Welcome to our service today. It is great to have you here and we would love to invite you to stay after the service and join us for tea and coffee.

I love the book of Psalms. I think for most Christians it is the first book they turn to when they want to read a passage of praise to God. 

Most of the psalms are prayers, and most of the prayers include praise to God. Praise expresses many things - admiration, appreciation, gratefulness and thanks. Praise in the book of Psalms is often directed to God, and just as often the praise is shared with others. When we consider all that God has done and does for us, what could be more natural than outbursts of heartfelt praise!

The praise given to God in the Psalms is not only for what He does - His creation, His blessings, His forgiveness - but also for who He is - loving, just, faithful, forgiving and patient. There are also times when the praise of God is shared with others and they too are encouraged to praise Him. So let's be encouraged to praise God everyday - He is found in the minutiae of life and in the impossible (to us!) of life. He is Almighty and He loves us. 

With love & blessings,

Sandra

Welcome to our service today. It is great to have you here and we would love to invite you to stay after the service and join us for tea and coffee.

Life is filled with ups and downs, but sometimes the hardest place to be is in between. In Psalm 62 we read that David was under attack from his enemies. As tempting as it may have been to take matters into his own hands, David chose to wait on God.

The safest place to be when we feel like we’re under fire is waiting with the Lord. He has all power and control. When we choose to wait with God rather than going it alone, we experience His power and presence like never before. There are few times in our life that draw our hearts closer to God than when we’re waiting. We’re more alert to hear His voice when we’re desperate to hear from Him. We’re quicker to recognise His power and provision when we’ve been looking for Him to move.

When we pour out our hearts to God and wait for Him to make the way, we see Him do what only He can do and we learn to trust Him more. We can put our trust in lots of places - money, ourselves, others....but nowhere is safer than with God who made everything, knows everything and can restore anything - if we’ll let Him.

With love & blessings,

Sandra

Welcome to our service today. It is great to have you here and we would love to invite you to stay after the service and join us for tea and coffee.

Many people think that believing in God protects them from trouble, so when tough situations come they question God's goodness and justice. There are many instances in the Bible that talk about not giving up on God because He allows us to have bad experiences (think of Job for instance!).

Faith in God does not guarantee personal prosperity, and lack of faith does not guarantee troubles in this life. If this was the case people would believe in God simply to prosper. God is capable of rescuing us from suffering, but He may also allow suffering to come for reasons we cannot understand. It is Satan's strategy to get us to doubt God at exactly this moment. If we always knew why we were suffering our faith would have no room to grow. In Paul's words "And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope."

With love & blessings,

Sandra

Welcome to our service today. It is great to have you here and we would love to invite you to stay after the service and join us for tea and coffee.

At our Women's Life Group we are studying the book of Daniel. What an amazing young man he was and powerfully used by God. 

Although Daniel was young when he was deported he remained true to his faith. He was a man of prayer who also carried the gift of prophecy. He was not afraid and trusted in God implicitly - he survived the Lions Den! 

What are some of the lessons we can learn from his life? Here are just a few: quiet convictions often earn long-term respect, don't wait until you are in a tough situation to learn about prayer and God can use people wherever they are. 

I read in one book that David 'indulged' in prayer. He was able to communicate with God because he made it a habit. He put into practice his convictions and his life proved he made the right choices. Do we hold so strongly to our faith in God that whatever happens we will do what God says? This is the conviction we need in order to live out our everyday lives, trusting God for the results. 

With love & blessings,

Sandra