Gratitude

There are certain words in the Bible that have meanings beyond their diction like love, faith, loyalty, hope for example; their definition producing a richness which takes a lifetime to explore. For a long time, I saw words in the context of power because of their ability to persuade, convince or condemn and whilst it’s true words are used in this way, I now understand its only one part of their purpose. Words are equally valuable not only to persuade, but also to delve.

Good words can take us to places that otherwise remain off limits. And rather like the skier who needs to gain confidence before going off piste, as we grow in our understanding of language, our insight increases and we begin to see words not simply for their power, but also their depth. One good example of such a word is gratitude.

Gratitude matters both in language and life not for what it describes but what it unveils. Gratitude is an uncovering; a revealing indicator of one’s true feeling to a person or situation. ‘It’s time you showed a little gratitude.’ We hear someone say of a person taking another for granted.

It seems gratitude is less evident in a culture where people expect more and act as if society owes them. When you contrast this with a poorer climate, you often get a different response.  On the occasions I have been fortunate to travel to Developing Countries I have often encountered a profound sense of gratitude amongst people who have received help from a church or charity I have represented. There, in the midst of poverty, where food, water, health care and the like are not provided by the State, gratitude is often the overwhelming response from those helped in some way by the generosity of others.

Interestingly, I have found gratitude to be a helpful diagnostic to the pastoral ministry giving a useful indicator as to who will be helped most by support that is given. Time and again, where gratitude is the overriding response, the person will benefit from what is offered. Such an approach enables people to take advice well, use money wisely and act on situations with the perseverance and endurance often required for a positive outcome. Without it, you can be left feeling you are pouring water into a bucket full of holes. 

From a biblical perspective, gratitude is a right response to worship. Paul writes, ‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.’ A congregation full of gratitude will be a church full of praise, similarly a person touched by gratitude will be an individual not living to serve themselves but others.

Leaving your Mark

Sitting with a friend over coffee, I was intrigued by what he told me. Having spent the last few weeks at Charis speaking about sharing our faith, the idea of witnessing to others was fresh in my mind when he asked if I realised the Greek word for witness is ‘martus’ which literally means ‘to leave a mark’. It is from where we get the word martyr. What a powerful concept!

The martyr leaves his mark through the testimony of the cause for which he dies. But how does that work for you and me?  Too often we place our emphasis on sharing faith on the verbal - what we say, but is that the point? For those who have died for what they believe, their greatest impact is not the words but the actions and maybe that is where our lesson needs to be learned. Over the years I have spoken thousands of words in conversations and preaching and speaking, but the biggest influence of my life on others has come not from what I’ve said, but rather what I have done or how I have responded.  In the main, people are put off by words, but moved by actions. It’s not what we say that impacts people, it’s what we do.

Tony Campolo tells the story of what his mother used to say to him when he was young. Regarding this life she often said, ‘Tis one life and will soon be past, only what’s done for Jesus will last.’ It does us no harm to pause and reflect on the type of mark we are leaving and whether the ‘martus’ of our lives is having the influence we will be ultimately happy with. To bear witness for Christ and leave his mark on people’s lives surely means that something of his nature is left with people after we have moved away and that is the mark we are required to leave

i:me generation

Ladies and Gentleman, today’s question…

‘Have we become so obsessed with one of the major icons of our day that it has come to represent more than the product itself?’

The clue to the product is of course in the title. The innovative ipod range with its nano, shuffle, classic and touch models has spawned a whole industry for Apple which has since launched its beautifully designed iphone.

My interest however (outside of owning one these objects of desire) is with the ‘I’ at the front of the range. What does it mean or represent? I’ve had a few guesses at: information, intelligent, inspirational, innovative… I could go on. Maybe, without realising it these innovators in design and creativity have actually captured a predominant mood of our times where ‘I’ represents what it states - me.

I was thinking about this recently when considering one of Stephen Covey’s ‘Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’. Habit five is: Seek first to understand, then to be understood. I’m not sure how well such a habit fits our prevailing culture, but I am certain about its importance in terms of building consistent and meaningful relationships. I must turn from I to you, or, as Jesus explained it in terms of his life. ‘I have not come to be served, but to serve.’

Our celebrity culture appears to be dominated by the need to be understood, probably based on the notion that to be understood is to be accepted - to belong. And is that not something we all crave? However, if our belonging is rooted in a personal obsession with ‘me’ then it is in danger of imploding. For our self esteem and worth to be formed by fashion, popularity and the opinions of others is a rotten way to live. We would all do well to take a moment to reflect on how much the ‘me’ generation is affecting us and make sure that we have something more than simply ‘I’ at the front of our name. 

Tony Blair: I Do God!

 

Last week, Tony Blair launched his Faith Foundation with a lecture given at Westminster Cathedral titled, ‘Faith and Globalisation’. His appeal: to reassert the importance of faith in life and culture.  “Religious faith is a good thing in itself,” he said, “that so far from being a reactionary force, it has a major part to play in shaping the values which guide the modern world, and can be a force for progress.” And that from a former PM whose aid once famously said of his boss, “We don’t do God.”

Mr Blair’s lecture which can be read on his website (www.tonyblairoffice.org) is a fascinating and insightful thesis of modern life, global shifts and a changing world. Of course, having served as  PM to one of the world’s leading nations, he is better positioned than most to grasp the major issues facing the 21 Century and his critique not only highlights some of the dangers but also sheds light on the vital role that Faith can play in leading us forward. As he states, “For religion to be a positive force for good, it must be rescued not simply from extremism - faith as a means of exclusion; but also from irrelevance - an interesting part of our history but not of our future.”

Earlier in his speech he outlined something of the seismic shift shaping our futures. “In an era of globalisation, of political interdependence, where the world is ever more swiftly opening up and the cliché about a global community becomes an economic, political and often social reality; in this new world, how religious faith develops will have a profound impact. The forces shaping the world at this moment are so strong and all tend in one direction. They are opening the world up…Mass migration is changing communities, even countries. People communicate ideas and images instantly around the world, creating immediate political and ideological movements in a ferment of quickly devoured information.  Economically the world system is ever more dependent on confidence, robust when things seem good, extraordinarily brittle when confidence dips.  The world is interdependent today, economically, politically, even to a degree ideologically.”

According to Blair, an interdependent world calls for an interdependent response - we must learn to get on and get along for all our sakes and this is where Faith can play a major role. “If people of faith reach out to one another, learn to co-exist, believe in respecting ‘the other’ they can play an important part in reducing fear and tension, being proud of their own distinctive religious, and often cultural identity, but open and in amity towards those of a different religion. Alternatively, religious faith could be used to bolster, to promote, to intensify the very clash of civilisations we seek to avoid.”

Not everyone will sit easily with what he is proposing, but for the critics of Blair, a different issue arises: what are the alternatives? If we are not able to live side by side in a globalised world what are the other choices? It appears that Christ’s call to be Peacemakers might still prove to be the most relevant message for us to heed.

For me, the encouragement of Blair’s message was not simply what he proposed but also what he believes is driving his new Foundation. “Faith is not something separate from our reason, still less from society around us, but integral to it, giving the use of reason a purpose and society a soul, and human beings a sense of the divine. This is the life purpose that cannot be found in constitutions, speeches, stirring art or rhetoric.  It is a purpose uniquely centred around kneeling before God. For those of us of faith, this is what it means. And whilst we should not foist our belief on others, we should not be ashamed either to assert it or be proud of it. For us, faith is not an historical relic but a guide for humanity on its path to the future.  A faithless world is not one in which we want ourselves and our children to live. If people of different faiths can co-exist happily, in mutual respect and solidarity, so can our world. And if faith takes its proper place in our lives, then we can live with a purpose beyond ourselves alone, supporting humanity on its journey to fulfilment.” Did I hear someone say, Amen.

Masterclass…

Masterclass

Terminal 5 at London Heathrow is ready for business.  That’s ready on time and ready on budget, thanks to a unique and partnering agreement between BAA and constructor Laing O’Rourke.

Described as ‘the template for the future of construction’, the ground-breaking ‘T5 agreement’ has been a masterclass in efficient procurement.  It replaced strife with harmony, confrontation with co-operation.  Project teams worked together on and off site, knowledge was pooled, data were shared and new construction techniques were pioneered.

The result is stunning: a fabulous new facility that will transform the experience of millions of business and leisure travellers.  And one which could be the forerunner of a new and better way of delivering major infrastructure projects all over the world.

The day after BAA and Laing O’Rourke ran this advert in the Times, Terminal 5 opened . The rest, as they say, is history; embarrassing history, maybe, but history nonetheless.

As my dad used to say ‘Never count your chickens until they’re hatched.’  Or in the case of modern aviation ‘Don’t brag until you’ve sent your passengers home with their bags’. Now that is a lesson in Masterclass.

The Resurrection - A Post Holiday Reflection

‘I believe in Christianity, like I believe that the sun has risen, not simply because I see it but because by it, I see everything else.’ wrote C.S. Lewis. His analogy is brilliant since it causes you to think in two ways. Firstly, your mind is taken to viewing the sun in all its glory, but then, you look around and understand that without it everything is in darkness, unable to be seen for what it is.

Christianity is important not for what it provides but what it illuminates. And this is where we often fall short in our understanding. We think that faith is all about getting. You only have to spend time reading certain books or listening to a particular brand of preacher to get the impression that all you have to do is ask, as if God were some type of slot machine. Put in enough money, time and prayer and eventually it will come good for you.

Well, each to their own but for me Lewis’ analogy teaches something deeper. The light does not remove what the darkness hides; it simply shows it for what it is. It brings a different perspective. And it’s that perspective which positions you to think and live differently.

During his earthly ministry Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’ Yet you can’t help but feel those who had followed him, watched him die and were then assembled, hidden together in a house for fear of their own lives were not quite with the statement.

Yes, we all need a crucified Christ, but we desperately need a resurrected one too. I recently stood over my Grandma’s grave and read out the internment. Afterwards, I spoke with a family member and we reminded each other that the sting associated with death has been removed. This is not the end - the resurrection is testament to that truth and the reason why Easter matters.

An Eternal Gaze

Yesterday, we completed our five sessions for Lent on the theme of dedication. The talk was based on Hebrews 12:1-3 where the writer urges us to fix our eyes on Jesus, who is both the author and finisher of our Faith. Everything starts and concludes with him, he suggests: life has both definition and shape through Christ. Without him it is void and empty lacking the purpose that is born from intention. Without such definition we are left to aimlessly wander the earth in search of something that might give life context and colour. Not that we always do a bad job in our search since the creation itself both suggests and sustains something of Creator allowing us to be tantalised by the Divine even if we fail to fully connect with Him.

‘He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.’ wrote the apostle Paul in a mind blazing glimpse of genius. He was writing about Jesus of course, and used part of his letter to Colosse to underline His centrality to life. And it was the issue of centrality that became the theme of our final session for Lent.

When John wrote his Gospel he started it this way, ‘In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God from the beginning.’ In these verses, ‘Word’ is a direct reference to Jesus and in Greek, can be spelt ‘logos’ which when translated can mean ‘word’ or ‘logic’. The meaning throws incredible light onto the centrality of Jesus both for the creation and its creatures. We might choose to paraphrase the verse in this way, ‘In the beginning was Jesus and He was the logic behind the universe. He was both with God, since he was God.’ Interesting stuff…and even more so when you pick up on what Paul wrote. ‘He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.’

From these verses you get the feeling that it’s all about Jesus! Which, when it comes to a talk about dedication means taking time come back to him.

We all have a tendency to stray, which is why we need to ‘fix our eyes’ on him.

That gaze becomes the preoccupation of life. It is a gaze, which for the writer takes us into the mystery of God. Here we are left to ponder not only the brilliance of Jesus but also His humility. After Lent, we enter the week of Passion where Jesus rides a donkey into Jerusalem. From here begins the final countdown that will eventually lead to his death. Our passage concluded, ‘who for the joy set before him, endured the cross, scorning its shame.’ I find it hard to comprehend those words. Their depth, their power, their audacity. It’s shocking; simply shocking. ‘Scorning its shame,’ ….can you believe that?

What dignity, what courage…. what grace.

Removing the Plank

 

Recently a friend wrote to say that God had spoken to them. The gist of the email was the need to ‘remove the plank from your own eye’. The phrase comes from the teaching of Jesus, when with characteristic hyperbole, he stretches the illustration by saying all too often we concentrate on the failings of others, whilst overlooking our own. You can imagine the story. Here is a person with a huge piece of wood sticking out of their eye whilst clumsily they attempt to pick out the sawdust from someone else. When I’d read it, I knew exactly what they meant, since I too can give time to the issues of others whilst leaving my own to fester.

When through either ignorance or arrogance I live as if everything is fine, I run the risk of taking on a status that can leave me isolated and proud. When this happens it is easy to start to strive to hold a position that is beyond our grasp. The result is faith through achievement rather than by grace and the rest God promises to us soon evaporates. We end up in strife.

What I understand by rest is not necessarily the absence of work, but finding the rhythm to sustain us in life. Imagine the eagle as it soars on the current of the wind, mobile, active, and in motion, yet at rest; doing what it’s created to do. It is as we connect with our purpose and realign to the intention of our Creator that we discover true rest. Consider the words of Jesus, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Getting to that place of rest is certainly a journey. Whenever situations come that challenge us, our rest can be taken and we know when it’s missing. God’s desire is not for us to live there - he has something better, but we find it not in removing specks from others, but in allowing God to remove the plank that distorts our own vision.

Turning Around

‘Wherever you go, there you are.’ 

It’s a sobering thought, isn’t it? We might be able to fool others, but we cannot fool ourselves. It doesn’t matter where we go, when we arrive there we are!

In our second talk on Lent we covered the subject of repentance in the context of turning our lives around. This is really helpful since we cannot run away from who we are and so if we want to change we have to start within. Recognition is the first step to bringing about change. First you must see the need.

After recognition the next step is repentance. In the Bible repentance comes from the Greek word ‘metanoia’ which means to have a change of mind. Afterwards, that change of mind leads to a change in behaviour, which in turn leads to a change in actions.

Here are some questions for you to consider that arose during our talk:

• In what areas of life do you need to change your mind or attitude to a person or situation?
• What is meant by the phrase, ‘Wherever you go, there you are’? How does this make you consider decisions you might have to make in your life this week?
• In the Nooma DVD by Rob Bell, he used the phrase, ‘Sometimes it’s easier to run up stairs than face the truth.’ Is there anything that you are running away from which you need to stop and face?

I know, they can be tough to answer, but then any change that is worthwhile will be challenging…but worth it! Feel free to let me know how you get on. And don’t forget, you can post your comments here, or link through to the Lent Forum at http://www.charislife.org.uk/forum.html

Living through Lent

 

We don’t normally practice Lent at Charis. However, this year we have made an exception and we are using the season to strengthen our faith by looking at themes which take us back to the basics. So yesterday, we started with a reflection based round the thought that God’s purpose in Christ was to unite the world to himself.

We see this unity or connection in three clear ways. We are connected with the Creator, the creation and the community of humanity - a principle established in the Garden of Eden but then spoiled through temptation and rebellion (cp 2 Corinthians 5:18-19). Jesus enters into this temptation during his testing in the wilderness and begins through his life and consequent ministry to take back from the devil what he had stolen from God’s world.

Along the way, Jesus is tempted by the devil at three points, all of which, if succumbed to would abort his mission.  At the point of his identity, he is questioned about his Sonship, ‘If you are the Son of God’. In the area of trust, when the devil takes Jesus to the highest pinnacle in the temple he says, ‘throw yourself down,’ and see if God will catch you! And at the place of purpose, having shown him the kingdoms of the world he says, ‘All this I will give you, if you will bow down and worship me.’ Jesus path was one of love and sacrifice rather than power.

For our part, we might ask where we enter into the temptations of Jesus? Are you struggling to see yourself in the image of God and to walk as his child? Are you failing in areas of trust, stepping in to assert your own authority over the rule of God? Or are you giving into the temptations of other things, settling for second best rather than God’s best for your life?

Lent is a good time to stop and consider these questions for yourself and to take time answer them with openness and honesty.

Also, we now have a forum section opened for Lent so you can go and post your thoughts, ideas, prayers, verses about what you are learning and hearing during this time. You can find it via Charis Explore or simply follow this link http://www.charislife.org.uk/forum.html.