Pressing On

Ambition fulfilled! The summer of '14 included the fulfilment of a long held ambition of mine when I visited the quaint village of Portmeirion in North Wales. It held, and still holds, a fascination for me both as an eccentric work of architecture and as the set of the cult 60's series 'The Prisoner'.  There are a lot of reasons why, as a teenager, this series held my attention - the imagery, the fact that it was on just at the time when I had been given my first TV set so I could watch it after going to bed, the 60's feel to it. On reflection though, it also coincided with that time as a teenager when we rebel against the angst of feeling the increasing pressure to conform to the model of the world and of preparing myself (or of being prepared) to take my place in the rat race. When Number 6 cries out "I am not a number, I am a free man " or " I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own....

Memories ... This year I am celebrating my silver wedding anniversary ... Just for something to do I have begun to sketch all the houses we have lived in over the past 25 years, 17 in total, plus also reflecting on what significant things happened whilst we lived in these homes and things I learnt along the way. Home number #1  In Bishopston, Bristol, just opposite the prison if you know the area. We lived here between Sept'90 to July'91 during our last year at Bristol Polytechnic and our first year of married life! Significant events that took place here? First married home Top floor flat - so carried bike up three flights of stairs each day. Small gas heater so house was freezing in the winter - first person up had to dash into the living room to put the fire on. Cheap food/clothes from Sunday market inc. 10 pairs of socks for 50p (All had holes that needed fixing however, once fixed, I was still wearing some of them over 5 years later) 10 sau...

Who are you? I have never been a great fan of labels when it comes to describing members of the body of Christ. eg. he is anglican, she is Baptist, they are Charismatic, etc. etc. I remember once causing a man to become increasingly hot under the collar when he asked me who I was? To which I replied I was a disciple (follower) of Jesus. He was meaning which Church did I attend (presumably so he could classify me and decide whether I was bona fide or not) and my answer did not bring him peace, but I refused to go any further.  Why? Because, as I said, I am not a great fan of labels, but also because for me there is a very important distinction between primarily identifying myself with Jesus and identifying myself with Church. Of course, I recognise that by becoming a follower of Jesus I become part of the body of Christ, but that can be very distinct from being a member of a Church. To me this is the crucial difference between vibrant faith and dusty religion.  ...

One of the blessings of being a missions director … Back at the start of December I was invited to attend a 40th Anniversary celebration with the Asian Christian Fellowship in Wolverhampton. WEC workers have been, and remain, involved in the planting, growth and development of this fellowship and today, ACF is a vibrant fellowship of people worshipping God, and being discipled, in their own mother tongues. Wonderful! The celebration was an opportunity to share stories and recognise the people who had/are involved in the Church. A time to mark their contribution and give thanks to God who has been at work to build His church. A time to celebrate God’s faithfulness and the faithful ministry of men and women over the past four decades. During the service I was struck by two things:   The need for faithfulness This was a celebration of faithfulness. Of people, walking by faith and not by sight, of trusting God, of keeping on doing what the Lord has given them to...

Last week, like many others, I ventured to the Cinema to watch "Exodus - Gods and Kings"   Of course, as with any other film based on a biblical narrative, there is always the hope that it will amount to more than a film ... but as is normally the case, it doesn't.  So, to summarise, as far as biblical accuracy goes it is poor, as an adventure film goes it is all right. However, that is okay as I don't often go to the cinema for the furtherance of my theological convictions or doctrinal understandings - that is best left to the place of prayer and obedience.  Having said that, I hope that I am always open to be challenged to think about things from a fresh perspective and I am not averse to the Spirit using an experience, image, news item, music track etc, to highlight something that He wants to be a blessing, encouragement or challenge to me.  So it was the case in this film ... Towards the end of the film there is quite a most moving scene as th...

In all circumstances... “... if by our zeal we can stir up many and the world be more speedily evangelized - then we thank God. If no-one joins us, but by our efforts men and women join other societies and accomplish the evangelization of the world - then we thank God. If we never have another penny for our work, but our message is used to provide the needs of others, so that the world is evangelized - then we thank God.” (Alfred Buxton) Source: HAM 1913-1920 - the First Seven Years Give thanks – for God’s faithfulness Does it seem strange to begin an article on giving thanks for God's faithfulness with this quote from one of our early WEC leaders? Perhaps, yet I feel constrained not to focus on money but on the fruit that comes from sowing generously into the kingdom. I want to focus on what the Lord is accomplishing through the efforts of the worldwide fellowship of WEC … those who go, those who pray, those who support. The c...

Jesus call to His first disciples was "follow me" -  it would have been a natural response to ask "where?" but I don't see that in the scripture.  Is this because the question was eclipsed in the minds of the disciples by the idea of "who"? Of primary importance was that they had met Christ - the Messiah.  With regards to discipleship shouldn't the emphasis always be on the "me" not the "follow"? If it becomes the latter then we may lose the true and best motivation for our service.  The desire to follow is the effect of our relationship with Jesus not the cause of it. " Christ loves me - I love Him - I will serve"   rather than "I want Christ to love me - I will serve Him - then He will love me." The disciples knew Jesus and were willing to follow, not knowing what that would mean ... are we? Press on!