Selah2020: Pause and Reflect

[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, January 2018]

It is that time of year when we tend to look back at the year just gone and ahead to the one just begun. We probably had a lot of good intentions (resolutions) at the start of the last year and on reviewing things, if you are like me, there are a lot more that we fell short of achieving, than those where we hit the mark. Indeed, on reflection, I see where God’s blessings have been abundant and often unexpected. The shame about it is that I forget these very quickly and wonder why He seems so distant when the next difficulty presents itself!

I am determined to do things differently this year, such as getting this work-life balance thing right, taking time for what really matters, tackling one thing at a time, spending more time with God in His word and in prayer. All laudable things no doubt, but given my track record, hmmm…

How do I go about making this year different from the one just gone? How do I know what really matters, what path God wants me to walk this year? Victor Frankl is said to have stated that “We DETECT, rather than INVENT our missions in life.” How do I detect what I need to do this year?

I find words from Minnie Haskins’s aptly named poem, ‘The Gate of the Year’ very helpful:

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied:
“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”

In John’s gospel, Jesus said “I have come that they might have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10: 10). Jesus was clear about why he had come in to the world. To get clarity, that is who we need to turn to. We need to ask Him to show us what we need to do, where we need to be during this year and how we should do what He has asked us to do.

My prayer for us all is that when Christ’s Spirit reveals these things to us, we will resolve to be faithful and obedient to His leading.

So, yes, New Year revelations, which will lead to New Year resolutions.

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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 12/Nov/2017]

How many of us can remember Sunday School? Those two hours on a Sunday afternoon when a few dedicated people sacrificed their own time so that our parents could meditate on the morning’s sermon without being woken up. Do you remember the story of a tax inspector who wanted to check out the accounts of Jesus? I suspect that even fewer of us can recall much of the little ditty that went with the story:
“Zacchaeus was a very little man and a very little man was he.
He climbed into a sycamore tree for Jesus he wanted to see.”

Perhaps you heard about those four men in Capernaum who wanted to bring their friend to Jesus. When the conventional approach proved impossible they had to try something else and they found that the only way was to break into the place where Jesus was preaching. I suspect that our Facilities Manager would not be happy about that.

Then there was Bartimaeus, sitting beside the road near Jericho. As a blind beggar he did not get invited to the big outreach events in the town. He heard that Jesus was in the neighbourhood and wanted to ask Him for some help but something held him back.

What is there in common with these three stories, other than a reference to getting up and then going somewhere? The narratives tell us in each case that the existing followers of Jesus got in the way. Those seeking Jesus were crowded out. Do we have some practices or even liturgy that a visitor might find off-putting? A colleague recently told me about a visit he made to a church in the USA – 6,000 people arriving for a great time of worship but none of them with a word of welcome for the stranger in the car park. We can thank God that HBC is not like that, but we must also pray to remain alert to those who might be blinded by our shadow.
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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, October 2017]

Tensions in Spain, turmoil in Syria, unrest in lots of places around the world. Perhaps it’s the same for you at work, at school, at home? It’s no secret that people find it hard to get along with each other. We seem to major on the things that lead to discord and disharmony, rather than on things which should unite us.

An excerpt from the UCB Word for today devotional for the 28th of October is as follows:

“One day a man was getting his windscreen washed at a petrol station. When the attendant finished, the man said, ‘That’s a terrible job. Re-do my windscreen – it’s as dirty as when you started.’ So, the attendant wiped it again. The man looked it over and in frustration said, ‘That window hasn’t changed a bit.’
The man’s wife was sitting next to him in the car fuming. She reached over, pulled off his glasses, wiped them, and gave them back to him. The attendant had been doing his job correctly. The man himself was the problem all along.”

The devotional went on to explain about how what we look through affects what we actually see.

I am all too aware of how even with my glasses on, I have often not seen clearly and jumped to wrong conclusions about people and how thankful I am to God that they couldn’t read my thoughts!

If you are anything like me, you will have certain people that are a joy to be with and some who seem to have a talent for winding you up. Jesus knew about this (even his disciples jostled for position. Luke 9:46 states that an argument started amongst the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest). Jesus, however, didn’t allow that it was any excuse for us not to get on with each other. He commanded us to love our enemies; we are told in His word not to forsake the assembly of one another. It is clear that we cannot do this in our own strength. We need His Spirit in us to help us.

There is no doubt that when you are in the midst of people where Jesus’ love is manifest, it is a wonderful experience. This is probably why Jesus said: ‘by this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love, one for another’ (John 13 v35). When people see this love manifest amongst Jesus’ followers, they are almost certain to ask: ‘How do they do it?’

That’ll be your cue for telling them about Christ and all he has done for you.

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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 09/Oct/2017]

In the amusing trilogy in four parts (!), The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the story is told of some philosophers on a distant planet who wanted to know the answer to life, the universe and everything. They decided to build a powerful computer called “Deep Thought” to find the answer, but it would take millions of years to run the program. When it was completed the descendants of the philosophers gathered to hear the computer’s decision. They were stunned when they heard it say, “You are not going to like this. The answer to life, the universe and everything is … 42.”

I often think of this story when I hear astronomers and scientists talk about the results from a space probe or a telescope orbiting the earth, that the data would help them understand the origins of the universe and of life on earth. I must admit that I smile at this the same as I do about the story of the philosophers, because we as Christians already know the answer. This is clearly found many times in the Bible such as in Colossians 1:15 – 20.

“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see – such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else and he holds all creation together.

Christ is also the head of the church which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.” (NLT)

We don’t need a computer, it’s all in God’s Word. The answer to the question is not 42, but the real answer is Jesus the Lord who created life, the universe and everything. He lived, died and rose from the dead to bring us forgiveness for our sins, and if you believe in Him as your Saviour and Lord, then together let’s praise and worship Him today and every day forever.

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[This Reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 10/Sep/2017]

Some of you may recall that I used to work in traffic management in central London, first in the design and implementation of the Primary Red Routes and subsequently as one of the team developing procedures for bus lane enforcement. I am sure that did not endear my team to many drivers in London, who have a mass of rules and regulations to contend with, many of them apparently contradictory. Nevertheless, the overall achievement was in improvement in the common good, albeit at the expense of denying some individuals the liberty to do what they wanted.

Is this how you picture the Christian life? Do you see a list of commandments and expectations that are impossible to satisfy in their entirety, designed by a God who delights in making life difficult?

Recently I heard someone explaining the Ten Commandments somewhat differently. Instead of “Thou shalt not …” being a negative prohibition it can be read as a positive prediction – “You won’t …” because your devotion to God makes that particular action unnecessary. Today, instead of roasting the preacher over lunch, why not try a simple Bible meditation? Here are ten responses from Scripture; the list is not exhaustive and you will surely come up with your own suggestions.

The Ten Encouragements:

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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, August 2017]

I have in my hands two boxes
Which God gave me to hold
He said, “Put all your sorrows in the black,
And all your joys in the gold.”
I heeded his words, and in the two boxes
Both my joys and sorrows I store,
But though the gold became heavier each day
The black was as light as before.

With curiosity, I opened the black
I wanted to find out why
And I saw, in the base of the box, a hole
Which my sorrows had fallen out by.

I showed the hole to God, and mused aloud,
“I wonder where my sorrows could be.”
He smiled a gentle smile at me.
“My child, they’re all here with me.”

I asked, “God, why give me the boxes,
“Why the gold, and the black with the hole?”
“My child, the gold is for you to count your blessings,
The black is for you to let go.”

–Author Unknown–

Helen’s article in ‘Yours’ a couple of weeks ago reminded us about Romans 15:7, which asks us to accept one another just as Christ accepted us. You could say Paul is asking us to put what others have done to offend us into the black box. Michael also wrote in ‘Yours’ about how God often shows us new things from the storehouse of His word and these are definitely things worth storing in the gold box.

As you go into the week ahead, think of these boxes. For those things that annoy you, or hurt you, place them in the black box and allow them to slip away. Those things which bring a smile to your face, which bless you, place in the gold box.

One other thing; remember to dip into the gold box often, to bring out things to share with others. God’s laws of mathematics ensure us that as you give of your good things to share with others, you’ll end up with more, not less.

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