You're Fired (Up About Mission)

Last Sunday's meeting was very poorly attended; probably one of the smallest congregations we've had for a long time. A combination of holidays (it was a Bank Holiday Weekend after all), half-term and glorious sunshine meant that lots of people were taking a well-deserved break. Nothing wrong with that! However, I love the fact that even when we don't show up, God always does. After the initial concern that we may have more people in the band than sat in the congregation, people began to arrive and the worship time took off. For the next hour or so we only sang three songs such was the work of the Holy Spirit in and through us. People were passionate and engaged and once again the refrain from Tim Hughes' song 'Remember' took off.

Saturday morning's prayer meeting often 'sets the scene' for all that follows in our Sunday morning meeting and today was no exception. More and more God is bringing a fresh focus on mission and evangelism into the life of the Church:. John's word from last week about the oil picked up on this (2 Kings 4), it came through again in our Saturday prayer time and in people's testimonies during the Sunday meeting. I have been thinking and praying about how we can build into the life of the Youth a regular, 'get out of your comfort zone' mission opportunity. Nothing has been finalised but I have been talking to YWAM (Youth With A Mission) and talking to John and others about where God may be leading us.

On Sunday, I had prepared a message on worship but in the run up the whole thing was a bit lacklustre and I was unsure if I should preach or not; if you're not fired up about your own message then you can't expect other people to feel the same. On Saturday (again, after the prayer meeting), I started to think that God was speaking to me about mission and evangelism and this was what I needed to share on Sunday.

In the morning, I got up a bit earlier and re-read the story John spoke from last Sunday. I realised that the story was pregnant with evangelistic symbolism and meaning. This was what I needed to draw out from the passage and use as a prophetic word for the Church during the Sunday meeting! As I got up to preach I knew God needed to do something as I had no notes, just an open Bible and some hastily uttered prayers. However, I had an amazing encounter with the Lord while I was preaching; He began to show me things in this passage I'd not noticed before and I was literally preaching it as these ideas and revelations came to me. Thanks God!

All in all, we had a great meeting. Despite low numbers, the Lord spoke to us and we met with Him. I would recommend the Saturday morning prayer meetings too; they often get us on the right track for all God wants to do on Sunday. See you there!

Breakfast Breakthrough

The bacon was crisp. The coffee was fresh and the eggs were fried to perfection. This was our first inaugural Worship Leaders' Fry-Up Fellowship Meeting courtesy of Chef Kat. On Monday, Jon, Kat and I met to get together to talk and pray about all things worship-related. You may have noticed a bit of a worship team emphasis in recent blog entries, this is because I have noticed that, once again, the Holy Spirit seems to be highlighting the importance of worship in BCC. It is important that the three of us really capture God's heart as we 'lead by example' and could easily block this new move of God if we are stale and spiritually stagnant.

Our meeting was very fruitful and there is no small measure of fun and laughter as we discuss issues, plan and keep on top of the practical demands of this ministry. God has richly blessed us through the ministry of Jon and Kat and we work together really well as a team.

One matter I wanted to get out into the public arena is a brand new initiative designed to make sure we remain right on the cutting edge of God's purposes for this new season of worship. Gary Rumbold's message to us emphasised the theme of 'BREAKTHROUGH' and that we would be a Church who knew this powerful kingdom dynamic in our life together.

I believe worship is a really important key to make this breakthrough a reality.

In light of this, Kat, Jon and I have planned a special day's training for ALL of the Worship Team, including the Youth Band and any other interested young people and will run on Saturday 10 October, here in the King's Rooms from 10am to 4.30pm. Based around the theme of BREAKTHROUGH, there will be some interactive training seminars as well as some time to worship, pray and enjoy some food together. We have not finalised the content but any worship team members reading this should put the date in the diary and make every effort to come along to what promises to be an awesome day.

You never know, if we ask Kat nicely she may even do us another fry up!

Youth Alive...And Kicking

Did you have a good Bank Holiday Weekend? Sunday's weather was wonderful. Apparently, London was as hot as the French Riviera over the weekend! Hopefully it is a taster of things to come; roll on the Summer.

On Saturday, Sue, Vicki and a few of the young people went to the Suburbs Church, a Pentecostal/Assemblies of God Church in Cadbury Heath. This predominantly youth-based Church was hosting the 'Audacious Influencers Tour' and it proved to be a very interesting couple of hours. Audacious is a UK-based Christian youth initiative headed up by Glyn Barrett (some of you may have heard him speak at Faith Camp) and linked in with other similar ministries across the globe. Glyn was travelling with Paul Geerling, Senior Pastor of a large Church in Brisbane and National Director for Youth Alive Australia.

I was keen to expose some of the older members of ENERGY to good quality teaching and ministry so they can be challenged and grow in their own leadership gifting. It is really good for them to receive teaching from different people so they can think and develop their own insights. The morning was very positive and contained a couple of 35 minute messages plus a Q+A Session at the end. Both Paul and Glyn were very engaging speakers but I was really impressed with Chad, their Youth Pastor who was travelling with them.

Chad runs the youth ministry in Paul Geerling's Church and he started off the morning with a 20 minute 'thought for the day'. I was expecting a bit of a crowd-pleasing, rabble-rousing, populist message but he actually talked about the importance of honouring leadership and one another. Using the example of Jesus' visit to His own hometown, he demonstrated that God's own Son could not do any great miracles because of their lack of faith and honour. It does not say Jesus wouldn't do anything. It says He couldn't do anything. That's a big difference.

I did wonder if he'd been reading John BeVere's books Honour's Reward and Under Cover!

This message is not going to be hugely popular with a crowd of teenagers yet it was powerful and carried a significant anointing. I liked the fact that he tackled an important Kingdom principle and did no stick to the 'easy option'. Young people need to be encouraged and equipped and discipled but they also need to know some of the really important counter-cultural lessons which make living for Jesus come to life. I know that the young people who were with us would have listened to what Chad said as we too regularly encourage them to honour those in authority as well as one another. Sometimes hearing it from someone else can really reinforce the message.

If you want to find out more about Audacious or Paul Geerling then click on the links below...
http://www.liveaudacious.com/
http://www.metro-church.org/site/default.cfm

Fired Up for Fair Trade

This week's homegroup was a bit different. Graham, Ed and Nancy came and did a special Fair Trade presentation for us. They run the Fair Trade Stall in the Church and once a month you can buy all sorts of items from them including food, cards and clothing. This week we experienced the Fair Trade 'Roadshow' and the whole evening was dedicated to enjoying some homemade Fair Trade food, drinking the Fair Trade Tea/Coffee and sampling the biscuits. The Team had also brought some other gift items and after a look through the catalogue, I did not realise just what else was available!

We had a really good night and I thank Graham, Ed and Nancy for giving up their evening to come and serve us. Thanks guys! You can find out more about Fair Trade by talking to them next time you see them (go on - ask for a catalogue!) or clicking on the link below.

I have been thinking about all this since Wednesday. It was clear that the Fair Trade Team have a real passion and belief in what they're doing: they wouldn't do it otherwise! They are committed and dedicated to supporting this worthwhile cause but do it with considerable grace and humility; there was no Apprentice-Style 'hard sell'. Graham did a short presentation at the start of the evening and despite being very nervous he stepped out his 'comfort zone' and shared his heart. He was taking the heart for Fair Trade God has given him, combining it with the gifts God has placed in him so he can achieve the work God has prepared for him to do.

This process of 'activating our gifts' has been something of a theme for me in the last few days. On Tuesday night we met with ENERGY to launch our new 'OVER-2-U' strategy. As part of the vision for the youth ministry, we want to Activate our Gifts. The goal is to see every young person run a session before the end of the Summer Term either on their own or in teams. Vicki did an excellent training session with them, giving them some practical advice as this is really new territory for some.

We all have different interests, passions and things which catch our attention. Sport, music, reading, writing, performing arts, technology, working well with people, social action, business, teaching and so on are all examples of the gifts God gives us to serve His Kingdom. The key to unlocking this is to DO something about it and activate the gifts inside you.

Have a great Bank Holiday Weekend, see you on Sunday or back here on the Blog next Tuesday.

http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/

Livin' On A Prayer

Wednesday morning (6am-7am) is a very special prayer meeting. It is one of the times when you will only go if you are committed. Getting out of bed at 5.30am is not an 'easy' option, especially when many of us have got young children and/or busy jobs that need our time and attention. Now that the clocks have gone forward it is a bit easier as the sun is up. I always aim to make those Wednesdays a priority because they seem to capture God's heart. I feel His pleasure when we meet and pray together. This week was no exception. Despite there being only a few of us, we started off with a short time of Bible Study before focusing on prayer. I noticed that for a good five minutes or so, we sat in silence but it was not an awkward silence or a bored silence. It was an active silence. People were connecting with Jesus and listening for His leading. Once this had happened, people began to pray into specific situations or for specific people. This was no shopping list but a Holy-Spirit led time of intercession. It was very powerful and we all knew that God was amongst us.

Last week we had been led to pray for unsaved family members. I prayed for my own family and I really asked God for some new progress in this area. After nearly 20 years of being a Christian, I have had to persevere with this and sometimes we just need an extra 'boost' from the Lord to keep going. In my own mind I felt I wanted my own family to come to Bristol for a visit and to meet some of you. Jesus said that the world would know we are His disciples by the love we have for one another (John 13:35). I was speaking to someone recently who has been away from the Church and had realised that the relationships between Christians are very different from the ones experienced in the world. This is how it should be! When I became a Christian, I noted how different those relationships were and this impacted me in a powerful way. I think one of the best ways people can meet God when they come to BCC is to feel and see something different in the way we do life together.

Today I received an email from my Mum. She wants to come for a visit in the next few months.

Wow!

Rock On!

Last night was our Worship Team meeting. This is an opportunity for all the musicians in BCC to gather and be encouraged, pray and worship together. How can we lead others in worship when we ourselves do not make a worship lifestyle a priority? It's all too easy to put on a show and, through sheer force of personality or strength of gift, be a performer and not a worshipper. Like a stick of rock, worshippers (and Christians?) should be consistent wherever you look into their lives. We had a truly awesome time last night. Jon Pike shared some of his own observations about where we are at and what God is doing in his own life. This was followed by an hour praising God, offering our lives to Him in a fresh, new way and encountering the Holy Spirit's dynamic presence in the room; God's presence was heavy.

This got me thinking about the worship ministry in the Church. I have been leading it for the best part of 14 years and I am excited about the prophetic words which have come to us in recent months relating to the worship life of BCC. He is going to take us to new places both in the visceral experience of His manifested presence through our corporate times of worship as well as the combination of Holy Spirit gifts in those times, including the prophetic song and singing in tongues. There will be a fresh passion and desire to worship Jesus. We will know victory in the Spirit during our worship and what is accomplished in the Spirit will be released on earth. We are a Church of breakthrough and worship is one of the primary ways this takes place. We are also a Church with a "David Heart". As you know, David was a worshipper of the Lord and I share that conviction that we carry a special anointing for worship together as a Church.

There is much to look forward to and we are wanting to make sure we are positioned in the right place and completely in tune with the Lord so this can be outworked. Watch this space!

In the meantime I looked back at the journey of the worship ministry in B.C.C in the last 14 years. It has had it's ups and downs but we are in the strongest position I can remember. Some years ago, I handed over the leadership of the Team to someone else but had to take it on again when that person departed. It was a difficult time; the group was small and I had to lead worship every Sunday morning and evening for a year. On one occasion I lead worship seven times in a week! There were no other people ready to lead worship and I had to check my attitude as I'd not expected to be taking on the worship team role again so soon. We just had to persevere for a year. Through it all God was so faithful. Look at what He has done since those difficult days:

1. New Musicians The Team has grown and grown as new people have joined the Church and wanted to serve in the Team.
2. Unity There is a strong sense of unity between us. Someone said to me last night that they loved being on the worship team. This is a wonderful testimony as this person has been involved with us for 12 years! The Team is not a hotbed of gossip, division or competition. We know what God has called us to do.
3. Worship Leaders Jon and Kat have been a source of huge blessing both to me as the Team Leader but also to you as the Church. Each of them has written an album which has been extremely well received. Some of Jon's songs regularly feature in our song lists too. They bring a fresh anointing and approach and support me as we seek to take things forward under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.
4. Young People We are seeing younger people get involved and use the gifts God has given them in this area. As they play and work with more experienced musicians and leaders, this mentoring process shapes their characters in an essential way.
5. Seasons of Worship I have found that God has taken us through an assortment of different seasons of worship. Sometimes it has carried an emphasis on the prophetic song. Sometimes it has been 'Warrior Worship' where we engage strongly in spiritual warfare through corporate worship. Sometimes it has been quieter worship with a 'therapeutic' dimension. None of this has come from me, instead we have simply followed Holy Spirit's leading.

I am truly grateful for all that God has done and I look forward to the future - the best is yet to come!

Hey Mr Tambourine Man

Yesterday's time of worship was very different to the previous week's. Any worship leader will tell you that every session is different. Last week, from the first note played, the congregation hit the ground running and we galloped forward into the Lord's presence. Yesterday was very different. I really liked what John said about 'honouring the musicians'; a concept I'd not really thought about before. He explained that one of the reasons why he sat at the front is so he can really worship with passion and enthusiasm and in so doing, encourage the music team. It can be very demoralising to be leading worship and see a congregation idly sat in their chairs not engaging with the Lord. It can also be very frustrating, especially when you've got there early on Sunday morning to practice and are expending time, effort and energy to see others enjoy God's presence in the same way that you have during the practice!

John also pointed out that our time of worship was quite hard work for a time and the temptation is that we just give up, sit down and move on. What was so good about yesterday was we didn't give up but persevered. As much as we would like it to be easy, there are times when we need to make a decision to worship, no matter what the cost. I really felt we began to breakthrough in the song 'I'll Remember You' as we sang the refrain 'Hallelujah'. It contained a strong power and presence of the Lord and was noticeably different from the first part of the meeting.

So much of our corporate times of worship have very little to do with the worship team and everything to do with the congregation and the overflow of Holy Spirit life (or lack of it) in their lives. Come ready to worship and engage with God. We all have busy lives and I wonder how many of us come to Church on Sunday prepared to do business with Him? Think what sort of an impact that would have on our times of worship!

Worry Is A Spiritual Warning Light

How are you getting on with The Purpose Driven Life? If you've been doing it every day, then today is the 40th and final day. Congratulations for completing it! I've found it really helpful and although I read it through five years ago, I've still received some fresh revelation and insight in the last 40 days. There was a line in today's reading which really stood out to me: "How do you know when God is at the centre of your life? When God's at the centre, you worship. When he's not, you worry. Worry is the warning light that God has been shoved to the sideline. The moment you put him back at the centre, you will have peace again" (p.314).

To help us understand exactly what we mean by worry, let's consider a definition: "to give way to anxiety or unease; to allow one's mind to dwell on difficulty or troubles" (Concise Oxford English Dictionary). This paints a picture of having to battle with something which is seeking to dominate us. We 'give way' to worry, suggesting it is like an invading army on the march against us. What does this army attack? Our minds. To win the battle against worry you have to win the battle of the mind.

As I read that quote from Rick Warren, I felt convicted. I have been worrying about things recently. I reflect, process, analyse and think a great deal. Situations, experiences, conversations, things I read or watch all contribute to my very active thought life. This can be a great strength and, in many cases, this gift from God is put to good use in the different roles I play both in the Church as a Leader and in school as a Counsellor. However, like all things, the enemy and our own fleshly nature turns these gifts against us and we can get ensnared by them. Worry is sin and I want to do something about it!

The best way to combat worry is to use Scripture as a weapon against our human inclination to dwell negatively on difficulty or troubles. Here are a few verses to think about...

• Proverbs 3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart,and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths."
• Matthew 6:22,31 "And he [Jesus] said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on....Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you."
• 1 Peter 5:6-7 "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you."

Christians are not immune from facing difficulties or problems, if you've been reading The Purpose Driven Life then you'll know they are an essential character/faith-building tool of God's Kingdom, instead the way we handle them is through His Word, His Presence and our commitment to focus on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2) and not the problems through persevering prayer (Matthew 7:7, Philippians 4:6) and worship. Have a great weekend, see you on Sunday.

*ADVANCED NOTICE* Don't forget that on Sunday 31 May 2009, we will be having a Guest Service with Tim Leaman sharing the Gospel. Get praying and invite friends!

Tongue Tied

On Tuesday night we did something very different with ENERGY. In recent weeks I have been learning alot about the power of the tongue, a metaphor for showing us the power of what we communicate to people through words (both written and spoken). The Bible is FULL of teaching on the tongue. For example, Psalm 141:3, Proverbs 10:11, 19, 20, 11:12, 12:18, 15:4, 16:24, 17:27, 28, 18:4, 21, 21:23, 25:11 and James 1:26, 3:3-10. I suggest you take some time to look them up! I draw your attention to Proverbs 18:21 "Death and life are in the power of the tongue,and those who love it will eat its fruits" and James 3:6 "And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell."

Note how the tongue is closely linked to hell. It is a truly sobering thought to know that what we say can actually come from hell itself and do the devil's work for him. Recently, I learnt this the hard way. Sometime ago I had a conversation with someone and some of what I said proved to be a considerable hindrance to them. Thankfully it has been sorted out but I had to go back to God (and the person involved), repent and choose to 'set a guard over my mouth' in the future (Psalm 141:3).

On Tuesday evening I felt the Lord wanted me to help the Youth understand this Biblical principle. Our culture is SO cynical and negative. People constantly speak hell's own words against others sometimes under the auspices of 'giving my opinion', 'telling them how it is' and so on. Programmes like Shameless, The Inbetweeners, Skins even Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares and so on promote highly offensive language and even the secular media have queried some actions of high profile broadcasters like Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand.

Christians must be different. Our culture should be countercultural and in stark contrast to that of the world (Matthew 5:13-16).

I asked the youth to take an envelope and put their own name on it. We had cut up lots of slips of paper and placed them, along with some pens, in the middle of the room. Then we asked them to write something positive and encouraging about someone and put it in their envelope. It could be something they admire about them (i.e. recognising a gift/talent God has given them), a verse of Scripture, a prophetic message and so on. The idea was to use our words to strengthen, encourage and build them up rather than criticise, mock and bring them down. This little exercise took over an hour and nearly everyone got involved, even those who find reading and writing difficult. I then got them to seal their envelopes and only open them when they were on their own with God.

Yesterday morning I opened mine and spent a few minutes reading through what had been written. God really spoke to me through those written words, penned by the hands of the precious young people in the ENERGY. They were encouraging and affirming and most important of all I did not focus on me but turned my gratitude towards Jesus for Who He is and what He has done in my life.

Tame your tongue otherwise you will find that trouble will come your way!

Preaching Up A Storm

WHERE ARE THE PREACHERS?? I have been thinking about this question. In the last week or so I have had a few conversations with people about communicating God's word to people (especially young people) and how important the gift of preaching is to the Body of Christ and to the world! At Contend on Friday evening, Jon Steer preached an outstanding message on 'Men and Work'. On Sunday Richard Brown shared his first message for many months and it was excellent. BCC is based in Kingswood, an area that saw an amazing move of God when John Wesley (pictured opposite) preached to the tough Miners of the area. Today, we need people who can communicate God's Word. In our Leadership team breakfast meeting today, this topic came up again.

I know from my own life that I have always liked the sound of my own voice ;o) and speaking in public to large crowds has never bothered me. I used to be the Chairman of Debates at UWE when I was studying for my law degree and language, words, communication and seeking to explain complex, abstract concepts in simple, accessible and, dare I say it, humorous ways is one of my life's callings. Those of you who know me will probably concur! I think some of the best preachers have this natural ability to talk and communicate. It is just a part of their DNA. Some of my favourite preachers are people like Mark Driscoll, Colin Urquhart, Joshua Harris, C.J. Mahaney, Jesse Duplantis (although I find some of his teaching highly questionable), Louie Giglio and Paul Scanlon are all highly gifted communicators and preachers. These men have a profound impact on the Church and beyond. A gifted preacher and teacher can lift the people of God into the presence of God and inspire them to go and do the work of God.

We too need to pray, identify, train, equip and provide opportunities for new emerging preachers in BCC to come forward to grow. This includes women and young people. There are some teens who have a very clear anointing on them to preach and teach. Sharing in Home Groups, at Unique and Contend, Guest Services, Energy and more all provide excellent platforms for a bit of 'practice' and to get some feedback and learn how to improve.

In the meantime, it is worth remembering that what makes the difference in preaching is the ownership and anointing of the Holy Spirit. Ironically, He sometimes chooses people who know that they are not very eloquent or articulate and anoints them to speak prophetically and with the very authority of God. I have found that on occasion I can organise the Holy Spirit out of my preach and lock myself up with too much structure and 'sticking to my notes'. As you get more confident you feel secure enough in the Holy Spirit's leading to go 'off-roading' and see where He takes you.

Pray for the preachers in this Church, both those who are emerging into this role and those who are still keeping this gift to themselves...their time will come!

Love Language

Welcome to the Blog. A new week has arrived and there is much to look forward to. I've just finished uploading 80 photos from the Youth Weekend Away at Croyde onto my Face Book site. Check them out if you have a few minutes - some of them are really good (including a few of us dressed up in our Moses' outfits! See opposite). I thought yesterday's meeting was an amazingly powerful time. From the moment we started worshipping, there was a passion and power in the proceedings. Mike's playing on the drums provided us with some truly prophetic sounds from heaven and pushed us further into the presence of God. WOW!

I have been leading the Music Team for many years now and I have noticed that there are times when we encounter new 'seasons' of worship. For example, certain songs can become very 'live', the prophetic song can begin to feature a lot more, there can be a sense of doing spiritual warfare when we worship or there can be a visceral sense of a deeper love, passion and desire to worship Jesus. Last March, on my return from the Kingdom faith Leaders' Conference, I felt I had received an impartation of something and this began to manifest itself in our times of worship. In the last couple of days I've felt another step forward in the Holy Spirit as He releases us into another 'season'.

On Saturday morning (in the prayer meeting), John prayed that this would happen, asking God to do a new thing in our worship times and take us into the deep things of His heart. The defining quality of a 'successful' Church is the quality of it's worship. God has blessed us and equipped us with many, many gifted musicians all of whom want to serve in whatever way they can. I remember several years ago being the only person leading worship in the Church. One week I led worship seven times! These days things are very different. Both Jon and Kat are outstanding, gifted musicians in their own right (I'm the only one NOT to have released my own album! lol) and have their own particular style and way of doing things. What is clear though is the strength of unity between us and our commitment to follow the lead of the Holy Spirit as He takes us through the different seasons of worship in the life of B.C.C.

Please pray for us. We want to minister fresh life, anointing and faith when we lead worship. Make a commitment in your own lives to seek Him during the week and bring that overflow of life to our times together. Imagine what God can do with a people who are prepared to do business with Him!

Man Up

Tonight is our Contend Meeting. Contend is the men's ministry in the Church and was set up a few years ago by Neil Bright in response to a word God gave him from Jude 3, "Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints."

We only meet about half a dozen times a year normally in two lots of three consecutive monthly meetings and each night comprises of food, worship and some sort of Biblical input, whether that be through a preached message from the front or through discussion on a particular topic at each table. There have been a variety of topics covered and each one is delivered from a uniquely (geddit?) male perspective. It is neither sexist nor misogynistic to say that men and women are different. Indeed, recent trends in secular developmental psychology suggest the feminist notion that women are identical to men, is not only wrong but actually damaging for normal human development. Christians have been saying that for years! No, sometimes men need to be with other men so issues can be dealt with in a particularly male way.

What do I mean by this?

As a Counsellor I work alot with teenage boys and girls. Although it is a bit of a generalisation, the boys tend to be a lot more direct, solution focused and confrontational. This is not always the case though! However, I find that when I am working with boys I can often be a lot more direct and challenging. There can be verbal skirmishes and sometimes they will push the boundaries. They like to know where they stand and want things clear and 'out in the open'; if they've come to see a Counsellor then they want to do something about the problem. I believe this represents an example of Proverbs 27:17 which says, "As iron sharpens iron so one man sharpens another."

Our times together as a Leadership Team are no exception. Sometimes there is a directness which can take your breath away. It is refreshing to be able to speak openly and frankly with one another and know that people will not 'throw their toys out of the pram' and storm off in a mood! You may think that Neil, Richard and I just rubber stamp anything John wants to do.

You are very, very wrong.

Each one of us has his own views and our own relationship with Jesus. We are men in our own right with our own thoughts, ideas and opinions on how things should be done! John is one of the most humble men I know and we will often ask him for clarification on matters, Church issues or operational procedures. He chooses to make himself accountable to us. Indeed, he welcomes this and always meets those genuine concerns and questions with grace and humility but he is not afraid to put across his view with conviction and strength. Remember, double mindedness is not a gift of the Holy Spirit! The reverse is also true: John has no hesitation in challenging us about decisions we have made, identifying areas of weakness and vulnerability in our characters which need to change, bringing correction, encouragement and sometimes rebuke in the way we have handled matters and so on.

I believe this way of men relating to men is extremely important. Statistically, men go to Church far less than women. Many men view Church as 'women's work' and sometimes the language we use can only reinforce this. I believe we have a lot to offer men. It ALWAYS starts with Leadership and our frankness and candour together protects the Church, keeping us accountable and teachable as Holy Spirit leads and guides us. All of us on the Leadership Team are very different and each of us carry gifts and talents which are unique to that man. However, when put together we provide positive male role models for other young men and aspiring leaders in BCC. We ensure that boys and teenage lads see Biblical expressions of male sexuality at all levels of the Church's life together and whilst women are equal to men in the eyes of God, He still chooses to use us in particular ways to advance His Kingdom in this world.

You can find out out more about the ministry of CONTEND by clicking on this link... http://www.bristolcommunitychurch.org/contend.asp

Red Card From God

What a tremendous time we had at the Holy Spirit Night yesterday! This three hour marathon contained a really prophetic edge and the worship was powerful and anointed. What particularly moved me was our time of prayer for all those affected by the hit and run accident which killed an 11 year old boy in Westbury. He was an active member of Henleaze and Westbury Community Church and we prayed for his family, the Church and those Leaders (including Tim Dobson, the Congregation leader) who will need much wisdom and love to support those grieving people trying to find God in this awful situation. The second verse of 'How Good It Is...' was a prophetic statement for them as a Church: "O God of strength, Your hand is on my life bringing peace to me / You know my frame You know how I am made You planned all my days / Hand of mercy, hand of love, giving power to overcome, if all beneath me falls away I know that you are God." Pray for them again today.

This morning I was reading through today's entry for The Purpose Driven Life and it got me thinking. Rick Warren writes (p.252), "Your shape [spiritual gifts/natural abilities etc] was sovereignly determined by God for his purpose, so you shouldn't resent it or reject it. Instead of trying to reshape yourself to be like someone else, you should celebrate the shape God has given only to you...Don't be envious of the runner in the lane next to you; just focus on finishing your race. God wants you to enjoy using the shape he has given you."

I have never been very good at sport. I have tried but it just frustrates me as I seem to lack any natural aptitude. At school I was always the one picked last for the football team and I was never really encouraged to try different sports just for fun. As a result I have to watch my attitude towards P.E. teachers even today (sorry Vicky P)!! If I have any regrets it's leaving school without really having a sport that a) I enjoy and b) I'm good at! In recent years I have realised that this is something which has become a source of irritation and frustration. 'Why can't I be like that...?' or 'Why can't I be good at this...?' have been questions in my mind with which I've had to battle. I may be bursting your bubble that Leaders are 'sorted' and never struggle with anything but this is what I felt I should blog about today. All Leaders have different vulnerabilities and weaknesses - the process of sanctification continues in us all.

In recent days the Lord has been speaking to me about enjoying what He has gifted me to do. A few weeks ago somebody said to me, 'I wish I could lead worship like you' and oddly enough I sometimes compared myself to them and wished I had some of their gifts and abilities. At times I have resented or rejected my 'shape'. Not any more. I am deciding today to enjoy how God has made me. I will not compete with or compare myself to others (Galatians 6:5 (CEV) "Do your own work well and then you will have something to be proud of. But don't compare yourself with others"). I will thank God for the perfect bundle of gifts and abilities He has given me to achieve His will here in earth. I will try new things too as there are plenty more undiscovered God-given gifts which, as yet, are waiting to be identified and activated. Who knows...one of them may even be sport related!

Snookered By God

Hope you all had a good bank holiday weekend. I went walking around Pensford with some people from BCC, stopping off at a couple of pubs along the way! It was great fun. In the evening, I watched, what turned out to be, a rather dull snooker final. John Higgins thrashed Shaun Murphy and the whole thing was over by 9pm! Seeing it again reminded me of the message I shared in Sunday's meeting. Since then, I have been talking to a few people and it seems that God really used it to challenge many of us about how our present existence must be shaped and dominated by a 'Last Days' mentality. This does not mean we build underground bunkers, buy lots of tinned goods and talk about 'The Beast' in hushed tones. Quite the opposite in fact!

Essentially, we know how all this ends. We know that Christ will return. We know that we win because He did and that His Victory will be fully realised here on earth forever. We know that we will ALL be judged for what we have done by His perfecting standards. We know that some will be rewarded, others won't and still others will be cast into hell. We know that all sin, poverty, depression, pain, sickness, disappointment, hurt, suffering and so on will end FOR ETERNITY. We know that life on earth now is as bad as it gets!

This revelation must affect all aspects of our lives.

As we look at the world today, we do not need to grow disheartened or depressed. We can rest assured that despite swine fever, wars, rumours of wars, economic meltdowns, tidal waves of unprecedented sexual immorality washing over a generation of teenagers and children (come on - where are the Internet Pastors??!!), catastrophic natural disasters, famine, corruption, abuse and so on, God sees it all, knows it all and understands it all. His plan is perfect.

I believe He is positioning the U.K. for a move of His power that will supercede anything that has gone before it. Moves of God have always been set against a backdrop of deep darkness. God is using these times to identify His true saints; those who are truly born again, passionate about His Son Jesus and willing to live a holy life despite the cost. He is looking for those who are dedicated to pursuing a lifestyle of prayer (this does not involve you living in a Monastery!) and wield His word with spiritual authority and divine revelation. He is going to reward those who persevere and don't give up doing good!

As you go into today, remember these truths. Keep praying, keep persevering, live your life knowing that the 147 is coming and nothing can stop that from taking place.

http://www.bristolcommunitychurch.org/podcasts.asp

*CROYDE 2009* Part 4

On Sunday I woke up at 3am. I think the piece of cake I had eaten before going to bed was taking it's revenge! In recent months, I've had some disturbed nights' sleep and woken up feeling unsettled or on a few occasions, facing a dark, oppressive presence in my room. Let's not get over spiritual about these moments, but I did feel something trying to get at me and as I lay there in the dark, trying to go back to sleep again, I quietly prayed and calmed myself down. In the morning, I felt tired. Saturday had been a wonderful day but we still had a long way to go before reaching the finishing line and I wanted us to 'CARPE DIEM'!! (Seize The Day). As a Leader, you always feel the responsibility for what is going on. You can rely on other people to help and support you. You can delegate and administrate. But I know God holds me to account. I fear that sometimes. That sense of responsibility never leaves you. I so wanted God to have His way again and turn this final day into another series of Holy Spirit, life-changing encounters for the Team and for these Young People, for whom I have a deep love. I'm getting quite emotional as I write this. Weird...

Stephen led our early morning prayer meeting and he did a great job. At times it's easy to see what we don't do well or the immaturity in our lives or our mistakes and sin but as I sat there looking around, I knew God was with us and He was working in the lives of these young men and women. We had a powerful time of prayer and really turned up the volume; speaking in tongues, calling on God and generally being a bit more passionate about Kingdom matters. Some of the prayers of the young people were truly heartfelt and faith-filled. Isn't this how it should be all the time?

As we went for breakfast afterwards, my plan to have a couple of sessions looking at the life of Moses did not really inspire me. I spoke to a couple of the Team about an idea that was forming in my mind: we walk down to Puttsborough Beach (see photo above) and spend the morning there, having some fun and meeting God through His Creation. It turned out to be the right decision. The sun was out and the scenery was truly breathtaking. The Beach was beautiful and the tide was going out. We spent some time playing rounders and enjoying the fun (despite some awful missed catches, overthrows and poor fielding!) then we gathered them all together for some focused time on meeting Jesus.

In his book Courageous Leadership, Bill Hybels describes different 'devotional pathways' (p.215ff). Essentially, these are ways people connect with God and compromise of seven different pathways: i) relational, ii) intellectual, iii) serving, iv) contemplative, v) activist, vi) creation and vii) worship. As a Youth Group we have never really learned how to find God through His creation despite the Bible making it clear that creation speaks of the Creator (Psalm 19:1-6). I wanted us to use this awesome scenery as a backdrop to do just that. We sent them off on their own to pray, read their Bibles and use all their senses to find God in their surroundings. They came back and some of what they shared was truly inspired. They were really buzzing with a fresh excitement and energy and then, standing shoulder to shoulder on the beach, with the seasalt in our mouths and the wind playing and bounding around us like an enthusiastic puppy, we broke bread together and reaffirmed Jesus' covenant with us and with each other. All through the weekend I felt a strong sense of unity between the young people and between us and within the Team. This moment was a prophetic statement of what God was doing as well as our own intent to keep going and never give up for it is those who persevere to the end who will be saved. (Matthew 24:13, James 1:12).

This is the last Blog entry covering our Youth Weekend Away to Croyde, I hope you've enjoyed reading about some of what happened. Thanks to all of you who prayed and encouraged us as well as those who provided considerable practical support over the weekend (including The Team, The Chef, The Musician etc). If you have any thoughts about this week's Blog entries, please hit the 'comments' icon below and share them with everyone. I know alot of you regularly check the Blog (according to the web statistics 430 of you logged on last month) but it's always encouraging to get some feedback so I know the stats are really true! (What do they say about stats? 'Lies, damned lies and statistics...').

Have a great Bank Holiday Weekend - don't forget we will be meeting on Saturday morning for prayer as usual here in the King's Rooms and Sunday's meeting (3 May) kicks off at 10am. I'll be back to Blog on Tuesday so see you then if not before.