Jayden rocks - Happy Birthday son!!

Jayden turns 6 Wed 18th August. We can hardly believe it! Born in Dublin back in 2004, he has been an absolute delight to us these few years since he entered the fray. Jayden is a lover of life. He loves life too much to waste time in bed beyond 6.30am most mornings. He likes sponge-bob, lego, playing with Abi his cousin, breakfast, peanut butter sandwiches, lasagne (his chosen birthday dinner), rough and tumble with Dad, golf, church, ridng his 'No Fear' bike, being bare-foot and Jesus! Jayden is vibrant, fun (he loves to laugh), intense and passionate. At times he needs reining in a bit and being our third child I am aware that the tendency can be to become more and more permissive and that we won't do him any favours if don't bring clear and strong boundaries when necessary.
A visiting prophetically gifted person recently spoke over Jayden that he would 'enjoy his youth' but that he would also rise and 'grow in leadership' into the future. We found the bit about 'loving his life' both funny and reassuring because that is him to a 'T'. The strength he has is there because its meant to be there, although like everyone who has something they are born with, he is learning how to live with it! We are incredibly proud of Jayden. I want to honour him today as his Dad and say that Jayden is the boy I always dreamed of after two amazing daughters. Jayden - you are a one in a billion, you were made to walk this earth with joy and yet to be a straight arrow. There is much ahead for you my son, God loves you, your family all adore you, you were made for this hour and I have a feeling that you are going to make the most of every minute! Happy Birthday 'sonny Jim'!! Your Dad and Mum and big sisiters are SO PROUD of you!! You rock...

Dad

'Accountability Fraud'?

This term has gripped me as I prepare for some teaching and training that I will be conducting. The term has come out of a conviction that true accountability is less easy to come by these days, even amongst us believers! I am not talking about the fraud of financial dealings here, but rather the 'fraud of pretence' - that is that we are way LESS open to correction, listening to the advise of a friend, to personal transformation than we may care to admit. I have seen how easy it can be to hide behind slogans of accountability, to talk the right talk and project the right demeanour, but to lack the substance of true accountability. 'Who are you accountable to' is an easy point to make but a difficult question to answer for many! The answer clearly lies, I believe, in humility and also in deep friendships. Another factor is the skill, motive and attitude of 'friends' (ask Job!)

Humility is that attitude of heart that seeks not to elevate oneself at all costs and is open and willing to grow rather than to guard the priority of self-protectionism. Jesus was gentle and humble of heart. Deep friendships are those where two-way depth of communication and honesty can flow. They take time, effort, vulnerability and a sense of trust and safety. A true understanding and experience of sonship and freedom from a performance based personality mindset are surely key to unlocking the prison we make for ourselves in pretence and self-imposed isolationism. By comparing ourselves to others we end up competing, even sub-consciously, either intimidating or being intimidated. Christ came to set us free.

'Accountability fraud' then is living the lie that you are an accountable person when you are truly not. It is an image, a front, a manicured lawn, a picketed fence, that hides us away but creates the aura that we are truly open and willing to be more than an island and King of our own domain. This is not meant to be harsh but I hope it stirs the question, 'Am I truly accountable - firstly to God, and secondly, to people that are strategically positioned by God in my life'? Any comments?

Political Correctness and the Gospel

I am at times astonished at the strength of the perceived need in our society for 'political correctness'. I am not speaking so much in a specific sense about politics, although the term betrays the deeper rationale behind such attitudes and actions. Here I am rather more about talking about spirituality and communicating the Christian Gospel in 2010.

Paul's first letter to the early Corinthian believers (1 Corinthians) begins with repeated exhortation by the apostle for them to rise above the 'cultural spirit level' of the well established ideological building blocks of that city at that time. Society measures out an 'inherent plumb line' to which we become so well accustomed, particularly when we have grown up there. Ideas are passed down from generation to generation, become institutionalised and enshrined as the norms and unwritten rules by which locals live in a 'civilised society'.

My contention, and indeed that of the Apostle Paul as seen in his writings, is that many faulty premises underpin such 'laws of reason' and leave us spiritually bankrupt. A vivid and descriptive term that Paul uses is to call them 'strongholds' of the mind, 'imaginations' that exalt themselves against the Knowledge of God, idols of thought and deed that become the 'norm' in a society where 'crowds lie' rather than lead in paths of greater enlightenment. As Tim Keller, a preacher and writer puts it,

‘When we are completely immersed in a society of people who consider a particular idolatrous attachment normal, it becomes almost impossible to discern it for what it is'

Paul's courage and forthrightness stands in stark contrast to much of my own political correctness, which, thank God, is changing. He is never rude but rebukes the Corinthian believers for being seduced by the Corinthian obsession with 'wisdom','speech and knowledge', oratory flamboyance and in general the applause and accolades of men. The cross, says Paul, must NOT BE EMPTIED OF ITS POWER, and should not be preached with 'eloquence alone' but with boldness and in a 'demonstration of the Spirit's power'. God was drawing the 'foolish' in the eyes of the Corinthians, taking the 'weak' and common man and shining His Gospel deep into their hearts. Although, the preaching of a simple but profound Gospel of Christ crucified as our Saviour was an apparent folly to the 'strong' it would only serve to 'shame' the 'wise' in the long term for running with the crowd.

It seems to me that Paul was afraid of the believers falling back under the spell of 'trying to BE and look like somebody 'important' and culturally palatable' and was exhorting them to follow the rhythm of a different drumbeat, the drum master of which - Christ, transcends the cultures, crowds, opinions, fashions, ideologies and political correctness of that, this or any age.

As for them, so for believers today in 2010, amidst the cities and cultures in which we find ourselves. To hell with political correctness, we should not be rude, but neither silent nor compromised.

When Wonder is less than full!

‘May the ‘Wonder’ of God fill you today! When we let the ‘Wonder’ get leeched from the soil of our understanding we are left with the 'right' word and posture, ie. that ‘God is wonderful’, but lack the conviction to back it up! Too often I have felt a fraud when using superlatives about God without having waited long enough in ‘Sabbath rest’, abiding, drinking, in order to comprehend and commune with the One whose Glory and Grace puts the 'Wonder' back into my day. When I do, I notice the sparrow who has found a home, the lily of the field in splendrous array, my working takes on Wonderful-purpose and my life becomes liberated from mundanity and fatigue to Wonderless living.’
JS

'Dragons Den' God moment?

OK so you are mildly but not wildly interested by the title, anything to get a few readers, no, I'm serious, I had a moment the other day watching the Dragons Den that I can only describe as a 'God moment'...
A young lady, aged 24, appeared before the snarling, fire-breathing dragons, all ready to devour another 'wanna-be' entrepreneur'ling! What bright idea had this one come up with?! What followed stunned me and reminded me so much about Father God's heart, stunning, absolutely stunning...
The young lady gave a humble 'pitch' seeking investment of £65,000 for 15% share of her enterprise. She had developed a healthy alternative to ice-cream, a dairy free frozen yoghurt type product that would also be accessible to many people seeking a healthy alternative. She had appraoched Tesco, the supermarket giant, and had been given great encouragement by orders promised to her. Her presentation was simple, her sincerity shone through. The Dragons seemed stunned. In a 'Susan Boyle' moment you could sense impending cynicism just melt away on a wave of admiration that manifested in awed silence and open-mouthed amazement. The questions came gently, somehow mirroring the momentum of admiration that instinctively they felt for this young lady, 'Had anyone helped her on the project?' 'Surely she had not done this all by herself, had she?' The humble retort was affirmative. She had worked two and a half jobs as a single Mother developing her business sideline in her 'spare time'...Three Dragons made her an 'offer' and she ended up leaving the Den with her 2 preferred Dragons and the dream deal in the back of her pocket. Stunning! They had looked beyond her frailties, her lack of experience, the fact that she was a young single mother, her lack of pedigree, and saw the awesome resonance of potential being pursued, the innocence of a young one who believed almost naively that the impossible COULD happen. Here was an underdog who was actually getting a break.
I felt emotional and shed some tears as this encounter unfolded. Its amazing how an event like this can produce such a depth of emotion in us. Where did the tears come from? I know instinctively this was a response that came forth as a result of experiencing something so much like our Father's Grace! Have your ever noticed how emotional you feel in a 'Susan Boyle' moment? How honour stirs something deep within you that you know instinctively is from a 'higher agency', something transcendant that raises its head above the mundanities and ordinaries of life.
I thank God today for a God who favours the underdog. A God who wants to bring dignity for shame. A God who sees the treasure buried deep within us and allows us pass through the furnaces of life to bring forth pure gold. A God of opportunity and second chances. Do you know Him?

Dream of a man hanging on a cross

In a few weeks time I am looking forward to catching up with a good friend now back residing in his native homeland in Nepal. I will be visiting some friends and churches there and speaking at a Youth conference in Kathmandu.
Chandra was from a Brahmin background. Despite this status in the 1990s he was forced through economic circumstances to migrate to Northern India and seek employment. He ended up as a labourer breaking rocks, a laborious back-breaking task necessary in Indian labour intensive road construction. During this period Chandra had a recurring dream. In the dream , he saw something he had never seen before, what appeared to be a man hanging on a wooden structure - a cross. Chandra sought guidance from a Hindu guru through whose knowledge of spiritual matters he hoped he would get some kind of interpretation for the dream. The Sadhu's response was that this was the 'Christian god' and his advise was to journey to Mussoorie, a hill station in the Himalayas, known for its Christian presence, and to seek out advise and information there. Chandra did just that and continued his working as a labourer breaking rocks by the roadside. This is an amazing story of God's leading and Sovereign plan! What happened next is that Chandra met our dear friends there who gave him the answer he sought about the meaning of the man hanging on the cross fully and properly explained to him for what it means. Many people know about the cross Jesus hung on but not enough realise the full significance of it. Christ became a substitute, a penal sacrifice to atone for the sins of anyone who will believe in Him and receive Him as Saviour. He did for us what we cannot achieve by our own merit.
Chandra received this gift and became a new believer fully experiencing the new life and Grace in the Holy Spirit. He is now married with children and has preached this same Gospel to many others. He has now begun, raised up and handed over 2 vibrant churches, travels in support of similar pioneers as himself and is now back in his native Nepal doing the same again, pursuing the next chapter of his life, living simply, humbly but 'dangerously' for God. I look forward to seeing Chandra as he journeys on...
JS

No Franchising

I don't want to be part of a movement or church that franchises God's Presence....

I would rather wait, preferring to invite fellow journeymen in life to partake of delacacies at the table of the One I have already dined with. This invitation though is not a marketing exercise, rather more about a tale of wonder. Less about what I have to say and more about the soft whisper that speaks loudly of a private and compelling affection.

From Journal, 25/6/10

The Will To Do God's Will

"So Jesus answered them, 'My teaching is not mine, but His who sent me. If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority'" John 7v16-17

There is a simple reality in the sharing of the Gospel of Jesus as Christ and Saviour.

Unless the orientation of the heart of the person hearing the truth is OPEN to finding God's will, there is an inability and more importantly an UNWILLINGNESS to respond to Him. That is why Jesus deliberately spoke in Parables, the truth of which were hidden from the proud. No amount of pressure, force of personality or any other human means will work to break this down. Arguments, persuasions, apologetics, pleadings will all fall on 'deaf ears' until the heart opens, like Snowdrops in early Spring sunshine, to the necessity of God. So, saint of God, present God and His Gospel as reality and truth, then wait, wait for the Spirit to blow, wait for God to do what only HE can.....to turn a heart away from self-preoccupation toward a higher calling - the 'will to do God's will'.

The good news is that God HAS gone ahead of us, He IS turning the hearts of men toward Himself, He has appointed many for salvation, we cannot do it without Him, nor were we ever meant to. God has gone ahead of us!

Take His hand

The commonly spoken mantra 'Seeing is believing' is understandable when the visible realm is the sole arbiter of a persons perception of life. Christ though, followed the theme headlined by Abraham centuries earlier, 'Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe' A life of trust is about learning to lean on the Person of God through the storms and routines, through plenty and lack, living beyond what our senses and sensibilties perceive, reaching out for the hand of the invisible God. As such, 'Believing is Seeing' brings us to true North, the Holy Spirit and God's Word the magnetic field, Father and Son cheering us on, along with a great cloud of witnesses who have finished their race..

So we say we believe, good stuff. Its worthwhile remembering though that even the demons believe in Christ, though they quake at His Presence and are driven out in His Name! 'Saving faith' is about understanding that we cannot save ourselves, indeed this instinct to self-determinate has been the barrier between us and God. Jesus' date with the cross paid and opened a way for the possibility of our reconciliation with God, it was costly beyond measure and will never need to be repeated, complete, offering a doorway into His Kingdom and a whole new way of living, but have you taken hold of that invisible hand?

'Inheriting faith' (faith for living, maturing, taking possession of promises God has made to His sons and daughers) continues the theme of 'Believing is Seeing' There are many warnings in the Bible about unbelief that comes from a 'sinful unbelieving heart' that lapses back into self-determination and has caused many people's hearts to grow cold. Inspite of their position at the Father's table, the 'old ways' prove troublesome to walking with and 'dining' with God in His Kingdom...

Here are a few suggestions prefaced by an important statement. 'To inherit all that is bequeathed to us as sons we need to align ourselves in a life that is compatible to our destiny'

* Thought life - a famous book told us we 'are what we eat', nothing could be more true of our brain food! God's Word has proved innumerable skeptics wrong and speaks truth into our minds and hearts. Jesus rebuked illogical thinking, cut across traditions and sacred cows, so that people could know the truth and the truth would set them FREE!

* Conversation - do we speak what God's Word teaches us? Its so easy to read something at 9am that brings LIFE and then by 9.30am be speaking and conversing to friends from a 'glass half-full' (or empty) position. What we confess with our mouths is important. It becomes a declaration of truth in the face of circumstances that is very powerful.

* Prayer - in communication with God, our prayers need to align with the revealed will and plan of God. His character and attributes are the foundation for His will and we receive fresh revelation and impartation as we spend time with God and experience, yes experience, His Presence. 'Give thanks to the Lord for His Love endures forever' was a song sung before and after battles we read of in the Old Testament. As a friend said to me recently, 'This is the anthem of a generation that take possession of their inheritance!' Powerful stuff, ponder and meditate on this and may it become a constant in your prayer life, not for mindless repetition but from a position of revelation of its awesome truth!

Is your lifestyle compatible with your destiny? Are you sowing into it? If Believing is Seeing, then 'Seeing' will involve us thinking, speaking, praying and living a life aligned increasingly with the Lord...take His hand today and watch what happens next!