Trinity Presbyterian Church Newsletter
Dear friends
Those who follow the Robert Murray McCheyne Calendar would be reading (as I write) the book of Judges in their devotions. The recurring theme of Judges, repeated no less than five times, is ‘In those days Israel had no king, everyone did as he saw fit.’ That may well be an apt description of our times – a crisis of leadership amidst social confusion. Whether it’s cabinet ministers buying exhorbitant motor cars, an independent judiciary under threat, violent protests against poor service delivery or national sports administrators fighting ‘turf wars’, the whole spectrum of society is impacted. As Christian believers we ‘long for a better country – a heavenly one’ (Hebrews 11:16). Whilst we endeavour to be good citizens acting as ‘salt and light’ in a fallen world, we know that no amount of modifying a flawed system will usher in Utopia. A healthy society is like a three-legged stool: you need a good economic order, you need a stable political order, but you also need a good moral and spiritual order. Today all three are under threat. Little wonder the stool feels rickety. Recently I came across a six point manifesto which gives one pause for thought. Here it is: i. Realize the great heritage that Christianity has afforded Western civilization. ii. Admit that an unfounded bias has arisen against analysis from a Christian perspective. iii. Acknowledge that the Bible does not teach us to abandon the world but rather impact it with a Christian vision.
ALAN’S LETTER:
iv. Realize that education is now a battlefield v. Reject the notion of neutrality – it leads to a denial of truth. vi. Develop a Christian world-view because Jesus Christ is the solution to the world’s problems. Some may see this as alarmist. But it is realistic. Some may see is as triumphalistic. However, it is Christ who is unique, not the West nor his followers. Almost fifty years ago Harold McMillan delivered his ‘winds of change’ speech in Cape Town. If he were alive today he would echo the words of the prophet Hosea in Chapter Eight verse seven: ‘They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind’. But Hosea also says something else about sowing in Chapter Ten verse Twelve ‘Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unploughed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes’. As Christians we are neither naive optimists nor despondent pessimists. We are realists who exercise faith. “We are confident that our God does reign and that Jesus Christ is victorious over sin, death and all the forces of the evil one”. We have received the gift of hope, grounded in the promises of God in Scripture, and affirmed by the witness of the Spirit in our hearts.
Until next time, Your minister and friend, Alan.
TriniTy
A Congregation of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa 459 Lovers Walk • Lynnwood • Pretoria Tel: (012) 348 9469 • Fax: (012) 348 6622 e-mail:admin@trinity.org.za
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Trinity Presbyterian Church Newsletter
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One 4 All + All 4 Christ
WORSHIP
23 Aug – The Place of Music and Singing 30 Aug – The Purpose of Christian Worship Services 6 Sept – Understanding the Lord’s Suppe Each topic is a stand-alone sermon, so don’t be discouraged if you are not able to be there on every Sunday during the series. Special times of prayer have been arranged during this time. Hopefully one of these times will suit you. Everyone is welcome to attend. Friday mornings at 06h30 in the Chapel, starting on Friday 31st July Sunday mornings, at 09h00 in Alan’s office, starting Sunday 2nd August This time of corporate prayer, in addition to your individual prayers, will be an invaluable part of our focus on worship - an essential and wonderful aspect of our Christian faith. “LIVING PRAISE” LADIES’ WEEKEND Our dear friends at Willows Methodist Church have regularly joined us at our Trinity Ladies’ Retreats. Now they have organised one and have graciously extended an invitation to all of us to attend. It will be at the Good Shepherd Retreat Centre near Hartebeespoort Dam from 21 – 23 August. The speaker will be our own Lynne Visser – you know that blessings will flow! Please contact Jean Ramage for more information: Tel: (w) 012-802 0634 (F) 012-802 0635 ramagej@firstinternational.co.za Whether you will be attending or not, please remember Lynne in her preparation and this retreat weekend – God always honours the prayers of His daughters.
Imagine this. A car speeds through a suburb and bears down on a toddler on a tricycle in the middle of the road. There’s no way the car can avoid the child, and the toddler can’t get out of the way. A pedestrian assesses the scene, leaps into the path of the car, pushes the child aside and bears the full brunt of the accident. At the hospital the sad announcement is “dead on arrival”. Asked for comment the child’s mother says “He must have been out of his mind”. You and I know that the last part of that scenario is totally wrong. We know how grateful that mother was that the life of her child had been saved. And you and I who were in the same bad place, with Satan’s steamroller of sin bearing down upon us to flatten us and squeeze the breath out of us, have been grabbed out of harm’s way by Jesus, who died in our place. What else can we feel than the most profound and abiding gratitude to Jesus? And this is why we worship Him. We worship Him because He saved us from spiritual death, brought us into a right relationship with God, and guarantees that in Him we shall live forever. And when we come to worship, this is what draws us – a sense of profound and neverending gratitude for the most special gift of all: eternal life in Jesus Christ. Shakespeare wrote that it is sharper than a serpent’s tooth to have an ungrateful child, and how it must pain the Father when we fail to give thanks from the bottom of our hearts for what He has done for us in Jesus. Like the wise men in Bethlehem let us always kneel and adore Him – the Lord is His Name. Dr Huw Davies.
Worship Series
Session is very excited about our series of sermons on Worship which begins on 2nd August and continues until 6th September. Here are the topics: 2 Aug – The Foundations of Christian Worship 9 Aug – The Nature of Christian Worship 16 Aug – The End of Religion
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Trinity Presbyterian Church Newsletter
YOUTH ACTIVITES have started up again after the School and University holidays.
Sunday School for all age groups during Sunday morning service at 09h45 Informal Service on Sunday Evening at 18h30 Friday afternoons: 16h30 JUMP for Grades 4 - 7 18h00 Youth for Grades 8 - 11 Tuesdays 18h00 Matrics and Students TRINITY CAFÉ AND CHRISTMAS MARKET The Trinity courtyard continues to hum when Café Trinity is open on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10h00 – 14h00. It is a place of fellowship and good food so if you haven’t tried it yet, don’t delay. Even in this cold weather, visitors have found a warm sunny patch, and the Café has rugs for you if there is a sneaky breeze. And here is a special invitation for the 18th and 19th November. Everyone is invited to bring their arts and crafts or other items to a Christmas Market that will run while the Café is open. This is a very early notice, but we know that some items need a lot of time to plan and make. There will be no cost to set up a table, and each person will be responsible for organizing their own table, security, financial requirements, etc. Tables will be allocated on a first come first served basis, so give Ilse a call on 012 348 9469 or Sally on 012 348 9326 if you would like to reserve one. Be sure to diarise our TRINITY CAMP: 11th until 13th September. Details will follow very shortly. TECHNICAL UPDATE We have a new addition to the sound system in the church. Amazing, hi-tech headsets are now available for you. They are wireless and have a range of approximately1 00 meters. So they will be helpful for a variety of reasons: whether as an aid to hearing better as you sit in church or as you take your child outside to play, you will still be able to hear what is being said in the church. The sound is also relayed very clearly to the Mothers’ Room and the Chapel!
“Trinity recently enjoyed a visit from Dr Ron Peters, Professor at Pittsburg Seminary, USA. The song ”this little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine” will serve as a reminder of his powerful message to us.”