Pressing On

I have been reading recently, and taking the opportunity over the quieter holiday period, to think about stillness. Three notable reads that I would recommend are "In the stillness" (Jock Anderson), "Too busy not to pray - Slowing down to be with God" (Bill Hybels) and "In the Name of Jesus" (Henri Nouwen) None of them present anything particularly new, or radical, in content - however they each point to a lifestyle that is radically different to that which we all seem to be living in this day and age ... particularly as we engage increasingly in social media. "the archenemy of spiritual authenticity is busyness, which is closely tied to something the Bible calls worldliness - getting caught up with this society's agenda, objectives and activities to the neglect of walking with God... time is required."(Hybels p100) So how do we live the authentic Christian life in a deep and meaningful way? They each point the reader to some helpful hints an...

Permit me if you will to give a little personal testimony that will help frame my motivation for obedience to Christ and for yieldedness - which I proposed was the key to a fruitful life in my last blog. I became a Christian at University, at the age of 19. I had little exposure to Church before that and was not 'seeking' or 'in a crisis' ... Therefore I could only conclude that I was 'sought out' ... But by whom and why? The short answer to this is that I believe it was the Living God in order for me, the created, to enjoy a relationship with Him, the Creator. A passage of Scripture that became very special to me, very early on in my Christian life, and one which has framed all my subsequent decision making was Philippians 3:10-12 (NIV). In this passage the Apostle Paul writes: " I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrec...

Can you hear it? What is God doing in the world today? What deep God-given longings stir in your hearts? UK Revival Prophecy: Smith Wigglesworth 1947 Shortly before he passed into glory he prophesied, “During the next few decades there will be two distinct moves of the Holy Spirit across the church in Great Britain. The first move will affect every church that is open to receive it, and will be characterised by the restoration of the baptism and gifts of the Holy Spirit. The second move of the Holy Spirit will result in people leaving historic churches and planting new churches. In the duration of each of these moves, the people who are involved will say, ‘This is a great revival.’ But the Lord says, ‘No, neither is this the great revival but both are steps towards it.’ When the new church phase is on the wane, there will be evidence in the churches of something that has not been seen before: a coming together of those with an emphasis on the word and those with an emphasis on the Spir...

So what is the final area in which we should seize the day? Carpe diem: knowing Jesus ... Taking every opportunity given to you to get to know Jesus more fully! Early in our time in Africa an older missionary took me to one side and shared something in a way that only older missionaries can: God had brought me there not because of the things I was going to do. He’d brought me because of the things He wanted to do in me, and through me. There then followed two of the most formative years that we have ever known. The thing I took most of all from this time was the need to serve God above all else, to commit our lives to doing what He wants to do, and to reap the reward that comes from serving Him and others. Ultimately, it was a period when something broke inside me and I understood for the first time that I was no longer my own and that he was Lord of my life - in a real sense, not a conceptual one. Seize the day Seizing the day is about taking every opportunity that God presents to us....

Having shared a little of my experience of my arrival in Africa as a Short term worker it might be good to explore why short term work is important ... Carpe diem: extending the Kingdom I firmly believe that the Church, who believe and proclaim a message that God lives and speaks, should be the path of least resistance through whom God might speak to communities His words of comfort, hope, truth and love.... Carpe diem! Short-term mission has an increasing and important impact on the growth of the Church across the world, and is one way in which we can "go into all the world" with our message. It is also a way in which the gifts and skills of a larger number of people can be enhance the long-term work and vision of others. In Missions as in the business world, organizations are having to re-examine their strategies to integrate a generation with a short-term or 'seasonal' pattern to life. This is is not something for Mission agencies to "tolerate", but rathe...

It is a long time since I posted anything here on my blog ... It is not that my life was on hold - in fact just the opposite! Anyway, I was recently asked to write an article for a mobilizing/recruitment magazine on the aforementioned theme. Which gives me the opportunity to 'seize the day', break the article down into four sections and post it on my blog ... So there will be a little more activity over the next few days. Of course if, reading this, you want to step out and engage with what WEC is seeking to do in the world today then either check out the website (www.wec-int.org.uk) or post a comment and I'll get back to you! Our first steps into overseas Christian work started with a short-term posting for two years in Senegal, West Africa. I was recently married, no kids, just graduated and looking for adventure ... Now, 20 years later, I'm still very happily married, with four kids/young adults, still learning and still looking for adventure! Part 1 - Arriving! Car...

Sometimes when we get to the end of the week we can look back and wonder what has been accomplished. Especially when the previous week seemed to fly by in a blur! Busyness can be deathly to a good spiritual life - if rushing from one thing to another becomes the focus of our energies, and we never feel as though we are accomplishing anything. Paul Yonghi Cho wrote "God is omnipresent (everywhere at the same time) but He is never in a hurry." Which I do believe to be true, however, this does not mean that moving quickly from place to place necessarily equates to being a rush ... We can know real peace and be confident of His presence at all times - nurturing that attitude is the key. So as I looked back on the last week I thought to myself, in the midst of the busyness and travelling what have been the highlights and where have I seen God at work ... On Sunday we went to St Marks Church in Versailles ... And enjoyed a weekend with Friends in Paris. It was wonderful to see what...