L I F E TIM

ES

ISSUE 6: JULY - AUGUST 2014

NEW LIFE CHURCH CANTERBURY

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

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Message from Pastor Aaron

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers; Simon

called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He

said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and

followed Him.

// Matthew 4:19-20 NKJV // .

Over two thousand years ago, Jesus spoke these words to two men and in responding, their lives were changed forever. These words should resound in the hearts of every Christian today just as it did in the hearts of many in times past. For these two, it was an abandonment of their profession to follow Christ as it is for some today, but for all of us, it must be a prioritising of the things of God’s Kingdom over the things of the world. In the last few days it has felt for me like God has placed a sign in His Kingdom that simply says, ‘Volunteers needed’. I have contemplated this and I have realised that many of us enter God’s Kingdom as guests but God calls us as volunteers; people who have been given new life and have of their own accord signed up to the cause of the Kingdom of God. It is easy to see our walk with Christ

as one that brings benefit to us alone, after all what can we ever offer God? Well, we can offer our service and we can be of benefit to those who walk in darkness as we shine the light of God’s Kingdom. We are saved to be a conduit of salvation to others and we are blessed to be a blessing to others. The life of a Christian is one that should be of benefit to others and to the Kingdom of God, there is no other way to be a Christian. A disciple not only aspires to be like the master but also to be of use to the master. When Churches fail to make disciples, they become self-help centres offering ear tingling messages to those with selfish

ambitions.

He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

These words are spoken to all of us and we must drop our nets, not necessarily as Peter and Andrew did in leaving their profession, although some may have to, it is the abandonment of our ambition so as to volunteer in the Divine mission of our Saviour; the spreading of the good news and the saving of souls. Whether you are in full time ministry or regular employment, you are required to be a volunteer in the Lord’s Kingdom. You have seen the sign; ‘Volunteers needed’

how will you respond?

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NEW LIFE @ THE HUB The building works have been completed and all outstanding bills paid; all praise and glory be to God alone. It has been a great achievement for us as a Church and a good indication of what we can achieve when we work together. Many people have made huge sacrifices to make this dream a reality but now the real

work begins.

The HuB is intended to be a place of blessing for those in the church as well as to our community and we have to ensure it serves its intended purpose. There is always a danger of settling into what is now a cosy space and enjoying the benefits it brings while forgetting our mandate to reach and bless

our community.

As well as using the space for much needed ministry within the church, we hope to introduce bespoke programs that will help the church spread the gospel to our community. As you well know, the Harvest is plenty but the labourers are few. I therefore ask that you pray for the Lord of the Harvest to send in more labourers. I also ask that you all step forward and offer your service in the Lord’s harvest field. Here are some of the programs that will be running from the HuB. I hope you will take full advantage of them and where

possible volunteer to help run them.

Café Church @ The HuB – Every 2nd Sunday of the month from

August 2014

Cre8ive @ The HuB ( Youth Night)

Every 4th Friday of the month

Daughters of Destiny (Women’s ministry programs) – Dates to be

confirmed

Ignite (18-25 evening service) – Every 2nd Thursday of the month

(term time only)

Inspire Dance Academy (Dance classes for under 18s) – T.B.C

(volunteers needed)

Men of Integrity (Men’s ministry) –

Dates T.B.C

New Life Choir – Every Monday

Prayer and Praise Service @ The HuB– Every 3rd Sunday of the

month

Relate @ The HuB – Every 4th

Sunday of the month

Shake to wake @ The HuB (family sing/dance along with brunch) –

Every 2nd Saturday of the month

Pastor Aaron

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are a GREAT place for developing meaningful

relationships as you CONNECT with GOD, with

OTHERS and with the VISION for the Church. We

encourage everyone to take part, grow and reach out

as a blessing so CONNECT today! Summer Groups launch mid July and will

meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays at different locations across the city.

DIVINE: Justice & Joanna Addison - joannagara@gmail.com

INSPIRED VESSELS: 1 & 2 Lanre & Margaret - omk6@kent.ac.uk with

Francis & Christine - fad3@kent.ac.uk

JEWELS OF THE LORD: Nii Noi & Kafui Osuteye - n.osuteye@yahoo.com

LIGHTHOUSE FAMILY: Nic & Judith Stephenson -

nicholas.judith7211@gmail.com

There are several ways to serve and participate in

the life of the Church on a regular basis. Contact

any of the ministry leaders below to see how you

can get serving.

Admin & Communications: Caroline Agoi - office@newlifecanterbury.org

Men’s Ministry: Ps Shadreck Chikomba - vee.chikomba@talktalk.net

Missions & Outreach: Nicholas Stephenson - nicholasstephenson1@gmail.com

Multimedia: Pastor Will White - w.white@gmx.net

New Life Choir: Josh Sebu - js725@kent.ac.uk

New Life Drama: Lanre Kassim - omk6@kent.ac.uk

Prayer Ministry: Hilary Wyatt - hilaryjane.wyatt@gmail.com

Sunday School: Judith Stephenson - nicholas.judith7211@gmail.com

Welcome/Hospitality: T.B.C

Women’s Ministry: Violet Chikomba - vee.chikomba@talktalk.net

Worship team: Justice Addison // jay@tisqo.com

Youth: Caroline Agoi // zion_4eva@yahoo.co.uk

SERVE IN MINISTRY

CONNECT GROUPS

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Youth & Sunday School meet every Sunday morning and all our workers

are DBS checked.

Every third Sunday of the month .

Join us for an extended time of prayer,

thanksgiving, praise and intercession.

6pm, every last Sunday of the month.

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Saturday 5th July: Family Brunch. 10:30-12:00pm @ The Hub.

Hosted by Praisers, Men and Women's ministry) Shake to wake up

with Song and Dance for all hosted by Praisers, followed by a

brunch.

Sunday 27th July: New Life Crèche launch

Saturday 2nd August: Church Day Out.

11:30 – 17:00pm, Lathe Barn - indoor and outdoor play area, picnic

area, tea room/cafe, mini golf, go karts and children's farm. Entrance

fee £3 and under 2s go free. Please see Judith Stephenson for further

Information. Lifts can be arranged.

EVENTS CALENDAR

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Saturday 5th July: Family Brunch. 10:30-12:00pm @ The Hub.

Hosted by Praisers, Men and Women's ministry) Shake to wake up

with Song and Dance for all hosted by Praisers, followed by a

brunch.

Sunday 27th July: New Life Crèche launch

Saturday 2nd August: Church Day Out.

11:30 – 17:00pm, Lathe Barn - indoor and outdoor play area, picnic

area, tea room/cafe, mini golf, go karts and children's farm. Entrance

fee £3 and under 2s go free. Please see Judith Stephenson for further

Information. Lifts can be arranged.

EVENTS CALENDAR

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FIGHTING FEAR WITH FAITH

By Emmanuel Amponsah

So we can confidently say, “The

Lord is my helper; I will not fear;

what can man do to me?” Remember

your leaders, those who spoke to you

the word of God. Consider the

outcome of their way of life, and

imitate their faith.

// Hebrews 13:6, 7 ESV //

I was listening to a John

Piper sermon earlier on

about being “in sync with

the gospel” and he

mentioned something that stood

out to me and that was “fear is

one of the things that makes us

out of sync with the gospel.”

The fear of being persecuted has

made some people cowards,

ashamed of Christ and the gospel.

This danger here is that Christ

will be ashamed of those cowards

when He returns according to

Mark 8:38

Fear of losing friends or being

persecuted by the world has made

others hypocrites because they

live differently from the truth

they know which is also

dangerous because it leads to hell.

Now we can see how fear can

make one live a life that is

different from the gospel.

Fear has limited or crippled the

potential of many people to do

greater things or exploits in life.

Fear is what creates insecurities

in relationships and marriages.

Though we all have fears, the

most important thing is to know

how to fight these fears out of our

lives and not let them have an

impact on our lives.

How do we fight fear?

We can only fight our fears with

faith in Christ. This is because in

Christ we have received the Spirit

of power, love and self control

from God ( 2 Tim 1:7.) This is a

great scripture to meditate &

pray on when fear sets in.

“ …Fear is one of the things that

makes us out of sync with the gospel.”

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God tells us in Hebrews not be

scared or afraid of the works of

men against us but reminds us of

the great leaders in the bible and

about the outcome of their way of

life and imitate faith. in God.

Why consider the outcome of

their way of life and imitate their

Faith? Because their lives were

worthy of the gospel, they were

able to stand firm in persecution

and did greater things because

their lives were full of faith and

not fear! Faith in Christ Jesus

gives the courage AND power to

say no to the world and to sin.

Faith gives us the courage to

stand firm even when persecuted

by the world. Faith gives us the

courage to utilise the potential in

us to do great things & exploits in

this life for the glory of God.

Brothers and sisters, let’s fight

fear with faith. God bless you!

Emmanuel.

“We can only fight our

fears with Faith in Christ.

BAPTISM SERVICE

HIGHLIGHTS

On the 4th of June we had the

privilege of Baptising five of our

church family members.

Anna, Demi, Joern, Yvonne and

Whitney chose to publicly

confirm their love and

commitment to God before

friends and family at a touching

service. The message and

testimonies shared were a moving

reminder of God’s commitment to

love and transform the lives of

those who submit to His

sovereign leadership.

To our brother and sisters, many

blessings for the journey ahead

and from all of us to you,

CONGRATULATIONS!

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From May 30th - 1st June, Daughters of Destiny, the ladies of New Life Church, travelled to Ashburnham place in East Sussex for the annual women’s retreat.

This was a weekend filled with exciting events, connecting with God and time to reflect on the goodness of God. It was also a time to let go of the past and embrace what God has in store for us in the future.

The weekend started on a Friday evening, with the ladies arriving just in time for a delicious buffet dinner. A teaching on ‘Developing a relationship with God’ marked the beginning of how to embrace the future. Day 2 started with morning devotion followed by a full English breakfast. From the first session on how to let go of the past, followed by an inspiring look at Nehemiah’s story, we learnt that in order for us to embrace the future we need to have a plan and a purpose. We were reminded that not listening to those who discourage us is key to achieving what we want in life.

The afternoon was a relaxed time

to enjoy walks around the beautiful gardens and lake, take in the breath taking scenery or enjoy an invigorating body gospel exercise class before the evening meal.

The evening session was extremely entertaining with a newspaper gown design challenge for which Sheba and her group acquired the first prize. This was followed by a talk on time management.

As always, time flies when you’re having fun and although we were sad the weekend was over, we thank God for this life changing experience which we definitely want to have again. We give credit to our partners and husbands who allowed us to go away while they looked after the children.

Violet Chikomba.

“I was transformed, glory be to God” - Loveness.

“ I have realized I was wasting my time dwelling on the past” - Katy.

Embracing The Future BIBLE TREASURE HUNT

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Pick up a bible and search for the missing answers to the following questions

Question 1: What is the name of the guy who fell from the window and died because he was sleeping during fellowship? Acts 20:7-12

7 On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. 8 There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. 9 Seated in a window was a young man named________________ who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. 10 Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” 11 Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. 12 The people took the young man

home alive and were greatly comforted.

Question 2: What was the first thing Jesus Christ ate after He came back from the dead? Luke 24:36-42

36 While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 37 They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. 38 He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? 39 Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” 40 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet. 41 And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of _________, 43 and he took it and ate it in their presence.

BIBLE TREASURE HUNT

SUMMER FETE 2014

This year’s summer fete took place on

Saturday 14th June at St Stephen’s

junior school. With a focus on Reaching

Out As A Blessing, it was encouraging to

see so many people from the community

who had received invitations turn up.

With this year’s additions of a BBQ stall

and ice cream van, the event was a

great time of fun and games for all the

family and we’re excited to see more

people blessed at next year’s event..

Many thanks to all who helped make it a

success & congratulations to the Sports

& Bake Off winners. Check our

Facebook page for the highlights. Until

next year!

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On Sunday mornings we come

together in a big two hour

celebration service to worship God

and hear dynamic teaching. We

want Jesus to be at the centre of

everything we do and we believe

every service should be a life

changing experience for all those

who attend. You are very welcome

to join us; refreshments are served

from 10am.

Woolf College, The Pavilion,

Giles Lane. University of Kent.

Canterbury.KENT.CT2 7BQ

01227 827524

office@newlifecanterbury.org

We run a minibus service all year so

feel free to hop on board if you

would like a lift to and from service on

Sundays

9:45 am: Parham Road

9:50 am: Dominos car park

10:10am: Canterbury East Station

The return journey leaves campus at

12:50pm every Sunday. Please be at

the pick up points at least five

minutes before time to avoid delays.

TRANSPORT SERVICE

We are here

KEEP INFORMED - KEEP IN TOUCH

WWW.newlifecanterbury.org l @NLCCanterbury l /NLCcanterbury

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