Journey with me – God without Religion
Your sins are small.  Your God is BIG!
​
Heb. 8:6-13 (The Message)
But Jesus' priestly work far surpasses what these other priests do, since he's working from a far better plan. If the first plan—the old covenant—had worked out, a second wouldn't have been needed. But we know the first was found wanting, because God said,
Heads up! The days are coming
when I'll set up a new plan
for dealing with Israel and Judah.
I'll throw out the old plan
I set up with their ancestors
when I led them by the hand out of Egypt.
They didn't keep their part of the bargain,
so I looked away and let it go.
This new plan I'm making with Israel
isn't going to be written on paper,
isn't going to be chiseled in stone;
This time I'm writing out the plan in them,
carving it on the lining of their hearts.
I'll be their God,
they'll be my people.
They won't go to school to learn about me,
or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons.
They'll all get to know me firsthand,
the little and the big, the small and the great.
They'll get to know me by being kindly forgiven,
with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.
By coming up with a new plan, a new covenant between God and his people, God put the old plan on the shelf. And there it stays, gathering dust.

God had a new plan for us.  It’s not about us, it’s all about God and His faithfulness.  I think it’s time to show people in the direction of Jesus and what He did for us.  He overcomes death and that is our hope.  It’s about hope and our hope is in Jesus.  We can know God firsthand.  I cannot fail God.  Think about it.  Religion says I can lose my salvation but that is not from God.  He is faithful and He loves me. 

2 Timothy (NLT) 2:13 If we are unfaithful,
he remains faithful,
for he cannot deny who he is.

God first loved me, and he is still in love with me.  It’s about God’s dream for me.  Yes, God is dreaming about me.  He has a dream for me.  Doesn’t matter what I have done.  The price form my sins has been paid.  I don’t have to do anything.

Why do we focus on the wrong of others?  Why do we focus on right and wrong and not on love and grace?  We tend to focus part on the old way and part on the new way.  With Jesus, we have a new covenant the old is in the past.  It doesn’t work anymore.  I need to keep my focus on Jesus and God’s love and grace.  This doesn’t make grace cheap, not at all. 

Galatians 3:10 (NLT) But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.

We don’t have any hope without Jesus.  In Jesus, sin has no grip on me.  I am free.  Freedom in Christ.  Because of this freedom, I don’t want to sin.  Rules open the door for sin.  Freedom takes this desire away.
Love and Grace
​Charl

Taken from a book by Neil Cole:
We all need a friend who helps us remember why this journey into battle is worth the cost.

Sam says: It's like the great stories, Mr. Frodo, the ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end, because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you, that meant something. Even if you were too small to understand stand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folks in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going because they were holding on to something.

"What are we holding on to, Sam?" Frodo sighs, still overcome by the near defeat of the previous moment. ​

In determination to help his brother for whom he would gladly die, Sam lifts Frodo to his feet, looks him sternly in the eye, and says, "That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for."

We all need a friend like Sam when we face the overwhelming odds of this battle we are in. We also need to be a friend like Sam. The struggle against the evil that dominates the world is bad enough; to go through this fight alone is too much. We must have a small band of brothers and sisters who would give their lives for us, for the cause, for Jesus.

Today I want to thank the Sams in my life, thank you for the journey thank you for being there for my, let’s keep on, keeping on, on this journey.

I thank Jesus for the Sams in my life

peace
​Charl

Most people want to belong they are searching to belong. The problem today is that most institutional churches want people to believe before they can belong. Believe our mission statement, sign on the dotted line and you can be part of our church.

People want to be part of a community and sometimes they are part without beliving. We need to love all people and we need to offer them space where they can belong


peace
​Charl

The last time that I was on my site was in 2015, now it's time to start Blogging again.  I will share my own story but also the stories of other people.

I do believe every person is a story wrapped in skin.  We all have our own stories to tell and live by.  If you want to share your story with me please feel free to send it to me on e-mail at charl@coffeecommunity.co.za  
I will soon share some stories

​Peace,
Charl

Beloved,

"God gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves to God…
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you."
James 4:6-8

James writes about the faithfulness, reliability and justice of God, and about Christian consistency in response. His letter is full of promise and challenge. 

As he moves towards a conclusion, James brings Proverbs 3:34 into play to frame a solid declaration: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." With that reality in place, he call us to submit ourselves to him, resist the devil, and act on a wonderful promise: "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you."

It’s a promise treasured by Christians down the centuries, and loved especially by Christians under pressure - as so many of our friends in the Middle East are at the moment.

With Ramadan approaching, James' words also reach out to the house of Islam. Islam means submission to God. Ramadan, the fasting month, is the month where our friends and neighbours try to push back the work of the devil, making extra efforts to draw near to God. In the Middle East, tables of mercy appear in the streets to feed people far from home at break of fast and while the nights are full of feasting, extra time is spent in earnest prayer on top of the regular routines. 

As the moon is sighted on or around June 18th, let us pray with them. Let us ask God to draw near to them, to reveal himself to them, to surprise them by opening their eyes to the person and character and work of Jesus, who fully reveals the whole story and purpose of God in human form. 

As David Garrison’s remarkable research is shared throughout the UK this month, pray with the assurance that the wind of the Spirit is moving throughout the world. As we approach Ramadan in prayer, let us play our part in a movement that's going on all over the Muslim world.

30 Days of Prayer resources give you background and prompts for prayer. You can order the prayer notes at pray30days.org.

Events with David Garrison, author of "A Wind in the House of Islam" are co-ordinated by his publisher WIGTake. Click here for details.

David’s book is available to order from Christian bookshops, or buy online from here. 

This letter was taken from the June prayer letter of MECO

Peace,
Charl

Syrian believers need our prayers!!  We need to pray with them.  We need to take action and help our brothers and sisters in Christ.  The source of this post is Open Doors and come from Cry Out Now.
As you read this please pray.  You can do more than pray.  You can give your time and money.  You can join a team and visit.  You can go and be Jesus to people.

Pray for Samir and others like him.


Peace,
   
Samir, his wife and two little children are still living in Aleppo. But for how long will this Christian family be willing to continue there? "We are afraid," Samir admits. "Islamic State (IS) is coming closer and closer. We hear daily explosions, shootings. The explosions become bigger and louder." Samir works in a children's ministry in one of the churches in Aleppo, a job which he says he can "still do" despite the circumstances, simply because they are used to it. But his mind still wanders to the life the family could have away from the constant bombing and threats.  "To be honest, we think about leaving Syria more than we did before," he says. "The situation is difficult."

     "I think more than half of our church has left. Most of them dream of going to Europe.  Almost every day I say goodbye to someone from the church. The work we did before with eight volunteers, we now do with four. We lack leaders, they're gone. It's very hard to continue doing the work." Still, even though the situation in the biggest city in Syria is challenging, Samir is planning a children and youth camp in Aleppo. It will be in a safe location away from the church building, which is too close to the fighting. As he says, "they need to have fun to forget all the terrible things that happen around them."

     "We expect some 70 participants, most of them children," Samir adds. "Children need to have a good time together; they need to play." There is no denying the situation in Syria remains immensely difficult. Having spoken with a wide range of church leaders of local churches and contacts, Open Doors now estimates around 25 per cent of Syria's 1.8 million Christians have left the country since the civil war began in 2011. By the end of August this year, the number of refugees from Syria in surrounding countries was over three million - but with no organisations (including the United Nations) registering religious status, it is impossible to tell exactly how many Christians are amongst them.

     We continue to support our brothers and sisters in Syria. Open Doors currently assists local churches by providing 9000 families with food, medicine, rent subsidies and other supplies - 2000 of those families are in Aleppo alone. We are also offering leadership and trauma awareness training, providing empowerment training to church leaders to help them become involved in the huge relief operation to internally displaced Syrians and also supplying Christian literature. And we are constantly reminded that God is at work. Although believers like Samir are dismayed at how many are leaving the church, there are also millions of internally displaced Syrians on the move within the country.

CryOut to the Father

• for the brave Syrian believers who have decided to stay in the country. Pray that they will be strengthened by the Lord to do their work.
• that many people may see the love of the Lord through the work of the brothers and sisters who serve in churches and assist internally displaced Syrians. Praise God for those coming to know Him through His believers at this turbulent time.
• for wisdom for those deciding whether to stay in Syria and Iraq or leave for another country. Pray they will lean on God for answers and stay firm in their faith.

Source: Open Doors

Let's make time to pray for our brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.  Let us not forget them.  Not this weekend and not next week.

peace
Charl