WHATEVER IS...

Living a tasered life?

2009-01-07T15:05:00.000-08:00

I've been following the 'Bible in a Year' daily passages over the past few days and have reached the story of Noah. One verse stuck out- 'Noah did everything as God commanded'. It led me to think about some things that have been going around in my mind over the last few days.

It started when I was listening to my dad preach at his church on Sunday.

Dad and I love a good debate.

Some of the things he said on Sunday I respectfully disagreed with but some things were very powerful and remain with me. He was challenging his church family about living in full obedience to Jesus Christ.

He asked the question, 'Are you living your life in partial obedience to God?'

Noah didn't live in partial obedience. He didn't decide to have a pick 'n' mix session with God where God gives His wise and loving instructions and Noah replies like Andy from Little Britain with 'I want that one....I don't want that one!'

He was in complete obedience. He had every reason to cut corners, doubt God and do his own thing.

But he didn't. He was a man of courageous faith in and total obedience to God.

I guess sometimes as a Christian I justify my living, my decisions etc. by making a little list. 'I obeyed in these big areas so it's ok that I cut myself some slack in this area, especially because no one will notice these ones. I'm being pretty obedient to God overall'. And so on.

The devil loves Christians who only partially follow their leader because we become vulnerable, weak and insecure.

We never live the full life Jesus' promises.

We never reach our full potential- in fact worse than that, we make the same mistakes,
going round the same circles, tripping up over and over again.

Did you know that the children of Israel took 40 years to get to the Promised Land when it should have taken only 3 weeks roughly? God had taken them out of Egypt; out of slavery. He had a land promised to them and yet most of them never saw it.

Why?

Partial obedience?

What are you and I missing out on because of partial obedience?

Partial obedience will lead to paralyzed existence.

We miss out on blessings, stress ourselves out, damage relationships and become quite inactive and immobile in our faith and work.

It's like we are tasered over and over again.

The taser gun that police are increasingly using doesn't generally kill anyone (though there have been a few) but it holds them back, trips them up, keeps them down, slows their progress, dis-ables them.

Is that how our Christian lives are at times? Living in partial obedience tasers us? Are we paralysed by making the same mistakes or allowing the enemy to trip us up again and again all because we don't 'trust' and 'obey'.

I love reading books on the emerging church, and post-Christian living etc. but when it comes down to it, my generation of Christians (of which I SO include myself) could do with a little bit more of the 'old time religion' simplicity.

Following Jesus was about trusting and obeying. Seeking, listening, hearing, trusting...and obeying.

Fully.

Totally.

How many of us know the experience of living in full obedience to God? How many of us believe it's possible? How many of us have the scars from not listening to God and following his ways?

How many of us know what it's like to be tasered?

Just some random musings on this January day.

Go Noah! The man who did EVERYTHING as God commanded.

Legend.

The Word 365

2009-01-05T21:52:00.000-08:00

Enter 2009!

I don't know about you but I'm quite hopeful about this year. Usually I start off January feeling a bit grotty but I'm quite excited about all the possibilities another year can bring.

I'm a planner, so one thing that's helped is that I've put dates in my diary. I'm attending the S.A.'s first ever UK youth worker conference in February, at Easter we hope to bring some of our youth to Ireland, we're working on a new school musical for our local primary school, Andrea and I are off to Andrea's cousin's wedding in Italy in May....the list goes on.

Lots of things to look forward to.

I'm not good at resolutions but I do have a few things I want to work on this year.

- Being a better husband.
- Being a better leader.
- Taking more rest.
- Getting fitter....again!
- Knowing God more deeply.

The last one may be helped by something I've just signed up to.

You may have thought by the title that I want to talk about bringing back the ultra-cool 1990s Channel 4 show 'The Word' every day for the next year (Terry Christian and Dani Behr hosting of course).

Alas, my title is about things a little more heavenly!

I came across an initiative by Holy Trinity Brompton (www.htb.org.uk) and have signed up to it. They have launched the 'Bible in a Year' initiative and are encouraging people to sign up to commit together to read....you got it- The Bible in a Year!

I've always wanted to do this but haven't had the time, committment or accountablity. I've signed up to this because:

a) I really believe getting into the Bible more is the best way to start my year.
b) I thrive in community. I'll be joining hundreds from all over the world as we do this together; keeping each other accountable and sharing our thoughts, confusions, insights etc.
c) There are lots of posts from bible teachers to help you get the best out of the passage.

I sent a quick email to my small church community and already 5 others have said they'd like to join me in the challenge. We're gonna meet for coffee every now and again over the next twelve months to talk about what's helped us and what we have discovered or struggled with.

It's very simple to register. Maybe you'd like to give it a go as well.

I'm just a bit worried I'll give up at Leviticus. ;-)

Shalom

2008-10-12T11:33:00.000-07:00

What a weekend!

Ten of our team headed off to Cefn Lea in Mid-Wales for the annual gathering of NEO teams.

I think this was the fifth annual retreat and was the best by far. The whole weekend was based around the hebrew concept of 'Shalom'.

There are a number of definitions for this word- completeness, wholeness, well-being. None fully suffice. We were told it's kind of like our English word 'peace' but so much richer and broader than that.

When we talk about having peace in our country, town, community etc. it's often about the fact that there is no violence, no fighting etc. Shalom is not just about the absence of something, which is quite passive, but about being active in creating just relationships and living in a way that brings about justice to those around us. We were challenged to consider the way we interact with each other as a church and within our community; we were challenged to consider how we spend our money and time and how we use our possessions. Do we, as a church, live in such a way that others see beauty, generosity, justice, integrity, grace, selflessness? Is my home a place of hospitality? Does my bank statement speak of wise spending, simplicity and generosity? Does it show my concern for the poor? Are my relationships marked with grace, kindness and goodness?

Our team had space this morning to spend a few hours in a lovely wee static caravan to be open and honest with each other about many things. We looked at what it would mean for us to become more of a 'shalom' community. There was honesty, brokenness, laughter and repentance as we shared about the ups and downs of following Christ together. I guess that's a good start right there!

It's such an honour to be part of an amazing church community- not because of the services, the programs, the building- but the people. They shape me in so many ways for the better.

We're a small bunch. We don't make a big fanfare and don't have a huge impact on the world however each day I see my church community adding beauty to grey places, bringing light to the darkness and hope where there's despair.

I see so many churches that seem to constantly rush about doing this, that and the other but never really have much of an impact on anything or anyone.
I'm reading a book called 're-imagining church' at the moment. I found this quote which lays out some of the differences between 'organic' churches and 'institutional' ones.

'Institutional churches are a lot like trains. They are going in a certain direction, and they will continue in that direction for a good long time even if all hands try to make them stop. As with trains, the options for turning the direction of institutional churches are limited at best. If a switch or siding is available, the train could turn. So everyone aboard had best hope that he is on the right train headed in the right direction.

Organic churches, like those in the New Testament, are different. They are not trains, but groups of people out for a walk. These groups move much more slowly than trains- only several miles per hour at the fastest. But they can turn at a moment's notice. More importantly, they can be genuinely attentive to their world, to their Lord, and to each other.

'Like trains, institutional churches are easy to find. The smoke and noise are unmistakeable. Organic churches are a bit more subtle. Because they do not announce their presence with flashing lights at every intersection, some believe that churches like those in the New Testament died out long ago. But nothing could be further from the truth.

Organic churches are everywhere. Once you learn how to spot an organic church, you will soon discover groups of people everywhere meeting just like the New Testament church- as bodies, families, and brides, rather than institutions. Organic churches are groups of people walking with God. The trains pass them by all the time. Sometimes the people on board wave. Sometimes they cannot because the train is moving so fast that people going a few miles per hour just look like a blur.' Hal Miller.

I'm coming across so many people in my own denomination who are struggling to stay on the train. Some are finding it too fast, others are concerned that in spite of its speed and power and noise, it could be headed in the wrong direction. I'm not sure if you can be an organic church as described above when you are working within a very powerful train-like institution.

Time will tell!

There but for the grace of God

2008-10-09T06:08:00.000-07:00

My mate Andrew who's part of our church in Gibby sadly told me last night that his buddy Dave was found dead in his mother's house. Dave had come to church with Andrew a few times and we got to know him at different social gatherings.

He was a lovely guy. Always had a smile for you. I always thought that there was a lot of hurt inside him though. He had been struggling with alcohol for many years and the probability is that alcohol may have had something to do with his death.

I'm once again soberly reminded of the darkness and despair that can be found in so many homes in our community. He was only in his late 30s. The line that's been going into my head is 'There but for the grace of God'.

Andrew is one of my heroes here. He became a Christian about three years ago and has come out of addiction and depression himself. He's a legend and a dear friend. When Dave has been homeless, Andrew and Silke took him in, no question. Even a few weeks ago they let Dave crash at theirs in spite of just having had a baby girl a few months ago. That was the last time they saw him.
Andrew and Silke witnessed to Dave of Christ's unconditional love through their words and actions.
Please pray for Dave's family but also for Andrew. This is his fourth mate who has died this year, all of them substance abuse related.

November 4th

2008-10-06T17:41:00.001-07:00

For me, the most exciting date this year, slightly behind my 1st wedding anniversary of course, is November 4th.

The day of the U.S. Presidential Election.

You may think I'm sad but I can't wait. I'm staying up ALL night to watch the coverage. I've been a fan of The West Wing ever since my wife and her then flatmate, Mrs Carrie Knuckey, introduced me to the addictive substance. I finished Series 7 last year and was rather depressed for a while when it ended. It was like my closest friends weren't around anymore.

You see, I'm sure those who loved the show agree that you found yourself becoming the unseen character in the West Wing battling it out with Josh, agreeing with Leo, flirting with C.J (you know it's true!) and revering the mighty President Bartlett.

Thankfully, just as I finished the series, the real deal began to heat up.

You have had all the great characters- Mormon Mitt, P.O.W. McCain, Billary Clinton (two for one!), Iraq Bahama....Hussein Pyjama....Hijack Banana...who cares if you can't say his name- He's awesome (I....think?)....Good ole american pie Joey Biden....and just when you thought these characters were satisfying enough....enter the gun shooting, polar bear throat slitting, oil guzzling, God's will discerning, ready to wrestle with Russia, folksy, cutsy, hockey mum, pitbull with lipstick... Sarah Palin!!!

As soon as she entered the stage in her wee glasses and beehive, I knew that Tina Fey from SNL fame would not be able to resist impersonating her.

I was right.

The next 28 days are going to be immense.

And guess what? One thing we can know for certain....the next President of the United States will NOT be called George W. Bush!

No place like home

2008-10-02T13:16:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back to blogging but who knows for how long!

There are two reasons I'm back.

Firstly, I went back home to Northern Ireland last weekend. I love Wales and am very settled here but there really is nowhere like the place you grew up in.

It's quite a powerful thing to visit your old church, your family and friends when you don't see them very often. I miss them. The hardest thing for Andrea and I living in Wales continues to be being far from family and friends. Just to have your dad scoot over to help you put a shelf up or your relatives calling in to say hi or heading over to your parent's house for Sunday lunch.

The normal stuff.

God's blessed us with surrogate family here and we're so grateful for that but it can still be a bit difficult at times.

We stayed with my lovely sis and bro-in-law, Mel and Dave, in Lurgan and had a great time with them (town and county!). They just celebrated their 1st wedding anniversary and are a real inspiration.

Yesterday we went out for lunch.....Oh yeah, and I really miss the food!! We were joined by Dave's mum Iris. Iris is one of those great godly women who's love for Jesus is infectious. Her and her husband Andrew run a charity called HOPE which helps people all over the globe and supports poorer churches in Eastern Europe.

She is a great storyteller as well. We were listening to some great insights and stories over homemade soup and wheaten bread (I REALLY miss the food!) when we got to talking about people's blogs. Iris is also a typical 'norn irish' mum who loves finding out what the young 'uns are getting up to on their blogs! She was able to tell me that I hadn't blogged since April 10th precisely!!!

So Iris, this blog is for you! :-)

Secondly, I've been reading a book recently called Pagan Christianity by Frank Viola. Great, great book. It's a very simple read but quite a big revelation. It takes you through the various practices and traditions of mainline Christendom and challenges their position, their relevance and even their biblical basis in churches today.

A lot of my own musings were confirmed. That is, that much of the practices and traditions we THINK are 'by the book' actually originate from Roman pagan culture and have NO biblical basis.

Why is the Church often perceived as irrelevant, boring, out of touch, hierarchal, even un-spiritual?

Firstly, because in so many places IT JUST IS! Fact!

Secondly, I think it has to do with many practices and traditions which are seen as non-negotiable but, as the author of this book points out, actually have little biblical weight and stifle the very life of the church.

Have you ever asked any of the following questions?

1) Why are clergy often elevated as holier than the laity?
2) Why is everyone so solomn and depressed looking when they CELEBRATE the Lord's supper?
3) Why do people in many churches wear their best clothes (or even military uniforms!) to church?
4) What's with all the singing?
5) What's with one person leading a service and the other hundred sitting like sardines listening then leaving?
6) Why do we sit in rows at all?
7) Why does it feel that you need a degree to go to most churches and be able to comprehend what's going on and being said?

This book delves into these and many more questions about why we do what we do.

It's got me thinking a lot about my own denomination, The Salvation Army. There are some real heroes of the faith in this movement doing some fantastic things. However it seems of late, (or maybe it's just me) that there is a different vibe in the movement these days than a few years ago.

Like it's settling down again.

This concerns me. There are few forums in our denomination for healthy debate and discussion about the relevance of practices and traditions that we hold dear.

Other than a few advisory councils and officer-led committees at the top, who's asking the tough questions about why we do what we do? Is renewal taking place? It just seems like it's a 'keep your head down, get on with it and don't ask questions' period.

In fact institutional denominations like the Church of England and the Methodists seem much more open and secure about challenging each other and having healthy debate about their own sacred cows at every level than we do at the moment.

I can think of nothing worse if we are to engage with a deeply complex world than to keep our head down and just go with the flow. Perhaps I'm just not hearing this stuff or moving in the right circles.

I'm concerned that we are going into self-preservation mode in many places, shying away from the hard questions and difficult challenges that any mainline denomination has to face in 2008. Many corps (churches) up and down the country are closing down or are very close to sutting their doors for good.

Where are the leaders with vision, creativity, and inspiration?

Where are those who are taking risks and not just doing business as usual? And I don't just mean the leaders.

Where are the prophets who are challenging the status quo?

Where is our 'first love' for the last, the lost and the least. The ones that The Shepherd came to save.

Are we really ready for a 21st Century world?

I love this movement and its rich history. I love it TOO much to not speak out when I feel it isn't very well health-wise.

I've decided to have a go at writing some of my own thoughts on my blog in the weeks to come. It would be great if it stirs a little bit of healthy debate amongst a few bloggers. I don't care if people disagree with my views.

It would just be good to see some passion out there!

Feel

2008-04-10T05:07:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you but I so often find it hard to remain in awe at some of the basics truths of my faith. Why did Jesus die? This life-changing event sometimes doesn't move me. I believe it, I'm thankful for the knowledge of it and what it means. I don't need to always feel what it means but now and again it helps. It's hard for it to reach the heart when you've heard it for so long, so many times.

Words. Words. Words.

Then along comes a video....pictures, sounds, movement.

The video below dramatically reminded me afresh of why we ALL need a Saviour, what it really cost Christ on the cross and just how amazing it is to be delivered, set free and given a new life 'in Christ' because of what He's done for us.

It may look a bit cheesy at first, and kind of is, but this is VERY powerful.

Wingo Blair

2008-04-01T14:01:00.001-07:00

This girl is pretty amazing. You can check more of her videos out by googling 'Passion for Christ Movement'.

Confessions of a rather biblically illiterate Christian!

2008-04-01T10:48:00.000-07:00

Two wee boys, three big questions

Even the youngest kids have deep questions about life and the afterlife. Today, I popped into the office and two boys from the estate called in to say hi (which in reality actually means they were dying for a drink of juice and a biscuit!).

They sat down and completely out of nowhere said, 'You believe in God don't you?'. 'Yes' I said. 'Why did God let himself die?'. Wow. Before I could try to respond to that question, the second lad said 'And how can there be a heaven when all there is in the sky are stars and planets......And why did God make Jesus live again after 3 days? Why not 1...or 5?'

So what does a highly educated, theologically trained, well experienced minister of religion say....'Um, well, what a great question...have you googled it?'!!

I think God used two ten year-olds with searching questions to convict me about how unprepared I am to share my faith and beliefs. We are told that we should always be prepared to give a reason for the HOPE that is within us.

I wasn't prepared.

Daily Bread and the Daily News

I remember reading about the great Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon. He gave some nuggets of wisdom about how to share your faith effectively.

He said something simple like, 'Each morning I have the Bible in one hand and the Daily Newspaper in the other.' In other words, he knew God's story and knew what was happening in the world around him.

We always need to know God's unchanging Word and understand how it applies to the changing world we live in.

Jesus calls us to be in the world and not of it. To be an effective witness for Christ I need to know both exactly what the Kingdom of God is like, what's happening in the world that I live in today- and live in such a way as to see the Kingdom can come, on earth, as it is in heaven.

I love culture. I love the news, current affairs, what's happening in the entertainment world and politics. I take time to check out articles in papers about these things, watch tv programmes and documentaries, browse the net. I ALWAYS make sure I'm informed about culture.

But I don't know my Bible very well.

Here I am, with a degree in theology and masters in Evangelism Studies, a Salvation Army 'Envoy' (new title whoohoo!) - yet I have to confess that I don't really know God's story as told in the Holy Scriptures all that well. I don't take enough time to read it, to study it; to learn from great teachers and to apply what I've learnt to the culture we are immersed in. I'd rather watch TV.

It's more difficult in my denomination to put the study of scriptures as a priority as this doesn't seem to be top of the list. Each week my headquarters sends out information on courses about manual handling, running a parent and toddler group, health and safety training or how to do a risk assessment. It appears that doing something 'practical' is more important than us knowing the word of God deeply.

Rarely is there help or information on how to understand the scriptures better, how to go deeper in the word and discover how it applies to our lives and the lives of others.

I plan services, I lead worship, I visit people, I preach, I run acitivies- but I don't know the Word of God as I should. Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormans know what they believe inside out, Muslims as young as 6 can memorize large portions of the Koran. I can just about get through Jeremiah 29:11 (which is so often used inappropriately by the way), Psalm 23 and John 3:16.

30 years of Churchianity and that's where I'm at.

This has been a real revelation. It's quite embarrassing really. What we believe to be the truth is SO important. Not just what we feel to be the truth. In Romans we are told to 'BE TRANSFORMED by the renewing of your mind'. What we study and learn affects what we choose to believe which affects how we live our lives.

Are ya still with me? :-)

People are crying out for answers. I'm not sure that the Church is fully prepared at large to season the world with good responses to their questions.

We need new apologetics for a new generation.

We need new stories to tell the old story. But first we need to know the old story!

I don't believe I have to have all the answers for every question but my response today with those lads was a dribbling mess. People of other faiths take their sacred texts so seriously, do we?

Do we know more about what Britney, Brangelina, the Beckhams or Ashley Cole are up to than what Jesus and the people of God got up to?

In recent years the Church has done better at having the Daily News in our hand; at knowing what's happening in the world around us.

But what about the Daily Bread?

Is the pendulum going to far the other way? Are we in danger as Christians of becoming cultural clones, looking no different to the world around us having nothing to season our culture with?

A Simple Faith

I had a good chat with my bro-in-law last night. We were talking about the longing by many for a simpler (but deeper) kind of church and a simpler (but deeper!) kind of faith. I think many people are longing for this. They're sick of the slickness; the entertainment and business culture in the Church.

So it's back to basics for me- goodbye for a while to the 'how to' Christian manuals, the 'ten easy steps to growing your church', the 'come and have a life-changing, instant experience' conferences, the 'WWJD' bracelets (not that I ever had one!) and the latest re-packaged greatest hits CD from Delirous? or Matt Redman.

For a while, I'm gonna go a bit mad and do something very 'un-postmoderny Christian-like (and yes, that is good grammar!).

I'm going to pray.

I'm going to read my Bible (with a few books to help me!).

I'm going to meet with other followers of Jesus regularly.

I'm going to try to understand the world I live and breathe in.

I'm going to try to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide me each day in whatever I'm doing.

Back to basics- the newspaper in one hand and The Bible in the other.

It's worked well for the generations before us. Let's see how it goes!

I'm back!

2008-03-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

No you're not imagining things...I've actually returned to my blog after a long winter hibernation!!

I was fast joining the statistic of those people who stop blogging after the first six months. It really does get harder the longer you stay away.

So a quick update....

2008 has been a bit mental to be honest. I think if Andrea and I could re-plan our first six months of marriage it would have been a lot more chilled. Probably one out of two weekends has been spent with either travelling, church stuff or having family and friends visit. All of it has been good but it's left us a bit zonked and quite drained by it all at times.

Thankfully, things are slowing down at last and Andrea and I are looking forward to some weekends home and away together over the next few weeks.

We had an awesome Easter week this year. 15 students from Bangor S.A. in N.Ireland joined us for a week and helped us run a kids club in our local leisure centre. It was amazing watching 30 kids and a fantastic team have so much fun and also learn about what a life following Jesus Christ looks like.

Here are some highlights....

- Hearing 30 kids from our estate sing with conviction the simple but profound words to each other -'God loves you and nothing you can do will ever change that.'

- Hear one kid tell us that he'd love to be a Salvation Army officer when he grows up and another of our youth say he wants to be a youth worker after volunteering with us this week.

- Watch with immense pride as five of our local teenagers from our youth club volunteered all week with our kids work. They were AMAZING!

- Holding our Easter Sunday service in our local pub and see 85 people turn up and pack the place!

- Witness 15 young people from N. Ireland come and make our community their community for the past week and serve it so selflessly.

In the midst of the craziness of the week I had to lead a funeral in the estate. I've only led one before and tragically that was of a 14 year old girl who was part of our youth work in Gibby.

I have to be honest and say that it's not my favourite thing to do but it's always a huge honour and privilege.

On Wednesday, over 120 people from the community packed into our church to remember Betty, a lady that lived round the corner from us. What a privilege to share with my neighbours at such a difficult time in their lives. What an honour to speak words of hope and life into their lives as they gathered to grieve, remember and celebrate.

Life here can be so surreal at times. One minute you're doing silly actions with kids at a club and the next you're literally in your black suit standing by a graveside saying 'ashes to ashes, dust to dust'.

It's only God's grace that carries me in this work. He's so faithful.

Anyway, that's my little update. For all you doubters who took me off your list...Oh ye of little faith!

See ya in three months!

Quote of the day

2008-01-15T04:32:00.001-08:00

“Everything wrong in the world is a divine call to use your life in righting it” W.T. Stead.

HILARIOUS!

2007-12-14T03:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, this video is either really cruel or one of the funniest things I've seen in a while. Maybe both.

All I can say is that I'm in tears having just watched it. Thought it was only right to share it! Thanks Melzers.

Legends!

2007-12-14T02:19:00.000-08:00

"My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it." - Clarence Budington Kelland

"Children and mothers never truly part -Bound in the beating of each other's heart."- Charlotte Gray

This is a picture of my parents.

I got an email from dad yesterday with a link to a little promo video for his church. It's pretty cool and I got a wee bit vaclamped(!) as I saw bits of footage of my folks on it. This is the first Christmas in thirty years when neither Mel nor I will be with our folks in Canada or them with us in the UK. We had an amazing few weeks in September/ October when they were over for both our weddings but the pennies couldn't really stretch to Christmas. It's gonna be tough.

On the other hand, this is my first Christmas with Andrea as my wife and I'm really looking forward to that. It's been so busy recently and we really can't wait to have some time off together.

I'm so blessed to have the most amazing parents I can think of. As the years go by, their courage, steadfast faith in God, forgiving heart, compassion for everyone and perseverance through the hard times (with joy) is mesmorizing. Only when I really started having a go at adulthood myself have I realised how truly amazing they are. The way that they have lovingly sacrificed their lives for Mel and I over the years, and still do, even when we were wee brats (and still are!) is such a reflection of God's all-consuming love for us.

Legends.

It's always hard to be so far away from them both (they live in Canada) and never gets easier. Phone calls just aren't the same. If mum is reading this she is probably crying (ye big baby!) but I just wanted to big them up today through my blog.

I miss them loads and Christmas won't be the same without them. I'm just glad they're in my life.

Love you guys.

PS. See the cool promo of the fantastic church my dad pastors in Ontario. Dad's the one seen preaching with the snowy white hair :-) Seriously Gordo, a smile wouldn't hurt! Loving the cheesy north american voiceover!

Sally Army- Part 2- Morissons

2007-12-13T14:11:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, a few of us were carolling and collecting at Morissons. We need to raise some funds for our kids and youth work so we struck a deal. Our local Morissons would let us collect for four days in December if we provided some Crimbo music while we were there.

We're not really a Sally Army with brass band players etc. so I contacted our headquarters and they kindly sent three officers with their instruments and one for me. Andrea and a friend played the flute when our lips couldn't function any longer!

I was a bit disappointed that I didn't see Lulu or Alan Hansen but I did meet two amazing people who have stayed in my mind all week:

Person 1: While we made a good wee bit of money on Tuesday and many people were kind enough to stop and put some silver in our collecting box, lots of people passed us by with their big trolleys of goods.

During the last hour I noticed a little old woman come in by herself. She was hobbling slowly on a walking stick. You know the kind of woman. The one you see in your town that is usually on her own and seems to get forgotten about. Double-lensed glasses, wooly hat, not very fashionable. Seems quite poor and hard done by, but still smiles. Doesn't really fit into modern Britain. She probably has little plates in commemoration of royal family weddings and such.

You know the lady.

This particular one hobbled passed and I remember her really standing out from the crowd in my head. She looked so alone and I really felt for her. A few minutes later I saw her coming towards me. She didn't say a word to me but put a £20 note in my collecting box. Then she slowly walked away smiling as I said thank you to her. I watched her head into the cafe all by herself for a wee cup of tea.

Widow's mite?

Person 2: After three long hours of collecting and carolling, Andrea, Matt (our youth worker) and I decided it was time for one last carol. I was at the entrance collecting, Matt was by the display we made and Andrea started playing 'Away in a manger'. What happened next you just can't make up!

As Andrea played, a mum walked over with her young blind daughter and stopped in front of her. The little girl began to get really excited and started singing along to the carol at the top of her lungs 'bless all the dear children in thy tender care....' At the end of the carol she jumped up and down, clapped and cheered. Couldn't stop smiling.

Give me meeting those two people at Morissons over Lulu and Alan Hansen any day!

Sally Army- Part 1- care and share

2007-12-13T12:54:00.000-08:00

So I was getting my hair cut today.

You see, after about 7 weeks and no haircut I can easily resemble Michael Jackson circa the 1970s! It really was time! Observation: why when you ask the hairdresser to 'just take a little bit off' do they always completely scald you?

Anyway! Steph, the girl with the scissors, was cutting my hair and she was quite the chatter. We got around to talking about Christmas and she asked me what I was doing on Christmas day. I shared how before heading to London on Christmas night my wife and I were having a friend from N. Ireland, another close friend from London who just lost her parents this year (love ya stelle!) and a mum who always usually has to fend for herself and her five daughters every Christmas.

When I finished speaking she went, 'Wow. Salvation Army eh?!'.

Thing is, I hadn't told her that I worked for the Salvation Army. When I told her I actually belonged to the Army she almost cut my ear off with shock! We laughed our heads off and then she just went 'well there you go then- care and share!'

You know there are times when I wonder why I'm still in the Sally Army. I love my local expression of The Salvation Army but I find so much of the 'army world' quite irrelevant and odd. But boy do we have an amazing reputation with the public built up by generations of sacrificial living and giving, caring and sharing...and some reasonably good P.R!

Here was Steph, who when hearing how Andrea and I were 'caring and sharing' for our friends this Christmas (although they care and share with us just as much!), immediately connected that spirit- the spirit of Christ- with The Salvation Army.

Of all the organisations, denominations, religions and societies in the world it was the first to immediately come off her lips.

There's lots wrong with the movement I've given my life to but I sat in that chair as my afro was slowly fading away and had a little bit of godly pride for this strange little movement I'm a part of.

The Archbishop of Canterbury in the pulpit

2007-12-01T05:13:00.001-08:00

Bono in the pulpit

2007-11-26T16:17:00.000-08:00

Came across a site called 'www.godtube.com'. It's a kind of replica of youtube and I'm sure there is a lot of dodgy stuff on there but I found a great speech given by Bono on it. He gave an address after receiving a humanitarian award recently in the US.

Here's the part that resonated with me.

'This is true religion. True religion will not let us fall asleep in the comfort of our freedom. 'Love thy neighbor' is not a piece of advice, it is a command. And that means a lot, that means a lot. That means, that in the global village, we have to start loving a whole lot more people, that's what that means. That's right. His truth is marching on...whatever thoughts we have about God, who He is, or even if God exists, most will agree that God has a special place for the poor. The poor are where God lives. God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes, where the poor play house. God is where the opportunity is lost, and lives are shattered. God is with the mother who has infected her child with a virus that will take both their lives. God is under the rubble, in the cries we hear during war time. God, my friends, is with the poor, and God is with us, if we are with them!!! This is not a burden, this is an adventure!! And don't let anyone tell you it cannot be done! We can be the generation that ends extreme poverty!! Thank you!!"

3.27am

2007-11-23T19:27:00.001-08:00

Indeed...it's 3.27am in the morning and I can't sleep. It's been a crazy week and we had a mad (but awesome) night at The Bloc tonight which is our youth club for teenagers in the estate. Think I'm still winding down.

My poor wife has had a bad migraine all week and hasn't had much sleep so I thought I'd come downstairs and watch some TV rather than do the whole tossing and turning thing. Unfortunately I forgot that digital TV late at night consists of....wait a minute and I'll flick through and literally give you the programme titles...Quiz call, desperate housewives, late night shopping, street crime UK 4, Yankee Candles on QVC, More4 Preview, Animal Airport(?), Cambridge Folk Festival (I kid you not), Teleshopping, ITV Play, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Top Gear.

Not much on as you can see! So I thought I'd type a blog instead.

Andrea and I had a great chat tonight about all sorts of stuff. We've been so busy this week that it was so good to sit and just chat about anything and everything. I'm in a show next week in Barry and between rehearsals, youth clubs, church meetings, cell, appointments etc. we've kind of missed each other this week and our life has been about functioning together. You know the kind of thing... 'I'll do tea on Wednesday', 'I'll wash the car tomorrow afternoon', 'Can you pick up the parcel from the post office later?', 'I'm off to bed babe.', 'Nite!'. It's just been one of those crazy weeks.

Sometimes that's just life and you have to make sure at least that things still function. But if that's all a relationship is about it soon dries up. Just functioning. Even after just an hour and a half tonight of us having some time sharing together, uninteruppted, chatting about what's going on in our lives- all of a sudden we were much closer to each other again. Andrea shared a few tears as she told me how tired she is with work at the moment, I vented some of my frustrations about leading a young church (trying to anyway!). We had some chats about the ups and downs of being two months married (plenty more ups than downs I'm glad to say!!) and shared honestly with each other as to where we're at with our relationship with God.

There was no agenda, no itinerary, no structure.

We just spent time together.

We were so much closer afterwards.
Because we were more than just functioning in our relationship.

Made me think about my relationship with my church family over the last 18 months. It's become so functional. A lot of that is to do with the fact that our ministry is growing which is brilliant and exciting. But somewhere along the way its become about 'getting the job done'. Organising, having committees, planning events, meeting deadlines etc. However, if it's just functional stuff, the heart of these relationships slowly shrinks.

I was supposed to go for a run down the beach this afternoon. Instead I decided to 'elf' most of the guys from church. If you don't know what I'm on about go to http://www.elfyourself.com/. It's hilarious! Anyway, to create this little christmas video I had to go into all my photos over the last few years from get togethers with my guys from church. As I was looking at the pics I was struck by the tragedy of how little quality time I'd spent with different people recently. In terms of quantity, we spend a lot of time together. But it's all been business.

It's mostly been when we're 'functioning' as church.

I guess like Andrea and I tonight, I need to get back to what the heart of Christian community is all about- real relationships.

Jesus was so good with relationships. Hanging out getting to know good old Zac! Chillin' with Mary and Martha....well Mary. Even when he was a kid he was found by his mum and dad spending time with the teachers in the temple. In fact, I never noticed this before but they lost him for 3 DAYS! This wasn't your 'Can the parents of Jonny please come to the reception desk at Marks and Spencers' kind of lost kid thing! This was three days! It says in Luke 2 that his parents found him in the temple 'seated among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions.' Jesus loved spending time with people. He was so good at investing in relationships.

Jesus is good at investing in relationships.

Which brings me to my last reflection. When did I last invest time in my relationship with God? When was the last time I found a place to rest and just spend time with God? Time in His presence. Time listening. No rushing. No agenda. No shopping list of petitions. Just talking and listening?

I know the whole discussion about how we're always spending time with God when we live for Him but you know what I mean. Quality time- reflecting, praying, meditating, in solitude.

If you're like me, I find this hard. I'm a driven person. I find it hard not to have an agenda with everything in life and that includes relationships, even my relationship with God!

And I also get distracted. Distracted by the burden to do things for God. I have a real concern that my generation loves to seek after justice for our God, transform the broken world for our God, do acts of mercy for our God but has very little discipline in spending time in communion and solitude with our God.

I could do so much for Andrea but I know eventually she would just burst out and say 'I just want to spend some time with you' and vice versa.

I remember taking a retreat day when I was living and working in London. I went to St. Paul's Cathedral for most of it with absolutely no agenda but to commune with God. I prayed simply that morning and told God that the day was His (like He needed reminded!) and that I wanted to spend it with Him, whatever that meant. I'll never forget it- in the midst of one of the world's busiest cities I carried a deep sense of peace throughout the day and a huge awareness of God's presence wherever I went, even as I travelled on the underground during rush hour.

I'd spent quality time with God. I allowed Him to speak to me, minister to me and gave Him space to renew and reform me. Unfortunately these times are unique rather than normal in my life.

Investing in our relationships, sharing, being real, working things out and giving undivided attention to them...they can only flourish.

Simple as that.

This Christmas, I will buy some pressies for friends and family (albeit with a tight post-wedding budget!) but I'm going to make a real commitment to give quality time to my relationships with my wife, family, friends, church and God.

It's the best gift I can give.

Glad I got that off my chest. Am ready for my bed now.

Night!

add to the beauty

2007-10-22T07:04:00.000-07:00

So it's blog number two and I'm afraid I think it might be a bit intense (surprise!).

It's been three weeks since Andrea and I got back from our wedding/honeymoon/sister's wedding/gran's funeral break! Married life has been great so far. My bachelor pad feels like a real home now. Although the downside is that I've had to give in and let Andy put up a couple of those bloomin' Willow Tree ornaments. One per room is the limit! Does anyone else get freaked out that they have no faces?!

As I was saying, life is good, aside these small sacrifices!! Long before we got married Andrea brought a lot of peace into my life and now she's brought it into our home. What a gal! And boy is it good to have peace in my home, especially where I live.

Since we've been back living in Gibbonsdown (a council estate in Barry, South Wales), I've been really hit by the pain and despair and all that isn't 'peace' around us here.

In just three weeks of being back I've witnessed:

- Two women trying to knock someone's front door in.
- A man using our back fence as a toilet then throwing his beer bottle on our path smashing it into hundreds of pieces of dangerous broken glass.
- Our local school continuing the struggle of managing hundreds of kids with learning difficulties and limited resources.
- A woman kicking her dog in the stomach repeatedly in our park.
- A teenager we love to bits confessing that she has started cutting again.
- A fifteen year old girl walk into our youth club completely bladdered.
- A young lad we've known since we came here, excluded from school, roam the streets morning, day and night with no purpose.
- An elderly woman enter her second year of being completely house bound with no family to help her.

Don't get me wrong. It's not all bad. There are so many great families, inspirational elderly people, lots of laughs, a growing community spirit, hard-working people and brilliant neighbours who are just trying to live a good and decent life for them and their family. However, there is just so much bleakness here.

Our estate hit the front page of the town's weekly a few months ago with the title 'It's hell here!' or something like that as a resident described the problems with drugs on the estate.

After all the great times with family and friends that Andrea and I have had, it was quite a shock to come back to this kind of world again.

And yet I have hope.

Last night some of our friends from church who all live in the estate gathered at ours for some mexican food (using the new denby!) and a competitive round of the Friends 'scene it' game (good times!). Over dinner we started sharing about what we thought God was up to in the estate and whether our little Christian community was having any real impact. I mean, in four years, we rarely get people coming to our sunday service and if that's all we went by, we wouldn't really be doing that well.

However, our discussion kept coming back to the small things that were making a difference not for an hour on a sunday but in the everyday. The mustard seeds, the small act of kindness, almost unseen but beginning to cause a gentle stir beneath the surface.

We realised that God was using us to bring His beauty back to the grey places. But what does that look like?

It's about:-

-how two team members looked after a 13 year old girl after youth club until the early hours of the morning because her mum and her partner got into a fight while at the pub and ended up at the police station.

-our youth worker faithfully heading out one afternoon a week, whatever the weather and kicking a ball about with the lads that have very few male role models in their life.

-visiting the elderly lady up the road who until one of our church members befriended her, had noone to talk to. Praying with her each time that she would know God's presence and never feel alone.

-comforting the mum who lost her 13 year old daughter to pneumonia.

-sitting on a local community board and making one positive contribution to what can often be a long and monotonous meeting where red tape takes over.

-praying for transformation when noone's looking.

-going into the local school to help at lunchtimes and during games club to give the teachers a break.

-the family from our church who don't always have a lot and yet open up their home for all the kids on their street to come to, hang out and be safe after school.

-a bunch of kids painting a dark and dreary tunnel bright colours so it's not so scary for mums and their kids to walk through.

-a middle-aged woman from our church babysitting for her neighbour so she can come to our cell group.

-delivering an annonymous card with argos vouchers in it to a single parent not knowing how she is going to buy presents for her kids a few weeks before Christmas.

I could go on and on....

It's about the small things of beauty that start to paint the picture of another, better world.

Marcus Felix wrote,
'Beauty of life causes strangers to join our ranks....we do not talk about great things, we live them'.

We realised last night, that living in such a way that reflects God's beauty, and helping others to see God's goodness around them begins to cause a revolution in a community like ours.

We really felt like we have been planting these small seeds over the last few years and that although they aren't that noticeable they are making a difference. Of course it begins with seeking God and His heart for our community and we need to do that more.

This isn't some humanist operation to make everyone feel a bit better about themselves. This isn't Oprah. It's about seeking the Kingdom of God and crying 'Thy Kingdom COME! Thy will be done ON EARTH as it is in heaven.'

The great thing is that we can all, wherever we are, add to the Beauty.

That's why I have hope.

We come with beautiful secrets.
We come with purposes written on our hearts,
written on our souls.
We come to every new morning.
With possibilities only we can hold,
that only we can hold.

Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces.
Calling out the best of who we are.

And I want to add to the beauty,
To tell a better story.
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside.

It comes in small inspirations,
It brings redemption to life and work.
To our lives and our work.
It comes in loving community,
It comes in helping a soul find it's worth.

Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces.
Calling out the best of who we are.

This is grace, an invitation to be beautiful.
This is grace, an invitation.

And I want to add to the beauty,
To tell a better story.
I want to shine with the light,
That's burning up inside.

Sara Groves

P.S. I PROMISE that my next blog will not be intense!

whatever is...

2007-10-11T05:41:00.000-07:00

With fear and trepidation I begin my first blog!

I've been considering setting one up for a while. I've enjoyed reading so many other blogs and thought it was finally time to take the plunge. I hope that the discipline of posting my thoughts will help me to process the many things that swirl around my head concerning life, faith, the world we live in and whether the TV show 'Heroes' really is worth all the hype it's getting (deep!). If you're like me, life can be one mad rush to the finishing line and I just don't do enough reflecting. A friend of mine once said that people go on about life experiences and how they're what shape and educate you. He went on to say that experiences don't transform you half as much as stopping and reflecting on these experiences in a positive way. I hope the blog helps me to do just that.

The title of my blog is 'WHATEVER IS...'. I thought of that great verse in the Bible from Phillipians (4:8) that says 'Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.' There is so much negative thinking today. Our media is full of negativity, always looking for the next person to bring down. I think this affects us all more than we realise. It's very easy to think negatively about ourselves, others and what's happening around us. I want to be someone that recognizes the reality of things good or bad, but is all the while hopeful. I want to excercise my mind by using this blog to consider and meditate on the things in this world that are true, noble, just, admirable, and the causes worth living and dying for. To discover God's beauty in our broken planet and figure out how I can add to it.

Anyway, welcome to my head! I promise to try and not be too intense but I am a Reynolds after all!

I'll leave you with another version of this passage from The Message paraphrase of the Bible(one of Bono's favourite books apparently!)

Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

Phillipians 4:8