Thoughts & opinion from the southampton vineyard team

I’ve never blogged before so I’m not sure how this is meant to go, but I am still on holiday (just) so in theory I have the time and, in a remarkable coincidence, I also have something rattling in my brain that seems worthy of sharing.

A few weeks ago we went to New Wine and someone there was talking about an interview that Rick Warren gave. He was talking about the year when his book sold millions and was an amazing success, but at the same time his wife got cancer and was not miraculously healed, despite being prayed for. He said that he no longer thought of life as being good times and then bad times, in a sort of hilly road towards old age, but more as two rail tracks – one being good things and the other bad things, both happening at the same time. It is our choice and challenge to not focus on more of those rails to the exclusion of the other.

He also said that he thought that our lives were a series of problems: “either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one, or you’re getting ready to go into another one” he said cheerfully. God uses these problems to change us to be more like Jesus – “God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy”, more interested in developing your character than making you comfortable.

It made me think about my perspective on the events of each day. When things are frustrating, is this an opportunity for me to learn patience?

It also made me think about what Jesus promises in John 16, where he says that whatever we ask the Father in his name we shall receive. When we ask in Jesus name, it means asking in his character, asking as if we were Jesus. So we will get what we ask for if it is what Jesus would ask for us. What would Jesus want us to ask for? In the context of John he has just been talking about disciples loving one another, so that is one thing straight off. And if a disciple is meant to become like his master, then we should not just be asking for love, but compassion, the ability to forgive and everything else that Jesus showed us.

And that made me reflect on my prayers – how often do I pray for God to change me, and how often to I ask God to change my circumstances? I am certainly not saying that we should not ask God to intervene in the situations we find ourselves in, and it is true that he will answer some of those prayers in his grace. But I find myself thinking that I should also be talking to God and praying for help changing me inside, so that I become more like Jesus quicker rather than more comfortable.

“Agape” – loving totally sacrificially, without any expectation or hope of anything in return. Doesn’t sound like a pop song, when you put it like that, does it?

But we are Christians, so that kind of love should be easy! After all, Jesus modelled that for us, didn’t he? He died for us. We know that and so it is easy for us to respond to that in love.

Isn’t it?

Love – agape – its a BIG word. So big that it means that we just cannot carry on the way that we were. It means that others are always, always, always more important than I am.
Yeah, but I am really comfortable. I’m settled. I have a nice group of like-minded friends around me and I’m happy like that.

I wonder.

What about the others? You know, “them”*. The one’s who aren’t in your circle and, frankly, if they were then your circle would not be so much fun anymore.
Is it possible to be defined by love and not include “them”.
Things have changed. We used to be content in our little homogenous group – we even did things for “them” – bought food; clothes; helped – went out of our way.

But then God stuck his ore in, and messed everything up. I’m not sure we can be like we were anymore.
Actually, I am not sure we ever could, really.

I used to think that I was meant to plant a church like the one that I would like to come to – in terms of teaching about meetings and music and infrastructure etc. But then, what about people who are not like me? What about those who have not had the benefits that I have had? You know, the people with whom Jesus spent all his time?

We’re meant to be defined by love. If we are, then “they” have to be in the middle of it, because Jesus spent his life surrounded by “them” and he is our model for “love”.

Isn’t he?

The mystery of the church should be that there are so many different people with different backgrounds and different experiences from all demographics all living together in genuine unity and love. So, we need to change. We cannot carry on in a way that excludes anyone. Not in our Sunday meetings, our housegroups or our friendship groups. We’ll have to break out of our stereotypes, get to know people not like us, change the way we do things and realise that this is the way that it is meant to be this way. Because that is what Jesus was like.

Man, its hard being a Christian sometimes!

*technical term for people not like us

I have been richly blessed by many kindnesses recently.  Some have been a total & utter surprise either by their source or the magnitude.  Some act of kindness have been no surprise because I do know some ridiculously kind people (but their act of kindness is no less of a blessing just because it’s in their very nature.) And many of the kindnesses haven’t been directed to me at all but it still blesses me to see my friends blessed. The more kindness I see, the more I see…  so now I’m in a real ‘kindness after-glow’. It’s a really nice place to be.

I wondered if the reverse would be true? If I went out of my way to look for examples of unkindness -  would I be overwhelmed by how mean everyone around me is? I think so. I decided (very late last night) that what I choose to focus on,  I see.

So I am reflecting on this verse this week because choosing to ‘think about’ the kindness and the lovely things in life inspires me to want to be kinder and lovelier.  I’m sure the same is true of  the noble, right, pure, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy things. But I’m saving those for next week.

^“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. ” (Phil 4 v8 )

So, last year, I went off to Florida for a week.  Obviously I did my best to not enjoy it and, to be fair, I really did not enjoy any of the meetings.  However, God did some stuff in me.  I knew that I was different when I came back and we certainly began to see some “stuff” going down! 

We saw some amazing changes in people and a good number of healings taking place.  According to the database that I have kept since then, 40 healings involving people from our church either praying for people or being prayed for.  Now, some of those have gone on to show no further problems, some of them are “partially” healed and some of them seem to have gone back to how they were.  Still, its exciting.

The problem is that actually, at the end of September, we’d seen 35 healings and since then, only 5.  Hmmm.  So what’s that about then?  Is God on holiday?  Has the moment (Or to use Christian jargon- the “season”) passed? 

Or maybe, just maybe, we’re not praying for people so much…

Or at all?

Its definately the same God.  I checked in my Bible.  He definately still heals. and He definately told us to do the same.  I checked that too.

I have to confess, I have lost a lot of my enthusiasm (or expectation, or faith) for it.  Last July, I felt quite afronted if someone was not healed, whereas now it takes something to muster the energy to even try.

In Lakeland, he told me to pray for 100 people to be healed.  In my wildest dreams, I hoped to have seen ten of them healed.  But I didn’t.  I saw 27 of them healed.

Why did I stop?  Why did we stop?

Good question.

Here’s a challenge.  Make a commitment in your heart and before God to pray for the next ten sick people who you encounter.  At home, at work, at play, on the streets.  Then tell us the stories because that will surely build our faith/expectation/enthusiasm.

Go on.  I dare you!  I’ll do it too.