Heading for Horsham

Here comes another weekend! I'm looking forward to some good weather, a couple of 6 mile runs and some sherry - no don't worry I'm not resorting to drink! It's for this year's Christmas Pudding; I like to make one (and a few smaller ones for gifts) each year and I need to get cracking.

Another highlight of this weekend will be the Guest Service. One of the young people is preaching the Gospel and I know it is going to be a special, anointed time. Sometimes we can view these services as 'JUST a Guest Service' although I'm sure you don't! It is all too easy to forget that the Gospel of Jesus is not something we 'learn', tick the box and then move onto other things; no, it is a life long experience of ever increasing revelation. No-one can fathom the depth and breadth and height and width of this Good News. The Cross contains mysteries that will keep us absorbed, challenged, amazed, delighted, rebuked and content for the whole of our lives. Come ready for an awesome time on Sunday morning; expect people to be saved, have faith that whoever is preaching the Gospel, young or old, rich or poor, it carries the power of God to change lives for ever.

Next week Pastors Neil, Richard and myself will be heading for Horsham to join the Kingdom Faith Leaders' Conference. This twice-yearly event is always an excellent time and it is a privilege to be able to receive teaching from the KF Team, spend time worshipping God and enjoy fellowship with other Leaders from all over Europe. Please pray that this will be a really fruitful time.

There will be no blog for most of next week, I'll try and do one on Friday and give you a bit of an insight into our trip to Horsham. In the meantime have a great weekend and stay off the sherry! (unless of course you too are using it for culinary purposes lol).

Jesus is Bigger Than The Beatles

40 years ago, The Beatles recorded their last album, Abbey Road. Without doubt they were the most influential and arguably, most successful pop band in the history of the world. John Lennon famously remarked that they were "bigger than Jesus". Whilst there is still argument over what Lennon actually meant, what we do know is that despite those hyperbolic claims, Jesus is still bigger than anyone and anything else. Currently on earth, ONE THIRD of the population claim to believe in Jesus Christ; that's 2 000 000 000 people. Yup, you read that correctly: 2 BILLION.

Last week saw the release of Dan Brown's new book The Lost Symbol. His previous work The DaVinci Code, notched up both controversy and extremely healthy sales selling approximately 40 million copies worldwide since it's release. Bigger than Jesus? I think not; every year in this country alone, 100 million Bibles are sold. Think about that for a minute; in ONE year in the United Kingdom ALONE the Bible sells two and a half times more copies that ALL of Brown's recorded DaVinci Code sales across the globe.

The Media reports that the Church is in decline and 1000s of people, including teens and twenties are leaving every week. Yet we know from alternative information sources that whilst some parts of the Church may be struggling, there is a vibrant, dynamic life in many other areas spearheaded by people who passionately love Jesus, have not given into emergent church compromise or liberal theology and consequently are advancing God's Kingdom here on earth.

And success is not all about numbers. On Tuesday evening the 20+ Young people involved in ENERGY gave testimony after testimony of God's goodness in their lives covering a range of issues from healing to evangelistic opportunities to school to family and so much more. We were blown away by God's goodness. We then asked God for some words of knowledge and the response was amazing to behold as about 7 responded for prayer. The highlight for me was seeing two of the lads receive words of knowledge for the first time and get them spot on! This is all against a backdrop of the Teens putting together this term's ENERGY programme and there is a life and enthusiasm in them for prayer, developing faith, evangelism and more that I have not seen for a long time.

Our God is an awesome God. Don't forget the Truth of the Bible even when the world says otherwise!

Get The Giggles

Yesterday I laughed. Alot. I was meeting up with one of the Youth for a catch up and we were driving back from The Mall. The radio was on and they were playing some 'hits' from the 1980s (my era - sorry but there we go). Sadly, this young person was not a connoisseur of 80s Classics and made his view very clear. In response, I decided it would be a good to idea to turn up the radio, wind the car windows down and sing along at the top of my voice. We turned a few heads and I laughed at both him and me for a while. Laughter is important.

Jesus spent three years of His life with 12 blokes. They lived, ate, slept and did life in close proximity to one another. They grew close to Him and close to one another. Anyone who has been with a load of men for more than a few minutes will know that laughter is an important part of our relational dynamic. I suspect that these rough and ready blokes from Palestine were no different and there were times of of high jinx and jocularity; they laughed long and hard.

In Bill Johnson's book Strengthen Yourself in the Lord he writes (p.129), "Most of the people of faith who consistently make a contribution to my life in times of need are also people with a great sense of humour. I tend to take myself too seriously and resist laughter in difficult times. Joy in trial takes faith; but being with people I trust enough to relax around helps to foster the atmosphere where laughter comes easily and often. Sometimes just being together, telling funny stories, sharing joyful experiences and even laughing at myself, is just what the doctor ordered. Laughter really is good medicine."

The Bible teaches us that we should be joyful (Nehemiah 8:10, Romans 14:17, Galatians 5:22, Philippians 3:1, 4:4). This is not just for the benefit of those around us but for our own benefit as well. Sometimes, being able to laugh at life helps us live more effectively; we can take things far too seriously. I am not advocating turning everything into one big joke. Neither am I saying that some things do not need to be treated seriously because they are serious! However, my own tendency towards severity and intensity is not always helpful; learning to laugh with God can be hugely beneficial and will ensure I keep everything in His perspective.

Home Sweet Home

What another awesome meeting we had yesterday! The time of worship we had was probably one of the Top 5 Best Ever I have ever been in and Pastor Richard's message was so simple yet contained theological depth and gravitas, explaining complex concepts in a straightforward, easy to understand way. Just when I think we've maxed out in our worship times, God does something fresh again and we go to a new place. Check out the preach on our website.

This weekend I've been thinking about God's faithfulness to my life over many, many years; I want to bring a TESTIMONY! For most of my adult life I've been single. Sometimes this has brought the greatest blessings imaginable but other times it has been a lonely, difficult desert. Regardless of circumstances, I believe that in God's perfect timing, I will marry, have kids and find out more about being a Christian as a Husband and biological Father. In the meantime, I wear a ring on my wedding finger to remind me of these promises and to inspire me to persevere, all the while remaining at peace over this matter and being content with what God has given me today (1 Timothy 6:6).

On Friday evening I was visiting some close friends who have just had a new baby. I have got to know them over a number of years and would say that I am a part of their family; hopefully they would agree! My life has been enriched by knowing them and their (now) two children. I enjoy being a part of their lives, spending time with them, crying with laughter on the one hand and then crying and encouraging each other when friends, family and loved ones become casualties in this spiritual war.

On Sunday night I was visiting another couple who I have known for nearly 10 years. Looking back I see how God has used them to change me and teach me many things; helping me learn about being a Dad/Husband/Family by watching and participating in their life together, handling conflict and disagreements, drawing out my sense of humour and breaking the emotional and cognitive intensity into which I can so easily slip and being introduced to activities and experiences I would normally avoid or simply not have an opportunity to do. Their children, who are now teenagers and thriving in ENERGY, are very special to me and I have a strong bond with both of them which has come from being a part of their lives for a long time. Walking through this adventure of faith with a family who love God and love me is an extremely precious gift of great spiritual value.

And there are others too.

Psalm 68:6 (New Living Translation) says, "God places the lonely in families" and this has been and continues to be my testimony. I have been challenged and changed by these families. I have learnt Kingdom principles about marriage and family which will be deployed with my own wife and children in the future. Perhaps most significantly, I have laughed hard and drawn from life experiences which mean so much more when enjoying them as an adopted member of a family.

Thank you God.

Worship is Worth It

Worshipping God through music has always been a big part of my life. When I was converted at 16 I was already learning two instruments, playing in orchestras and singing in school choirs; my life evolved around music. God designed me to be like that! It did not take long for one of the worship leaders at St. Andrew's Chorleywood to 'spot' me and get me involved. For many months, Sundays would be a busy day as I was playing/singing at various different services and meetings.

When I came to Bristol as a Student in 1991 (see yesterday's blog for more information!), I got involved with the Christian Union and led a bit of worship there. This proved to be something of a lifeline during a spiritually tough year and it was not until I joined BCC in 1992 that leading worship became an integral part of God's call on my life. I am so grateful that BCC gave me an opportunity to join the worship team and begin to lead worship; it was a big gamble for them as they did not know me that well at all! As a result I started to lead worship on Sunday mornings and at the evening Student meeting over in Clifton. I was still involved with worship at UWECU as well as being involved in youth camps and conferences. I learnt so much!

I have been thinking again about the importance of worship. God is, once again, doing something new through our corporate times of worship in three main ways. Firstly, we are starting to use worship as a tool for spiritual warfare. Secondly, we are learning more about the power of singing truth; declaring who God is, what He has done and maintaining a Christ-centred focus instead of slipping into self-indulgent, 'soulish' worship where we are the centre. Our times at Kingdom Faith have taught us a great deal in this area. Thirdly, the gifts of the Spirit are beginning to manifest in our times of worship, especially the prophetic. We are getting away from singing the song on the video projector and letting new songs and melodies spring up from within; inspired by Holy Spirit.

In Bill Johnson's book Strengthen Yourself in the Lord he writes (p.73) "Thanksgiving and praise are tools to strengthen ourselves not because they help us get something from the Lord, but because they reconnect us to our primary purpose - to minister to Him in worship. They bring us into His presence; and true worship is something that only happens in the place of communion with His presence. In worship, the sacrifice is no longer physical expression or verbal declarations. We are the sacrifice. Fire always falls on sacrifice. And when we are the sacrifice, we cannot help but be changed."

It is so easy to view worship as an opportunity to get something from the Lord where the essential nature of worship is to give something to Him: our whole lives (Romans 12:1). This is a sacrificial act as we always have needs, situations which need resolution and so on but in simply turning our focus on Jesus, worshipping Him and choosing to make Him the centre of our lives by offering Him our whole lives, we suddenly find that He takes care of the rest. People are healed and set free as they offer their lives in worship. Breakthroughs come in the faith-stirring and faith-strengthening dynamic of worship.

The key is to remember that worship is about giving, not getting; He'll take care of the rest.

P.S. DON'T FORGET THE PRAYER MEETING AT 7.30AM TOMORROW.

Students in the City

Nearly 18 years ago I came to Bristol as a fresh-faced, bright-eyed, bushy-tailed law Student with a full head of hair! Fresh from A-Levels and just two years into my Christian faith, this was one of the biggest challenges of my life and I needed all the help I could get. Despite clear evidence of God's grace over my life, the first year was one of slow compromise and a deterioration of my zeal and passion for Jesus. Much of this was down to the fact that I had not settled into a Church. After a while I realised that unless I took some serious action I was going to lose my faith altogether.

One evening changed all that; a friend at UWE Christian Union asked me if I'd ever been to visit Bristol New Covenant Church (this was before we changed our name to Bristol Community Church). I had never heard of it and, on paper, it was not the sort of place I would want to go as it was not located in the student-based areas of Bristol and had a strong family emphasis. However, that conversation was a truly God-inspired moment and so much of who I am, what I'm doing and where I am in my faith today flowed from that one encounter.

Despite my ambivalence (shame on me!) I went along one Sunday morning to BNCC. At the time they were meeting in the Civic Centre in Kingswood. Oddly enough, the moment I walked through the door I knew this was where I needed to be. I did not know any of the worship songs (they sang songs from a different 'network' of Church called Covenant Ministries), any of the people or any of the teaching but it did not matter. God was joining me to this group of people and the rest, as they say, is history.

Since those days, students have been under-represented in BCC. We used to have a thriving work including regular lunches for Students (very popular!), a special mid-week Student meeting and more. A great deal of fruit came from those days and there are still people in BCC today who were part of that student ministry. We must never look back wistfully, rue the 'good old days' and set up an idol to past experiences and encounters. No, God is doing something new TODAY and once again, we are seeking to reach out to the 40 000+ Students in Bristol and see them saved and discipled.

Last Saturday morning, we prayed for Jonty and Pippa Joyce as they take on the new role of Student Coordinator's in BCC. They have already made overtures to both Bristol University and UWE, making contact with the Christian Unions and advertising BCC through these channels. They will also be attending the Freshers' Fayres in coming weeks. In addition to that, all through October we will be running Student Lunches with a view to seeing some Students come along and experience all God is doing in and through us. As the work grows we will also consider how best to integrate these Students into the life of the Church. This may include a special mid-week homegroup-style session. There are also plans for a dedicated webpage on the main bcc site too so watch this space!

For regular updates check out the new blog: http://bccstudentlife.blogspot.com/ and most importantly PRAY for Jonty and Pippa, the thousands of Students coming into the city in the next couple of weeks and that God would, once again, do an awesome work amongst the ripe harvest fields of student ministry.

Silver Celebration

Last night a group of us met to go through some ideas for Bristol Community Church's Silver Celebration at the start of 2010. It is amazing to think that in January we will have been meeting as a Church for a quarter of a century. A bit further on in April, we mark another significant moment as the first Trust Deed was signed into existence, thereby creating BCC as a 'proper' charity and recognised in English Law. Dave and Nicky, Mark and Vicky and Fran and Gerry have done an excellent job pulling together some ideas and I'm not going to spoil it for you now by giving the game away on the Blog. Instead, you'll have to wait until things have been formalised and we 'go public' with the plans; you won't be disappointed though!

Instead, I wanted to take a few moments to reflect on this remarkable achievement; 25 years of Bristol Community Church.

Originally we were known as Bristol New Covenant Church and were planted out from the Bath City Church when we were under the oversight of an apostolic network headed up by Bryn Jones called Covenant Ministries International. Such were the numbers of people travelling over to Bath from Bristol that a new congregation was planted with a view to catering for this merry band of Bristolian nomads and to target the east side of Bristol with the Gospel of Jesus. We went from strength to strength and as people joined this fledgling ministry the work began to grow. This became the seeds of what grew into BCC today.

I have been a part of this Church since I joined as a Student in er...1992 (*sigh*) and things have changed a great deal (for the better) since then. Through anointed leadership and a 'no compromise' attitude to both word and worship, God has richly blessed us in those 25 years. As I reflect on my own time here I am in awe of how God has kept us together in that time with no major splits or divisions to speak of. This is most unusual for a Church of any longevity. Church planting, building and leading is seriously hard work and the spiritual attacks are many and vicious. However, God has been so faithful and His anointing on key leaders to take us through some of those harder times has proved to be significant in our survival. Pastor John has been leading BCC for 16 years and I thank God that he has steered us through some very choppy waters in that time!

As I think about the future, I am excited. Many, many new expressions of Kingdom life are coming through in our lives together as a Church and we can give Jesus Christ all the honour and praise for His faithfulness during those times. What amazing grace He offers!

Location! Location! Location!

I was really challenged by Pastor John's question to us as a Church congregation yesterday morning; how many of you have a testimony of God's saving grace from this week? This question came by way of a response to a new song we had sung; Jesus Saves by Tim Hughes. Pastor John was seeking to make the link that being saved by Jesus is not a one-off event in the past, instead it is an ongoing process whereby we see God at work in and through us over the course of our entire lives. Saying you are 'saved' but show no further evidence of God's work in your life since then is a problem!

Upon reflection, I can identify many moments last week where I have seen God do something or remind me of something which confirms His continuing saving grace towards my life. Although seemingly 'small' events, I believe they are 'big' both to me and in God's eyes!

Youth In the last week, I have seen God really grip the young people with a fresh excitement for Him. At Faith Camp I prayed that God would release a fresh passion for Jesus in the lives of BCC Young People and when we met last Tuesday I saw this flame burning bright in their lives. They are really excited about putting together the programme for this term and have approached the task with maturity, faith and passion. In addition to this, one young man was talking to me about a real breakthrough in his life after what has been quite a challenging year.

House I realised last week that in a couple of weeks time I will have lived in my Kingswood flat for a decade. After 10 years of living there, I was so grateful to God for providing this wonderful little home for me which has been a source of great blessing, peace and refuge over the years. It is doubtful that I would have been able to afford it now, even with the current economic climate, and looking back I see just how perfect God's timing was back in 1999.

Travel On Saturday I went down to Woolacombe to meet up with some friends, enjoy the sunshine and go surfing. Sadly the sea was doing an excellent impersonation of a lake and so the boards stayed on the beach. However, I still had a lovely day out; eating ice cream, fish and chips and hanging out with friends. On my return journey I found myself following another driver (with surf boards on the roofrack!) and we stuck with each other all the way back to Bristol. It felt like such a little thing but this company on the motorway kept my attention and proved to be a real blessing, along with the preach by Pastor Neil which I was listening to on my stereo. On my return to Bristol, a rather aggressive driver cut me up at a roundabout and nearly ran into the side of me but I felt God's watchful eye (Psalm 121) covering my life and keeping me safe. I arrived home safe and sound!

Yes, I am saved and going to heaven. Yes, the same power which raised Jesus from the dead is dwelling in and through. Yes, His acts of saving grace continue. Why don't you keep your eyes open this week and come ready to share all that He has been doing with you when we meet again this weekend?

BCC United

So England have secured their place in the 2010 World Cup after thrashing Croatia 5-1 on Wednesday evening. Much of the credit for this turn around in the usual dismal fortunes of English Football has been directed at the new Manager, Fabio Capello. This morning's Guardian carries the following quote from Frank Lampard (emphasis added), ""History now says that Fabio gets all the big decisions right," said the midfielder. "He's had great success and it's not by chance. He is fantastic manager and his biggest Midas touch has been getting us working together as a team and as a unit. You can see the results of that pretty much in every game of the qualifying round.""

Put simply, what we learn from these achievements is this: unity matters.

Even non-Christians applying essentially biblical principles will reap the rewards. God's Word offers universally true principles and promises. Unity is a quality which, if prioritised, offers Kingdom riches beyond our finite understanding. Essentially, God Himself models the importance of unity; after all He is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Psalm 133 talks about it, Jesus prayed for it (John 17:23) and the Holy Spirit delivers it (Romans 15:5). Unity is about 'oneness'; the coming together of different people around a common view, goal, experience or activity. For Christians, our unity is based on a commitment to outwork God's perfect will here on earth, through His Son Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.

On Wednesday night we had a Family Time. Despite it's rather confusing title, a Family Time is not a Kids' Meeting! Instead it provides opportunity for committed members of BCC (i.e. those who have completed our Power for Living Course and formally 'joined' us) to meet and hear about important issues, plans and other Church business going on. This week's session was a full one as there was a lot to get through. However, I came away from it feeling extremely encouraged because there was a palpable sense of unity in the room; a oneness which drew us together. What transcended individuals' differences and views of how things should and shouldn't be done was a deep humility and passionate commitment and desire to do what God wants. at the end of the day, what He wants is what really matters.

A Church who gets hold of this will become a formidable revival force in this nation and beyond. They will be able to do anything in accordance with His perfect will (Matthew 18:19-20). I believe that is what God has made us to be in these days.

Have a great weekend, see you tomorrow (Saturday Prayer Meeting from 7.30am), on Sunday (10am Meeting) or back here for more blogging on Monday.

Bear All

Morning All! As I preached a couple of weeks ago and wrote in the most recent edition of Spotlight, our faith in Christ should be one of extreme adventure punctuated by unquestioning obedience to God's perfect work for our lives; the Lord doesn't do boring! This does not mean that we will never be involved with situations, events and problems which are mundane or a bit dull! Rather, through the application of faith, we can inject a sense of purpose, excitement and fulfillment into every area of life whether that be raising children, cooking tea, doing the housework, going to school, working in our jobs, leading worship, preaching or buying the weekly shop in Asda - every arena of life carries with it the opportunity for a Kingdom encounter as we outwork the line in the Lord's prayer: 'Let Your Kingdom come, let Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven'.

The key for outworking adventurous faith (which surpasses anything that our Beloved Bear can cook up), is ACTIVATING AN OPPORTUNITY. We must always look for Holy Spirit led opportunities to take faith, apply faith and use faith in our daily lives. They are all around us, the problem is we are simply not aware of them. Last Friday I was in John Lewis eating cake. The life of a Youth Leader is a tough one. As I was quietly minding my own business, one of the table tidiers walked past and a name suddenly flashed into my head: 'Anne'. Here was an opportunity to outwork God's Kingdom in the middle of John Lewis! I wish I could say that I approached this lady and asked her if the name 'Anne' meant anything to her. I wish I could say she broke down in tears and I wish I could say I led her to Christ right there and then over the Earl Gray and Cheesecake.

But I didn't; I bottled it. The opportunity for adventure was sat under my nose and I opted for a quiet life. I did repent and seriously consider going back to speak to her but felt the moment had passed. These opportunities are all around us to demonstrate God's Kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom 14:17), accompanied by signs, wonders and miracles. Adventure is available for us all, the question is whether we can a) discern those opportunities and b) act with radical obedience to realise their potential to release Kingdom power.

This Tuesday we had our first ENERGY meeting back after the Summer Holidays. Put simply, over that time I was rather uninspired about what I had planned for the Youth this term. After prayer and some conversations with a few people I realised that God wanted ENERGY to be given an opportunity for a faith adventure. As a Team, we needed to help the young people lead ENERGY rather than lead ENERGY ourselves. The phrasing is subtle but the difference is huge. We have a number of young people with a leadership anointing which is not dependant on how old they are. Last term many of them were involved in leading sessions themselves and the results were wonderful. Many of the young people have a fresh fire in their bellies for Jesus; as I taught on Tuesday night we must love God passionately. As well as being the first and greatest commandment (Matthew 22:38), we see this quality consistently and constantly demonstrated in the life of Jesus (John 2:12-17).

As a result of this, we have given ENERGY the responsibility to plan and prepare this term's activities. Included in this is an opportunity to do the Sunday Evening Christmas Service (20 December). Next week they will come together, run their own meeting and really capture God's heart for what HE wants this term. The Team's job will be to help make it happen. Just to be clear, I'm not abdicating my spiritual responsibility or authority for the youth ministry. Rather, I'm looking to give the young people Holy Spirit-led opportunities to go on that awesome adventure of faith. Sorry Bear but you're just no competition!

Spotlight on Spotlight

You might have noticed that our in-house newsletter: 'Spotlight' has gone through something of a transformation in recent months. For a number of years we religiously printed up a monthly newsletter and tried to put in some extra articles and features about BCC and all we do. It had got a bit lacklustre and it was proving difficult to put together anything of real substance.

Back around Easter time we decided to change the way Spotlight was compiled and adopted a more professional approach; asking people to contribute regularly so we had monthly features, planning editions in advance and rotating the lead articles between the four Pastors. Combined with Rin's input (a member of BCC who is, herself, a professional journalist), Spotlight has now evolved into a regular 'bumper' edition packed full of genuinely interesting articles and features from all sorts of different people in BCC. As Fran said to me last week, "These days, Spotlight just writes itself!".

The significance of this 'window' onto all things BCC is not to be underestimated. More and more visitors to BCC are accessing our website and thanks to our Webmaster, each Spotlight is now available for download. Having something of such substance and calibre is extremely important for these visitors who can get much more of an overview of who we are, what we do and the way we function as a Church.

Spotlight also gives an excellent forum for people to share what they feel God is speaking to them about. There are very few opportunities on Sunday mornings for people to preach but the pages of Spotlight offer a valuable outlet for those who want to contribute towards the high standard of testimonial life across BCC. Moreover, some people find it a lot easier to write something than to stand up in front of 150 people and say it!

Finally, what I love about it is the bold, prophetic statement these faith-filled articles make to the spiritual realms. Taking an hour to read through the Newsletter and find out what God is doing in people's lives inspires my faith and helps me see, through the testimonies of others, that our God is, indeed, an awesome God! As Bill Johnson says, "We must constantly be reminded of who we are in God and who God is in our lives, because that's what positions us to move with Him again today as He demonstrates His power in and through us." (Release The Power of Jesus p.95). Keep remembering what God has done both in your life and in the lives of others; Spotlight helps cultivate that faith dynamic and will inspire you to move forward!

Thanks to everyone who writes for Spotlight. If you want to put something in next month's edition then please email your copy to Fran in the Office.

Testimony Time

Yesterday's meeting was an amazingly powerful time. For various reasons, I'd decided to lead the worship for our Sunday meetings in September and there has been an excitement in my Spirit in the build up to our first 'proper' meeting of the new term. This first Sunday in September has always been an important one; it offers an opportunity for everyone to reconvene after the intermittent summer holiday church attendance and for us to unite and move forward, enjoying a 'keynote' word from John setting the scene for the rest of the year.

The worship time was particularly powerful. Much of this was down to the hunger of the people to meet Jesus. As we sang 'Great is the Lord', I felt the power and ownership of Holy Spirit flowing through those Christ-Centred words, lifting us into greater places of intimacy with God and opening the door for a release of Kingdom passion and love into our lives. The Worship Team were on fire! James did a particularly good job on the drums and moved from simply performing a song to worshipping through the song - what a transformation. John's message was so simple, yet so profound and will no doubt stimulate much of our thinking in the weeks ahead. A tremendous meeting!

As I reflected on some of the themes of the morning and what God was saying to us, I realised that once again Holy Spirit is highlighting the importance of each one of us having a testimony. Put simply, a testimony is a true story of something God has done. We underestimate the spiritual power of these true stories (Revelation 12:11). Interestingly, I have been dipping into Bill Johnson's latest book Release the Power of Jesus; a synopsis on the importance of...having a testimony! He writes, "What I have discovered is that our ability to fulfill [The Great Commission] depends largely on one vital thing - remembering. Our capacity to remember what God has said and done in our lives and throughout history - the testimony - is one of the primary things that determine our success or failure in sustaining a Kingdom lifestyle of power and miracles." (p.26).

Yesterday's meeting was punctuated by people sharing their testimonies, I was particularly moved by the person who shared about the death of their Grandmother and her encounter with heaven as she passed peacefulyl from this world to being with Jesus in the next. Stories such as these raise faith and remind us of who God is and what He has done. It encourages us. Testimonies break through the limits of cognitive reasoning and launch us into the orbit of the supernatural. People hearing these true stories can reach out to God to do the same or similar works in their own lives and most importantly...Satan hates it as people's lives are defined by the Word and works of the Holy Spirit.

Let me wrap up today's Blog with a testimony from my own life: at the end of the meeting I had a conversation with one of ENERGY. This young person has had a challenging year in God. However, they began to share their own testimony with me of God speaking into their life in a clear, powerful and inspiring way. This process precipitated a significant change of heart and as he spoke to me my own faith began to rise and grow stronger. The power of this testimony affected me in three main ways, first of all I saw how God's Word is true and that my prayers for this teenager had made a difference - God has sovereignly chosen to use me in advancing His work in this person's life. Secondly, it increased my own love for Jesus as I saw Him lay His hand on this young man's life and move Him forward. Finally, it showed me that other young people, for whom I pray and pastor, WILL come through into a stronger place of faith if I simply continue being obedient to God: He has done it before and so He wil do it again.

What's your testimony today? Get one and don't be afraid to use it!

Summer Holiday - Part 3

First of all, sorry about the picture; a moment of pure self-indulgence and completely unrelated to the Blog. This is me surfing at Fistral Beach a couple of weeks ago. I finally managed to get up on the board - not much of an achievement for some of you super-surfers I know, but for me a significant milestone none the less. Thanks to the BCC Paparazzi for being on hand with the digital camera.

This entry will conclude the Summer Holiday 3-Part Special. I'm not in tomorrow so blogging will re-commence on Monday as the new term begins in earnest! As mentioned previously, my final stop on the Summer Holiday was in Newquay. I had an awesome time with Jesus including many 'kingdom connections' with dozens of non-Christians during the week. I went with some friends who were also keen to enjoy Jesus and our time consisted of beach trips, sightseeing (down at Land's End, St. Ives and other places), lots of great fellowship and fun with a few homemade treats thrown in for good measure (a certain teenage lad took a bit of a shine to my chocolate ginger bread whilst his Dad tucked into the Chocolate Guinness Cake!). During the course of the week, the most significant event for me was my time in the Word of God.

At Faith Camp I picked up a copy of Colin Urquhart's interpretation of the New Testament, The Truth. Since then I have been reading great big chunks of this at a time and not worrying about referring back to a Commentary. I'll return to this way of working through the Word later on this term. I have always loved reading; this passion for books, language, words and communication has been a consistent feature of my whole life and it is like blood running through my veins. Whilst at Newquay I had a fresh appreciation for God's Word and that we need to read. The way we overcome Satan is through THE WORD (Ephesians 6:17); it is the only offensive weapon given us by the Lord yet so many of us seek to fight with items of the spiritual armour that are intended for defence.

I want to be really practical and seek to give you some pointers that will help you develop your love for and understanding of God's Word. Rather than cut and paste a load of stuff, I've simply attached a document to this Blog called 'HOW2 Study the Bible". It's part of a package of material I wrote for our youth group about 4 years ago and is designed to give some teaching about WHY the Bible is so important as well as some advice on HOW to get into it. There is also a 'Read Through the Bible' chart courtesy of Anaheim Vineyard. I know some of you will have insight into what works for you so do leave comments if you wish.
how2studybible.doc
biblereadingprog.doc

At the end of the day, we need to read. More specifically, we need to read the Bible. Today, many young people (and then subsequently adults) struggle to read; many teachers will tell you that we do not have a strong reading culture. Many men find this to be a particular problem. Sometimes this can be used as an excuse and we reach for the TV remote rather than the Word of God. I am not ignoring the genuine struggles of some people, especially boys and men when it comes to reading but I also present the challenge: don't you think God knows and, if we ask Him, will be only too pleased to send His Spirit to help?

Have a great weekend and see you Monday.

PS DON'T FORGET OUR SATURDAY MORNING PRAYER MEETINGS RECOMMENCE TOMORROW (5 SEPTEMBER) FROM 7.30AM IN THE KING'S ROOMS FOLLOWED BY BREAKFAST AT PAULA'S CAFE.

Summer Holiday - Part 2

So. The Summer Holiday Blog continues. As mentioned yesterday, I was working on two teams at Soul Survivor Week C: the Enabling Team (kind of like a prayer/ministry Team but getting alongside others and helping them do it instead of us) and the Prophetic Team. Now, before you reach for the cessationist commentaries and leave lots of reformed comments on my Blog, just hang in there for a minute.

The gifts of prophecy (1 Corinthians 14) and words of knowledge (1 Corinthians 12:8) are just a few Holy Spirit given tools available to all believers in the New Covenant. You are not an inferior Christian if you don't exercise these gifts, but when you've been given the keys to a brand new Aston Martin DB9 why stick with the scooter!

Let me just define what I mean here. According to David Pytches' book (p.79) Come Holy Spirit, prophecy is 'the special ability that God gives to members of the Body of Christ to receive and communicate an immediate message of God to his gathered people, a group among them or any one oh his people individually, through a divinely anointed utterance." Let's distinguish between a Prophet (Ephesians 4) and the gift of prophecy. This is not the time or place to go into a detailed discussion but needless to say I think that the gift of prophecy is not just about telling the future but stating, with spiritual boldness and clarity, the heart and voice of God into a situation. The Prophets of old often brought hard, directional words requiring dramatic change from people and Nations or else! I still believe in the office of Prophet in the New Covenant but today I believe that ALL Christians can enjoy the gift of prophecy because Joel 2 has been fulfilled in Acts 2. With this in mind, we can ALL enjoy the gift of prophecy which, according to 1 Cor 14 should strengthen, encourage and comfort people (v3).

A 'word of knowledge' (1 Cor 12:8) is the 'supernatural revelation of facts about a person or situation, which is not learned through the efforts of the the natural mind, but is a fragment of knowledge freely given by God, disclosing the truth which the Spirit wishes to be made known concerning a particular person or situation." (op. cit. p. 99).

During Soul Survivor, we worked in teams of 3-4 and ministered to people in Groups of 5. The session lasted about an hour and we saw three groups per afternoon. Each person received a CD recording of everything that was said so they could go away and test everything that was said with trusted leaders in their own Churches (1 Thess 5:21 and 1 John 4:1). By the end of the week, I had been involved in ministering to about 60 people. It taught me so much.

Most significantly, I felt the Lord reminding me about 1 Cor 13:4-8 and the need for everything to be motivated by love. I learnt how to hear God and just trust Him even when I was tired or simply not 'in the mood'. Once again, I understood how simple God wants to make stuff (for our benefit not His!) and how complicated we make it all the time. God challenged me again about learning through mistakes and mess and persevering with something even when, in the beginning, it can be a bit 'hit and miss'. So many of the words we shared were extremely accurate and I saw the power of these gifts in reassuring people that God knew them, loved them and had positive plans for them, even in the midst of pain, suffering and problems (Jeremiah 29:11).

Rather excitingly, both these gifts have been stirring in me in recent weeks. I do firmly believe that God supernaturally equips us to advance His Kingdom and these tools are not just for the Church but invaluable for effective witness to the world. I have had scores of what I call 'kingdom connections' with people in the last month or so and many of these encounters have come through receiving words of knowledge for people in everyday life. Soul Survivor has helped me sharpen up and identify when the Holy Spirit is speaking to me. I've had kingdom connections with people standing in the queue at Asda, the Rip Curl Shop in Newquay, Fat Face at Fistral beach, on a campsite and loads more.

We all have to start somewhere. I'm believing that as I step out more and more with risky faith, God will do more than I can possibly imagine as He uses me to advance His Kingdom in their lives. Come on!!!

Summer Holiday - Part 1

I'M BACK!! I had really prayed that this summer would be so much better than last year which I found quite dull and difficult: the endless rain of August 2008 did not help my mood either. Back in July 2009 the Lord said to me that this would be a 'Summer of Refreshing' and sure enough God did not let me down. I return to work feeling refreshed, revived and ready for the new term. Bring it on! To help me get back into the swing of things, I will take a few Blog entries to sketch out some of what I've been up to in the last few weeks. It's been quite an adventure...

Let's begin at Soul Survivor. For the uninitiated (there may be a few of you left), Soul Survivor is, arguably, the biggest Christian Youth Festival in Europe, influencing approximately 30 000 teens and twenty somethings across the summer events. Their influence extends far beyond that as many seek to learn and emulate the Soul Survivor 'model'; they have become a verb! This year I went to serve on two teams: the enabling team (supporting prayer ministry times in the Big Top) and the prophetic team (encouraging people (mainly Youth Leaders) through prayer and prophetic words). My aim was to simply go and serve, meet some new people and see what God wanted to do with and through me. I was on my own (although staying at Uncle Bob's B+B at night - highly recommended) and I knew this would challenge me to go and make friends and get along with strangers. Nobody knew me as a Youth Leader/Worship Leader/Preacher etc and I found it strangely refreshing.

Frankly, there are some things which I saw and experienced at Soul Survivor which are not my cup of tea. I'm not here to blog about that! Instead I want to focus on what they do really well. Firstly, SS reach out to young people who are interested in Christianity and provide an easy, accessible route to finding faith. During the week over 500 people 'made a commitment' to follow Jesus and I was so impressed with their desire to reach out beyond the walls of the Church to the lost and hurting.

Secondly, SS provide an excellent diet of basic Christian teaching (not meant in the pejorative sense) which is ideal for newer believers and those who need to be reminded of those essential, simple truths.

Thirdly, they are totally committed to every member ministry, regardless of age. Two of the worship leaders were aged 15 and 17 respectively and they did an outstanding job! During some of the main meetings, everybody was invited to pray for people. The ensuing ministry times were pretty crazy but God was clearly doing some powerful work. I am impressed with SS's commitment to let people 'have a go' and persevere in helping them learn and mature through these 'hands on' moments. They are willing to put up with the 'mess' and mistakes of people learning by actually doing stuff and the leadership of SS were backed up by an excellent support/pastoral team, picking up the more serious problems which needed proper care and attention once the meeting was over.

Well. Every day is a school day! Speak tomorrow xx