threeboysandtheirgod

How to make a difference in your local church

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 15:02:00 +0000

• Find a good local church.
• Get involved.
• Become a member.
• Stay there as long as you can.
• Put away thoughts of a revolution for a while.
• Join the plodding visionaries.
• Go to church this Sunday and worship in Spirit and truth.
• Be patient with your leaders.
• Rejoice when the gospel is faithfully proclaimed.
• Bear with those who hurt you.
• Give people the benefit of the doubt.
• Say “hi” to the teenager that no one notices.
• Welcome the old ladies with the blue hair and the young men with tattoos.
• Volunteer for the nursery.
• Attend the congregational meeting.
• Bring your fried chicken to the potluck like everybody else.
• Invite a friend.
• Take a new couple out for coffee.
• Give to the Christmas offering.
• Sing like you mean it.
• Be thankful someone vacuumed the carpet for you.
• Enjoy the Sundays that “click.”
• Pray extra hard on the Sundays that don’t.
• And in all of this, do not despise the days and weeks and years of small things (Zechariah 4:8–10).

-Kevin DeYoung

Five Dangers For Young Men - J.C. Ryle

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 22:08:00 +0000

Some great truth and conviction from J.C. Ryle on the five dangers for young men to fight against.

1. Pride

“Young men, do not be too confident in your own judgment. Stop being so sure that you are always right, and others wrong. Don’t trust your own opinion, when you find it contrary to that of older men, and especially to that of your own parents. Age gives experience, and therefore deserves respect.”

2. Love of Pleasure

“Youth is the time when our passions are strongest—and like unruly children, cry most loudly for indulgence. Youth is the time when we have generally our most health and strength: death seems far away, and to enjoy ourselves in this life seems to be everything… ‘I serve lusts and pleasures’, that is the true answer many a young man should give, if asked, ‘Whose servant are you?’”

3. Thoughtlessness

“Not thinking is one simple reason why thousands of souls are thrown away forever into the Lake of Fire. Men will not consider, will not look ahead, will not look around them, will not reflect on the end of their present course, and the sure consequences of their present days, and wake up to find they are damned for a lack of thinking. Young men, none are in more danger of this than yourselves. You know little of the perils around you, and so you are careless how you walk. You hate the trouble of serious, quiet thinking, and so you make wrong decisions and bring upon yourselves much sorrow.”

4. Contempt of Religion

“This also is one of your special dangers. I always observe that none pay so little outward respect to Christianity as young men. None take so little part in our services, when they are present at them—use Bibles so little—sing so little—listen to preaching so little. None are so generally absent at prayer meetings, Bible Studies, and all other weekday helps to the soul. Young men seem to think they do not need these things—they may be good for women and old men, but not for them. They appear ashamed of seeming to care about their souls: one would almost fancy they considered it a disgrace to go to heaven at all.”

5. Fear of Man’s Opinion

“It is terrible to observe the power which the fear of man has over most minds, and especially over the minds of the young. Few seem to have any opinions of their own, or to think for themselves. Like dead fish, they go with the stream and tide. What others think is right, they think is right; and what others call wrong, they call wrong too. There are not many original thinkers in the world. Most men are like sheep, they follow a leader. If it was the fashion of the day to be Roman Catholics, they would be Roman Catholics, if it was to be Islamic, they would be Islamic. They dread the idea of going against the current of the times. In a word, the opinion of the day becomes their religion, their creed, their Bible, and their God.”

These quotes are pulled from Ryle’s book, Thoughts For Young Men.

via J.C. Ryle Quotes

Demons

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Tue, 04 May 2010 15:19:00 +0000

Was just listening to a Driscoll sermon on demons, and some interesting points came up. Points that I would have known but perhaps wouldn't always put in a simple way..
I liked this quote from Clinton Arnold:

"A servant of Christ can no more avoid demons than a gardener can avoid weeds

So if you serve Jesus then you are going to meet demons, it's just the way it is..

Satan is not equal to God (Satan was a CREATED thing)
Satan is not All knowing/All powerful/and Cannot be everywhere

Satan is not our only enemy..(the world/the flesh/the devil).
If you are being attacked spiritually it is probably not the devil. The devil can only attack one person at a time, he can send a limited number of demons to attack a limited number of persons. Satan would be harassing someone like Billy Graham, if you are being harassed it's probably one of Satan's servants..
The flesh is our inside and our own sick desires and many problems that we perhaps blame on Satan (I know I have done) are just our flesh. If Satan has only limited demons why would he send a demon to attack you, when you are already attacking yourself?
And again as Driscoll said:

"If you are in a battle and have your own gun in your mouth why would he send one of his few soldiers to attack you when you are going to kill yourself?"

THE WORLD: if you believe what everyone else believes, behave how everyone else behaves, then you are living a satanic life. The world tempts you to sin, to be a consumer rather than to give, to live for yourself etc..

Driscoll then goes on to talk about Avatar and stating how demonic the film is (false ideology etc)

But yeah check it out.. its MARS HILL, MARK DRISCOLL - LUKE: JESUS AND DEMONS

Do you really believe it?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 14:08:00 +0000

It would seem that my frustrations in different degrees of submission Christians live out their lives, boils down to a question. From the ‘Sunday’ Christian to the Martyr, we can see a different levels of submission. The question is a big one, as the answer begs a life of complete submission to Father. Deep down in our subconscious or may be even in the conscious we have asked a question of God. We have asked a question of our own faith, and the answer becomes the foundation for our Christian living. I would suggest that you have asked this ask question before, whether you have realised it or not. I too now ask you the question:

Do you really believe it?

I ask you to search for heart for the answer rather than giving the automated response, ‘of course I do’. Think for a moment. Pursue an answer to this and discover your level of belief or level of unbelief. Scratching the surface to the truth is not what God desires, I am sure you realise He wants more. After all, you have been taught it. But has this truth dropped from your head to your heart?

Again, do you really believe it?

I am convinced that when we do chase answers, we find them. If we are willing to delve deep into a quest for the truth we will find the uncomfortable answers, and the insatiable truth. When we find the answer and are convinced of the truth we are left with two options. To follow or not. Be aware that to not follow could mean being a 99% Christian.

If you are not fighting for the cause and following the truth, that you claim to believe with everything you have, I should contend that you may never have met Him. I use the term ‘50% Christian’ often, however, there is no such thing. We must realise that He desires nothing less than all of you. If you do not submit all, may I ask you, do you even no Him?
Do you really believe it?

I find myself asking, where does God draw the line in regards to our submission to Him? How much does he want? Would it simply be a prayer? Most of our lives and the odd idol? Everything but a relationship? I can safely say that He wants nothing less than every part of our beings.

If we truly saw the irresistible face of Christ, would we ever retain any part of our lives for ourselves? So, if we do not give everything, what are we saying about our faith? What are we even saying about Christ and His sacrifice? The truth, I find, is painful. The truth means discomfort. The truth means action not passivity, the greatest danger to a Christian. The truth of Christ means we submit everything. If you don’t submit everything, ask, do you know Him?

I beg you to search yourself. Find your level of submission and ask yourself whether you actually believe it or not. I believe it is a dangerous question. You will either stay the same and ignore the truth or change into His likeness.

I have asked this question recently in regards to the great commission. I have decided to refer to it as ‘The Great Implication’. If we really believe what we preach and are exposed to this command it leads to one thing; this is not a cold shoulder. The implication of understanding the truth is catastrophic. Devastating for everything we had planned. Overwhelming for our hearts to the point of breaking. Father desires everything from us, anything less will be considered luke-warm and be vomited out. If we submit all but a little, I believe, we have not seen Him and we don’t even know Him. If we knew Him rightly, we would automatically put Him first, above everything else. Jesus requires all. We must surrender all.

A moment of change or a life time process? However it is done,you decide.
At first I find it amusing when a Christian is stubborn enough to reject the truth of life change. But I think again, and it hurts. This is a dashed hope for a dying world. Giving your cold shoulder to truth results in a luke-warm ‘Christian’.

I look around my nation. It is lost. I am in awe that God’s forgiveness can stretch so far, to forgive the church for her idolatry. Across my nation I look for a passion for souls, I see little, and wonder where God went. But then I remember, God left when we forgot our neighbours. When we crushed them. When we put other things before God.

Kenya is coming.

I am coming from a comfortable western, materialistic, bubble.
The world hurts.
In 3 days I will be skipping into a broken nation, with more westerners. We will have our digital Cameras, Malaria Pills and hand sanitizer. The people have none of these… we do. I know the culture is different, but there is more to this.

Could I see reality for a moment please?

A hurting world is nigh and I would like to see reality. I take a glimpse and realise that very very very few warriors of the cross are fighting; or even aware of the fight. Did we miss the saviour’s teaching? Did we close our ears and shut our Bibles at the call to action? What does submission even mean to us?

Please, give me excuses. I am sure you have thought of many. May I hazard a guess? You have kids? A mortgage? Retirement to pursue? Cars? Wealth? Friends? Family? To name but a few. But listen to this, one day we will all have to stand before GOD. One day we all will give an account to the creator of this universe. One day every little thing said and done will be laid bear. What will you say then? Did you think of the kingdom first?

I will finish with the question we must ask ourselves, do we really believe it?

Do you really believe it?

People...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:57:00 +0000

Every Saturday I have the chance to lay in, however I can't. My body clock is far too strong, so when I am awake, I am awake for good. So at 7:30 (which for me is a 45 minute lay in, not too bad really) I lay in bed thinking for a while. I was looking at the ceiling and the pattern in the paint, I realised that it looks like the Alps from my bed.
My mind was running along at its usual pace, from mountains to marriage, music to carpentry, painting to people. I stopped to think about people a bit more.

I love people.

I got thinking about the last few years and actually how many new people I have met. Literally thousands. Every one of them unique. Every one of them an inspiration. I thought about God's blessing of friends and how much a value them, for my nearest and dearest to those on a different continent. What a wonderful job God did with people?

I know we get it all wrong and will continue to do so. I get that there isn't a sinless bone in our bodies but there is still something special about people. Could it be visible potential?

As I lay there I remembered the blessings of people in my life. I thought about family, my boys at home, the folks at church, the countless Americans and Brazilians, a few Canadians and Indonesians. Teachers at school and college. I remembered all the time I have laughed and smiled; it bought tears to my eyes. I have had so many great times indeed. What a blessing.

If life was to end now it wouldn't be so bad at all. Thank God for what I've had so far. I thank Him in advance for what's coming. Thank Him for today, the present, a present. A magnificent gift. The sun is shining today, there are people around, and I have air in my lungs, what more could I want?

I think God likes people too. I think He loves people.

Mercenary for God

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:01:00 +0000

I want to start by saying, I don't mean for this to potentially sound proud or prideful in anyway, I ask the Lord lets me deliver what he wants me to deliver in the way he wants. (I will probably end up looking back at this and realising I have spoken too soon).

February so far has been a crazy weird month.

Early in the month my relationship, which I thought honestly would last, didn't. It came to an abrupt end, going from intensive to nothing in less than 2 days.
I could probably write a book on it but I won't and instead on here I will keep it short.

To put it simply, I was devastated. The one person whom I had allow to see the real me, and to get to know me, and the person whom I gave all my waking energy to, had gone.

The relationship began with her being a very new christian (she started coming to church again because I was there) And I said I wanted to wait till she was right with God and with herself. (Become more independent and have the faith for herself).
I pleaded with God to make it right so we could be together, I had already handed over my heart. So there we were, together.

My energy taken up with I guess at times 'forcing my view' (biblical and out of love) but probably not always in the best way. I tried to 'personally' refine her myself, which is never going to work and will always backfire. We would pray and read, but blew hot and cold. I guess my relationship with God was now 'breached'?..

I had also said at the beginning of the relationship that a Christian Ministry I was starting was to not be hampered during our time together, as I knew through prayer that God wanted me to do that. And as I got more emotionally and mentally involved, my desire for that petered out. I turned down mission trips because I guess of a fear of 'if i'm away what will she be doing.' How stupid of me!.. It goes to show how unready I am for a relationship!!

But anyway I always brought the relationship before the Lord and asked for clear signs, to carry on and to also stop. I had signs that it was right, until 4 weeks before we were to split. Church had been about 'giving up everything for God'. I said, yeah for sure God you can have my macbook, blackberry etc. But I was blocking out the girlfriend in my head, I would not let go! Ironically the blackberry did break, and the macbook crashed but still I did not want to let go of my girlfriend. Similar talks came over the next 3 weeks, some about going on mission etc. And I would always be fired up after listening.

To cut all the other bits, It got weird on a thursday and ended on the friday. I had been stubborn, I was not giving her up, but amazingly ;), she had also been challenged about the relationship and couldn't shift it from her mind and knew what had to happen despite battling against it.

I cannot explain the feeling from going from all to nothing, but I guess lots of you know the emotion and feeling. Well yeah it's a killer. However in the midst of the pain there was joy. During our conversation she believed she was holding me back spiritually and that she had personally come to a place in her life where she felt independent and that she wanted to go alone with God. The 2 things that I said at the beginning of the relationship I wanted, had come. It made giving her up that bit easier. When I say easier! I mean I was delighted in the mature God 'seeked' decision.

The first thoughts I had before all the doubt and satans niggling. Was Why?
Why God have you taken away the one thing I have given almost everything for? And I remember just laying back and thinking to when we first met and where she was spiritually and up until 1 hour previous where she had so maturely spoken for the best of us both. It was a real kick in the teeth and proudness check, and God was saying if you don't do what I say, I will do it another way.

Now here a couple of weeks on and yeah it's hard, I was always worried about her and wanted to care for her and talk to her and now I can't, I have to let go. But through this, I am filling the gap with more of Him. infact I'm trying to flood myself with him and what he wants for me..

The Christian ministry has again delighted me after a bleak november,december,january and already doors are opening again leading into wide wide corridors and it is so exciting to see what God has planned.

So really in relation to the title of the post, was I a mercenary? was I there to 'bridge' (not really but you know what I mean) her to Jesus and back in to his arms? Was I just there to nudge her back on path. I guess in a few years I can look back and say.

Just have to say though. Listen to him. When he says something do it! And if you don't he will do it anyway haha..
Even if its the hardest thing ever (so you think) I was stubborn and I am far from 'over it'. Seeing her tonight at church will probably give a fresh jab in ribs but so be it. We want the best for each other and who knows what God has planned for the future, and how our paths might cross when the time is right (if the time is right).

Just wanted to leave these two songs that I have listened to almost on repeat :)

Have a boss day.

Childhood...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:41:00 +0000

I don’t intend this to be very deep. I’ll try explaining this as well as possible. What I am about to write is something I have learnt recently, and has the potential (like many other things) to be life changing.
Being at Capernwray, I have learnt more than I realise. One thing, however, stands above anything else I have learnt. Myself. I have been learning about myself.
There are many psychological issues over the last few years that I have tried to get a grip of and I have found that all of them can now be explained. When I look back over the first 20 years of my life, essentially my growing up, I can see that this has shaped me. It seems a very simple thing to understand, and you may be surprised to read it’s taken me this long, but there is more to it than it seems.
I have worked with children of all different ages over the last 3 years or so, and I have had the privilege to watch some of them maturing and growing up. It is plain to see that the environment around them affects the way they change and grow. Looking back, I see can it can be applied to my life. I have also spent a lot of time with many people and heard all sorts of stories from different backgrounds. Each and every person has been shaped into the person they are because of their background and growing up.
It’s great to hear those stories of a comfortable growing up. It’s good to meet people who have not been through pain in life and don’t bear the scars because pain is always incredibly hard and lasting. To me, it’s these stories of pain that speak most about God. I am certain that God is in the heart of the broken. Human beings bring a lot of baggage with them, God understands this. I bring a lot of baggage with me wherever I go. I bring a lot of baggage to God, even today. We are supposed to be new creations, yet pretty much all of us still have scars and burdens to bear. I have been shaped by my past and I am seeing this at Capernwray more than I have ever seen it before. Not to say that I have had a terrible childhood, no way. In fact I would mostly consider my childhood to be painless, just a little confusing. I have been blessed beyond anything I could have asked for. But it was always school that threw me, nothing from home. Home was and will always be heaven on earth for me. No where else am I loved like I am at home. Beautiful food every meal, listening ears, open arms and security, who could want more?
The biggest influence on my life has been my parents. I was shaped mostly by the way they were with me in the first few years of my life. Because their seemingly endless and selfless love, I feel I am able to identify with loving people. However, some people may not have had what I had. My heart cries for them. Many people find it extremely hard to identify with showing and receiving love.
The way we are parented also affects our view on God. For example, a child abused by their biological father would find it very hard to refer to God as their heavenly father. For me, because of my wonderful Dad, I identify with God as a father more than anything else. Because of my many memories of going to my mum when I cry and always being received with open arms, I most often see God as a comforter.
I know things weren’t easy for my mum when she grew up. Praise God that He cares and comforts her. Praise God that she beautifully different to my dad and able to express her love for others in different ways to him. The things she experienced growing up have affected her. Her parents have affected her. She has been programmed differently to my dad because of her upbringing. In turn, my mum’s parents and the people around her were the way they were because of how they were brought up. Good and bad things happened because of their view of reality.
I was talking with a good friend here at Capernwray last night. We spoke about how her dad had left her mum for another woman. At first I was angry. How could someone do that? I asked. But then after looking further back, I found that her dad’s dad was an alcoholic and neglected the whole family. This must have a part to play in why he struggled with marriage. My anger turned to compassion. He must be hurting. He must be scarred greatly. Maybe this is how Jesus looks at people, and I have missed it for so long. How can we ever look at some with negative thinking? They are who they are because of everyone else. It’s not their fault.
I am the way I am because of my childhood programming. You are who you are because of your childhood programming. All of the mess we spend our lives putting right must have started somewhere. I believe the answer to be… Adam. The fall has brought about many messed up views on reality.
Think again about how you have been hurt in the past. Do you feel angry? Resentful? Revengeful?
Think about how this certain person grew up. Think about how they were programmed. It’s possible that they may have experienced a lot of mess. It possible they have been hurt severely and scarred. Turn your feelings into compassion for them.
This might be very hard for some people. You have been hurt and will bear the scars forever. Please don’t think about trying to be as spiritual as you can about it, just be frank. We all bring baggage to God, that is normal, whether you realise it or not. Go to Father and find His heart.
If we were all to run a race to Bury St Edmunds, from the same starting line and stop the race at the same time. We would be able to recognise the best runner easily; the closest to Bury. However, in life we don’t all start for the same place. Some of us start in France, China and Australia. So the test is not how close you are to Bury but rather how far you have come. Some of you, have come a very long way and now is not the time to give up.
I believe God has put this on my heart. He has many things to teach us all. Most of you might see a James that seems really spirit filled, getting involved with everything, having it all together and being a nice guy. But really he feels a million miles away from God too at times. We are all human. Let’s go to Father and find His heart.
After thinking about this lot yesterday and last night, I got up and wrote down this quote:
“Throughout our childhood we are programmed by the messed up world we live in. We spend the rest of our lives trying to put it right”
And literally 2 hours later in a lecture without any foreknowledge, the principle delivers this…
“The most formative years in a child’s life are the first five years, and we spend the next fifty getting over them”
God is trying to teach me something. This is far more than a coincidence. It is not me, it’s Him. Take encouragement from this.
Let’s fight for God’s heart together. Let’s not be divided by stupid little things. Let’s understand that we all have baggage to bring to Father. Go to Father.

JM

Fasting

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:44:00 +0000

Reading a hunger for God by John Piper, so challenging for me personally but heres a paragraph from it that made me think.

'And of all the hundreds of things Jesus might have done to fight off this tremondous threat to salvation, he is led, in the spirit to fast.

If Satan had succeeded in deterring Jesus from the path of humble, sacrificial obedience, there would be no salvation. We would still be in our sins and without hope. Therefore, we owe our salvation in some measure (not to over-state it), to the fasting of Jesus. This is a remarkable tribute to fasting. Don't pass over this quickly. Think on it. Jesus began his ministry with fasting. And he triumphed over his enemy through fasting. And our salvation was accomplished through perseverance of fasting.'

JB

In reply

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:08:00 +0000

Sorry haven't been on here in a while, I've been engulfed with numerous nominal things..

In response to the Persecuted Church:
And yes I agree, it's so hard for us comfortable folk to even grasp at an understanding of persecution/suffering..I believe that Satan uses the media to show what is happening abroad (wars, famine, torture, executions, prison) and gives us the opportunity to just give money and then we feel comfortable and good..

Now of course it is great giving money to these reputable organisations, because they do a lot more than we could, but it's the fact that when we feel good after giving the money, we are still no closer to experiencing what they go through..
The web has helped dramatically us to gain more of an insight, and even when people come to do talks at church and bible studies, we get stirred but do we do anything about it.. Are we too scared to get out of our comfort zone? and are instead happy to just brass the organisations palms with silver for them to do work, fair enough..

But if we want to truly understand! the verses quoted in both josh and james' posts, then we have to go out there. Speak to them, befriend them, and learn from them. What can we bring for them? Nothing I would imagine, they in a sense have it all..

Over the past few weeks I have been thinking a lot about things and how this year when I get a chance I would love to go out with my camera and just find these people and just hear their stories first hand, I think then and only then would I even begin to attempt at understanding the verses..

.....

With regards to Josh's post on parties
As I read through the post, I was initially thinking, 'Well I guess you can go and be the light in the darkness, you don't have to drink, have sex, swear, etc..' and to some degree if you are strong enough then who am I to say that you can't go, that would be a great witness to those there. But from another point of view, imagine that you come out of the party, it's a party that is renowned for sexual impurity, drugs, drink, etc... And you leave to come home having not drunk, slept with anyone, taken drugs, but someone is driving past in the car perhaps someone who is searching for God and you are the bible to them! They try and read you everyday and see that you're different but they see you coming out of this party which they know is a den of impurity, even though you have been fine, they will be like 'oh right, bit odd that they choose to go to that sort of thing'...

So there is two aspects of the same thing if you see where I'm coming from.. Also for example I would say it is a much greater witness to say no from the outset. Now I find it hard with lots of things but it is much easier to say no from the beginning and people are like 'why?' and I can say 'well, I don't believe in halloween' or 'Not the kind of atmosphere I think I should be in'..

Now it is inevitable that there will be parties like this that you are invited to, and it is up to you to discern what to do...

Josh

Parties

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 11:15:00 +0000

We talked about this the other night, wether we should go to parties etc.. found this commentary on it, i agree with it but open to debate!

Question: "Should Christians go to parties? What does the Bible say about partying?"Answer:

The short answer to this question is ‘it depends on the party.’ Parties are popular because they are fun opportunities to get together with friends, meet new people, and to relax and enjoy one another’s company. As human beings, we are designed to be social creatures. We live in groups, work in groups, and socialize in groups. So when we desire to party, we are responding to the need for human interaction, fun, and relaxation. This is normal and natural.For Christians, the desire for human interaction has the added dimension of wanting and needing fellowship. The Greek word translated ‘fellowship’ in the New Testament is koinonia, which means “partnership, participation, social interaction, and communication.” The important concept for Christian fellowship is “partnership.” The Bible tells us we have been called into fellowship (partnership) with Christ (1 Corinthians 1:9), with the Father (1 John 1:3), and with the Holy Spirit (Philippians 2:1). John tells us that, as believers, we have fellowship with one another by virtue of the blood Jesus shed for us on the cross (1 John 1:7). Paul adds the idea that fellowship with Christ is to be partakers of His suffering (Philippians 3:10). We are also warned that we are not to have fellowship with evil (1 Corinthians 10:20). Just as light and darkness are incompatible, so there should be no fellowship between Christians and sin. The problem with the question “should Christians go to parties?” is that the “parties” being asked about are almost always not a “fellowship party” as mentioned above. There is no reason to even ask the question regarding parties that are focused on Christian fellowship. No, this question is almost always in regards to parties that involve alcohol, drugs, and/or sex. Certainly there are non-Christians who can party innocently, but a party that involves things that are immoral and/or illegal must be avoided. As believers, we are to guard ourselves against temptation, remembering that “bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). Further, attending parties where sinful activities occur—even if we don’t participate in them—weakens our witness and brings reproach on the name of Christ (Romans 2:24)."Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness" (2 Timothy 2:19). There are those who might see going to parties as an opportunity to share Christ with unbelievers, and while we are to be ready with an answer for the hope within us at all times, that presupposes unbelievers at a party are interested in the Gospel. Rarely does such an opportunity arise at a party where drinking, drug use, and sexual activity are occurring. Therefore, while Christians should take every opportunity to fellowship with other believers, we must be discerning about opening ourselves up to temptation or anything that would compromise our life in Christ and our witness to a watching world.

Jb

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 12:47:00 +0000

Great post James'y. I feel the same as you, christians all over the world are suffering, being tortured to the point of death even for the name of Jesus, although we hear about this and sometimes have people visit church to highlight this, i do think a trip to one of these places would give us a greater understanding of just how much they go through and how they stand up. The news is full of stories of death, suffering etc all over the world, the subject in todays world has just become normal, you turn on the news and how often do you hear a positive story? Sometimes yes, but rarely (from my experience anyway). I for one feel a trip would open my eyes like never before, it's one thing to hear about what goes on, watch a few video's etc.. but to speak to people first hand about what they go through and how they trust in God in even the most challenging situations that most of us couldn't even imagine.. imagine it.

Whilst on the subject of suffering but on a far less scale, i've had a bad tooth-ache this week, had to go the dentist on monday expecting to have an injection which i hate, followed by a filling which i also dislike the thought of somebody drilling into my mouth. Point i'm making is that as i was getting ready to go, feeling nervous, worried etc (silly i know) it crossed my mind how Jesus must of felt when he entered Jerusalum for the final time. I think it was on psalm sunday but may be wrong. He knew as he rode in on that donkey that he was about to suffer in a matter of days HELL on EARTH for us. He knew he would be mocked, spat at, beaten, his back would be cut open like a farmer ploughs a field and to top it all off... nailed to a cross until he suffocated to death. He did no wrong, he knew what was about to happen to him yet he never opened his mouth. It made me realise that a trip to the dentist, or worrying about tommorow etc, however bad it can seem.. NOTHING can compare what he went through for us, the fact he knew what he was in for makes it even more incredible. We have it so easy, so Praise God for that, but a trip that would really open our eyes i feel would do us a lot of good and give us a real understanding about life's real "issue's".

Persecuted Church...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:07:00 +0000

I have all sorts to write about, so here goes...
I have made little progress on my issues with western greed. I haven't gone about it in the right way, the Bible condemns neither rich or poor and I really hope I have not done this. I apologise if I have upset anyone in the wrong way, I don't mean to criticise giving, I only want to criticise greed and the love of money. I hate greed! I could argue it for an age and I will come back to it at a later date with more thoughts. I have had some great feedback from this and thank you for your views, apologies for not responding sooner.
Regarding the 'thing'. Not much progress here either, or rather I don't have an answer. (If you don't understand any of this so far, please read earlier posts). However, I found a deeper understanding to Tozer's view on this subject and it's helped my perspective a little bit. Again, I will take up this subject further at a later date.

I was about to write 'I've just arrived at Capernwray Bible School' and then realise that I have been here for a week already! It's amazing how fast it's gone and how settled I feel. I have made friends for life here, only after a week we all feel as though we've known one another for a lifetime. The rumours are true... I do live in a castle. It's enormous and the rest of the estate is pretty big too. I've had a few walks around the area and enjoyed a different landscape, albeit with a few encounters with sheep and cows. The food, in my opinion, is good, contrary to what many Americans think having been starved of pizza, chips and burgers for a week. I would love to hear the complaints flow when I show them some pictures of genuinely starved people. Praise the Lord we have food here, Praise the Lord we go to bed at night with food in our stomachs. And may God break us to serve those people with less than us.

In the new testament we see verses such as:
"Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." 2 Timothy 3:12
"Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified." 1 Peter 4:12-14
"I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead." Philippians 3:8-11
"So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name." Acts 5:41
... and many many more.
I have started to get a little concerned that I don't see and experience any suffering. During my idealic and comfortable life I have seen barely any suffering first hand. I don't understand what suffering actually is. If I don't understand what suffering is, how can I understand these verses? How can I understand what it is to partake in Christ's suffering? When I read many of the verses in the Bible regarding suffering, how am I supposed to see Christ in it and understand Him better?
Many of the verses I have read have been within to the persecuted church. People at the time were turning to Christ and being beaten, mocked, raped, exiled and executed for this.
It must have taken something special for them to stand up for this, something really special, something Jesus-like.
I have a heart growing for injustice, for example greed and starvation, prisons and homelessness and now the persecuted church. Please don't think I'm boasting, I'm trying not to, the glory must go to God because it's the Holy Spirit who teaches us and highlights/reveals what He wants to us. God puts desire on our willing heart.

Persecution is at the worst it has ever been. More and more people are affected by it. The apostle Paul spent a lot of time writing to the persecuted church. I am not going to literally put myself into the persecuted church or try and find persecution for myself, I have to exercise wisdom as well as faith. But what I really really want is to understand this suffering that Paul so passionately talks about over and over again. I want to see what it is that makes these people stand in the face of such horror and tribulation. I realise that it's God's strength and a love for Jesus that gets them through but I want to see more. I want to meet people who endure this and come through closer to God. I'm getting fed up with being blind to these things, not caring and not acting. What makes them stand? What is it? When faced with a prison sentence or execution OR simply signing a piece of paper to renounce Christ.. many people chose not to turn on Jesus. How?
I want to understand it better. When I open up the new testament and read Paul's letter I want really get to grips with what he's saying and be enlightened to his words. How much more rich will it be having experienced a persecuted life first hand?

In the past I've tried to explain my experiences to friends, family and the church. But I have not been happy with their understanding of it. I have explained it over and over again and often people don't completely understand it, though no fault of thier own. Of course they wont understand it having never been there. I could write a 1,000 page book about my first week of Capernwray and people who have never been would still not completely understand it. In the same way, I see read about the persecuted church and see photos but I will never completely understand it until I go there and meet the people.
Every time I have left local service for service overseas I have gone with the attitude of 'I want to impact as many lives as possible' but come back thinking 'I have not impacted these anywhere near as much as they have impacted me'. I don't believe there is much I can offer the church other than limited encouragement. I want them to teach me what it's all about. Surely these people understand God much more than someone as comfortable as me does. I want to be torn apart and sent home with a new thinking and understanding on what it means to partake in Christ's suffering.
I want to sit down with someone who has suffered for Christ and bares the scars. I want them to teach me. I want them to send me home broken. I want them to send me home a little more like Jesus.

As Always... there is one answer here... GO.

A Couple of Great Videos!!

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:16:00 +0000

My Jesus My Saviour

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:03:00 +0000

Love this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I71XhjqoHvs

SHOUT TO THE LORD ALL THE EARTH LET US SING,
POWER AND MAJESTY,
PRAISE TO THE KING!

Jb

A Confused Struggler...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 16:31:00 +0000

The more I learn about God and His character the more confused I get and the more I struggle. I realise over and over again that I simply do not have it all together. Maybe this is a good thing, at least God is my number one. I don't understand injustice and my heart seems hardened to it, I can't answer why Christians live in luxury when 30,000 starve everyday and I just don't not have a clue where God is taking me in the future. It seems as though I'm all mixed up but the amazing thing is that it doesn't matter. God is good and tells me that today has enough worries and everything is in control, I have nothing to be concerned about. Now that is special.

I've thought about this whole wealth issue a lot. I've talked with more people about it and have tried to get to the bottom of it. To be honest I have only more questions than answers, so I'm not really in a better place to stand. I have realised that the world has battered Christians with this idea that luxury can be justified, this is terrifying. I do understand that the Lord I love gives people more responsibility with more wealth and possessions, but is only a responsibilty to give more. God does not give us more for our standard of living to increase but our standard of giving to increase. Again, I do not have it together and I don't claim to even understand all this but how on earth can a God of Justice bless us with so much 'stuff' and not expect us to share. People are dying before they no who died for sin. Now tell me where your wealth should be invested, yourself and your living? Or for the kingdom's sake?

I believe our walk on this earth is about balance in many areas. Take for example your works for God. The works that He has chosen to use us for and the responsilities He has given us. You have to balance these. Too little and you become lazy and too much that you lose your fruitfulness. In the same way we need balance with our wealth. Jesus taught us to pray "give us our daily bread", this is a huge statement for us given the responsibility of wealth. Jesus is asking the father for only daily bread, just what we need for the day on a daily basis. Not extra and not less, only what we need, and yet we seem to forget this, we are given our daily bread and the daily bread for others. Instead of distributing out the daily bread we have indirectly kept it for ourselves in the west. I wonder why any of us even pray the Lord's prayer, we ask for daily bread but take more than that. What's point in praying that if that phrase is empty and void of heart. There is no point in praying if you don't take only your daily bread. The balance can be applied in this way: either side of daily bread is not good. We need a balance of wealth; too much is seriously unhealthy (materialism and love of possessions) and too little (poverty) is seriously unhealthy too. We need a balance so that the needs of everyone over the planet are met. There is enough, it's plain. God gives us extra for us to bless others. I believe that there can a new way of living and a new world. I could be accused of thinking like a communist (we what happened to that) for suggesting this equality, but I think there is far more to it. We are all equal before God, how about we show that through our lives. Like I've said before, in the slums of brasil I met people with only enough food for about 2 days, enough water for their family and friends, to us it would seem like they had nothing but infact they had EVERYTHING because they have Jesus. They had only their daily bread and were the happiest people I have ever met. Wealth in itself seems like it's a poverty too. Either side of daily bread there is poverty, however obvious it is.
While we were in Borneo Phil and Ray were reminiscing about their camping trips to Scotland and Wales and what an amazing time they had. Ray said "there is something special about carrying all you need on your back, you feel so great about it". It's the same feeling I had in Brasil after I was robbed and I can describe it as liberating to have only your daily bread.
The answer is not to sell everything and put yourself into poverty. As I've already said that's not the answer, it's not healthy. The answer is to take only what you NEED and allow God to give you your daily bread.
When the Israelites were taken out of slavery by God through Moses they spent 40 years in the wilderness and they fed manna and quail by God. God provided for them what they needed for the day. God recommended how much they should take for that day, only for the day. Some Israelites took more than their 'daily bread' (manna and quail) and by the next day it had gone mouldy and covered with maggots. Take only your daily bread! Apply that to our lives.
Jesus - "give us this day our daily bread". Pray it like you mean it. Be like Jesus. Love, Mercy, Justice.

Some people might not like what I say or have written, it's what I expect. I wouldn't be surprised if someone read this a came up with all sorts of excuses. Under the new covenant we are to be Christ-like, so be like Jesus. If this issues stirs you, don't play it down and forget about it. Don't get to the end of your life and wish things had been different. Don't drift and wait for a lightning bolt, we have got be like Jesus. Those with wealth, be challenged. Those with little, be challenge. Let God shape you and refine you. Let God twist you, bend you, break you. Let God be first in your life, let others come second and you come last. Be last and serve. Store treasure in heaven and not in this world. Cling not onto image and popularity for these are empty to God. Don't let indifference enter your thinking, but simply be united with God and fight for His heart.
Be challenged. You don't have to have all the answers. You can be a mess like me too. But whatever you do put God first and take only your daily bread.

Money

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:35:00 +0000

I agree money and the desire for it isn't a good thing, however God gives as he pleases and it just so happens that some christians will have more money than others etc. God has blessed everyone with different talents etc, a footballer for example has recieved that blessing from God. He's therefore probably on serious money but that doesn't mean it's a bad thing, it may not be for everyone and myself included wouldn't really desire a footballers wage but as long as like other things, the money God has given you is used to his glory, to support others, to give back etc and not used for one's own selfish desire and earthly purpose then fair enough. Firstly, that's a lot lot easier said than done i should imagine with that sort of money, secondly we shouldn't judge others (not by any means saying anyone is) because we ourselves could well struggle with that much money. Finally, i once heard a clever point of being able to take your hands off material possesions, eg not holding on to them too tightly so your still able to focus 100% on God. I agree with what james said about money not being the problem, it's the desire for it.. that's when it gets dangerous but if God has given you money, we should use it to his glory and not our own desires.

A response to ma mandem :)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 10:16:00 +0000

Josh, good thinking. You’re thinking is going in the right direction. Here comes the response to your thoughts and mine combined. I know I haven’t seen you in a while bro and Boltie too so please hit me back if you’re not happy with anything.
I’m thankful that you found those verses, the first two I mean. I was thinking about the whole eye of the needle thing today! Crazy!
I was thinking about how when I first read that verse and took it literally, like a real size camel fitting through a needle which just isn’t possible. Chuckle chuckle. But then someone graciously explained to me that the eye of a needle in Bible times is the gap in the wall that people used trade through and sometimes take a camel through, however it was a VERY hard task. So after with more discussion it turns out that everyone seems to know this fact, well everyone in the western church. We don’t really know much about the culture is Israel 2000 years ago to be honest but ironically everyone seems to know this fact regarding wealth. It’s almost as if people are trying to justify themselves being rich. Why would you even worry about that fact if you didn’t have an inkling that we are rich? It seems more and more that it is becoming the western church’s get out clause with a mind-set of, “well it is possible somehow, so I guess I’m in that group”. Irony, yes, that this one of the few bits of knowledge every rich person seems to have.

I love what you say about being rich in spirit, it’s so true! Jesus says “you must lose your life to find it”, many people have little hope and way out of poverty but they truly do have wealth in spirit. In Brazil I’ve seen beggers share all that they have and no words will ever describe the joy on their faces as they share what they have. The world says something and the spirit is opposite. World says physical wealth and greed and the spirit says GIVE GIVE GIVE! We know that there is worldly and spiritual conflict all over because Paul describes it in Galatians, I can’t remember the exact verse at the moment.
It’s true that the love of money is the problem. But I will never believe it possible for a Christian or a human being not to hold on to money or possession (ie love of money). If a Christian even slightly holds on their wealth then that’s evidence they love it and that’s very very bad. It’s not possible for a human, in our fallen state to be rich and not love what they have. Impossible, we are all fallen.

Quote from your blog Josh “In the bible we see Abraham, Issac, Jacob, King David, Solomon, and Boaz to name a few. All were blessed with wealth.

"Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God." Ecclesiastes 5:19

Great verses but they are all from the old testament. I realise that the whole old testament is not invalid at all but Jesus came and turned our world and thinking upside down. Throughout the whole old testament we see God’s people forgetting their blessing and crushing the poor into the dust. “You have crushed the dust into the dust” and I mentioned other verses in a blog about Amos. As humans, they were blessed and forgot the blessing and also forgot the character of the God that created them, one of LOVE. They turned their backs on God and God abandoned them. Much of Amos describes the horrors of greed and injustice and what happens to these people. Jesus changed all this and called God’s people to a life of sacrifice, and to follow His ways. We must be like Christ, it’s plain. True, money isn’t the problem it’s greed. Greed is the root of the problems, our greed in the west and the greed of third world rulers.
Seeing as we have an obvious wealth in the west and an obvious greed, something is wrong. Some might say “i’m not greedy, I give loads. You have no idea how much I give”. My response: How much do you have left? Western greed is all consuming; it probably won’t stop until God steps in. Here’s some questions, and the ROOT of my thinking on the subject...
Christians are to be like Jesus, right? Yes.
Would Jesus sleep well at night knowing 1 billion people go to bed hungry? No
Would Jesus store up treasures on the earth when others starve to death? No
Would Jesus turn His back on 30,000 children starving to death everyday? No
Would Jesus go on holiday when the money would certainly save lives? NO
Would Jesus go to war? No
Would Jesus love EVERYONE, live a perfect life of sacrifice for others, die for the world, love, give and give and give and give and give and give? YES.
We are called to be Christ-like. Jesus would not be rich... ever. There are far too many injustices in this world for a Christian to even think about holding onto wealth. You could even look at my mess of a life, I buy too much I know. However, I am praying and praying with all my heart that I can overcome this problem and be happy with who I am and not chase after image. It must stop, I know.

Glory to God, you know how we do.

Good Morning indeed

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:39:00 +0000

Just got up, had breakfast and saw 2 ladies coming to my front door. Assumed they would be trying to sell junk or whatever so didn't really fancy going to the door but i did. First thing they said to me was something along the lines of "we've come to tell you about the bible and what it says about what will take place" at that point my heart went out to them and just couldn't believe one lady who must of been about 75 (not even joking) who could barely walk with a walking stick is currently walking around moreton hall estate knocking on people's door's to spread the good news of Jesus Christ! Amazing. I should of invited them in for a drink but house is full of suitcase's so i didn't... now i feel ashamed i didn't, poor from me. Praise God for them. Anyway, looking forward to tonight and still buzzing from sunday. On the way back to mine we had tim hughes happy day playing at full volume in simon's car after an awesome time at callum's. It was so good simon had to take a detour to make sure the song could finish before we got back.. twice. Not bad for a first day back home after a year of being away a lot :) Anyway i need to get on with the task of unpacking which i keep putting off, then i'm off to hit a few tennis balls this afternoon, even though i'm on a rest week. Nightmare!!

Is it a sin for a Christian to be rich?

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 10:53:00 +0000

I was reading through James' latest blog on his personal page here and noticed that it was based on what I feel (from reading his blogs and chatting to him) is his main challenge. And that is earthly riches..

"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Mark 10:25

It so clearly states in the bible that:

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." 1 Timothy 6:10

However I begin this blog by giving a 'quick' answer to the title question. Immediately when I thought of the question, I said No! That would mean that a poor Christian would infact be more holy; which would, seem plausible. But then if we quickly delve, to a scenario of a Christian that is a poor steward of his money, wastes it/gambles/loses it and becomes poor, then the 'quick' answer to this question would have them as a holier Christian.. If you see where my mind has taken me yeah..

God looks at the relationship we have to the money.

Now I chose the word rich for the question in a loose monetary sense. I see the word rich as a state of mind it's an attitude, wealth on the other hand is how much you have (whether it's money in the bank, houses, cars, investments)..
It fits so clearly with what James has seen on his travels abroad and in this country. The people he meets, have no possessions, no money, they are what we would say 'don't have a penny to their name' but they are far from poor. In a monetary sense, yes. But on a spiritual level, my word they are rich and abundantly so..

Now I can't really seem to get over how in my head, i'm working out about Rich and Wealth and whatever, so I apologise if this is not making sense or contradicting definitions and things. So i'm going to quickly brainstorm

Rich - Fat, Abundance, Affluent, Deep, Strong
Wealth - The state when you are rich, plentiful, accumulated assets, Affluent.
**Argh where is my head taking me :D**

In the bible we see Abraham, Issac, Jacob, King David, Solomon, and Boaz to name a few. All were blessed with wealth.

"Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God." Ecclesiastes 5:19

The rich will have to guard against making money their God, and the Bible warns the rich to be ready to distribute to those who have need. This is what I feel is the major problem we have in the world today, and as James so clearly recites when he comes back from mission trips. We see it every day on the news of our greed.

Now not everyone is called to sell and give up all they have to serve God and to give to those with little, but make sure your ears and heart aren't blocked with money and possessions, so that when God comes asking you to follow him you don't miss Him..

Josh

Powerful Prayer Time

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 22:31:00 +0000

Was great to have Bolty back in the fellowship tonight, and after a challenging and thought provoking service lead by Gav.. The boys (consisting tonight of: Simon, Me, Bolty, Calum and Hugh) decided to get down to some serious prayer time..

As a group we have so much to be thankful for, and to praise God for; and also so much to ask from God and to seek, and to ask for help in..

We have such a special bond as a group, and we all help each other, even when parts of the group are away..

We are looking at starting prayer times for our group after tuesday prayer meetings, and doing a bible study on wednesday nights..

After going a while without linking up as a POWERFUL unit for prayer.. it makes me just want to do it every day..
What a feeling. I love the boys. I love the Lord. He is so good. And His love endures forever :)

Josh

Importance of a child-like faith...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 06:54:00 +0000

It's Sunday afternoon, in Borneo and it's scorching hot! We have just returned from an amazing wedding this morning in the nearby village of Manggala, which was a huge success. A Dutch lady got married to an Indonesian man, which caused a bit of a stir as westerners don't normally marry people from Borneo. The church was full and it was a great experience.
At the moment I am looking ahead to Bible school, I start in about 3 weeks, and also looking back over 2009. It's safe to say it's been another blessed year for me, jam packed with lessons and experiences. I don't normally like to dwell on anything that has pasted at all, but I'll take some time to share another lesson.

It's been a year filled with children. I haven't even chosen to work with kids, it just kind of happened and by the end of the summer term I was working with 5 kids groups every week on top of my gardening work (I did get VERY tired at some points but it was worth it). From Foy, to Lawshall (Sparkz) to Rougham Raiders football team, it's been a real journey and the kids have taught me so much. Children have an amazing way about them, you don't have a to a brainbox to work that one out. There is something beautiful about their innocence, the way they believe anything you tell them and the way they will do anything you tell them. I've usually found the older they get the less they believe you and the more they reason.
There is a huge lesson for us there, especially me. In Matthew chapter 18, Jesus talks about having a faith like the little children and I can easily see what He meant by it. "Unless you change and become like these little children you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven" were His words to the people around Him. You see, if you ask a child to do something or tell them to believe something they do it, they believe you. However, if you ask an adult to believe something or to do something the response is usually different. Jesus calls for a faith that believes and acts out God's will. A faith that does anything simply because that is what God says, without reasoning, without unbelief, without questions. A faith like a child is essential when serving God.
I have been blessed enough to go to many different places and work with children, and I have seen how they are all over the world, the same. The same willingness to do and go, they really are a blessing to us ol' reasoners. As Christians we need to stop making excuses and ways out ("but my mortgage, my family, my job") of doing things and have the simple faith like a child and do it. We don't need to go deep into theological issues and be way too clever for our own good, what we need is go back to believing like a child. As we've got old, we've got spoilt. If you tell a child that God preforms miracles today through ordinary people, they believe it. However, if you were to tell that to many adult an air of scepticism creeps in.
Lord forgive our own reasoning and unbelief. God, you can do anything!

Lost In Wonder

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:49:00 +0000

Done and dusted

noreply@blogger.com (Josh.Bolt) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:14:00 +0000

I can't believe it, today was my final day's tennis at wrexham. It was quite a sad day especially at the end, because ive met a lot of good friends here, some of who i will miss greatly. I bought my coach some wine and chocolates to say thankyou for the year and all he has done for me and the academy gave me a nice mini printed flag thing and a drink's bottle which i didn't expect so that was nice. At lunch i went and bought a cake we could all share, only to find out they had already got me one.. so we had a lot ha! Feel's a bit weird, i'm really excited to be coming home but when you get settled into one way of life it does feel strange when it comes to the end. Point i'm making is that without God this year would of been so much harder. At the start i missed home a lot, struggled being around non-christians and just missed my old way of life back home that i'd taken for granted. But God led me to a great church here, provided for my every need, blessed my tennis and taught me so many valuable lessons in life. As i was driving home from practice today i was thinking about a martin layzell song called lost in wonder. I love the song and i think it mainly focus's on what God HAS done for us and what Jesus has done but i couldn't help thinking just how much God CONTINUE'S to do for us. He cares so so much about us, provides, wants the best for us, looks after us and answears our prayers. It's amazing, what's even more amazing is how we don't deserve any of it but he loves beyond more than i for one can understand!

noreply@blogger.com (Josh Stannard) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:06:00 +0000

God you are good and your steadfast love endures forever.. thankyou for sending your son and for saving me..

Feed on this...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 09:55:00 +0000

I read a fantastic book recently, I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before. Even if I have, I'll do it again just to make a point. It's called the 'Prodigal God' by Tim Keller, and as the title may suggest, it's about Jesus' parable about the prodigal son. However, the book takes a life changing perspective on the story. Before, when I had only glanced at it my focus had been on the younger son in the story (the one who takes the inheritance and squanders it. Then wants to come back to the Father again). This book takes a huge look at the older son. Now, listen carefully to this because it's important we understand this story and who it was aimed at... Religious people. Jesus was telling this story to religious people too (Pharisees) and that's why they got so upset when it was told. When the younger son returns the father runs towards him and embraces him and tells the servants to prepare a huge party for him and even to kill the fattened calf! Upon hearing this news the elder son is not happy and questions why the father is even doing this for the younger son, 'have I not worked for my share?' and 'Do I not deserve my share?'
It's like the elder son feels as though he has earnt his share and desreves every bit. There is a huge danger for those 'religious people', because there is no way that anyone can earn there share of the inheritance. It's like saying that you can work for your place in heaven and that you deserve to be there because you have worked for it. I can see a lot of myself in the elder brother, which is why I can say what I am saying. Sometimes Christians can feel like that if they work hard and 'please' God, they can stand a better chance to get to heaven. This is what stopped me in my tracks: God doesn't NEED me. God chooses to use me. God will get done whatever He needs to get done without me. He can do it, He is God after all. So, it is with humility that we can say God uses us for His purposes.
I'm in Borneo, and this lesson can be applied here too. I haven't consciously thought 'I really need to do this to earn more from God and then I will deserve my place in heaven', or do I remember thinking it before (previous trips) but it still needs to be addressed with me at least. Whether it crosses my thoughts or not, I am very much guilty of showing traits of the elder brother. God doesn't NEED me here, He has chosen to use me. There is nothing I can do to earn His favour or even earn a place in heaven. A Christian just is. There is NOTHING one can do to deserve, earn or warrant the father's favour. The important thing is that I do not actually become an elder brother. That is a lethal situation. I wouldn't want to be that way and feel I have ownership over something. Or feel as if a deserve to own something. Or feel I should get angry when something is changed and I feel as though I have worked for it. I mean, I wouldn't ever want to feel as though I owned and deserved something when it truly belonged to God, and He should have His way. I wouldn't even to do that that a church, structure or even music.
Praise the Lord, He has shown me this and now I can be aware. The most scarey thing about this story is that the elder brother doesn't join in on the feast at the end.