Approaching God.

I have just written a review on Amazon of my friend Lisa's book, Approaching God. I am so proud to know her. I have long envied her lineage of solid Christian family, large home church and extensive Christian network. Yet her life is not in the past: she makes friends continually, loving everyone she meets. This book has arisen out of her involvement with the 24-7 prayer movement.

I still envy her, but in an intensely proud way: I appreciate her many gifts and talents. It's a little like being a friend of Jesus. Hugely beneficial.

Read the book.

Here is a review of it:
'Approaching God'  is a brilliant little book. The warmth seeps through its pages, encouraging us to approach God in prayer. Using a mixture of personal anecdotes, beautiful photographs and relevant Scripture, Lisa Borden encourages us to approach God in prayer as she invites us to consider different aspects of God. We may not have considered God as 'Mother' or 'Artist' before, but Lisa shows us how we may do so, along with more conventional ideas of God as Friend, Father, Healer and Guide. These all help us to approach God in prayer. A great gift for believers of all ages and spiritual maturity.

Challenges for the Working Gal: practising His presence

Everyone knows that teaching is not a ‘proper’ job – we start our day late, finish early and then have all those long holidays... ha ha ha! I’ve had 7 weeks ‘off’ work! Yet I am sure you will not be surprised to hear that I have been busy. My family eat better, the house is cleaner and jobs which have been stacked up for months have finally been done..and of course there has been more time for them.

Yet I am conscious that I have been too busy for God. That, sometimes, ikt is easier to be in touch with God during a busy term than it is throughout the long summer holiday. I know I need to get back to living my life more from the Inside Out – letting my spiritual life come to the fore rather than let my outer life – my thoughts, my emotions, what happens to me – ‘dictate’ my spiritual health. I want to ‘glow’ with God’s presence.

This is REALLY important at work.

Yes, but how can I live more ‘naturally’? ‘Practicing the Presence of God’ by Brother Lawrence seemed like a good place to start.

Br Lawrence had 6 practices which are, in brief:

1. Find joy in God’s company. Talk to him. Yes, but how?
2. Every action is an opportunity for fellowship with God: for being with him. How do we do this?
3. Everything we do should be thoughtful, considerate and disciplined, done to seek God’s approval. How can I remember? How can I stop being too impulsive?
4. We should stop to inwardly worship God in the middle of our busyness, whatever we are doing. Praising, asking, giving of ourselves, thanking... What effect does this have? (Turning our focus on God turns our focus away from ourselves and we become less self-centred)
5. Believe that God is in our hearts and that he sees and knows everything. Know that our Creator is infinitely perfect: what is the implication of this? (God is just, and we owe him justice in all our thoughts, words and actions.)
6. Recognise where we need God: know our weaknesses. We need to turn to God, worship Him humbly, be honest about our weaknesses and ask for His help. Yes, but how? We know we can’t do it alone, but....??

The Holy Spirit helps us. Mark 13:11

Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

I don’t know how you imagine receiving the Holy Spirit. John 20:22 says:
And with that he (Jesus) breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.” ,and in Acts 1 Jesus gave the apostles instructions through the Holy Spirit.

I had an odd revelation a while back. I’ve never really quite grasped how the Holy Spirit – who is a person, one of three in the Trinity – can be ‘in’ me. If I’ve thought about it, I would have envisaged the Holy Spirit as a little elf or sprite, flitting around my head, whispering good advice. Yet, when I read again recently that the Holy Spirit is a PERSON (yes, I’m a bit slow, need things repeated several times) and that He is JESUS here with me on earth, I now envisage the Holy Spirit as something that I can only describe as like an inner bodysuit. It’s almost as if, in a good way and without ‘taking me over’ the Holy Spirit has landed on me (as you see sometimes in science fiction films where an alien takes over a human’s body!) and then invaded every cell, living in and alongside me as a complete person within me.

And so how can we benefit from Brother Lawrence’s example and advice? He read the Gospels; occupied himself with continued acts of worship and of love, asking God’s help in everything he did. Then he would thank God when he had done it, and confess his shortcomings.

And how did he perceive God’s presence with him? He called it
A simple act or a clear and distinct knowledge of God;
A hazy vision of Him;
A diffuse and loving gaze;
A remembering of God;
A wordless conversation with him;
Confidence in God, the life and peace of the soul...

(from the chapter entitled ‘Concerning the Presence of God’)

Isaiah 57 verse 15 says:

For this is what the high and lofty One says—
he who lives forever, whose name is holy:
"I live in a high and holy place,
but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit,
to revive the spirit of the lowly
and to revive the heart of the contrite.

So my prayer is from Psalm 51:10-12 (NIV)
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Facing up

Facing up to…failure; grief; problems; disappointments
Facing up to…God: turning one’s face up to God

These are Max Lucado's thoughts, from Facing Your Giants

David: David summoned all the officials of Israel to assemble at Jerusalem: the officers over the tribes, the commanders of the divisions in the service of the king, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of all the property and livestock belonging to the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the mighty men and all the brave warriors.
King David rose to his feet and said: "Listen to me, my brothers and my people. I had it in my heart to build a house as a place of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, for the footstool of our God, and I made plans to build it. But God said to me, 'You are not to build a house for my Name, because you are a warrior and have shed blood.'

What do you do with the "but God" moments in life? When God interrupts your good plans, how do you respond?

…what about David? When God changed David's plans, how did he reply? (You'll like this.)

He followed the "but God" with a "yet God."
"Yet, the LORD, the God of Israel, chose me from all the house of my father to be king over Israel forever. For He has chosen Judah to be a leader; and in the house of Judah, my father's house, and among the sons of my father He took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel." (1 Chron. 28:4 NASB)

Reduce the paragraph to a phrase, and it reads, "Who am I to complain? David had gone from runt to royalty, from herding sheep to leading armies, from sleeping in the pasture to living in the palace. When you are given an ice cream sundae, you don't complain over a missing cherry.

David faced the behemoth of disappointment with "yet God." David trusted.

His "but God" became a "yet God."

Who's to say yours won't become the same?

2 Samuel 12:18-23 (The Message)
After Nathan went home, GOD afflicted the child that Uriah's wife bore to David, and he came down sick. David prayed desperately to God for the little boy. He fasted, wouldn't go out, and slept on the floor. The elders in his family came in and tried to get him off the floor, but he wouldn't budge. Nor could they get him to eat anything. On the seventh day the child died. David's servants were afraid to tell him. They said, "What do we do now? While the child was living he wouldn't listen to a word we said. Now, with the child dead, if we speak to him there's no telling what he'll do."
David noticed that the servants were whispering behind his back, and realized that the boy must have died.
He asked the servants, "Is the boy dead?"
"Yes," they answered. "He's dead."
David got up from the floor, washed his face and combed his hair, put on a fresh change of clothes, then went into the sanctuary and worshiped. Then he came home and asked for something to eat. They set it before him and he ate.
His servants asked him, "What's going on with you? While the child was alive you fasted and wept and stayed up all night. Now that he's dead, you get up and eat."
 "While the child was alive," he said, "I fasted and wept, thinking GOD might have mercy on me and the child would live. But now that he's dead, why fast? Can I bring him back now? I can go to him, but he can't come to me."

Psalm 9
9 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name will trust in you,
for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Perseverance

I’ve been challenged recently that God is the god of small things that become great in his kingdom. It’s very easy to become discouraged when we don’t see change, or it seems that what we do at work is fine but God doesn’t seem to be in it…Yet God sees things differently and I’ve come to realize the truth of Matthew 10:29:"What's the price of a pet canary? Some loose change, right? And God cares what happens to it even more than you do. He pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head!

Although this passage teaches us that we are so valuable to God, I think it also gives a glimpse of our world as God sees it – EVERYTHING, however small and insignificant, is valuable.

1. And so I think we need to encourage one another to persevere:
Romans 5:1 - 2 Peace and Joy:
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we[a]have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we[b] rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

2. It’s a good thing to persevere: 2 Thessalonians 1:4 – perseverance is praised You need to know, friends, that thanking God over and over for you is not only a pleasure; it's a must. We have to do it. Your faith is growing phenomenally; your love for each other is developing wonderfully. Why, it's only right that we give thanks. We're so proud of you; you're so steady and determined in your faith despite all the hard times that have come down on you. We tell everyone we meet in the churches all about you. The Message

3. We gain eternal life. Romans 2:7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

4. It’s part of a growth process, a development of our characters: 2 Peter 1:5-7 (New International Version)

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.

The Message says:
So don't lose a minute in building on what you've been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus.

5. We are told to PURSUE endurance or perseverance
1 Timothy 6:10-12 But you, man of God, … pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

6. We need hope to persevere. Romans 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Steadfast hope, the confident expectation of what God is and will do, gives the capacity to endure with joy. Again, the Lord Jesus is our example and the perfect illustration of one whose endurance was connected with joy and the purposes and promises of God. Hebrews 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Jesus gives us hope. Keeping focused on him can help us persevere at work, through discouragement as others ignore or make fun of us, or we feel isolated as perhaps the only Christians. God is a great god. Jesus was a ‘small thing’ in terms of the whole universe. God is a god of small, but immensely and eternally important, things.

Graduation and divine appointments

I am often bemused and amused by the 'coincidences' God brings to my life.  Some folk call them 'Godincidences' - I'm not sure, always, that they are that important except that in God's scheme of things EVERYTHING is.  Still...I take note and keep an open heart. Who knows where, or to what, or to whom, I might be led?

J and C's graduation was one such occasion.  Sitting in a restaurant in Norwich, we had been there only a few minutes when a girl approached us.  "Excuse me," she said with a smile on her lovely face, "are you by any chance Cat Pollard's parents, Richard and Angie?"  I was almost too stunned to reply. Were we so like Cat - or she like us - that a random stranger had recognised us?  But no - it was Cat's prayer partner and closest friend Gillian, who had also arrived for graduation the next day. How lovely to meet her.

Then there was the next 'coincidence'.  When J and C first arrived at UEA, we went to visit. Going to church on the Sunday, we met a lad who had also done a gap year - at a Christian outdoor education centre in Scotland run by a relative of my closest friend here in Guernsey. Josh ended up becoming Jonny's prayer partner and shared a house with him for two years.  He also studied in the School of Environmental Science, albeit different subjects from Cat.  So, there he was in her graduating class. And there were his parents - who we did not know, but easily recognised as they eagerly took photos of him - sitting in the row behind us. We wasted no time afterwards in saying hello, discovering more 'mutality' - knowledge and experiences in common, not least in the type of churches we were all attending.  (This may sound obvious - but both sets of parents are now taking part in churches which would not be a natural, or even comfortable, choice.  But that's another story.)

Divine appointments. Godincidences. I don't know.  It just left me with a wonderful feeling of being part of Jesus' family.  And why have I written all this?  Because, even though in many ways they feel like 'one-offs', they are important. Somehow.  And I don't want to forget...

Listening

The topic for a recent ladies breakfast was 'Listening to God'.  Hmmm.... a few thoughts:

When I thought about the topic of listening – and I mean listening to God – it was borne out of a desire to be able to listen better, listen more, listen carefully, listen meaningfully – I’d gone through a season of being so busy that I didn’t feel I was really hearing from God. And that was because I wasn’t reading the Bible diligently or spending longer periods – more than just a few minutes – in prayer.
I knew I needed to listen as Mary did, in this story:

Luke 10:38-44 (The Message)   Mary and Martha
As they continued their travel, Jesus entered a village. A woman by the name of Martha welcomed him and made him feel quite at home. She had a sister, Mary, who sat before the Master, hanging on every word he said. But Martha was pulled away by all she had to do in the kitchen. Later, she stepped in, interrupting them. "Master, don't you care that my sister has abandoned the kitchen to me? Tell her to lend me a hand."
The Master said, "Martha, dear Martha, you're fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it—it's the main course, and won't be taken from her."
A friend has kindly shared her thoughts on this: A common saying of Jesus' time was 'Let your house be a meeting place for the rabbis and cover yourself in the dust of their feet, and drink in their words thirstily'. Gifted teachers of the Hebrew scripture would travel from town to town, relying on supporters such as Martha to provide food and lodging and engaging in discussion and debate with local residents eager to deepen their knowledge of the Hebrew faith. The teacher would sit on a low stool or cushion with his disciples on the ground or mats around him. Being itinerant the visitor would not stay long and so disciples either travelled with the teacher or,as Mary did, grab every possible moment to hear his words.

So the hospitality shown here was a common act of support. However, Martha feels put upon; she gets all uppity and big-sisterish (takes one to know one!); she sees Mary as being selfish – but let's face it, she could have dished up something requiring less preparation and the clearing up? well that could be done once the teacher had left! When an opportunity comes by it doesn't pay to pass it up, it may never come your way again and this visit was short so Mary was determined to make the most of it. Jesus does not blame Martha but instead challenges her priorities. Is her busy-ness really necessary just at that moment? How can her faith grow if she never takes time out to learn?
Another saying was: May you always be covered by the dust of your rabbi (John Ortberg, God is Closer Than You Think p54)
In an amazing way, once I realized I needed to listen more, God has been speaking to me about exactly this topic: listening just this last week! How did this happen?
Friends. Ruth Rouxel mentioned she was giving a talk in church – tomorrow! – about Mary listening to Jesus.
Other Christians. I read an article by Nicky Gumbel entitled Hearing God’s Voice where he talks about listening to God – primarily through the Bible. I came across an excerpt from God Whispers Your Name by Max Lucado in a weekly email I get, where I was reminded of John 10:3 where Jesus says The sheep listen to the voice of the shepherd
Reading and the Bible My reading from Day by Day with God on Thursday was about Exodus 15:26 (The Message) That's the place where God set up rules and procedures; that's where he started testing them.
God said, "If you listen, listen obediently to how God tells you to live in his presence, obeying his commandments and keeping all his laws, then I won't strike you with all the diseases that I inflicted on the Egyptians; I am God your healer."
Spending more time in prayer.
Circumstances! The possibility of having to move, loss of job etc has focused my mind on listening to God and working out what He wants for us!

All of these things are helpful – some more than others. We just need to be sensitive.

Mourning Mpira

I read this just after Mpira died:

Jeremiah 33:10 - 12, NIV "This is what the LORD says: 'You say about this place, "It is a desolate waste, without men or animals." Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither men nor animals, there will be heard once more 11 the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD, saying,
"Give thanks to the LORD Almighty,
for the LORD is good;
his love endures forever."
For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,' says the LORD.
"This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In this place, desolate and without men or animals—in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.

In the Message it is even more poignant:
"Yes, God's Message: 'You're going to look at this place, these empty and desolate towns of Judah and streets of Jerusalem, and say, "A wasteland. Unlivable. Not even a dog could live here." But the time is coming when you're going to hear laughter and celebration, marriage festivities, people exclaiming, "Thank God-of-the-Angel-Armies. He's so good! His love never quits," as they bring thank offerings into God's Temple. I'll restore everything that was lost in this land. I'll make everything as good as new.' I, God, say so.

"God-of-the-Angel-Armies says: 'This coming desolation, unfit for even a stray dog, is once again going to become a pasture for shepherds who care for their flocks. You'll see flocks everywhere—in the mountains around the towns of the Shephelah and Negev, all over the territory of Benjamin, around Jerusalem and the towns of Judah—flocks under the care of shepherds who keep track of each sheep.' God says so.

And we all know that sheep need a sheepdog and shepherds need a doggy companion... so these verses have given us hope that our broken and desolate hearts will be restored.  Hmmm....doesn't feel like it at the moment but I know God's word is true!

My ideal church

A thought, after reading Ian Morgan Cron’s book ‘Chasing Francis’ about St Francis of Assissi. This wonderful story has a study guide attached to it with thought provoking questions for each chapter. One of the last questions caught my eye: What would I say if I could stand at the front of the church and speak from the heart about anything I wanted related to its mission?

I want church to be like the evening we had at Martyn and Heather Legg’s – dear, dear friends who invited us for dinner last Friday. I didn’t want to go home. Not that there is anything wrong with home, it was just so wonderful to be all together.

I want church to be like that evening.

So warm and welcoming that, when I walk in, I am greeted with loving smiles and words which tell me: I am glad to see you here. You’ve made my day.

So warm and welcoming that, when people come here, they don’t want to go home because they feel total love and acceptance, so comfortable that there is no tension in them whatsoever. A sanctuary.

There will be no place for ignorance of individuals: people who don’t know my name or, if they do, don’t care to use it. There will be no place for folk to walk past me as if I am invisible or, worse, unworthy of recognition.

I don’t want church like that just for me. I want church like that so I can safely bring my friends into a company of friends with Jesus.

How do we get church like this? By being so loved by Jesus that we are filled with happiness and contentment. It’s contagious.

Living the Resurrection

Eugene Peterson subtitles this book ‘The Risen Christ in Everyday Life’ and shows us how to live in the truth of the resurrection. On one level, it is an easy read – after all, Peterson is the man behind the hugely accessible The Message but it goes far deeper. It challenges and encourages .

The book ends with the resurrection stories from The Message. I suggest that this is where we should start, with the Word as the core and backdrop to Peterson’s thoughts. He reflects on three aspects of Christ’s resurrection. Firstly the wonder of the resurrection spurs us on, not just to ‘life after death’ but ‘life in the land of the living’. We need to keep before us that sense of awe and amazement. “Without wonder, we approach spiritual formation as a self-help project.” This perspective, considering Christ’s marvellous defeat of death, reminds us that “our souls are formed by what we cannot work up or take charge of”. It’s up to God, not up to us.

Yet this development of our souls is not done in isolation but in the context of everyday life. The resurrection meal - the familiarity of eating - reflects how Jesus takes whatever we offer him, blesses it, breaks it and gives it back to us to use for his glory.

Finally, we are to live and practise resurrection in the context of the Church: in the company of friends who we are in relationship with because of WHO WE ARE IN JESUS.

A simple formula for the Christian life: repent, simplify, turn our backs on ‘the world, the flesh and the devil’ and follow him who IS the resurrection and the life. Simple.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Jelly Bean...or Smarties...Prayer

Now learn about the colors,
and know what each one means...
the story of our Father's love,
told by some jelly beans.
And then every morning,
take a bean so yummy...
something for the soul and
something for the tummy!

Orange is for the Heaven so bright. (2 Samuel 22:13-14)
Yellow is for God's perfect light. (Revelation 21:23)
Black is for the sins we've made. (Romans 3:23)
Red is for the blood He gave. (Romans 5:8)
White is for our cleansing from sin. (Psalm 51:1-2)
Green is for our new life in Him. (Colossians 1:10)
Pink is for his free gift to share. (Matthew 28:19-20)
Purple is for the crowns we'll wear! (2 Timothy 4:8)

OR

Red is for the blood he gave,
Green is for the grass he made,
Yellow is for the sun so bright,
Orange is for the edge of night,
Black is for the sin we made,
White is for the grace he gave,
Purple is for the hour of sorrow
Pink is for a new tomorrow.

A bag of jellybeans, colorful and sweet is a prayer, a promise, and a friend's small treat!