Merton Vineyard Church: Recent Episodes
Salomao De Almeida
As we (The Gush family) bring our time at Merton Vineyard Church to a close, I looked back over the last 12 months (and a bit more), at what God has been showing us, and how he has been speaking to us over this time. We have been overwhelmed by his grace and goodness, and look excitedly forward in anticipation to what the future brings for all of us.
Bit of a fun history talk - looking at the Magi, and how they go back to Daniels time, when he became head of all the wise men in Babylon, and how they prophecies would have been clearly laid out, waiting for the signs of a saviour!
What are your expectations for this season? In such twisted circumstances around us in 2020, it’s a wonderful opportunity to hit the reset button and look at what you really expect from a baby in a manger.
It might sound a bit harsh, but God has a will, and as his followers, we should be heading in the direction he has planned. But how many of us really want to align our will to Gods?
How transactional is your relationship with God? Psalm 139, challenges us to really ask how honest we are with God, how much we really trust and admit to him.
Ask, Seek and Knock. But how many of us really know what we are asking, seeking and knocking for?
How we view things determines how we live out our lives. 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us not to get rid of our thoughts, but to make them obedient to Christ. To take those things that we cant understand, and lay them in trust at the feet of Christ.
Following on from last week, we looked at 1 Corinthians 14, the outpouring/actioning of love in the church. How Paul was putting the needs of the many above the wants of the few.
Everyone who has ever been to a wedding, knows 1 Corinthians 13 is all about love. This morning we looked at the last verse of this chapter, which talks about everything fading away, except faith, hope and love. These three are intrinsically linked, and dependant on each other. We need a strong faith in God, our hope to be in Jesus, and then we will see his love flow through us, and in our lives.
Unless we change and come to God as children (humble, eager, open-minded) we cant even enter the Kingdom of God and what He has for us.
James 1:19 tells us to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger. If extreme opposites was a topic of conversation between the culture today and a word of scripture, I think this would be near the top. James was a respected, wise elder of the original Jerusalem church, and this letter was written after many years of watching and understanding people. If we could learn to be quick to listen, slow to talk, and slow to anger, imagine what a difference it would make!
There is a lot written about how the main battle we fight is in our thoughts and thought patterns. This Sunday we focused on 2 Corinthians 10, how Paul encouraged and warned the Corinthians about the nature of mind-games.
Often we see criticism as a bad thing - but John 15 talks about the more we bear fruit, the more we will be pruned. Its a good part of the process - pruning is not there to tell us we are bad, but to spur us on to be even better.
A quick reflection this morning, looking at Psalm 42, as well as Colossians, about sometimes telling ourselves to chill out, and trust that God is good
We talk about “our faith” and “having faith” and what if we feel that we don’t have enough faith. This morning we looked at how if we believe, we have faith. The big question, is where is our faith?
Jesus parables were about understanding the Kingdom of God. On this fathers day, we looked at the parables of the Prodigal Son, and changed the focus to the wonderful nature of the the father, and the fathers house. So often we focus on the 2 brothers and don't see that the focus is on the nature, character and compassion of the Father.
We often know about God - everyone has their own thoughts and opinions, based on their life experiences and what they’ve been taught or read. However, to really KNOW God, we need to look at Him. His word, His actions and His Story. We cant fall into the trap of creating our own God, based on our experiences, we are then just fooling ourselves. We need to look at scripture to see who God - Yahweh - really is.
Many churches pray for revival, but from what?, and for what? A week after Pentecost, when the Spirit of God was poured out freely on believers, we are looking at the church and what is involved with the process of revival. What is the ultimate outcome? That churches are filled? or that the nations are transformed.
Today we celebrate Pentecost - the outpouring of the Spirit, so that we can have courage and be equipped to do the things that bring us closer to the Kingdom of God. A challenge to us this morning - do we practice the great commission, or the great reduction?
This morning, Aimee shared with us her story of trusting in her Shepherd, and challenged us to how much faith and trust we actually have in God. By looking at examples of faith in the bible, she challenged us to see how faith is often in perseverance and patience.
Ha! Isn’t it funny that the week we look at Psalm 11, is the week that zoom decides to go berserk! A nice short psalm by David showing how, in the midst of troubles and the apparent shaking of his foundations, he still managed to keep his focus and eyes on God.
The last book of the Old Testament not only warns of complacency, but also highlights the joy and value in fellowship, particularly in difficult times. This morning we looked at the book of Micah, and how the message translates into the new covenant that we have through Christ - seeing it as a joy and a challenge.
Looking at John 14, where Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit after him, he stresses the importance of how those that love him, obey him. These aren't a few fluffy requests, but actual commandments, primarily focussed around loving and loving others. So does this make it more rules to follow? NO, in fact quite the opposite.
As well as starting our new series on growing deeper with God in this time of uncertainty, we also pause to hear Mel share about Growbaby, and the phenomenal work that they are doing in our community.
There is always that one person who is just so incredibly alive. How we react says a lot about who we are and where our security lies. Generally we either fall into the category of FEAR or of FAITH. But, its not as simple as just choosing one, it takes a bit of time to figure it all out
In a time like this, it is so valuable to have family. Looking at 1 Corinthians 12, where Paul talks about being a part of the body of Christ, we unpack how that relates to us as a church family, but also, in our individual families. In this time of being in such close proximity with each other, we need to remember our differences, strengths and weakness.
This mornings talk looks at the letter that Paul wrote to the Galatians, specifically with regards to living by the Spirit and not the Law.
Aimee shares her story with is this morning, focussing on where she has looked for fulfilment in life, and how God is central in this journey.
Having a look around at the distinction between life and scripture, I’ve realised things are really wrong. So we start an adventure, looking at how we are shaped by what we spend our time on, and how God calls us to BE before we DO.
In this mornings sermon, Sam looks at the way we pray, our attitude to ray, and dips into the Lords prayer
How often do we make resolutions? Why do we make resolutions?? Sam takes us through some of the aspects of resolutions and time, in relation to the greatest command and the commission.
John 11 is so much more than just someone being raised from the dead. This morning we looking at all the different witnesses to this event, and what it set in motion.
This brief Christmas service looks at how the birth of Christ fits into Gods REALLY big plan. We over complicate so much of the Christmas Story, and yet it is one of the Simplest things to understand.
Ever wondered how the Mga knew the scriptures? In this talk we look at how Daniel, 600 years before Christ’s birth, might have had something to do with that.
Baptisms are my favourite services of all - getting to see a pivotal moment in someones life, and particularly as a pastor, to see everyone's involvement. However, it can be seen as a bit of a funny ritual. Apart from a baptism, this morning we looked as well at some of the funny rituals that we in the Western 21st Century celebrate, without batting an eyelid.
Of all the things Jesus said we should do, he NEVER suggested the sinners prayer. We all love to know who is in and who is out, but unfortunately this starts to warp our perspective of peoples characters and their true heart motives - what if there was a different way that Jesus modelled on how to follow him, to be a real Christian?
If you struggle with Fear or Anxiety it can be so so tough. Psalm 3 is easy to remember, its right near the beginning and looks at how David processed these emotions. Such a good one to remember when life seems to kick you in the butt.
I find it so hard to ask God for things - to really "petition" - however, this comes back a lot to my view of God, and who I think He is, as opposed to what scripture says about him. This talks looks at a bit of the Lords prayer - Give us today our daily bread.
Part 2 of initiation by God. We look at the stories of David and Jonah, how God worked through both, but how their attitudes affected there relationships significantly.
If our view of God, and our opinion of him is based in anything other than the truth of scripture, we struggle constantly to reconcile with ourselves, with each other and with God. Part 1 of a process of us looking at Initiation by God, that leads us into fuller and more freeing relationships
One of the biggest questions we all ask at some point, is "Who am I?" Looking at where I stand in Gods eyes, and the roles of active and passive spirituality in our lives, helps me to put into perspective not only who I am, but my role in the bigger picture.
Last week we looked at how thinking makes up a huge part of faith. Today, at our weekend away, we looked at how faith is first and foremost a gift, and that we need to exercise it for it to grow
Before looking at how we practice faith, we need to look at understanding what our faith actually is. True faith and thinking deeply go hand in hand.
Not only did the labourer sell everything to get the treasure, he did it with Joy - Joy is an integral part of keeping our focus and hope on Christ, and the reward of the Kingdom of Heaven
Hope is so intrinsically linked to faith and love. Where is your hope, or where is your hopelessness?
Change slowly - day by day. One of the key elements in our faith is to continually change and grow towards God. One of the best parts of that, is that it is God who does the change, we simply need to be obedient.
Having spent a week in the Wilderness, Matt reflects on the things that God was speaking to him, about Easter, the cross and the Resurrection
As part of Lent, we take a look at resting, and the Sabbath - one of the key disciplines that most of us really don't appreciate. It is, however, one that is so incredibly beneficial for our development.
One of the most challenging issues we face today is that of restlessness and continually pursuing desires that seem to be empty. In part one of this series, we look at how restlessness is an epidemic and we start to try and understand the soul.
Lent - the 40 day fast to chocolate binging. For me, Lent is about preparing ourselves for the incomprehensible reality of what Christ did on the cross for us. By looking at the time Christ spend in the desert - as Philip Yancey puts it "spending time to figure out who he was" it helps us better understand who we are, and who we can be, in Christ
Sometimes all we are missing is a bit of genuine thankfulness. Thankfulness can be incredibly healing and help us to grow.
What is holiness? What does scripture say about holiness and where do we fit into the picture. The church should be the out-flowing of God into the community - affecting families, society, lives and nature. Where is your church?
"Faith doesn't need to push the river, because faith is able to trust that there is a river. The river is flowing, We are in it." Richard Rohr. The first thing we tend o do when wanting to change, is to try harder. In this talk, we suggest that trying softer might actually work!
Who's really driving your life? Being able to truly surrender our minds to Christ is a wonderful thing - the pressure is taken away and the stress and anxiety of having to achieve starts to melt too. Looking at the story of Gideon, and his ultimate trust in Gods, helps us towards understanding that Gods ways are definitely not our ways.
We take a break from our theme of Flourishing, as we celebrate Merton Vineyard being 5 years old. We briefly looked back over the past 5 years, and more excitedly, got our leaders to share on what they feel God is saying for the coming time ahead.
We continually compare our lives to others - our families, our work, our love lives even our spiritual lives. However, God created us all uniquely, and has a desire to have a unique relationship with us. So instead of focusing on what you need to do, to better yourself, look to where the Spirit of God is moving and go jump in.
We often desire to have a closer relationship with God - we see the exciting things happening with others, and yet feel so far away. This morning we looked at how often our habits that we form can actually separate us from God.
We try so hard to change bad habits, but by the grace of God we get to trust in Him. Today we looked a bit at who I am, and who I would like to be. And the amount of times we have failed to be that person, when all we need is to hand it all over to God.
At this time of year, we all start to make various promises and plans regarding practically ever part of our lives - and really, how often does it work? This year we starting to look at how we can flourish - not just exist, and how this is actually Gods intention.
How many time do we trust God, but also make sure we have a pragmatic plan “just in case”? Of course we need to be sensible, but so often have 2 or more idols in our lives - God (for feel good) and something else (money, relationships, kids??) “just in case” we need them more.
What’s your definition of patience, and how patient are you? Sam led us through a balance of patience and expectations - our expectations are more often than not, what God has promised us.
In the first week of December, we looked at what our hope is in the lead up to Christmas. Are you dreading it? Or excited about it? What are your hope and expectations in, as we lead up to Christmas?
It seems to me that scripture is quite clear that WHY we do things is far more of relevance, to WHAT we do. In looking at our own lives, we can start to see if it’s a tick box exercise, or a real purpose of being.
As we look back at 100 years since the end of WW1, we remember those who sacrificed everything in order for us to be free. This morning, we looked at why it is important to remember, and the need to remind ourselves of the great things that people have done for us in the past, and to remember what Jesus did for us all those years ago.
Continuing in the theme of getting our head around scripture, Sam took us through the theme of Kingdoms, running from Adam and Eve all the way to Christ, and challenging us to look at the what we believe would be the perfect Kingdom.
In his public life, private life, before the resurrection, after the resurrection…Jesus’ life was dominated by Scripture, or the Old Testament, as we now call it. He boldly proclaimed, I have not come to abolish the law, but fulfil it. And, yet, some of his teaching seemed to contradict the words of the law, and to teach a new way. Here Conrad Gemf explores Jesus’ deep and abiding belief in Scripture, and invites us to encounter Jesus in the very words that Jesus believed would last forever. (Audio from SimplyJesus 2018 Conference)
Where do you get your self worth from? From the outside - your environment, job, family or situation? From the inside - you defining who you want to be? or from God - what does God say about your worth and value?
This morning we looked at Hebrews 12 and the encouragement to run the good race and to give it all we got. Sam explored a few aspects of this and helped us look closer at setting goals.
In this family service, we asked what God could do, if we were brave enough to trust him and not fear. Using Joshua as an example of stepping out in faith and trusting God
The word evangelism brings fear to the heart of most people. But is that really what we are asked to do. This morning we looked at when something is important to you, you talk about it naturally. Thats what we do when we are in love.
How much are you willing to give up, for what is important to you? Do you long for something with mor meaning? Maybe taking the risk N.T. giving it all up, will mean an amazing journey with phenomenal consequences.
David sang about how important it is for people to live in unity and share life together. In this talk, we look at the importance of community life, and ways in which we work this out in reality
My favourite services are weddings and dedications, and this morning we had the joy of a dedication, followed by lots of celebration. It was a fantastic to look celebration as a spiritual discipline- one that is often overlooked and misunderstood.
So much damage and harm has been done in the church through abusive teaching. All of us can remmeber a time when we were told to do something that just didnt feel right. When something inside of us went 'ewwww...' How do we know if this is God talking to us, or man?
We strive so hard to be good chritsian, to do the right thing and to change when we aren't quite meeting the requirements. What if this was the wrong way around? Instead of trying to save our bodies and change our bodies, what sort of life would we have if we focussed on nourishing, and allowed God, to feed our souls.
Most of us believe that Gods clearing of our sins is for show - we know its not really true, as we return back to our ways, and so it must just be lip service. I am convinced, however, that God sees it totally differently, and when we see justification from his view, it makes far more sense than our own and helps us understand the difference between body and soul.
The Law and Grace are often seen as in opposition to each other - one is the old way and one is the new way - but actually when we look closer, the law compliments grace - God is the same, yesterday, today and tomorrow
Gods nature doesnt change, he remains the same since the begining of time. In this talk we explore how gracious and merciful God actually is in the Old Testament, all the way up until Christs ultimate sarifice on the cross.
In a performance driven society, we are assesed by everything we do. From work, to relationships, to family, to every aspect of life, we are assesed by our actions. This is the absolute opposite to grace.
As we continue in Romans 12, we look at our response to grace, and the way we celebrate, enjoy and practice our gifts
We continue our theme of vision and living how were were intended to, by looking at Romans 12. Paul starts Romans 12 with "therefore", reflecting on what God has done as described in Romans 1-11. This week we looked at how Paul is inviting us to respond in a natural way, to what God has done for mankind. It is an invitation to respond, not an order to 'do'
Matthew 7 looks at the foolish and wise man. This can be applied to foolish and wise Christians, and in this talk, we look at ways of actively practicing being better Christians
Core to our vision at Merton Vineyard, is Loving God as Jesus explained in Mark 12. It is about loving with your Heart, Mind, Soul and Strength. In this talk, we look at what this practically means for us, and the challenge fo asking God, "Where do I not love?"
As we continue in January looking at vision, we look at the vision that Jesus offered to his disciples and others. A vision that casued normal people like us to drop everything and change the world.
Note: The video refered to at the end of the talk can be found here: http://bit.ly/2FZNbzh
Our church vision involves lots of verbs. This week we looked at the focus of loving more - Jesus, Friends and other
The importance of the 3 Wise Men, or Magi, is often overlooked when considering the prophecies leading to the birth of Christ. This morning we looked at the build up from over 700BC to Christmas, and how the Magi knew this would happen.
As we enter into the season of expectations, we are looking if our expectations are meetings Gods reality, and to find the hope that we long for, as we look towards the Christmas Story (We do apologies for the sound quality this week)
This week we reflected on the recent leadership weekend that we had, looking at our vision, as well as how we feel God is calling us even deeper into this vision. We also excitedly announced that as of January, week 2 will be Cafe Church at Park Community School.
Acts chapter 1 looks at the gap between when Christ left and the Holy Spirit came. A time of potential hopelessness and despair, however, the process the disciples had gone through and the way Christ had developed them, they kept their hope and celebrated when Pentecost came.
After looking at how some people understand the Kingdom, this week we are looking at Matthew 14 and 15 and the elements of Gods Nature and our Experience (Nurture.) From mourning the loss of a close brother, to feeding thousands to healing even more, we start to get an idea of the person who Jeuss was, and the link to the kingdom
Going through Matthew 13 shows us how Jesus explained some parables, and looked at why parables were told. We look this week at the parables and how the Kingdom of God is not only central to Jesus teachings, but how there is a difference in Haring, Believing and KNOWING this Kingdom.
With all credit to an amazing pastor - Rich Nathan - we have been looking at things in our lives that are silent killers. Not obviously sins that we confess or feel bad about, but things that, if unchecked, can silently kill our souls and have detrimental relationships with those around us. This week Matt looked at Envy and we were challenged how even some of the simplest things can cause envy to thrive in our lives.
Sam takes us through Jonahs journey, up until he was thrown overboard, looking at how God spoke to him and how he reacted.
As we continue looking at silent killers to our soul, we look this week at the issue of Guilt – sometime we hold onto guilt that’s not ours, and sometime we shun guilt that is ours! But ultimately if we understand how to deal with guilt, how to look to the cross
We can look for others for worth, or be Disney-like and look inside for our worth, but both of these cause problems. As Christians, we look to God, we look at what Christ has done, and we see so much worth just in that.
Last week we looked at the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation, we often get the two intermingled. This week we are looking how God has continually pursued to be reconciled with mankind, and serves as an example of how we can be reconciled with each other, and help others be reconciled with God
The word confession brings horrible feelings of guilt, shame and being caught out, but its one of the greatest gifts we have received and as Christians, confession should be as natural as breathing
Our relationship with Christ is about us being with him, which results in our doing stuff. However, we are brought up to believe that we are a result of what we do, as opposed to a result of what he did for us.
Sam takes us through looking at compassion in scripture and how vital it is for us as a church family
The Holy Spirit is most commonly described as Fire and Wind and we've lowered the bar when it comes to expectation of the Holy Spirits work in our lives, our families and our church. We suffer because of this, and God, who is so incredibly good, just wants to bless and grow us.
Matthew chpt 5 and 6 focus on the beatitudes, do-atitudes and the heart attitudes. The heart attitudes look at the clear marks of a mature Christian.
We were designed to grow in a team. A crucial part of growth, us the fellowship that we are involved with.
Following from the annual National Leaders Conference, we look at the example of how God cared for Elijah – having designed us perfectly, he knows our physical, emotional and spiritual input needs and cares deeply about them.
As we celebrate moving to our new Sunday venue and our ongoing relationship with Park Community School, we look back over the past 3 years at the amazing story of how God has bought us to this place.
For our family Christmas service, we looked at a simply cracker – with a joke, a crown and a gift.
As we get ready for the Christmas season, with presents planning, trips organising and family juggling, we take a step back to look at what it is that we are looking forward to at this time of year.
One of the key elements of our vision is Loving Jesus more. This week we looked at what this practically means to us, in our daily lives
Looking back at our vision as our church – what God has called us to and where He is leading us.
Visiting form Boscombe, Bournemouth, Millie Hawley shares the amazing story how her and a bunch of other crazy Christians have given their all, moving into a deprived area, to live Christ to those around them.
Partnering with God – Using Jordan Sengs Book “Miracle Work” as a base, we are looking at how Gods chosen way is to partner with us.
Set yourself on fire! Paul teaches us in Romans to be set ablaze, not just alight, but to be ablaze
Sin. We don’t use the word, and I don’t think we understand it. But by ignoring it, we ignore what Christ has done for us.
The short letters by John show an immense intimacy with a loving God. John often uses the metaphor of light, and in this talk we look at this topic a bit deeper.
When utterly hopeless, it’s easy to be distracted and focus on the unhealthy. But the hope we have, the truth we have, is somewhat different.
Sam leads us through a whirlwind gospel tour, helping us fall in love with the Gospel again, what God has done for us.
Prophecy can be described as speaking forth Gods Word – and sometime in the future. Its not mystical fortunetelling, its seeing the Kingdom of God and showing it to others.
As we continue on our series about our relationship and understanding with and of God, we look at Pentecost – what happened and why is it relevant?
As we start our new series on knowing God and being known by him, we look at the way we pray being dependent on our view of God, ourselves and creation.
Who or What we give Authority to in our lives, makes a huge difference in who we become. This talk looks at the wisdom in who we allow to influence us the most.
Money is far more an emotional and spiritual issue than anything else. What is the wise thing to do with money.
As we approach Easter, we often look at Doubting Thomas as an example of what not to be. However, we need to face our doubts and challenge them as opposed to just pretending they aren’t there, otherwise they end up coming out in the worst ways.
Following on on the “Best Question” theme, we look at Andy Stanleys book and consider the wisest choice on the issue of time, and how we use it.
In this talk, Alozie shares with us his experience of what being a part of the family of God is, as well as how no matter who you are, you are needed and a part of the family.
Our daily small decisions have far more of an impact than the BIG ones, but what is the best question we should be asking?
Proverbs 16 tells us to commit all we are, then plan out what we do. As a Planner, I struggle with this. I like to know whats going on, before we take any actions, but God seems to work differently…
There is a big different between Fear and Anxiety. Both can grip you, but don’t have too.
Jesus tells 4 quick consecutive parables, all which lead from one to the next, ultimately with the foolish and wise builders.
The story of David and Goliath is often seen as the story of an underdog, but actually David was far more suitable for the job than most.
Looking at the Liberal and Conservative views of Gods Judgement, and seeing ho Christ has changed the way we are judged.
Ezra and Nehemiah both always turned to God first. Where do you turn first on a daily basis?
We often get confused between the grace that God gives us and the gifts we can cultivate.
Our Church should not be a place where we fear judgement, its a place where we need help!
When we ask for guidance, does God show a way, or does he teach how to be the type of person who can choose the right way?
Rom 12:1 – Offer yourself as a living sacrifice. We might offer ourselves, but we often try wriggle out of the heat.