AWAKE!
Awake My Soul
But make sure that you don't get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! God is putting the finishing touches on the salvation work he began when we first believed. We can't afford to waste a minute, must not squander these precious daylight hours in frivolity and indulgence, in sleeping around and dissipation, in bickering and grabbing everything in sight. Get out of bed and get dressed! Don't loiter and linger, waiting until the very last minute. Dress yourselves in Christ, and be up and about! (Romans 13:11-14 The Message) It's so very easy to drift along in life and get caught in the trap of spiritual indifference. Not even being part of a church that seeks to be alive is sufficient to guarantee that each of
us is living awake to God and aware of his fullness in our lives. It's also easy to be fooled by the activity of church life to think that we are awake as a church. I have spent ALL of my life in church, a Pentecostal church. But I know I have not always been alive to God in my inner person - the part of me he inhabits. As we walk into 2014 I am aware of The Lord's voice calling us to Awake! It's not a harsh jolt to wake us up but a loving and tender whisper to stir us to a new awareness of Him in our lives. We were not just saved to survive until the return of Jesus but to be part of his great plan and purpose for his world. He is moving in the nations of the world because he is not a passive God simply watching as the world self-destructs. God's
plan has always been to transform his world through a church that is alive and vibrant with his life and his message. That church is made up of millions of individual children of God like you and me who are called to a life of day to day living relationship with our Father. The question is are we truly awake and alive to this wonderful God we talk about and sing about? I am convinced that God's desire for us as we enter a new year is to Awaken us on the inside to what we are living unaware of. I love our church deeply and all that God has done in us but my heart is yearning for you and I to each discover a fresh desire and longing for God that will awaken us in worship, in mission, in righteousness, in fruitfulness, in healing and in everything that our loving Heavenly Father has made so wonderfully available to
us. You see all my experience in church life tells me that people choose indifference. I don't mean to seem harsh but it's true because we can have as much of God as we desire. He has not withheld anything from us and therefore has made all of his fullness available to us. This means that you and I decide how awake we are to God by the daily choices we make about how we will think and how we will live. I will lead you this year to respond to this call to Awake! I know that many of you will be stirred to follow and I will be praying for those who struggle to desire such awakening, that the Holy Spirit will whisper in your ear so lovingly and clearly that you cannot but cry back... Awake my soul! (Psalm 57:8)
Stuart
AWAKE! Week of Prayer Monday 6th – Friday 10th January 2014 Prayer Times: 9-10am, 1-2pm and 7.30-9pm Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. Psalm 57:8 Our weeks of prayer together are such important and precious times and they give us the opportunity to cry out to God for deeper encounter with His presence, and to declare our dependence upon Him. The theme of this week is AWAKE! Our desire is that we are awake and alert to His presence, and we encourage you to join with us and make that your prayer at the beginning of this New Year. This year the church building will only be available at key times during the day for corporate times of worship, prayer and encounter. We do pray that you will be able to join with us at any of these specified times.
Awakening to Prayer Just as a flower opens to the light and warmth of the sun, so too our souls wait for the love of our heavenly Father to pour His light and love into our being to cause us to come to life in Him in response to His great love. Prayer is not a mystical experience, but a deep longing to that says ‘Oh that I may know Him’. (Phil 3:10). It is God’s deep desire that we are open to know Him in the deepest sense of intimacy. The priority that we place on prayer will demonstrate our desire to know Him more.
Alongside your own times of prayer, please remember our corporate times of prayer which go on beyond our prayer week. You are welcome to join in any of our times together: Monday 7pm in the City Room of the Church Friday 6.30am @ The Church
Prayer Box The prayer box is situated in the foyer to the side of the reception area, and is available for you to use at any time that you have a need that you would like us to come into agreement with you for breakthrough. The Pastoral team meet each week to pray for any needs that we are aware of.
Prayer Week Launch Sunday 5th January 6.30pm
Awake My Soul and Sing‌ In place of our usual Youth service and Life study this month, we will be joining together at the church launching into our week of prayer by awakening to a new song of praise and thanksgiving for a new year and in anticipation of all that we are expecting God to do in us and through us in this new season.
Januar 6
Monday 7
Tuesday
W E E K O F
1 NEW YEARS DAY
8
2
9
3
10
4
11
5 9.00am/ 11.15am Worship & Teaching 6.30pm Evening Service (CH)
12 9.00am/11.15am Worship & Teaching 6.30pm Evening Service (CH)
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
P R A Y E R
Saturday Sunday
CH: Church CE: Cen
If you would like more information about our church one of our leaders at the end of the service. You c
ry 2014 13 7.00pm Intercessors (CH) 7.15pm Worship Team (CH)
20 7.00pm Intercessors (CH) 7.15pm Worship Team (CH)
27 7.00pm Intercessors (CH) 7.15pm Worship Team (CH)
14 10.00am Oasis Coffee Shop (LH) 7.30pm Life Group Leaders (LH)
21 10.00am Oasis Coffee Shop (LH) 10.30am Morning Life Group (CH) 7.30pm Life Groups 7.30pm Young Adults Urban Coffee, Harborne
28 10.00am Oasis Coffee Shop (LH) 10.30am Morning Life Group (CH) 7.30pm Life Groups 7.30pm Young Adults Urban Coffee, Harborne
15 9.30am Cosy Toes (CE) 7.15pm DNA (LH)
22 9.30am Cosy Toes (CE) 7.00pm Core 7.15pm DNA (LH)
29 9.30am Cosy Toes (CE) 7.15pm DNA (LH)
16 10.00am Job Club (LH) 11.00am Drop-In (CE) 1.30pm CAMEO (CH) 2-4pm Prime Time (CH)
23 10.00am Job Club (LH) 11.00am Drop-In (CE) 1.30pm CAMEO (CH) 7.30pm Momentum (CH)
30 10.00am Job Club (LH) 11.00am Drop-In (CE) 1.30pm CAMEO (CH)
17 6.30am Morning Prayer (CH) 9.30am Cosy Toes (CE) 6.00pm Kidzone (CE) 8.00pm Youth Club (CE)
24 6.30am Morning Prayer (CH) 9.30am Cosy Toes (CE) 6.00pm Kidzone (CE) 8.00pm Youth Club (CE)
31 6.30am Morning Prayer (CH) 9.30am Cosy Toes (CE) 6.00pm Kidzone (CE) 8.00pm Youth Club (CE)
18
25
19 9.00am/11.15am Worship & Teaching 6.30pm Evening Service (CH)
26 9/11.15am Guest Speaker: John Glass 6.30pm Evening Service
ntre LH: Life House
h programme, please pick up a Welcome Booklet from can also visit our website: www.christianlifecentre.com
Inspire Life Group Saturday 11th January 10am-12pm in the Life House Inspire is a Life Group which is open to all who are involved in or have a heart for the Education sector. Please see Pauline Drummond for further details.
Prime Time Thursday 16th January 2-4pm An afternoon with Jess from the ARK Project An afternoon of fellowship and refreshments for those aged 60+ and a special visit from Jess Pritchard who leads CLC’s ARK Project.
Jess Pritchard
momentum Thursday 23rd January 7.30pm @ The Church Quiz with fish and chip supper in the church Approx ÂŁ5 (Paid on the night). Please give names in for catering etc (Set up volunteers needed, so please let Frank know of you can help).
Ark Christmas Thanks Jess and the ARK Team would like to thank everyone who have so kindly supported the work of the project over the Christmas season by buying calendars, crafts and cakes and helping to raise funds which will all be used to further the work of the ministry in helping vulnerable people this year. Please look out for the first newsletter that the team will be producing later this month with more news and information.
Young Adults
Urban Coffee Company, Harborne The Young Adults meet on Tuesdays from 7.30pm until late. It’s a great way to meet new young people and grow in faith and witness. Please note the new venue on Harborne High Street. See Dave Grogan for more details.
Wholehearted Ladies Thursday 16th January 7.30pm @ The Centre A meeting for the Wholehearted Ladies Life Group beginning a new study: ‘Flawed women loved by a flawless God’. See Amanda Blount for further details.
John Glass Sunday 26th January 9/11.15am John Glass is the General Superintendent of the Elim Church. He joins with us to share and minister God’s Word to us in both of our morning services.
DNA Life Group Are you new to the family of God? Do you have questions about the Bible, what it means to be a Christian or how to live a life on earth following Jesus? Did you accept Jesus many years ago, but you never grew in your faith and matured as a Christian? Then DNA is for you!
What is DNA? The aim of DNA Life Group is to encourage and strengthen new Christians in their spiritual journey and to discover what it means to know God as our Saviour, Father and Friend. To encourage each other To read the Bible together To socialise together To look at tough questions together To meet others who have made the decision to follow Jesus
When/Where do we meet? When: Wednesday evenings at 7:15pm Where: Life House Lounge, 4 Frederick Road, Selly Oak, B29 6PB If you would like to know more, please contact Lynette Pienaar on 077 434 820 81 or the church office on 0121 471 3677.
Kidzone helpers We are looking for helpers for our Friday evening Kids club. No experience necessary, just a willing heart to love and serve in this kids ministry. Please see Sue for further details.
Startup Dates For Your Diary YOUTH
LIFE GROUPS
Youth Club: January 17th
Life Group Leaders: January 14th
Core: January 22nd Youth Church: January 12th
KIDS
Life Groups: January 21st
SOCIAL OUTREACH Drop-In: January 2nd
Kidzone: January 17th
Job Club: January 16th
Cosy Toes: January 15th
Life Group Leaders Tuesday 14th January 7.30pm @ The Life House Please be aware that we will be meeting for an evening of encouragement and prayer before we launch into the next season of meetings. Please meet with Pastor Emmanuel at the Life House at 7.30pm.
The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! Romans 13:11-14 The Message
Sunday Services 9:00am
Worship Service including communion and a Children’s programme
11:15am
Celebration Service including a Youth and Children’s programme
6:30pm
Evening Service including prayer ministry
Would you like us to pray for you? For healing, your relationships, your finances, your work God cares ... and so do we ... Please use the prayer box in the foyer or email us with your prayer requests to: prayerneeds@christianlifecentre.com
Church: At the junction of Bristol Road & Langleys Road 900 Bristol Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham, B29 6HW Offices: 2-6 Frederick Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham, B29 6PB Tel: 0121 471 3677
If you are a visitor with us today, we extend a very special welcome to you. Please take a moment of your time to see one of the welcome leaders at the end of the service. We would like to give you a Welcome Booklet which contains information about our programme, and a gift to say thank you for being with us!
www.christianlifecentre.com