Church of the Nazarene, Plot A Wallaba Road, Meadow Brook Gardens, Georgetown

The LIGHTHOUSEFebruary-April 2009 A Quarterly Publication Issue # 1

He is like a tree planted by streams of living water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does, prospers. Psalms 1:3 (NIV)

It’s back!!! The Lighthouse Magazine of the Meadow Brook Gardens Church of the Nazarene has been resuscitated.

In times past, before ships and other ocean going vessels had sophisticated technological equipment which steered and charted the waters, a lighthouse built near the edges of the shore, was very essential. Any captain lost at sea looked expectantly and searchingly for the lighthouse since it was the beacon to guide ships safely to land. The lighthouse brought reassurance and comfort; offered direction and gave confidence to the captain and crew that if they followed the light they would reach land safely and securely. In addition, the keeper of the lighthouse had to ensure that the lamp was always lit, never growing dim!

First published in the early eighties, the Lighthouse Magazine is an evangelical extension of the church; reaching, informing and pointing readers to Christ and the gospel of salvation.

The magazine seeks to reach persons who may be wandering on the seas of time; persons who may be looking for answers and need a compass to point them back to dry ground and security. The Magazine also intends to remind persons that it is important to stay the course, to keep rowing and pressing

forward.The revised magazine will feature

messages from the pastor’s desk; will highlight activities in the various departments of the church, including Sunday school, Youth and Missions. There will also be an interactive page featuring quizzes, poems, and inspirational stories. The church is in a global environment. World events and the implications for Christians will be discussed in the Lighthouse. In addition, readers will be encouraged to share their views, ask questions and contribute meaningfully to the magazine.

We hope that you will enjoy reading, discovering or re-discovering the joys of the Bible and being a regular contributor to the Lighthouse. To our members and friends who are part of the diaspora, the Lighthouse will provide great opportunity for you to reach out and touch. We encourage you as well to send articles and share the various ways in which the goodness of God has been coming through in your life. Please also, don’t hesitate to send your prayer request and thoughts on any other features you would like to see highlighted in the Lighthouse.

God’s blessing and remember… here is the test to find whether your mission on earth is finished:

If you’re alive, it isn’t!!

Welcome back!! ! !

Whether you adopt or adapt the following, or compose a praise program of your

own, I pray that this suggested “praise program” may help your praise ascend plentifully and purposefully to God in ways that will make the angels blush with envy!1. God the Creator

“Creator God, I praise you because you made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you”. . . . (Nehemiah 9:6).

2. The Only God “God, I praise you because you are the LORD, and there is no other; apart from you there is no God. . . .” (Isaiah 45:5).

3. The Almighty God“O LORD God Almighty, who is like you? You are mighty, O LORD,” and I praise you . . . .” (Psalm 89:8).

4. The Everlasting Father, the Ancient of Days

“I praise you, Lord, as the Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:9), the Everlasting Father (Isaiah 9:6), who lives forever and ever. . . .”

5. A Loving God“I praise you because you are a loving God, whose very nature is love. . . .” (1 John 4:16).

6. A God of Justice“Lord, I praise and magnify you who are just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. . . .” (Romans 3:26).

7. The Trustworthy God“Heavenly Father, I give you my praise and adoration, because you are a “faithful God, keeping [your] covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love [you]

Praising God

In this Issueand keep [your] commands. . . .” (Deuteronomy 7:9).

8. A Merciful God“You, O Lord, are a gracious and merciful God,” (Nehemiah 9:31), and I praise you for your great mercy. . . .”

9. God my Refuge, my Fortress “I praise you, Lord, for you are my mighty rock, my refuge. . . .’” (Psalm 62:7).

10. A Longsuffering, Persevering God“Father, I praise you because you are patient with [all your children], not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance’ (2 Peter 3:9). Thank you for your patience with me. . . .”

Commit everything to the LordFeature Article

From the Pastor’s Desk‘God’s DESIGN in 2009’

Eye on the Globe‘More than a financial crisis’

Reflections PageInspirational Items

A Splash of YouthRelating to the young and the young atheart

Even in His silence He is fathering us and teaching us patience and perfect timing, God releases patience, a sedative for the troubled heart. God’s sheer grace and Holy Spirit, will sustain us. He directs the thoughts, affections and designs of the renewed and sanctified souls. God knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will be joyful in God my Savior”, (Habakkuk 3:17-18) He will make me to walk in my high places.

God the FatherGod the Father is omnipotent (all-

powerful), having made the world and everything in it. He gives to all life. He is omniscient (all-knowing), knowing

the hearts of all men. His knowledge and wisdom are infinite and perfect. God the Father is omnipresent (present all over). Like the Psalmist we can ponder, “Whither shall I go from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the

Psalm 37:5 (AMP) “Commit yourself to the Lord (Roll and repose each care of your load on Him). Trust (lean on, rely

on and be confident). Also in Him and He will bring it to pass (And He will help you).”

The perfect interpretation of this verse is: “Roll your way and will onto Jehovah, Trust in Him, and see Him WORK.” Superimpose and bring into alignment your will and way unto His will and way. A bible theologian once referred to this form of “commitment” as ROLLING THE DICE. Once you let go of the dice, you have no way of foretelling the final outcome. Your response is, not my will but thine be done.

God works! He works! Roll your burdens onto Him and look unto Jesus (Heb. 12:2, KJV) and see Him do great and mighty things. Your faith may be tested, but He works. His Word is truth!

Whether our burden is a sorrow, difficulty, physical need, or concern over the salvation of a loved one, God works, and no matter how unexpected or extraordinary His guidance may seem and no matter how close to the edge of the cliff He may lead you, never snatch the guiding reins from His hands. Is there anything too difficult for God?

P a g e 2 w o

wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.” [Psalm 139:7-10].

Do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear?. . . For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” (Mt. 6:31-32)

“What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” (Mt. 7:9-11). Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts and plans I have for you, says the Lord. Thoughts and plans to prosper you (welfare and peace) and not for evil to give you hope in your final outcome.”

The Bible assures us that we can cast all our cares on Him because He cares for us (1 Pet. 5:7). He knows our needs and He knows how to meet those needs with wisdom and compassion.

o m m i t e v e r y t h i n g t o t h e L o r dC

When We Trust God We Acknowledge His Supremacy and Sovereignty

When we trust God, we know that we know, that we know, He will work and the enabling power

of the Holy Spirit will accomplish what we have

“rolled” onto Him....

Points to Ponder

A missionary society wrote to David Livingstone and asked, “Have you found a

good road to where you are? If so, we want to know how to send other men to join you.” Livingstone wrote back, “If you have men who will come only if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come if there is no road at all.” Good News Broadcaster, April, 1985, p. 12.

David Livingstone is the great Missionary who took the Gospel to the continent of Africa

God will not force a man to revere Him, but He will make it impossible for him to be happy unless he does.

Commitment stands on the pillars

of security, provisions

and protection of the

Heavenly Father

that in Christ ALL things become new? Isn’t it time to stop repairing the old and have a fresh encounter with God? A revival, a renewal of your passion and purpose is His good pleasure. He wants to give us His new wine and a new song. His newness is sweet; it is sure. If we choose to live for Him, He is ready to unleash newness into our lives…in abundance. Get His Newness today!

A ChallengeAs the dawning of a new year breaks forth, let us embrace God’s design in 2009. Don’t delay! A great encounter with the “designer” is in your hands. Allow Jesus into your heart and life. He cannot work His plan if you are not His possession. His design is Direction, Emancipation, Stability, Increase, Guidance and Newness. So what are you waiting for? Let Him have His way …TODAY.

of Christ we have that freedom. We do not have to accept the corrupt practices of sin. Jesus has paid the price; let us live in His freedom.

S t a b i l i t y Ps 18:2 “The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust.” We live in a world of shifting standards and falling morals. Our foundation is on Christ the solid rock and on Him we are more than conquerors. Stability enables us to remain firm and tough through torrent of pressure which seek to topple our faith, God is our strength!

IncreasePs 1:3 “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” What a promise! God can refresh the driest branch, blossom the infertile life and strengthen the weakest purpose. With God we can enjoy the fatness of the land. He wants to increase our barns and overflow our vats with His goodness.

Guidance “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye;” Ps 32:8. Our future is bright because our God is leading the way forward. We must not allow our past to distract us. We do not need the current travailing to slow us. We have a promise-keeping, ever-present God who will never leave us to wander. He is our guide. Let us trust His precepts, His instructions, His sign post in our daily walk. Friends, He watches over His own!

N e w n e s s“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Cor 5:17. Have we taken note

As we enter a New Year it is my belief that God wants us to experience His Divine Design

in our individual lives. At the Brook, we are convinced that God’s promise of a definite plan and profound prosperity (Jer 29:11) are ours if we allow Him to guide and grow us as a community.

God’s DESIGN in 2009 reminds us of His continued purpose to build His church and position it for great prosper-ity and purpose. To design means “to conceive and plan out in the mind…to have as a purpose.” The great designer of human destiny has intricately woven a Plan in place when we accept His sal-vation. Let’s explore the DESIGN.

DirectionPro3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Life is tough and we need God’s hand to direct out steps. Our understanding of life is limited but God knows the way. Without God’s design we will have no direction in this dark sin saturated world and we will lose our way wandering in circles. We need God’s Direction!!

Emancipation John 8:36 states, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” It is a tragic reality to realize that man can still be bound by shackles and chains of slavery in this modern age. We need freedom and by the blood

P a g e 3 h r e e

PASTOR’S DESK God’s DESIGN in 2009

Rev. Rajkumar ‘Tony’ Autar

London businessman Lindsay Clegg told the story of a warehouse property he was selling. The

building had been empty for months and needed repairs. Vandals had damaged the doors, smashed the windows, and strewn trash around the interior.

As he showed a prospective buyer the property, Clegg took pains to say that he would replace the broken windows, bring in a crew to correct any structural damage, and clean out the garbage.

“Forget about the repairs,” the buyer said. “When I buy this place, I’m going to build something completely different. I don’t want the building; I want the site.”

Compared with the renovation God has in mind, our efforts to improve our own lives are as trivial as sweeping a warehouse slated for the wrecking ball. When we become God’s, the old life is over (2 Cor. 5:17). He makes all things new. All he wants is the site and the permission to build.

Ian L. Wilson.

NEW CREATION

The financial crisis which started in America and has spread across the world will not

here be rehashed. What needs to be understood, however, in great detail, by everyone, but especially us Christians, is the underpinnings of the crisis from a moral and spiritual perspective so that real change can be undertaken. Right away several words jump out of the analysis of the crisis. Foremost among these words are, greed, lack of integrity of leadership, carelessness, impatience, discontent, excessiveness.

Almost everyone caught up in the crisis had some degree of greed, from the homeowners who wanted a home the size of which they could not afford, or those who wanted a second or third home to the corporate executives whose desire for personal wealth may be considered criminal but surely vulgar by people of good conscience. We are warned of greed in Proverbs 1:19 and the harm it does to the soul, and Proverbs 15:27 cautions that the greed of a man affects his whole household. But more so, greed which is the excessive love of money is explained to us in, I Timothy 6:10, as leading to many sorrows.

The financial crisis also showed in stark reality the crisis of leadership that exists today. That there were so many leaders in the financial and business community that lacked the integrity to carry out their grave responsibilities show that there is widespread disregard for good old fashioned morality as expounded by the church and instead, a total dependence on knowledge. For many where there may not have been greed, there then must have been carelessness. Christians are commanded to be good stewards. Making financial and other decisions without serious thought, sound advice and prayer amount to carelessness and not the kind of stewardship that is indicated in I Corinthians 3:13.

Impatience, discontent and excessiveness can be taken together. In several articles, Business Week Magazine examined how American culture had drifted away from the Judaic-Christian lifestyle of thrift, contentment and sacrifice/frugality.

It explored how many Americans had stopped saving and had embraced the habit of credit, spending more than they were earning and being mired in debt. They lacked the patience to save up and wait for what they needed and became known as the ‘now generation,’ demanding instant gratification of their needs which were constantly confused with their wants. Lacking contentment, they forsook the discipline of living frugally and within their means. These borrowings became excessive to fund a lifestyle of pleasure leading not only to the credit crisis but to the exorbitant and selfish use and destruction of the earth’s resources.

That this can happen first to America on whose currency is written “In God we Trust,” must be a warning to all Christians that if we do not follow the practical guidance of the Lord in all matters, including financial matters, we too could end up in a crisis. Let us therefore endeavour to be in Christ and not in a crisis. Let us heed the exhortation of Paul in I Timothy 6:6, 8, “But godliness with contentment is great gain… And having food and clothing, let us be therewith content.”

More than a Financial Cris is

P a g e 4 o u r

Measure weal th not by the things you have, but by the things you have for which you would not take money.

“Money often comes between men and God.” Someone has said that you can take two small ten-cent pieces, just two dimes, and shut out the view of a panoramic landscape. Go to the mountains and just hold two coins closely in front of your eyes--the mountains are still there, but you cannot see them at all because there is a dime shutting off the vision in each eye.

It doesn’t take large quantities of money to come between us and God; just a little, placed in the wrong position, will effectively obscure our view. Cedric Gowler.

Tidbit

EYE on The Globe

Church of the Nazarene registered in Southern Sudan Juba, Southern SudanTuesday, January 13, 2009

November was an historic month for the Church of the Nazarene in the Horn of Africa (HOA). On November 19, 2008, Field Strategy Coordinator Ermias Choliye signed the legal document to register the Church of the Nazarene as an international church in Sudan.

The registration document, signed in the offices of the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) Ministry of Legal Affairs and Registrar Office in Juba, Southern Sudan, in front of representatives from the Sudan government along with John Yual and former HOA coordinator Howie Shute, gives the Church of the Nazarene legal right to plant churches in the southern Sudan states.

During this same trip, Yual, the Sudan mission coordinator, invited Choliye to be involved in the Sudan leadership meetings and Church Planting Movement training program with 17 local leaders and assistant district superintendents from all parts of the East, Southeast, and South Sudan districts.

Choliye commented: “We had a good time of sharing vision and the mission statement as well as revising strategy to reach unreached people in Sudan. The leaders were so excited that they set the final goal to continue teaching the holiness message and to have one million Nazarenes in worship attendance in the year 2012. Sudan Nazarenes want to fulfill the regional target of reaching one million by the year 2012.”

Ermias Choliye NCN News-Africa

Extracted from ncnnews.com

Church of the Nazarene registered in Southern Sudan

The Lord our God will say to usTo not limit what He can do

For He is a God of the unlimitedThere’s nothing He can’t do through you!

For God is doing a new thingIn our lives, today, this hourTo raise us up to be His armyClothing us with His power

Remember not the former thingsThe things that are in the past

Behold, He is doing a new thingAnd will capture human hearts

It’s time now to go out and gatherIn the harvest of the Lord

For there are many whose souls are readyMore than we’ve known before

So take His light into those placesOf darkness and misery

That they may know the God of loveTo give hope and a destiny

Then they may shine right where they areSo others may come to the light

And they in turn may come to knowThe saving grace of Christ

Then Jesus’ light may radiate thereLike a beacon in the night

No longer groping in the darknessBut shining forth God’s light

May the spirit of God arise in youAnd empower you much more

So His glory may be seen with youAs you proclaim the risen Lord

By M.S.Lowndes ~ edited 2008

A voyaging ship was wrecked during a storm at sea and only two of the men on it were able

to swim to a small, desert like island. The two survivors, not knowing what else to do, agree that they had no other recourse but to pray to God. However, to find out whose prayer was more powerful, they agreed to divide the territory between them and stay on opposite sides of the island.

The first thing the first man prayed for was food. The next morning, the first man saw a fruit-bearing tree on his side of the land, and he was able to eat its fruit. The other man’s parcel of land remained barren. After a week, the first man was lonely and he decided to pray for a wife. The next day, another ship was wrecked, and the only survivor was a woman who swam to his side of the land. On the other side of the island, there was nothing.

Soon the first man prayed for a house, clothes, more food. The next day, like magic, all of these were given to him. However, the second man still had nothing.

Finally, the first man prayed for a ship, so that his wife and he could leave the island. In the morning, he found a ship docked at his side of the island. The first man boarded the ship with his wife and decided to leave the second man on the island. He considered the other man unworthy to receive God’s blessings, since none of his prayers had been answered.

As the ship was about to leave, the first man heard a voice from Heaven booming, “Why are you leaving your companion on the island?”

“My blessings are mine alone, since I was the one who prayed for them,” the first man answered. “His prayers were all unanswered, and so he does not deserve anything.” “You are mistaken!” the voice rebuked him. “He had only one prayer, which I answered. If not for that, you would not have received any of my

P a g e 5 i v e

This Is the Time; This Is the Hour

The Prayer

REFLECTIONS“Now I know that the Lord saveth his anointed; he will hear from

his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.”

The JourneyThe children of Israel spent many

years wandering through the desert. What should have been

an 11 day journey took them 40 years to complete. How amazing is that? And today, when we look at the geographical area, it seems almost unthinkable that, that could happen. But many of us have lives that resemble the journey of the children of Israel to the promise land. In our own lives we seem to be working so hard, trying so hard, doing everything we can and yet seem to get nowhere. We walk through life lonely and defeated, putting on a smile for everyone while bleeding silently inside.

The amazing thing about the journey of the children of Israel though is that God used those years in the desert to work on them, purify them, build them, prune them and make them hungry, thirsty and ready for the promised land. The Land turned out to be not all smooth, with some pretty rough terrain. But the children of Israel were so prepared by God that they saw what God wanted them to see… promise, paradise. And many times, in our lives God has to take us around and around the same terrain to create a hunger in us for more; a desire to leave behind the baggage of Egypt, and to develop a single-minded, almost tunnel vision to see what is ahead and nothing else.

To want the promise so much that we can taste it, breathe it, see it, and want to be consumed by it. When our hearts and lives have been sufficiently worked over by the Master, he makes us fertile ground ready to plant his seeds. He uproots the weeds and hidden seeds of the past, of our darkened understanding, and begins to plant His own; renewing, redeeming that which was lost and corrupted. And even at this stage the journey goes on… where the Master looks over the garden of our lives to ensure that the seeds planted bear much fruit.

blessings.”“Tell me,” the first man asked

the voice, “what did he pray for that I should owe him anything?” “He prayed that all your prayers be answered.”

For all we know, our blessings are not the fruits of our prayers alone, but those of another praying for us.

When Jesus died on the cross he was thinking of you!

“The Spir i t g ives l i fe ; the f lesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spir i t and they are l i fe” - John 6:63

LH

LH

Let us know how this publication has helped you. You may also send your prayer requests or answers to prayer. Let someone be blessed by your testimony.

Send your letters to:

The Editor,Church of the Nazarene,Plot ‘A’ Wallaba Road,Meadow Brook Gardens, Georgetown, Guyana

A Splash of Youth

Please write us!

Nazarene Youth International (NYI) is the ideal place for the gathering of hearts. Every Friday night at 7pm young and ‘youthful’ hearts leave their homes and come together for an evening of fun, fellowship and learning the Word of God.

Gathering together with other youth is a wonderful way to grow your faith at the “Brook”. It does not matter how young or mature you are; there is a place for you. Our NYI is divided into three age groups: Fragile Hearts, Tender Hearts, and Lovely Hearts.

Youth Ministry at the Brook

Purity Club: This Club meets twice per month to discuss matters of sexual purity and right choices. Presently we are using the ‘Reach for Life Testament.’ It provides youths the opportunity to freely express their thoughts and ask questions on any subject pertaining to sex.

Study Hall: This ministry is designed for those who need additional help in their academics. We are so blessed to be able to provide our youths with a comfortable environment for studying.

Visitation: This activity helps to build relationship with the community as well as serve as a promotional tool for youth ministries at the Brook

A Gathering of Hearts

Launching of a female mentorship program

Emphasis on leading at least 20 souls to Christ

Community projects Partnership in one major church project Mentorship of youth leaders Personal spiritual growth and development Relationship fostering

What you can expect IN NYI

(topics)

Favourtism Rejection Handling Temptations Handling Power and

Authority Is your conscience clear? Pepper pot night with talent

expo Me nah bow down to no

Satan Dress code Be careful little eyes what

you see….

New attitude….Higher altitude

Habits can either make us or break us. The author Samuel Smiles in his book, ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens’, puts it this way.

Sow a thought, and you reap anact,Sow an act, and you reap a habit,Sow a habit, and you reap a character,Sow a character, and you reap adestiny.

A Bit of Humour

A man and his wife were having an argument about who should brew the coffee each

morning. The wife said, ‘You should do it, because you get up first, and then we don’t have to wait as long to get our coffee.’

The husband said, ‘ You are in charge of cooking around here and you should do it, because that is your job, and I can just wait for my coffee.’

Wife replies, ‘No, you should do it, and besides, it is in the Bible that the man should do the coffee.’

Husband replies, ‘I can’t believe that, show me.’ So she fetches the Bible, and opened the New Testament and shows him at the top of several pages, that it indeed says........

‘HEBREWS’**

P a g e 6 i x

Goals for the year

Celebrating our victorysports day 2008