Get a Grip
So in one of our youth groups at the moment we're doing a series called 'Get a Grip' and in each part we're looking at different aspects of our lives that we probably would do well to get a grip on! Things like our relationships, our money, food, choices, etc. We often let life happen to us rather than really living it. We often miss opportunities instead of making the most of them. 'Getting a grip' seemed to be a reasonable idea for this kind of discussion.
We've also been learning in church about the effects of sin in our lives (the stuff that God hates because it stops us living life to the full and cuts us off from him). Certain sinful habits can be an addiction and loads of us are gripped by things like this that we can't seem to break out of (and there was a brilliant resource for people to take away about the issues of masturbation and pornography called 'Porn-Again Christian'). I guess getting a grip in these situations might mean having the courage to ask someone we trust for help. Always scary but bringing sin/struggle into the light is the way forward and it can be done! There is forgiveness and strength available to us!
Church ought to be one of the safest places to be honest with each other about real struggles like this but often we feel threatened. Probably because we fall into the trap of thinking that everyone in church must somehow be there because they're really good! Rubbish! We've all got our secrets. Getting a grip on our habits means sharing some of those secrets with people we trust and taking supported strides forward.
Taking this 'get a grip' idea too far can be risky too though. Sure, there's a lot that we can sort out for ourselves just by stopping to take stock and make a few changes and there's somethings we can change by asking for help from others, but Christianity isn't about self help. There will always be things that we struggle with in this life that we haven't figured out yet. There will be sins, struggles, pressures that we just can't seem to shake off. Problems that are just too big for us, even with help from friends. And so we can't really think to much about our grip on things without thinking about God's grip on us. Has he got hold of us yet? Or are we still running away or resisting him? We desperately need his very real presence and peace in our lives if we're to face any of this stuff confidently without it defeating us.
1 John 1:5-10
God Conversations
Why is it so difficult or weird for people to talk about God? I guess everyone has their own ideas about it and a hundred different people would say a hundred different things. It's often the cause of arguments and even wars. Religion is linked with violence, confusion, manipulation, greed and arrogance. Maybe that's why!But maybe not! I've made all sorts of excuses not to talk to people about my relationship with God (and theirs too) and I've convinced myself that if I do, people will think I'm an arrogant, violent, manipulative weirdo or something like that. Maybe they think that I'm only out to convert them and I don't really care. In reality, that's not true about me. I know my motives are good ones and that I actually care about people, especially if they're missing out on a relationship with God, forgiveness, life to the full and life forever. So why do I bottle it and talk about something else instead? Probably because I'm scared. And I'm scared because I care about myself too much.
A young person once wrote on a prayer wall, 'Will you still love me when you've saved me?'. I hope that as Christians, we're not 'peddling religion'. I hope that we're learning to genuinely love people. I once asked some of the young people at our church, 'What's the best reason to show love to people?'. They had all sorts of answers that seemed really good... 'Because Jesus did', 'Because God says so', or 'So they'll want to know God'. The problem is that the only reason that counts for anything is that we ACTUALLY love people. Actually loving people is the best reason to show it and if we don't actually love them, they'll soon see that we're faking it for our own agenda.
I'm challenged at the moment. Challenged to love God. Challenged to really love the people around me, whether they know him yet or not. I'm challenged to love God and people enough so that I overcome my silly fears of what people think of me and I actually show genuine care and concern for those around me more and more and more. And not just the people that would expect it, but the people who would never expect it. Motivated by genuine love, I'm challenged to do random acts of kindness, to be there for people when times are really desperate and to invite people to draw close to the God who loves them and died for them.
I'm scared. But I can't stop loving God. I can't stop loving people either. I guess I'll just have to get over it, get busy and see what God does.
Jeremiah 20:9
Angels
It's been really exciting for us (me and Chrissi) to be learning about angels recently. Most people probably don't believe in them but we do and the Bible does have quite a bit to say about them. It says they're spiritual beings created by God and they obey and worship God (e.g. Isaiah 6:3, Revelation 5:11-12), bring God's messages to people (e.g. Matthew 28:5-6, Luke 1:11-19, Acts 8:26) and carry out some of God's plans in the world.So do I seriously believe in angels? Aren't they just made up creatures like gnomes and fairies? I'm convinced they're real and that what the Bible says is true when it talks about them. Human beings are both physical and spiritual beings and there is a whole spiritual reality going on that we don't (often) see with our physical eyes (Ephesians 6:12).
A while ago when I worked in a school, there was an event one evening in the area where people came together to worship God. Christians from loads of local churches were there, including one of the lads from the school. The next day in school the lad said he'd seen angels at the event. He said they were hovering over all the people and they were handing out swords to the people as they prayed to equip them with God's power for the struggles they were facing in their lives. He said that he only saw them when he closed his eyes. At first when I heard this, I thought, 'That's nice. What a lovely idea. But it's probably just in his head.' But then he said that later on in the same meeting, the leader at the front said that he also saw angels handing out swords to people as they prayed. Coincidence? Maybe but I'm sure it was that God was giving people glimpses of what his angels were doing and the spiritual reality that was taking place behind the scenes of the physical reality. Brilliant!
Recently, Chrissi has seen a few angels too. Only because she's asked God if he would show them to her and he has (I've asked and he hasn't). It's not been the focus of our lives (that's hopefully Jesus and we'll try and keep living for him whatever angels we may or may not see) but it's been a real encouragement in certain situations for God to show us what his angels are doing. At Belmont (our church) one Sunday, his angels were handing out swords and some people took them and others didn't. It was an interesting picture of how we as a crowd are a mixed bag of those who are taking God's power out into our everyday lives and those who are leaving it behind! A real challenge to all of us. On another occasion Chrissi saw an angel cuddling someone we knew who was really struggling and bringing God's comfort to them.
I wonder what you make of all this. Maybe you don't believe in God, let alone angels and stuff like that. I would challenge you to consider that there is a spiritual reality at work in our lives. It's something well worth looking into.
And maybe you already believe in angels (if you're a Christian, you probably do) but you've forgotten about them! They're still around and very busy worshipping God and carrying out his plans with us in the world. We don't often see them but they're still there and we can worship God with them and be helped by them. Let's be grateful to God and thank him for all he's doing and for all he sends his angels to do.
And if you think it's all a bit weird, confusing or a load of rubbish, let me know. It would be great to hear from you.
Stuff from my brain... from God???
Lately I was asked to 'bring a thought' for the start of a meeting and as I thought about it (last minute as usual) it struck me that perhaps most people would be thinking - 'OK so I need to prepare a 'thought' to bring to the meeting', but instead of this, I thought it was probably better (risky probably) to simply bring my thoughts to the meeting as they were. Surely it's better to bring your thoughts than to go and get some thoughts to bring! I guess it depends on what's in your head to start with!I've had a similar kind of thought about prayer lately. Someone asked me what my prayer life is like and about my 'quiet times'. The fact is, I don't really do 'quiet times' and haven't for quite a while but I do have plenty of times that are quiet if you know what I mean... probably not! What I mean is that I talk to God when I feel like it and the thing is... I feel like it quite a lot! I do talk to God a lot each day and bring my thoughts and feelings to him as often as I can. But I don't organise these times or plan them necessarily. Sometimes that can be useful and if I or one of my mates spots that my relationship with God seems to be slipping in some way then a new habit or structure might be useful to help change me a bit. But as it is (and I'm way from perfect!) I feel like organised quiet times would quite honestly get in the way of my relationship with God! Me and God talk regularly. I pray and I read his word in the Bible but these days it's more like a natural thing than something I make myself do.
I realise very quickly that all this sounds very arrogant and like I think I've got some kind of special sorted relationship with God that means I don't need to prepare anything or have any special time for prayer etc but if you know me, I hope you'll know that I'm not an arrogant person and neither am I a perfect person!!! Anyone who knows me will know enough of my secrets and failings to know that I struggle with sin as much as anyone and God has a lot of work yet to do on me to make me into the person he wants me to be. I guess my point is that although the process is a lifelong one, nonetheless it is happening slowly but surely, bit by bit. And it's encouraging.
Here's some possibly useful questions to think about...
- How would you describe your relationship with God?
- How effective are your patterns of listening to him by reading the Bible and in other ways?
- How much do you choose to share with him in prayer?
- How might certain patterns or structures of prayer and Bible study help you at the moment?
- How might they hold you back or make you miss the point?
Goodbye to SCM
I've just finished my job at St Cuthbert Mayne as Pastoral Support Worker and I thought I'd write a bit about what I'm moving on to and also say something I think is really important for anyone back at school who might be taking a look at this...
I've got a day off today but tomorrow I'll be starting my new job at my church (Belmont Chapel) in Exeter where I live and I'll be 'Youth Support Worker' for 11-18s. I'll be thoroughly involved in all the youth groups, offering support to young people beyond those groups and activities and generally doing everything I can to help people grow well and discover more of their potential in God. Exciting stuff and I can't wait!
And the important thing? Well it's about knowing God... One of the hardest things for me about leaving SCM was saying goodbye to people who I know have been relying on me to some extent for things they needed - someone to listen, someone to rely on, someone to trust in. I've loved being able to help people and it was so hard to think about what might happen when I'm not there. But the thing is, as soon as I had feelings like this, I also had lots of encouraging thoughts too because although I'm leaving SCM, God is not!
God's way better than me at being available, organised and caring and loving and skilled and everything that anyone could ever need. And he's every bit as much at SCM as he is anywhere else. In fact, I think he's even more obvious at SCM than at many schools I've been to.
If you're a student at SCM reading this, you'll have heard me talk about God many times and thanks for letting me! It's because I know how much God loves us and wants to bring us peace and life to the full, forgiveness, life forever, purpose, gifts, etc, that I can't stop talking about him and inviting people to speak to him, learn from him and get to know him for themselves.
I hope you'll make the most of the opportunity to know God. He wants to forgive you and for you to know him as your best friend who will never leave you.
This websites might give you a good start in finding out more...
2 Ways to Live - The good news about Jesus that Christians believe and how to become a Christian yourself if you want to!
ReJesus - All about Jesus, his story, his followers, etc
WordLive - Free daily podcasts, emails with Bible passages, prayers, relevant thoughts, etc
I've got a day off today but tomorrow I'll be starting my new job at my church (Belmont Chapel) in Exeter where I live and I'll be 'Youth Support Worker' for 11-18s. I'll be thoroughly involved in all the youth groups, offering support to young people beyond those groups and activities and generally doing everything I can to help people grow well and discover more of their potential in God. Exciting stuff and I can't wait!
And the important thing? Well it's about knowing God... One of the hardest things for me about leaving SCM was saying goodbye to people who I know have been relying on me to some extent for things they needed - someone to listen, someone to rely on, someone to trust in. I've loved being able to help people and it was so hard to think about what might happen when I'm not there. But the thing is, as soon as I had feelings like this, I also had lots of encouraging thoughts too because although I'm leaving SCM, God is not!
God's way better than me at being available, organised and caring and loving and skilled and everything that anyone could ever need. And he's every bit as much at SCM as he is anywhere else. In fact, I think he's even more obvious at SCM than at many schools I've been to.
If you're a student at SCM reading this, you'll have heard me talk about God many times and thanks for letting me! It's because I know how much God loves us and wants to bring us peace and life to the full, forgiveness, life forever, purpose, gifts, etc, that I can't stop talking about him and inviting people to speak to him, learn from him and get to know him for themselves.
I hope you'll make the most of the opportunity to know God. He wants to forgive you and for you to know him as your best friend who will never leave you.
This websites might give you a good start in finding out more...
2 Ways to Live - The good news about Jesus that Christians believe and how to become a Christian yourself if you want to!
ReJesus - All about Jesus, his story, his followers, etc
WordLive - Free daily podcasts, emails with Bible passages, prayers, relevant thoughts, etc
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