A cheesy quote, and one that I can find no source for.
However much this can make our faith seem 'blind,' yesterday I found this simple line a way of shifting my paradigm.
I t can be hard when it feels like I'm not hearing from God, or at least, not as spectacularly and clearly as I would like (Why don't I get a burning bush? Or Jesus appearing inviting me to touch His hands and sides? No fair!)
If God seems far away, if you are doubting what you believe he has told you; hold on. Maybe you're right, may be not. It's good to doubt, to question, to test, to seek the truth. Just don't get hung up in paranoia and darkness.
Let me tell you what really helped yesterday.
I sat with a friend, a bother in Christ. We talked, we prayed, my perspective shifted. Now I'm back to holding my calling lightly and seeking God to know His will for my life.
There's just still doubt, but it feels more like doubt in the light!
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Monday, December 10, 2012
Final Japanese musings
Just a few little things I wanted to download before leaving this wonderful and odd country.
Cuteness is aspired to here. I've seen business women in very sharply tailored suits with short skirts and knee socks, the same look sported by girls in school uniform (too many of whom seem to have playboy bunny logos on those socks!). The ideal form is one of perpetual girlhood, sometimes in a sweet, childlike innocent way, sometimes less so. Yesterday in Akihabara i passed a number of 'maid cafes' where girls in Anne Summers style maid uniforms will fawn over you while you have a beer or coffee. Such is the profusion of girls in short dresses there have to posters on the walls by the escalators reminding ladies to be careful of 'up-skirting' by men with phone-cameras. For a country so built on respect and politeness, it seems a shame to see that as an issue in big city Tokyo.
Tokyo is HUGE! 35 million people in greater too; that's 5 Londons!!
There may well be nine million bicycles in Beijing, but I bet there's a few here too, and they're everywhere! They cycle on the pavement, on the road and transition between the two at whim. Jumping out of their way can be perilous, as in smaller towns there is generally no pavement, so one sidestep puts you in traffic! For such a modern, sophisticated country in technological terms, it's odd to see them on 1960s style sit-up-and-beg jam-jar gears bikes, although I have seen a significant number of trendy modern fixies here in Tokyo. You couldn't have one of those out on the sticks, its too steep too often!
I went to the museum at the National Shrine to the war dead yesterday. What an eerie place. Such monuments in Britain are dedicated to those who gave their lives in the cause of freedom, here they honour those who happily climbed into Kamikaze planes, boats and submarines, and revere those who participated in aggressive wars in the pacific before then with China, Russia and Korea. It's a conflicted place in national hearts; they sacrificed themselves for the good of Japan, but there still seems to be a good deal of some shame to go alongside that pride. Politicians win and lose votes in the controversy of a visit here and it's a brave MP who will get off that fence so publicly I wonder how such things function in Germany?
It's so hilly it's flat! The mountains are so steep and start so suddenly that you can only really build on the flat bits in between.
I've come round to the face-mask thing, that's just really polite. "I've got germs, i don't want to share them with you." Nice!
I wonder what they think our weirdnesses are? OMG, look at gai-jin, walking around the inside of his house with his shoes on getting it all dirty! Don't they rinse their dishes after washing up? They're always touching each other, ew! Why do their women wear such short socks? How am I supposed to get clean on these non-bum washing toilets, and why is the seat not heated, aren't they smart enough to have worked out how to make toileting a thing of joy? (That's DEFINITELY an area we can learn in!). And why aren't they making the peace sign in their photos? Why do they all have nuclear bombs, can't they see how poorly that turned out?
That's about it for Japan, except to put up a post about my Tsunami evacuation experience last Friday. Watch this space...
Cuteness is aspired to here. I've seen business women in very sharply tailored suits with short skirts and knee socks, the same look sported by girls in school uniform (too many of whom seem to have playboy bunny logos on those socks!). The ideal form is one of perpetual girlhood, sometimes in a sweet, childlike innocent way, sometimes less so. Yesterday in Akihabara i passed a number of 'maid cafes' where girls in Anne Summers style maid uniforms will fawn over you while you have a beer or coffee. Such is the profusion of girls in short dresses there have to posters on the walls by the escalators reminding ladies to be careful of 'up-skirting' by men with phone-cameras. For a country so built on respect and politeness, it seems a shame to see that as an issue in big city Tokyo.
Tokyo is HUGE! 35 million people in greater too; that's 5 Londons!!
There may well be nine million bicycles in Beijing, but I bet there's a few here too, and they're everywhere! They cycle on the pavement, on the road and transition between the two at whim. Jumping out of their way can be perilous, as in smaller towns there is generally no pavement, so one sidestep puts you in traffic! For such a modern, sophisticated country in technological terms, it's odd to see them on 1960s style sit-up-and-beg jam-jar gears bikes, although I have seen a significant number of trendy modern fixies here in Tokyo. You couldn't have one of those out on the sticks, its too steep too often!
It's so hilly it's flat! The mountains are so steep and start so suddenly that you can only really build on the flat bits in between.
I've come round to the face-mask thing, that's just really polite. "I've got germs, i don't want to share them with you." Nice!
I wonder what they think our weirdnesses are? OMG, look at gai-jin, walking around the inside of his house with his shoes on getting it all dirty! Don't they rinse their dishes after washing up? They're always touching each other, ew! Why do their women wear such short socks? How am I supposed to get clean on these non-bum washing toilets, and why is the seat not heated, aren't they smart enough to have worked out how to make toileting a thing of joy? (That's DEFINITELY an area we can learn in!). And why aren't they making the peace sign in their photos? Why do they all have nuclear bombs, can't they see how poorly that turned out?
That's about it for Japan, except to put up a post about my Tsunami evacuation experience last Friday. Watch this space...
Saturday, December 8, 2012
"Do not be afraid!" Luke 1
Here is this morning's sermon, from the 2nd Sunday of advent, my last of three sermons at Nirayama with the Nelsons. It's been a wonderful time to explore so much of both Japan and my faith. Thanks for having me, maybe I'll be back!
The Birth of Jesus
Foretold
Luke 1: 26-38 Advent: the annunciation. “Do not be afraid.”
The Birth of Jesus
Foretold
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel
Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin
pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant
of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly
favored! The Lord is with you.”
29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of
greeting this might be.30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you
have found favor with God. 31 You will
conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord
God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never
end.”
34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the
power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born
will be called the Son of
God. 36 Even
Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old
age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.”
38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be
fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
Last week we looked at God’s invitation to the world,
hundreds of years before the birth of Christ, in Isaiah. This week, that
invitation is on the brink of coming true! Miracles are already afoot. Strange
things are happening as God begins to break into his world. He knows what’s
coming, he knows what’s needed, so he in sending John the Baptist on ahead of
Jesus in every sense. At the news of Jesus’ coming, John begins to leap in
Elizabeth’s womb! How wonderful it would be to be so in tune with God that we
sensed and rejoiced in His presence from before we are even born!
Here we see God’s personal invitation to Mary to play a
pivotal role in His redemption of mankind. The creator of the universe, maker
of planets and galaxies, is going to do some very special creating right inside
her! How awesome is that; an angel, a being we might even struggle to believe
in, appeared to her. It must have blown her mind! In fact, we know it did. We
read here that Mary was greatly troubled. For me, this dispels the myth we
often have about angels, that they are just like you and me, but nicer, wearing
a sheet and with wings. The few descriptions we have about angles in the bible
are often pretty bizarre and frightening. They seem to have extra arms and
legs, many wings, several sets of eyes or be made of metal or jewels or burning fiery wheel.
The first words the angel says to her are “The Lord is with
you,” and indeed he was, more than with anyone else ever! He moved within her
actual body to produce His son!
You can only imagine Mary’s reaction. There she was, getting
on with her day, doing the laundry, tending the garden, daydreaming about the
gorgeous carpenter she’s going to marry, when all of a sudden this thing
appears and tells her God is with her. Well, I don’t know about you, but I’d be
scared!
So what does the angel say to her?
That’s right. He says, “Do not be afraid.”
I think the real reason she doesn’t need to be afraid is
the angel is about to tell her the name of the child. Knowing that in advance would surely save a lot of arguing!
That’s such a common thing for angels to say to people when
they meet, or for God himself to say. What a gracious Lord; He is the master of
the universe, but he takes time to reassure us. He longs for us to be in
relationship with Him, not cowering and afraid.
Now, as far as I can tell from my research, there are 119
times in the bible when people are told “Do not be afraid,” or words to that
effect, by God or one of his angels. Can you name any?
Some examples I could remember off the top of my head are:
· Hagar
in Genesis, just after Sarah kicks her out of camp with her son
· Abraham
and Isaac are both reassured by God
· The
shepherds, by the angel at their part in the Christmas story
· Zechariah,
when an angel comes to tell him that Elizabeth will bear him a son
· Jesus’
disciples heard it a bunch of times; they were always getting scared!
· Paul
heard it at least 3 times in the book of Act, encouraging him to keep on speaking out
It can definitely be scary to meet God, to accept Him as Lord, to
give up control. If were to take the disciples, the first few Christians, as an
example of how life as a Christian will turn out, we would not necessarily be
encouraged. By and large, men and women of God in the bible had difficult
lives and often suffered violent untimely deaths. Life as a Christian is
certainly better than the alternative, but nowhere in the Bible will you get
the sense that it’s any easier.
Still, hopefully none of us are facing a stoning or
crucifixion ant time soon. None-the-less, life can be scary. What makes us
afraid?
People can ridicule us for our faith. It can sometimes be
hard even to tell others that we are Christians, but we must, it’s one of the
rules. Paul tells us in Romans 109 That if you confess with your
mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him
from the dead, you will be saved. We just
have to do it. How will people be saved if they don’t know about Jesus? Talking
about your faith can be hard, but we just don’t have an option. We must pray
for wisdom about when, how and with whom to share it, but we must also pray for
boldness to be able to share it when the spirit prompts us. One thing my bible study group in Switzerland
has taken to lately is praying to have to chance to pray with or for someone.
It’s surprising how often God puts such a wonderful opportunity in your path,
and people who don’t want to hear about God can be suddenly open to being
prayed for. I think that speaks to the God shaped hole we each have inside us.
There can, of course, be trials and difficulties in life
that don’t come from our faith, in fact, probably the majority. Easily one of
the hardest questions the church has to address is “Why is there suffering in
the world?” There are thousands of books written on that topic alone. I have
often been involved in alpha courses, and time and again I hear this is the
major question non Christians have, and all too often the problem that has
driven Christians away from their faith. Now, it’s a complicated topic, and we
absolutely don’t have time to unpack it today, but here what I hold on to. God
never promises us that life will be trouble free with Him. When Jesus tells us
to “Pick up our cross and follow him” (Luke 923) we see that the
opposite is more likely to be true. What he does promise, what he demonstrated
that first Christmas when he came down from heaven to get right in amongst us,
was that he would be in it with us. There is no pain we can go through that he
can’t empathise with, because he’s felt the worst of it. From His birth in a
lowly stable, to being abandoned by his friends and suffering an agonising
lonely death on a cross, there is no pain we can feel that out humble servant-God hasn’t felt too. His Holy Spirit is the great comforter, the great source
of strength. When we face trials in life, whatever they are; at work, at home,
His spirit can lift us up and help us to do what needs to be done.
Christians all over the world and throughout time testify to
the power of God’s support, to the strength, peace and joy that the Holy Spirit
can bring in the harshest adversity. Paul tells us in Phillipians 44-7 “Rejoice
in the Lord, do not be anxious. The peace of God will guard your hearts and minds.” It’s a promise! When
you give yourself to Jesus, when you pick up your cross and follow Him, He will live in you and bring peace.
Lets look at a few examples:
St Paul comes to mind as the obvious example. In Phillipians
121 we read “To live is Christ, to die is gain.” Here is man so full
of the Holy Spirit he has lost his fear of death! Paul’s concern was to keep
working for God right up to the end. Even when he knew his execution was
approaching, he wrote his 2nd letter to Timothy, showing us that his first concern was still to be
passing on his wisdom and advice to his pupil. This has incredible desire to spend his whole life for God has really touched me
lately, I only hope I can approach that level of devotion and faith. I know that Paul was
so free of fear because he was so close to God. How wonderful that would be.
Perhaps
you’ve heard of Shahbaz Bhatti , the Pakistani minister for minority
affairs.
In February
2011, in an interview with the Christian Post, Mr Bhatti said he had received
threats.
"I
received a call from the Taliban commander and he said, 'If you will bring any
changes in the blasphemy law and speak on this issue, then you will be
killed'," Mr Bhatti told the newspaper. He believed passionately in
standing up for the rights of Christians in a strongly Islamic country, even in
the face of death threats. In a video recorded before his death, he said
"I believe in Jesus Christ who has given his own life for us, and I am
ready to die for a cause. I'm living for my community ... and I will die to
defend their rights."
He was shot
by a gunman, along with his bodyguards on the 2nd March last year.
He left behind that moving video and an incredible legacy of a fearless faith
in God and preparedness to continue living for Christ, no matter what.
Parks says she never planned to be arrested for breaking a racist law.
On December 1, 1955, Parks was sitting on a bus in the front row of the section
reserved for blacks. But when a white man got on, there were no more seats in
the white section, so the bus driver told Parks to move back.
Parks was convinced that to do so would be
wrong-and she refused to get up. "Since I have always been a strong
believer in God," she says, "I knew that He was with me, and only He
could get me through that next step."
Rosa Parks says her belief
in God developed early in life. "Every day before supper and before we
went to services on Sundays, my grandmother would read
the Bible to me, and my grandfather would pray. We even had devotions before
going to pick cotton in the fields. Prayer and the Bible," she recalls,
"became a part of my everyday thoughts and beliefs. I learned to put my
trust in God and to seek Him as my strength."
She was an ordinary lady, a regular Christian. Not an apostle, a
missionary, a pastor, a government minister. She was just like you or me, and
she was confronted with a situation where she knew she had to do the right
thing, despite her fears. You read just now it in her own words: “I knew that He was
with me, and only He could get me through that next step." Her bravery and
faith that day changed the world! Never discount the power that stepping out in
faith against your fear can have!
Finally, I
suppose we could look at someone closer to home: me, coming here. To me, this
trip seemed like an adventure, an exciting journey that God had called me on
with Him. Some of my friends and family expressed amazement that I could go
off, so seemingly fearlessly. I suppose it could be frightening, traveling
halfway round the world to somewhere you can’t even read the words. I can only
think that, knowing I was doing it with and for Him, that I just wasn’t afraid.
I often find, when I do things for God that ordinarily might frighten me, they
don’t!
In the last
few days, there was some fear and trepidation for me in going up North, away
from the safety of the Nelson family, to Iwate province. It's a very poor and rural area of Japan, famously devastated by the Tsunami in 2011. The real test came when we were visiting
Kamaishi, a town that had lost many of it’s buildings and some of its residents
in the Tsunami. We were in a church that was still under repair when the
earthquake and tsunami warnings went off on everyone’s phone and in sirens all over the town.
Heading off on an official tsunami evacuation past missing and damaged
buildings was interesting, to say the least. The potential impact was clearly visible all around us. You could see the impact a similar event had had. Oddly, sat in the evacuation area in the hospital, surrounded by Christians, no-one was afraid There was a real sense of joy and peace. I wasn’t
happy, I really didn’t want to die and I honestly thought there was only a slight chance but none-the-less a real one, but
somehow, I wasn’t worried. We all had peace. I believe that it was the presence
of God’s Holy Spirit in us that gave us that joy. I discovered on Friday that perhaps I
am closer to that perspective of St Paul, than I had thought.
I hope
these illustrations have served to show that, when God is with you, you do not
need to be afraid. The Bible tells us that “we are more than conquerors”
(Romans 837) and “if our God is with is, who can stand against us”
(Romans 831).
Pray for
his Holy Spirit to enter you and lift you up, to comfort you and strengthen
you. Tell God about your fears, pray them through with a friend.
Finally,
remember, as we celebrate advent, as we prepare for Christmas, that it isn’t
just about a baby in a manger, but the creator of the universe coming down
here, to the earth where you and I are, to share our lives, our joys and our
pains, because He loves us.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Isaiah 9 1-7, God's "Save the date" to Isreal.
So, for those who might be interested, this is the sermon I gave yesterday here in Nirayama, the 1st Sunday of Advent.
Sermon 2/12/12 Isaiah 9: 1-7. God’s invitation
9 [a]Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the
past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of
the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.3 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy;they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest,as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shatteredthe yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in bloodwill be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom,establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
So, to get us started, let's look at where this fit’s into the big story of the bible; I often find that helpful. What was going on when Isaiah spoke these words? Well, the king at the time was Ahaz. If you know your history of the Kingdom of Israel, you’ll know that there was a series of good and bad kings, often alternating, one after another. Good – Bad – Good – Bad etc.
So, which was Ahaz?
Yup, he was a BAD king. One of the worst, in fact. Have a look at it back in 2Kings 16 and 2Chronicles 28. He defiled the temple, taking out valuable artifacts for his own wealth and sacrificing to pagan Gods in the place the Israelites reserved for Lord himself. It is quite possible that he sacrificed his own son to these pagan gods in the fire.
Further than that, he knew Isaiah was God’s chosen prophet at the time, and he ignored him. That, I just can’t get my head around. I struggle to hear the word of God. I long to hear it written clearly and specifically for me. If I had my own personal prophet on hand I’d have him move in to my palace and spend as much time as I could hearing what God had to say to me. That’s not the approach Ahaz took.
So that was the situation the Jewish nation was in at the time. They were faced with one of the most ungodly, corrupt rulers in their history. I don’t know how holy the people were, whether they knew that Ahaz was bad and feared him, or whether they went along with him, but we can certainly judge Ahaz.
Into this situation, faced with this kind of ruler, Isaiah offers an invitation to hope, an invitation to a better way, a promise that things can and will be better, and a clear statement that Ahaz’s way is not God’s way.
If the first commandment that we looked at last week says “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind,” well, Ahaz didn’t just break it, he smashed it.
Look at the words describing the coming Messiah, look at the words to describe this new ruler we are invited to follow. In four short phrases we learn a lot about the nature of Jesus.
He will be called...
Wonderful counselor. A good counselor can take away worries and speak wisdom and speak comfort into our lives in times of trouble. Jesus was the ultimate at this, and still is!
Mighty God He is powerful beyond measure, our mighty God. He created you, me, the world, the universe. Oh to have such a ruler! Unlike Ahaz, he needs not send out for help. No one needs to help our God, he is the mightiest!
Everlasting Father. Never ending, eternal. Never to be overthrown, our powerful Abba-father. One who will look after you, and always be on your side with His might!
Prince of Peace. Gods way is not one of war. I just returned from Hiroshima, and I think He would be pleased with what has been wrought there in the peace-park and museum. That is God’s way, Peace. Enough wise men have tried to show us that way, and show us that it works, and we still don’t listen. That’s the Jesus I know, who, when faced with violence and betrayal, when his followers took up arms in the garden of Gethsemane for him, chose the path of peace, of submission, of healing and grace.
This, then, was God’s invitation to Israel, an invitation to a wonderful time in their future, a 'Save-the-date,' if you will.
When I think about God’s invitation to the world at Advent, I get a real sense of empathy. Let me tell you what I mean. Now, I’m no Jesus; Jesus loved everybody and I only love some people, although it seems like a quite a lot to me sometimes and is thankfully always growing. One way I’m like Jesus is that my birthday is a big deal. Perhaps not on the global scale that Jesus’ was, but a big deal in my life none-the-less. Every year I invite everyone I love to my birthday cocktail party.
What’s going on with that, what’s that all about? Is it that I want a lot of presents?
Sadly, a little, yes.
Is it that I like the attention and revel in there being an evening all about me?
Ah, you know me too well. Perhaps it is.
But absolutely the biggest reason is that I just want to spend quality time with the people I love, people who I just don’t get to spend enough time with. We start early and we go late. One of the best bits is sometimes just watching, seeing the people I love love each other. Enjoy each other. A couple of times recently someone has been having a hard time, and I have seen my friends gather round and support them in different ways; listening to them, distracting them, laughing with them, crying with them!
I know all this when I send out the invitations. I know it’s going to be brilliant. I know the people who come will have a great time. I know that a lot of the people I invite won’t be able to come, and when they hear about how great it was, they’ll regret it. More to the point, I’LL REGRET IT! Every person who doesn’t come gives me just a little pain. I really wanted to hang out with them, I really wanted them to have a good time.
I really think that that that’s how God sees the world every advent. I think he’s been seeing the world like since day one, or rather, day six!
He’s inviting us to the best party there is, life with Him. It will be tremendous fun! If we hurt, we will be comforted, by God, by the other guests. He just wants to spend time with us. Most importantly, if we don’t accept His fabulous invitation, we will regret it!
Now, here’s one way Jesus’ invitation is so much better than mine. I send mine once, that’s it. Sadly, I just don’t have the time to chase people every day, and I don’t handle the rejection that well. I get really sad when people don’t come. God’s a bit like that too, but he gets REALLY upset when people don’t come, so upset that he keeps sending out those invitations. He will chase you down and knock on your door. He won’t barge in, he’s not like that; I’ve often heard it said that God is a gentleman. It’s up to you to open the door, but God will keep on knocking.
Today, I want to think about God’s invitation to us at advent in two ways.
First of all, let’s look at the simplest invitation here, the invitation to know Jesus, the wonderful counselor described above. Back then, just as now, so many people missed the point of Christmas. Jesus came around and they were distracted. They’d had all the warning in the world. God’s invitation had been sat there in Isaiah for centuries. Good devout Jews of that time were familiar with the scriptures predicting a Messiah, they were looking hard for him. We know, sadly, that many people back then, both the Gentiles and even the Jews who were looking out for him, missed the point. They missed God's amazing invitation. That invitation is still there for you. God, the creator of the universe, invites you to share in eternity with Him. If you don’t yet know Jesus Christ as your savior, I believe you’re missing out on a better way. Jesus told us he came to give life, and life in all its fullness (John 1010). He made it clear that the way to that life was to believe in Him. He is the way, the truth and the life, he said (John 146). If you haven’t experienced the wonderful grace and peace that comes from walking each day with Him, I urge you to find out more. Ask a Christian what it's all about, why do they love and follow Jesus. Maybe do an Alpha course. This is just too important to let it slide by.
The journey of Christianity is often described beginning when we step though the door of faith. I know that’s how it felt to me, that the moment I gave my life to Jesus I’d walked through a doorway into a new, better world. Sadly, for me, I spent the next few years after then just stood in the doorway, not really making any progress in my faith, not experiencing it in the rich way some of by friends did. I just didn’t develop good holy habits, good spiritual discipline. It took a few years for me to really start that in earnest, and now I feel like I’m making progress. Looking at the lives of great Christian scholars and men of God, I know I have along way to go still, and that’s exciting.
I believe God wants to say to all of us, however far we have come in our journey with Him, however deeply in to Him we have moved, however closely we walk with God, that He is inviting us deeper and closer to Him this advent season.
So let me ask you, what’s the point of Christmas for you? What’s the point of advent?
What can you do to make the most of this season? It’s short, so much shorter than lent. That makes it a great time to try out some new habits.
I have some suggestions for you, four key disciplines to reflect on that complement and can strengthen your Christian life:
How are you doing with your bible reading? It’s a season about Jesus, so why not read the gospels? Try and get through all four in four weeks. Get to know your savior again. Let him surprise you. This trip to Japan I’ve been delighting in ‘the Jesus I never knew’ by Phillip Yancey, it’s been a real treat reading all about Jesus, and an easy way to expand my knowledge of my best friend. Why not read a good book about Jesus? I know from when we last looked at this in my small group that many Christians have some great suggestions of books they have loved, and most churches have a decent bookstall.
How’s your prayer life? Why not change it up a little, make it fun, exciting, different, new? Try to pray every day. Try saying grace before meals, if you don’t now. Try praying together with someone else, perhaps your family. You could try praying outside, or my recent favorite, a suggestion from the fabulous Mark Powley at St Georges, try having a day a week when the only prayers you say are of thanks. It’s quality time with God; you know you’ll benefit from it!Fasting; well, this is a challenge for me! Here’s a what Jesus had to say about fasting:
16 “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (Matthew6)
He expects us to fast. I have to say this is one I find difficult, but I’m going to try it again this advent. I find it a useful sacrifice to make that brings me closer to God. If you can, why not try it this Christmas season?
Finally, think about your giving, in this season of presents. What can you give to God? What can you give to the church? Paul tells us in Romans that we are to offer our whole lives as sacrifices to God. In one way, we are to be Gods gift to the world.
Whatever you do, make sure you don’t miss the point this advent.
God bless you all.
So, to get us started, let's look at where this fit’s into the big story of the bible; I often find that helpful. What was going on when Isaiah spoke these words? Well, the king at the time was Ahaz. If you know your history of the Kingdom of Israel, you’ll know that there was a series of good and bad kings, often alternating, one after another. Good – Bad – Good – Bad etc.
So, which was Ahaz?
Yup, he was a BAD king. One of the worst, in fact. Have a look at it back in 2Kings 16 and 2Chronicles 28. He defiled the temple, taking out valuable artifacts for his own wealth and sacrificing to pagan Gods in the place the Israelites reserved for Lord himself. It is quite possible that he sacrificed his own son to these pagan gods in the fire.
Further than that, he knew Isaiah was God’s chosen prophet at the time, and he ignored him. That, I just can’t get my head around. I struggle to hear the word of God. I long to hear it written clearly and specifically for me. If I had my own personal prophet on hand I’d have him move in to my palace and spend as much time as I could hearing what God had to say to me. That’s not the approach Ahaz took.
So that was the situation the Jewish nation was in at the time. They were faced with one of the most ungodly, corrupt rulers in their history. I don’t know how holy the people were, whether they knew that Ahaz was bad and feared him, or whether they went along with him, but we can certainly judge Ahaz.
Into this situation, faced with this kind of ruler, Isaiah offers an invitation to hope, an invitation to a better way, a promise that things can and will be better, and a clear statement that Ahaz’s way is not God’s way.
If the first commandment that we looked at last week says “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind,” well, Ahaz didn’t just break it, he smashed it.
Look at the words describing the coming Messiah, look at the words to describe this new ruler we are invited to follow. In four short phrases we learn a lot about the nature of Jesus.
He will be called...
Wonderful counselor. A good counselor can take away worries and speak wisdom and speak comfort into our lives in times of trouble. Jesus was the ultimate at this, and still is!
Mighty God He is powerful beyond measure, our mighty God. He created you, me, the world, the universe. Oh to have such a ruler! Unlike Ahaz, he needs not send out for help. No one needs to help our God, he is the mightiest!
Everlasting Father. Never ending, eternal. Never to be overthrown, our powerful Abba-father. One who will look after you, and always be on your side with His might!
Prince of Peace. Gods way is not one of war. I just returned from Hiroshima, and I think He would be pleased with what has been wrought there in the peace-park and museum. That is God’s way, Peace. Enough wise men have tried to show us that way, and show us that it works, and we still don’t listen. That’s the Jesus I know, who, when faced with violence and betrayal, when his followers took up arms in the garden of Gethsemane for him, chose the path of peace, of submission, of healing and grace.
This, then, was God’s invitation to Israel, an invitation to a wonderful time in their future, a 'Save-the-date,' if you will.
When I think about God’s invitation to the world at Advent, I get a real sense of empathy. Let me tell you what I mean. Now, I’m no Jesus; Jesus loved everybody and I only love some people, although it seems like a quite a lot to me sometimes and is thankfully always growing. One way I’m like Jesus is that my birthday is a big deal. Perhaps not on the global scale that Jesus’ was, but a big deal in my life none-the-less. Every year I invite everyone I love to my birthday cocktail party.
What’s going on with that, what’s that all about? Is it that I want a lot of presents?
Sadly, a little, yes.
Is it that I like the attention and revel in there being an evening all about me?
Ah, you know me too well. Perhaps it is.
But absolutely the biggest reason is that I just want to spend quality time with the people I love, people who I just don’t get to spend enough time with. We start early and we go late. One of the best bits is sometimes just watching, seeing the people I love love each other. Enjoy each other. A couple of times recently someone has been having a hard time, and I have seen my friends gather round and support them in different ways; listening to them, distracting them, laughing with them, crying with them!
I know all this when I send out the invitations. I know it’s going to be brilliant. I know the people who come will have a great time. I know that a lot of the people I invite won’t be able to come, and when they hear about how great it was, they’ll regret it. More to the point, I’LL REGRET IT! Every person who doesn’t come gives me just a little pain. I really wanted to hang out with them, I really wanted them to have a good time.
I really think that that that’s how God sees the world every advent. I think he’s been seeing the world like since day one, or rather, day six!
He’s inviting us to the best party there is, life with Him. It will be tremendous fun! If we hurt, we will be comforted, by God, by the other guests. He just wants to spend time with us. Most importantly, if we don’t accept His fabulous invitation, we will regret it!
Now, here’s one way Jesus’ invitation is so much better than mine. I send mine once, that’s it. Sadly, I just don’t have the time to chase people every day, and I don’t handle the rejection that well. I get really sad when people don’t come. God’s a bit like that too, but he gets REALLY upset when people don’t come, so upset that he keeps sending out those invitations. He will chase you down and knock on your door. He won’t barge in, he’s not like that; I’ve often heard it said that God is a gentleman. It’s up to you to open the door, but God will keep on knocking.
Today, I want to think about God’s invitation to us at advent in two ways.
First of all, let’s look at the simplest invitation here, the invitation to know Jesus, the wonderful counselor described above. Back then, just as now, so many people missed the point of Christmas. Jesus came around and they were distracted. They’d had all the warning in the world. God’s invitation had been sat there in Isaiah for centuries. Good devout Jews of that time were familiar with the scriptures predicting a Messiah, they were looking hard for him. We know, sadly, that many people back then, both the Gentiles and even the Jews who were looking out for him, missed the point. They missed God's amazing invitation. That invitation is still there for you. God, the creator of the universe, invites you to share in eternity with Him. If you don’t yet know Jesus Christ as your savior, I believe you’re missing out on a better way. Jesus told us he came to give life, and life in all its fullness (John 1010). He made it clear that the way to that life was to believe in Him. He is the way, the truth and the life, he said (John 146). If you haven’t experienced the wonderful grace and peace that comes from walking each day with Him, I urge you to find out more. Ask a Christian what it's all about, why do they love and follow Jesus. Maybe do an Alpha course. This is just too important to let it slide by.
The journey of Christianity is often described beginning when we step though the door of faith. I know that’s how it felt to me, that the moment I gave my life to Jesus I’d walked through a doorway into a new, better world. Sadly, for me, I spent the next few years after then just stood in the doorway, not really making any progress in my faith, not experiencing it in the rich way some of by friends did. I just didn’t develop good holy habits, good spiritual discipline. It took a few years for me to really start that in earnest, and now I feel like I’m making progress. Looking at the lives of great Christian scholars and men of God, I know I have along way to go still, and that’s exciting.
I believe God wants to say to all of us, however far we have come in our journey with Him, however deeply in to Him we have moved, however closely we walk with God, that He is inviting us deeper and closer to Him this advent season.
So let me ask you, what’s the point of Christmas for you? What’s the point of advent?
What can you do to make the most of this season? It’s short, so much shorter than lent. That makes it a great time to try out some new habits.
I have some suggestions for you, four key disciplines to reflect on that complement and can strengthen your Christian life:
How are you doing with your bible reading? It’s a season about Jesus, so why not read the gospels? Try and get through all four in four weeks. Get to know your savior again. Let him surprise you. This trip to Japan I’ve been delighting in ‘the Jesus I never knew’ by Phillip Yancey, it’s been a real treat reading all about Jesus, and an easy way to expand my knowledge of my best friend. Why not read a good book about Jesus? I know from when we last looked at this in my small group that many Christians have some great suggestions of books they have loved, and most churches have a decent bookstall.
How’s your prayer life? Why not change it up a little, make it fun, exciting, different, new? Try to pray every day. Try saying grace before meals, if you don’t now. Try praying together with someone else, perhaps your family. You could try praying outside, or my recent favorite, a suggestion from the fabulous Mark Powley at St Georges, try having a day a week when the only prayers you say are of thanks. It’s quality time with God; you know you’ll benefit from it!Fasting; well, this is a challenge for me! Here’s a what Jesus had to say about fasting:
16 “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (Matthew6)
He expects us to fast. I have to say this is one I find difficult, but I’m going to try it again this advent. I find it a useful sacrifice to make that brings me closer to God. If you can, why not try it this Christmas season?
Finally, think about your giving, in this season of presents. What can you give to God? What can you give to the church? Paul tells us in Romans that we are to offer our whole lives as sacrifices to God. In one way, we are to be Gods gift to the world.
Whatever you do, make sure you don’t miss the point this advent.
God bless you all.
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Look who discovered Panoramic mode!
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| Team Nelson!! Twice!! |
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| View of Atami from the Izu Skyline |
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| Jun, Tomo and Jun |
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| Hugh and Hugh |
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| Autumn |
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| Shitake mushrooms will grow from these logs. It takes 2 years! |
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| Can't see the wood from the trees? |
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| It goes up too! |
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| Tomo, Ju, Jun, Tomo and Jun! |
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