Gorse Hill Baptist Church

Trying to get your point across? Where do you really want to get to in your passionate defence of your views or position?We all like to be right, to have our solution affirmed and our opinions justified. It’s not always easy getting to that point but there’s a certain amount of (self) satisfaction in getting there. Whilst a well thought out argument or a slick presentation may justify our position, nothing will justify our inherent status...

When you leave the building what do you take with you? I’m not talking umbrellas on rainy days here nor smart suits for job interviews. It’s more of an attitude thing: what are we like and what values do we take into everyday life?Leaving a building is more than simply going out the door. It’s a step into a different world often far removed from our place of safety (home or church)...

Decision making doesn’t come naturally to us all. It’s not so bad when everything is clear cut and is the way forward is pretty obvious because you have all the facts to hand and can really weigh the alternatives. The problems come when we stretch beyond our capabilities or when it looks too close to call. What do we do then – take a risk or step away? Spiritually speaking, stepping away isn’t an option for God...

Are you ready to leave the building?For too long the church has cultivated a siege mentality when what we really need to recognise is that we are in a battle. It is not a question of overcoming our enemy by constructing the strongest defences, it is a call to arms that takes the fight out of the building and onto the front line...

The study of end times has very personal implications. It addresses fundamental questions which everyone asks from time to time: What will happen when I die? Will the world end with a fizzle or a bang? Will things get worse or better? Central to our understanding of the last things is the conviction that Jesus will return in glory to receive those who have committed their lives to Him...

Faith is not a spectator sport. We learn from the example of others and from the teachings of the bible it’s true, but discipleship involves a lot more than watching (observation) and waiting (reflection). True discipleship means that we follow God’s will and live by His standards. We’re involved in His mission and we’re committed to His cause. As a result, the attitudes we adopt and the way we live, will be (or should be) markedly different from those values generally adopted by wider society...

Pearly Gates (that's an entrance by the way not a cockney whelk seller). Blue sky. White fluffy clouds. Haloes and white kaftans.Renaissance artists really do have a lot to answer for. Ok I know it’s not easy laying on your back painting the ceiling but I sometimes wonder why they didn’t stick to their equivalent of Trade Matt White emulsion instead of trying to explain the bible in big pictures...

Rights: we all like to stand our ground or fight our corner for our deepest convictions or for those we love the most. Without that kind of dogged determination, we’d have few of the freedoms we associate with our modern world. As a Roman citizen, Paul enjoyed specific freedoms but his loyalty and very identity went deeper that that...

Moving on to the future without letting go of the past is like tying your arm to a post while catching a train. Standing on the mountain top and looking around is a great way of seeing where the road ahead might be leading. The thing is, we’ll get nowhere unless we come down from the heights and set off on the road into 2018 and beyond.We grow more from participation than we do from observation. Perseverance (keeping on) is a means by which we get closer to Christ...

31-Dec AM; Matt 1 v18-25