Jesus, I my cross have taken

Jesus, I my cross have taken,

all to leave and follow Thee.

Destitute, despised, forsaken,

thou from hence my all shall be.

Perish every fond ambition,

all I’ve sought or hoped or known.

Yet how rich is my condition!

God and heaven are still my own.

Let the world despise and leave me,

they have left my Saviour too.

Human hearts and looks deceive me;

thou art not. like them, untrue.

O while thou dost smile upon me,

God of wisdom, love, and might.

Foes may hate and friends disown me.

Show Thy face and all is bright.

Go then earthly fame and treasure,

come disaster, scorn and pain.

In Thy service pain is pleasure,

with Thy favour, loss is gain.

I have called thee Abba Father,

I have stayed my heart on thee.

Storms may howl and clouds may gather.

All must work for good to me.

Soul then know thy full salvation,

rise o’er sin and fear and care.

Joy to find in every station,

something still to do or bear.

Think what Spirit dwells within thee.

Think what Father’s smiles are thine.

Think that Jesus died to win thee.

Child of heaven canst thou repine.

Haste thee on from grace to glory,

Armed by faith and winged by prayer.

Heaven’s eternal days before thee,

God’s own hand shall guide us there.

Soon shall close thy earthly mission.

Soon shall pass thy pilgrim days.

Hope shall change to glad fruition.

Faith to sight and prayer to praise.

Leaving your Christianity at the work-place door

Yes... it's been a while!!!

Yesterday the news was reporting the leak of a list of contact details of members of the BNP (British Nationalist Party). Nick Griffin was quoted saying “anyone should be allowed to be in any job as long as they leave their politics at the work place door”. In the letter of ‘regret’ about the leak, Nick quotes an external source stating that there is no reason why “BNP members cannot be teachers, provided they leave their politics at the school gates”

How easy is that do you think? Can you become a neutral person, just by entering a building? Can you leave your core values at the school gate? Is it even fair to be asked to do so?

The BNP’s Mission Statement is “to secure a future for the indigenous peoples of these islands in the North Atlantic which have been our homeland for millennia”. (Indigenous, according to the BNP, means “the people whose ancestors were the earliest settlers here after the last great Ice Age and which have been complemented by the historic migrations from mainland Europe.”) …

It continues “Increasingly our people are facing denial of service provision, failure to secure business contracts as well as poor job prospects as both reverse discrimination excludes our people from the school room, workplace and boardroom. A key role of the British National Party is to provide legal advice and support to victims of repression and those denied their fundamental civil rights.”

This leads to the following stances:
Immigration: ensure native British people will not become an ethnic minority (by calling immediate halts to immigration, deporting criminal and illegal immigrants, offering generous financial incentives for immigrants to return to their lands of ethnic origin)
Economy: selective exclusion of foreign-made goods to British markets, ensuring manufactured goods are, wherever possible, produced in British factories, employing British workers

So, can people really put such ingrained views to one side? Is that a lack of passion to the cause? Does it lead to a dichotomy of belief versus action, particularly in the work place?

James (2:18) would say “Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works”. Belief and action go hand-in-hand… one goes to show the other.

So it is not possible to leave your politics, your core values, your principles, your belief, at the office-door or school-gate, for such things cannot be forgotten, and such things must be acted upon.

So is “anyone can be in any job, as long as they leave their politics at the work place door” a fair statement? I think not. It feels like a bad state of society today, where we are so shallow and fickle in our beliefs… that we can even suggest that we are to, or even can, leave our politics, or our religion, at the work place door.

A Long Awaited Gospel...

Talk I gave on Mark 1:1-15 for Imperial Christian Union, 16 October 2008

A Long Awaited Gospel.mp3

or try downloading from this location

Individuals in solidarity with the GAFCON Jerusalem Statement and Declaration

In June 2008 the Global Anglican Future Conference took place within the context of a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

GAFCON was organized in response to the spread of wrongful theological teachings and practices within the Anglican Communion, demonstrated and symbolised by the ordination and consecration of people in active same-sex relationships and the formal blessing of same-sex unions, though by no means confined to these issues.

At the end of the Conference the Jerusalem Statement and Declaration were issued, which may be found here, and should be read before signing this petition.

On the 1st July 2008, two meetings took place at All Souls Church, Langham Place, England, the first for incumbents and other church leaders in the Church of England, the second particularly for members of Parochial Church Councils.

Arising from this, it was decided that an online petition should be made available for individuals and groups such as PCCs to indicate to the wider Anglican community the degree of support there is for the GAFCON movement within England.

Please only sign this petition if you are a member of the Church of England in England itself.

To access the petition, please click here.

An Evening with Habakkuk

or … a kick up the backside in depending on, and rejoicing in the Lord when feeling down right hard hearted.

I don't know if you ever have those times when you think you'll read some 'random' book of the Bible… and it actually hits right where you needed hitting?

That happened tonight… thought I'd chose a short book to study briefly this evening while Adele is out for dinner with a friend… Habakkuk came to mind, as we had been studying Romans, which quotes "the righteous shall live by faith". This book is a great reminder that while tough times will come, either personally or corporately, there is a day where God will return in judgement, destroying His enemies; bringing a great salvation to the righteous - to those who live by faith… a great reminder that when all the blessings are taken away… one thing stands… the Cross of Christ, and an inheritance that will never perish, spoil or fade!

Habakkuk is not a happy chappy… he sees violence, destruction and wrong doing amongst God's people (1:2-4). Wickedness is not coming to justice… and Habakkuk has a complaint against God… not some notion of God in his head that he wants to complain against… no, the LORD, Yahweh…. "Why are you letting this injustice against your people go on LORD? Why are you just sitting around, while this happens to your people?"

The LORD gives grace and replies… "Habakkuk, I'm working, even at this very moment, to bring judgement on those who are wicked… a judgement amongst Israel that will come, even in your lifetime Habakkuk. Look out amongst the nations, and see the Chaldeans! I have raised them up to execute my judgement… they are a bitter, nasty, dreaded, fearful, powerful nation. Their might is their god… they are violent, rebellious and destructive. They will bring the judgement you are wanting" (1:5-11)

So, Habakkuk gets his answer… and it's not what he expects… he still doesn't quite understand. "But my LORD, my God, my Holy One - I see that you have raised this nation up to judge the wickedness of your people, Israel… but surely the Chaldeans are much, much more wicked than the wicked of Israel, they are traitors of you… how can you idly look at such traitors, and yet be silent when the wicked swallow up the man more righteous than he? The Chaldeans treat those made in your image, like their own creatures… treating them like fish on a hook. I know you will answer me LORD!" (1:12-2:1)

And so Habakkuk waits for the response from the LORD, that comes. "Habakkuk, Habakkuk… make this vision plain to everyone… it may seem to you like it is taking a long time to come, but be assured, the time will come… the Chaldeans are puffed (or maybe the wicked Israel too are puffed up?) they are not upright. Remember that the righteous shall live by faith! The Chaldeans will get their due reward, for the whole earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God! Their gods are nothing but their own insatiable greed, and images of stone, gold and silver, that have no wisdom, nor have any breath or life in them. The LORD is the one before whom all the earth shall be silenced". (2:2-20)

So Habakkuk ends by praising God, as he realises that the day is coming when justice will be done. When God Himself will come, defeating those who oppose Him, shaking the nations, stopping even the sun and moon, threshing the nations in his righteous anger. Bringing with Him, the salvation of His people. Habakkuk rightly trembles at the thought of such a day, but he will quietly wait, knowing that the righteous shall live by faith; knowing that then, God's people's enemies will be held to account and destroyed. (3:1-15)

Habakkuk knows that the judgement on Israel, the Chaldean invasion is going to come in his lifetime… it's going to be a tough time for Israel… and yet, though "the fig tree should not blossom; nor the fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food; the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls… yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the LORD, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places." (3:16-19)

Sometimes the Christian life can seem as barren and fruitless as the harvest that Habakkuk was fearing… when we see a lack of prosperity or advancement, or as we go through our own personal struggles, battles, tragedies… we can be deeply yearning and crying out "why won't you do something about this LORD?"

And what shall we recall then? The apparent prosperity of the wicked? The apparent advancement of the godless? Shall we be eager to join them in their apparent gains in this life? Or shall we remember the vision… shall we remember that God Himself will destroy the godless… God Himself will hold the wicked to account… God Himself will bring His Salvation to His people… the righteous… those who are faithful… who trust… who live not for this life, but for the eternal one to come…

What will be our sustenance through such times? Well surely it can be nothing other than the Cross of Christ… it was Habakkuk who despite having no harvest, no prosperity… clung to the LORD and His Salvation… the salvation found at the Cross…

Success is: belief

The last leg ... back to London after a lovely day with my parents

Time for the next chapter of "Liberating Ministry from the Success Syndrome" by Kent and Barbara Hughes!

"Without faith it is impossible to please God!" That is, belief in the sovereign miracle-working God of the Old Testament... the God of Scripture!

A belief in the loving Creator God - like that of Daniel and his mates that trusts even when your life is on the line... a belief that manifests itself like those in the "Hall of Faith" of Hebrews 11. That God actively works in us, through us and for us and will reward us even if we cannot see or understand how.

Kent reminds us that without this faith it is impossible to please God. Without this faith life cannot be called a success - no matter what others may call it.

time for a little kip now...