Grace Community Church NI

Every four weeks we will be checking in with some of our church family, and asking what God has taught them over the last month. This week, it’s one of our 7 resident Floridians, Jaci Cauvel. She reflects on the topics of fear and courage that we've explored over the last few weeks.

Doing what you believe is truly right without knowing what the outcome truly is. We take quick glimpses into five stories of courage. A young Daniel and his friends had nothing between them and the king’s power except God Almighty. David had to recall the times he faced challenges when he took on the giant Goliath. Joshua needed courage when it was his turn to take the mantle from Moses. It took c...

Adam and Eve failed and when they did, they wanted to close their eyes, stick their fingers in their ears and go into hiding. Why were they so afraid? In the storm in Matthew 8, Jesus asked the disciples ​“why are you so afraid?” What was Jesus pressing at here?

Every four weeks we will be checking in with some of our church family, and asking what God has taught them over the last month. This week, it’s Queen of the Castle, Carolyn Dawson. She shares her experiences of healthy spiritual rhythms, contemplation and curiosity.

Ask and it will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. It all seems so simple yet so hard to consistently live out in practice. Today we looked at the importance of asking for help, asking the right questions and asking others about their journey. It’s all held together by living a life of wisdom, chasing after it through our relationship with the Lord and those aroun...

What changes do I need to make so I can finish well? We're going to look at three areas: 1. Contemplation: the need to pay close attention. 2. Compassion: when the only judgement we make is every person is made in the image of God and they’re worth Jesus giving his life for. 3. Curiosity: a childlike wonder causing us to ask “why?”  The overarching attribute is humility. Humility is the abilit...

As any long-distance runner will tell you, the most challenging moment in a race is the wall. Everything is telling you to stop, but to finish, you must press on. The people who make a difference to those around them are those who press through difficult times. The writer of Hebrews reminds us that not only is the race worth winning, but there are people who are cheering us on.

Have we lost our surprise, wonder and awe? Without these, we lose that childlike amazement in God’s kingdom. God wants us to see the world how he sees it. So how do we discover enchantment?

Every four weeks we will be checking in with some of our church family, and asking what God has taught them over the last month. This week, it’s Lord of the Rings fan, Andrew! He discusses the themes explored in the Walk This Way series with Neil, including resilience and humanity.

Matt 6:12 is the one part of the Lord’s Prayer that seems to require something of us: ​“as we forgive”. Jesus wanted his hearers to hear that Forgiveness is the kingdom way of living. Luke 23:34 one of the most shocking and one of the most beautiful prayers Father forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing. We are to have the same attitude as Jesus. If we are to love and forgive our enemies...

Glen Mitchell is Director of Tearfund Northern Ireland, an international aid and development organisation that works in more than 50 countries around the world. Tearfund works with churches to help them bring change and transformation to their communities. They only work in places of extreme poverty helping churches in those places to bring about holistic life transformation. Here, Glen shares his...

The story of Hannah is the story of a woman who is resilient. As we read her story we can learn from how she walked through pain, sadness and a season of an unfulfilled dream. Developing resilience requires us to shift our focus from the end goal to the process we are in to get there. What if God is more interested in our journey and than he is in the destination? Can we be people like Hannah who...

David and Cheryl Bailie along with their family of three boys are currently working in Belfast. Originally from Dromore, David and Cheryl have worked all over. From ​“Youth for Christ” to OM ships. From Australia to the south of Ireland. And, now, in Belfast, their lives have been a story of obedience to God’s leading. Here they let us into their story and help us as we ask God to show us what he’...

“Let’s find a home for every child who needs one.“ Home For Good’s Judith Dawson makes Foster Care Fortnight with a few reflections. She shares her experiences and helps us to consider which steps to take as we support kids and parents in the care system.

Very quickly in Jesus ministry, his message attracted a multitude of intrigued people. Jesus’ time on earth introduced the world to the kingdom way. The way of restoration, rescue and healing. We look briefly at three stories of the kingdom encounters with Jesus. The paralytic man The woman with the issue of blood. The demon-possessed man.

Judgement isolates people and puts them to shame, widening the gap between us and them. As we continue to look at the way of Jesus, we examine the story of the adulterous woman who was facing judgement from the baying crowd. Instead of rubber-stamping their condemnation, Jesus switched the focus to those holding the stones. Quite often in the church, we love the name of Jesus because he saves us,...

Every four weeks we will be checking in with some of our church family, and asking what God has taught them over the last month. This week, it’s coffee-loving Jesse. With Amy, he ponders the themes explored in the Walk This Way series, including doubt and legacy.

How do we live as counter-cultural people as we think, act and serve differently? As a generation, what legacy do we hope to leave, as we endeavour to live the way of Jesus? Living as a chosen people doesn’t always mean it’s easy!

Between the resurrection and the great commission is this little verse. A verse that’s rarely mentioned. Why? How can the disciples see the risen Jesus and still doubt? Do our doubts disqualify us from faith? Maybe it’s not doubting that causes people to abandon faith, rather people abandon their faith because they’re not allowed to doubt.

We are looking at power. Not in having power, but the influence it has in different areas of our lives that impacts our walk with God and the world around us. With principles taken from the story of The Good Samaritan found in Luke 10, we will see the effects of the power of our choice, religious rituals, our own bias and others influence over us.

A fresh look at the story of the woman at the well. Samaria was seen by the Jews as unclean. The Samaritans were created out of the split earlier in the history of Israel. So in many aspects, theologically, morally they differed. Bring into the mix the cultural attitude towards women. Society and religion dictated that women shouldn’t be spoken to by anyone other than their husbands. So when Jesus...

Every four weeks we will be checking in with some of our church family, and asking what the Lord has taught them during the COVID-19 lockdown period: what habits they’ve gotten rid of, and what habits they’ve picked up, as well as reflecting on talks over the last few weeks. This week, we welcome back Frances Anderson. Frances talks about her experiences of life and love as a stepchild and a part...

The greek for hate (μισέω) means to disregard or dismiss. We may say we don’t hate others, but how often to we disregard or dismiss. Can we, therefore, claim we are living the way of love? Devotion to God is authenticated by how we treat people. It’s degrading when we build a relationship with people for our own hidden agenda.

As Christians, we are not promised an easy life. It is more important to remember your inheritance and what you carry. So no matter the culture you find yourself in, you are not obliged to give in to the flesh. As a result, you may face resistance and possibly suffer persecution. Some Christians may see being different to preach the gospel, but Peter suggests there's more to what we carry: sympath...

What is so much better than Gifts of the Spirit? When we look at the teachings of Jesus, when he says the second command (love your neighbour) is like the first (love God), what he means is it is of the same magnitude, not an add-on. When Jesus confronts the Pharisees, he challenges their hypocritical practices: laying rule, laws and burdens onto those around them, without lifting a finger to help...