In God's Slipstream: Listening to the whisper of the Spirit

At a Vital Church Planting Conference in Toronto a few years ago, the U.K.’s Rev. David Male imagined the future by suggesting that pioneering church planters committed to expanding the mission-shaped church should “keep in the slipstream of God.”

"In looking to what lies ahead," Mr. Male said, “Listen to the whisper of the spirit.”

He also warned church pioneers not to fall into the trap of tarting up a bankrupt, old-model church in contemporary disguise to try to attract the unchurched. He compared this to the makeover given old cars on the television show Pimp My Ride. Stay away from the “pimp my church” approach, he said.

To illustrate for modern-day disciples, Male spoke of the uncertain future faced by the disciples after Jesus’ death. He also quoted John V. Taylor’s observation that mission is more like an unexpected explosion than a physical extension of an old building.

[Click here to read the entire article in the Anglican Journal]

Jesus and Satan argue about computer skills

Jesus and Satan were having an on-going argument about who was better on the computer. They had been going at it for days, and frankly, God was tired of hearing all the bickering.

Finally fed up, God said, “THAT'S IT! I have had enough. I am going to set up a test that will run for two hours, and from those results, I will judge who does the better job.”

So Satan and Jesus sat down at the keyboards and typed away. They moused. They googled.

They downloaded. They e-mailed. They e-mailed with attachments. They did spreadsheets! They wrote reports. They created labels and cards. They created charts and graphs. They did some genealogy reports. They did every job known to humanity, and more.

Jesus worked with heavenly efficiency and Satan was faster than hell. Then, ten minutes before their time was up, lightning suddenly flashed across the sky, thunder rolled, rain poured, and, of course, the power went off. Satan stared at his blank screen and screamed every curse word known in the underworld. Jesus just sighed. Finally the electricity came back on, and each of them re-started their computers.

Satan searched frantically, screaming, “It's gone! It's all GONE! I lost everything when the power went out!”

Meanwhile, Jesus quietly added all his files from the past two hours of work to a memory stick to show God. Satan observed this and became irate.

“Wait!” he screamed. “That's not fair! He cheated! How come he has all his work and I don't have any?”

God just shrugged and said, "JESUS SAVES."

Carrying a mystery to term

“For with God nothing is ever impossible and no word from God shall be without power or impossible of fulfillment.” (Luke 1:37, Amplified Bible, Classic Edition)

The mystery both enfolded by and enfolding the Christmas season never really ends. It didn’t even begin that first Christmas. It simply revealed itself to us: to all and any who could see or hear, listen—who had ‘eyes to see’ and ‘ears to hear’—in the eons to come.

In Mary’s encounter with the angel and then with the Holy Spirit those 2,000-plus years ago, the divine seed was planted. Young Mary treasured and wondered at the words spoken to her, and her body nurtured the precious ‘Word’ to term. A mysterious Word, existing since the beginning of time, wrapped in a baby and born into a world so already full of its own words, wonder, beauty and noise—that hearing, seeing, the capital-W Word and Wonder beyond and behind it can be nigh on impossible.

Imagine carrying and giving birth to a mystery. In a way every mother does, but can you imagine carrying and giving birth to a world-changing mystery that both pre-existed you, life itself, and contained the answers of time and eternity? Completely impossible to comprehend, and that’s the point. Mary embraced what she did not understand, nurtured and treasured it. The holy seed came to term and the world would never be the same.

Have you ever had an inexplicable, dramatic encounter with holiness, with God? By its very nature you can’t explain it to anyone else, but like Mary, you can treasure and nurture it. Trust that the divine seed will come to term.

People who hold onto and nurture what God has said to them or allowed them to experience—even though they may not understand it—carry the fruit of the revelation from God that says: ‘Nothing will be impossible with God.’ That’s the commonly translated version of the angel’s words to young Mary when she wondered aloud how on earth she could give birth. A more accurate translation from the Greek would be more like ‘no freshly spoken word of God will ever come to you that does not contain the ability to perform itself.’ What an astonishing gift!

Safe within Your Love

If the world, your world, seems crazy right now, this is the book for you.

Hannah Whitall Smith (1832-1911) wrote from her own brokenness, pain, sorrow and loss into incredible peace, joy and ‘foundness’ in God alone.

Her husband had been one of the 19th century’s most celebrated evangelists. Tragedy thundered in via first the loss of a young daughter, later a son, and then public scandal which devastated her marriage.

A wise, discerning woman, Hannah aptly analyzed and examined the day’s religious movements which so mirror many today. Whether attempts to legislate purity or holiness, an over-emphasis on razzle-dazzle emotionalism, the promotion of success in the material world as opposed to spiritual victory over the world-bound soul—she found no truck with any of them.

Safe Within Your Love, a compilation of Hannah Whitall Smith’s writings into a 40-day devotional by David Hazard, is sadly out-of-print. So while I try to convince the publishers to get it out there again, forthwith are some nuggets:

"Earthly cares are a heavenly discipline. But they are even better than a discipline. They are God’s chariots, sent to take the soul to its high places of triumph…. The dangerous ‘vehicle’ is the visible thing; the chariot of God is the invisible.”

"Some Christians think that the fruits which the Bible calls for are some form of outward religious work—such as holding more and more meetings, visiting the poor, conducting charitable works, and so forth. The Bible scarcely mentions these . . . but declares that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). A Christlike character must necessarily be the fruit of Christ’s indwelling.”

Editor and compiler David Hazard offers a reflection at the end of each short chapter. Here’s one gem:

"My Physician Father, I see it now…
For every one of my soul-sicknesses, you give me a ‘medicine’ for my healing.
For my pride and independence, you give one who likes to dominate. For my impatience, you send one who grates. For my criticalness, you give me one who is sorry indeed.
Today, I will receive your treatments . . . even if they sting.”

You took my parking space at church

One day, a man decided to visit a church. He arrived early, parked his car and got out. Another car pulled up alongside him and the driver stepped out, yelling, "I always park there! You took my place!"

The visitor went inside for Sunday School, found an empty seat and sat down. A young lady from the church approached him. "That's my seat!” she exclaimed. “You took my place!" Somewhat distressed by the rude welcome, the visitor said nothing.

The visitor then went into the sanctuary and sat down. Another member walked up to him. "That's where I always sit! You took my place!" Even more troubled, the visitor still said nothing.

Later, as the congregation prayed for Christ to dwell among them, the visitor stood up. His appearance began to transform. Horrible scars appeared on his hands and on his sandaled feet. Someone from the congregation noticed him and called out, "What happened to you?"

The visitor replied, as his hat became a crown of thorns, and a tear fell from his eye, "I took your place."

When you've read this, simply say a prayer. Maybe, just maybe, we can get the world to start thinking of who took our place.
[adapted from various sources]

From darkness and death into LIFE: Joy comes in the morning!

by the Reverend Canon Anne Moore

It is said that on one occasion Michelangelo turned to his fellow artists and said with frustration in his voice,

“Why do you keep filling gallery after gallery with endless pictures on the one theme of Christ in weakness, Christ on the cross, and most of all, Christ hanging dead? Why do you concentrate on that passing episode as if it were the last word, as if the curtain dropped down there on disaster and defeat? That dreadful scene lasted only a few hours. But to the unending eternity, Christ is alive; Christ rules and reigns and triumphs!”

Lent, and especially Holy Week, are a preparation time of denial to ensure that Easter is even more glorious by comparison. Jesus’ death on the cross finished his work of sacrifice to take away our sins. We must remember that terrible Good Friday and try to understand his suffering. It may be helpful to do that in the company of others at worship. We also must joyously celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and victory over the grave every day—but especially at Easter. Christ is alive and so are we, forever.

Alleluia!