VICTORIA BAPTIST CHURCH MAGAZINE

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HEAVEN  A Good Place to be? A Personal View If I were a non Christian, and heard some of the things that are said when a person dies, it would be obvious to me that no Christian wants to go there! ‘Very sad news’ ‘You will be very sorry to hear’ ‘Have you heard the terrible news?’.. I want to say, and do under my breath, ‘Hallelujah!’. That is what the person would say to us – and is saying to God! I feel that we should at least clap our hands at such amazing news! They are in heaven. And, best of all, they are with ‘our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ’. And this is NOT that I don’t know what it is like to lose somebody I love – the latest being my lovely husband, John, now just two and a bit years ago. I miss him so very much, all the time. BUT I rejoice with him that he is with the Lord, ‘which is far better’. How easily those words trip off our tongues. But, in practise, it would hardly seem that we believe them. Someone might say that John ‘had a good innings’. But, no matter long or short our time on earth, it is but a drop in the ocean of eternity. Shortly before John died, his face crumpled and he said tearily, ‘But what about you, Mary?’ I told him how much I would miss him. But he would be outside of time. So, it would seem no time at all to him before I would be there too!

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This does not mean that we should hate life. ‘He has given us richly all things to enjoy.’ But no matter how good down here, how much greater it will be up there! And no matter how bad things are down here, there are always SO many things for which to be grateful. The Salvation Army say that a person has been ‘Promoted to Glory’. That certainly gives out a better message. ‘The well-known evangelist, Lindsay Glegg, used to treasure a postcard which had been sent to him by the famous Baptist preacher, F. B. Meyer, only a few days before his death. In a shaky hand, Meyer wrote these words: “I have raced you to heaven. I am just off; see you there, Love, F. B. Meyer.” ’ [A quotation from Raymond Brown, ‘Be My Disciple’, Marshall Pickering, 1992, 99.] Now, that’s more like it! Mary Read.

VBC TIMES NEEDS YOUR HELP To keep this magazine fresh, relevant and up to date we need people to write for us. This could take the form of Poetry, articles about what you are doing, articles about how God has worked in your life and Puzzles for the kids page, dates of events that you would like people to know about. Details of where to send these, or with whom to speak are on the back page. ____________________________________________________________________

There are two days in every week about which we should not worry, two days which should be kept free from fear and apprehension. One of these is YESTERDAY, with its cares and mistakes, its faults and blunders, its pains and heartaches. Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. All the money in the world cannot bring back Yesterday. We cannot undo a single act we performed; we cannot erase a single word we said. Yesterday is gone. The other day we should not worry about is TOMORROW, with its large promise and its poor performance, its possible adversities and its burdens. Tomorrow is beyond our earthly control. Tomorrow’s sun will rise either in splendour or behind a mask of clouds, but it will rise. Until it does, we have no stake in Tomorrow for it is yet unborn. That leaves only one day, TODAY. Anyone can fight a battle for just one day. It is only when you and I add the burdens of those two frightful eternities, Yesterday and Tomorrow, that we break down and falter. It is not the experiences of Today which drive men mad; it is the bitterness or remorse for something which happened yesterday and the dreaded thought of what tomorrow may bring. ONE DAY AT A TIME, SWEET JESUS Anon ____________________________________________________________________

The art of waiting I attended a staff training session the other day on the benefits of social media such as Facebook, Twitter and other websites, and how we could use these tools more effectively to communicate with young people. Using the internet via social networking can get you instant responses. You can now post a question on Twitter and get thousands of responses in just a few seconds. Whether the responses are particularly valid or helpful is another matter altogether. In the presentation there was a bullet point on one of the slides that said, “Email is for old people”. Hmm, I’m definitely old then, as I really only use email and haven’t succumbed to Facebook although I’ve had some invites from friends (yes, honestly, real friends not just acquaintances...) to join. Social media and networking sounds great for those of us who are impatient for answers but I have to ask myself whether this is a good thing? Will I gradually lose the ability to research information for myself through trustworthy sources and talking to people face to face? Or would I rely on people twittering back to me in cyberspace for my answers? More importantly would I lose the ability to wait for an answer in an increasingly instant messaging generation? In Psalm 40 it says, “I waited patiently for the Lord...” Sometimes we all need to learn to wait because in the process of waiting, we start to see that we are not the centre of the world. There is someone greater at work who will answer us with perfect timing and with the perfect answer if we just wait. My two boys usually can’t wait for anything, whether it is food, drink or just an answer. Their favourite responses tend to be, “I can’t wait,” or “Are we there yet?” However, although they say that they really can’t wait until their birthday or to get to a certain holiday destination, I know that they can and the Lord knows that we are more than capable of waiting for the right answer if we look to Him as the source. By growing in patience, we learn something of slowing down in life, of taking in all that is around us and we start to notice the joy, the struggle and our own spiritual development. In most cases, it is not instantaneous and it may not be the answer you were looking for, but it will be far more precious than you could have thought possible. So, wait and see that the Lord is good. Anon

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CIRCLING THE WORLD JANICE AND FRANCIS BATES’ reflections on their visit to Pakistan Dec 10/Jan 11. “Pakistan is and Islamic state with a 97% Muslim population. Lahore is an old city of some 10 million people. We stayed in a ‘slum area’ and visited some very deprived areas. The material poverty made a deep impression on us – dirt roads with no drainage, open sewers, children picking over rubbish tips, people living in tents, lack of basic schooling and care for the disabled. Travelling on Pakistan’s hot and dusty roads is chaotic. Someone said, ‘there are only three necessities for drivers – a good horn, good brakes and good luck!’ ‘Christians’ in general, are a marginalised and oppressed minority. The evangelical Christians we met stood out as people with joy and contentment, even though they lived with constant pressures on their lives. We had the impression they felt cut off and isolated from Christians in other parts of the world. They made a significant contribution in their communities among particularly deprived people – providing education for the very poorest, special schools for the handicapped and orphaned children, and training deprived young people for work. Because Pakistan is an Islamic state, these initiatives have a wider importance than we realise. It encourages a level of respect for Christians they might not otherwise be given. Nevertheless, there’s no doubt that the need for their protection is very real. During our time there we had some police protection. The best memory of our visit was the generous hospitality and warm welcome of the Christians wherever we went. The attentive listening to God’s word being preached, by Francis, was also very noticeable, as was the enthusiastic worship and praise. It was very disturbing to see and hear protestors calling for the death of Asia Bibi, a Christian woman falsely accused of denigrating the Koran. Please pray for ‘Just Government’ that will repeal current blasphemy laws and give greater freedom of worship, more protection and less discrimination against all minority groups. Pray for the Christians that they will have continued boldness and wisdom in proclaiming the gospel and more help in training evangelical pastors. Thank you for all your prayers during our time there. Please pray for us as we are due to fly off to Nairobi on April 4th and then fly to Loki on the 6th, and for Francis’ 66 lectures starting on the 7th April. JOHN HART travelled to Ecuador on Feb 28th and will be there for the whole of March, accompanied by a very good friend. During his time there he is visiting Santa Domingo, where two departments of Orphaids are based. John is spending pastoral time with staff, monitoring work levels and sharing with HIV groups. The Church he cofounded in the 1960’s is flourishing, the senior pastor having been a boy in their 1960’s Sunday School; Here, John is giving time to the leadership and preaching. ____________________________________________________________________

John is also visiting New Horizons, a little village nearby, where he has a small bungalow, and where he is staying for most of the visit. “The Orphaids orphanage and Care Centre are located in the village. Our children live with families and the house mothers earn a wage. The Care Centre provides respite and palliative care when necessary. At the request of pastors in the area in 1993, I set up a centre for training Christian leaders and for retreats. The centre is run by local Christians and I continue to monitor the work and give advice.” Medical consultations and treatment, and a dental service are in a purpose built clinic. “Our missionary doctor from the UK is running the centre, doing palliative care. All the people involved need pastoral care and encouragement. My office becomes a counselling room. People just turn up to share their problems, relational issues etc. Pastors come for orientation and support. I am planning to take our Orphaids leaders (Ecuador and Columbia)to the coast for two days for a short retreat.” John also has three commitments in Quito, some 6500 miles away! STEVE AND SHERREE FRANCIS. “We passed the module checks we had (Sherree – Christian communication – her 9th module; Steve – Introduction to Thailand – his 8th module) and Sherree had her Year 1 check as well. That is two parts – speaking and listening, and a written assignment. She passed the first, and we haven’t officially heard about the written, but we assume she has passed it. So now we’re moving on. Sherree’s starting her Year 2 modules and I’ve got my final Year 1 module to do. I’m doing ‘Easy Gospels’, which everyone tells me will be very easy since I’ve already done the Christian Communications module and that is a lot harder. Sherree’s doing a ‘Kitchen communications’ module – and she needs to find a teacher/advisor who she can learn to cook some Thai dishes with, as well as study other kitchen and ‘house’ language with. Pray that Sherree finds someone (Thai) who she can learn from and maybe develop a friendship with. She is planning to cut back her Thai study hours so that she can take on some other part time ministry as well. She plans to discuss this with our Director – Pray that she can find the right fit for her, and develop one or two good Thai friendships. I am catching up in the office again and will soon recommence my part time language sessions. We’ve continued to attend the Chang Mai Grace Church – a Thai Church, and are starting to attend a small cell group of younger believers. We’ll be sitting listening and observing for the most part – probably unable to contribute much in Thai yet, but we hope and pray that we can develop friendships with some of those there and be an encouragement to them in their studies and Christian life. Some of them speak English too, so we won’t be totally lost if we can’t understand all the Thai. David Elledge ____________________________________________________________________

Live it don’t talk it, In what box does Jesus fit? Compartmentalising lives, Until they become bee hives. Never stop moving, Always something else to do, Life on going. Yes, I am speaking to you.

Go to church on Sundays, Oh yes, that’s God’s day, Have to stick my ways. So we have time for sinful play. Neither hot or cold, In church, you are bold. Leave the building, Go to work, Not even of God are you thinking. God’s watching on while you do your work. I am too busy to think about God, You will have plenty of time, When you lose your job. Oh; now you have turned to God. I just did not have the time. From God time, you did rob.

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How hard is to give ten minutes even fifteen? On a lunch break, God can see through that false screen. He is always awake. You do your bit, Put money in the offering, Then you ignore the epileptic tramp having a fit.

How hard is it to even pray? For that life of hell, Being shunned and ostracized, Yell! Look at your neat lives compartmentalised. Give your all, Or nothing at all. Be hot or cold, Not 0ne or the other, But be bold. Treating people like your own sister and brother.

Chris Scannell

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MY TESTIMONY

He died for you , He died for me, He died on the cross At Calvary. He suffered there Our sins to bear He died for you and me.

He suffered the pain and agony of the cross for all of us. I know this because I was a very bad sinner! But then I gave my heart to the Lord. Now He walks with me day by day; Jesus has given me a new life and thanks to Him there is meaning to my life. He has given me some good friends, I will never feel lonely again for Jesus is with me. THANK YOU JESUS. THANK YOU.

Harry Mansford.

This is the unsolicited testimony of Harry after two weeks into the Alpha course, having attended church for a little while. He has given permission to publish these thoughts which came to him spontaneously whilst attending a computer course running concurrently with Alpha. “The gospel is the power of God unto salvation.”

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Kid’s Page

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From the editor Dates For Your Diaries Tuesday 15 March

AGM & Church Members Meeting 7.30pm @ Victoria

Wednesday 16 March

An evening of Information of Pastor Ram’s work in Nepal 7.30pm @ Victoria

Friday 18 March

Home Group Quiz night 7.30pm for 8pm start @ Victoria See Karen Martin/Julia Kirk

Saturday 2 April

Niche Day @ Victoria Details in the notice sheets

Deadline for The April Issue is Sunday 27 March

VICTORIA BAPTIST CHURCH MAGAZINE

EDITORIAL TEAM: Nigel Hill - [email protected] Heidi Hill - [email protected] Lester Miller

Victoria Baptist Church Eldon Road Eastbourne, BN21 1UE

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