In the first week of December, we begin our advent series, God on a Mission. Between now and Christmas Eve we'll look at the ways God demonstrates his mission on earth — which we're called to partner with here and now. Jen kicks us off with a look at Abraham's call, and God's promise to make him into a big family. Jesus shows us what the fulfilment of that looks like... 

This emotional scene is the last of Paul’s itinerant ministry—while a free man, anyway. He feels strongly to return to Jerusalem, with the sense that he will never be able to return. He has grown close to the leaders of the Ephesian church. They have worked closely in ministry, with Paul discipling them as he went. This is the moment he releases the church to them. It’s a stark reminder that a life following Jesus is not without cost. What can we learn from Paul's example?

This week's passage tells us a number of things about Paul. For one, we observe that Paul worked a second job to support his ministry habit — he was a tentmaker. For another, we discover that he was extremely tenacious. When the Jews became abusive towards him, he literally started a church next door to their synagogue. Aside from being a gutsy move, it shows that Paul didn’t need to be universally liked. He was content to minister in a place where his own people hated him for 18 months, knowing that it was where God had him set up. What was his secret?

This week, Paul finds himself in a tricky situation... imprisoned for setting a girl free from exploitation. But far from giving in to despair, Paul and his companion Silas use it as a chance to worship Jesus. In a miraculous turn of events, an earthquake frees them from their chains, and the jailer and his family all become Christians. Rob explores this well known passage, but with a twist—who was really in prison?

Luke doesn’t make a big deal of it, but passages like this one in Acts 14 remind us that ministry in the power of the Holy Spirit was part and parcel of how Paul worked. We see Paul and Barnabas heal a leper… but things take a very strange turn from there. The crowd assume they are Greek gods, in human form.

The apostles’ response gives us an interesting insight into how healing ministry fits into their way of operating. They are quick to point out it’s not their power—it’s God’s. Rather than lean into their success—from a worldly perspective—they use it as a chance to share the good news about Jesus. For them, the proclamation and demonstration of the Kingdom of God go hand in hand.

Unfortunately, some Jews get involved, and it doesn’t go well for Paul and Barnabas. They survive the experience, and extraordinarily, go back into the city that left them for dead, before moving on.

But back to the topic at hand… what does this passage tell us about the way Paul ministered in the spirit?

Fast forward fourteen years, and something totally unexpected happens. While everyone else was busy converting the Jews, the Antioch Christians thought it would be a good idea to preach to the Gentiles… and it worked! Hearing reports of this, the Jerusalem church sent Barbabas to try and manage this highly unusual situation.

We’ll never totally understand Barnabus’ motivation here, but it’s highly likely at this point that he remembered a young convert from Tarsus. A Pharisee with a commanding grip of Torah, yet with equal aptitude in the popular Greek philosophies. Who better to help manage a church with both Jews and Gentiles involved? Barnabas summoned Paul to Antioch to help form a church with this eclectic group of believers.

So what exactly was the problem that Barnabas brought Paul in to help solve? Why was Paul the right fit for this situation? What does this tell us about the importance of starting churches in new areas, and among new people?

After Paul’s radical conversion, he wasted no time in beginning to tell the world about this Jesus he had encountered. However, he discovered that not everyone was ready to listen to him. For the first years of his ministry, Paul was a misfit—and it turns out we can learn a lot from his experience.

Rob begins a new series looking at the life of the Apostle Paul. This week we begin with his conversion—how did a zealous Pharisee, persecuting the Christians, become one of Jesus' most vocal advocates?

You might have heard people say things like "I'll pray about that", or "I'm seeking the Lord on this decision". How do you actually do that? How do you bring God into the big decisions? Guest speaker Putty Putman (Vineyard USA) shares his lived experience with this process, and gives us some helpful tips for walking through life changes with God.

It might be tempting to think that the prophetic is something reserved for our meetings together—but this couldn't be further from the truth. We can hear from God at any time. In fact, part of maturing in faith is developing an everyday dialogue with Him. Kym gives us some very practical ways to turn the prophetic into a constant conversation.