THE IMPORTANCE OF GOD'S WORD

CH Spurgeon 1834-1892 "The more you read the Bible and the more you meditate upon it, the more you will be astonished by it."

President George Washington, First President of the United States 1732-1799 "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and Bible."

A recent poll from ICM in the UK found that "almost 30% of atheists surveyed said they sometimes prayed, 29% of the total groups surveyed felt that the world would be a more peaceful place if people didn't believe in God, 37% of people surveyed felt David Beckham was more influential than God."

Do you have a good understanding of God's big picture revealed through the Bible? Genesis - Revelation? How it all fits together? the thread running through its pages which links together God's plan of salvation?

This Christmas we at Christian Chat challenge you to spend the 25 days of December leading up to Christmas to get into the Word of God. Read it, talk about it, pray about it, learn it... let it change your life. The best gift we can give you is God's word for your life.

We have a series of studies running which are repeated throughout the week at the following times - try and get along to one each week leading up to Christmas:

Sunday 8pm GMT hosted by Chris
Tuesday 10pm hosted by AWE
Thursday 1pm GMT hosted by Glizzie
Thursday 8pm GMT hosted by Rainbow

www.christianchat.co.uk

Meet the Author - In the beginning

The best place to start is right at the beginning! These notes are taken from the Share the light study course which is being incorporated into the Christian Chat "God's word for you" this Christmas.

PRAY: Father please "open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your law" Psalm 119:18

Spend a few moments reading Genesis 1 and 2

Right from the start, the Bible introduces us to its main character: "In the beginning... God" (1:1) The rest of this unique and wonderful book is all about him. There are theologians who describe the Bible as God's "self revelation". That means it's not only a book about God, it's a book by God. He inspired the human writers see 2 Peter 1:21; 2 Timothy 3:16 so today IF you want to meet God, read HIS book.

Next the Bible tackles one of life's biggest questions: How do we explain the origins of the universe? Some scientists look at the rocks, seas and even space for answers.But the Bible looks to the heavens (1:1) Obviously science has its place in helping us explore the natural world - but for the answers about creation we need to accept that God made it.

The Big picture (1:1-2:3) As we read this overview of the 7 days of creation we notice that God took the initiative. He had a plan and a design for his world - it was not a mishmash nor a mistake. Experiences like holding a newborn baby or looking at the stars on a clear night are evidence of how incredible his design is.

The human interest story (2:3-25) Genesis 2:4 is like a "hyperlink" to more information on a key part of the story - the creation of humankind. We've already learned that God chose to make men and women and that both reflect HIS image (2:7). Now we learn that people posses at least two other distinctives: God's life (2:7) and God's standards (2:16,17). We have a God given conscience, an innate sense that there is such a thing as a right and wrong. To live as if it were no so in inhuman.

APPLY What evidence for the existence of God do you see in the world around you? When do you feel closest to God? What evidence of God does the world around you see in You?

Christian Chat Bible Study Christmas Series

What better gift could you get this year for Christmas than God's Word for your life?

How do you get God's word? Well the best place to start is by reading the book He gave us- The Bible! You may be saying "I've read bits of the Bible but I don't know how it fits together." or you may just find it hard to understand how it fits in to your life. This Christmas Christian Chat UK http://www.christianchat.co.uk/ wants to help you get into the Bible.

Starting on Sunday 2nd December 2008 8pm GMT in Chat we will be hosting various Bible studies leading up to Christmas. The studies will be repeated during the week at various times (more details coming soon) to enable you to take part at a time that suits you. We will also be posting daily studies to help you on your journey.

We will be using a series set up by "Scripture Union" called "Share the Light" Rev Elfed Godding General Secretary Welsh Evangelical Alliance had this to say of the course: "I believe that reading the bible as individuals, small groups and congregations is foundational to effective Christian living. Share the light provides and inspirational and easily accessible way for church members to engage with the Bible, therefore gaining a greater understanding of the context of "God's Big Picture". I commend it highly."