There’s something powerful and unsettling about recognizing our own inadequacy. Abraham must have felt something of his own inability to provide, as he was witness to the miraculous conception and birth of his son Isaac. Abraham’s firstborn was God’s living, breathing promise – a skin and bone sign that God would honour his vow to […]
Pray The power of prayer is on display in the Nepali earthquake response. In the midst of such an extreme humanitarian crisis, it’s easy to get into work mode. It’s also easy to recognize one’s own insufficiency. We’ve realized that for as much work that gets accomplished, it’s not going to add up to much
Now that it’s finished, we want to know what happened. We’ve already heard a number of great stories. Everything from a simple increasing awareness of God’s presence, to significant revelation. From changed hearts to healed bodies. Some have simply prayed more and have experienced a settling awareness of his presence and filling. Because God hears every prayer many
The End (or is it just the beginning?) Congratulations, you’ve made it to day 30! Take a moment and reflect on what has happened during the past month. Go over your notes. What have you learned about God and his vision for you, for the city, for WCV, for your friends and family? Where has
Advent: the appearing Today is the first day of the Advent season – the four weeks leading up to the celebration of Jesus’ birth. It’s an acknowledgement of Jesus’ incarnation – his coming – his appearing in human form. This is a wondrous mystery. The Advent season orients us to receive this mystery. It also
Healing Healing does double duty. It is both a sign pointing towards the Kingdom of God, and it is also part of its in-breaking reality. When healing happens, whether physically or any other kind of healing, it points to the day when Jesus will return at which time there will be no more tears and
A Call to Prayer: relationships Is there one person with whom you can’t seem to get along? Of course there is – we all have someone like that in our lives! Jesus came to restore relationship, not only with our creator but also with each other (and creation too). The first thing that happened when
Gratitude As we near the end of this prayer challenge, I’d like to encourage us in the direction of thanksgiving. Here are a few wise words from well respected Vineyard worship leader and liturgist, Dan Wilt: “Christ helps us attain, maintain, and retain a thankful heart. Expressing thanks is often viewed by the culture as
A Call to Prayer: leadership If Aliens were to land and say “take us to your leader”, we’d have to point them to Jesus. He is the chief shepherd; the head of the church. He is our leader. However, his leadership is exercised through humans. Every organization and organism needs visionary, servant-hearted leadership. In WCV,
A Call to Prayer: provision Jesus taught us to ask for what we need. Paul said that our Father would supply all our needs from his glorious riches in Christ Jesus (Phil 4). As we look around our community, we can see many needs. Throughout this Prayer Challenge, we’ve turned our attention to many of
Prophetic Witness It is in the very nature of light, to dispel darkness. A candle doesn’t have to be convinced to shine – it just does. It is the same with goodness, truth and love. Their very existence dispels evil, deceit and indifference. However, there are powers that work to extinguish the light. Like we’ve
Prophetic Ministry The chief aim of prophecy is to strengthen, encourage and comfort others. Paul encourages the church in Corinth to let love be your highest goal, but also to eagerly desire the gifts of the spirit, especially prophecy. It’s because, when done in love the person on the receiving end will feel loved. Who
Prophetic Ministry Prophecy is one of those highly misrepresented activities in Christianity. We either have ideas of some crazy from the Old Testament hurling warnings from God on a godless people (no offence to the OT), or big-haired men on TV making some kind of pronouncement about the end of the world (no offence to
