Andy B Podcasts and Stuff

In this episode of Endurance, Andy B stands in for Nathan as we talk about having patience and endurance in life. 

Endurance is your weekly spiritual workout, whether you think of yourself as a beginner, an intermediate, or advanced!

#GoDeeper

Steven dives into the subject of endurance this week, explaining why it is so crucial if we wish to succeed.

He talks about how so many businesses, ministries and celebrities, who have come from humble beginnings, have become so successful only after many years of patient endurance.

And he refers to Scripture verses from Hebrews, Romans and more.

#GoDo 

For the last segment, Andy B asks Steven some tough questions about the topic:

1.    

2.   Where do you need patience, ie, what are you not currently getting quick enough?

3.   How excited were you about me [Andy B] filling in for Nathan?

Watch this week’s episode to learn more about having patience and endurance in our spiritual and physical exercise.

Steven and Nathan

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Catch us on Konnect Radio for our weekly show - Family Focus: Sundays, 3 til 6pm

What's coming up in our next Endurance Podcast?

In this episode of Endurance, Andy B stands in for Nathan as we talk about having patience and endurance in life. 

Endurance is your weekly spiritual workout, whether you think of yourself as a beginner, an intermediate, or advanced!

Join us for Endurance: Sundays from 2pm!

Steven and Nathan

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Catch us on Konnect Radio for our weekly show - Family Focus: Sundays, 3 til 6pm

60 Seconds is all it takes to make sure you've not missed out on any of our posts, videos, and resources - or exciting events we've got coming up.

In Case You Missed It

BerryBunch Website

We are back from a short break during January, and we are posting all of our regular content once more, including Andy B 2 Minute Videos, Endurance, Family Prayer Time and Dave Unleashed.

We’re also very excited to announce the launch of our new website, www.berrybunch.org.

It’s now fully operational, thanks to Hubb Digital, and we’re certain you’ll find it a great place to explore and enjoy all of our material – everything For Free, For All.

Keep in Touch

Social media loves to hide the stuff you see.

So, to make sure you never miss out on our latest posts, videos and BerryBunch News, just sign up to BerryBytes – our Weekly Newsletter and you’ll be up to date everything we produce: For Free, For All!

The BerryBunch

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Catch us on Konnect Radio for our weekly show - Family Focus: Sundays, 3 til 6pm

Send us Fan Mail

When you work as part of a team, that functions really well, it can be so hard when one team member is taken out of the loop.

A well organised team will be able to step in to each other’s roles as necessary.

Our usual day for filming new BerryBunch material – every Saturday - takes up around 4-6 hours each time. We work efficiently, and consistently - and all help out in different ways depending on what is being filmed.

We’re all able to step in to cover each other as necessary, although there’s usually someone more adept at any given function or role. This means that when someone steps out, for whatever reason, it is never going to be as slick as we’re used to. But we can still carry on.

I think many churches rely on a tiny handful of people doing, sometimes, really clever things. But the church of God is meant to be a place where we can each bring ‘something’ to the collective worship pot.

And that means we need to be able to fill in for others.

Yes, of course, there are some technical things needed in modern church services, but if only a tiny handful of people can do something, we need to be questioning whether we need to be doing that at all. And that comes from someone who has worked in full-time local church ministry.

When a few legs go missing from a 5 legged stool, it will inevitably become more unstable, and if those legs cease to be, and are next to each other, it’s easy to fall over.

God made you deliberately and on purpose. You matter to Him and, whatever your experience, or experiences, may bey, you are an integral part of your local church if you love Jesus.

Just a thought… 

Andy B

Support the show

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Send us Fan Mail

There’s a rather crude phrase in the UK about how P£*$ Poor Planning Produce P£*$ Poor Performance. (You can interpret those symbols for whatever works best for your innocence!)

The basic point is simply that if we don’t put in the effort to plan something, it’s likely to go wrong. And planning poorly usually results in poor outcome.

As humans, as parents, as friends, as children, as employers and employees we’re regularly planning something. Even if it’s our next break for a cup of tea!

Meanwhile, never planning for anything is a very bad idea on a number of levels. But, it is also a bad idea not to plan so much you’ve sorted the next thirty years of your life, without considering how you’re gonna do it.

We can dream that dream house. But if it’s on the other side of a ravine, we need to build a bridge first before fitting our bespoke kitchen units and game room!

In fact, the bible reminds us not to make plans for tomorrow – because we simply don’t know what tomorrow will bring, or where we will be.

Another angle on this is that we can assume as human beings that when we’ve done something and it goes wrong, that we must have failed somewhere. We live in a blame culture, so it’s only natural for us to blame ourselves.

But, here’s the thing. Sometimes those mistakes can be the greatest opportunities too!

As Christians we’re not Superman in disguise - we don’t have super human powers to avoid troubles and issues. No matter how much planning you do, something can go wrong that you have no control over, and could never have planned for.

And that’s why we’re called to live one day at a time - not one week, nor one year at a time. A lot can happen in a few moments – just speak to the survivors of any horrific accidents.

That’s why it’s best to plan, but to plan lightly – and, see what God might do that’s even better. God’s given us vivid imaginations and He desires us to use them.

Just don’t take failure personally straight away because, sometimes, there’s no way for us to prevent disaster. Which is why we’re called to live in peace – by trusting on Jesus, and not taking on life in too large a portion!

And, because no matter how the big mess may be, God is always ready and willing with a mop and bucket to help us clean it up, and make it even better than before.

Just a thought...

Andy B

Support the show

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Steven and Nathan are back with Endurance after a bit of a break, and they are using the expression ‘it is what it is’ to talk about accepting what is.
Endurance is your weekly spiritual workout, whether you think of yourself as a beginner, an intermediate, or advanced!

#GoDeeper 

In this GoDeeper, Steven talks largely about accepting what is. He begins by pointing out that in order to change you have to first accept where you are at, and he gives an example from his own life.

Then he discusses those things in life that don’t change even after much prayer. The apostle Paul had some experience of that, which Steven unpacks from 2 Corinthians 12. The other point that he makes is that we need to accept the past because we definitely can’t change that.

He concludes with a passage of Scripture from Ecclesiastes.  

#GoDo 

For the last segment, Nathan and Steven discuss the topic a bit further, focusing on some interesting points:
1. We can’t change the past.
2. You can’t deal with a problem if you can’t even accept it exists.
3. What is ‘it’ exactly?

Watch this week’s episode to learn more about how to accept what is.

Steven and Nathan

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Catch us on Konnect Radio for our weekly show - Family Focus: Sundays, 3 til 6pm

What's coming up in our next Endurance Podcast?

Steven and Nathan are back with Endurance after a bit of a break, and they are using the expression ‘it is what it is’ to talk about accepting what is.

Endurance is your weekly spiritual workout, whether you think of yourself as a beginner, an intermediate, or advanced!

Join us for Endurance: Sundays from 2pm!

Steven and Nathan

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Catch us on Konnect Radio for our weekly show - Family Focus: Sundays, 3 til 6pm

Send us Fan Mail

In the Film series, Ice Age, there is little sabre tooth squirrel. He always gets so close to being to safeguard his precious nuts, when disaster strikes. If I’m honest he’s my favourite character because he never gives up trying. Everything gets thrown at him. And, yet, he just picks himself up and gets going again.

Sure, he suffers some typically calamitous disasters that requires the odd bit of hospital treatment.

But, he keeps going!

We’ve been through times in our life when we need an extra 20 or 30 fingers to fill the holes in the damn that is collapsing around us – just as we plug one gap in the towering wall of doom over us, another hole appears.

But, there is a solution to this and it is not to grow more fingers, but to stop trying to stop disaster from happening. Because, sooner or later, we’ll run out of fingers to plug that damn!

This isn’t about giving up. 

This isn’t about not trying.

This isn’t about allowing people to get hurt because there are plenty of things that we need to keep doing in order to protect something or somebody.

However, it is most certainly about getting the right help! And that means pausing, and inviting God into what we’re doing.

Does life seem like more than you can handle? Then don’t try and handle it on your own, but to God who promises to walk with us through the flames and the flood.

Isaiah 43 v 1 – 2 (NLT)

“But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you.

O Israel, the one who formed you says, “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.

I have called you by name; you are mine.

When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.

When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown.

When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.”

Just a thought… 

Andy B

Support the show

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Send us Fan Mail

Life can be so busy at times we might wish to scream for someone to stop the world so we can get off. And, yet, God’s plans are never for us to be that busy.

A wise man once said how important it was to leave spaces in your day for the unexpected.

I think there’s two reasons for this.

Firstly, if we don’t leave any spaces in our day, we’ll be tired and exhausted because our pace is that of a machine. And, as good as we may be, we are not machines.

Secondly, if we don’t leave any spaces in our day, we actually prevent God from having the right to speak into our lives and alter the course of what we’re about. Whether this is because we simply don’t want God to interfere in our lives because of arrogance or fear, it’s the same end result – exhaustion and burn out.

Some of the worse things have led to great memory building moments – it doesn’t have to be great, for it to end great!

My good friend Andy Brown wrote a superb 40 Day Devotional which I’d encourage you to seek out and get for yourself. In one chapter Andy Brown points out how “Jesus stopped”.

And, if Jesus stopped, shouldn’t we? Shouldn’t we keep spaces in our day to enjoy a rainbow, breathe in the scent from some trees or simply stop and watch the waves crashing into the shore.

These things are wonderful for our bodies – but it means stopping first.

So, try and build in moments when you can stop and let God guide those times. It’s amazing what we can do, if – and when – we allow God to be more involved in our daily lives.

He is a gentleman, so doesn’t often force His way into our lives. He can, He will – and He does. But, just like a gentleman, let’s not miss His kindness towards us.

Just a thought...

Andy B

Support the show

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus

Send us Fan Mail

Isn’t It Amazing what Jesus did? He was the Son of God – of course. But He was also a carpenter, an older brother, a son.

One thing remains certain about His life and that is that He obeyed His parents, and his Heavenly Father too. He didn’t just do what He wanted, but knew He was part of something bigger.

He was Jesus Christ. And, yet, He was the world’s greatest servant too.

As we progress through life we gain wisdom and understanding. We experience the highs and lows of a life that is marred by the very sin that Jesus went on to conquer when He died on the Cross of Calvary.

God designed us to have dreams, vision, plans, intelligence. And He desires for us to use them.

However, with wisdom can come arrogance – ‘we’ve been here before so we know how this goes’. And God wants us to use that wisdom!

We can see social injustice, and God wants us to care for those who have little or no voice.

But, we also can easily find ourselves asking God to rubber stamp His approval of our carefully laid out plans, when God’s plans are infinitely better.

So, next time you have a really good idea, take a moment to hush and pause. Stop, and ask God what His will for you is in this, or that, situation.

It’s true – you may well have experienced this before. But human wisdom is limited by us…so take a moment to seek out God’s plan for your life, rather than His willingness to bless your plan instead…His is always better!

Just a thought… 

Andy B

Support the show

Keep in Touch with the BerryBunch
www.berrybunch.org

Support Us Online
www.berrybunch.org/supportus