Wednesday, 2. September 2009 - 09:59 Time
Springtime

Coming into Spring is always such a beautiful time of year! We all with renewed energy start to work to complete the year! It is also the time that we can re-focus and re-orientate ourselves to reach our goals and attain all that God has fo us!

Our theme for the year is "Growing up into Him" (Eph. 4) and this is our goal as Christians to become more and more like Jesus Christ! We are focussing much on our character to bear Godly fruit living godly lives among a lost and generation, so that we a God's children can shine as stars amongs them as Daniel says.

Dan 12:3:" And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever."

We have been fministering on 1 Pet 2:9, please see the previous entry, that we as christians are "Exagello" -ing that means advertising the Kingdom of God everyday, everywhere and in everything we do! Let's do it well!

Next year we will start to focus more on the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and it will be awesome! Jesus though expects us to bear fruit and the fruit of repentance! If we get our character into place it will help us not only to start but maintain our relationship on this journey with Jesus unto the end!

Thank You for your continued commitment! we are extremely blessed to serve the Lord with You!

Andries & Christiane

Friday, 21. August 2009 - 09:37 Time
Praise The Lord!

Psalm 103:1:"Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name."

We are so Happy and Blessed, our soul rejoicing in Praise with those who have been baptised! We thank the Lord for everyone who has made a decision for Jesus Christ over the last year! We want to congratyulate everyone who got baptised last Sunday and are looking forward to many more baptisms still this year.

We were blessed by the ministry of Pastor Johan & Lizette Kotzee from Giyani. He ministered to us on "Standing the test of time" and I believe all of us were extremely blessed and encouraged!

We are continuing on our study on 1 Pet. 2:9 and want to encourage you not to miss a Sunday as we are really experiencing God's goodness and mercy touching lives on a weekly basis!

Ps. 103 is an incredible word from God filled with promises of healing, restoration , blessing and much more. I want to encourage you to make this Psalm part of your life! As you meditate on it be blessed by God's word. I include the first few verses in here for you;

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits —
3 who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Be Blessed this week in your walk with Jesus!
Andries & Christiane

Wednesday, 12. August 2009 - 14:02 Time
A CHOSEN GENERATION

1 PET. 2:9:“But you are God's "chosen generation", his "royal priesthood", his "holy nation", his "peculiar people" - all the old titles of God's people now belong to you. It is for you now to demonstrate the goodness of him who has called you out of darkness into his amazing light.” (Phillips: Touchstone)

Emmanuel Church has a very distinct calling and purpose from God to serve in our community and nation. This I believe with every fibre of my being. God has in various ways and through various ministers of His word confirmed His call for us as a church over and over again. I believe that as God’s children it is crucial that we understand our divine purpose and destiny. I know that the above portion of scripture is for all Christians everywhere in the world but I also believe that it is a “Rhema”(A Now word) word for us as a Church , and so we will be focussing on this portion of scripture for the next term.

This portion of scripture gives us identity and our ultimate destiny in this world today. We are not of this world but we are in it and as Christ’s ambassadors we are here with divine destiny! For us to fully understand it I will be putting various translations including the Greek into this article and over the next couple of weeks we as a church will dive deep into the word of God to discover our destiny in Louis Trichardt today, so please try and make it every Sunday, commit to your cell and I believe that God’s word will empower and inspire us to live the Word!

Andries

Monday, 8. June 2009 - 18:13 Time
An Ear To Hear

We have been so blessed over the last months seeing our little Steven grow daily! Becoming Stronger and Stronger! Also did we have Christiane’s mom; Gisela Schmidt with us for the last three weeks visiting and helping with the new season we have entered- parenthood! We travelled to the Kruger Park and had much fun, we enjoyed her a lot.

The one thing becoming clear is that the Lord is busy working on the inside of making us His own. We are becoming!

John. 1:12:” But as many as received Him, to them gave He the right to become children of God, even to them that believe on His name:”

Lately the Lord has been laying on my heart some portions from the book of Revelation. Today I would like to focus specifically on some of the portions in which Jesus spoke to the seven churches in Asia in the first chapters of the book of Revelation. At the end of the word to every church, Jesus advices, or rather admonishes them:" He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says."

Jesus repeats this statement every time at the end of His message to one of the seven Churces. I believe that when Jesus says something we have to take note of it but when He says something seven times I believe we should take this really serious!

As God’s children we are led by the Holy Spirit. We have received Him when we got Baptized with the Holy Spirit and He now resides IN us and not with us as when we just got saved (Read John 14:17). This leaves a major responsibility with us to discern the Lord and to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice when He is speaking to us! This is possible for every born again, Spirit filled believer!

We can clearly see this when we look at the life of Jesus and the Apostles as we read the Gospels and Acts. We can be led by the Holy Spirit!! As a matter of fact- God expects us to be led by the Holy Spirit![/i] He is our Counsellor and helper! So let’s prick our ears to have an ear to hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying today.
This means that as we hold our time of prayer and reading the word daily we make space to become quiet and listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit within us and allow Him to in whatever way He chooses speak to us. I want to invite you to start doing this today and see your life changed!

Rom. 8:14:” For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”

Thursday, 30. April 2009 - 12:57 Time
A New Season

All Around us we start seeing the signs of winter apporaching; nature and everything around us is proclaiming the change of season.

So also are all of us entering new seasons. As new parents Christiane and I are also in a new season in our lives. Steven is such a blessing from God and we are sooo blessed to have him. But there are also a great responsibility to raise him in the Lord. Over the next couple of months we will see many families bringing their little ones to be dedicated to Jesus and to bless them and pray the Lord's blessing over them.

As a Church we are seeing the Lord adding very many new families and babies to us. It is a wonderful thing to see, the Lord is so faithful and He is able to keep all that belongs to Him.

Jud. 1:24:" To him who is able to keep you from falling and to bring you faultless and joyful before his glorious presence to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, might, and authority, from all ages past, and now, and forever and ever! Amen."

This though creates also within us a greater responsibily towards each other to pray for each other and take care of one another. Our cell leaders have gone through extensive equipping to be able to better minister unto the needs of all their members, but none of that helps if you are not there. We are all called by Jesus to be a blessing and make a differnce in the life of soemone else! Lets do it!

Be Blessed
A

Thursday, 9. April 2009 - 00:11 Time
"A Son Is Given"

Isa 9:6:" For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given..."

One of the most amazing parts of the Gospels is that God had to give His only Son for our sake to die on a cross. We were recently blessed and so awestruck with the birth of our own little boy. His bane is Steven and we are so overjoyed and happy to be his parents. I include a photo here for you. Is was such a wonderful and fulfilling feeling to hold him for the first time in my arms, that God trusts us as adults with the lives of these little one always astounds me.

But when I later thought of this time of the year where we are reminded of Christ's atoning work, the thought came of of giving up my son, my one and only. My heart started to pound and I could understand how our Heavenly Father mustv'e felt to give up His Son. It must have been the hardest thing to do, to let your Oon die for the sins of others, yet God let Jesus die for ours. The greatest sacrifice... a Father giving His Son!

Easter is the time of year when we commemorate the death, burial and resurection of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we look at what He has done for us, we can only become still and thankful again for the ransom that was paid. Once again we realise how good God is, how He made a way to save us when there was no other way. There was no other Saviour, only Jesus was sinless and could save us; Jesus Christ the son of God.

This easter, I am so struck by the truth of God's redeeming love, a Father giving His only Son, whom He loves as a ransom to redeem for many!

Over these next few days, we remember that two thousand years ago, in the Middle East, the event occurred that permanently changed the world. Because of that event, history was split. Every time you write a date, you're using the resurrection of Jesus Christ as the focal point. It reminds us of how our Father loves us, enough to give His Son.

Joh. 3:16:" For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. "

Friday, 27. February 2009 - 09:29 Time
GROWING DAILY!

Over the last couple of weeks we have been focussing on growing. Growing in our walk with the Lord, faith and relationships with others; and growing in every are of life.

The Bible says the Jesus grew in Stature, wisdom and favor with God and men. (Luk. 2:52) And so we as believers should grow as He did in all areas of life. One of the keys for growing is to stick to the growth plan we have even when we get some pressure for our time and are tempted to give up.

We all are developing and growing and maturing, the rate though at which this happens is in my own hands. If I remain plyable and teachable in God's hands, faithful in my daily devotion to the Lord and continueing in what I have been learning, I will grow daily and start seeing the difference in my life and walk with God. On the other hand if I do not remain faithful to my time of devotion and give up when timesof pressure comes the decision I made to grow will not be realised as it could have been, I will grow but it might take much longer and I might even be tempted to quit.

So don't let anything come between you and God, stay focussed and faithful- Grow Daily!

Andries

Wednesday, 11. February 2009 - 11:37 Time
PUT IT ON!

Hi there Friends,

February is here and we are getting into the full swing of 2009!! A short little note from Sunday's sermon to remind you to PUT IT ON!

Eph 6:11:” Put on the whole armour of God so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

One of the very important exhortations from Paul the Apostle to us as believers is to “Put On” the armour of God. We all know that in the world we live, we face many difficulties and trials and sometimes troubles. And as Christians we know that we have an enemy wanting to discourage us, steal our joy. Thus the Paul writes to tell us to PUT IT ON! God has provided us with this armour through which we can withstand the onslaught of the devil.

It is interesting to note that the word put on in this text is the Greek word “enduō” which literally means to invest into something, and in this instance what we wear- The Armour of God! This armour is not a special piece of clothing we put on, no, it is a way of living! Investing into the armour of God in your live means to live a life of truth, that is the belt around your waist. To live a life where you control your thoughts and not allow the enemy to cause doubt and depression, or any form of uncleanness into your thought life, that’s what it means to wear the helmet of salvation. To wear the breastplate of righteousness means to live a holy and clean life with a pure heart because you have been made righteous in Christ! And so the shield of faith by believing God’s promises and the word, by developing your faith through constant use to trust what God says about you and not the identity of the world around you. And so the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God, you invest into it by spending time in the word, allowing God to speak to you through His word. Thus you invest in the armour!! And so let’s not be negligent but PUT IT ON!

Wednesday, 14. January 2009 - 22:54 Time
Being Part

Dear Friends,

I am writing this blog entry right after cell tonight. We had an awesome time!! God is really great. The amazing thing is how Jesus really shows up when we are gathered together in His Name. And man is it wonderful to be part of what the Lord is doing in the lives of people today!

We have been speaking over the last few weeks about growing up into Christ (Eph. 4:15) and how this practically applies to my life as a believer. It was fabulous tonight to hear how everyone in the cell has been "growing" and how we are busy developing ourselves into the men and women God has called us to be. It was so inspiring for me tonight to just hear how our people really loves Jesus and are living to please Him. It is every Pastor's dream to see those whom he is sheperding grow and grow and GROW!

Man if you are not in a cell, get involved into one today, don't wait. All you Emmanuel's out there who still would like to get involved into one but don't know where to go, contact the office. And if you are not in Louis Trichardt, don't despair, get involved into a Bible believing Jesus preaching church and join one of their home groups, it will change your life!

As John Maxwell says:" Plan your work; then work your plan", let us work out our salvation guys, lets make every effort to grow and invest into our most important relationship in eternity, our Jesus connection!! Be part of of the Body of Jesus!

Remember we love you and enjoy being your Pastors,
Andries & Christiane.

Friday, 9. January 2009 - 12:27 Time
Growing up

Looking at my nephew's room a while ago, I saw something that I think every one of us has as a child. a Door or place on the walll in the house that had all sorts of marks and writing all over it, the measuring line... I don't know if you had one like that at your home, but it records how tall every child in the house has grown over specific time periods, Christiane and I have one of those for Bruno- our dog. As Parents, or petowner we get excited about these marks, because one of the signs you have a healthy child or dog is that they are growing. Every parent wants their child to grow. In fact, if your child stops growing, what do you think? There's a problem. Growth and health go together, but not just in children. It also is true of us as individuals and our church.

God does desire us to grow, sometimes we look more at the physical signs and side of growing because growing by the numbers means more people coming to Christ and greater possibility for ministry. But if it's not accompanied by the more intangible(and that means unseen) elements of growth and maturity, then our Father in heaven is greatly disappointed with us. Of course we are very happy for the new families coming to Christ and we are striving to reach even more but we know that to accomodate more families we need more cell leaders, that means we need more mature and growing helpers. I imagine each of us wants to grow in maturity and start living lives(if you don't do so already) pleasing our heavenly Father. That's why in this term we will be focussing on helping you GROW!!

Eph 4:15:" Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ."

So get involved i a Home Cell, don't skip Sunday's and lets grow together this term "into Him who is the Head, that is, Christ!"

Andries

Friday, 9. January 2009 - 12:26 Time
HAPPY NEW YEAR

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

To all you Emmanuel's on Holiday and those back we wish you a blessed and happy new year! Shoking as it might see we are now in 2009 ! A Year to do God's will!!

Our year end Bash was a a Great party together with all of you who could be there, we had a fabulous time, I insert a picture with all our pregnant mamma's to be at the party, please look at our Photo gallery for more. Those of you who missed we will soon have another bash of a time together!

We are lookibg forward to an exciting year, a year where we will see the Kingdom of the Lord established in our midst- Jesus revealed in us! There are many wonderfull avenues opening for the children of God. The Kingdom's of this world is shaking but the Kingdom of our Lord shall not be shaken!! AWESOME!!

We are looking forward to spend a marvelous new year with you serving the Lord!
We love and appreciate you
Andries & Christiane

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