Malcolm Cox

God has so created us that we are social beings and need one another for healthy life on earth. See Gen 2.18 & 1 Sam 23.16 - David and Jonathan. If we neglect friendship, we are implicitly claiming an affinity with God that immortals cannot claim.

We need breaks from the normal routine - what might be called a 'Sabbath'. “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” (John 5:17 NIV11). God does not need a Sabbath, but we do! People are messy, love is messy, our diaries should be messy. A crisis is a crisis and must be attended to. But not everything that appears to be urgent is truly a crisis.

We need sleep and are designed for sleep. God is different.

Psa. 121:3 He will not let your foot slip—he who watches over you will not slumber;

Psa. 121:4 indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

If we neglect [sleep], we are implicitly claiming an affinity with God that mortals should never claim.

Psa. 127:2 In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves.

There is no greater delusion than that we can accomplish more by working a great many hours each day, straining mind and body to the limit of endurance, than by working fewer hours with less straining, less fatigue, but with greater freshness and intensity.

First-class work is impossible to brains exhausted by lack of recreation and sleep.”

—Orison Swett Marden from Making Life a Masterpiece

What is the kingdom? Jesus taught about it all the time. It mattered to him. What do you think it is? “Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds perched in its branches.” Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”” (Luke 13:18–21 NIV11)

This week I'm looking for tips to help me be a better tipster. What would you like tips about? Send me your suggestions - [email protected] - and I'll see what I can do.

Are we sufficiently humble about the fact that we are dust? What does God demand of this dust? Gen. 2:7 “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

We are frail and fragile, and do well never to forget it. God knows this, and will not expect more from us then we can give.

Psa. 103:14 “for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.”

Faith,Zeal,Sacrifice,Commitment,Genesis,Psalms,Rest,Dust

How do we cut our lessons down when they are too long? We look at some tips for keeping the substance, but losing the flab.

Bible, Teaching, Presentations, Preaching, Lessons length, http://wittcom.com/five-ways-t, http://westsidetoastmasters.co,trimming

Numbers matter. And so does using them accurately. Stats can be a preacher's best friend, but misuse them at your peril! How can we use them with credibility but without paranoia?

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07lhl0n

Bible,Teaching,Presentations,Preaching,Numbers,Statistics,More or Less,www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07lh

How do we keep our spiritual flame burning bright, without burning out? We look at a new book, "Zeal without Burnout". Luke 9.23-24 tells us to be wary of trying to save ourselves. But does this mean burnout is our aim? We take a look at what Christopher Ash calls, "sustainable sacrifice".

Faith,Zeal,Sacrifice,Commitment,Luke 9.23-24,Romans 12.1

What is the difference between being politically correct in order to not offend people, as opposed to being sensitive in the way that we present the gospel? We look in this video at the specific issue of preaching in the presence of people from a Jewish background.

http://cwi.org.uk/library/articles/HAGFP.htm