Talks

On our first Sunday back after our “Summer Sundays” Matt revisited our theme of the year: “HOME”
He said if you look out for it, you will see the concept of “Home” everywhere! In songs, in films and in well-known phrases that we use every day! (He even sang part of a Michael Buble song to illustrate!)
And the reason it’s used so often in so many places is because we can all relate to the need and desire to find HOME and be at HOME, not just in a physical sense, but emotional and even spiritual as well.
OR you could say:  “In every human heart there’s an aching and a longing for HOME….”

Our longing for HOME goes right back to the Garden of Eden which was the perfect home created for humans by our Father God.  Through their disobedience, Adam and Eve had to leave the Garden, and we have lived with the consequences ever since. But God had a plan to undo and reverse the Eden curse.  And “Jesus left His HOME so that He could welcome us HOME!” (See Romans 5 verses 15-19 for the explanation.)
Welcome HOME! God has a place for you! > “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home.” John 14 verses 1-2.  God has a place and a space for you now – today!!
Welcome HOME! The embrace of the Father. > We are safe and loved by our Father. The shocking story of the lost son who left his Father’s Home with his inheritance, only to realise that he was always better off at HOME.  Even though he had no right to be there, the Father welcomes him HOME with a huge embrace and acceptance.  Jesus told the story to illustrate how his Father responds when people return to HIM.  Arms wide open! We continue to pray for Prodigals!
Welcome HOME! God’s Address. > Jesus said to His disciples: Make your home in me as I make my home in you. (paraphrase of John 15 verse 4) This invitation stands every moment of every day, good and bad days. The phrase “I can’t be at two places at once” does not apply to Jesus! His current address is both in heaven (at the right hand of the Father) and in me and you if we choose to accept and welcome him in!
Welcome HOME! God’s heart is for everyone > God is knocking on everyone’s door! NOTE: **Vision Offering for the new Building >> Sun 29th September”**
Welcome to our final HOME! -> Our aching and longing will only ever be fully satisfied when we are HOME with Jesus. C.S. Lewis says: “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.” Find more details of what Heaven is like in Revelation 21 verses 1-5 and in talks over the next two weeks!
To watch, go to our Facebook page: https://fb.watch/uGlQsFi8wR/

The wonderful Jo Hargreaves gave the words HOME, SAFE & SOUND a whole new dimension in our amazing Ashwood 2024 Mini-Conference!! On Saturday, we had already heard a lot about how fearfully and wonderfully we are made, especially about the wonders of the brain. We often think of ourselves as poorly when our bodies have health issues, but we are a tripartite being: Body/Soul/Spirit (1 Thess. 5:23). Even when the body is poorly, the soul and spirit can still be healthy and we can call ourselves an overall healthy person.
On Sunday, the mum of three, psychotherapist, writer and co-leader of Alive Church in Lincoln shares with us “a nervous system case study” about The Prodigal Son coming home, feeling safe and sound.

What did the Prodigal Son’s journey feel like in body, soul and spirit? Going off, he made a bad decision. These are made in our back brains.
Caroline Spring says: You have to change your stance before you change your story. We need to change our thinking from the back brain to the front brain (where good choices are made)! What things help us to change our stance (shift our thinking and emotions from the back brain to the front brain)? Love, worship, be in awe, repent, and meet our basic needs (rest, food, drink etc). It is so important to meditate on God’s everlasting love to be able to shift our thinking to the front brain. God wired us like that.
When things don’t go well for the Prodigal Son “he comes to his senses”, he starts to make good decisions (in his front brain). How did the shift happen? He remembered his father’s love! If you struggle with self-condemnation, use self-compassion.

When the prodigal decides to go back to the father and repent, he is thinking in his front brain. He is met with compassion from his father, which soothes his nervous system. The father throws his arms around him and kisses him: Oxytosin is released, the love hormone that makes us feel secure and safe. Oxytocin gets rid of cortisol, the stress hormone - just like the bible says: “Perfect love casts out fear!”
When the father dresses him and puts a ring on his finger, serotonin, the feel-good hormone kicks in. When they party and he starts to enjoy himself, dopamine, the reward hormone, appears. God wants to change our story! Let’s change our stance so that the celebration can begin!
The same invitation is extended to us today: come home! When we have been reckless with our thoughts and actions, we can turn to God who will boost our oxytocin, serotonin and dopamine.
You can start that process now by speaking a “Breath Prayer”: Inhale slowly through your nose while reminding yourself: “I am safe”. Then exhale through your mouth even slower and say to yourself: “I am loved”. The word Ruach means both breath and spirit. In Genesis, we read how God creates order out of chaos with His Ruach. He can do the same today for each of us.

This Sunday, Bob talks to us about dealing with conflict in relationships.
Bob shares some of his personal family situation growing up, and how in his family home conflict was often not handled well.  After he became a Christian, he reached out to his family in a different way.

Conflicts can arise in every context.  With our friends, with family and with colleagues.  Jesus said ‘Let your light shine!’  How do we do that? Here are Bob’s points to help us:
Start with love - “Above all, love each other deeply, love covers a multitude of sins” 1 Peter 4vs8
Make sure you look after your own emotions - so you are functioning well and able to handle yourself well. (Ephesians 4 v26-27) Sometimes we need to step back in conflict situation to give space to deal with the situation and then step back in. BUT DO DEAL WITH IT!
Think before you speak. What will build people up, and benefit them? (Ephesians 4 v29)
Listen (James 1 vs 19) … quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to become angry.
Forgive! Ask God for help, he’s with us in it. Ask God to come into the conflict.  (Mark 11 vs 24-25)
Prayer can help with this… speak the name of Jesus into these situations.
To see the full talk, go to https://fb.watch/uJgKWdtmXW/

Message Title this week is: “There’s no place like home!” – the famous quote from Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz.  Matt talks about why “Home” is so important from a broader perspective.
Psalm 84 says:“How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” and: “A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else!” The writer is clear that God’s presence is something he longs for, and uses a picture of a sparrow that makes its nest in God’s presence – and what a privilege that is!
Matt shares 3 progressive thoughts:
Home is where God dwells: Psalm 84 paints this picture so beautifully.  In the Old Testament, this was the Temple – but Jesus described the Temple as the Father’s House, so therefore…..
Home is the Father’s house: Where is the Father’s house today? We find the answer in 1 Cor. 3;16-17: “Don’t you realise that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?” God’s church is the Father’s house. And therefore:
Church is Home. What does that look like?  We had 3 great descriptions from Michelle, Alyson and Gisela!

Church is made out of people, and we’re all broken and imperfect, so it follows that “church” won’t be perfect either.  But, we describe how Church should represent “HOME” for all of us and for those who have yet to find Jesus.  Psalm 68 says: “God sets the solitary in HOME.” (ESV) 
PRAYER: Lord Jesus – we pray that our church will continue to be HOME for those who need to find your presence and know the Father’s Love for them.  Amen!

In the fifth part of our HOME series, Gill speaks about the older brother in the story of the prodigal son from Luke chapter 15.

God wants to make His home in our hearts, but sometimes our heart is not the best dwelling place.

One of the stories that Jesus tells the Pharisees in response to their anger that Jesus welcomes “sinners” at his table is usually titled “The Prodigal Son”, sometimes “The Loving Father”, but it could just as well be called “The Two Sons”.
The focus of the story is often on the son who walks away and is welcomed back again, just like the “sinners” Jesus shares a meal with. But Jesus is also talking about the older son (the Pharisees) who has been in the father’s presence all along, yet couldn’t see the father’s love for him and couldn’t grasp the riches available to him at his father’s home.
This is where Jesus’ story ends. Just like the Pharisees, we are left to imagine how the relationship between the father and the older son continues.
All of us could be either one of these sons or at different times in life even both. Are we lost and need to return? Or have we been in the house of God all the while and are pointing fingers at the “sinners”?

Lent, the time of preparation for Easter is a good time to prepare our hearts to be a good home for God our Father to live in and to allow Him to do some sorting and cleaning. God doesn’t want us to receive this in a condemning way, but an opportunity to change from one degree of glory to the next. In that sense, Gill challenges us to ask ourselves: “Have I wasted God’s riches?” -  “Am I blinded to see his riches in my life?”

God our Father was wastefully extravagant (“prodigal” according to the dictionary) when He gave EVERYTHING to us (including His own beloved Son) so we could find a way home.

In the fourth part of our HOME series, Paul speaks about Isaiah 54:1-10. God wants to lead us from a place of shame into a place of freedom, from a place of disappointment to a place of fulfillment, from a place of lack to a place of abundance, from a place of grief to a place of joy. Paul lists examples in the bible where God turns situations around to underline that it could only have been HIM. It puts us in a place of humility as it is clear that it wasn’t our doing, we are dependent on our Father God. He gets the glory and as it says in Romans 8:22-25: the waiting enlarges us!
Paul shares some of his family’s current personal story with fostering.  They are about to move to a bigger HOME to welcome more foster children, and as a church, we are preparing for a New HOME for Ashwood for our growing church family. Paul explains that as well as moving to a bigger physical HOME – He heard God saying that He also wanted to enlarge his emotional capacity too - to have a greater capacity to care for people.  We probably all need that too!
We believe that God has invited us to think big. Without the invitation, it would be madness to attempt something we are not equipped to do, it’s a step of faith that precedes the miracle. It is an opportunity for us to partner with God! “Stretch the cords wide and drive the tent pegs deep”. We need to be anchored deeply in God. That’s where strength comes from! We prayed that God would expand our capacity for compassion, kindness and love.  Please do it, Lord! Amen!

Matt also shares an update on the New Home for Ashwood Project and reminds us of the ways we can support this:
PRAYER
1. Monthly Onsite Pray Gathering (see under “prayer” in weekly emails for dates) 
2. “Fasting Thursdays” 
3. Daily Prayer Prompt: @20:24 (Leviticus 20:24) and
4. Praying our Declaration Prayer.
ACTION
An invitation for anyone on Sunday 17th March to come after the meeting to share your thoughts about the new building.
If you feel you have any relevant experience / skills that could be useful during the project Email nhfa@ashwoodchurch.org.uk. (To create a directory of potential. We may not need to take up every offer of help)
Join with those people who give regularly.

In the third part of our HOME series Helen speaks about the prodigals coming home. Based on the famous story that Jesus told – about the Prodigal Son in Luke Chapter 15.

The dictionary defines prodigal as “wastefully extravagant”. In that sense we are probably all prodigals in a certain degree. We live in a “very wasteful” culture.
Traditionally as Christians we often understand the word “prodigal” as somebody who has known God and walked away. Both of these descriptions are true for the prodigal son described in the gospel of Luke.

Helen highlights 3 points:
1) We need to let go of false guilt if we feel we are responsible for causing a prodigal to “walk away”. Some prodigals might be our own children.  As parents we can only do our best, but everybody has to take responsibility for making their own decisions themselves. 
2) We need to share each other’s burdens. God comes alongside us and puts others alongside us in our pain. (That is part of the “oneanothering” Gill was talking about a few weeks back.) Sometimes as we go through a difficult time we are better able to empathise with people who are in a similar situation.
3) We need to get our home ready for the return of the prodigals. This could be true for both our family home and our church home. Rob Parsons talks about always “leaving the light on” – a symbol of letting the prodigals know they will always be welcome.  When the father’s house is filled with the father’s love, the prodigals CAN come home. This involves everybody in the church.

Let’s continue to pray for the prodigals.
To see the full talk, go to: https://fb.watch/uJhp8-tExR/

In the second part of our series “home” Bob Goody speaks about three things based on Ephesians 3:14-21:

1) Finding our Place: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may make his home in your hearts through faith.”  Our place (and posture) is to be humble on our knees, so that Jesus can make His home in us.
2) Finding our Purpose: “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
Rooted: Tree roots have the purpose to water the tree and to hold it steady in the weather. If we are rooted in God, we are nourished and receive strength from God.
3) Finding our Praise: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen”
It is His power that is at work, not ours. It is Him who changes hearts and minds! So many reasons to praise!

Matt shares with us part 1 of our Vision Series on HOME.
 
We look at one of the verses that is key to our Vision for 2024.  John 14 verse 23: Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them.”
The incredible reality that Jesus was explaining to his disciples is that Father God and Jesus want to come and live and dwell and reside or make their HOME in their hearts of every follower of Jesus!  That includes me and you!  If you want to know the address of God our Father and Jesus – (if this verse is true) it is located in me and you!  Wow! 
 
Matt had 3 things he wants us to take away with us:

1) Father’s Home John 14 vs 2 – is often thought to refer to Heaven – Jesus says “There is more than enough room in my Father’s home.” But many bible scholars, believe that Jesus was actually saying that God has a place for everyone!  Room enough in the heart of God for every single person.
2) “In the Father” – Throughout John Chapter 14 Jesus constantly refers to the intimate relationship and connection that He and the Father enjoy.  He says:  If you’ve seen me you’ve seen the father.  We are one!  I am in Him and He is in me!  But then the incredible part is that He adds a 3rd dimension and says that His Disciples are also “in Him” and therefore can experience the same intimate relationship that Jesus has with His Father.  Our goal is to remain / abide and make our HOME in Jesus!  We can do this everyday – by bringing God to the forefront of our thoughts.  How can we allow Jesus to take even more residence in us, as we remain in Him in 2024?
3) A Gift from Jesus – In the final part of Chapter 14 – Jesus tells his disciples He has a gift for them.  He knows that they will need it!  His gift is peace.  This offer is still available to us today!  Amidst the mental and physical struggles we might face – how can we receive the gift of God’s peace (or wellbeing and wholeness) today?
 
Why not read the whole of John Chapter 14 again (and Chapter 15 too – if you have extra time!) and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you again?
Please refer to our facebook page to find the preach of 11th Feb. 2024
To see the full talk, go to: https://fb.watch/uJhxKC8kYV/

This is “Vision Sunday!” Matt shares the heart of our vision or theme for 2024. It’s always exciting to hear what we will be focusing on in the year to come.
Every year’s new vision is embedded in our overall vision to be “A spiritually healthy and growing church for all ages” and our overall Mission to “Help people find and follow Jesus”.
Matt introduces the vision for 2024 with the quote: “At the core of every human heart there is an aching and a longing for …….  HOME”. Whatever our experience of home has been, our longing for home is always the same: a place of shelter, safety, refuge, welcome, belonging, restoration and the freedom to be.
5 important scriptures that help us think about the Vision of Home:
John 14:23 - My Father will love them, and we will come and make our HOME with each of them.
Ephesians 3: 14-17 - Then Christ will make his HOME in your hearts as you trust in him.
Luke 15:20 - The father welcomes the prodigal HOME: But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
Isaiah 54:2 - Enlarge your house, build an addition, spread out your HOME, spare no expense. We believe God wants our church family to grow, but also to grow our own capacity for compassion and kindness towards people.
Revelation 21:1-4 - Ultimately we are all looking forward to a NEW HOME with God.  “Look, God’s HOME is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.”
Matt’s message is like this was the “trailer” and the movie will follow in 2024! But Matt highlights the importance, especially in regards to enlarging our ASHWOOD HOME physically: The leadership team are encouraging everyone who considers themselves to be part of the Ashwood Church family to commit to praying for new home for Ashwood on a regular basis. Inviting people to join us in different ways. (See Ashwood News) Monthly prayer meetings on site, pray and fast on a Thursdays and set our alarm on 20:24 each night praying a declaration prayer:
God our Father, we give you thanks and praise for all that you’ve done in our past and thank you for your faithfulness to us over many years. We believe that you’ve called us to be a healthy growing church for all ages. We believe that you have good plans and purposes for our future.
We believe you have said “Enlarge the place of your dwelling” and it’s time to Plan for Growth. We pray that you will make it possible for us to acquire the land next door, to help with our growing church family. Thank you in advance for providing all the provision we need! Lord increase our faith for this project – we believe you can do it!
Will you join in and believe for a breakthrough in 2024?