Lighthouse

The Hummingbird Christian

Jeffrey Lai — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 10:01:01 +0000

THE DESERT ROAD (Isaiah 43:18, 19) “Behold, I will do a new thing … I will even make a road in the wilderness …” Have you ever stopped to ponder this – why would God want to make a road in the wilderness? I mean, why would this be His great new thing? What’s out there? Barren desert. Rock and gravel, sand and dust. Wild animals. Vast emptiness. Hostile environment. Sparse population. What’s the purpose of a desert road? What’s the point? Come to think of it, I’ve travelled on a road in the wilderness. A really big road. The Interstate 15 from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. Yes, I saw all of those things in that expansive landscape. But I also saw where I had come from and where I was going. The bright lights of a new city beckoned. It wasn’t a road to the wilderness, it was a road through the wilderness. God wants to connect us from where we have come from to a new place and to new things He has in store for us. And by leaving the desert road in place, He enables those believing and dreaming of a new hope and new life, a new vibrancy in faith, to follow and find us there.

His good news

Pastor James — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 10:17:14 +0000

Not an unapproachable, distant, fearful, unknowable, uninvolved, uninterested God but a right and continual relationship with God as our Heavenly Father who is near, with us and in us by HIS Spirit.
Not by what we do (our striving, our good works, our will power) but by what our Lord Jesus, in His gracious love, has done for us (His death on the Cross, His resurrection, His ascension).
Not by adherence to externals (ceremonial and religious observance) but from the inside (heart repentance of sin and faith in the Lord Jesus).
Not meaningless, struggling existence but real living each day with grace in the abundant life given us by Jesus, the Lord, our Lord.
Not later to believe but always today is the day of your salvation. Not wait further, not have the Good News as the best kept secret but ever now is the time, the moment to make Jesus known to everyone, everywhere, every time.

HIS Day

Pastor James — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 10:20:38 +0000

The King arrives. The faithful herald, forerunner is pleased. He has done what needed to be done for a smooth and pleasant time for the King. The satisfied King knows his herald and duly honours him.
John the Baptizer appeared to prepare the way for the King, the Lord. He called the people to repentance and prepared them for the arrival of the long-awaited Messiah.
The time arrived. John was the sign for our Lord. Jesus steps forward to usher in the Kingdom of God, to proclaim the Good News, to open the door for all peoples to be forever right with God Almighty, Heavenly Father.
Today, we who are Christ’s through personal faith in HIM and together as HIS local body are HIS heralds in the world, beginning with our community — our family and friends, our sphere of influence, our local suburb and city.
HIS day is here! HE is giving out HIS love and HIS life (abundant and eternal) to our community peoples. HE is leading them to know HIM as the Lord and Saviour. HE is ushering in a new beginning. Something more. Jesus is working out something new in HIS church, in Lighthouse.
Concerned believers must arise quickly, take stock and do everything necessary and well for King Jesus’ visitation — in us, our church and our community. The KING cometh!

Happy 22nd Anniversary!

Pastor James — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:44:28 +0000

Inspired and in faith began with the LORD on 4 March 1990 in a rumpus room. The next Sunday and for 1 year met in Windy Ridge Primary. Then 14 years in Glenfield Intermediate. 7 years ago here in our own premises with ongoing development.

A seed start with Matthew 13:31-32 in heart “The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”

Not one but many people-groups. A partnership with Mark 11:17 in mind, “My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”

Not some but more and more as in Isaiah 54:2-3 to “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch out your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendents will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.”

Not intermittently but as in the song “One Thing Remains”, dear God, Your love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out on me, us. Thank you, LORD.

LORD JESUS, we pray this day, “Our love to YOU will never fail, never give up, never run out for YOU. With YOU now LORD, it’s onto something new, something more with YOU.” Alleluia!

Something New Isaiah 43:19

Pastor James — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:41:21 +0000

Our theme for the coming year. A most significant thought, at once encouraging and challenging.
See with the heart. Sense our God has something new, wants something new for Lighthouse, our Life Groups and Ministries, and for us personally.
The inspiring thought is our LORD wants to visit, to be very present. And HIS presence can only mean an outflow into the community, into our own community and into everywhere.
Key to prepare, to position ourselves to be HIS heralds for HIS impact, HIS entrance into more lives, more people-groups, more in our community.
Sunday sermons flow in the same direction, for faith preparation. We shall ponder the Gospel of Mark as a help for us to see our LORD with new eyes, new heart and to experience HIM afresh.
All hands and all hearts on deck for the coming King! Pray, prepare, anticipate! Glory to Jesus! Amen.

Favourite Verse

Jeffrey Lai — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 22:06:22 +0000

Today, three men (from different walks of life) will be sharing with us their favourite verse in the bible.

Be an expert builder

Pastor Chek Kong — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 03:04:24 +0000

“Because of God’s special favor to me, I have laid the foundation like an Expert Builder. Now others are building on it …” (1 Corinthians 3:10)
By the grace of God, we can be an expert builder – building a strong spiritual house within us.

“Now anyone who builds on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay or straw.” (1 Corinthians 3:12)
But what are we going to build with? What will be our gold, silver and jewels?

“But there is a time of testing at the judgment Day to see what kind of work each builder has done …” (1 Corinthians 3:13)
What kind of tests we will face? Will our work be able to pass the tests?

“If the work survives the fire that builder will receive a reward…but if work is burned the builder will suffer great loss …” (1 Corinthians 3:14)
Our prayer: “Lord, help me to be an expert builder!”

The King as friend

Pastor James — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 03:04:47 +0000

“He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king for his friend.” (Proverbs 22:11 NIV)
Few words but powerful statement! The King for a friend! The person of importance, influence, power, authority as a personal friend! Importantly, the King of Kings as friend! (See John 15:14)
Brief sentence but demanding! A pure heart (clean, chaste, unmixed, unadulterated, etc) and gracious speech (kind, edifying, wholesome, etc).
A high challenge but it is “he who loves.” This indicates a sincere desire to see God’s word realised and actioning it with the grace of God. It’s actively seeking what God wishes and making what is dear to our Lord’s heart dear to our hearts.
Ponder the word. Eat the word. Pray the word. See what ensues when we pursue God’s word, when the word is fleshed out! Glory to our God!

One thing (Psalm 27:4)

Pastor James — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:01:52 +0000

The main object, the ruling objective of David was His desire to live his life in the presence of the Lord God, in unbroken fellowship. He wishes to be able to gaze on His beauty, His loveliness, His majesty … to really know the Lord and see Him in all His splendour. He also wants to know God’s mind, His will, His word, His way.
Such a desire obviously pleased the Lord. We have the benefit of David’s psalms, his trust in the Lord, his demonstrations of faith and God’s favour on him whose heart was after Him.
In the New Testament we have the “one thing” (Phil 3:13). The apostle Paul, for example, mentions a sole aim too. He wants to know Jesus above everything. He said, “I consider everything a loss compared to “the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Phil 3:8a). God honoured his desire. And we have the benefit of Paul’s epistles, his example of trust in the Lord, His missions and divine favour.
It’s all in the spirit and direction of what Jesus says, “Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness” (Matt 6:33a).
If we would live well (a beautiful life), think well (a beautiful mind) and see well (with beautiful eyes) we need to learn, to grow a heart with such a desire for our Lord. Knowing Jesus more and deeper will enlarge, enrich, ennoble our lives and our posterity and increase our influence for God’s Kingdom.

Beautiful eyes

Pastor James — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 02:59:32 +0000

See the Word progressively unfolding before us each Sunday since the start of this year.
1/1 the call to live anew, live well, live full, free
8/1 the necessity to be filled with the Holy Spirit
15/1 the call to a beautiful mind, to think well, nobly
22/1 the confidence to face all of life’s demands through Christ gives us the strength
The Holy Spirit is moving us on further in the same direction. Clearly our Lord is leading us into a transforming work for better, higher, nobler, vibrant living.
Today the thought is on having beautiful eyes. Eyes that can see clearly, deeply, truly, highly, widely, far — proper perspective, right focus, vibrant discipleship, healthy living … really the most beautiful eyes are those of our Lord Jesus, the Perfect Everything. He sees value, beauty, abundance, hope, future in people, even those society rejects. HE sees with different eyes — the beautiful eyes of true loving. Love always has a wonderful way of seeing.
Carpe diem to more of the Lord, all of the Lord! Come, Jesus, we want to see properly. Touch our eyes that we may behold anew, clearly, soundly, beautifully! Amen.