 photo: ANFGM national sportsfest 2014  ANFGM Ruwais Outreach "Exercise thyself unto godliness: for bodily exercise is profitable for a little; but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life which now is, and of that which is to come."-- 1Ti_4:7-8 (R.V.). The relation of the body to religion has always engaged the attention of thoughtful religious men. Human opinion has oscillated between two extremes. On the one hand, some have considered that the body was the seat of sin, and have set themselves to degrade and debase it with every indignity and torture. This conception has influenced devoutly-intentioned people in the East, and also in Western monasticism. But sin must be dealt with in the heart and soul, where it has its inception and spring. It is easy to macerate the body, whilst the pride of self-mortification is undetected. If we deal with bad thought and evil suggestion, we shall not have so much trouble with the body, which is only the dial-plate, registering the workings within. The other extreme was represented in the Greek religion. The temples that stand in ruins: the superb works of art which have survived the wreck of centuries; its poetry and literature, sustain and illustrate the supreme devotion of the Greek mind to beauty. The Christian position differs from both. To us the body is the temple, the instrument, the weapon of the soul. The Holy Spirit quickens our mortal body by His indwelling, and in the faces and lives of holy men and women we may trace the growing results of the inward power and beauty of pure and undefiled religion. It is good to care for the body, but only as we should care for a complex and fine piece of machinery which is to serve us. There are gifts in us, which we must not neglect, or it will go hard with us when we meet our Master, who entrusted them to our stewardship. Probably the trials and temptations of life are intended to give us that inward training which shall bring our spiritual muscles into play. In each of us there is much unused force; many moral and spiritual faculties, which would never be used, if it were not for the wrestling which we are compelled to take up with principalities and powers, with difficulty and sorrow. The Apostle bids us take heed to ourselves, and to live in the atmosphere of uplifting thought and of self-denying ministry (1Timothy 4:13-15). PRAYER Mould us, O God, into forms of beauty and usefulness by the wheel of Thy providence, and by the touch of Thy hand. Fulfil Thine ideal, and conform us to the image of Thy Son. AMEN.
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 Photo: Bro. Teejay, Bro. Emman and Jammine prayed and appreciated their untiring support to ANFGM. They left to the Philippines and Canada for good. "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven."-- Ecclesiastes 3:1. Do not be in too great a hurry. There is time for everything that has to be done. He who gave you your life-work has given you just enough time to do it in. The length of life's candle is measured out according to the length of your required task. You must take necessary time for meditation, for sleep, for food, for the enjoyment of human love and friendship; and even then there will be time enough left for your necessary duties. More haste, less speed! The feverish hand often gives itself additional toil. "He that believeth shall not make haste." Do not be impatient. He who made you has prepared the successive steps along which you must travel to realize your full human development. God knows what you need and will bring you to its fulfilment, only you must wait His leisure with whom a thousand years are as one day, and one day as a thousand years. He can mature events with marvellous rapidity, and you will find that He will perfect that which concerneth you, so that no good thing will fail. He who feeds the wild things of the prairie and woodland, giving to each its appropriate portion, will not fail any one of us. He will supply us with food convenient for us. The Creator is faithful to the creature. Do not be cast down. Sorrow and trial are only for a time. They have their seasons, and pass. It is not always winter, and God puts bright and beautiful things into our lives which we need not be afraid of enjoying, it being understood that we do not snatch at them, or use them for our personal pleasure alone. Everything is beautiful after its sort and in its season, and every day has some element of goodwill in it, but we sometimes so strain our eyes towards a distant spot on the horizon that we miss the flowers on which we are treading. ANFGM would like to thank Bro. Teejay, Bro. Emman and Sis. Jammine for their untiring support to God's ministry. Bro Teejay was so supporting to mission and AMEN while Bro. Emman was one of the annointed song leader and Sis. Jammine was the intercessor partner of Bro. Emman and was supportive to Bro. Emman on his ministry. It is time for them to follow the change in their life. They follow God's plan for them by leaving UAE and go back to the Philippines and Canada respectively. We contineously pray for them for their success. God is in all; find Him there! "Every good gift is from the Father of lights." They were created that they might be received with thanksgiving, and the altar sanctifies the gift. It is only when the gifts of God are severed from the Giver that they do us harm (Ecclesiastes3:13). God has set Eternity in our heart, and man's infinite capacity cannot be filled or satisfied with the things of time and sense (see Ecclesiastes 3:11, R.V. marg.). PRAYER Cause Thy grace to abound toward us, that we may have all sufficiency in all things, and abound to every good work. Help us to fulfil all the duties and responsibilities that this day may bring. AMEN.  A recap of Elder Shirley's preaching dated July 15, 2016 at St. Andrew's Church. Photo: Elder Shirley and her family. Written by Sis. Tanya Habib
Elder Shirley has reminded us of something very important that is often forgotten as we go about the tasks of daily living – that is, we are to have a proper understanding of our identity in Christ and as citizens of Heaven - John 17:14 (NLT). She went on to explain that if we really understood clearly and all times that once we have accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour and that we are no longer of this world, our perspectives, our attitudes and our approach to the ‘world’ must necessarily be different as Paul tells us in Romans 12:2(NLT) “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think…” We adopt heavenly standards and should no longer be satisfied with conforming to the standards of this world. What are the standards of this world? Elder Shirley directs us to God’s word in 1 John 2:15 – 16 (NLT) for clarification on what these ‘worldly’ standards are, “Do not love the things of this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world”. Have we gone about our daily lives this week with a renewed sense of who we really are in Christ Jesus? Have we really approached each situation we encounter with an acute awareness of God’s presence in our lives and of our heavenly citizenship? If not, and we still find ourselves craving what the world has to offer instead of longing for the things of our heavenly kingdom, let us then turn to God’s word for insight and submit to the Holy Spirit to allow Him to do His work in our lives, convicting us of our misguided prioritization of the things of this world that have displaced Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour as the centre and focus of our lives. As the Holy Spirit takes us through the process of revealing the things in us that we must change, we need to be obedient, set them aside and put them under the lordship of Jesus.It is not an easy process,neither can we experience this renewal and transformation in our own strength, but if we can offer God a heart that is willing to change and truly seek the things of the Kingdom of Heaven and prioritize what is near and dear to the Father’s heart, He is faithful and will lovingly engineer our transformation, to live our lives as citizens of heaven, conducting ourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ - Philippians 1:27 (NLT). The following are some other helpful Scriptures referenced by Elder Shirley: 1 John 5:19 James 4:4 2 Timothy 3:1 |
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