Romans 8:1

MARKS OF MATURITY (Part 3— JAMES AND THE TONGUE)

(June 06, 2025) Dr Richard Winter shares a vital challenge…

High School in my day was where they prepared you for your university experience. If you were to take a Bachelor Arts Degree you would need to have a language— our choice was Latin or French. Latin? Aww… that’s a dead language and no one spoke that! But French? Now that sounded good; had me dreaming that perhaps one day I would go to Paris. Off we went learning our French vocabulary.

And as inquisitive teenagers we soon learned some French phrases that were not complimentary— like Ferme la bouche— shut your mouth! I tried it on my sisters at home but my mother worked out that what I was saying was not a compliment.… and I got into trouble!

Have you ever said something that you later regretted saying? On the other hand, have you ever wished you had said something that you later regretted not saying?

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THE NEED TO FORGIVE – AND FORGET!

(January 21, 2024) Robert McQuillan shares sincerely…

Don’t know about you, but in my early Sunday school days one the first things I was encouraged to memorise was The Lord’s Prayer.

In The Debt Trap Dr Richard Winter writes about Jesus teaching this prayer in Matthew 6:9-11, and  particularly highlights verses 14-15: ‘For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.’ He makes it very clear that not forgiving leads to being trapped by the emotional and spiritual debt of non-forgiveness.

I highly recommend you read Dr Richard’s article… especially if, like myself and others, you intend moving ahead in 2024 free from restraints that so easily waylay, a major one being not forgiving others who have offended us!

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CHRISTOS VOSKRES – VOYISTENO VOSKRES ! CHRIST IS RISEN… VICTORIOUSLY RISEN! 

(April 09, 2023) Dr Robert McQuillan challenges…

War between Russia and Ukraine is still sad news! Great news today though that Ukrainian children in Russian occupied territory have been returned to their parents! So many declarations of joy this Resurrection Sunday among happy parents and kids!

I was reminded of other Ukrainian declarations decades ago in the first church we planted. A Ukrainian member brought communion one Resurrection Sunday and shared how years ago the communists would take great delight in trying to re-educate village Ukrainian peasants.

Hearing of an outbreak of Christianity in one particular village, the authorities moved in with two university educated scholars, calling a mandatory meeting to which all the villagers had to attend. The humble villagers were afraid of what might happen.

Those clever scholars started by telling those simple villagers of the Soviet regime’s latest conquests and then quoting so-called ‘hard evidence’ that put an end to that religious myth of a ‘raised dead God.’

1. The greatest declaration
After a couple of hours building their case, they threw the meeting open for villagers to come forward and debate with them. But people were afraid for they knew full well the consequences to anyone daring to oppose the communists. People would disappear in the middle of the night, ending up in Siberia!

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NO CONDEMNATION!

(September 17, 2021) Robert and Maureen McQuillan comment on two vital scripture realities…

We had a call from ‘Joe’ concerned about giving advice to a troubled friend. But as we chatted, we realised he was actually feeling condemned, guiltily thinking ‘What if I’m wrong? Who am I to think I can help anyone? I’ve made so many mistakes myself. I try to be good, to give good advice but what if…?’ And so on!

It was obvious to us that ‘Joe’ has such a good heart and genuinely wants to help others but, like a lot of other Christians, hasn’t really got it about who they are in Christ and what God’s word says about them!

And that our great lying enemy, Satan, is always ‘prowling around’ looking for ways to deceive us from living in freedom and being effective for Jesus (1 Peter 5:8).

As Satan’s trickery makes Christians feel unworthy, guilty and especially condemned, let’s share some truths about condemnation… 

1.   Condemnation’s evilness 
As a dictionary will confirm, condemnation is, at its simplest, accusation. And by extension, causes one to feel guilty, doomed, and unfit for use. It’s a word that doesn’t offer much hope for the future.

This is an evil thing that can eat into your very soul, robbing you of your present happiness and future potential and very purpose in life… if you foolishly let it!

Condemnatory thoughts become self-condemnatory ones, establishing a guilt complex that makes you feel you cannot please God or anyone else. This can go as far as making you feel unworthy, that God doesn’t love you and that you’re unforgiven. 

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GOD DOESN’T HAVE A ‘TOO HARD WORK BASKET’

(June 17, 2021) Maureen McQuillan brings an encouraging reminder…

What joy we had yesterday afternoon when our darling granddaughter Bonnie-Jane called round with our latest family addition, little great-granddaugther Avaleigh Grace, soon to be three months old. Nice to see our son-in-law, now Grandda Steve, with them but, needless to say, the centre of attention was Avaleigh!

How she’s grown in only a few weeks… and those beautiful big dark-brown eyes taking everything in, as well as grabbing our attention with her warm grins. To our delight, it’s so obvious she’s a very intelligent child.

We joked with Bonnie-Jane… ‘She’ll soon be just like you were, crawling all over the place, into everything, opening cupboard doors and enquiring about this and that, question after question.’

Bonnie-Jane laughed as she too recalled early times. It really was a wonderful time together, especially as we’d been in lockdown for a couple of weeks and hadn’t got out.

After they left l remembered fun days with Bonnie, joyfully recalling many delightful happy memories that Robert and I have. We’ve always had an incredibly close relationship with Bonnie; throughout her childhood she would often spend much time with us and, she recently admitted, still loves to come ‘round the corner’ to us (that’s how far away she, husband Matthew and Avaleigh live).

‘Grandma, God must be pooped!’ memory
Like her keen-eyed little daughter, even when Bonnie-Jane was very young she too would always be quietly observing things. Even while enjoying a Maccas, she wouldn’t rush eating her food like some other kids but sit with us properly digesting her chosen burger, quietly observing both adults and children around her.

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TITHING TO THE CHURCH

(April 16, 2021) Maureen McQuillan responds to a lady who queries giving…

Dear Pastor Maureen
Must I give offerings only to my denominational church? ‘Sarah’

Dear Sarah

As Robert points out in his question-answer this month, we should be generous in our giving… but the query that comes to my mind is ‘Are we Christians because we’re Anglican, Baptist, United, Pentecostal denomination – aren’t we simply Christians because we’ve accepted Jesus as our Saviour?’

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