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We meet each other digitally in groups of three or four in WhatsApp Groups.
“For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them”
Mat 18:20
Let us know on info@icfdelft.nl if you would like to be added to such a digital neighbor-group.
Previous Sunday pastor Hans-Jan prepared a sermon, but due to circumstances he did not deliver his message as intended.
You’re invited to our Christmas Service on Wednesday December 25th, in the New Church in Delft.
When: 25 December 2019 from 12:30h
Where: Nieuwe Kerk, Markt 80, 2611 GW, Delft
Lunch: Join us for a free lunch afterwards! Find more information here.
More information will be added shortly.
How do you look at yourself? Are you satisfied with yourself or struggling with your personality? It is a far from an easy question. Some of us suffer from inferiority feelings, or from killing perfectionism. A recent survey among international students in Delft showed that nearly 25 % seriously struggles with this kind of questions. Expectations of others like peers, teachers or parents can produce a lot of stress. In the service coming Sunday we continue our series of theme sermons on relationships, focusing on the relationship with ourselves.
Together we look in the true mirror of God’s image – how God meant us to be. But there are also a lot of false mirrors that distort our self-image.
How can the beautiful image of God be restored in us? Accepting and believing the Good News of Jesus has great impact on the relationship with myself. In three ways:
1. The Gospel gives a new basis to accept myself.
2. The Gospel is a new incentive to develop myself.
3. The Gospel gives the promise to find myself.
Be most welcome on Sunday at 12:15pm and find out more about this important topic!
Pastor Niek Tramper
Have you ever been struck by what kind of a basically happy person Jesus was?
This may come as a suprise to many people, especially in this time of lent. They look at Jesus as a man of sorrow, acquainted with grief.
But in the centre of Jesus’ famous sermon on the mount there is a passage about joy and living our lives in the present before God and without sorrow. In his teaching, Jesus refers to heaven as a place not far from here and now. It is something that we can experience today!
How? That’s what we will talk about coming Sunday!
We look forward to see you and discover together more about what Rev. Hans-Jan Roosenbrand will tell us about this exciting topic!
Christian faith is a private matter. That is the general opinion about religion in Dutch society. You can believe whatever you want, but do not reach out to convince another person. Is that not exactly what Jesus says: “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” (Matthew 6:6)?
What does Jesus mean, why do we have to pray in secret? This Sunday the sermon will be about this statement of Jesus! You are most welcome to join and find out more!
Pastor Simon van der Lugt
Nobody of us is excluded from conflicts. Where people live together conflicts may slumber. When we cooperate in study and work, or among friends and family members all of a sudden a problem can pop up. Somebody neglects you, seems to despise you, hurts you or even abuses you. It stirs up anger and a longing to make him or her pay for it. How do you deal with that? Are you able not to feel abused and victimized? Are you able to refrain from retaliation, and -by the way- is it necessary?
Jesus taught his followers even not to resist evil, not to retaliate, but to love their enemies. What did He mean, how is that possible?
Great people in history have taken Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount to the extreme in advocating for full tolerance and a non-violent approach to all kinds of evil. The Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, the well-known champion for peace Gandhi in India and the Quakers in North America are famous for it.
How is it possible not to cook anger and not to want revenge? To bless those who hurt you and to pray for the ones who persecute you? It seems impossible indeed and completely opposite to common human experience. Does Jesus ask that we surrender ourselves to be treated like a doormat? Let us explore together to what Jesus calls his disciples and why, and how it applies to our day-to-day experience. They should be really different from what is common practice in society because they reflect the kindness of God. Indeed, it is impossible for sons of Adam and daughters of Eve. But what Jesus demands, He also makes possible by His Spirit who wants to renew and restore the image of God in us. The Spirit of Him, who loved enemies till the bitter end, will help us to refrain from retaliation, to forgive and to love those who hurt us. See and hear more in the church service of ICF Delft on Sunday, 4th of February.
After the service we will have potluck lunch together! Just bring something to eat to share so we will have enough for everyone (doesn’t have to be homemade). Also invite your friends to join us and lets all have fellowship with one another!
Pastor Niek
You might be familiar with this children’s song. Children always like to sing it and they make movements with their arms and hands while singing!
The truth in this children’s song is less easy to put in practice for adults. Most of us are very busy with study, work, family issues and much more.
Therefore, for the honour of God and for keeping ourselves healthy spiritually we should not forget to feed ourselves from the Word of God and to express our thankfulness and dependency in prayer.
There is a wealth of websites and materials to help you with it. Especially when you are new to Christian faith and want to grow in Christian understanding and practice, here is a number of recommendations for you. (If a link may not work, copy it and paste it into your browser.)
We hope and pray that it will help you to discover more about the beauty and truth of Christian faith!
Pastor Niek
* Alan M Stibbs ‘A devotional guide to the Bible’
* Ro Willoughby ‘Quiet time Companion’
* Chronical Life Application Bible
You can order by www.amazon.com or (in Dutch) by: www.bol.com
Click on ‘Look inside’ and you can read quite a few days to get an idea how it works and try it out. Also recommended: www.bibleinoneyear.org
http://www.desiringgod.org/topics/suffering/labs Watch 9 minute sessions on how to study the Bible inductively.
www.biblegateway.com/resources/scripture-engagement
if you find it hard to sit still and read:
www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Gen.1 or on the Olive Tree App (see below)
like different translations, Greek and Hebrew original text, more elaborated Bible studies about different subjects and Bible commentaries:
www.biblehub.com
www.olivetree.com
www.bible.com/reading-plans-collection/423
For Chinese speakers:
www.csmn.nl (Go to ‘resources’ – several resources in Mandarin/Chinese)
www.bridgeschinesenetwork.com/resources
www.biblegateway.com/app/ Bible Study App. You can also find the Bible in many different languages here, so if you ever want to show someone something in their language you can find the text in their language.
www.biblegateway.com/devotionals
http://www.g4er.tk/books/my-utmost-for-his-highest.pdf
The Bible Project is a plan for reading through the Bible. It is very helpful for people who don’t find it easy to get into reading. It is a unique series of short videos (6-8 minutes long) giving an overview of each book of the Bible, plus short films on other Bible themes.
www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH0Szn1yYNeeVFodkI9J_WEATHQCwRZ0u
-> Read through Scripture – Old Testament
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Dv4-n6OYGI&list=PLH0Szn1yYNecanpQqdixWAm3zHdhY2kPR
-> Read through Scripture – New Testament
Get it printed here: drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B0RzviGbbYgVWmh4aEdaYnRlZW8
For signing up for weekly newsletters which give you the reading plan and videos to watch plus a blog with extra teaching about the reading for that week: thebibleproject.com/reading-plan
When: Saturday 27 January 2018, 7:30 PM
Where: Mount Zion Int, Krakeelpolderweg, Delft
19.30 – 19.35 Prayer of thanks and mercy of God Mount Zion Int
19.35 – 19.45 Praise and worship
19.45 – 20.00 Exhortation Pastor Hyacinth Nwosu
20.00 – 20.05 Prayer for Churches ICF
20.05 – 20.10 Praise and worship
20.10 – 20.15 Prayer for Delft Evangelist Solomon
20.15 – 20.20 Worship
20.20 – 20.25 Prayer for families Mount Zion Int.
20.25 – 20.30 Closing remarks and closing prayer ICF
Time to have fellowship with each other!
Dorothy Sayers wrote in an essay “Why work”: “In nothing has the Church so lost Her hold on reality as in Her failure to understand and respect the secular vocation. (…) How can anyone remain interested in a religion which seems to have no concern with nine-tenths of his life?” The nine-tenth of his life is the secular vocation, the daily work or study.
That is why we pay attention to work and study at ICF, and coming Sunday from the perspective of relationships in work and study. I think we all know how valuable relationships in work and study can be, but also how frustrating relationships can be. We will study this theme mainly from Ephesians 6:5-9, a text about slaves and masters. So, the question is: can we learn anything at all from an old text about slavery for relationships in work and study today?
We look forward to see you and learn more about this in our Service, 12:15pm.
Henk Polinder