iGod

Need to recharge your batteries?

Are you ‘power mad’? Does the lack of power make you anxious? Do you sometimes feel jealous of other’s power?

I am, of course, talking about the problem of your mobile phone having a low battery.

You know how it goes. You leave home and realise that you have forgotten to charge your device overnight. You panic. You start thinking how much time do you have left. You become more anxious and go into energy-saving mode.  You search frantically around cafés and public places looking for an electric socket. It is a modern trauma we all now face, and the price we pay for wanting 24/7 communication.

Each of our days begin believing that we will have the maximum access to our friends and family. We have the certainty that we will be able to play Candy Crush in the queue as we wait for our coffee. It’s a controlling thing and I am not sure I always feel comfortable with it.

I have wondered in my times of despair if anything good can come out of a low battery crisis, but then I read how our power dependency actually led to something good happening.

In 2012 the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in New York caused widespread outages across the city.  Panicked New Yorkers took to the streets to find a way to contact their loved ones. Some people did what they hadn’t done for a long time – use a public call box. Others gathered around sockets in public spots as if they were campfires. There were even stories of people hailing cabs just to use a charging socket.

In the midst of the chaos I heard of one heartwarming twist on human generosity. It is how those with power became ‘digital Good Samaritans’. They ran extension leads out of their homes and even providing cables to charge up strangers’ mobile phones.

Just think, free electricity! When people are desperate enough, they will always seek out those with power.

As we enter the summer holidays, many of us are undoubtedly looking forward to recharging our batteries. We might be doing that by seeking the sun on a Greek Island or just simply taking time off work to be with the family and enjoying some day trips together. But the big thing for me is: how do we recharge throughout the year, not just in the month of August? Where do we look for that kind of power?

The Bible talks about how God created humanity to rest on the seventh day of the week, to enjoy time out from the fields and celebrate the fruit of our labour.

In particular, the book of Exodus encourages us to see the fourth commandment as a sacred space to put down whatever we are doing and rest our ox and donkey, so that all may be refreshed around us too.

Although I suspect not many of us will have an ox or a donkey, the point is made that everyone benefits from rest.

For those who have faith in God we see rest as empowerment.  And the rest we receive comes in the shape of a loving Father in Heaven who wants to empower us through his son, Jesus, to live life to the full.

Paul the apostle writes in the Bible, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.“

We don’t need to stay anxious about never having enough power. And the rewards are rich. We are offered “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding” And something that “will guard hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Whatever you are doing this summer, rest well and go in peace.

 

ASD

Oh, for the love of coffee!

It is no secret, Vineyard churches loves their freshly brewed coffee before the start of their services. Socialising is a big thing for us. We know that by putting a cup of coffee into someone’s hands it helps them relax and feel welcomed. But recently my love for a cup of coffee went to another level.

One Saturday morning my wife and I visited the London Coffee Festival in Brick Lane, London. Surrounded by hipsters and foreign students we entered into the strange, mystical world of coffee. I discovered just how amazing is the humble coffee bean and what it goes through to end up in our cups. So here’s how it gets to us.

Coffee trees are only grown above a certain sea level and in tropical regions. They also only start bearing fruit after 4-5 years. Interestingly, much of the world's coffee is grown by small farmers on five to seven acres of land and is harvested by hand.

After the ‘coffee cherries’ are picked they are ‘depulped’, a process that tears off the outer layer of the coffee flesh, exposing the two coffee seeds inside.

This is followed by a period of fermentation, which can take anything from four hours to three days depending on the country, altitude and humidity. The coffee is then dried, taking a further three to five days or almost two weeks, depending on weather. Only when the coffee has been dried down to 12% moisture and a thin shell, called parchment, encapsulates each coffee bean, can it be put into coffee sacks and be exported.

When the coffee reaches our shores it is delivered to roasting companies. Roasters need to have a strong attention to detail, excellent sensory skills and sensory memory. The goal in coffee roasting is to enhance the qualities of the green coffee beans and to develop them to their fullest potential.

The last stage of the journey is, of course, the café. This is where trained baristas come into their own. The coffee has to be ground just right and brewed at just the right pressure. The milk needs to be steamed, but not too hot - otherwise it can make the coffee taste acidic or bitter. And then, only then, can you sit down to enjoy it. You can’t help thinking that this is a lot of effort to get our daily ‘hit’! But grateful I am.

The world we live in is a humbling, awe-inspiring experience of beauty and grandeur. It is something to be savoured and tasted, again and again. We have learnt to take the earth’s riches and do incredible things with them - like make a cup of coffee.

In the first book of the Bible, Genesis, we see how God puts his full creativity to work in the world. Afterwards he reflects: “God saw all that he made was very good.” We get just around 800 words to describe this incredible act of love, but they are all words designed to permeate our hearts and imaginations and cause us to ponder deeply on our reason for being. And the more we do, the more significant our relationship with God becomes for us.

Just like your cup of coffee, life doesn’t just randomly happen to make itself, there is a creator behind it, along with a complex process filled with passion, love and dedication to the end user – us.

The philosopher Wittgenstein once poured a cup of freshly ground coffee and asked his students to describe the smell. When they failed Wittgenstein said, in effect: “If we haven’t got words to describe the smell of coffee which we can hold in a cup in our hands, how can we think we have the words adequately to describe God?”

This pretty much sums up my feelings of a loving God who feels passionate about bringing us the best, including sending us his son, Jesus. Happy drinking!

ASD

I am afraid to say that we're all fearful of something

A while ago we took one of our daughters and a friend to Go Ape in Thetford Forest. This is an experience that involves walking around in the treetops with the use of some wires and ropes.

After a brief health and safety lesson we were all too quickly harnessed up and fitted with helmets.  As we approached the first tree I looked up to see a very long rope ladder. Being seen as the ‘responsible adult’ in the party, a supervisor took me to one side and said, “It might be a good idea if you go in the middle.”

I turned to him and said very loudly in front of my daughter’s friend, “You’re joking, aren’t you? Up there it’s every man for himself!”

We are all fearful of something. It can make us feel nauseous and anxious or, worse still, traumatise us. So what is fear?

From the day we are born our brain cleverly learns emotions and holds memories that help us to remember and respond to scary and dangerous things. It reminds us of the consequences of doing something foolhardy, such as, for example, climbing tall pine trees in Thetford Forest. It is as Gavin de Becker describes in his book The Gift of Fear, “a brilliant internal guardian that warns you of hazards and guides you through risky situations”.

In the UK, as with the rest of Western society, we have an overabundance of fear compared to Eastern countries. An estimated 3.6 per cent of the UK – around 2.2million people – suffer from anxiety disorders, which is a four-fold increase in four years.

These fears can range from common trepidations, such as heights or enclosed spaces, to severe cases of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Either way, they can prevent the enjoyment of life.

So if fear is something that is learned, probably the best way is to deal with it is to unlearn it and fill the void with something positive and life-enriching. But one thing is for certain, it can’t be dealt with a bottle of pills. Neither can a life be free of emotions. Otherwise, we would become psychopathic!

The Bible is an incredibly practical book and offers some amazing wisdom and insight on the emotional and spiritual condition. It gives us a holistic approach to wellbeing through a connectedness with God through his son Jesus.

When we learn to put our trust in him and surrender each part of our life, including our emotions and memories, we create a mental space to receive God’s healing which leads to our recovery of mind. Our fears become reduced in size until they lose their hold over us. In essence, his perfect love begins to cast out our fear.

One of the most common fears is, of course, dying. We are, all naturally concerned with our end, but Christians believe it is only the end of the beginning. Knowing that there is a mapped out future beyond a temporal fear brings huge comfort to millions of believers, not least to those who live with daily uncertainty around the world.

I know that many might be afraid to believe in a God for fear of disappointment or looking foolish, but that is the step of faith that God requires of us. Otherwise, if you think about it, it is not much of a faith at all. Much like when a father says to his young son. “ Jump and I will catch you!” The boy has to trust this dad. And when he does his faith is rewarded.

I have learnt that faith sets me free, while fear holds my thoughts and emotions captive. And that is worth shouting from the treetops. Although not too high please.

ASD

Why walkers really shouldn’t get any stick

When someone asked me recently if I walked very much, I almost had to reach for my iPhone to see if there was an app for that.

We can get so used to travelling around the place by car that we can think our legs were designed for the purpose of pushing pedals, rather than pounding the ground.

Of course, you dog owners are forced to walk, come rain or shine. And in the dark winter months I have nothing but deep admiration for you. I really do. But the rest of us have to work a little harder to find the motivation to leave our armchairs and desks behind.

Even with free access to Suffolk’s 9800 registered public rights of way, adding up to a network of routes with a distance of 3500 miles and over 12,000 acres of open access land, we can still struggle to find our walking shoes.

So ask yourself this: have you ever had the urge to get out and take a walk to clear your head and think through a situation or problem? Me too! Researchers at Stanford University tell us that this is no coincidence.

They have found that walking boosts inspiration. A person’s creative input is increased by an average of 60%. One prime example is Steve Jobs, the late co-founder of Apple, who was famous for his walking meetings.

When we walk a neurological and physiological connection is being made. In short, our movement influences our mind and manipulates the way we think. Our feet and head might be at the opposite ends of the body, but Stanford’s research tells us that they are closer than we think.I remember in theological college I was encouraged to take a break after every two hours of study. We were repeatedly told that a rest from the intensity of study was good not just for the soul, but for the brain and would make us more productive.

So it is probably not that surprising to discover how important walking is in the Bible. Admittedly, there wasn’t much choice as the combustion engine was still a number of centuries off, but nevertheless significant things happen when people move about.

On one occasion two guys were walking towards Emmaus as they were trying to get their heads around the events of the past few days in Jerusalem. They had seen how the great miracle-worker and teacher from Nazareth was publicly tortured, crucified and buried. They had hoped that he was the one to bring freedom and life to all. And to cap it all, his body had gone missing.

Jesus appears on the road with them, but his identity is kept hidden. In their conversation he is able to speak into their thoughts and open their eyes to the bigger picture. He later reveals himself to them when breaking the bread at a meal.

Well, the penny finally drops and maybe while slapping their foreheads in comedic fashion said, “Did our hearts not burn within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures up to us?”

It has been said that the destination is the catalyst, while it is the journey that that changes us. Jesus joins us as a companion on the paths in life, however challenging, and in return offers us a close communion in himself. Through his loving presence he provides hope through the gift of creativity and revelation.

And that in itself is worth getting out more for.

ASD

Storehouse Foodbank and Christmas at VIneyard

Being responsible for Storehouse, the foodbank in South Suffolk, I was recently contacted by a national newspaper. They were running a piece on how London is economically divided from the rest of the country.

During the interview I sensed that the paper’s economics lead writer could not quite get his head around the fact that a place as idyllic as Sudbury needed a food bank. And yet here we are.

Requests for emergency food bags have more than doubled since April this year. Yet this is not a story about statistics, but people’s lives. Many of the accounts I hear simply break my heart and reduce our team to tears.

It takes a lot of courage to admit that you cannot feed your young family and to seek help outside your own means. More than a twinge of shame is often attached to that.  Personal confidence takes a severe blow and you want to withdraw from the company of others. Meanwhile, inwardly, you are at war with yourself and wondering ‘why me?’

Of course, some situations are self-inflicted but, then, haven't we all done things that we are not proud of? Who are we to judge? Then there are the others who have worked hard all their lives and now find themselves in an inconceivable position.

We try our hardest to make people feel ‘human’ as they come in to our Storehouse ‘Drop In’. It gives us some satisfaction to see people walk out just a little bit taller than when they first arrive. I am keen to say that we are not an extension of the benefits office, but a safe place run by caring individuals whose faith in God has inspired us to serve others.

Does anything ever change? You bet.

There was a young mum who came in to see us for emergency food who had been a victim of domestic violence. Her children had been taken away from her because she had become mentally ill and drug-dependent. She was rehoused, but had no furniture, so Storehouse and the church did what it could, which included contacting a qualified handyman who we were told could lay carpets. It turned out that he was helped by Storehouse in the past. He did the whole job for free.

Christmas is a time for hope. To quote Mother Teresa, ‘Small things done with great love change the world’. The one star over Bethlehem 2,000 years ago signifies the one hope in the world through Jesus to help guide us ‘home’ safely.

Why not join us for a family Christmas at Stour Valley Vineyard Church and reflect on these things together? We have a number of events going on.

Shine – free young families’ fun afternoon, 3-5pm, Saturday 14 December at the Delphi Centre, Newton Road, Sudbury.

The Great Big Mince Pie Giveaway, Market Hill, Sudbury 11am, Saturday morning, 21 December.

Christingle – the increasingly popular family church service, 10.30, Sunday 22 December, The Delphi Centre, Newton Road, Sudbury. Includes craft activities.

GLOW –Community Carol Service, 6.30pm, Christmas Eve, Delphi Centre, Newton Road, Sudbury. ‘Carols by glowstick’ with readings read by people in our local community’.  Mulled wine, soft drinks and mince pies served from 6pm.

One last thought. Maybe take a moment this Christmas to look up at the sky on a clear night and imagine what that single bright star over Bethlehem might have looked like some 2,000 years ago. The truth is, it still shines as bright today in the darkest times in our lives.

Happy Christmas and a peaceful new year to all. God bless.

ASD

Here comes the summer!

In the sultry Summer heat of 1979 I turned on my Saisho radio-cassette player and heard the unmistakable warbling tones of Fergal Sharkey singing Here comes Summer. It cut through the airwaves like a hot wire through butter.

These last few weeks it has felt like 1979 again.

Of course for some it is too hot. This predictably gives our media a story a run. Canadians are always bemused when we talk about having a cold winter and equally Spaniards smile when we talk about it being too hot.  However, bear a thought for the poor suffering commuters have been travelling on tubes in temperatures hotter than Bali.

On a more serious note, there have been heat-related deaths, and more than you may think. Experts believe over 760 have already died in England in just nine days. So please do keep an eye on any vulnerable neighbours. Heatstroke affects all.

When we are not talking about heat we are talking about taking an extended break to find it. More commonly known as ‘The Great British Getaway’.

Proper breaks are important. Medical experts say that the body needs a full ten days to rest. Time before then is merely recovery. Whether we are fortunate to be able to go away or have a staycation, the principle remains: Stop. Recharge. Go.

But something occurred to me about this time last year when I was planning to take my own break with the family.

You might know the creation story in the Bible. It says in the first book of Genesis that God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. The last of his acts was to create the human race.

Now we don’t need to get hung up on whether it was literally seven days or not, but it is helpful to look at the points and principles laid out here. When you take a closer inspection you will see that we have been encouraged to rest before we actually do any work.

Think about that for a moment. Imagine if you got a new job and the first thing your boss said was, “Don’t come in tomorrow. Have the day off. Relax. See you the day after.” You would think you have struck gold.

Most of us see the weekend as our reward for a hard week’s work. But actually, the spiritual principle here is to rest before starting the week.

A number of years ago a newspaper was launched called Sunday Business. It had as its strapline. “Sunday. First Day of the Working Week.”

While it may have appealed to the Alpha Male and Female, for many others it was a complete and utter turn off. On Sunday most of us want to switch off from office politics, not have to contemplate the classroom or consider to stock-taking on a Monday morning.

The biblical concept of taking a Sabbath, a period of rest, is not just a religious custom. Like a lot of the Bible it is rooted in practical wisdom passed on from one generation to another.

We need the space to step back, create space for ourselves, reflect on the beauty of life, cherish relationships and then advance. Wall-to-wall living is not macho, healthy or, furthermore, natural.

When we don’t rest properly we become stressed, agitated with the ones we love and become generally less productive. Left unchecked it can lead to depression and mental illnesses. All in all, not good.

Jesus spoke about not worrying about tomorrow as tomorrow has enough worries of its own. He would often withdraw from a crowd to take time out. We continue to look to his example to encourage us to find rest and know peace.

So here’s a thought.

Whatever summer reading you are planning, why not buy a cheap Bible from WH Smiths and slip it into your bag? Maybe read the first bit of Genesis. Maybe hang out in Mathew’s gospel and read chapters 5-7. There is an index at the front to help you find them.

Meanwhile, whatever you are doing, plan some fun days out. Do something different. But whatever you do, rest!

As The Undertones sung in’79,”The summer’s really here and it’s time to come out. Time to discover what fun is.”

Science versus Religion. Really?

 

Tom Waits, the American singer wrote: “Like all great things in the world, women and religion and the sky…you wonder about it, and you don’t stop wondering about it.”

I think I have a curious mind, but it wasn’t always that way. My younger me resonated more with another American singer Sam Cooke who sung: “Don't know much about history. Don't know much biology. Don't know much about a science book. Don't know much about the French I took. But I do know that I love you.”

Yet, now science fascinates me. I mean, where to start? It turns out that the universe is still expanding much like Pound stores. The edge of the universe is estimated to be some ninety billion trillion miles away.

The solar system we live in fills less than a trillionth of available space. It is part of the Milky Way and takes some 200 and 250 years to orbit just once.

Apparently before everything was anything, there was a point, called singularity and then there was a bang involving inconceivably high temperatures, loaded with enough energy and potential and possibility to eventually create what you and I know to be life, the universe and everything in it.

Let’s now talk about time. I know this is going to sound like a script from Doctor Who, but time is not consistent. It bends, and warps, and curves.

And if you stand outside on a clear night and see stars, the light you see from the stars is as they were when the light left them. You are looking literally into the past.

Coming a bit closer to home, on a summer’s day you are enjoying the sun as it was eight minutes ago. And techno geeks talk about real time!

Now science does a brilliant job of telling me why I don’t have fins or fur, but what about the soul?

One of the problems science faces is that theories turn into assumptions. And we are often none the wiser when they do. The universe is complex, wonderful and, let’s be honest, just a little scary.

Friends have said to me: you are an intelligent man, how can you believe in the concept of God? (Okay, I made up the ‘intelligent’ bit!) Surely once we have enough knowledge of the universe the notion of God will be redundant and it will have to reside in the history book?

But that belief rests on a very deep faith indeed. One mathematic physicist (not a Christian) deduced that God has to exist because singularity comes down to such a knife-edge you are forced to fall one way or the other. His conclusions led him to believe in God.

Some talk simplistically, and even derogatively, about God being a ‘friend in the sky’, or a cosmic-mythical story for the weak and uneducated, but that attitude betrays all sorts of problems. We have to adopt the same open-mindedness as we do with the pursuit of science and be willing to engage with the possibility of an omnipotent divine being.

So when I talk about God I am talking about the source of all truth, the foundation of all life, the mystery of the soul and the universe, the one who instils the desire to create art, music, dance, poetry, to show compassion and inspire others to greatness.

I just can’t believe that this is all there is and that we are simply collections of neurons and atoms. In fact, the possibility that there is more - a supernatural power - makes life even more awe-inspiring.

Of course, the problem scientists have is this ‘crazy little thing called love’. It is just plain irrational and really should not have a place in our rational, reductionist modern life. And yet, incredibly, it does!

To believe in a God of love who sent his only son into the world is an outrageous thing to suggest. But is it any less believable than some of the grand theories of science. What’s my proof? After all, God can’t be seen. True. But then I haven’t seen a gamma ray. Have you?

I find myself pondering the lyrics of Sam Cooke: “And I know that if you love me too. What a wonderful world this would be.”

What are you looking at?

Be honest, do you like what you see in the mirror?

There’s no escaping it, in our culture looks matters. Ask any actor, musician, politician, or man in the street.  Our overall confidence and emotional well-being is tied up with it, which I guess is pretty good news if you are in the cosmetic business.

Talking of which, Dove, in their latest campaign for “Real Beauty”, recently hired Gil Zamora, an FBI forensic artist to prove that when it comes to looks, we are our own worst enemy.

He undertook a social experiment to illustrate the ongoing struggle women have with recognising their own beauty.

Without seeing his subjects, the forensic artist created composite sketches of women based on their own descriptions, plus a second sketch based on the description of a stranger that they spent a short amount of time with before the sketch.

The end result was extraordinary. In each case the woman’s own description was different than the description by the onlooker. Their faces were full of “flaws”, but when the stranger described them, the sketches were more accurate and more flattering. In an accompanying video a woman tears up as she realises her self-description resulted in a "fatter, sadder" version of herself, while the stranger saw her as "open, friendly and happy."

 

Dove research shows that women are their own worst critics. Only 4% of women around the world consider themselves beautiful.    

So yes, we do have an image problem. Now, I am not sure quite what percentage of men would consider themselves as good looking or handsome, but the ever-growing shelf of men’s products at my local chemist might be a good indication that low self-esteem and confidence are an issue for us too.

Of course, at one level, none of this should surprise us. We are constantly bombarded with advertising, magazines, films and TV programmes showing people’s skin to be clear, wrinkle and spot-free with symmetrical faces, straight noses and super white teeth.

Is it any wonder that our self-esteem plummets when we look at ourselves in the mirror? And as the weather warms up (finally) we will become even more conscious of our numerous imperfections and want to spend money to fix them.

Yet if we, perhaps, notice more of what we have rather than what we don’t have, our self-perception might just change a little.

Maybe we would stop comparing ourselves with others and for once not be left wanting.

When I read the Bible I don’t see beautiful, perfect, gorgeous people nominated by God to be an example to others. Instead, I see Moses with a stammer, who chose to have his brother Aaron speak on his behalf. I see Paul the Apostle suffering with a speech impediment, as well as well as having bad eyesight. Jesus himself was described as ordinary in appearance. His disciples were equally described as ordinary.

So here is another way to look at ourselves.

Polish psychologist Andrew Bienkowski, a man who was exiled to Siberia and starved himself to death so his grandson could eat his meagre rations, said that we could approach ourselves by thinking: I have breath! I have life! I have shelter! I am here…

Be inspired to see yourself differently. Look at the four basics of life. If you can say that you have breath, family, somewhere to live and some place to sleep you can say, “Thank God my life is full!”

God allows us to focus on his own perfection and goodness and to see ourselves as he sees us. We become grateful and satisfied and learn to avoid discontentment, which always leaves us wanting.

King David famously declares in Psalm 23 says, “The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want.” So the big, fat, honest questions are: what is the “shepherd” of my life? And does it make me not want?

Our confidence and self-esteem can come from knowing that we are accepted by a loving and gracious God. And by those who know us, perhaps, better than ourselves.

So, come on, put that anti-wrinkle cream back and get real. You too guys!

ASD

Keeping an open mind

At a recent leaders’ breakfast time I was asked by a younger dad what wisdom I would pass on to him, being a parent. I munched over another mouthful of muesli before eventually uttering what was once passing on to me: “Don’t always be right at the dinner table.”

We are, perhaps, at our most open and teachable when we are at school and college. Then we leave and something happens over night - we are expected to know it all, not least as parents. Of course, the worst thing is we start believing that we actually do.

A very respected person from my profession of advertising, who would certainly not call themselves a Christian, was taken back after receiving mounting vitriol from a particular group of atheists on a celebrity webpage.

He had asked a TV comedian, well known for his political views, whether he thought atheism should be taught in schools. He replied, “No, there’s no need to ‘teach’ atheism. It’s the natural result of education without indoctrination.” In essence, his argument was that religion indoctrinates young minds and atheism doesn’t.

But the adman wasn’t sure about the answer and pushed him further. He suggested that Agnosticism was, perhaps, more neutral as it didn’t enforce any firm position.

Thinking it would help the discussion along, he cited a dictionary’s definition of atheism: “a doctrine that there is no deity”. Futhermore, agnosticism was defined as “a position taken by people who hold genuine doubts or a skeptical approach to questions to do with God’s existence.”

He got back a wave of abuse, including from someone who had in their profile “Evangelical Atheist”. Another replied, “Relying on dictionary definitions, how pathetic.”

At this point the poor, battered adman submitted to the growing realisation that these people were no different to “religious fundamentalists”. They were closed-minded. Any sympathy with their view vanished.

It was Thomas Huxley who first coined the term agnostic in 1869. You might even describe yourself as one. You may neither believe or disbelieve, but remain open to the possibilities of God existing. You simply don’t know.

But it is healthy to keep an open mind. Not just about the possibility of God’s existence, but in any area of life. In fact, it is a pretty good way to live. It will help us develop strong relationships with our spouses and children. It will also help us to be more approachable and trusted in the workplace?

The more I go on in my Christian faith, the more I realise how much I have yet to learn. Not least in prayer. I haven’t got it all sussed with neatly alphabetised answers for every situation. Life is not that simple. As with all previous generations, my faith comes with doubt.

Besides, I know that if I did have all the answers I would probably be the most annoying person on the planet. Ask my family. It would also, undoubtedly, put others off from ever being open to exploring the possibilities of God. 

I need to come to the dinner table and say, “This is what I think, but what about you?” I need to be thoughtful. Do my level best to affirm the other person. And if they don’t share my view, that is really okay. We will get more respect that way.

In the Bible Jesus often answers a question with another question. On one occasion rather than saying that he is the Son of God he asks, “Who do you say that I am?” He just loved getting people to think. In fact, you could say that Christ died to take away our sins, not our minds.

Part of what it means to believe in God is to live in the question, not in the answer. It is to enjoy the mysteries of life, of which there are many. But I personally believe that we will get the best out of life by being openly-minded to new possibilities. Not least to the promises and claims of Jesus Christ. Now, you can either choose to believe that last sentence or not.

It’s your choice. Enjoy it.

ASD

Enjoy life’s disruptions

Recently I had a meeting planned over in Oxford, but having heard the weather forecast for snow that weekend I wondered momentarily if I should go.

I kept hearing phrases like ‘adverse weather conditions’, ‘severe weather warnings’ and ‘don’t travel unless absolutely necessary’. And on top of that we are all supposed to know what ‘amber alert’ means.

Not one to give up easily, I decided to toss back my head and laugh in the face of weather warnings and continue with my plans for the trip. Okay…well almost.

I packed an overnight bag, put a shovel in the back of the car, along with jump leads, a blanket and, for some unknown reason, a large bag of Minstrels, thinking if I was stuck in my car on the motorway at least I wouldn’t starve. Oh! and a double CD of Charlie Parker. Well, it could be a long night!

The thing about snow is it is a very disruptive thing. Motorways shut, trains get delayed, schools close, and Amazon can’t deliver.

As someone who generally hates disruption and likes to plans ahead for any anticipated inconvenience, snow is very much my bête noire. (I once drove 26 miles to avoid a 3-mile traffic jam on the M1, I am that sad.)

But having seen the fun that my kids have in the snow and the joy it brings me in seeing them play, I have been helped to rethink one or two things.

What if disruption was not a bad thing, but an opportunity for spontaneity?  What if disruption was a gift that stops us in our tracks and breaks into our carefully planned routine?

What if disruption could be seen as a voice that speaks into our soul and says, “Stop what you are doing and listen to yourself. Listen to others around you. Listen to creation.”

When was the last time you did that?

When did you seriously listen to someone else apart from yourself? When did you give your undivided time to someone you love and spend it actually listening, not just hearing?  When did you stop to ponder about the direction of your own life? Maybe you are slightly afraid to listen to your own real feelings for fear the wheels might come off?

The good news is you are no different to anyone else.

When we are inconvenienced we can find ourselves getting angry, irritable and short with people. True?

These are not good personal discoveries, but then we can think we don’t need to be cured of anything in particular and believe life is just fine.

Stopping is not easy. Like a car, it requires a reasonable breaking distance, depending how fast our life is going. We have to prepare to stop. Sometimes we are forced to slam on the brakes hard.

So what is our Plan B when Plan A does not go according to plan? Do we even have one?

A friend of mine who has partly inspired my thoughts here, Brian Draper, works with executives to nurture their spiritual intelligence. He calls these times ‘holy disruptions’. In his book Less is More he talks about divine opportunities that force us to reconnect with ourselves, others and God. They actually start to help us feel human again and see the return of a sense of purpose. It is where we begin to breathe again in between the quantity of demands and rediscover a quality of life.

As Christians, we would call that a spiritual encounter. We become aware of something other than us that leads to life having a greater significance.

I love those poetic and profound, words of Jesus’ found in Mathews’ gospel: “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”

The funny thing about snow is how beautiful and delicate it is. Something we might not notice if we are too busy trying to avoid it.

ASD