God cannot Learn
 
Our God is so BIG, so strong and so mighty
There are some things God cannot do.
 
It was in a car on the way to Eastbourne that I finally learnt the truth about Pringles.
 
Are you ready?
 
Pringles are not pure potato crisps cut straight from the potato.
I was 21 and the snack isle at the supermarket would never look the same again.
 
 
Humans learn stuff.
We learn numbers and formulas; we learn tastes and smells; we learn letters and words; and if we’re lucky we learn that Pringles are created from potato flake dough flavoured to perfection!
 
But God’s not like us.
 
God knows.
God knows everything.
God knows everything that is, that was and that will be.
 
I mean have a look at Isaiah 40:25-26
To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal? Says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name…
 
Do you see the sheer scale of God’s knowledge? The names of each and every star. God knows the names of each star!?! Very rough estimates put the number of stars in the universe at 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 stars. And God knows EACH ONE by name.
That is something else!! If we tried to learn even the names of a fraction of that number our brains could not cope with the information and I reckon our bodies wouldn’t last, old age would get to us!
 
God can’t learn because He knows it all already.
God knows everything, so He has nothing to learn. What a God!?
How different from you and me!
 
Why not read Psalm 139, have a look at what God knows, at how He knows it and rejoice that THIS God is our God!
 
 
See because God knows it all, and because God can’t learn, He can’t be surprised either.
Not by the past, not by the present nor by the future.
So you and I cannot shock Him.
 
 
I hope this is a comfort to you. The God who can’t learn, can’t be shocked and that same God who knows all we’ve done, and will do and could do and STILL that same God says: Never will I leave you; Never will I forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5)
Delight in this God who knows you AND loves you.

There are various parts of your anatomy that the Bible sometimes describes as 'Beautiful'. And that list includes your feet, which I imagine is hardly on the top of most people's list of greatest assets when it comes to beauty!


Many years ago I was involved in organising a conference called  'Beautiful Feet'. It was for youth leaders so we got away with that title, and it was based on Romans 10:15 (which quotes Isaiah 52:7) "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news", and gave rise to that 1980's Christian song 'Our God Reigns' with its first line 'How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news."

So today, how are the feet? Are we still willing to share (somehow) what we believe about Jesus, how hard we're finding it not being able to get to church in any kind of 'normal' way, and how helpful it is to have a personal faith in Jesus?

I wonder, how do you think God reacts when you talk to someone about Jesus, even in the most hesitant, stumbling way? How does he react when you're praying that you can say something of your faith to your best friend from school? How do you react to something of beauty (even beautiful feet!)?
Have a beautiful feet day today.
​Phil

​For the next couple of months, at least, Cameo won’t be meeting  in the Church buildings so we would love to invite anyone who is able to access Zoom on a Thursday morning, between 11:00 and 12:00 approximately, to join us for refreshments & chat, topics of interest, quizzes, discussions and more...please come along using the link in ChurchSuite and we look forward to meeting you there.

GENESIS 33:1-11 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men; so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two female servants. 2 He put the female servants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother.
4 But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept. 5 Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. “Who are these with you?” he asked.
Jacob answered, “They are the children God has graciously given your servant.”
6 Then the female servants and their children approached and bowed down. 7 Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down. Last of all came Joseph and Rachel, and they too bowed down.
8 Esau asked, “What’s the meaning of all these flocks and herds I met?”
“To find favor in your eyes, my lord,” he said.
9 But Esau said, “I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself.”
10 “No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favor in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably. 11 Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need.” And because Jacob insisted, Esau accepted it.

2021 feels very much like it should be the year of reparation. Joe Biden, and recently Donald Trump too, have called for a time of healing in the US after the distressing and unsettling events that took place in the Capitol last week. The vaccine process should, God-willing, begin the process of returning life back to normality at some point later this year. Brexit is over!

Over the last few years, animosity and division have felt very much on the rise.
Relations between Jacob and Esau weren’t always the friendliest. They fought in the womb, Jacob had taken Esau’s birth-right and blessing, Esau held a grudge against him to the extent he considered killing him (Gen 27:41). You can very much understand why Esau may be furious with his younger brother. Jacob hasn’t seen his brother for a while. He hears Esau’s coming to meet him with 400. As Esau is running to meet Jacob, his heart must be in his mouth. But in almost the same way as the Father with the Prodigal Son, Esau runs out to meet his brother, embraces him and kisses him and they weep together. What seemed like a brutal act of revenge has turned into a tender, forgiving, family reunion.

It’s always a beautiful thing when we see people who used to be enemies making things up. I vividly remember seeing this picture of Arsene Wenger the former Arsenal manager standing arm in arm with both Sir Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho on the touchline at Old Trafford. All 3 of those men had slung numerous insults at each other, they’d shoved each other on the touchline, they’d even once been involved in a food-fight … and there they were, showing respect and friendship to each other.

Maybe there hasn’t been anyone that you’ve had a particular grudge on over the last few years, or anyone you’ve been plotting revenge on. But maybe there’s someone who you had an outburst against on social media last year when things were getting too much for you. Maybe there’s someone you know who votes completely differently to you and that’s something you find hard to overlook. Maybe there’s a family member who you’ve deliberately lost touch with because of something that happened in the past. How much of a godly act would it be for you to react the way Esau does with Jacob? Esau had good reason to be angry with Jacob, but Esau shows him beautiful forgiveness. How can you show the same to someone who you feel has wronged you?
​Alex

Sunday 17th January | Youth Prayer Meeting | 5pm 
As we were reminded last week by Phil and Ben, it's good to pray for All People, including our young people! Lockdown is really wearing and difficult for lots of our young people; they've had exams cancelled, schools shut and face uncertainty in their futures. So as a church family it would be wonderful to gather together to pray for young people and their families during this third lockdown. 
Join via ChurchSuite.

Please click on the link below for Phil's update on Church Services
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibJq8ufKICs

                                                               A Prayer for the Year
Dear Heavenly Father,
 
Thank you that You make all things new. Thank you for all that You allowed into our lives last year, the good along with the hard things, which have reminded us how much we need You and rely on Your presence filling us every single day.
 
We pray for your Holy Spirit to lead us each step of this year. We ask that You will guide our decisions and turn our hearts to desire You above all else. We ask that You will open the doors that need to be opened and close the ones needing to be shut. We ask that You would help us release our grip on the things to which You’ve said “no,” “not yet,” or “wait.” We ask for help to pursue You first, above every desire You have placed within our hearts.
 
We ask for Your wisdom, for Your strength and power to be constantly present within us. We pray that You would make us strong and courageous for the road ahead. Let Your gifts flow freely through us, so that You would be honoured by our lives – and others would be drawn to You. We pray that You would whisper in our ear when we need to run, and whisper in our heart when we need to stand our ground.
 
We pray for Your protection over our families and friends. We pray that You would give us discernment and insight to understand Your will, to hear Your voice, and to know Your ways. Keep our footsteps firm and on solid ground, helping us to be consistent and faithful.
 
Lord, keep Your words of truth planted firmly within us. Help us to keep focused on what is pure and right, and give us the power to be obedient to Your word. We ask that You will be our defence, keeping our way clear, removing the obstacles, and covering the pitfalls. Lord, lead us on Your level ground.
 
Shine Your light in us, through us, and over us. May we make a difference in our community, for Your glory and purposes. May we reflect Your peace and hope to a world that so desperately needs Your presence and healing. To You, O Lord, be glory and honour, in this year and forever.
 
In Jesus’ name, Amen.

What do you do when you face a setback?
 
All of us will face one, at least once a year. It may be small. It may be large. But we will face them. It is how we respond to them which is significant.
 
Read Ezra 4
 
It’s a long reading, but important contextual background to where we are going. Let me try to paint the picture of where in Biblical history this is happening:

• The people of Judah had been sent into exile 70 years prior, Jerusalem and the Temple have been destroyed
• Under the Persian King Cyrus, the God’s people have been allowed to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple

 
Now if you are not a big fan of reading, I can point you toward Ezra 4:11-16. Here the enemies of God’s people who are trying to prevent them from rebuilding the temple have sent a sneaky letter to the new king (Artaxerxes) trying to get him to stop the temple building. And you know what is interesting? What they write isn’t incorrect. Yes it is true that prior to the exile these things happened. But it’s ‘old news’. They used ‘old news’ to disrupt the rebuilding of the temple. But however deceptive the plan, it worked. (V24)
 
So, God’s people faced a setback. How did they respond? They could hang up the building tools, forget the plans and just ‘get on with the rest of life’…
 
Read Ezra 5:1-2
 
When it was the easy choice to give up, God’s people turned to God. They submitted to His will, trusted in His plans, and as directed by the prophets they got on with the work. You can read to the end of the chapter if you want, it’s a glorious ending. They use the same tactic that was used against them in chapter 4 to show what they were doing was in fact justified all along.
 
But back to the subject of today. How do you face a setback? I think we can learn that a good response is to turn our face to God, submit to His will, and to keep doing the things they He has asked us to do.
 
How might you put this into practice in the next couple of weeks?

​Do you remember the milkman? He’d come every day (and it always did seem to be a ‘him’) and on cold days like today, the blue tits may have got to your milk first, especially if it was full cream. But we didn’t seem to mind that much. It was rather fun to have those feathered robbers early in the morning.
But the thing I’d like us to remember is that the milk was fresh, every morning. Guaranteed. These days you may like to come down to the smell of freshly baked bread from your breadmaker (yes, we do live in Hove…). Either way, whether it’s the milk or the bread, they’re both fresh; new every morning. Just exactly the same as God’s love and compassion. On Sunday morning we’ll be starting a series on Lamentations 3, hoping to help with our mental health awareness as we navigate Lockdown 3. In v23 we read of God’s love and compassions: “They are new every morning, great is your faithfulness.” Just like a fresh loaf of warm bread. Just like cold fresh milk on your doorstep. God’s love and compassions never get stale, they’re never ‘yesterday’s joy’. They are new every morning. Every morning. This morning. Tomorrow morning. Every morning. For you. And for me.

 Due to the continuing rise in COVID cases Phil has called a special PCC meeting on Tuesday to decide if Church services should continue  at this time.  Therefore the booking for services on Sunday 17th January will not open until after the decisions of that meeting have been announced.

I imagine Christmas Day is already feeling like a distant memory, but let me transport you back there, and especially the food! Think back to that post-Christmas-dinner feeling, when you feel so full up that you couldn’t possibly eat anything again for a month (see photo - I promise it's a cushion up my jumper!)   
 


In Ephesians, Paul begins his letter with an incredible section of praise to God saying that Christians have the spiritual version of a Christmas dinner. We are spiritually ‘full up’! God has filled us with so many good things. Before reading on, look through the feast laid out for us in Ephesians 1:3-14 .  
  
It is quite extraordinary how ‘full up’ we are isn’t it? I want to share some reflections from v3 about these wonderful spiritual blessings. 
 
Ephesians 1:3: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 
 
These blessings are… 

1.      From God (Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us).   God is a spiritual feeder!  God is not a taker but a giver.  HE is the one who has generously ‘filled us up’ and he loves to do it.   

 

1.      Through Jesus (…with every spiritual blessing in Christ).  They don’t come to us from creation.  They don’t come from inside of us. We are ‘full up’ only through what Jesus has done and by trusting in him (notice how many times Pauls uses the phrase ‘in Christ’ or ‘in him’).   

 

1.     What matters most (…with every spiritual blessing in Christ).  There are plenty of blessings that God has given us in life – food, houses, friends, family, money, vaccines (!) – but Paul focuses on spiritual blessings. Surely that means they must matter more than any other things we may or may not have. We should cherish this ‘filling up’ above all else.   

 

1.     Complete (…who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ).  When we trust in Jesus, we have ALL we need spiritually.  God hasn’t held anything back from us. We are completely ‘full up!’ 

 

1.     For all the time.  (Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us).  Whatever you’re feeling, whatever you’re facing, whether you are rich or poor, whether life is hard or easy, in Christ you are ‘full up.’ You might not always feel that God has blessed you, but Paul says that he has.    

 

1.     For all of time (…who has blessed us in the heavenly places). Earthly things run out but heavenly things are for ever.  If these blessings are in the heavenly realms, then they are totally secure for all of time and will never run out. God won’t say to us one day that he has removed his blessings from us, that we are no longer ‘full up’.    

 

1.     Corporate (…who has blessed us).  God’s blessings are not just for you and are not just for me, but for us. That means that all Christians have something deep and valuable and lasting in common.  You might think others at your church are not like you, but if you are ‘full up’ in Jesus then you have everything in common that matters. 

 

1.      Cause praise (Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ).  If God is the great feeder who has blessed us, then he is the one who deserves all the praise.  When we understand how ‘full up’ we are in Jesus, we will love + praise our glorious God.  We will delight in him and put him at the centre of our life. 

 
If you are trusting in Jesus Christ, then all these blessings are yours.  Despite all that we faced in 2020, they were yours! Despite all that we might face in 2021, they are yours! Praise God for ‘filling you up’! 
​Rich

Come join us this evening, 19:30-20:00 to pray for all people to come to know the One God.
https://bhmc.churchsuite.com/events/hg06m9qs
​​Ben

Please click on the link below:
mailchi.mp/52ca15982227/noticias-3925226?e=714c4585fc

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Saviour, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people.
(1 Timothy 2:1-6a)
​
Just re-read those verses again.

On Sunday Phil encouraged us to pray for people. To pray for all people. To pray that they may come to a knowledge of the truth. 
Why not do that now for the first person that comes to mind when you hear the words ‘all people’.

Also, join us TOMORROW (Thursday 7th) from 19:30-20:00 (link in Church Suite) to pray for people. To pray for those coming to Christianity Explored or one of the Alpha Groups that have or are occurring. Pray for those that we may want to invite along or simply get to know better so we can speak of the One Rescue from the One God.
https://bhmc.churchsuite.com/events/hg06m9qs
Don’t worry if you can’t come, but please (I say this as much to myself) pray for people.
​Ben

​For the next couple of months, at least, Cameo won’t be meeting  in the Church buildings so we would love to invite anyone who is able to access Zoom on a Thursday morning, between 11:00 and 12:00 approximately, to join us for refreshments & chat, topics of interest, quizzes, discussions and more...please come along using the link in ChurchSuite and we look forward to meeting you there.

     
   THINGS GOD CANNOT DO

​How do you feel about the song My God is so big?




​As a refresher; here’s how it goes:

My God is so BIG So strong and so mighty
There’s nothing that He cannot do.
My God is so BIG So strong and so mighty
There’s nothing that He cannot do.
 
The mountains are His,
The valleys are His,
The stars are His handiwork too.
 
My God is so BIG So strong and so mighty
There’s nothing that He cannot do.
 
Can I be frank? I don’t like that song.
I don’t like it because it’s wrong…
 
There are lots of things God cannot do. And that is really, really good news for us.

Now, before you start writing in to Phil to get me fired(!!) just think about it.
What do you think God can’t do?…

God can’t lie; God can’t change; God can’t learn; God can’t turn a blind eye; God can’t be seen and God can’t be surprised.
That’s very different to us! The things God can’t do show us the huge scale of difference between us and Him!
 
And do you see why those attributes of God are really really good news for us?
In fact, one of my old lecturers at college would say often in the Bible when God wants to comfort us, He tells us the things He can’t do or won’t do.
 
Like in Isaiah 40:28 to comfort a people in desperate need of comfort, what does God say?
The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom.
 
See the things God can’t do should bring us as much joy and wonder as the things He can do.
I’ll explore some more of them in these thought for the days in the coming weeks but for now
have another look at that list above of things God can’t do, spend some time thinking about them and delighting in our God.
And whilst you’re at it; why not sing my version of my God is so big;
 
Our God is so BIG, so strong and so mighty
There are some things God cannot do.

Our God is so BIG, so strong and so mighty,
There are some things God cannot do.
 
God cannot Lie
God cannot change
God cannot suffer or die....!
 
Our God is so BIG, so strong and so mighty,
There are some things God cannot do!!
​
​Stephen

For the next couple of months, at least, Cameo won’t be meeting  in the Church buildings so we would love to invite anyone who is able to access Zoom on a Thursday morning, between 11:00 and 12:00 approximately, to join us for refreshments & chat, topics of interest, quizzes, discussions and more...please come along using the link in ChurchSuite and we look forward to meeting you there.

​“I hate evangelists!” was almost shouted in my face when a friend heard I was training in evangelism. That’s the sort of reaction that puts people off doing evangelism!

But there are - of course - other reasons why we find evangelism so difficult.

Sometimes we just get a polite rejection. Playing tennis one day, one of my friends said: “Why can’t you just leave people where they are?”.  That type of experiences leaves us all thinking: “Ouch! I don’t want to go there again!".

Or sometimes we feel inadequate, we don’t think we have any right to talk about Jesus because our lives don’t match up.

So, evangelism is tough... how do we overcome these hurdles, and help others to overcome them too?

Firstly, we need to remember the glorious gospel of grace in 1 John 4:10:

‘This is love: not that we loved God but that he loved us.’

The point is, God loves us even when we don’t love him.  People reject God, and so they will reject His message.

The wonder of the gospel is that on the cross we see the way God has treated us. God’s gospel is the love He has for us and that’s what we see in Jesus!

So, none of us are going to share God’s love, or talk about Jesus unless first of all we know that love for ourselves. So, a starting point for evangelism is knowing God personally!

But then, how do I pass on the good news confidently, in the face of rejection and embarrassment?

Here are three thoughts from my experience that can encourage your evangelism...

• Pray for your friends, pray with your friends, pray against the opposition. You’ll find that you’re engaging in spiritual warfare when you evangelise so don’t be afraid to ask the Church to pray, pray, pray!  There is no evangelism without prayer!
• Don’t try and be the lone evangelist! Share your lives with others, connect with what makes them tick, rejoice and weep with them. I’ve found it really helpful to have other Christians in our friendship group. One of these friends doesn’t play tennis but has joined the group to chat with those who come for coffee. Her faith has really blossomed as she shares her life and faith with the others, I’m so thankful to God for her!
• Find a connection with people and start conversations. I’ve found our book group really helpful in looking at an issue that’s not personal so a bit easier to talk about. For example, we’ve just read ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’ which poses the question of suffering and of ‘man’s inhumanity to man’ and all this over tea and cake! Whatever your interest, use it for the Lord. It could be a TV programme or film that’s affected you. Ask good questions and LISTEN! We need the Spirit’s gift of discernment so we can understand where someone is coming from. 

And how about the lady who said she hated evangelists? After 4 years (!), she now welcomes me into her home and we’ve had some good chats... so God has certainly not finished His work yet! 
Judith

​There’s nothing quite like getting up on the Downs in the pre-dawn when it’s really dark, and then seeing the eastern sky gradually brighten over Brighton, moving from deep blue to pink to red to yellow. A glorious sunrise.
The Bible sees Christmas, and especially the Epiphany (which Anglicans remember this week) as a sunrise. Epiphany? That’s when we remember the wise men coming to visit the baby Jesus. Although we traditionally think of the wise men coming on Christmas night with the shepherds and angels, it could have been later. Much later. But whenever it actually happened, here are some men from the East, not part of God’s people or from his promised land. This Christmas message is for the world. And this Christmas message is a sunrise for the world.

Isaiah 6:03 describes it with these words “Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.”

As we head into 2021, and with the virus causing all sorts of challenges, not just in the UK but globally, let’s be claiming this promise in our prayers. And what a great promise it is! The wonderful news of Christmas goes with us into this year and Jesus will be drawing people from all nations to his wonderful light.
​
Phil