[This reflection by Martin Shorey was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 31/Dec/2023]
This year, 2023, has been a whirlwind of baptisms, a total of 31 to be precise (if we include Reese’s rather mucky baptism in the River Mole). When I gauge our church’s success, I don’t tend to focus on the number of attendees or even the conversions. My measure of achievement lies in the count of baptisms – those individuals who have not only embraced Christ but have also walked with us, overcoming the often daunting hurdle of publicly declaring their faith through baptism.
Upon scrutinising the 2023 statistics, it’s evident that we are thriving. However, as I delve deeper, I find myself discounting many of those baptisms. Perhaps they were already Christians before coming to us, or they attended baptismal classes elsewhere, or found faith through alternative means like YouTube. I catch myself yearning for someone whom we plucked from the streets, guided through Alpha, witnessed surrendering to Jesus, and subsequently baptised – someone we can proudly say, ‘we did that!’ Someone whose transformation is a testament to our diligence, courage and discipleship rigour.
Yet, in the midst of these aspirations, I felt God nudging me to reconsider my perspective. Isn’t every heart turning to Jesus a miraculous event? While we do play a role in the process, we cannot single-handedly make someone a Christian, change a heart, or instil belief in Jesus. The source of their conversion, whether it be in Iran, another church, through the internet, or via dreams, should be secondary to the fact that God has entrusted us with these individuals. God knows that at HBC, they will find welcome, love, nurture, and discipleship – isn’t that an amazing privilege!
This realisation shifts my focus from wanting credit for the conversions to gratitude for being part of these people’s lives at all! It doesn’t diminish the importance of our missional activities and discipleship processes in 2024, but it underscores that this is God’s mission, unfolding in His way. I simply implore, “God, please don’t exclude us from what you are doing in Horley!”
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Last week’s reflection: Nobody Knows The Trouble I’ve Seen by David Makanjuola
Contributed by Martin Shorey; © Martin Shorey