Christ Church Manchester News - 28th September 2010

"Well, we are hoping for a sudden move of God in Manchester"

Hello CCM Peeps, I hope your weekend was of a high standard and that your week is going well.

This weekend we had a worship conference, a Sunday morning meeting, a Sunday evening meeting AND an open mic night after the evening meeting. It was full on but a great deal of fun. We are believing God for 50 people at CCM:City and 100 people at CCM:East. Colin preached the other week about how God would “Suddenly” move in Acts. Well, we are hoping for a sudden move of God in Manchester.

Anyways, on with the news.

Honestly, I think I have a whole bunch of news for you but I can only remember this -

CCM:Gorton - a gentlemen in the Gorton group has just got his own flat but doesn’t have any furniture. Do you have any pieces of furniture you do not want? .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Nice one.

That it. That is all I got.

Boom.

Called Like Abraham

"When God calls you it will work out simply because God himself will fulfill his own words in your life"

We read in Genesis 12 the story of Abraham, commended for his complete and utter faith in God, a man who stood out in his day from others, a man who despite what the world around him was doing was willing to follow God regardless of what it meant! This was a man who was unassuming, having nothing about himself that would make him an obvious choice for God to take hold of and use. He was the son to a wealthy family, possibly well thought have, but certainly not a follower of God so it would seem.

Yet one day God calls out to him, not just a random call, but also a personal call, by his name. God knew Abraham before Abraham knew God. That is exactly how it is for you and me! There was nothing about us, in fact there still isn’t anything about us that God would want or need, yet the Bible is clear, when we were dead in our sins Christ died for us! He loves us totally, calling us all individually by name, purposely and passionately!

How cool is that?

So not only is Abraham called God then tells him how great he would become; yet at this point he has done nothing!  It seems that God not only calls him but also qualifies him at the same time! Could God be just a little presumptuous at this point maybe? Should he see if Abraham would be able to fulfill the call first? Humanly speaking we make judgments based on a persons performance and qualifications before we decide if they have met the criteria so to speak, yet here is God taking hold of a man with apparently no real background to judge him by. How could God do this? The answer is simple; God himself would be the one that would fulfill his promises in Abraham’s life, not Abraham.

When God calls you it will work out simply because God himself will fulfill his own words in your life. God is the ultimate starter and finisher. It does not mean it will be easy, but it will happen, like Abraham we are simply asked to believe!

Christ Church Manchester News -14th September 2010

"There is a great deal of stuff going on! Get involved."

This next week or two is jam packed full of stuff. Important stuff. So I shall cut back on my usual humor (I am funny. I am, I am, I am).

PRAYER MEETING - Friday 17th September (that is this Friday). 8pm - 2am at Carmel Christian Centre (map here). There will be three sessions - 8pm-10pm, 10pm - 12midnight, 12midnight - 2am (there will be breaks for food, coffee, and red bull between each session).

I am very excited about this meeting. We are going to pray for a whole bunch of important things that we want to see God break through on. So to help us pray, Dave Wade from Blackburn is going to come for a few hours to inspire us! AND Ginny Burgin from Sheffield is going to come for the whole evening. Ginny is very prophetic and I am sure (for “sure” read “absolutely convinced”) that she is going to bring some things that we will be talking about for the next decade. Absolutely Convinced.
Do all that you can to be there.

Worship Conference - On Saturday 25th September, from 10am till 4pm at Hyde Town Hall. Click here for info about the fine range of speakers we have. Even if you think that it’s not for you because you don’t lead worship come along anyway! The worship times in these conferences are fantastic and Dave Stroud is a brilliant speaker who really moves in the presence of God. I expect it to be one of our best conferences yet. So book in. Do it now. .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

CCM:City  - On Sunday evening we are going to give out 4000 flyers after the meeting. Fancy helping out? Email me.

CCM:India - We shall be meeting at Sue Wards on Monday 27th September at 7.30 pm to pray for an hour for the India Trip. Everyone welcome.

That’s it. There is a great deal of stuff going on! Get involved.

Worship and Leadership Conference - September 25th 2010

"This will be our third worship and leadership conference that have involved internationally renowned speakers and teachers"

At Christ Church Manchester we want to train, equip and release the Church in Worship and Leadership. To do this we host regular conferences for church leaders and worship teams. So, on September 25th we are running a conference called "Worship in the Presence of God".

This will be our third worship and leadership conference in Manchester that have involved internationally renowned speakers and teachers. This time we’re excited to be welcoming David Stroud, leader of Newfrontiers UK, as our keynote speaker and a host of other leaders and musicians from around the north to lead seminar slots.

From the outset of these conferences we have included a dedicated leaders track. This gives a fantastic opportunity for church leaders to attend the conference with their worship teams. It’s going to be a great day, starting at 10am and finishing at 4pm.

If you can, why not bring the whole team? There’s something for everyone who is hungry for the presence of God.

Here’s who’s speaking on which track.
Keys to leading and discipling a Spirit‐led worship team Chris Mason, Mosaic Church Leeds
Raising up gifted worship leaders for Sundays and other gatherings Alistair Metcalfe, Christ Church Manchester and David Lloyd, Gateway Church Leeds
How to encourage participation and more Spirit‐led contributions Colin Baron, Christ Church Manchester
Faith for writing and introducing new songs Matt Weedall, Jubilee Church Hull
Handling the presence of God in our meetings (leaders’ track) Jeremy Simpkins, Christ Central Manchester
Growing a leadership culture shaped by God’s presence (leaders’ track) David Stroud, ChristChurch London

Tickets are just £10 and there’s a discount when you block-book (buy 4, get 1 free). Book your places by email to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and pay on the door or send cheques to Worship Day, CCM, 37 St Marys Avenue, Manchester M34 7QG.

The venue Hyde Town Hall is easy to find, just off the M67 (postcode for sat nav – SK14 1AL). There are places to park and buy lunch nearby and drinks will be provided free through the day.

If you have any questions about the conference please get in touch

CCM: Academy

"We want to provide opportunities for leaders of all different styles and convictions to be trained and developed"

At Christ Church Manchester we place a very high value on training leaders. We want to provide opportunities for leaders of all different styles and convictions to be trained and developed. One of the ways that we want to train leaders is through CCM:Academy.

CCM:Academy is designed to develop and equip aspiring leaders. We also are also keen to help those who want to understand how to relate authentic Christian life to their culture.

So on we have put together six different training sessions that cover a range of themes that we feel will help to develop leaders, missionaries and radicals.

Authentic – The gospel community - October 30th 2010
Belonging– The search to belong - November 27th 2010
Dedicated – How to follow - January 29th2011
Generous – Generous living a tight fisted world - February 26th 2011
Culture - Understand your city and its people - March 26th 2011
Missional – The main thing - April 30th2011

Each session will be divided into two 45 minute seminars on a Saturday morning starting at 10.15 and finishing at 12.15 (Bacon bap / Muffin plus drinks will be served from 9.45am)

Coaching
Following these training sessions everybody on the course will have the opportunity to meet in a smaller group with one of the course leaders during the week to discuss/argue/debate the previous session. This will take place in a coffee house or pub at our expense. Each coaching session will have a maximum of 5 people to encourage a high level of interaction and will be arranged at a time and date to suit.

Cost
Cost £5.00 each day including food, drink & study materials.

Venue
Seminar room
Luther King House
Brighton Grove
Manchester
M14 5JP

Click here for a map

.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call on 07961233768 to book in or ask any questions.

Building a great Church – lessons from Jerusalem

What changed Jesus disciples from being doubtful and fearful to being bold evangelists and church builders? Luke tells us that on one occasion while Jesus was eating with them after his resurrection he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about”.

Jesus then takes them back three years starting with his baptism and his encounter with John the Baptist saying, “For John baptised with water, but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit.” The disciples would have remembered Jesus baptism by John the Baptist and the dramatic events surrounding it. They would have remembered how the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

The result of this was that Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit and news about him spread through the whole countryside. Jesus was now promising his disciples the same Holy Spirit. Just before he ascended into heaven he said “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth”.