How do we grow in God’s love, and what does it mean to remain? David Jennings looks at Jesus’ teaching that his followers are branches in him, a vine, made for fruitfulness under God’s gardening care. This fruit isn’t work we do, it’s the character of love, joy and peace that grows as we accept Jesus’ love and become defined by him and his character. Is it challenging to allow this to happen, sometimes needing to give up what we’d been aiming for ourselves? If so, can we find assurance in Jesus’ promise that, by remaining in him, we will be incredibly fruitful?
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What does God's coming kingdom look like in you? Owen Lynch looks at how Jesus compared this to a little bit of yeast that transforms a whole batch of dough - but what does that actually mean for us? Could the apparent weakness of self-sacrifice and small expressions of love, joy, peace, patience and kindness really be all that significant, especially when we love big, spectacular experiences? We might imagine the church's first leaders to have been amazing speakers, full of charisma, but this wasn't how Paul described himself. What else was God doing then that he might be doing with us now?
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When people in churches disagree, is there anything we know that should unite us? Owen Lynch looks at how Paul addressed believers who were becoming divided over personalities, leadership, ideas and practical issues. The believers and leaders were diverse, surprisingly inclusive to many. Was the answer to change that? Or was the cross of Christ uniquely powerful and necessary to unite people?
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Are you a journey or destination person? This talk looks at what it means to leave the familiar and head towards a deeper spiritual home. How can we tell which way to go? The Magi in the Christmas story had a star to follow, which pointed them to Jesus - can we fix our eyes on him?
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Does this new year feel light and joyful, or have we loaded ourselves up with burdens? Owen Lynch looks at how spiritual and emotional health are important to us and need to be kept in balance. Jesus criticised religious leaders who brought loads of expectation which they could not carry themselves, and offered a better way of life.
Have we taken up Jesus’ offer? Maybe we can tell by asking if our faith life is making us weary, judgmental, unapproachable and inauthentic, when it could be lightening our hearts, making us more open minded, hospitable and authentic instead.
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What makes a great gift? Liz Nixon looks at the value of thoughtful, meaningful gifts and how they can build relationships when we grow love in return. The talk concludes with ten minutes of ‘examen’ prayer, which can also be practised with the Pray As You Go app at https://pray-as-you-go.org
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What does the story of Jesus' birth tell us about God? Owen Lynch looks at this and shares his own reasons for having faith in Jesus. Do we want the stories which define us to be God's stories about us, our value, and how much we are loved and filled with his love, joy and peace to share this year?
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What does it mean to follow Jesus and end up changing our minds about something important? Owen Lynch looks at Paul’s movements in Acts of the Apostles, which were not just physical across Europe, but changes in his long-held beliefs about what the long hoped-for Jewish messiah - their anointed leader - would look like. Many were quoting “clobber” passages from scripture to prove that Jesus could not take this role, but Paul’s experience forced him to rethink.
How much has Jesus changed our minds since we first encountered him? Do we expect Jesus to change our perspectives from time to time when we read the Bible? What deeply held views, beliefs or doctrines might Jesus be inviting us to reconsider?
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What effect has the gospel of Jesus had on the way we see the world? Owen Lynch looks at the way this gospel spread across Europe in the time of Jesus’ first followers. It met with opposition from ruling powers and traditional institutions, but was received and spread in an inclusive, progressive and hopeful way. What could make anyone think it should be about exclusivity, regression and fear? Why does the church look like that to many today? How does Jesus want to move us forwards with him?
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How do we feel about breaking the rules and crossing boundaries? Dan Green has lived across multiple cultures and trains people in what can help to build good relationships across cultural divides. In this talk, he looks at the story of a woman whose approach to Jesus looked completely wrong to many, but showed love and honesty which Jesus recognised and praised. Could the way we feel when we see others reveal ways that God's love needs to transform our hearts?
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When we form pictures in our minds, does God have a gender? Claire Lynch looks at the history of people forming views on this, and considers the range of Bible references to God which might seem more male or female in different places. The talk concludes with time for meditation for you to notice what comes to mind in response to the Bible’s descriptions of God. Could fresh images of God help you relate to God better?
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Severn Vineyard celebrated its 15th birthday on October 20th 2024. Owen Lynch talked about what brings people together for church, including Severn's relationships, beliefs and values. People then shared what drew them to Severn and the impact it has had in their lives.
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What does God really want from us? Phil Joiner from Breathe Ministries looks at his forty-year journey of coming to terms with an idea he thought he knew, that God wants relationship. We can get a different idea from the efforts people put in to find correct answers to hard questions, including how to make sense of theology. Occasionally, revelations might occur to us and we might wonder if their point is to set us right, but what if ongoing revelation and relationship are always going to be God’s desire for us? Could he have made us for “revelationship”?
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Do we view God as distant, or close and loving? David Jennings shares his experience of encountering God for himself and in the lives of people he has worked with. Descriptions in the Bible about the movement and power of the Holy Spirit can tell us what believers can expect from God and why. Do we need to do anything special to be loved by God? How do we get to meet with God, feel and know what his love for us is like?
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Are we born broken or blessed? Claire Lynch looks at how teaching about “original sin” developed, and how the Bible tells a different story about God, the nature of life and the original goodness and blessing God gave to his creation, overflowing from his own goodness. Could we have misunderstood this because we’ve been brought up to seek rewards for things we have done well, and ended up believing we need to work our way towards perfection? What difference could it make for us to believe that God already loves, blesses and sticks with us, no matter what?
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How do we get help from God? Is it only when we ask, or does God get involved and help us all the time?
This talk looks at times in life when we need help, and not just comfort, and the hope that believers through history have found in Psalm 121, which starts, "I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth."
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How does life with Jesus shape us? Owen Lynch looks at the range of people described in Acts of the Apostles who became and grew as believers together. Between them, there were many roots of identity. Were they forced to abandon their sense of who they were, or was God deepening their relationships in their communities?
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What it is like to follow Jesus? Dan Green looks at Simon Peter, whose story and character show several relatable sides to this.
Peter’s choice to follow and believe in Jesus was remarkable, given his life experience, but maybe not as much as Jesus’ choice to call and believe in Peter first. Peter’s response to Jesus involved much practical learning, faith risks, new experiences and changes of mind. His life became an emotional rollercoaster at times, but even though his low points included denying being a follower, Jesus restored him to the heights of trust and leadership responsibility because of the love he saw in Peter.
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What do we expect from people joining a journey of faith? Owen Lynch looks at the disputes which arose in the early church around following the Jewish law, why this was important to many people, and why the opening of God’s kingdom to all was a challenging, counter-intuitive idea to them.
Two key leaders, Peter and Paul, found themselves in dispute, but the story of Acts, and their letters which are also in the New Testament, show how God changed their understanding and revealed Christ as their foundation. How should this set our expectations and maybe change the way we treat others who are looking to follow Jesus?
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