'... skylarks and God...'

'...for God so loved he... gave...'
John 3:16

Have you heard the birds sing recently? That might sound like an odd question, but what I’m asking you isn’t “have you heard a bird sing”, but “have you heard one sing recently?” I was playing golf, the greens were empty and silent of human voices but you should have heard the skylarks – they were deafening. I just had to pause for a moment and thank God for the amazing way he ‘gave’ such a small creature a great voice!

One day, a couple of weeks after losing my mum, I was looking out at May Hill over a card filled window sill. Like many members in our church who have gone through a loss of someone really close, I was amazed at the tangible support and encouragement that prayers had ‘given’ through a card or call or words of encouragement and support.

We have an incredibly generous God who has given us a wonderful world, not only that, he has created us in such a way that through our senses we can appreciate it. He’s ‘given’ us the gift of friendship – setting us in families and networks of people who care and love us and, on top of that, he’s given us the very special gift of his son.

I think the words of this poem by Annie Johnson Flint sum it up for me:

He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength when the labours increase;
To added affliction he addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials, His multiplied peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources,
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

His love has no limit, His grace has no measure;
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth and giveth and giveth again.

I hope you’ll hear that skylark sing.

How Fit For Life are you?

I was listening to some recent research which stated that the average (US) citizen walked 2 miles a day in 1920 – today he’s lucky if he manages 200 yards a day!

Even I can remember, as an early teenager, walking 3 miles to school and this accompanied by a good 3 hours PE a week. I played weekly rugby/soccer and being a member of a swimming club meant, I guess, that I had a good background fitness plus I was a good deal healthier and fitter.

It’s taken Jamie Oliver to give our nation’s schools a kick start into making school meals more healthy which comes as a surprise when we have whole departments in schools who have technically known for years those things which are good for eating.

The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 6:19 that our ‘bodies’ are the ‘temple of the Holy Spirit’. In other words, the place in which God chooses to live and as Christians we should want to keep the ‘house’ in which God lives, by His Spirit, in good shape and the right physical condition.

However, the tragedy is we don’t! (I include myself at the top of the list). I think for a good number of years I’ve been more concerned about my car being in good nick than keeping my body in good shape. But as the mileage clock on my body ticks around I know, if I’m going to be alive to serve the Lord longer, I need to be committed to being ‘fit for life’. See you in the gym!

So, what’s the Relevance?

Someone has said, ‘If the church or any organisation keeps on doing what it has always been doing, it will keep on being what it has always been.’ As Christians, we recognise that the message of Christianity never changes, but the way we seek to ‘do church’ and share the message might. The biggest challenge to the church today is to be relevant.

Relevance can be defined as 'connected to what is happening; useful or suitable for a purpose.' To be relevant requires us to be connected to the world we live in, and to be useful and suitable for God's purpose. The question we as Christians should constantly ask ourselves is this, ‘Are we connected to the world around us? Are we useful to the world outside the church?’

"Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, non-religious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralised - whoever. I didn't take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ - but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I've become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn't just want to talk about it, I wanted to be in on it." 1 Cor 9:19-23, MSG

In 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, we see the characteristics of a relevant Christian and how they can be seen.

1. Ready

"I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all..."
There is a difference between someone who is committed to serve, and a demand to serve. The spirit of servanthood is not demanding but comes from a willing heart. Psalm 100 says, "Serve the Lord with gladness".

2. Expansive

"... in order to reach a wide range of people..."
Christianity has to be inclusive, not exclusive. The Bible teaches that 'whosoever believes' shall be saved.

3. Lifestyle

"I didn't take on their way of life..."
Relevance doesn't mean we embrace the spirit of the world. The world is not looking to be reproduced in the Church but is rather looking for alternatives and answers. We need to have a commitment to values and setting an example. We cannot be relevant to the world if we compromise our behaviour and beliefs.

4. Engaged

"I kept my bearings in Christ..."
To be relevant requires us to be stable, not wavering. James 1 teaches us that he who wavers is unstable like a wave in the sea. We need to be firmly planted in the Word.

5. Vicarious

"I entered into their world ..."
We need to be in the world, but not of the world. We aren't called to isolate ourselves from the world but the significant work of the Church is required out there in the unredeemed world.

6. Accepting

"I tried to experience things from their point of view..."
Sadly, the Church is often seen to be imposing their view on the world. Being relevant requires us not to be judgmental, but rather seeing the world with understanding and moved with compassion.

7. Not Narrow

"I became every kind of servant there is ..."
Being relevant isn't so much about being hip or cool, but more about being big spirited. Instead of being narrow-minded, let us be embracing with a breadth and a depth that draws the world to Jesus.

8. Tasked

“in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life.”
Paul never forgot or gave up on his main purpose in life. When any church has done this it has become obsolete.

As we move forward as a fellowship, let’s seek to truly see what real relevance is – and pass everything we do through this filter.

Time To Wait

Whilst I was in Romania a couple of weeks ago, I heard that there had been a fire in the village nearby. The occupants had called the fire brigade who turned up proudly in a brand spanking new fire engine - its bell and siren could be heard for miles. The firemen duly clambered out of the cab to set about the task of putting the fire out. Upon laying out their hoses and taking the positions they waited… and nothing happened!

To the amazement of bystanders, and the consternation of the occupants, the new fire fighting engine was empty of one vital thing - it had no water on board! Whilst looking in pristine condition it was rendered useless when it was put into action. Sadly, the villager’s house burnt down.

Just like the Romanian fire engine, there are times I find in my life that, although outward appearances can give the impression that everything is ‘gleamingly’ OK, we are actually running on empty! Leaving us unable to do the tasks we know that Christ would have us do.

It may be that he has called us to get alongside and encourage someone at work, or visit a neighbour or friend. Perhaps His spirit is calling us to really get involved in volunteering, to get involved in some aspect of work and service within the church. It’s not that we don’t want to do the task, but in all our busy-ness we feel powerless, and spiritually empty to do anything.

The word to us from Dr Luke in the first chapter of Acts is "Jesus said to the disciples, '… wait… do not leave… but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptised with water, but in a few days you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit." Acts 1:4

Why not make it a priority today to do just that - to wait - to be filled with HIS power - and then go out? Otherwise, we will all just remain as clanging cymbals or a resounding gong!

Are You Lost?

The tube train was packed as usual as it trundled through central London. Most people were going about their business, oblivious to their travelling companions, but one young man had become pre-occupied with the rather perplexed and obviously disoriented, foreign looking elderly gentleman sat opposite him. The elderly man kept looking down at a map of the Underground in the front of his diary then up at the maps displayed on the train and out of the window as the train passed through each station in turn. From time to time, he’d scratch his head and sigh.

Eventually, the young man decided to approach the elderly gentleman and offer his assistance. Immediately his suspicions were confirmed, the man was not English – he was from Eastern Europe and on his first trip to the UK. Taking the diary that contained the map, the young man stared at it, determined to locate exactly where they were. But turning the diary one way and then the other, he couldn’t make head nor tail of it either. Finally, in frustration, he gave up and closed it and that’s when he understood. The diary was French. The map inside the cover wasn’t of the London Underground at all – it was the Paris metro! No wonder he was lost.

If you’re living in God’s world, the only way to avoid getting lost is to follow God’s Word and His direction for your life. However, all of us can find ourselves lost at times and that’s why we need to remain focused on Christ and follow His lead.

Psalm 23 is probably one of the most well known passages in the Bible. It encourages us with the promise of being led to still waters, restoration of our souls and comfort through life’s difficulties.

Let’s remember, however, that the Lord is not a Shepherd who herds us along life’s path, but a Shepherd who leads us as we choose to follow. As you start a new week ask yourself who or what you are following.

Are you lost? Take hold of the right map for life and follow the Shepherd who will lead you to dwell in His house for ever.

Yours in Him
Nathan
Youth Pastor

Live To be Missed!

Most of us are too busy to take a walk around a cemetery but it can be worth the experience!

Here are a number of rather grave inscriptions…

English Cemetery:
Sir John Strange
Here lies an honest lawyer,
and that is strange.

or
Georgia Cemetery:
‘I told you l was sick!’

or
Nova Scotia Cemetery:
Here lies
Ezekiel Aikle
age 102
‘Only the good die young.’

The last chapter of Moses’ life in the book of Deuteronomy tells us many things about him, principally that he was a Godly man.

“Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo from the plains of Moab to the top of Pisgah, across from Jericho. There the LORD showed him the whole land….” Deuteronomy 34:1

Firstly - here was Moses nearly a century and two decades old and he is climbing a mile high mountain ‘his eyes were not dim, nor his strength gone’, he’d kept in great shape right to the end of his life - a challenge to us all! Some people l know have got old before they are old! One of our members ninety years young, in a nursing home, keeps a computer next to her bed!!

Secondly - when he gets to the top of the mountain God gets him to take an around the compass look at the promise land – Moses must have thought WOW! As Christians we must recognise that death for the Christian opens up a fantastic view of more than just a piece of prime real estate!

“However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit...” 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.” John 14:1-2

Many people struggle with the idea of life beyond death, but l always think that if you could ask a baby in its mothers womb if it could believe in ‘life after the womb’ it might, from that warm and safe vantage point, also struggle to believe in another form of life! Yet Jesus' kind and hopeful word to Lazarus’ sister gives us strength.

Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" John 11: 23-25

Thirdly - you notice as Moses viewed the promise land he wasn’t alone. His Lord was with him. As that rugged shepherd of God’s flock stumbled his way up his last mountain he wasn’t alone God was with him and in a unique way he was to realise the comforting truth that another leader of this self same people was to pen,

Psalm 23: 1
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want...
Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

Fourthly – Moses, this great leader, would be missed! Sometimes you could wonder if the complaining people of Israel could have ever loved him – but this final chapter tells us that the people ‘... grieved for him... for thirty days.’

“Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, who did all those miraculous signs and wonders the LORD sent him to do in Egypt -to Pharaoh and to all his officials and to his whole land. For no one has ever shown the mighty power or performed the awesome deeds that Moses did in the sight of all Israel.” Deuteronomy 34: 10-12

His impact had been colossal. We are told that here was a man of God, in the service of God, who didn’t simply retire or fizzle out. He was on fire right to the end.
His epitaph would take care of itself!

The blessing of Gods boundaries! - Exodus 20

Have you noticed that everything you buy these days comes with a ‘rule book’, and a ‘set of instructions’. I recently replaced my watch and the instruction book I got with it is almost as thick as the New Testament! In it is everything you need to know to use the watch – the only problem is you need a magnifying glass to read it!

I guess it is no co-incidence that God should lay down for humanity some ‘Rules for Life’. Isn’t it amazing that God reduced all life’s moral responsibilities down to ten rules and called them the Ten Commandments.

We live in a society where the moral goal posts seem to shift on a yearly basis, and people who pin their lives on them often end up decimated and depressed. God’s guidelines for living have stood the test of time and have been a sure and solid foundation to build their lives upon.

Sadly, as one Rabbi who survived the Auschwitz death camp once said, ‘We now exist in a world where all ‘Ten Commandments, have been reversed!’

At one time you could expect to see the ‘Ten Cs’ hanging at the front of most churches (a constant reminder for God’s law) and whilst I wouldn’t want to go back to that we need to remind ourselves that Matthew 5:17 Jesus says, “Do not think that I came to destroy the law... I did not come to destroy but to fulfil.”

The Ten Cs in Exodus 20 flow from the character of God himself and are perfectly embodied in the person of Christ.

These are not just archaic laws given to an ancient nation but are a description of the ‘Character of Christ’ being re-produced in the lives of all Christians today by the Holy Spirit.

Ten Cs in Brief
Above all else we love God alone
Bow down to neither wood nor stone
Gods name refuse to take in vain
The Sabbath rest with care maintain
Respect your parents all your days
Hold sacred human life always
Be loyal to your chosen mate
Steal nothing neither small nor great
Report with truth your neighbours deed
Rid your mind of selfish greed

In 1 Corinthians 6:12, Paul said he was free to do anything, but he would not become the slave of anything. True freedom is not being free to do anything we want but being free to exercise self control (John 8:36) and self control (Galatians 5:20) is a fruit of the Holy Spirit moving in our lives. So when we become Christians the fact is we can either make good choices or bad choices – the Holy Spirit wants to lead us from bondage to freedom.