Driving back from the airport last Saturday ...

Saturday morning 6am, I was driving back from the airport trying to decide whether to attend a men’s breakfast. When I have a decision to make, I often set up a conversation between myself and “God”. The “God” side of the discussion argues for what I think to be God’s position on the matter.

So brace yourself. You are about to get a glimpse into the murky workings of my mind. I hope you are not of a nervous disposition! Here goes:

“Why so grumpy?”

“I’m not.”

“Yes you are. Don’t think you can hide it from me.”

“Ok, so I’m looking grumpy. It’s because I have to go to the men’s breakfast, and I don’t want to.”

“Why do you HAVE TO GO?”

“Erm... because I am the pastor...?”

“Is someone forcing you to go because you are the pastor?”

“No, nobody is forcing me to go. I just think I ought to go.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to go because you WANT to go?”

“Look, I don’t WANT to go OK!”

Silence...

“Ian.”

“Yes.”

“What if I told you that I want to refresh you at the Men’s Breakfast?”

The thought that God might have plans to refresh me brought tears to my eyes. My emotions, my spirit, my entire being said, “YES, Lord, I want to be refreshed. I need to be refreshed”. And so I went to the meeting because I wanted to. And I WAS refreshed!

But why is it that we so often go to or stay away from meetings for the wrong reasons? Why do we go under a sense of obligation to God or people? Why do we go just because we feel compelled to go? Do we feel compelled because we want to earn the approval of God and others?

When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, asking them to take up a collection for the poor in Jerusalem, he said:

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor. 9:7).

I think we should apply this principle to other areas of our lives. Imagine a church were everyone served with cheerful willingness and a sense of God’s purpose in all they were doing.  Yes, even in the matter of attending meetings, we should go to God and ask Him to impress on our hearts what He wants us to do, and then do it willingly and cheerfully. In this way, we will attend or miss meetings or courses for the right reasons.

Sometimes, however, we miss for the wrong reasons. We throw up barriers which prevent us from finding the good reasons FOR doing something. For example, “I don’t do men’s meetings”.  Such an axiom is usually established to cover a deeper reason for not attending. It could be, “I am anxious that nobody will talk to me.” Or perhaps, “I might be asked to share or pray out loud.” Are these things really that terrible? Would it harm you if nobody talked to you? It might be unpleasant, but if God shows you a compelling reason for attending surely that would outweigh a little discomfort? And if you do not want to share or pray, nobody can force you to. A polite, “I would rather not pray/share” would suffice.

Another bad reason for missing is failure to consider attending. Simple selfishness and lack of concern for the purposes of God often cause me to overlook opportunities to bless or be blessed, to receive or to contribute. Just because I feel a lack of conscience about missing something doesn’t necessarily mean I am in the will of God. The important thing is to consciously seek God and His purposes.

I hope this makes as much sense to you as it makes to me. Let us make decisions with God’s help, and then we will DO and NOT DO things for the right reasons. And when we do things we will do them willingly, joyfully and with an awareness of God and His purposes.

Cheers for now - Ian

God is for you

At the age of 19, Derek Redmond shattered the British 400m record. He went on to attend the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games but sadly had to withdraw from the 400m race with an Achilles tendon injury. Redmond endured numerous operations but was determined to recover his form and compete in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.

True to his aspirations, Redmond qualified for the Barcelona Olympics and found himself at the start of the first semi-final heat. His Father, Jim Redmond sat on the edge of his seat in the grand stand, watching with baited breath as his son erupted from the blocks.

“Redman has got off very fast indeed,” declared the commentator.

Things were looking good, which made what happened next knock the breath out of the 65 000 strong crowd. Down the back stretch and less than 200m from finishing line, Redmond grasped at his right leg and stumbled to a halt before falling to his knees.

65 000 voices groaned in unison. But I am sure that there was only one person in the entire stadium exploding from his seat – Jim Redmond. As Derek began hopping along his lane, brushing away help and determined to finish, Jim was barging down his aisle, vaulting over security barriers and avoiding officials.

Derek had one thing on his mind: to finish the race. And Jim had one thing on his: to help Derek do it. As Jim ran up to his son, Derek steadied himself on his Dad’s shoulder, and they crossed the line together.

“Whatever happens (sic) he had to finish, and I was there to help him finish. I intended to go over the line with him. We started his career together. I think we should finish it together,” said Jim in an interview after the race.

Recently, I have felt as if I have pulled a muscle in the race of life. I am determined to finish, but like Derek Redmond I am hopping along on one leg. Perhaps you feel the same way. If you do, I would like to give you the same assurance that God gave me.

Your Father is not sitting up in the stands watching you hobble along. He isn’t cheering from a distance or asking himself “I wonder what he’s up to now, limping along when he should be running”.  No, your Father is on the track with you. He is holding you up with his arms. He wants to speak words of encouragement into your ear. Your Father is a GOOD Dad like Jim Redmond ... but even better.

Jim Redmond said, “We started his career together. I think we should finish it together.” The Bible says, “(God) who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). You must just be determined to finish the race. And God will help you to do it.

Cheers for now - Ian

It is well with my soul

“Saved alone what shall I do?” These stark and poignant words, telegraphed by Ann Spafford to her husband, Horatio, marked the devastating climax to several tragedies.

Horatio Stafford was a successful Chicago lawyer and businessman and a prominent supporter and personal friend of the great preacher D.L. Moody.  Life was going well for Ann and Horatio. Then in 1870, calamity stuck: the Stafford’s four year old son died from scarlet fever. A year later, the Stafford’s fortunes sustained another blow when the great Chicago Fire wiped out their real estate investments on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Knowing that his family needed a holiday to get over their losses, Horatio arranged to take them to England where D.L. Moody was preaching. At the last minute, however, Horatio had to change his plans because of a business emergency. It was decided that Ann should go on ahead with their four daughters whilst Horatio attended to the emergency before following behind.

So Ann and the girls boarded the French steamer Ville de Havre. Several days into the trip, the Ville de Havre ran into an English ship. In the ensuing panic, Ann made it to the deck where she waited, baby in arms and older girls clinging to her in terror. The Ville de Havre sank in 12 minutes. The force of the waters tore the baby violently from Ann’s arms, and then she passed out. Later, part of the wreckage floated to the surface supporting Ann’s unconscious body so that she could be ... saved alone. All four of her daughters drowned in the wreck: Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta.

On hearing the unspeakable news, Horatio rushed to join his devastated wife in Wales. One day, as the ship cleaved through the Atlantic rollers, the captain called Horatio to the bridge. "A careful reckoning has been made", he said, "and I believe we are now passing the place where the de Havre was wrecked. The water is three miles deep." Horatio returned to his cabin, pulled out pen and paper and began to write:

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Refrain:

It is well, (it is well),

With my soul, (with my soul)

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:

If Jordan above me shall roll,

No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life,

Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But Lord, 'tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,

The sky, not the grave, is our goal;

Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!

Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul.

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,

Even so, it is well with my soul.

Amen and Amen!

Cheers for now - Ian

(This blog is based on material I read on http://www.biblestudycharts.com/A_Daily_Hymn.html)

Forget not all His benefits

I’m told that a new way of life is developing in some suburbs of Harare. Since the electricity comes on between midnight and four in the morning, people go to bed early, wake up at midnight to cook, wash and iron, and then go back to sleep again. Some friends of ours, however, haven’t received a single electron for more than three days.

This morning, I was up early taking Matthew to a Saturday athletics meet. I could hardly get out of my driveway there were so many water tankers buzzing around my neighbourhood making water deliveries. Our area hasn’t had a drop of municipal water for ... ten days? I think it’s been about ten days. Actually, I can’t remember. But, hey, we’ve had it easy; some people haven’t had municipal water for years.

Anyway, what with one thing or another, some people I know have had a belly full of it. And from time to time they get that stop-the-world-I-want-to-get-off feeling. I don’t blame them. But our experiences do show that there is truth in Jesus’ statement that “in this world you will have trouble” (John 16:33). Our fallen world will never be a place of comfort or safety. And at least our Zimbabwean experience denies us the illusion that life is stable. We are so frail. And our fragile lives depend on so many things that we have absolutely no control over.

It is no wonder that the psalmist wrote:

As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more (Psalm 103:15-16)

However, he then goes on to say:

But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children- with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts. (Psalm 103:17-18)

God has an everlasting love for you. His love endures from this life to the next. In fact, without His love, you won’t make it to heaven. Continue to respect and honour God, walking daily in His ways and everything will turn out ok in the end. Yes, you may not have water today, but “forget not all his benefits” (Ps. 103:2). Perhaps you should remind yourself of them by reading Psalm 103. I did, it was like drinking from a mountain stream on a hot day.

Cheers for now - Ian