Grace Community Church NI

We are called to use our gifts and talents to the glory of God. Sometimes it’s not easy to name, accept or embrace our talents, so perhaps asking these questions might help us achieve ‘Spiritual Ikigai’ - our spiritual ‘reason for being’. 1. What burdens our heart? 2. What do voices of wisdom say about our gifts and talents? 3. What skills do we possess? 4. Are we in good physical, emotional and s...

How can we have a prophetic imagination for our families, churches and communities? In the book of Acts we learn how the Holy Spirit awakened new imagination and authority in the early Christian church. As we strive to have prophetic imagination stirred in us, we need the ‘see, go and speak’ in faith, as Jesus did. We need to do this in ‘Oneness’ with one another, walking with spiritual authority...

We can’t measure our talent by comparing ourselves with someone else. God is asking us to be faithful with the talents we’ve been given. A stage show — such as a musical — has a lot of people that are not the main performers, without whom the show would be a lot less exciting.

Being part of the kingdom of God requires us to handle our treasure in a way that may seem counter-cultural to the world we live in. We are encouraged as believers to offer our ​‘first fruits’ to God, as an act of faith and worship. Rather than be motivated by external pressure to give, our motives should flow from the internal and eternal realms. Money is very often a test case for what’s going o...

After Paul had brought his message to the new churches around the Mediterranean, he returned to collect money. He suggested that, with their help, they were joining in with the "serving of the saints". Interestingly, in his instructions, Paul is not legalistic. He does not suggest an amount or a percentage, rather he is urging these new Christians to respond as a reflection of their understanding...

Reading the "Feeding of the Five Thousand" opens up a number of questions that encourages us to look at Jesus' heart for his people. When they see the problem of all the hungry people they turn to Jesus for help but, to their surprise, he turns the table and asks them to do something. They are compelled to present the only food they have. Though meagre, it is everything. For Jesus it wasn't about...

In scripture we are encouraged to be faithful with our time, talent and treasure. The question that we all have cause to ask is: how do we steward our money and resources in the best way possible? Does it mean tithing a set percentage, or could there be more to it? In Genesis 14 we have the first introduction to the concept of tithing, and this concept set the pattern for Christian giving that is...

Life does not progress on a linear timeline, but rather it zigs and zags, perhaps even moving in circles sometimes! In Ecclesiastes our attention is drawn to the fact that our life is like a mist or vapour, which passes by quickly. So how do we acknowledge, accept and redeem that fact? Every moment in life could be pregnant with possibility, but we need to learn how to engage in the ordinary momen...

Sometimes when we face difficulties and trials in life, we explore every avenue before we enquire of the Lord. In the stories of Nehemiah and Daniel we see that they acknowledged the turmoil their communities were in and they fasted. It is in these examples that we have a precedent of how to deal with the problems in our communities today. In order to bring ​‘Kingdom Solutions’ to these problems,...

Stewarding our time well. Sometimes, in order to move forward, we need to be able to carry our past well. Writing a new chapter is not the same as starting a new book. What goes before shapes who we are today. However, we should never be defined by feelings such as shame. Life is not linear. Instead, it’s more like a spirograph.

The journey the magi took to visit Jesus was long and risky. Because of their knowledge, Herod sent them to find Jesus and report back so he could ​“worship him”. Of course, his real motivation was jealousy. For the magi, however, their encounter with Jesus changed them. So much so that they went back to their home country via a different path. It’s impossible to encounter Jesus and not be changed...

It’s the time of Ahaz, King of Judah. Jerusalem is under threat from Damascus, Syria and Samaria. The threat causes the people under Ahaz to become terrified. Isaiah has been sent with a word. He says, keep calm, don’t be afraid, don’t lose heart. This prophecy came true for Ahaz, but its effect was for a time. 700 years later a little boy, born of a virgin, appeared to fulfil the words from proph...

The Gift of Waiting is that we quiet ourselves to hear what the Father is doing. There will be a time when the parched land will rejoice. There will be a time when the dry wilderness will blossom. The weak will be strengthened. The fearful will be comforted. The blind shall see. The deaf shall hear. The lame shall walk. We look forward to the time of John the Baptist: a time that Isaiah prophesied...

In Isaiah 11 we learn of the Branch from the line of Jesse, that would one day bear fruit. This prophecy was spoken at a time of great societal injustice, where hope was hard to find and oppression was rife. Isaiah is reimagining a world where the Messiah would come and rescue the oppressed, stand up for justice and love the widow and the orphan. Perhaps there is a call on us today, to also be tha...

It’s not yet Christmas. We’re in Advent. A time for waiting. In week one of four, we look at the prophetic words in Isaiah 2. It’s over 700 years before Christ, but there are already hints of what kind of kingdom Jesus will introduce to the world. The mood changes from war to peace. Weapons are being refashioned into gardening tools. The time of conflict is moving over to make way for a time of se...

In the hundreds of years after the birth of the Church, men (like Constantine), changed the order by introducing hierarchies. Sadly many of these developments undermined the original vision for the church, specifically the grass rootedness. The Bible portrays a different approach to church structure. One where all generations play an equal part. Read, for instance, the story of the jailer in Acts...

God and humanity The story of Adam is a story of how man tried to be God rather than aspire to be like him. The relationship between God and man was broken. However, as God loved us, his desire was to bring us back into relationship. That meant, for our part, confession. Confession is essential to healing a relationship. It restores trust and it brings us down to a level where we can more fully un...

Does it feel extremely difficult or too radical to keep the Sabbath? Perhaps that’s why we need it, now more than ever. In our fast-paced modern culture, we struggle with periods of rest and inactivity. However, scripture clearly teaches that having one day to rest, replenish and cease our normal activities is essential for good healthy living. Our mental, physical and spiritual health will all be...

Baptism can take many forms in our modern church today. Full Immersion, infant baptism, ​‘sprinkling’ to name a few. While our opinion on these may differ, and we each may have our own preference, perhaps the mode or form of baptism is secondary to the declaration of faith that it stands for? A nurturing community and church family appear to be essential in watering the seed that baptism represent...

Justice: 'Mishpat' / Neil Dawson by Grace Community Church

The Holy Spirit can be described as the Breath or Wind of God, that fills all those who know and love him. Sometimes that breath can be soft and gentle, or sometimes powerful and supernatural. Often the work of the Holy Spirit is a mystery to us, but we can have faith that it is always at work, in and through us. The work of the Holy Spirit will reveal to us the heart of the Father, ultimately lea...

When we sit at the table we encounter God in a physical sense. The bread is a proclamation of the past: a reminder of the sacrifice Jesus made for us. It causes us to stop, pause, look back and remember. The focus is taken off us, and moved onto him. The wine is a proclamation of the present and the future. It’s blood that carries and sustains life. It represents covenant and promise. Often the qu...

A gemologist (an expert in diamonds), looks at the clarity, cut, caret and colour of a precious stone in order to work out its value. Here, we look at four aspects of prayer that can help us consider how valuable it is: Presence As you pray there is often a greater awareness of his presence. Perspective Prayer causes us to humble ourselves, which means to take the right view of who we are in the e...

When we think of the church, it might be easy to mistake it for the building we use for worship. However, we are taught in scripture that the church is the people that make up the Kingdom of God. We are the temple for the Holy Spirit to dwell within us. Love is the identifying mark of the church, and as such, our lives should speak of that love – for God and one another.

When we approach the Bible, we might view it through the lens of our own experiences, upbringing and cultural background. Often it can seem like different accounts of the same event can contradict one another, which can lead to confusion in the mind of the reader. In this sermon, Neil explores some of these contradictions and encourages us to see the scriptures as God meeting with his people where...