Free to Fly to Freedom

If you've got nothing positive to say...

2010-10-11T06:39:00.003+01:00

'Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.'

Jude 1.3

Jude knew what he wanted to write, a positive sounding letter. He wanted to remind them of all that Jesus had done for them and the inheritance they share through him. What's more, he was eager to write such a letter, looking forward to reflecting upon all of God's goodness toward them. Who wouldn't want to always be able to say positive things? To only ever talk about God's love for his people.

Only Jude knew that he had to write a different sort of letter. Instead of reassuring them of their safety in Christ, he had to wake them up to the dangers all around them. Why? Because they were surrounded by godless men who were eager totake them away from Jesus. Jude saw the threat and realised he had to say something. To write a nice sounding letter in the midst of such dangerous circumstances would not only have been inappropriate, but potentially fatal for their faith. So how does Jude go about urging them to contend? He reminds them of the stakes. He removes any illusion that the Christian life is all lovely and puts their feet back firmly on solid ground. Each example is like a bucket of cold water to the face...

'I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.'

'And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home-these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.'

'In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.'

Harsh? Many would view Jude's response as extreme and unnecessary. These are the people who would fill our churches with talk of God's love but never mention sin or judgment or punishment and they have no idea just how dangerous their thinking is. They would make us warm and cosy as we live in a dangerous world surrounded by things that are eager to shipwreck our faith. They would leave us slumbering at a time of war; taking away any need to ever put on the armour of God.

Jude wanted to write a positive sounding letter, but he genuinely loved his readers and so he knew he had to awaken them to the dangers they faced. Among God's people, in the heavenly places, throughout the cities of the world were those going their own way, eager to lead others astray. They were in a battle and the consequences were only too real. Destruction, judgment, punishment. If their faith was to remain firm they must be ready to contend for it. There may well be a time when we no longer need to think of sin and hell and judgment, but that time is certainly not now. We are in a war and we must be ready to fight.

Jude didn't get to write the letter he was eager to, but he did write the letter his readers needed to hear, the letter we need to hear. And he did get to end positively, realising that clinging to our salvation in Christ is the only way to hold onto our faith. He knew that to remind them of the darkness, only made the light of God's love seem all the brighter.

'Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.'

Taiwan Journal

2010-10-08T13:07:00.003+01:00

Friday 8th October 2010

The OMF Taiwan annual conference has come to an end and I have returned to Taipei. After a day relaxing and exploring a new part of the city, I can now look back over the last week.

It is a special time when people meet together to truly honour Jesus and even more so when their everyday lives hold the same strength of desire. It was my pleasure to be able to help with the program for the teenagers and get to know some great youngsters who are clearly growing in Christ. Most of those I got to spend time with attend a Christian school together and are familiar with spending regular time studying and learning the Bible. Despite last week being something of a holiday for them, with lots of time to relax and just hang out with one another, they were also willing to share in daily Bible study and serve the adults in setting up for meals. Their knowledge was often matched by their honesty in discussion and inclusion of those younger than them.

It was exciting to see the way God has honoured the commitment of the parents through the gift of faith given graciously to the children. A gift that is not payment for their parents' work but God's continued goodness towards those who love him. I understand now why many children of missionaries 'catch' their parents' heart for serving the Lord wholeheartedly with the rest of their lives. It's a powerful thing to have parents with an all consuming love for the Lord and yet the choice still falls upon the children, to either follow the good example they have been given or go their own way, as so many do. And yet the parents could do no more for their children than live all out for Jesus, surely their is no more powerful persuasion.

How tragic therefore when parents are so consumed by their children that they try to make less of Christ in order to make it easier for them to enter his kingdom. They try to widen the narrow road as they care more for their children than the glory of Christ. And yet if they truly wanted to see their children saved, surely they should devote themselves to Christ alone. Surely there is no more powerful persuasion for following Christ than witnessing a life consumed by a passion for him.

I pray that these teenagers will continue to walk with the Lord as their parents do. That they would own their faith and follow the path that the Lord has laid before each one of them. That they would make the most of the benefits that come from living in a close community with other Christians, so that they will be strong in the Lord when the time comes for them to move on. I pray also for those who may be struggling in their faith, that they will cling to the Lord and grow in the grace (our theme for the week) that he alone provides.

The conference is a real time of encouragement for many of the missionaries, as they spend time in prayer and the study of God's Word. There were those present from each stage of life, some exploring the possibility of future service, some undergoing language study, some deep into their time serving in mission and some preparing to retire and move on to new opportunities elsewhere. Despite so many different types of people we all have the same need, to grow closer to the God who loves us and has called us to share in his mission to make disciples of all nations. Like the children of the missionaries, may we all make that choice each day.

Taiwan Journal

2010-10-02T03:21:00.002+01:00

Saturday 2nd October 2010

I arrived in Taiwan on Thursday night, after a day with friends in Hong Kong. It was exciting to see the work they're involved in providing aid for those who need it most and to see the challenges that come from living and working in such a close community. The weather here is not as hot as it was in the summer, but you still appreciate the aircon. In a few hours time I will leave for the field conference with some of the other short term workers. Our role for the week will be to run the programme for the teenagers, specifically the 15-18s. We already have some fun trips planned for the afternoons, including a trip to a waterpark on Monday, I have my swimming hat ready (the buying of which I hope never to have to do again!). Alongside a worker called Aaron, I have respinsibility for leading the Bible sessions on Tues/Wed/Thurs on the theme of growth. We will be looking at how the Lord uses different means to grow us, like his Word, prayer, fellowship etc. Pray that we are able to work together as a team and really serve the needs of these young people. Also pray that missionaries will be refreshed and strengthened in their work as a result of this week.

I will now be without internet access until I return so no update for a while!

Japan Journal - 16th June

2008-06-16T15:33:00.002+01:00

Yesterday was my last Sunday at Fukuinkan.
I went to both services for the first time, one straight after the other. I ended at the church in the same way I began. I arrived late for the service, only just in time to give my testimony. I thought the service started at 9:30am when it began at 9:00am. Good job I got there at twenty past or I would have missed my bit completely. Certainly had a few people worried but all turned out well in the end. It did mean I had no time to get nervous about speaking, although it was certainly on my mind the days before. Some things never change, no matter how many times you do them.
It seemed to go well and the translator was brilliant. We quickly got into a rhythm so that I could focus on the words and actually looking at people while I was speaking. The great thing was they were looking back! I thought it would be scary because it's a big church and not my home church but it really wasn't. As I looked around I saw so many people I had a genuine love for. So many people that really feel like brothers and sisters. I will be sad to leave them.

The testimony was short and simple, due to restrictions of translation. I think I'll quote myself!

'I grew up knowing that I did many, many things wrong and that I deserved to be punished. I was scared of going to hell but I knew that I would never be good enough for heaven. I remember regularly praying to God to forgive me but doubting whether he had or not. I was still terrified. One day I thought about why God might forgive me. I knew that Jesus had died on a cross and was punished for sinners. People just like me. I knew that he promised to forgive those who asked him. I’d asked him. I realised that if I was genuinely sorry then he had to forgive me. He couldn’t break his promises. For the first time in a long time I wasn’t afraid.'

I could easily have written so many different things because God has done so many things in my life and has dramatically changed my life several times. For so long I lived knowing I was forgiven but not really knowing God. Then I realised that I could have a relationship with him and that I was missing out on the real meaning of eternal life, knowing Jesus Christ and the one who sent him (John 17.3). Then I learned that it wasn't enough just to keep my faith to myself but that being a Christian is about belonging to a family and telling others about all that Jesus has done for them.
I trust that God will continue to open my eyes to him and continually change me throughout my life. This trip has certainly helped me to understand just how big God's family really is. It's great that I can be thousands of miles from home, with people of a completely different culture and still to be loved by them and love them in return. The love that God pours out on his children is a powerful, tangible thing.

A week and a half to go where my mission is simple. Try to get all my non-Christian contacts in touch with other Christians so that the relationships can be continued. Leaving parties are perfect for that.

Japan Journal - May 31st

2008-05-31T15:26:00.004+01:00

Every week I meet for langauge exchange with a student called Kuniake. He is one of the few students who I actually study Japanese with as most just want to practice English. He sat in on a Bible study I did with Yusuke a few weeks ago but didn't say much. Afterwards he commented that he didn't see the point of the New Testament. It was clear he wasn't that interested and that was the end of it.

Last week he asked me if I'd like to go out for a meal. He is heading off to Europe soon (tomorrow) and so won't be able to meet up. We arranged to meet on Thursday at 6:30pm. I was teaching from 11:20 - 3:00 and then cycled down to the language centre for the weekly prayer meeting. Towards the end we split into groups and I asked my group to pray for the meal I would be having. I shared how I felt he wasn't really interested and didn't have a clue how to take things further in sharing the gospel with him. We prayed and then I rushed to the subway to arrive at the University at 6:25. At that point I was tired and couldn't really be bothered with the meal. At 6:40 he still hadn't come and I began to hope he wouldn't be coming. At 6:42 he arrived.

We went to a place near the uni which specialised in 'meat on sticks' as he put it. The idea is you just keep ordering little by little until you're full. We chatted for two hours about Japan and his trip to Europe and various other things. Throughout I had been praying that God would somehow give me the opportunity to share more about Him with Kuniake. I had no idea how to move the conversation in that direction. Kuniake asked me what I wanted to do in the future and I explained how I'd like to teach for a bit and then maybe go into full time Christian work (I had to simplify that somewhat as his english is good but not that good). The conversation moved on a bit and then a short while later he asked what I wanted to be when I was younger. I explained how I wanted to be a teacher or an architect or maybe work in cartoons. He asked me what had changed to make me want to be a pastor (as he put it).
Boom!
There's an opportunity if ever there was one. I got to talk about how I became a Christian and how everything changed because of what Jesus did. Throughout the next hour I was able to explain the gospel to him with the assistance of his pen and my napkin! It was sloppy and there was much repetition and use of his electronic dictionary but through the power of the Holy Spirit I was able to talk to him about: sin and judgement and Jesus' death and substitution and grace and eternal assurance.
I'm not sure how much he understood but from what he said he seemed to get it. He said he felt that people were already punished in their lives on earth and didn't see the need for another punishment when they die. He also felt that people shouldn't have to depend upon something other than themselves. A typical Japanese viewpoint. I encouraged him to read the Bible for himself and decide whether he could accept what he read to be true.

In the business of my day I had forgotten to bring a gospel or new testament just in case. I pray he either has one at home or finds one in a drawer on his trip through Europe and begins to read it for himself. I next see him in just over two weeks when we will have a meal together with Alex. Kuniake invited Alex (a member of the team) which is great because he has no other contact with FMZero or Christians.

Throughout chatting to Kuniake I was well aware just how useless in directing the conversation. When we did begin to talk about eternal things I often had no idea how to respond to things he said. I could only pray that God would be merciful and use me as he saw fit. He does not leave His children to witness alone. Without him I could literally do nothing. With him, I got to play a part in sharing His saving truth with someone who has no eternal hope. Pray that God will reveal the truth of how he deserves to be punished and how he can't rely upon himself. Pray that God would first break him so that he can then save him!

Japan Journal - May 26th

2008-05-26T14:00:00.002+01:00

Definitely time for another post. For those who do check this regularly I apologise for the less than regular updates. It's not that nothing interesting has happened, quite the opposite. I find it really hard to know what to focus on as so much happens in such a short space of time. The result is either write loads, write nothing or spend a whole lot of time trying to walk the line. This time it's a long one!

The corner has been turned and I'm now looking down the home leg of my trip. The danger is that I begin to think more about what happens when I get back and take my focus off what's happening here. I prayed last night that I would have a genuine care for the people here and that I would be completely focussed on trying to reach them with the gospel. That my heart would be for Japan and not yet for England. God's response was not what I had in mind.

I spent the afternoon with Yusuke and we found ourselves in a bookshop for part of it. I wandered through the English books and ended up reading about the Samurai. Part of their focus is to have a constant awareness of death. They are supposed to spend every spare moment reflecting upon the closeness of death so that they will always live as if the moment they are in is their last. Not just a 'seize the day' philosophy but an awareness built upon genuine experience. For the Samurai, their next day could easily be their last. Living accordingly should make for a life focussed upon only on the most important things. Honour. Family. The life of a warrior. Although there was much I admired about their perspective, I was struck by the overwhelming lack of hope in what I was reading. They live for now, because now is all their is.

I've been reading a book on Holiness and the chapter I'm currently in is called 'The fight'. J.C.Ryle argues that the Christian life can never be one of ease and slumber, but for a Christian pursuing holiness it will always involve a measure of active warfare. We cannot 'sleep and doze along the way to heaven'. There is much in this world and even in our own bodies that would steer us from our course and we must be ready to fight them daily. Like the Samurai, the Christian is called to the life of a warrior. To fight daily for something that is worth fighting for. Samurai devote themselves to a system that requires everything of them. Contemplating death is supposed to stir them to life. Only they live without hope.

We on the other hand have an eternal hope. Death is not the end of our lives but the moment we are looking forward to most. The moment when we will see our Lord and saviour face to face. As we contemplate our own death we see the sacrifice of Christ and know that we can look forward to what is to come. We have heaven awaiting us. An eternity with the one who was willing to suffer death for our sakes. We know that what we do on earth has consequences that reach throughout eternity. We are fighting for a kingdom that will endure for all time.
Yet how often do we live like nothing we do really matters?
Are our lives completely devoted to a way of life that sees Jesus as our king?
Do we fight daily for a kingdom that has the power to save the soul from death and hell?

We have the greatest cause for hope and the greatest message the world could ever hear. May we never come close to 'dozing our way to heaven'.

That was the answer I got to may prayer to be focussed on Japan. My focus should not be Japan, but Christ and his kingdom. That's not to say I shouldn't pray for a heart for these people, I belive that is a necessary thing to have. But a heart that is first for God's kingdom to come and second for the specific people we are working with. Today I have been very aware that this day could be my last.
So how did I spend it?

I met with Alex and we talked about the work we are doing. We challenged one another that we should never be satisfied with tiny signs of encouragement. We should desire nothing less than for Christ to save all those he has led us to befriend. Not that we don't delight in growth or expect everything to happen in an instance. Only that we settle for nothing less than seeing people saved to a life of complete devotion to Christ.

I then sent a load of emails to meet up with students. Not the most exciting side of the work and therefore the side I am most prone to ignore. Yet how can I sahre Christ with people if I do not meet with them. Organisation can glorify God too, especially if it leads to people hearing the gospel.

I then met with Yusuke. Wednesday is bible study, Monday is English practice. We just chatted. Got to know each other better. Talked about hopes and dreams for the future. We shared our time and talked of things that were important to us. Pray that the better he knows me, the more he sees of Christ and his grace in my life.

Then went to the English speaking society and met a whole barrel of new people. Who knows which people I will be able to get to know better. Can't make friends if we never meet new people though. There was one guy who really struggles with social interaction and who was kind of ignored by the rest of the group. It was horrible to watch and I pray we will be able to befriend him. Not just so his life on earth is a little better, but so that he comes to see that the God who made him loves him and wants to have a relationship with him.

That was my day. Far from perfect. I lost focus far more times than I had it. I look at what I've written and most of it doesn't make sense, but it's honest and real and therefore I pray that God will use it. Please, if you take the time to read this, stop and take the time to look at your own life. Are you 'dozing your way to heaven'? That is not the life Christ died to give us. He fought for us that we might fight with him. Living every moment like it counts for all eternity.

Japan Journal - 12th May

2008-05-12T14:10:00.000+01:00

Fukuinkan church – Sunday Morning. I prayed with Richard before I went that I would be able to encourage people in the church to reach out to their friends. People in the church have been really gracious in looking out for me and I want it to be that I am able to serve them in witnessing. The service was good and I’m beginning to get the hang of singing the odd string of words in songs (I have no idea what I’m singing but figure it must be fairly good). The moment the service ends is the worst bit. The pastor’s wife (my translator) leaves me because if she stays then people won’t even attempt to speak English to me. They get a little self-conscious which I can understand.

So I’m on my own at the back of church. The building had 4 floors with the church on the top two. Church lunch is on the second floor which I feel I need to attend if I’m to have any hope of being part of the church. So I head down which buys me some time, get my food and then have to choose where to sit. I went and sat with two lads who were sat on their own. One of them was there for the first time so I figured I might be able to relate to how he was feeling. I was a bit disappointed that none of the people from the church had gone to sit with them. After about 10 minutes of attempted conversation things went very quiet. They spoke a tiny bit of English and didn’t like football, movies or western music. That was pretty much my topics of conversation exhausted. I was in trouble. I prayed. I prayed that God would step in and help.

Within the space of a minute a girl I’d met before came and sat with us. She speaks great English and so was able to guide the conversation including both the lads and myself. Just perfect! A few minutes later another couple of girls joined us. Then a guy. Then a load of little kids. Suddenly we were in the middle of a very relaxed, enjoyable gathering. I hope they felt welcome and like they were a part of something. I wanted to make them feel at home but knew I could barely introduce myself. So I did what I could and prayed the rest. God took care of it!

Sapporo

2008-05-03T08:26:00.001+01:00

Japan Journal - April 28th

2008-04-28T13:43:00.004+01:00

Last week I met up with Yusuke to do Bible study for the first time. I bumped into him earlier in the day. He was sat in the park reading his Bible! Remember this guy is not a Christian. His comment before we started was about communism and capitalism and the ways in which they appear similar to Christianity and other world religions. Beforehand I was expecting to have to simplify everything. That wasn't going to be the case.
His friend decided that he wanted to join us for the study which was also pretty amazing. I was excited before we even opened the Bible. We went through and looked at 'Who is God?' The study went well with both guys able to understand the questions and find the answers in the text. I was slightly worried it might just become a comprehension exercise so I asked at the end if they had any questions. Yusuke asked how we could be sure the resurrection happened. He decided that if Jesus really rose from the dead then everything he said must be taken seriously. If he didn't then it could be dismissed. Very true. We talked through the events surrounding the rising of Jesus and how the only conclusion we can draw is that he rose from the dead. He's going to keep reading the gospels to check it out properly.
The other guy then asked why it seems new religions lack any credibility whereas old ones seem to make far more sense. Both of these guys are thinkers and not afraid to question things. We concluded that, according to the Bible, the only way to know God was to know Jesus. Therefore, to find out if the God of the Bible is real, you have to read the Bible and get to know Jesus. I encouraged them to pray before reading that if God is real then he would show his word to be true. They said they would and so far these guys have been true to their word. Just incredible! Yusuke then came to the study in the evening and his mate has said he'll come this week. Praise God.

Teaching is still going well. The pastor of the church where I teach adults has been really encouraged by a lady who has begun to come on a Sunday morning. People from the church have attended the classes so that they can get to know the non-Christians who come along and make them feel welcome if they come to a service. What I great attitude that God has been willing to bless. There are a couple more who could make the step. We need to pray that they will!
The pastor and his family are just great and I was more than happy to help out when asked if I could cover a children's class. Two small classes of 5 year olds (i think). They spoke no English which I should've expected really. It ended up as two hours of me jumping, singing, making animal noises, trying pretty much anything to get them to enjoy English. There was a great moment when 4 five year olds just stared at me like I was crazy for the best part of five minutes. I was determined to get them to join in so just kept going in the desperate hope they'd understand me eventually. They did.
Very humbling but beautiful too.

Church continues to be a blessing. The pastor's wife translates for me which is great and I'm beginning to join in more with some of the songs. The lunch afterwards is always slightly scary, depending upon who I end up sat next too. I sat with a guy who was on his own. We managed 'nice to meet you' and 'my name is' in Japanese and then the conversation ended. We sat in silence smiling politely for the next 5 minutes. Eventually we were joined by some others who spoke a bit of English. I got my photos out and we were off. Mum was right to make me bring them! By the end of it I had a guy (the father of one of the kids I teach) offering to take me sightseeing next Saturday. Very cool. I get the impression that some of the others will join us too which is great. It was the same guy who's wife had observed me teaching in the week. Either she didn't think it was too bad or she hated it and this is their wicked plan for revenge. I'm fairly certain it's the former. Despite the barrier of langauge, they have made me feel really welcome.

I think that's enough for now. Golden week this week which means a few days off here and there. No adult classes which gives me a chance to get ahead on planning. Yeh right!

My testimony

2008-04-26T15:44:00.002+01:00

I grew up knowing that I did many things wrong. I thought I knew best even if things didn’t always turn out well. Although these were often little things, I soon began to realise I had a problem. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop doing bad things, thinking bad things. One thing I knew, I deserved to be punished. If there was a heaven, I didn’t deserve to go there. The thought scared me but there was nothing I could do about it.

Then I remembered Jesus. My parents are Christians and I was taught all about him. I knew that he had claimed he could forgive sins. I knew that he had died on a cross so that people wouldn’t have to be punished. I knew all I had to do was to trust and follow him and I would be forgiven. So I did. As a young boy I begged him to forgive me and help me to change. I knew I’d been forgiven but things didn’t change all that much.

A short time later, everything changed! My friend got up and shared something with us at Sunday school. He had a medical problem which meant he found it difficult to walk and talk properly. He told us how he had asked Jesus to come into his life and live inside him. I looked at my friend and knew that he had something that I wanted. He had something in his life that was so much better than anything in my life. I knew Jesus could forgive me but I didn’t know he would come and live inside me if I asked him. So I asked him. There and then I prayed that Jesus would come into my life and never leave me.

I am a different person now to who I was then. Little by little, Jesus has been changing me and helping me to stop thinking and doing evil things. I have gotten to know him and realise that he loves me and will never leave me. He wants only good things for me and I am certain that one day I will be with him in heaven. Life isn’t always easy. Bad things still happen all around me, but I know Jesus will always be with me. I am loved by him and completely forgiven. He offered me life. He offers the same to you.

Japan Journal - April 21st

2008-04-21T13:48:00.004+01:00

It's been a week since my last entry so I figure it's about time I wrote something again.

Unfortunately my head is not overly focussed so this could all be a bit haphazard.

Teaching English is just exhausting. It's brilliant seeing people progress so quickly with a skill that will be really useful to them, but having to simplify everything is not always easy. I've become so used to having a class full of children who know me and kinda get what I'm saying even if it's not perfectly clear. I can't fall back on that here. The students are so enthusiastic though which really puts me to shame with my langauge study. Most days I feel like I'm actually gettting nowhere, although there are days like today when I feel things are beginning to fall into place. It just shows up my own desire to give up easily and leads me to rely upon the Holy Spirit for perserverence.

I definitely find it easier to rely upon God in difficult one-off situations than in regular daily disciplines.

I actually made it to church on time on Sunday and the pastor's wife very kindly translated the sermon for me. When one person is going to the effort to convert everything just for you, it really makes you sit up and listen to every single word. How often we take for granted having everything in a language that we can understand. What of those people who never hear God's word in their own tongue?

I met with 3 students today, as well as preparing for class tomorrow and Thursday. One of them I meet with twice a week and he has agreed to do one of those times as a Bible study. Just brilliant! He has already read parts of it and he thinks it is beautifully written. We have built up a friendship so quickly that I know he will happily share any problems he has with what we read, so we can have an honest study. Another student randomly asked me what the difference was between Catholics, Protestants and Mormons. We had been chatting for about a minute, I shared a little and then he had to return to his meeting.

Just a little comment but God will use it to his glory.

Last week I was so tired but I'm feeling more alert this week.

Listened to a John Piper sermon called 'I'm sending you to open their eyes', last night. It was from www.desiringgod.org from 13.04.08. I then listened to it again last night and partially this morning. It reminded me of the reasons to evangelise and is so practical in equiping people to reach others. It reinforces why sharing the gospel is something we all should do and something we all can do. I will be reflecting upon it for days to come.

Overall things are great. I'm in a regular routine and now in a position to build quality relationships, whilst still initiating new ones. I daily have to go to God in the morning for the strength and desire to live the day out fully, and then turn to him again at night to thank him for all the things he has done. Not everything is easy and not everything is particularly fun,but everything is done in the name of the Lord and therefore nothing is in vain. 1 Corinthians 15.58.

That is a beautiful thing!

What is God capable of?

2008-04-14T02:24:00.001+01:00

So rarely in life do we get to see what God can do.

Everything we look at is spoilt somehow.

Falling short of its true potential.

But there are still those things that take your breath away.

A view so beautiful that you have to stop and drink it in.

Simply incredible!

Man can not creat that sort of beauty on so great a scale, no matter how long he works for. God did it in a moment. Spoke it into existence.

If that's what God can do out of nothing, imagine what he could do with something made in his image. Something he chooses to make the home of his Holy Spirit.

If that's what God can do through his word in a moment, imagine what he could do in a lifetime. Or any moment of our lives.

God is not restricted to nature. Imagine what he is capable of doing in other aspects of our lives. In ALL aspects.

Love, wisdom, purpose, goodness, pleasure, satisfaction, fulfillment.

We wonder why we don't see the same incredible beauty in our own lives?

It's because we don't allow him to create it.

Japan Journal - April 9th

2008-04-05T13:48:00.004+01:00

I arranged to meet up with a guy for language exchange today. We had just over an hour to chat before I had to go to a meeting. Then I get an email saying he might be half an hour late. I wasn't too happy at the though of waiting arounf for half an hour and was beginning to think it would be a waste of time.

He arrived pretty much on time and we sat down to chat for a while. My friend George (an Amercian guy who's here for a few weeks) was there too and between us we had a good conversation. I invited him to the evening Bible study and he said he might come and bring some friends. We weren’t overly hopeful as most people are polite and say they’ll come, but don't actually turn up.

The evening class/study started at 7:00. At 7:15 we've got two students. All of us were more than a little disappointed. A minute later, in walks the guy and a friend of his. When it came to splitting into groups I ended up in a pair with him and we did the bible study together. Turns out this guy is not a Christian but has a friend who has been reading the Bible with him. He is interested but quite confused and has been warned by his family that Christianity is dangerous! We did the study and he asked me how we can be sure that Christianity is true and other religions are not.

I explained how Jesus said he was the only way to the father and so if Christianity is true then all other religions must be wrong. They couldn't be merged together (that's a big thing in Japan). I then described how all other religions are about doing something in order to get to God. Earning your way into heaven. Good deeds, regular prayer, reading a holy book, attending a service.

I explained how Christianity is different because God came to us and did something for us. Jesus died in our place. He's done it all, we just have to accept the free gift. I said how this made Christianity different because it’s not about being good enough for God, it’s about knowing you are not good enough.

I said that I know that I'm not good enough and that no matter what I do, I still deserved to be punished. I know I don't deserve to go to heaven. He seemed to accept what I was saying, but wasn't afraid to question me if he didn't agree. He had a great attitude.

We finished with a plan to meet again next week and the prospect of me and Alex doing a Bible study with him and his friend who came. Both non-Christians. He also seemed interested in coming along to my church with me on Sunday. That way he'll be the one who understands and I'll be the one confused! This guy already knows more about the Bible than most Japanese people. He applied to do language exchange with someone he didn’t know was a Christian and now he’s coming along to Bible studies and possibly church. It is simply amazing how God will use people to move others closer to him. One step at a time. We may never see the impact we have on others. We just need to trust that God will piece it all together using many of his servants. That way none of us can boast.

A verse to live by!

2008-04-05T13:48:00.003+01:00

You make known to me the path of life;

in your presence there is fullness of joy;

at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 16.11

If this is really true, if it can be trusted without a shadow of a doubt, then surely there is only one way to live. All out pursuit of God's presence. A singleminded desire to walk in his path and taste eternal pleasure out of his hand. If it's true, surely anything else is second best. Sure, it may make us happy for a bit, of give us a measure of pleasure, but it would always fade in the end. Isn't that true? Don't all the pleasures and joys we experience fade in the end.

Aren't we always left wanting more? Hoping beyond hope that we might stumble across true joy eventually.

Nothing in this world brings eternal pleasure. Nothing brings fulness of joy. Not to say that life is only miserable. We are still God's creation and his presence can be felt throughout the world. Life can be really great at times, but the greatness rarely lasts a lifetime, let alone for eternity.

I know that the Bible can be trusted. I know that God's presence is the only place I can find fulness of joy. I don't want second best. So all I have to do is live like it. Stop settling for pleasure that is not of God. Trust that he really is all I need. Not simply to survive, but to truly live!

Japan Journal - April 7th

2008-04-05T13:48:00.002+01:00

So much is happening in such a small space of time that it’s hard to keep on top of writing it up!
Sorry to those who check this regularly. And sorry this is so long!

Today we hit the university campus for the first time. 3 of us went. None of us speak Japanese. The other two are both here for a few weeks and none of us had really been out like that before.
The campus is nicely spread out with a fair amount of greenery dotted around. So as not to overwhelm people too much, we split up and agreed to meet back together in an hour and a half. The strategy was simple. Find one or two people. Ask them if they speak any English. Then introduce yourself, ask them about themselves (name, age, subject, year, clubs joined), then ask them if they like practising speaking English. If they do, exchange e-mails and arrange to meet up, or invite them to the English Bible Study. If they don’t appear interested, give them a flyer and depart politely.
All manner of scary.
We prayed together and then we split.

I spoke to five or six guys quite easily to begin with. Got through all the questions and then gave them each a flyer. I found that looking like I didn’t really know what I was doing (which I didn’t) helped and smiling a lot. I think they just took pity on me which is no bad thing if it leads them to knowing God as their saviour and friend.

After about half an hour I hit a point where everyone I asked said they didn’t speak English and kept on walking. I got a bit tired and felt like giving up. It was amazing how easily I lost focus! So I prayed that God would lead me to someone I could have a meaningful conversation with. I saw a guy walking by a little pond area. I thought, ‘If he sits down on a bench then I’m going to go and speak to him.’ He sat down and got his drink out. I walked over and sat down beside him.
Turns out he was a Korean student studying Japanese and spoke less English than anyone I’d spoken to so far (even those who claimed to not speak any English!). We conducted the conversation with much: repetition, pointing, acting and consultation of his electronic translator (genius!). By the end I found out he was a Christian who has been living in Sapporo for 3 months but not yet been to a church here. He was very interested in the flyers and now has my e-mail address so I can put him in touch with a church.
How simple is that! Even through my readiness to give up and a complete lack of shared language, God can and will use a situation to show his love to people. I was humbled to be used and pray the guy e-mails.

It got me thinking as to why I don’t do that sort of thing in Britain. Apart from being lazy, the only real answer was fear. Fear of being laughed at, ignored, rejected. I was rejected by about 8 students, laughed at by 3 and ignored by countless. Yet one person is now one step closer to growing with God. Not because of me, but because God longs to use his people. Not because I can teach the gospel clearly. I really can’t do that in Japanese or Korean.
There really are no good excuses as to why we don’t share Jesus with the world. It is the easiest thing to give someone a flyer inviting them to somewhere they could find out more.
Even just a card with an e-mail address to chat about what it means to be loved by God.

‘And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, "We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us." But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men."’
Acts 5.27-29

The apostles filled Jerusalem with their teaching. They did it because they felt they must obey God. Could anyone in that city turn round to Jesus at judgment and say,
‘Sorry, but I never knew you died in my place’?
Is the same true of those we love?
We need to tell the world that Jesus died for them.
If not because we love people then because we’re obeying God.
How can we keep the greatest event mankind had ever witnessed a secret?

Japan Journal - Day 2

2008-04-03T06:12:00.002+01:00

Travel - Day began in Ichikawa. Early morning required to catch the flight from Tokyo to Sapporo. Kenton took me as far as the train change. He is the admin for OMF Japan, who made me feel at ease from the moment I met him. Very thankful to God for him. He said goodbye as the train pulled in and then we saw how full it was! Up until this point all we’d seen was quiet trains. Trains with seats to spare in abundance. The train pulled in and Kenton apologised as a squeezed into a gap that physically couldn’t fit me and my cases. It’s fair to say the local people gave the Brit with the bags as much room as they could spare. The airport was easy and the women at the desks very gracious as they constantly redirected me to the place I should be (not the rival company). Managed to get my bag down from 23.4kg to 21kg for the lower weight restriction. Back’s still a little sore from the rucksack though!

Hokkaido - I was a little disappointed with how the area surrounding Tokyo looked. Very, very western. The only real difference was the writing. Even from the air the ground looked fairly familiar. As we flew over the water towards Hokaido, I saw the beginning of something special. A line of white across the haze of blue. At first, I thought it was the coast, as the waves were fairly substantial around the rest of Japan. Only as we got closer they showed themselves for what they really were. Standing proud, a guard of snow-capped sentries. Not just thrown down on the landscape, but carefully positioned like a row of dominoes. Mountains. It was a good start.

Sapporo - Sapporo itself is similar to the cities surrounding Tokyo, although the mountains can be easily seen on a clear day. I was picked up by Alaric who drove me to Richard’s, where I’ll be staying while I’m here. They had a meeting, so I was left to my own devices for the following three and a half hours. It was good to get my bearings and settle into my room.

My room - Just brilliant! It’s in a flat on the third floor but still with expected sliding doors and mat flooring. The room is empty apart from a floor chair (a normal chair without legs). A wardrobe lies behind sliding doors, which holds all the fold out bits I need to make a very comfortable bed on the floor. I love it! Can’t make a mess because it all has to be tidied away at the start of the day!

Tonight - Had a Birthday meal for one of the girls on the team. Taken as a great opportunity to share the gospel with Japenese people in a really comfortable setting. Got chatting to one of the lads who spoke a bit more English than the others. He’s going to become my language partner so I can learn Japanese and he can learn English. He also offered to help me out if I want to venture out into the more remote parts of the island. Very cool.

Work - Still don’t really know what I’ll be doing. Expect to find out more tomorrow. Supposedly I won’t have time to get bored. Sounds good.

Japan Journal - April 1st

2008-04-01T03:57:00.002+01:00

Prayed lots on the plane. Arrived without any major problems. I have all my bags and wasn't delayed at all in the end. Met by Kenton at the airport who brought me to the OMF Headquarters. Had a really good train journey where I got to see some greenery out of the windows. Supposedly I'll be seeing mostly cities. Everything great so far. Got pizza for lunch. Maybe the food thing isn't going to be that big a problem.

Update later.

Me, me, me

2008-03-29T23:41:00.002Z

As the day draws near I begin to think more and more about going to Japan.

What will I be doing? Will I like the people I'm working with? Will I be useful to them? How will I cope being so far from home? Will I be ok with the food? etc etc etc

There is a big problem with my questioning. It's all about me.

How easy it is to make ourselves the focus.

Even in a trip that's supposed to be about serving others,

there is a real danger of thinking only of myself.

So I must change my questioning.

What big problems do Japanese Christians face?

What do they find most exciting?

How has God shown his love through the lives of individuals?

May God cause us to look to others before ourselves.

Japan Journal: Before leaving

2008-03-21T19:39:00.005Z

The time is fast approaching for me to leave for Japan. I'm not really sure how I feel about that. Sure, I'm excited and I'm definitely nervous, but I guess more than anything I'm just waiting. Waiting until I've sorted out all the frustrating little details and can finally board a plane and set off. I really don't like the details. It's a shame that an adventure can't really happen without at least a bit of preparation. Still, not long to go.

Where am I going?
Sapporo, Hokkaido, Northernmost island of Japan.

What will I be doing?
Working with FMZero, part of OMF Japan. I will be mainly working with university students with possibly some teaching and children's work too. As yet, I don't really know much more than that. Whatever they want me to do really.

When am I going?
I leave on March 31st and should return on 27th June.

What will I be eating?
Not alot apparently. I'm allergic to both nuts and fish which will certainly make life interesting. I think me and rice are going to become firm friends!

Do I speak the language?
No.

Do I understand the culture?
Not really. Other than Manga, Anime and Samurai.

Do I need prayer?
Hopefully that's obvious. Please pray for the abilty to communicate clearly and for quick relationships to be formed with the team out there.

Slow to anger

2007-10-26T01:00:00.001+01:00

The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

Nahum 1.3

How little we think of God. We consider him to be like us.

We don't understand it when he allows bad things to happen or evil people to prosper. We assume that he is either powerless to intervene or just doesn't care. We couldn't be more wrong!

His power has no limit. The whirlwind and the storm are not alien to him. He walks with ease through that which we can only gaze up at in awe. He wants for nothing. With one word he could destroy all the wickedness that mankind could ever dream up. He has the power!

So he lacks the motivation then. He just can't be bothered. He doesn't care enough. Yet he will not clear the guilty. He cannot allow those who have wronged him to go unpunished. He can't forget about sin. He won't forget about sin. He is too good to allow bad. His motivation is greater than ours could ever be.

We claim to despise the evil in the world and yet we all paddle around in it in our own little ways. We call it harmless and then taste surprise when people get hurt. When we get hurt. We know we shouldn't do it, but we do and the more we do, the more natural it seems. We grow so used to it we no longer see it as a problem. We grow to love it in ourselves, but hate it in others. We grow angry at God and demand justice. Only we don't want too much justice. We don't want to be punished ourselves. Just the really wicked people. A little evil is fine. Our lives suggest it is we who want injustice, not him.

We must be thankful he is slow to anger. Thankful that he doesn't want to destroy a species that craves its own destruction. We despise the mercy that stays his hand. Think that he doesn't care. Only he cares more than we could understand. He doesn't want to destroy us, even though we are guilty through and through. He wants to save us.

He will not just clear the guilty, but he can move the guilt. Move it to one who is innocent. He can and he did. He is slow to anger, that we might be quick to trust him.

Quick to realise that we have an undeserved way of escape.

What is a Christian?

2007-08-18T13:09:00.000+01:00

'I am telling you the truth: those who believe in me will do what I do---yes, they will do even greater things, because I am going to the Father. '

John 14:12

What is a Christian?

Most people would say someone who believes in God and Jesus. The Bible would agree, but we're not asking the real question. The real question demands a much greater response.

What does it mean to believe?

Most people would say it means thinking that they exist and maybe acknowledging them from time to time. The Bible goes much further! Believing in Jesus means to do the works he did. To show God's power and authority over every area of life. To point to God in every single action, giving him the credit. And not by silent works. Jesus always used his actions to reinforce his message. To tell people the good news that He is the saviour we've all been waiting for. To tell them that it is possible to be right with God again and enjoy all the benefits of that relationship. To set people free from all the things that enslave them. That is what it means to be a Christian. To become more like Christ in every way. Sitting back and living a normal life is not an option. Acknowledging him every now and again does not a believer make.

If I really believe in Jesus then my every act must be wrought in His power and direction.

back from the dead

2006-11-13T22:53:00.000Z

''... for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.'

And they began to celebrate.'

Luke 15.24

If we put ourselves in the wrong place then we miss the meaning entirely. The story is the prodigal son. We are not fit to be the father and we very rarely deserve the position of the older son, if ever. We have to assume the part of the younger son. We have to realise the truth of the story in our own lives and accept the consequences. I see the life mapped out in mine only too clearly. The desire to have pleasure and satisfaction right now with no sense of work or cost. The desire to be free of responsibility to others, to pursue a life of new experiences and doing what i want when i want. The question is not whether or not i am the younger son, the question is what i do when i find myself in the same state as he and finally realise it. When i see that all i am eating is the food of pigs and that my state is one of filth and waste. What do i do now?

Do i choose to return to my father on my knees in deep, sincere sorrow and regret? Or do i keep wallowing in the hope that things will improve or the lie that they're not really that bad? That is the real question. It takes alot of guts and a lot of humility to return. Either that or a very real awareness that it is the only option left. The father doesn't question why the son has returned, he only cares to see him again, to hold him again. When i return to God on my knees he picks me up again and rejoices over me. Confessed sin is forgiven sin and forgiven sin has no hold over me. One thing remains.

'And they began to celebrate.'

Together!

Where are you?

2006-09-23T23:15:00.000+01:00

But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?"

Genesis 3.9

God didn't need to know where man was, he already knew. It was man who needed to be made aware. It was man who needed to realise that he was in fact hiding from God. That he had chosen to disobey him and was now trying to escape the consequences. We need to constantly ask ourselves the same question, "where are you?"

When it comes to standing before God, where am I?

Am I hiding from him? From the consequences of my sin, from the responsibilities i'm given, from the times I wish to forget?

God gives us the chance to confess. The chance to see our state before him and than the chance to accept his forgiveness and make things right.

It is a question that bleeds love from every pore. A question that plumbs the very depths of mans being and demands an honest answer. And yet we needn't fear the answer. Yes we might know shame and guilt, but through his sacrifice we need not know fear. If our answer is "I'm hiding" his response invites us into the open. If our answer is "I'm running away" his response invites us home. If our answer is "I'm nowhere" his response invites us somewhere. If our answer is "I just don't know" his response is, "I do, now trust me!"

Looking onward and upward

2006-09-21T22:44:00.000+01:00

He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.

Isaiah 25.8

We are seriously stupid if we don't make time to stop and remember what it is we are living toward! It was the promise of reward that motivated Moses to forsake the passing pleasures of sin, not some deep rooted selflessness. We can often think that we should never consider our own well being and should be motivated by selfless reasons, but that is not the way God motivates us. He has a complete overwhelming desire for joy and he has made us in that image. When God commands man he always complements his commands with countless blessings that will come about as a result. He doesn't say, "Do this because you are wretched and worthless and I am all powerful!". He could, but he doesn't. He doesn't have to give us reasons to follow him, but he always does and we need to embrace these reasons. We need to be overwhelmed with the desire for joy that is found only in the presence of God, and therefore overwhelmed with a desire for God. Everytime things look hard or we are tempted to taste of the lies of sin we must stop and remember where we are heading toward. Not that we forsake all others to please ourselves, but that we come to realise that the only way to truly please ourselves is to forsake ourselves, please God and please others. It is our desire for self that causes us to stop looking out for ourselves and start trusting God.

We can think that a good deed is made better if there is nothing to be gained by the doer.

I'm sorry, but that's just insane!

Surely the deed is made better when more people can share in the joy it brings about, including the one doing the deed. We simply need to know how it all fits together. We lose our life to gain it. We carry our cross to fly to freedom. We fix our eyes on Jesus because he fills our hearts with joy. That's the only way I can get through the next day with the hope of victory over sin. The next hour even.

I fight the false fading pleasures of sin with the true everlasting pleasures of God.

Replace death for life.

Daily choose to fly.

Joy?

2006-09-20T23:19:00.000+01:00

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation."
With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
And you will say in that day: "Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted."

Isaiah 12.2-4

With God as our only means of being saved, we are eternally safe. We cannot lose our salvation because it rests in his well and his well is always stocked and ever overflowing. We can never do anything so bad that we are beyond his reach, his well runs deeper than the betrayal of any sin we could commit. It is therefore with eternal joy that we draw our water. It is with eternal joy that we confess our wretchedness, knowing that he will change us to be like his one perfect son. It is with joy that we trust him through all that life could throw at us, knowing that the most important thing is taken care of, our anchor is secure and our well will never run dry, therefore we are never afraid. A city with impenetrable walls and constant supply need never fear attack. They simply need to sit put, not do anything stupid and keep going and drawing every thing they need from their source. We must do the same. We must look to God as our only means of salvation and therefore our only means of security. We must not look to anything outside of him to fill any of our eternal needs, for they never could and would only bring pain flowing from rebellion. We have it all! How rarely we see it.

Wasted words of little truth

2006-09-19T00:50:00.000+01:00

The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Psalm 34.10

We complain that we do not have but we do not seek. We go after God in a halfhearted manner, rarely giving him the whole of our heart and pursuing him with the sort of vigour we give to other stuff, and then turn round and blame God for making life hard and not providing us with any good things. We do not have because we do not seek. We are not to be like young lions, with a fierce appetite and no source of satisfaction, but to be those who know intimately the good gifts of a loving father. We are not to give God half a chance and then blame all our troubles on him, but to give him everything and gaze in wonder at the riches he freely pours on us. We cannot claim to be seeking God if we are not looking for him in his word and in prayer; it's like claiming to be playing hide and seek but our feet never leaving our counting point. Only wasted words of little truth. To seek God is to treasure him. To pursue him as if he truly is the beginning and the end, all that matters in this world and the next. To gladly give to him the best of all our time, knowing it is but a shadow of what he deserves. Our hearts show what we seek. Am I desperate for God? Am I longing for him? If I'm not and i want to, it is only his word and prayer that will change my heart. Everything else is just wasted words of little truth.

Fear the Lord

2006-09-17T23:30:00.000+01:00

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!

Psalm 34.8,9

Fear of the Lord is here linked with seeing that he is good and taking refuge in him. It is not a fear that drives me to a corner to cower in uncertainty. It is a fear that values God as truly good and the only source of true security. It is a fear that causes a complete reliance upon him and results in having no lack at all. God always promises great rewards for a right attitude towards him, not least the provision of everything we could ever need. Why do so many Christians have such a distorted view of the Christian life? Why do so many Christians choose to focus on the trial and the struggle instead of upon the great reward? We should be so in love with our God and the natural result of being with him that everything else is of little or no consequence. We must allow him to hold sway over all our desires, if we are ever to be fully satisfied.

Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!

Fear of the Lord

2006-09-16T23:47:00.000+01:00

'And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear'

Isaiah 11.3

I think it's a phrase that noone fully understands, 'the fear of the Lord'. Yet, it's such an important phrase in understanding how we should relate to God. It is described as the beginning of wisdom and here in reference to Jesus it refers to a joyful way of life, but what is it? What is it that Jesus delighted in? I think that it is the word fear that is misleading. I think of fear like a fear of spiders or a fear of heights, but i don't think those really mirror this use. I think an animal's fear of fire might be closer to the truth. An experience of something so awesome, so powerful, so completely different to itself, that leads to complete respect. I think those are the qualities we need to see in God and that our response is one of awe and respect. I think a fear of the Lord involves always viewing God as fully as possible and responding accordingly. Not a fear of the punishment of sin (otherwise Jesus couldn't have delighted in it) but a fear that sees God and falls to its knees with mouth wide open. A fear that leads to a life of obedient submission and heartfelt worship. A fear that touches and controls all aspects of life. A fear that should be delighted in as the root of all wisdom and joy.

Just stopping and being

2006-09-15T23:19:00.000+01:00

'Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:

"I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit,

who leads you in the way you should go."'

Isaiah 48.17

Sometimes all we need to do is to stop and think about who God is. We can spend so long thinking about who we are, about what we should be doing, about how everything in our life fits together, about all the problems and difficulties we have, about where we want our future to go . . . and so little time just stopping and thinking about who God is. Just stopping and spending time gazing up at him. Just stopping and being with him. That's why we worry, why we panic, why we stress, why we become overwhelmed, why we lose hope. Put another way, that's why we sin. It is a small view of who God is that leads us to treat him in a way that is less than deserving. We need to spend time looking at him so that when problems come we see the solution. When difficulties arise we know the way through. When all hope is lost all hope is found.

What is it we see when we look at him? We see the one who bought us out of self inflicted slavery. The one who stands apart alone as worthy of all honour. The one who teaches us his way that we might walk in it and know true greatness. We see more than enough to get us through every hardship, every trial, every temptation. We see our God.

Whom do i fear?

2006-09-14T23:17:00.000+01:00

'. . . you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it.

It is the Lord of hosts whom you should regard as holy,

and He shall be your fear,

and He shall be your dread.

Then He shall become a sanctuary . . .'

Isaiah 8.12-14

A fear of the Lord is a healthy thing; especially if it stems from an awareness of his great and terrible power, coupled with a knowledge of his hatred of sin. It's one thing to look at the world and be afraid of all that could harm the flesh, it's another entirely to glimpse our frailty in the hands of our creator. It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God, if you choose to cast aside a healthy fear of him. Through either underestimating the seriousness of sin or the power of God, we can live a life where a fear of God is never so much as entertained. It is not just a healthy thing, it is a necessity if we are ever to be brought to a place of safety. Regard him as holy, fear and dread what he could do to an undeserving sinner, and then he shall become a sanctuary. It is then that his hands close around us, not to crush, but to protect. Does the fear then disappear? No, it simply progresses to become a deep rooted love and appreciation. The fear is not gone, but changed somehow into something so much richer. I long to truly fear the Lord, that I might know his protection, and rest within the shadow of his wings.

Send me?

2006-09-13T23:18:00.000+01:00

'He touched my mouth with it and said,

"Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away

and your sin is forgiven."'

Isaiah 6.7

Isaiah was granted a vision of the Lord on the throne and his only response was to readily confess the sinfulness of himself and his people. Isaiah was fully aware that for the eyes of a sinner to look upon the king was to accept the penalty of death. He knew the perfection of God and His necessity to eradicate sin for his presence. He knew that as a fallen man he deserved to die, yet God intervened. He forgave his sin and removed all iniquity. Isaiah was not just altered, he was completely transformed. His whole being was made clean. God did not require Isaiah to do anything other than to freely accept his guilt. And once the guilt was removed, Isaiah was free to pursue true freedom found only in a life surrended to God. Isaiah willingly volunteered to take a message that would see the hardening of hearts and great destruction. The task would bring rejection, humiliation and persecution; yet it was all God asked and therefore it was a task heaped in blessing. To refuse would've been to accept that God had saved him but then to say that he was fine on his own from then on. To refuse would've been to take the offer to be free from prison, only to turn round and jump back in again. We are not made free to fall into sin once more. We are not free to forsake all others and please only self. We are free to fly to freedom. Free to choose the path that goes ever upwards, resulting in the sweetest freedom ever tasted. The task will bring rejection, humiliation and persecution. Can I really say it . . .

"Here am I, send me!"

Mastering sin

2006-09-12T23:09:00.000+01:00

'Then the Lord said to Cain,

"Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?

If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up!

And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door,

and its desire is for you, but you must master it."'

Genesis 4.6,7

My anger towards God can never be justified. Never deserved. It is always a result of me not 'doing well', because if i genuinely do well in the sight of the Lord, the result is that my countenance will be lifted. I will not be angry but at peace. Not hopeless but hopeful. My outlook will not be one that only sees the negative, but one that is overawed by the positive. If I do well with God; if I repent, submit and follow, then my entire being will be satisfied.

However, if I do not do well, the consequence is clear. I can either choose to master sin, or it will surely master me. Mastering sin means that I never entertain it for a second. That the moment a thought creeps into my mind that can lead me astray, I take it captive and fix my eyes to my perfecter. It means that I never knowingly or willingly walk into a situation where temptation will surround me. It means that I take every possible measure to ensure that my friends are looking out for me and holding me accountable. Mastering sin requires the combined power of prayer and God's word to fight the lies I will want to believe and to constantly refresh me with a vision of my eternal hope. Mastering sin requires me giving my everything and trusting that with God all things are possible.

For sin to master me requires for me to simply do nothing.

That's all it takes.

It desires to have me, yet I desire to be free from it.

The power of God far outways the power of sin!

Slipping away

2006-09-11T23:35:00.000+01:00

'My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back,

let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way

will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.'

James 5.19,20

It's a beautiful thing to stand on the edge, surveying the slippery slope down to destruction, knowing you are about to fall in and then feeling a hand on you shoulder, pulling you back to safety. How precious the thought that we don't walk this road alone and in our darkest moments help will always be sent. How precious to be the hand used to turn someone back. I know what it is to be turned from the error of my way and I thank God that he did not leave me to walk my own way. How then could we possibly stand by and watch as someone slowly slips away? What sort of monster would that make me? I have been saved, I have friends to constantly pull me back, I must do the same for others. It's that simple!

Honor or dishonor?

2006-09-10T23:07:00.000+01:00

'Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.'

2 Timothy 2.20,21

The important thing is not what the vessel is made from, but what it is made for. There is no worth in a gold vessel made for dishonourable purposes. There is great worth in an earthenware vessel made for honor. The world turns it round and so do we. We place the importance on who we are, who we know, what we can do, who we can be. Even if we think we don't, we do. When surrounded by others, it becomes the most natural thing in the world to think of myself. How am I seen? What do others think of me? If I reason that the response is positive I feel good about myself and the situation. If the response is negative I reason it away as the fault of others. It should not even cross my mind what others think because it actually means nothing. Who I am in the eyes of others is not what matters. What matters is what I am used for. Am I used for honor or dishonor? For the good of others or the harm? It's one or the other. I either give or I take. What does it take to be used for honor? I've got to cleanse myself. God will not touch a dirty vessel. I must be clean to be of use, otherwise I am meant for dishonor alone. I have to chose to separate myself from the sin in my life, to step away and cling to God as the only one who can set me free and make me clean.

If I am not useful, I'm useless!

I long to be anything but!

2006-09-09T22:41:00.000+01:00

'"Come now, and let us reason together,"
says the Lord,
"though your sins are as scarlet, they will be white as snow;
though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool."'
Isaiah 1.18

It struck me tonight how much I need this verse right now. A new beginning. Another chance to start again. Everything I've done, all the things I've tried to chase after, all the times I've made myself as God; all are taken away. My constant failings, weaknesses, struggles; all are made as nothing. The thought that I've tried so many times and failed so many times, need not be entertained for long, as all has been forgiven. Everything. I don't need to wake up in the morning with an expectancy of failure. I don't need to walk the way I've walked a thousand times before, because I am now a different person. I was stained and filthy and hopeless. Now I have been made whiter than snow. I am a child of God. I have within me the same power that raised Jesus from death. I have a future before me that was written before the world was uttered. A future bright with the promise of success and glory. I need this verse because I need constant washing and a constant reminder that I don't have to keep making the same mistakes over. I am free to fly to freedom. Free to live a life that pursues true freedom from sin, decay, addiction, destruction. If I stay where I am then I will only fall back into my pit. I must remember the hole from which I was dug, and run away from it, towards the freedom found with Christ. I am free to fly to freedom.

2006-09-09T00:11:00.000+01:00

'At night my soul longs for You,

Indeed my spirit within me seeks You diligently.'

Isaiah 26.9

I'm struck by the way longing and diligence are one. So often when I think of longing I imagine a feeling of desperation, often expressed through short outbursts. When I think of diligence I think of committment and effort. The two stand at opposite ends of my mind and yet for Isaiah, the two went together perfectly. I guess if the longing is genuine, then the level of commitment is increased and so the 'longer' becomes more diligent in their search. The depth of my longing for God can therefore be shown by my diligence in seeking him. That shames me! It's easy to say I want God and to believe it's true, but only my actions will truly show the level of my committment. A committed, longing heart seeks diligently. Carefully, precisely, leaving nothing to chance, searching out every truth, acknowledging every detail. A heart that loves God desperately must seek him with a desperate diligence. That's when he is truly found!

What is man?

2006-09-07T22:34:00.000+01:00

'Stop regarding man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils;

For why should he be esteemed?'

Isaiah 2.22

A question and a command. One is far easier than the other and so must be the best place to start. You kinda have to work up to a challenge and find reason enough to accept it. At least I do. If the challenge doesn't rest on a bed of motivation, it will always fall down. However, God is such that he never issues a challenge without giving us every reason in the world to accept it. We just have to open our eyes.

I've just changed my mind! I'm gonna do it in the order God's done it, cos i figure there's sense in that.

'Stop regarding man' is the challenge and what a challenge. It doesn't mean to stop thinking of others or take for yourself an excuse to be selfish. It means that when you do things, when I do things, little things, big things, anything; we don't do them for the praise of others. It also means that we don't do them for the sole purpose of pleasing others, we should look to please others but within the greater view of pleasing God. His pleasure is what leads us to please others. His pleasure is what controls us. So I have to stop regarding man, in order that I might regard God. It's so easy to see others and think they're great and get so caught up in trying to please them. I think the bigger challenge comes to me when 'man' is changed to 'woman'. Too often a pretty girl can be regarded as more important than God. I've gotta stop regarding man. That includes regarding myself!

The question gives me the reason to obey.

'Why should he be esteemed?'

What have I ever done that shows that I am able to live for myself?

What has anyone else done that shows that they are worthy of my high regard?

The answer must be nothing!

Even the riches of man are filthy rags before the Lord. And at the end of the day it is he who really matters. He who holds life in his hands. Man can do little for me at best. The feelings I get will always fade, often before I've even tasted them. I'm such a fool at times.

And yet . . . whiter than snow!

White as snow!

2006-09-06T22:44:00.000+01:00

'"Come now, and let us reason together,"

says the Lord,

"though your sins are as scarlet, they will be white as snow;

though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool."'

Isiaih 1.18

I should never, ever forget where I've come from. I read a great book once, where a dad said these harsh words to his wayward son, "Remember the hole from which you were dug!". Sounds like a pretty horrible thing for a father to say when you first hear it, but the phrase has stuck with me for a few years now and i think it's because there is a lot of truth there. Spiritually, I was once in a dark and desperate pit, with no hope of escape except to be dug out. Something I could never do myself! I was saved by a loving father who gave everything for my freedom. I should never forget that!

It can be the easiest thing to take for granted though. After a while of living with God, we can begin to find more and more fault with others around us. I can think of plenty of people who I personally think: don't try hard enough, don't have the right attitude, waste too much time, get their priorities wrong.

I forget the hole from which I was dug!

I forget that my sins are as scarlet, red as crimson. Bright with the reality of the blood that was required. They were not a small patch of grey on an otherwise spotless sheet; they were like blood on snow! They are still like blood on snow! And yet God invites us to reason with him. We have nothing with which to reason, and he still ushers us in. Not to say 'I told you so' or hold hopeless punishment over us. He invites us to be made clean. To have our sins washed away.

I was once cycling (a strange occurance in itself) through York at about 3am when it began to snow. There was already a lot of snow on the ground, but the sky became a greyish white and a new covering fell from the sky. As I came to the Minster I just stopped. Everything was white! Completely white! There were no tracks, no footprints, no dirt, no litter, all was removed from sight. It was probably the most beautiful thing I've ever seen and yet I saw the Minster daily, thinking little of it.

It wasn't the building of man that made it beautiful, it was the perfect covering of God. When we come to him stained crimson with sin, he coveres us under a mountain of pure snow. I mustn't forget the hole from which I was dug, because I must never forget how much I need my God.

He makes us beautiful.

Ready to be presented to his glorious son.

All my heart?

2006-09-05T21:46:00.000+01:00

'You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.'

Jeremiah 29.13

People frequently complain that God is nowhere to be found, far away, distant; and yet I wonder how often those same people actually look for God with all their heart. It's too easy to treat God like any other 'lost' item, we search all the obvious places that are right before our eyes; say a prayer or two, ask Him to show himself, maybe even have a very real desire in our heart to find Him, but never a desire so strong that it moves us to action. To seek with all our heart. I guess that's the real challenge.

How improtant is it to find God?

Is it so important to me that I put absolutely everything I have into finding Him? I guess we have to empty ourselves of all our other desires in order for God to come in and overwhelm us with Him. God will never be demoted to second place and so it's either all or nothing, I think that's what scares us! We like to be able to do a bit of this and a bit of that, always going wherever the moment or impulse leads. To commit your entire life and heart to one way can be frightening, unless the way is proven.

The promise can't be missed!

If I seek with all my heart, I will find.

Find God!

The excitement is only lost if the meaning of God is lost. If God means nothing then finding him means nothing. It is a worthless pursuit and could never be worthy of a whole heart. However, if it means complete safety, complete security, complete satisfaction, complete love, complete forgiveness, complete hope . . . completeness! Then isn't that worth everything and then some? To seek with the whole heart is to find with the whole heart. To find with the whole heart is to be completed, lacking no good thing.

I want that!

I want that with all my heart!

God's will

2006-09-04T08:28:00.000+01:00

'For this is the will of God, your sanctification...'

1 Thessalonians 4.3

Sometimes you've just gotta love how simple the bible is! Yeh, maybe the language used can often take a bit of getting used to and require checking out, but in terms of looking for God's heart, It's plain for all to see (who choose to really look).

So, God's will is for our sanctification. That we be different, holy, clean, set apart. What does that mean? It means that when the world looks at us they should see something completely different to when they look at everyone else. It means that when Christians look at us they should see something they know to be Jesus and Jesus alone. It means that when we look at ourselves we see things happening that we know go far beyond all our best efforts. But most importantly of all, it means that when God looks at us He sees someone who is daily being changed into the likeness of the one He values most - Jesus. He sees one of His children!

And what does that really mean for us? It means that when I wake up in the morning I need to make the choice to be sanctified by God. That means I go to His Word with a real desire for it to change me completely. I frequently fall to my knees in prayer, knowing that if I ask God to change me and those He loves, he always, always will, provided I follow Him. When I spend time with those who also follow, I encourage them to do the same and to look to God as the only one who can bring change. When I spend time with those who don't believe, I excite in every opportunity to be different for God, even though it may bring laughter and separation. Not by looking at how others behave and just trying to be different. But by consuming myself with a desire to follow God and God alone, to the point where I am completely different without even realising it.

That's what it means to be sanctified. Changed by God, for God. And like everything else with God ... it is absolutely the best thing for me!

I'm lovin these lyrics!

2006-09-03T21:52:00.000+01:00

'When i got tired of running from you, I stopped right there to catch my breath,

then your words they caught my ears, you said "I miss you son come home",

and my sins they watched me leave and in my heart I so believe,

the love you felt for me was mine, the love I'd wished for all this time,

and when the doors were closed, I heard no I told you so,

I said the words I knew you knew,

"O God, O God I needed you,

God all this time I needed you,

I needed you."'

Relient K - I So Hate Consequences

Me His, He Mine.

2006-09-03T16:54:00.000+01:00

'They shall be My people, and I will be their God;'

Jeremiah 32.38

There are two parts to this amazing promise.

'They shall be My people'

an honour He freely gives to all who choose to trust in Him through His chosen means. Not those who come to Him in name alone, claiming to follow Him but really leading themselves. Not those who think that favour with God can be earned through trying to be good or in making the world a better place. God's people are those who accept that they have sinned against Him and deserve eternal punishment; those who turn away from their sin, learning to hate it for the way it separates them from God and all goodness; those who realise that Jesus died on the cross in their place, for their sin; those who know the power to live a new life as the same power that raised Jesus from the dead, those who daily choose to follow Him and submit to His will.

Put simply, those who follow God on His terms!

The question is, do I choose to identify myself as one of God's people?

Do I choose to leave behind all my selfish desires that will destroy me, to follow a way that leads to life itself?

And what is the result of making such a choice?

'and I will be their God'

By choosing to be God's people, we can be certain that He will be our God.

Our provider, our protector, our saviour, our comforter, our friend, our sacrifice, our joy, our hope, our future.

We get more from Him than we could ever imagine.

In every battle He will stand beside us. In every dark place He will shine light. Through every tear He will dry our eyes. Through every fear He will hold our hand. In every doubt He will bring certainty. When all else fails us He will stand firm. He will never leave us nor forsake us.

He will be our God!

My God!

Understanding God?!

2006-09-02T11:31:00.000+01:00

". . . but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things," declares the Lord.

Jeremiah 9.24

Ok, so where do I even begin.

First, 'let him who boasts boast in this'. Everyone boasts, upon that I can rely. Anyone who does anything they believe to be fairly impressive, immediately seeks the praise of others. In fact, most people will happily boast in things that are far from impressive. Seeing as though everyone boasts (even Christians!), all are commanded to boast in this. Not in an arrogant and selfish way. Not to keep quiet and hide it away, but to take every opportunity to let everyone know just what it is I am so proud of.

Knowing and understanding God!

Second, the concept of understanding God. It's one thing to get to know Him, not an easy thing but certainly possible through his kindness in showing himself (first and foremost through His Word). Not a little thing either, which is a thought that continues to excite me even in my darkest hours, like staring up at the stars!. Understanding however, is a completely new level of depth. Understanding God I kinda took as being near impossible due to his infinite nature, and my considerable weakness and generally being a fool. Unlike the world, God doesn't tell me to boast in stuff that isn't true and so it must be possible to both know and understand God. Knowing and understanding someone is true friendship.

Now that really excites me.

Finally, what do I need to understand?
Simply put, three things about three things.
Confusing huh?!

That God is loving, just and perfect. Not that he sometimes feels this way, but that he always is all three. Everything I believe about Him must fit with these three characteristics.

That God exercises love, justice and perfection. Not just that he is these things, but that everything he does is because of these three. Everything I believe about what He does must fit with these three.

That God delights in love, justice and perfection. His very heart is made alive by love, justice and perfection. He doesn't act this way because He has to or feels like He should. He acts this way because He wants to with every fibre of His being.

With God there are no half measures.

He asks the same of me.

To know and undertand Him.

And then boast about it!

A Yellow Adventure

2006-09-02T09:53:00.000+01:00

Yellow’s one of those funny colours. You get the clever colours like purple and brown, and the serious colours like red and black, and the colours that don’t really fit in like green, and then you get the funny colours, like yellow. It could never be described as a serious colour and certainly never clever. Sometimes it feels like it doesn’t fit, but who doesn’t? Anyway, it was one of those days when things just don’t sit right. Like when you wake up in the morning, have a wash, get dressed, eat your breakfast, clean your teeth and then you wake up, realising that it was all a dream and that you have to do it all over again. That’s the sort of feeling you can’t easily shake. It was one of those mornings and yellow had decided that actually, he wasn’t going to play ball. Instead of sticking to his own territory and doing his job to the best of his ability, he decided to take over black!

Now it’s a common misconception that black can easily overpower yellow; put them in a ring together and black will always come out on top. The actual truth is that, as colours go, you don’t get much harder than yellow! The key thing is that yellow is just a little too easy going and will let most colours get their own way, except for white of course, but no one likes white! Well, as it happened, on this particular strange morning, yellow had determined that it was time to make a move, and had done so on black of all colours. He hadn’t gone for an easy target like orange, maybe that would have solved a lot of the problems that were to follow. He’d gone for the king of the colour jungle so to speak! Now even all this wouldn’t have really made a lot of difference, if it weren’t for Zeke.

Here’s the way it is. Most colours actually change on a regular basis. Rarely will a day go by without blue and pink deciding to have another exchange, it makes life that little bit more interesting. The only colours that can’t change are white and black, because they are exact opposites and so must balance each other out. Without these boundaries the world of colour could evaporate from existence. Now you may be thinking, ‘Hang On! If colours are changing on a daily basis then why aren’t I noticing them?’ A good and fair question if ever there was one. The reason is the little part of your brain called the tri-balanced colorode. The tri-balanced colorode constantly updates the colour in your memory, using the images received through your eyes. This means that on a daily basis your memories are changing to fit the current place of colours, so you never notice that anything is out of place. This is where Zeke comes in. You see Zeke was born without a tri-balanced colorode. Just a tiny little hole where the tbc should be. Now on a normal day this just meant for a rather exciting morning. Walking to school is never dull when every single day it looks completely different. Imagine it just for a second. Stop reading and picture your journey to school with all the things that you probably miss because you’ve seen them so many times. Now imagine that the bin on the corner of your road is bright pink, and that the tarmac on the road is a soft green, and that the grass in people’s gardens is dark blue. It would be enough to make you giggle and smile all the way to school. Unfortunately for Zeke, most people thought him a little strange for laughing and giggling to himself on dull winter’s mornings when the wind was up and the sky grey. Now over time, Zeke had come to realise that black and white never actually moved around. He kinda just took it as a given that his school shirt would always be white and his trousers black. You can imagine the horror of a thirteen year-old boy, suddenly discovering half way to school that his trousers were bright yellow! Not a pleasant moment in the young man’s life. And you see this was where the problem really began to take shape. The human brain was never really meant to deal with the endless switching of colours and although Zeke had borne the situation well under the switching of the lower orders, he just wasn’t equipped to deal with the movement of a foundation colour.

Had you been sitting on the bus stop bench at the corner of Claremont and Newgate at half past eight on that Tuesday morning, an interesting sight would have met your eyes. First the strange smiley giggly boy comes along, almost skipping down the road. Then, as he reaches the point exactly opposite you, he looks down and a look of terrific despair envelops his face. And then . . . he disappears!

Zeke’s mind had done an unprecedented thing. The yellow over black had been the straw that broke the camel’s back, forcing his brain to try and make sense of the madness. Unfortunately for Zeke, his brain had taken him to the only place left for him to go; the centre of the sun!

The world in which we live is nothing more than a web of clever sounding myths. Man reaches as far as his knowledge will take him and then to save face he just makes stuff up. I mean, how can something just keep burning forever? It doesn’t work. If it did then why don’t we try and capture a bit of the sun and then our fuel problems would be solved. The reason the sun burns and burns is because it’s got no other way to release all the energy that’s bounding around inside its hollow shell. You see, the sun is the centre of the universe because it’s where all the stuff that makes life life, lives. The sun is the home of the abstracts. Our sight our smell our taste, all reside in the sun. Our emotions, our dreams, even our colours all live inside. I think in some strange way, Zeke’s mind was taking him to the only place where the problem could even attempt to be thought of being solved. Only Zeke didn’t know that. You wouldn’t know if you were inside the sun just like you wouldn’t know if you were inside an elephant. Unless of course you had entered through an opening and even scientists know that the sun doesn’t have any of those!

At first Zeke was a little overwhelmed. A bit like putting your head into a walnut, only the opposite and bigger. His senses were assaulted so much that they just shut down. For the first time in his life Zeke knew what it felt like to be a vacuum. It was as if he was sitting, watching himself not existing. Eventually, his senses returned with the power of a small rhinoceros sat behind the wheel of an armoured truck. That was when he came face to face with the culprit. Unbeknown to Yellow, who, unsatisfied after his assault on black, was making his way over to the realm of the white, he was about to meet the one entity that could challenge his plans of invasion. Their paths collided and yellow, reacting with the sort of speed you might expect from mauve, turned and faded into a tree. Oh yes, there are trees in the middle of the sun. It’s not like how you’d imagine the inside of your brain to be or even like sitting in a giant peach. It wasn’t even that bright! Anyway, Yellow was gone and Zeke was left alone in his now pink trousers. He took that to be a bad sign! He decided to climb the nearest windmill to see if he could spot any clue as to the escape route of the rogue. The windmill smelt like strawberries and cream and he enjoyed immensely his journey up the blades to the walkway by the roof. The railing was also a pretty shade of pink and Zeke couldn’t help wondering to himself if maybe it hadn’t once looked better in black. The view from the windmill was nothing short of spectacular. He felt a bit like he was inside a giant snow globe, with trees and flowers and rivers and flying turtles and mountains and giant umbrellas and cities of dew. Suddenly the reality of the situation hit Zeke (if you could call it reality!) and he slumped down against the side of the windmill roof. “What should I do?” he asked himself desperately.

“Absolutely nothing,” came the reply from over his shoulder.
Now Zeke had seen more than a few strange things in the past few minutes and so he decided not to bother looking round because he probably wouldn’t believe what he saw anyway. Instead, he thought for a second.
“Why should I do nothing, is it because I can’t really do anything anyway?”
“Now which question would you like me to answer first?” was the prompt response.
“The second one please,” even sat atop a windmill at the centre of the sun, Zeke really was a very polite young man.
“Well then, there are in fact a great many things that you could choose to do that might impact the outcome of this difficult situation.”
Zeke liked that answer, “oh, that’s good, why should I do nothing then?”
“The reason why you should do nothing is because you’ve done nothing so far and you’ve travelled a great deal closer to your destination as a result. Therefore, the sensible course of action would be to continue doing exactly what is working so very well . . . nothing!”
Zeke couldn’t help smiling as he realized the logic in his new friends suggestion.
“That sounds like very good advice, thank you Mr…what is your name by the way?”
“I have many names really, but I think the one that’ll interest you most is…yellow!” Zeke turned to see yellow flee with all the vigour of a caged bird set free. What a clever little fellow, Zeke thought to himself, still claiming the smile that even yellow’s trickery couldn’t steal. He was however now faced with a dilemma; should he stay or should he go?

Yellow had advised him to stay but obviously yellow didn’t want to be caught so staying would be exactly the advice you might expect him to give. However, yellow revealed himself and so would probably expect Zeke to ignore the advice he’d given so he might have given the best advice after all, knowing it would be ignored. Having thought it over for a short while, Zeke concluded that the very best course of action would be to do both. To stay and to go. To do absolutely everything and absolutely nothing. Using the sort of logic that only exists within a thirteen year old missing a tri-balanced colorode, Zeke decided that he had two options. He could either do absolutely everything whilst thinking of absolutely nothing, or do absolutely nothing whilst thinking about absolutely everything. Now Zeke had always found trying to think about nothing a bit like turning yourself inside out only to find that there’s nothing really to look at when you’re heads stuck in your bellybutton, so he chose the latter. He remained seated, crossed his legs and folded his arms (cos everyone knows that’s the position you have to be in if you’re going to do absolutely nothing). Then he allowed a train to pull into the station of his mind, hopped aboard and grabbed a window seat, letting the journey begin; and what a journey it was!

To describe it is like trying to tie your shoelaces with your hair, pretty pointless but amusing all the same, so here goes. First the train explored his sense of smell, by sucking his nostrils to the flat of the glass and then splattering various objects against it. All this was fairly pleasant until a whiff of fresh flowers caused him to sneeze and because the snot couldn’t escape through the glass it shot back into his head, causing it to escape through his hair follicles like plasticine shoved through a colander. This meant the end of the smells and the beginning of the sounds. If you’ve ever heard a duck trying to land on an iced over pond then you’re familiar with the sound furthest away from what Zeke was hearing! I think it sounded like cheese. After a quick sojourn in the lands of taste and touch, he finally reached his destination; the land of sight. Right before his eyes, everything began to change. No matter what colour the object began: be it the horse, the cart, the monkey; all Zeke could see began to fade to a lighter shade of yellow. Acting purely on instinct, he held out his hands and clapped them shut around the image. Opening his eyes again he looked down and saw yellow fighting to escape from his firm grip. Zeke’d caught him! All that remained was for yellow to be returned to his rightful place. Easier done than said!

The end?

A great graphic novel!

2006-09-01T19:30:00.000+01:00

Anything but nothing

2006-09-01T19:12:00.000+01:00

Sometimes all you want to do is feel nothing.

That is a lie.

Nothing is a state that no one truly desires; it seems appealing because the something is hard or painful or simply uncomfortable. At this point nothing might be like a lovely warm bath or a good night’s sleep on a soft pillow.

That is a lie.

Nothing is empty and emptiness is often the reason people are longing for nothing.
People want to feel something, just not anything.

So what do I want to feel?
What do you want to feel?

Warmth?

Love?

Excitement?

A gentle touch?

A soft laugh?

Like I’m doing well?

Free?

Full?

Anything but the shadow of the sun.

The place where light radiates in all directions except where I’m standing. Where heat touches all except me. Why do I desire so much and feel so little? It’s like I’m a hot air balloon with the capacity to fly but the air inside me is slowly drowning.

I’m tired of walking with ghosts.

I want to feel.

What do I do when I long to feel something?
What do you do?

Take a risk, a chance, a leap in the night with arms outstretched and mouth wide open? Or return to the place you’ve been a thousand times, left a thousand times, and still go back to because it’s safe.

That's a lie.

Fear drives us down so that we enclose around ourselves, suffocating the light, leaving only the cold dark. Leaving us always longing and never finding.

Why?

We never look in the right place. We never stray far enough from our own stained pit to grasp hold of the beauty that we long to drink deep of. We stay away from the light like a rat in a sewer, hurt embracing our bruised eyes.

Yet there is hope.

There is always hope for those who are brave enough to seek it. I know because I have it, I taste it, I daily, drink deep. I did not feel because I did not seek the source.

That’s not a lie.

So obvious and yet missed by most.
Missed by me … almost.

Batman

2006-09-01T17:40:00.000+01:00

Who do I trust?

2006-09-01T17:14:00.000+01:00

'Then all the remnant of Judah who have gone to the land of Egypt to reside there will know whose word will stand, Mine or theirs.'
Jeremiah 44.28

Sooner or later, we all have to make a choice. God's word or my word? God's way or my way? It's not that the two can peacefully coexist together because the two directly oppose each other. God's word is focussed on His Son and those who love Him. My word is focussed on myself. My word comes from a heart that is dark with selfishness and lies. God's word comes from a heart that is light with love and truth. My word is regularly proven to be false, regularly shown to be foolish and regularly lets people down, including myself. God's word is always proven to be true, always shown to be wise and always works for the good of those who love Him. It is a word that is so completely different to what we are used to, that it often becomes difficult to understand and easy to confuse. That is not His failing, but ours.

The choice still has to be made, eternity past has proven that his word will always stand, I only have to look back over today to see that mine will frequently fail (and I've only been up for an hour). I know that his word will bring life, his word will bring fulness of joy (which when you get past the language is surely what everyone really wants!) and will never let me down. So why do I fail to trust it? Fail to study it?

Like everything in life, I want to feel good and I want it quickly. God's word requires time and effort, but the result makes everything else look pathetic. The greatest human emotions provided by living for self, could never compare to the riches found in following God and standing on His word. Today, I make that choice. His word or mine?

I choose His!

Why are you doing great harm to yourselves?

2006-09-01T17:10:00.000+01:00

'...thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, "Why are you doing great harm to yourselves..."'
Jeremiah 44.7

We get stuff so messed up, so often. We think that by choosing what to do with our lives and by following our own path, we will be free and find everything that we need in our own strength. Happiness, security, excitement, fulfillment. Only, how can we find all these things when we are turning away from the source. It's like searching for water in the desert and fleeing the rain when it comes. It's not that by turning away from God we are causing some great personal injury to his pride. More that we are separating ourselves from the only place where we can find eternal happiness, causing him to ask, "Why are you doing great harm to yourselves?" And the answer is never quite sufficient. Pride? Ignorance? Laziness? We want a quick pay off and God's way often requires patience.

For how long will we continue to place ourselves on the path of great harm. We must choose daily to follow Christ anew, in the complete confidence that he is the source of everything we need, and more . . .