Category Archives: wisdom

Apr 09 2013
Bible, Christianity, Evangelism, Faith, Jesus, Manchester, Prayer, Religion, wisdom, Worship

SOW MORE SEED – BILL HYBELS

From DVD of Willow Creek GLS last year – watched with staff team today.

Parable of talents. – Luke 8

Despite how bountifully the seed is sown (the good news of God’s love). Some people reject it- but don’t get discouraged. Some of it will land on good soil, too.

The maths of this is amazing for the seed rejection ratio – he says there’s a 75% rejection rate.

But then look at the maths of the tree that represents someone who says yes and has their life changed.  How much is produced by a transformed life.

We want to see more trees!

So – what must I do?

PLANT MORE SEED!

To overcome the rejection maths. Don’t just complain about the rejection rate!

Plant different kinds of seed.

We have to sow a lot more seed in our communities.

Alpha Course

Just Walk Across The Room

Experiment!!

You will see more trees.

Leader – this depends on you. The church takes its cues from you. One of the fundamental requirements of a leader is to learn, experiment and stay curious. So entropy will not occur on your watch.  Become incessant tinkerers. Keep thinking how to do it better.

Change your middle name to BETTER.

Become better.

You’d better!

And inspire everyone around you to get better.

Because trees are worth it!

 

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Mar 25 2013
1 Comment
Christianity, Discipleship, Failure, Faith, Jesus, Manchester, Prayer, Rest, stress., wisdom, Worship

‘COULD YOU NOT WATCH ONE HOUR?!’ – (My struggles with learning to pray. part 2)

Occasionally I’d have a bit of an energy burst and do some journalling (ever done that?). Some of the conferences I went to had experts saying if you didn’t journal every day you had to doubt your salvation. I got a journal. The ‘MAN’ type, leather, with a cross on the front, not the girls one with flowers. Some time later I got another one because I’d hardly written in the first one. It had ‘MY PRAYER JOURNAL’ written on the front.

But there’s still not much written in it.

prayer-journal

Actually though, Jesus didn’t journal. It really wasn’t me. I love writing, I hate journaling. I’m not even sure journalling is a word. How many ls should it have if it is? Spellchecker doesn’t like either. I read somewhere that CS Lewis STOPPED journaling when he became a Christian, because he’d done it for years before, and found it made him too self centred.

I was doing really badly from the outset at how I thought you were supposed to be growing spiritually. It never got better. It’s not like when you’re a kid and you get to see how you grow by marking it on the wall near the fridge. As a spiritual child of God, what’s the best marker?

I started to wonder whether the best way to measure people’s devotion to God is how long they pray. Is it about their ‘devotional life,‘? Or their WHOLE life? Maybe it’s not about getting heavenly flying hours or ticking off a list of spiritual activities. Could there be some better gauges? In Jesus’ day the people who’d score highest on spiritual practices were the Pharisees! First there for morning prayer- first to throw stones.

I’ve had so many people try to be travel agents for guilt trips for me over prayer, personal and corporate over the years. Here’s a good one, ‘You can tell how popular the Pastor is by how many come to Church on Sunday, but you can tell how popular JESUS is by how many come to the midweek prayer meeting.’

Well we don’t have a specific midweek prayer meeting. But I think Jesus is really popular around here, anyway. Maybe the measure of whether Ivy’s a praying church is not necessarily how many people can we get to this or that prayer meeting? Prayer meetings are great of course – but if that’s the measure, if you gauge spirituality by ‘spiritual’ activities, the Pharisees will win again.

This week hundreds of us have been galvanised as a church community to pray for little baby Cole – who died at birth and had to be resuscitated and even now struggles for life; and for dear Denise at the other end of her journey here on earth. Facebook and text messages and personal visits etc have carried these people and their situations to God.

And I think I’ve prayed everywhere, while I’ve queued, walked or shopped or drove or parked or prepared for sermons (it counts!). I’ve prayed when I woke up, went to bed and couldn’t sleep. I’ve prayed on the phone, in the church, on the loo, at the gym. How long for? I don’t know. I wasn’t counting it. But I think it all counts.

I don’t think I was storming heaven, interceding like the great men of old, being a watchman, having heaven touch earth – or any of the other ways we can subtly make it an esoteric technique. It was heart to heart not pen to paper (though if that helps you – crack on!).

I just talked with my friend – who happens to be King of the Universe, about everything that mattered to me, everywhere I was. And listened as best I could. One day I hope to learn how to pray properly – but until then I’ll keep on doing that.

(If you haven’t been too offended and would like to hear the rest of the talk I did here, you’ll find it on the website in the next couple of days for free download at http://www.ivymanchester.org/podcasts)

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Mar 11 2013
Books, Christianity, Church, Death, Faith, Family, Jesus, Manchester, Religion, wisdom, Work

Multi-million best selling author GP Taylor visits Ivy MCR ahead of blockbuster Hollywood film release.

 GP Taylor visits Ivy Manchester this Sunday – as his blockbuster Hollywood movie is filmed. 

Graham_standing

I’m so excited that this Sunday Ivy Manchester will host a fantastic guest for interview at 7pm at our Didsbury site on Barlow Moor Rd, one of Britain’s best selling authors.

We recently hosted the author of The Shack, Wm Paul Young. Now it’s time for some home grown talent.

GP Taylor is the author of the best-selling novels Shadowmancer, Wormwood and Tersias. Like myself he has been a police officer and Anglican Vicar, but is also a former rock band roadie and motorcyclist. He worked in the music industry with such bands as The Stranglers, Sex Pistols and Adam and the Ants. He became involved in the occult and lived a life that was, in his own words “into all sorts of weird and wonderful things and wasn’t leading a godly life”. He goes on to say, “I was promiscuous: I was a liar, a cheat and a drunk,”

We will learn on Sunday how he then turned to Christianity. This is a great event to bring friends along to and I expect we’ll pack the event out so get there early!

Having dropped out of school himself, Graham Taylor is now passionate about the education of children, and believes we underestimate their potential. He tours the country giving talks to children. “There is nothing better,” he says. So at 4pm at the Church centre Graham will entertain families and kids with a story telling workshop with our children’s leader Dave Hill.

“Children relate to me,” GP says. “They get excited about books – what can be better than that?”

His books have been translated into forty-eight languages and are being now being turned into Hollywood films to the tune of £50 million, but he had to sell his motorbike to fund the first print run of children’s novel Shadowmancer. The book grew in popularity by word of mouth before Faber and Faber bought the rights to it, and his next ten books, for £3.5million. The rights to the production were sold for a further £2.5million!

He went on to write the Mariah Mundi series which critics hailed as ‘Hotter than Potter’  – a rival to JK Rowling’s franchise. It is now being turned into £25 million Hollywood film starring Michael Sheen, Sam Niall, Iona Gruffud and Keeley Hawes -’Mariah Mundi and the Midas Box’ is set for release later this year.

Graham is married with three children and now devotes most of his time to caring for his daughter Lydia, who has Chrohn’s Disease.

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Feb 19 2013
Bible, Church, Discipleship, Faith, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Prayer, Religion, Rest, Theology, wisdom

REST – Part 2 of my talk last Sunday at Ivy Kingsway

I want to quickly look at what the Bible says about the nature of God and the nature of the soul, to help us get these rhythms of rest.

Then I want to tell you- one word – that’ll help you remember this week, every day – maybe through Lent you can decide today to put rest rhythms in your life – take the Opportunity to Rest. Let God restore your soul- which will be SO attractive to the world they’ll come running to find out how you live so differently in the same world as them. The world God made. Because you’re not a restless soul wandering, but a rested soul, walking in God’s purposes.

We started out looking at the beginning of Genesis with Cain, but even earlier than that; Genesis, chapter 2, God laid down the pattern of this need, possibility and opportunity for us to enter His rest, which threads its way throughout the whole Bible right through to Revelation. In the middle of this beautiful picture of God making everything, all the complexity and creativity of creation, verse 2 at the end it says, “…so on the seventh day [of all this creation] he [God] rested from all his work.” In the Hebrew language, the word for work there is not so much a labourer as someone who’s an artist. So God has done ALL this stunning artwork of the universe, then it says he rests. But you notice here God doesn’t rest like we do. We have to rest – why? Because we’re tired. But the Bible says clearly He’s not like us – it says, ‘Our God does not get weary…’ God was not so worn out from creating the world that he wanted to put his feet up!

He didn’t rest for Him, he rested for US. He rested to show us something.

The first part of this verse tells us why God rested, let’s back up and look at that together. “By the seventh day God had finished the work; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.” His work hadn’t worn him out; his work was finished. God’s rest comes because it was (Literally) completely complete. What God did in creation was to provide everything we need. Now, God invites us to REST in that. Throughout the Bible and in the passage from Hebrews that I started with, God invites us into a kind of spiritual rest, HIS rest, to rest In him and LIKE Him – trusting that he has provided what we need.

Our friend Mike Breen says, “On the first full day of existence for Adam and Eve, God rested. All of creation took a break. Our first full day was a day of rest. Then work began.” Too often, we’ve the mistaken idea that we spend hurried, restless days in work, work, work, work, work, work, and then we rest. But Mike says, if we look at the pattern God established for mankind, “we are to work from our rest, not rest from our work.”

In the passage I started off by reading; Hebrews 4, the writer says this about God: “…his work has been finished since the creation of the world.” The rest came out of the finished work. Then it says to us, ‘while the promise of entering his rest is still open, let us take care that none of you should fail… to reach it…’ It goes on to tell of a whole generation of people who SAID they were God’s people, but NEVER entered into His rest. It happened in the OT. The people God had brought out of Egypt where they were slaves, they wandered restlessly around in the desert and never entered the Promised land. Why? Because they didn’t have FAITH. They didn’t really believe HE could do it. That means it takes FAITH to enter into the REST that God has for us. You have to TRUST God, to REST in God. You have to trust God, if you’ve ever going to rest your soul.

Let’s look at Psalm 91 again, how we find rest in God, it said. ‘He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.’ We had that before – and the verse that follows, verse 2 – it says, “I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in Him will I trust.’” Do you see the connection? Resting and Trusting. Resting comes from Trusting.

If you can’t TRUST, you’ll never REST. 

The strongest evidence that what God created is working the way he wants it to is that there are some people on this earth who are not restless, wandering souls but they have RESTED and TRUSTED completely in him, they enter his rest. They say, ‘No matter what is going on, no matter what I have to face, no matter what the challenge or opportunity, my soul is at rest – not because I can handle it, but because HE is my refuge, my fortress, and I’m going to trust in Him.’ Now my question is – is that you and me? Is that what people would say you’re like?

Because Rest’s a lot bigger than just sitting on the sofa, having a holiday, more even than renewing ourselves. REST is an ATTITUDE of FAITH. At the deepest level, rest is worship, it’s your SOUL telling God – you trust him. It’s YOU telling your soul, ‘TRUST GOD.’ You trust Him to do what is too big for you; because nothing’s too big for him to handle – or too small for him to be bothered about.

You trust that He’ll save you, not that you’ll be good enough or even religious from now on. You say you trust that He will provide for you, so you don’t have to panic buy. You say you trust that He will be your refuge and fortress so you’re safe in Him no matter what. Waking or sleeping. Trusting. Instead of saying, ‘It’s too big and I;m too tired,’ You speak this out – ‘The great big God who made the whole universe – He’s my refuge – He is my God! I am trusting HIM!’ And you live live and act like you would – if you really believed that your God can handle it.

 

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Feb 09 2013
Bible, Discipleship, Faith, Jesus, leadership, philosophy, politics, Religion, Theology, wisdom, Work, Worship

James White – The Christian Mind (iDisciple conference WCAUK)

James Emery White – The Christian Mind

What is the modern (non Christian) mind?

1. MULTI-TRUTH

Pluralism. God’s like a mountain, all the religions are paths up the same mountain, and the names of God are all the same summit. Go to the multiplex, or home to Netflix, all those choices. This is NEW! Peter Berger – sociologist said Religion used to provide a sacred canopy over all of culture. Now that’s replaced by millions of umbrellas to stand under.

With the increase of options comes lots of choices of truths, all equally valid.

But if everything is true – nothing is true.

‘It’s raining.’ Either it is or isn’t. There’s a match with reality.

These days comparative religion teaches what is held in common with all religions. But you can’t be a Buddhist Christian. Ask the Dalai Lama! Their truth claims are opposite. It’s two different mountains. Same with Islam etc.

So, either you say ; someone’s right

or someone’s wrong

But you can’t say they are ALL right. That’s intellectually dishonest.

  1. TRUTHINESS

Facts don’t matter. How you feel matters. You can create truth for yourself, despite the facts. If I can convince a majority of others that’s true, it is. (Follow link for more)

2. WIKIALITY

We create our own reality, and that becomes fact for us all. There is no truth outside of what the majority want it to be. If we say 2 + 2 = 5 for us, then it does.(Follow link for more/source)

3. MISTAKERS

Nobody is a sinner. nobody sins. Sociology and psychology has pushed sin out. We are just mistakers. Or in fact there’s something good about why we did it. ‘I’m sorry you got offended…’ Nothing is wrong, wicked or evil – so..

4. MORAL RELATIVISM

Anything goes. If it makes you happy, morality is a personal choice and opinion. If you’re not hurting anyone – except judgmental people of course. They are the only wrong ones. Look at Christian Smith’s work on this.

Why contrast this mind with the Christian mind?

Well this is a little disingenious. The fact is – the modern mind has BECOME the Christian mind! We are UNDISCIPLED here!

When Jesus restated the Shema (when quoting it verbatim as a Rabbi was essential) he ADDED in loving God ‘with your MIND…’

Paul was clear how change happens. Romans 12. RENEW the mind. Continually don’t let the world adjust you so much you fit into it without thinking. We are mirroring it, not challenging. This is diabolical.

Christians have to retain a prophetic voice. that has to come from a prophetic MIND.

Prov 23:7 As a man thinks in his heart – so is he.

Harry Blamires, ‘There is no longer a Christian mind.’

We have to start thinking about the big issues of our day in the light of our faith. Not having a compartmentalised mind. Where over here you have your work life, here’s your daily reading, here’s a tweet, here’s a show… and your thinking about one doesn’t link to the other things.

So you can be a Christian, but not let that reflect that in how you think about science. About films you see, social media. Do you integrate these things in terms of a Christian worldview?

Eg., where did we come from?

There are actually very few answers.

By chance (Naturalism)

We don’t exist (Hindu)

We were created

If we believe the latter, then there is meaning, and someone outside of us to whom we are accountable and from whom we derive value. Look at how MLK challenged unjust laws in his letter from a Birmingham Jail. It was based on the value of humanity based on a law above human laws.

John Stott said our battle is ‘a battle of ideas.’

We take captive every THOUGHT to make it obedient to Christ.

OR we think like everyone else.

Thomas Cahill – ‘How the Irish saved civilisation.’ As the Roman empire fell to barbarism, the Irish took up the Labour of copying western literature. This was then taken back to Europe and they saved it! Without this Christian mind, they would also have lost the ability to think. By the way, Islam would have taken over Europe then too.

There are few Christian warriors of the mind these days. Most retreat into personal piety or good works. We follow someone who died at 33. Don’t live a life that doesn’t offend people, if we don’t live as if we don’t care if we’ll die, we will be impotent.

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Jul 10 2012
Church, Community, Faith, Graham Cooke, Grief, Ivy Manchester Grow Group Notes, Jesus, leadership, Manchester, prophecy, wisdom, Worship

The NEW you is the TRUE you!

For the next few weeks in Grow Groups at Ivy MCR we’re going to be revisiting the amazing teaching from Graham Cooke at our ‘Keys the City’ conference, based upon my notes. So much truth made it hard to capture it all, even though I’m pretty good at note taking!

WELCOME : Ice breaker – everyone tell a short story from the past – what you remember when you were 7 or 8.

WORSHIP – Take some time together to enjoy the presence of God.

WORD -

Key learning point: If we are going to become the people that God sees when he looks at us, it is essential that we understand the process he takes us through to become Christlike.

Read Rom 6:3-14 (use various translations, compare and contrast etc)

There’s a three-stage process of transformation;

Closure, Conversion and Commissioning.

Discuss – what do those three words mean to you? How would the group define them? Compare to a dictionary definition of each.

The people coming out of Egypt had been slaves for 400 years, they had victim thinking. That means they only knew how to moan and complain and whine! They were a rabble, and had to become a different people group. They had to get closure from the past, if they were to inherit their future.

Q: What betrays the fact that a person has a victim mindset? 

Q. Graham then said, ‘”The cross is CLOSURE for our old nature.” What does that mean? 

In the Body of Christ there are people who are present/past (always affected by that, looking back).
And there are those who are present/future.

Q. Which are you, usually? If you went to the conference share how this teaching helped identify that. 

When you are in Christ you don’t have a right to be wounded, but you have a right to be healed. No matter how many times some people (the past/present thinkers) get prayer, go for counselling etc., they can’t move on – it won;t happen without the old man being closed down. Whatever happened in the past, God’s view of it was that your past was too bad to be cured or cleansed – it had to be crucified!

So you’re dead. Your job – is to stay dead. Stop grave robbing. The date you got saved is on your headstone. The Holy Spirit is not working on your old stuff, he’s given you new life. Jesus died ONCE and FOR ALL.

Q: How do we encourage one another to die to the old life in order to live the new? 

Graham said, “If you find it easy to be offended, it proves you don’t have much of a relationship with the Holy Spirit who is the Comforter. Let HIM comfort you – then grow up from being a baby. Establish your real identity. Offences are a hindrance.”

Q. Are you easily offended? How do you move on? 

The identity issue is this: Don’t focus on what you’ve BEEN - Learn who you are becoming. We are Present/ future people when we like who we are now and who we are becoming!

Q. Do you like who you are now and who you’re becoming in Christ? If not – why not? 

The old has died. God doesn’t talk to us about our sin, he’s dealt with it. Otherwise he’d be treading underfoot the cross as if it wasn’t powerful enough. Christians need to get our story straight – about what Jesus has done for us. Because the enemy would love you to be kept in classes or counselling focused on the old nature. That suits his purpose. He wants you to be focused on what you’re not. Then you’ll never overcome. God is preoccupied with who you are (identity) and who you’re becoming (future).

You don’t become a new person by just changing your behaviour. You discover who you are – and God leads you out of that. This is what it means to be converted! The OLD PASSED AWAY. The new you is the true you.

Jesus comes to you and says, ‘Give me back what I died and went to hell for!’  That anxiety, worry, negatives, hatred – it belongs to me! And I can’t give you what I have for you till you give it to me. I am your Prince of Peace but you can’t have it while you’re holding onto that. Learn to abide in who I am, not in who you are. There is no conversion, without closure.

Q: Have you thought about conversion in these terms before? What new insights have you on it now?

God isn’t dealing with your sin nature – but your sin habits. You have to learn how to be loved, joyful, peaceful, etc. The good habits of the nature of Christ.

PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER remembering, “He uses every situation in life to empower you to become like Jesus. If you’re in Christ, so are all your circumstances. They all have an answer in the Kingdom. So use them to grow up. God will turn it to good for us if we partner with him.”

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Jan 09 2012
Bible, Christianity, Church, Discipleship, leadership, Prayer, wisdom

Framing your world with your words. (Thoughts on a Tale of Three Kings)

If you want to check a heart, check the mouth. Look what Jesus said in Luke 6:45 “out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

Words are very powerful. The whole of creation was made by the word of God! Destinies of men, women, families, nations and whole world has been determined by words.

Every major change or revolution has taken place as a result of men & women who used the power of their words.

Positively you have Martin Luther King Jr declaring, ‘I have a dream…’

OR – Adolf Hitler writes of Mein Kampf and his struggle ends up embroiling the whole world.

It’s said of Winston Churchhill’s words : He mobilised the English language and sent it into battle! “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender!”

In 1 Kings 17:1ff Elijah walked into the palace and said to King Ahab “there will be no rain in this land except at my word.” That’s a man who knows the power of his word. (Do you?)

In Numbers 22 we read of how Balaam was employed to curse the Israelites. Why? Because his words were known to be powerful.

The Patriarchs blessed or cursed their children – and generations after them and their words were released, they came to pass. Look at Genesis 48:14-16

Jesus spoke innumerable Blessings in the Sermon on the mount, and he also spoke to the fig tree which withered and died in Mark 11:12ff

Heb 11:3 (Amplified) By faith we understand that the worlds [during the successive ages] were framed (fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose) by the word of God, so that what we see was not made out of things which are visible.

Notice it said… FRAMED! The universe, Framed by words. your world is framed by your words.

“Words will Frame your life”. The words you listen to, the words you speak over yourself will frame or pattern your life!

Words are the construction tools for your life. More  than that, words are also the building materials for your life. For better or worse – your conversation is your advertisement. Every time you open your mouth, you let other people into your mind and heart. Words carry self-fulfilling power. Your words reveal who you are!

As the book that has been challenging me so much recently wraps up (and with it this short series of blog posts) A Tale of Three Kings briefly touches on King David’s son… Absalom – who after King Saul had died and David became the king he was anointed to be long, long, before – Absalom rose up in rebellion against his own father to set up a monument in his own honour and proclaim HIMSELF the King instead.

And if you read the story of Absalom you’ll see that he was a young man who was very gifted, very privileged. Handsome, talented  – he had it all. Lovely hair, too! One of his Dad’s favourites, and spoilt rotten as a result.

It’s a long story wherein David’s sin with Bathesheba ended up bringing along (eventually) all kinds of consequences. The story got more and more messy, violent and tragic than a  Christmas episode of Eastenders. Absalom killed his own brother, (some would say the circumstances were understandable) and then he went off into exile and sulked,then connived to get himself back near the palace – without repentance.

Instead, Absalom let the perceived injustice and the punishment he’d received fester away in his heart. He started to let that become hatred for his father, David. The poison filled his heart more and more.

But you’d never see that on the surface. He was very clever in the way he subtly undermined the authority over the nation.

1 After this Absalom got himself a chariot and horses, and fifty men to run before him. 2 And Absalom used to rise early and stand beside the way of the gate. And when any man had a dispute to come before the king for judgment, Absalom would call to him and say, “From what city are you?” And when he said, “Your servant is of such and such a tribe in Israel,” 3 Absalom would say to him, “See, your claims are good and right, but there is no man designated by the king to hear you.” 4 Then Absalom would say, “Oh that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a dispute or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice.” 5 And whenever a man came near to pay homage to him, he would put out his hand and take hold of him and kiss him. 6 Thus Absalom did to all of Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.

His words stole people’s hearts away, from legitimate, God-given authority – to himself. He woildn’t go alone, he had to gain a following.  That’s’ the spirit of Absalom. Revolt took place eventually, but as Gene Edwards says, ”Rebellion was in his heart for years.” 

We have to watch for it in the church. Sure I’ve seen Sauls throwing spears in churches and hurting people. I’m not excusing that and don’t wish to emulate it though I know it’s a pressure in messed up leaders to mess up others that way.

But I’ve seen even more heartache in churches rent asunder by Absaloms than Sauls. We have to watch it in our attitudes, in our hearts, in our words.

 

 

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Jan 01 2012
Bible, Church, leadership, Men, wisdom

What will YOU pray for in 2012? A Tale of Three Kings (2).

Absalom would say, “Look, you’ve got a strong case; but the king isn’t going to listen to you.” Then he’d say, “Why doesn’t someone make me a judge for this country? Anybody with a case could bring it to me and I’d settle things fair and square.” Whenever someone would treat him with special honor, he’d shrug it off and treat him like an equal, making him feel important. Absalom did this to everyone who came to do business with the king and stole the hearts of everyone in Israel. (from 2 Sam 15, Message)

I’m continuing my study and comment on Gene Edward’s book, contrasting the life and leadership of King Saul, David and Absalom.

The final section of the book which focused on Absalom was similarly revealing. It’s not just the person at the top of an organisation who can ruin it! Again I could think of a variety of situations personally known to me where churches and ministries have been deeply undermined or even split by people – usually in a position of more junior leadership – purporting to just want to make room for their gift while (at first subtly then overtly) criticising a ‘control freak’ autocratic leader. The temptation then is to draw a sympathetic crowd to oneself which in turn stands against the appointed (ordained in a sense) leader.

I’m going to do another post on that, specifically – but before we look at Absalom’s symptoms, we have to check the root of the problem.

ROOTS

According to Edwards, the reason behind Absalom’s power play is that he really has the same spirit as Saul. That manifests itself most clearly as a prayer for power and influence from God, rather than an internal transformation by him.

“Many pray for the power of God…(under which hides) ambition, a craving for fame, the desire to be considered a spiritual giant… Prayer for power is the quick and short way, circumnavigating internal growth. There is a vast difference between the outward clothing of the Spirit’s power and the inward filling of the Spirit’s life.” (My emphasis).

The point he makes at the end here is, I think, something the Lord has been trying to speak to me as a New Year opens up. It’s about being satisfied with outward blessing and power from God, rather than what he really wants.

LOVE OR POWER?

It’s a theme underlined by Andrew Murray in that other book I keep returning to, ‘Absolute Surrender.’

Murray makes the point that (practically if not theologically) we can operate under an Old Testament understanding of the Holy Spirit – that He comes to bring revelation or power, and of course in the OT He didn’t live in people but came UPON them. “Now, many just want the Old Testament gift of power for work, but know very little of the New Testament gift of the indwelling Spirit, animating and renewing the whole life. When God gives the Holy Spirit, His great object is the formation of a holy character.”

He goes on to say, “Has it been our experience that the more we have of the Holy Spirit the more loving we become? In claiming the Holy Spirit we should make this the first object of our expectation. The Holy Spirit comes as a Spirit of love. Oh, if this were true in the Church how different her state would be!”

How often have I prayed for the Holy Spirit according to an OT understanding and not a NT reality?

‘More power.’ (yes!) but FIRST, ‘More Love!’

This (leap) year, for the next 366 days, please Lord, may you fill me with your Holy Spirit of LOVE. Come, Holy Spirit! I receive you. Teach me to love. Grow that fruit today. 

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Oct 23 2011
Bible, Christianity, Church, Faith, Finances, Holy Spirit, Jesus, wisdom

THE CALL TO GENEROSITY – Nick Duffy at Ivy MCR

Nick Duffy at Ivy Manchester

CALLED to be Generous 

2 Cor 9:7-15

You should each give what you have decided in your heart to give. You shouldn’t give if you don’t want to. You shouldn’t give because you are forced to. God loves a cheerful giver.

 8 And God is able to shower all kinds of blessings on you. In all things and at all times you will have everything you need. You will do more and more good works. 9 It is written,
“They have spread their gifts around to poor people.
Their good works continue forever.” —(Psalm 112:9)

 10 God supplies seed to the planter. He supplies bread for food. God will also supply and increase the amount of your seed. He will increase the results of your good works. 11 You will be made rich in every way. Then you can always give freely. We will take your many gifts to the people who need them. And they will give thanks to God.

 12 Your gifts meet the needs of God’s people. And that’s not all. Your gifts also cause many people to thank God.

 13 You have shown yourselves to be worthy by what you have given. So people will praise God because you obey him. That proves that you really believe the good news about Christ. They will also praise God because you share freely with them and with everyone else. 14 Their hearts will be filled with longing for you when they pray for you. God has given you grace that is better than anything.

 15 Let us give thanks to God for his gift. It is so great that no one can tell how wonderful it really is!

Paul’s challenging the Corinthians to help people who are in need, that they’ll not personally benefit from. To help the suffering church. The Macedonian church had already stepped up (and they were SKINT), so should they.

Generosity is a matter of the heart, not of the head.

The head looks at the economic situation, and says, ‘What if?’

A cheerful, trusting heart says, ‘Why not?’

God sees the reason of the heart.

Generosity is second nature

Have you had that new nature yet?

Not to let your left hand know what your right hand’s doing.

Giving makes you cheerful.

It comes from knowing where it all comes from. GOD is our generous provider. Seed and Bread. Enough for you and to share. (vs 7 & 8)

We think about what we’ve not got.

Rather than that we have so much!

Luke 12:48

Much will be required of everyone who has been given much. Even more will be asked of the person who is supposed to take care of much. what we have got.

God will give you everything you need.

Anything on top of that – is to be generous with.

We get dependent on our pay cheque, rather than him. Who do you look to?

When you go shopping, ask – ‘Do I really need this, or have I already got it – in a different colour.’

Step back from consumerism – and ask, pray – ‘Do I really need to spend this – on myself? Could this go elsewhere?’

We live in a world of poor extremes – there are more obese people in the world now than starving.

A man is not determined by what he earns, or what he owns.

When we surround ourselves by stuff, we don’t see the need or the people around us. God’s given us what we need, focus on the need around us.

What lasts forever?

Only people.

People are the most precious thing on this planet.

There won’t be an updated and improved version of you – God made you unique and precious as we are.

People are the only investment that lasts for eternity. Be generous with sharing your time, treasure, your words – your faith.

God is calling us into a deeper place of ministry with the poor and vulnerable at this church, in our city. So much is already being done. We’re going to be a CAP centre. 33% of those CAP are in contact with have considered suicide. We get to practically share the love of Jesus. That glorifies God! (vs 11). They see HIS heart, in your heart.

Generosity enables more people to be reached, touched, loved, connected to HIM.

Vs 13 says if you really get the gospel, you’ll get this.

Martin Luther, ‘The last place to be converted is our wallet.’ What you spend on, shows who or what you really worship.

Vs 15 celebrates the greatest gift – Jesus on the cross. It’s really true you can’t outgive THAT! God is outrageously generous.

Once you understand John 3:16, you see God is a giver not a taker. Grab hold of the gospel and it will grab you. Giving becomes second nature, because you have that new nature. Remind yourself of what God has done for us, for free, in Jesus. Give yourself first to him – and let him transform you. Let him add to you, a harvest of righteousness!

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Oct 13 2011
Bible, Christianity, Church, Discipleship, Faith, Jesus, leadership, wisdom

THE CHURCH BUILDING CYCLE. (ALC Network Day)@StephenMatthew_

 Stephen Matthew has become a friend whose wisdom I appreciate greatly, he has been very generous with his time and encouragement, mentoring me individually through numerous conversations over in Bradford and also coming across to meet with some of our leaders at Ivy recently as we prayed and planned into our future. He is a surveyor by background and combines theological acumen, practical skills and a pastoral heart through 25 years of ministry to be a man with a brain worth picking for anyone who wants to build a prevailing church. Here’s my notes on his talk at the ALC Network day this week: 

There are only two kinds of churches:

  1. The church everybody wants to build (It’s there in Acts 2, and the ideal church, it inspires us).
  2. The church God wants you to build.

If you try and copy the church ‘out there’ you’ll always fail.

God wants to speak to YOU about YOUR people and place. It’s always bespoke.

You work the process and start to build from scratch or reinvent what’s been built so far.

What comes next carries challenges. When people get involved. People present challenges! You hit the barriers, you get frustrated by money etc. How to sustain momentum?

One Pastor he knew, got a very excited small team around him and for two years planned to change everything. Expected eager embracing of the whole thing. It didn’t happen. Why? Well it had taken two years for him to get excited about it. It would take a while for the people to get there too!

Church building is not linear – it’s CYCLICAL.

You don’t do one bit then it’s done, then do the next bit. One thing leads to the next. There is nothing in the church building process that you change which stays the same. You have to keep spinning these plates. Every church has a building CYCLE. 8 things:

1. Communicate Clear Vision – Consistently

Tell them again and again and in various ways what kind of church you’re going to be. Through music, posters, message. Proverbs 29:18.

2. Change – in line with the Vision

This tests their trust in you. Will you DO IT?  If you’ve talked about it, you have to do some things about it. It shows you’re serious about it. Appoint new ministries etc. Start something.

3. Use the Power of a Good Report

Because some will love the change and some will hate it, and if you don’t take hold of it, the negative report will always win out. Use testimony and good report –  of lives being changed. Eventually the good will overwhelm the bad.

4. Model the Culture

People have to see it in me as the leader. I have to be devoted, if we’re going to ‘devote ourselves.’ If we’re going to reach the new culture I have to look like the church we’re going to build. ‘Set and example as a leader

5. Regularly call for the spirit of Agreement 

This usually looks like turning up. I agree – because I’m going to sign up for that and be there to help. What triggered Nehemiah to build? What he felt. He felt what God felt for the ruins of his city. We have to call people to feel it too, then pull together. Invite this agreement.

6. Call for SPECIFIC Involvement.

Because some people will lavish words of agreement on you – but it’s all words. They need eyeballing and saying, ‘We need you – HERE. Have you ever considered being involved here?’ You have to call for involvement. Get proactive in speaking to them, calling forth that involvement. Let them know how to get involved. They should increasingly feel involved, the model is that it’s all hands on deck – ‘So how do I get involved?’ Nehemiah ended up with shopkeepers and goldsmiths and priests building with him. But they all FELT IT and made the decision to build right where they are. Put a ministry fair on, with desks and stalls – and get the healthy competition going to get more people involved in something they will love that will benefit the Kingdom.

7. Celebrate their Contribution

We only survive because of our volunteer army. Honour and celebrate the volunteers. Hybels says this positive volunteer cameraderie  never happens by accident. How do you foster it? FEED them. Get them a drink. Volunteers get a sandwich. Have a volunteer party and thank and celebrate them. Depts put forward their ‘volunteer of the year.’ Usually someone hardly anyone has ever heard of.

8. Keep the Prize before their Eyes

Why are you doing this? Because it affects this... When they were building, Nehemiah had the trumpet blower at his side so if they were getting spread out they could be rallied together. Which gets you back to the top of the circle again.

When you don’t do any of this – things slow down.

What do you need to do more of in your church to keep the wheel turning?

Final observation – this needs to happen in every department of the church. For it to happen anywhere in the church it has to happen everywhere in the church. Every leader, every department. It’s not just about what comes from the platform on a Sunday.

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