as nobody at the wedding was the least bit interested in these tit bits, I and my siblings benefitted - A wonderful treat. I can still remember picking through the goodies, some crumbs were really quite large or still had a thick layer of marzipan….yummy! Every moment was tasty and brilliant. I am 37 years old, and having just celebrated Christmas, I can lay my hands on as much fruit cake/icing/marzipan as I could possibly want, yet I’d love to have a delivery of a white paper bag again. This is always a reminder to me that the joys of life are not always big and neither are the opportunities to serve God always big. Instead, when we choose to serve God in the small things God is thrilled, he is worshipped by your action; he is adored by your willing service. The Bible makes it quite clear in Luke 21 when Jesus is at the Temple we read, “1As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins.3"I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others””. The widow’s tiny gift was tiny whatever we may say, but to her and to Jesus it was massive. I pray that in this coming year you’ll enjoy serving God with us all at Elim, in some big things and some very, very small things too.
Every Blessing for 2010
Pastor Howard
Senior Pastor- Elim Pentecostal Church
Youth Pastor-Jeremy Hallett
Thursday 18th June 2009
Finally... We are launched like the Apollo 11 to the moon.......Really excited about our new website!! All the hard work is finally complete and it looks stunning!!!
Edge Youth is going fabulous! We have Edge Extreme happening on the weekend of the 4th and 5th July.. Youth baptisms and a special guest speaker called Tim Lee from Wildlife:youth in Norwich!
Also our youth band is getting better by the minute.... Very exciting to see how they are growing and maturing, WATCH THIS SPACE on their future!
Enjoy our new peak into life at Elim4yeovil.com
God bless
Jezza
Assistant Pastor- David Meggers
Monday 15th June 2009
Hi and welcome to Elim in Yeovil. Our church is all about purpose and that purpose is making radical disciples. Young disciples, families of disciples, disciples in the local community, disciples in the workplace.
I recently read an absolutely dynamite book about re-shaping our mindset towards discipleship. The book is called ‘The Barbarian Way’ was written by a guy called Erwin Raphael McManus.
Erwin's basic premise is that Christianity has been watered down to simply being safe and civilised - which is about as far from Jesus' message as you can get. The urgency has gone and now it's just about living a good, safe and trouble-free life. Jesus wants spiritual warriors, barbarians. People who are willing to go to the ends of the earth for him and proclaim good news to the poor and fight injustice.
Erwin brings us back to Jesus' original call for discipleship and purpose. It's a really good book, every friend I've recommended it to has been like 'WOAH!'
We recently had a baptism service and after the service I thought to myself that book ‘The Barbarian Way’ would be a great book to give to every baptismal candidate. If you get the chance read it!
Unleash the untamed faith within you.
All the best
David Meggers
Assistant Pastor, Elim Pentecostal Church, Yeovil.