Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Elbow - One Day Like This

I came across this excellent live Version of Elbow's 'One Day Like this' the other day - great track.

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posted by Gavin White @ 10:30 PM 0 comments

Church of England Pension Deficit

"How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver!" - Proverbs 16:16 (NIV)

I read this article today concerning the Church of England and the deficit they face in their Pension Scheme. I don't want to be critical of the Anglican Church in this post but this story does raise the vital importance of handling money in churches with the utmost integrity, faith and wisdom.

The Church has an opportunity to demonstrate wisdom, generosity and a true heart for the poor in the way it handles the finances that God has entrusted them. Every penny really does count and it is so important that there are Holy Spirit anointed administrators (1 Cor 12:28) in the right areas of leadership in the Church to ensure that the finances are handled really well for the purposes of God to be advanced through His Church.

The Apostle Paul was so keen for a financial offering taken by the Macedonian Church , described in 2 Corinthians 8, to be handled in a way that :
  1. Honoured the Lord
  2. Avoided criticism
  3. and would be seen to be right in the eyes of God and the eyes of the World around them.
2,000 years on, the wisdom found in the Bible is still so relevant, radical and real for every situation - including how finance should be handled in our own lives and in the church.

"What is more, he was chosen by the churches to accompany us as we carry the offering, which we administer in order to honor the Lord himself and to show our eagerness to help. 20We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this liberal gift. 21For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men" - 2 Corinthians 8:19-21 (NIV)


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posted by Gavin White @ 9:36 PM 0 comments

Monday, October 26, 2009

Your Name High - Ben Cantelon

I first heard this at Soul Survivor in Stafford in 2009 - Brilliant!

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posted by Gavin White @ 1:29 PM 0 comments

Monday, October 19, 2009

Watch out for that Beach Ball!

Liverpool lost 1-0 to Sunderland on Saturday in the Football Premier League. Something very unusual happened with the goal that Sunderland scored that won them the game. The Liverpool fans were massed behind the goal that Pepe Reina, the Liverpool goalkeeper was defending. One of these fans threw a beach ball onto the pitch at the start of the game. The goalkeeper initially moved the ball to the back of his goal so it was not interfering with play. However, the ball was blown by the wind back into the field of play and right into the centre of the penalty area in front of goal. Pepe Reina didn't move the ball this time and when Sunderland next attacked Darren Bent scored a goal that was deflected in off the errant beach ball - that 'freak' goal won them the game.

There has been much conjecture about whether the goal should have been allowed, but what I think is fascinating from this is that such a small, even innocuous, thing made such a big difference. Papa Reina didn't get rid of this beach ball completely and it came back and caused him much grief. The Holy Spirit prompted me today in relation to this and reminded me that little things matter - they do a make a difference.

"Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom" - Song of Songs 2:15 (NIV)

In the above verse in the Bible, it's the little foxes that ruin the vineyard. A little fox isn't very big compared to a large vineyard, but they are still destructive nonetheless. We can sometimes allow things into our lives that seem to be harmless and can seem to be even fun at first, but left unchecked and ignored, they can cause great damage and distraction.

If Pepa Reina had popped the beach ball, that goal probably wouldn't have been scored. Instead, he just moved it to one side and it came back. We can sometimes do this with issues in our lives, we move them to one side and promise to deal with them later but what is often required is a more ruthless and radical approach.

I'm determind to not let any 'beach ball' distraction get in the way of the goal and purpose of God's Kingdom being more fully established and seen in my life in all that I do and all that I say.

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posted by Gavin White @ 10:43 PM 1 comments

Monday, September 28, 2009

Transforming Manchester


The Conservative Party comes to town next week. Together with the Conservative Christian Fellowship and a number of church leaders in the City I've been helping to organise an event during the conference to profile to the party what the church is doing in the City to bring transformatiom and restoration. The key text & reading for the event is Isaiah 58:9-12. The idea is that we do a similar event next year aswell when the Labour Party Conference comes to Manchester. I live in a City of great political influence!

The Mail on Sunday ran an article over the weekend about the event, you can read it by clicking here. It's an interesting piece of journalism to say the least. I was a bit negative about it at first, but then I came round a bit as at least it has put the event on the media radar and ensures that what the church is so wonderfully doing in the City is not ignored as so often is the case.

It will be interesting to see how the media respond to the event next week - I'm personally really looking forward to it!

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posted by Gavin White @ 10:47 PM 0 comments

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Saved by Grace, Created for Work

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do"

Ephesians 2:8-10 (NIV)

I'm reading 'Release the Power of Jesus' by Bill Johnson at the moment. I read the following quote today which touches on something that God has been speaking to us as a church here in Manchester in recent weeks:

"Works cannot save us, but without the fruit of good works in our lives, we lack the evidence that identifies us as new creations in Christ. Just as God's nature is revealed in what He does, the evidence that we are being transformed into His likeness is that we reveal His nature in what we do"
Page 31, Release the Power of Jesus, Bill Johnson, Destiny Image, 2009

Time to get to work!

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posted by Gavin White @ 8:19 PM 1 comments

Sunday, August 23, 2009

England regain the Ashes!

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posted by Gavin White @ 10:31 PM 0 comments

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Usain Bolt - 9.58


.I've just watched Usain Bolt win the 100m in the World Championships in Berlin - what a race and what a runner! Usain broke the world record (again) for this race and recorded an astonishing time of 9.58 seconds. The other interesting fact was that the first five runners to finish the race also broke the 10.00 second barrier and finished the race with times under the 10.00 second barrier. This was the first time this has ever happened in a major championship final.

Tonight reminded me of another historic moment in Athletics. Roger Bannister broke the record for running a mile in under 4 minutes in 1954. In the months and years leading up to this, numerous runners had tried to achieve this goal and had gotten close but never quite broken through the elusive 4 minute barrier.

What I find fascintating about the events tonight and in 1954 is that once someone had broken through a barrier or limit, it opened the way for others to make breakthroughs and reach new heights. In 1954, as soon as Roger Bannister had run under 4 minutes, his rival John Landy went and ran 3 minutes 58 seconds just a few weeks later. Bannister broke through and his example paved for the way for others to follow. The current fastest mile record is held by Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj, who ran a time of 3 minutes 43.13 seconds in Rome, Italy, on 7 July 1999.

Both Usain Bolt and Roger Bannister can be described as pioneers. They have broken through barriers & limits which people in their time said couldn't be broken. They refused to accept this and reached for new heights and new goals anyway.

Whatever you are reaching for, whether that be in your own life, ministry or church, be aware that your breakthrough could open the door for others to follow. There are somtimes glass ceilings in all our lives that are just waiting to be smashed so that you and others can reach higher, further and longer.

As a Christian who is a passionate follower of Jesus Christ, I want to pioneer in my generation, city and nation. I want to breakthrough into new areas of life and ministry so that others in my time, and others in the generations to follow can also reach new heights and achieve their God given goals and destiny.

What's next now for Usain Bolt? - running the 100m in under 9.00 secs?

As per my recent blog post, there are no limits to the extension of the Kingdom!

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posted by Gavin White @ 10:11 PM 0 comments

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