Venue
Rugby Club Conference Room Cnr of Park Road & Albert Park Drive, Te Awamutu 3800 New Zealand
Sunday Services
10.00am Communion
1.00pm Insights for Living
This Weeks Memory Verse.
Psalm 31:24
Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.
Welcome to our Church website.
Sunday 14th July 2024
One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s get in a boat and go across to the other side of the lake.” So they set sail. Soon Jesus fell asleep. The wind rose, and the fierce wind became a violent squall that threatened to swamp their boat.
So the disciples woke Jesus up and said, “Master, Master, we’re sinking! Don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” With great authority Jesus rebuked the howling wind and surging waves, and instantly they stopped and became as smooth as glass.
Then Jesus said to them, “Why are you fearful? Have you lost your faith in me?” Shocked and shaken, they said with amazement to one another, “Who is this man who has authority over winds and waves that they obey him?" Luke 8:22-25 (TPT)...
When Jesus was on earth he functioned outside the normal. He functioned from the Kingdom of God - the Kingdom realm.
See Luke 17:21 the kingdom of God is within you. the kingdom of God is within you. (we will cover more on this subject at a later date.)
Have a week of joy and blessing!!
With love from
Bruce and Jocelyn
Sunday 30th June 2024
Dear family of God here is a warning to be true and faithful to the Lord.
Yesterday our country was encouraged to worship the stars.
In the time of Job the oldest book in the Bible people worshipped many things. But Job worshipped the one true GOD alone.
Job 31:26-28 NLT Have I looked at the sun shining in the skies, or the moon walking down its silver pathway, and been secretly enticed in my heart to throw kisses at them in worship? If so, I should be punished by the judges, for it would mean I had denied the GOD of heaven.
Paul spoke about idols in Acts 14:15-20 calling them 'vanities' i.e emptiness that will vanish away. The people worshipped Greek gods and Paul explained that GOD was still good to those people. Paul was stoned for saying these things, as he pointed them to the true GOD, but the Lord raised him up as the disciples stood around him.
(Would you stone me if I said check your life for other things that are vanities? Animist belief is not the only vanity.)
As Christians our thanks and worship goes far higher than the stars to GOD who made them. GOD is the Father of lights and from him come all good gifts. James 1:17. We don't become stars or angels but we will shine brighter than the stars in the kingdom of our dear Father GOD..(See Matthew 13:43 & Daniel 12:32)
What a wonderful true and loving Saviour GOD we worship and serve.
Praise GOD! Hallelujah!
Have a week of joy and blessing!!
With love from
Bruce and Jocelyn
Sunday 23rd June 2024
May we all have a fresh realisation of the love of God today. Life is made up of seasons, and we all go through days both happy and sad, dreary or joyous. But knowing the different aspects of God's loving nature is an anchor for the soul.
These truths give us hope and hope keeps our emotions steady and mind at peace. (see Romans 15:4) It is good for every Christian believer to say out loud the truths about God's excellent greatness and to think about (meditate on) each one.
"Lord Jesus, I'm so glad and grateful that you are my salvation, you are my hope, you are my healer, you are my joy, you are my rock, you are my peace, you are my deliverer, you are my refuge, you are my light, you are my keeper, and you are my Life. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
With love from
Bruce and Jocelyn
Christmas Message Article
Published in the Te Awamutu News
Christmas Christmas 13th December 2023
Last Friday afternoon folk of all ages gathered to enjoy singing joyous Christmas carols in the Church-yard outside the Presbyterian church, in celebration of the birth of Jesus our Lord and Saviour.
It certainly felt like Christmas with the familiar happy atmosphere there.
We remembered the mother of Jesus, a young Jewess woman named Mary, who was visited by the angel Gabriel who said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God.And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest.”
The ancestor of Jesus was Abraham (the father of the Jews), he was given the following promise from God, which holds true to this day:
“I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples of the earth will be blessed through you.”
May New Zealand always stand this Israel, because we need God to bless our country.
Through the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob including Jesus and his disciples Peter, James, John and Paul (who were ALL Jewish) we were given the Bible, with it's message of God's love for every person on earth.
Christmas is the time to be joyful, good to each other and giving. It reminds us to trust in God who is love, and not to be afraid of the future.
May Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God richly bless you and your family this Christmas Season and throughout the coming New Year of 2024.
Christian Comment - published in the Te Awamutu Courier Newspaper on Thursday 8th December 2022
Joy to the World
"Joy to the world the Lord has come, let earth receive her King . . . ”
The joy is that there is hope for us all. God is love, and perfect love casts out fear.
I remember that, when my brother and sister and I were children, we would run down the driveway to hear the Christmas carols being played by the band on the back of the truck as it stopped at our farm gate.
The music, brought a wonderful presence, because young as we were, we knew the tunes told the wonderful story of God’s love.
Jesus said, “I am the truth” and also “Don’t let your heart be troubled . . . ”
I used to worry about many things when I was farming until someone
showed me what God had promised thousands of years ago that while the earth remained there would be continuing seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night. (See Genesis 8:22 in the Bible) So we don’t have to worry or fret.
Sadly, for the last two or three years we have been constantly bombarded with words of unending fear. Living in fear can even cause you to despair.
But there is good news, thousands of people around the world are beginning to trust in Jesus and great miracles are happening in their lives.
“Joy to the World the Lord has come, let earth receive her King . . . ”
God bless you, and have a wonderful Christmas.
Christian Comment - published in the Te Awamutu Courier Newspaper on Thursday 13th May 2021
God is here with us
What an incredible time in history to be alive! We have come to a time where the dividing line between right and wrong, truth and lies, light and darkness, is becoming glaringly obvious. Standing for truth is becoming very costly.
For example, highly trained medical doctors are being silenced from voicing their opinion on the vaccine. In the free world Governments are turning on their own people. Truth tellers are being silenced by Big Tech and Mainstream News Media outlets around the world.
Sadly, even in free countries, some church leaders are being imprisoned and held in solitary confinement for holding Church meetings in their own Church buildings.
This is NOT a time to despair.
Here is the GOOD news: “GOD HAS NOT FORGOTTEN US here in New Zealand.”
God Almighty is about to sweep across the nations of the world with the greatest displays of his love for mankind that the world has ever seen - with Signs, Wonders and Miracles - drawing millions into the Kingdom of God as in Bible days.
When people heard the Gospel preached, they experienced real encounters with the Living God. Those who were crippled were healed, the blind could see, the deaf could hear, broken hearts were mended.
There are Christians in this country who are about to hit the streets proclaiming that God has NOT forgotten you. Local Evangelists are about to come to towns and cities throughout New Zealand, with crowds flocking to their meetings to receive the freedom that only Jesus Christ can deliver.
Jesus said, “The thief (devil) comes only in order to steal, kill, and destroy. I (Jesus Christ) have come in order that you might have life - life in all its fullness.” John 10.10
Christian Comment - published in the Te Awamutu Courier Newspaper on Thursday 13th May 2021
God is here with us
What an incredible time in history to be alive! We have come to a time where the dividing line between right and wrong, truth and lies, light and darkness, is becoming glaringly obvious. Standing for truth is becoming very costly.
For example, highly trained medical doctors are being silenced from voicing their opinion on the vaccine. In the free world Governments are turning on their own people. Truth tellers are being silenced by Big Tech and Mainstream News Media outlets around the world.
Sadly, even in free countries, some church leaders are being imprisoned and held in solitary confinement for holding Church meetings in their own Church buildings.
This is NOT a time to despair.
Here is the GOOD news: “GOD HAS NOT FORGOTTEN US here in New Zealand.”
God Almighty is about to sweep across the nations of the world with the greatest displays of his love for mankind that the world has ever seen - with Signs, Wonders and Miracles - drawing millions into the Kingdom of God as in Bible days.
When people heard the Gospel preached, they experienced real encounters with the Living God. Those who were crippled were healed, the blind could see, the deaf could hear, broken hearts were mended.
There are Christians in this country who are about to hit the streets proclaiming that God has NOT forgotten you. Local Evangelists are about to come to towns and cities throughout New Zealand, with crowds flocking to their meetings to receive the freedom that only Jesus Christ can deliver.
Jesus said, “The thief (devil) comes only in order to steal, kill, and destroy. I (Jesus Christ) have come in order that you might have life - life in all its fullness.” John 10.10
Christian Comment - published in the Te Awamutu Courier Newspaper on Thursday 14th May 2020
Motherhood: There is nothing as honourable.
Last Anzac Day we honoured our War Veterans and those who gave their lives in the fight to protect the freedoms we enjoy in this beautiful country today.
May 10th was Mother's Day. It is also important for everyone of us to honour our parents whether alive or not. Even Jesus himself while hanging on that cruel cross looked down and gave special attention to his mother and made sure she was going to be cared for by the Apostle John. (see John 19:27)
“Honour your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you....” (Deuteronomy 5:6)
We should never degrade the most honourable role of motherhood. No-one should coerce a young girl or woman to remove the life of a child they are carrying. She will end up honoured if she bravely brings her child into the world and God will help her.
Not a human being living on the face of this earth, would be alive today without their mother bringing them into this world. There is an old saying, “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” It is an honour to be a mother.
My mother was wise and kind, something I appreciated more as I grew up. A very competative sportswoman, she also enjoyed driving and was very good at it. I remember the exhilaration I felt as a child when she was driving the car and not many cars passed us on the 10km trip to town. When she reached her 90's she was still winning the competitions at indoor bowls in Hamilton.
My mother passed away last year at the age of 95 years.
Mary the mother of Jesus must have been a lady that was very courageous too. She once said,
“Do what Jesus tells you to do.” (John 2:5) That's good advice.
When you honour your parents (as having brought you into this world), you too will be honoured.
In conclusion; I suggest that you look up the song “MUM” by Prince Tui Teka on YouTube. This song will tug on your heart strings as it did ours when we listened to it on Mother's Day.
by Pastor Bruce Judd – Te Awamutu Christian Centre.
Christian Comment - published in the Te Awamutu Courier Newspaper on Thursday 16th May 2018
Bible Instils Morals For A Good Life
Would you rather be told the truth or be lied too?
Many years ago we were living in a town where the main road bridge crossed a wide fast flowing river. One night a sudden storm washed the bridge away leaving the roadway completely open to the flooded river below. That night a quick-thinking Truckee parked his truck and trailer directly across the road just meters before the river, to stop the traffic.
Some approaching drivers may have verbally abused that driver for blocking the road with his unit that night, only to discover later that he had saved their lives.
The Bible tells us that Jesus is the truth and he was always doing good, yet the people of His day became so enraged that they wanted to kill Him rather than, (for their own good), change their destructive lifestyles. Jesus taught the people how to do right and live right i.e. guidelines for morality.
Acts 10:38 “... God annointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”
Have you noticed that we are seeing and hearing more words quoted from the Bible on Mainstream and Social Media recently? The use of technology to communicate with one another is very quickly becoming the norm in society. We are constantly being reminded to be “Tolerant” of every ideology out there. However, when anyone suggests that we should base our life decisions on good old fashioned morals from the Bible, the so-called “tolerant” explode in anger.
By applying good morals in life you will save yourself from much unnecessary pain, disaster, loneliness and heartache down the road of life.
I will leave you with Proverbs 23:23 Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and instruction and understanding.
God bless you and have a great day.
Pastor Bruce Judd
Te Awamutu Christian Centre
www.christiancentre.co.nz
Christian Comment - published in the Te Awamutu Courier Newspaper on Thursday 12th July 2018
God’s rules are still relevant
Today I spent a while “walking down memory lane” and came across an old photo of my Grandfather, the photo was taken when he was sitting at the dining room table reading his Bible. (I was 15 years old at the time)
The words of this old chorus we used to sing in Sunday School came to mind:
Yesterday, today, forever
Jesus is the same
All may change but Jesus never
Glory to His name
Glory to His name
Glory to His name
All may change but Jesus never
Glory to His name
We are living in a day when activism and social engineering are beginning to erode away many of the old established norms in our society, and we wonder why depression and suicide are so prevalent out there.
The God of the Bible says: “For I am the LORD, I change not.” Malachi 3:6
God loves you – He really does, and He accepts you just as you are when you call out to Him.
In Jeremiah 31:3 God says: “I will always love you.”
But we have to realise that the God of the Bible is a God of justice as well.
If we insist on disobeying the road rules and choose to drive on the wrong side of the road, eventually we will have a serious accident and get hurt and may cause injury or death to an innocent person as well.
The same goes for the rules God has in place too.
Have you noticed how loud people scream and yell when they are trying to insist that they are right, when they know deep down they are not?
God has not only put rules in place to protect us not to harm us but has given us an inner voice called conscience.
A friend at a late night party was offered a ride home by her Auntie because all the drivers were “getting tanked up.”
When our young friend declined the offer her inner voice was saying “Go Now.”
Early in the morning travelling home with her boyfriend there was a serious car accident and our friend severed her spinal cord and lost the use of her legs.
She said later that it was God telling her to go home but she had ignored the inner voice.
Life is full of choices: “I am now giving you the choice between life and death, between God's blessing and God's curse, and I call heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Choose life.” Deuturonomy 30:19.
Just to add some more information about my Grandfather. He was raised, together with his siblings, by his solo mother and at the age of 18 he dedicated his life to Jesus. He had a very healthy and successful life and died at 94 years of age.
God bless you
Pastor Bruce Judd
Te Awamutu Christian Centre
www.christiancentre.co.nz
Gospel Tract
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Jeremiah 33:3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Isaiah 41:10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Your prayer:
Dear God, I come to You in the Name of Jesus. I admit that I am not right with You, and I want to be right with You. I ask you to forgive me of all my sins.
The Bible says in Romans 10:9 if I confess with my mouth that "Jesus is Lord," and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead, I will be saved.
I believe with my heart and I confess with my mouth that Jesus is the Lord and Saviour of my life.
Thank You for saving me!
In Jesus' Name I pray.
Amen.
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