Retire or Re-tire

Retirement

A vast number of good folk dread the very word ‘retirement’. It brings visions of boredom, poverty, and all sorts of things to the minds of many. There is no real anticipation or excitement – just a resigned dread that, at the prescribed age, the world would throw them onto the ‘grey’ scrap heap; no longer loved and no longer needed – a drain upon society.

So, you can imagine my pleasure and surprise seeing this on FB - “I pray for those thinking of retiring . . that God will give you 4 new tires . . . new strength, new vision, new ministries, new life.”  Someone called “Eagle Eyes” posted it – he doesn’t leave his real name. What a great play on words. Of course, it wouldn’t have occurred to me because we spell “Tires” in this sense as “Tyres” – don’t ask me why America changed that – one of many differences in our use of English. (I am married to an American lady) Seriously though, this is exactly what happened to me when I finally took the plunge and ‘retired’. I put it like this because now I can look back and ask whenever I found time to work?

In the sense meant by the writer, I did re-tire. I left behind my old way of progress and exchanged it for a new way. I had been a Christian for many years but retirement meant that I could go full time into whatever work the Lord had for me. In the process, the Lord had to get rid of a lot of baggage, like “religion”, and exchange it for faith.

Actually, the Lord gave me new strength; strength for a lot of travel and a lot of ministry time spent on my feet or bending, kneeling over someone in prayer. It was amazing really how the Lord gave what we learned was, “supernatural strength for the moment”. In other words, He gave us all sufficient strength and stamina to complete all out trips with often very hectic schedules – like 7 meetings in one day – starting at 9.00a.m. and ending around 01:00a.m next day. We didn’t do that very often !!

We all thought we had an agreed vision, but when the Lord gives us visions, He very often allows it to sink in before expanding it into a new vision, far larger than the original, and the full version of the original. It’s like He gives you a taster before the main course.

From the vision came new ministries, ministries we had not even considered and which, had they not been birthed ‘on the run’ or ‘in the field’, we would have laughed at as being way way way beyond our capabilities and dreams.

And so, as I discovered quite slowly, the Lord introduced me into a new life. Retirement is somehow so very different from expectations. We expect to do much less, and indeed we are able to slow right down and do much less – if we want to do so. However, we can also do so much more too, but this time it is so much more of our own choosing. That is important. We can now do that which perhaps we have wanted to do but have never had the time to do before we retired.

Please believe me, retirement isn’t all that it’s either cracked up to be nor what it is put down to be either. Retirement is, for all of us, the greatest opportunity of our lives. In the words of Eagle Eyes, God really does re-tire us. With our permission, He gives us a whole new outlook – sometimes a new career as well. I didn’t do any real mission work for God until I retired because I had neither the time nor particularly the inclination. Now? I wouldn’t change anything God has done in my life these past 4 to 5 years.

Will you let God re-tire you?

Where's Our Passion

Olympic Passion

Forget all the arguments about whether or not the entire Olympic movement is good, bad, or indifferent. One thing comes over very clear and that is that the Olympic contestants are passionate about their events. They have all dedicated years of their lives to becoming the very best in the world at whatever sport they do. That dedication has culminated for them by selection for their country’s team in the Olympic Games. Jesus could do with a few Olympic athletes right now.

The tears of joy or frustration at the end of their event; the cries of anguish at their own, their opponents, or their team mate’s performances are all heart-rending. The pride and the passion of receiving the prize, in this case a medal, for their performances is astonishing.. The effect of their success or failure on their team-mates is amazing. The effects on the watching crowds from many nations is incredible. Jesus could do with some of this passion, excitement, pleasure and pain right now.

Paul spoke about us “running the race that is set before us.” He makes no mention of teams although he very obviously regards everyone running the race to be family – either a brother or a sister. He spoke about us winning the prize – in our case a crown. Paul’s passion is not in the perfection or otherwise of his performance, it’s in the taking part, completing, and winning the crown that awaits all who complete the race.

Can you imagine what might happen if we brought Paul’s passion and Olympic passion together for Jesus Christ? Can you even begin to imagine the energy and power we could generate through the Holy Spirit if our passion for Jesus was like the Olympians passion for their events? Then the world would almost be compelled to sit up and take notice of Jesus. Then the world would gather round to see whatever miracles Holy Spirit performed – just like the crowds gathered around Jesus in Galilee 2000 years ago.

If we could bring some Olympic sized passion into our relationship with Jesus, we might even have some revival to match our passion. A passion for Holy Spirit and for Jesus must be worth more than the passion for Olympic Gold, silver, or bronze – earthly values that moth and rest destroy.

A heavenly crown – now that’s something worth having a passion about.

God's Love Is . . . . . .

Love is . . . . .

I want to take a bit more time on the subject of love. So much of who we are and what we believe in is based on love. God’s love for us and our love for our neighbours are the springboard of all we do for Jesus. I know you’ve all heard it before but let’s look one more time at Paul’s oft quoted passage on love from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 - “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

What beautiful words to start any day. As you can see, I have only quoted the middle section – the “Love is” section. This is the bit where Paul tells us what God’s love is like and what our love ought to be like

Always Patient - God is unfailingly patient with us when we really don’t deserve it.

Always Kind – God is ever ready to be kind, forgiving, and merciful – even when we sin and sin again.

Always Protecting – protecting us from ourselves and from those who would hurt or harm us.

Always Hoping – God is a loving Father who always hopes we will “do better next time”

Always Trusting – God always trusts us even when we don’t trust Him. But then, He is trustworthy whereas we may not be so.

Always Persevering – How many times has God forgiven us? As many times as we have gone wrong or turned aside from His way.

What a fabulous list and it is probably not a complete list of all the things that make up God’s love. Yet there is one attribute of love, God’s love and maybe rarely our love, love NEVER fails. For example, a mother’s love very rarely fails. A mother very rarely gives up on her child. Your Mum is your Mum, and you are her precious baby, until the day she dies. This has been so in every generation since Adam and Eve and will never change.

And so we came to the final attribute of God’s love and that is that His love for us is undeserved, unreserved, and unconditional. How many people can we say we love like this? One is most peoples limit although I do know of a couple of cases where the count is higher. But God’s love for every single one of us is just that - undeserved, unreserved, and unconditional. He loves us because He created us and He created us in order to love us. It matters not how bad or evil we have been, He still loves us and He can still forgive us all of our wrong doing if we fulfil our part of repentance and asking His mercy and forgiveness.

We don’t deserve it. We can never earn it. It was given and sealed at Calvary by Christ’s atoning death and His resurrection.

Between Rock and a Hard Place

Rock and Hard Place

Ever been between a rock and a hard place? I have a couple of times – am now as it happens. Many of us have been there, and got the t-shirt. Jesus was several times. At least that’s what the Pharisees thought when they brought the woman caught in adultery to him. If He condemns her, he is one of us and no different. If He ‘forgives’ her, then He is a heretic, outside the law, and blaspheming against God’s Law.

The disciples must have felt they were between a rock and a hard place. First when Jesus sent them out with the words, “Take no cloak, no sandals, no money, etc . . . . . just rely on the people you stay with in each town.” Then again, when Jesus was arrested and put on trial. I would not have liked to be there at that moment. Torn between knowing Him and suffering the crowd’s anger and contempt, or not knowing Him and suffering the guilt afterwards. I mean, can you imagine the dilemma?

“Do we own Jesus or not? This is so confusing – why doesn’t He do something, say something, produce a miracle – show these people who He really is? Oh my goodness, what’s Peter up to? He’s arguing with that girl by the fire. Oh, wait a moment; she’s leaving him alone now. Oh no – not again. He’s getting quite angry but it seems to have worked. Phew – that was close. Aarrgh – not again – get out of there Peter. Oh dear, he’s lost it completely. Shouting and swearing now – not good at all. But he seems to have satisfied them. Thank God for that.”

Just then the cock crowed !! They all remembered Jesus’ words to Peter about denying Him three times. Problem was, Peter had placed himself in that position; he’d taken that step too far; he’d gotten too close. He got caught out. Rock one side – hard place the other side. What’s a fella supposed to do? He was frightened, scared, worried for both Jesus and himself. I ask you – what was he supposed to say ?? Like I said – rock and hard place.

Everyday life presents us with fairly similar situations. Do you intervene when your kids get in a fight? You risk them being crushed because you left them to it, or being mortified because you intervened in order to ‘help’ them – when they certainly didn’t want you to help. Do you say something when two people get into a fight in the store? After all, “A soft answer turns away wrath.” Do you say anything at work when someone is treated unjustly – thereby putting yourself in the firing line?

Life is so full of choices, Lord – help us take the wise course, the course of justice and mercy. The course of love. Help us choose as Jesus would choose.

Friends and Family

Friends and Family

This is a quote I use often, “God determines who walks into your life....it's up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay, and who you refuse to let go.” I have no idea where it came from but it is significant in my own life. My wife and I had just “met” on Twitter when I put this out and she came back with, “Will you let me be one you don’t let go?”

It is said quite truthfully, that your family you are born with, but your friends you can choose. Perhaps that is why the church refers to a new Christian with the phrase, “Welcome to the family of God.” We are so blessed to be in a church where nearly everyone refers to the family of God as being “their family too”. They don’t just say it either, they mean it and put it into action.  

So, in our case, most of our friends are Christian, while many if not most of our wider family are not. We pray of course for all our unsaved friends and we pray even harder for unsaved family members. As I said earlier, our family we cannot choose but we can choose our friends. So why do we choose unsaved friends?

This is getting kinda complex isn’t it? We choose our friends from those whom “God determines who walks into your life....it's up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay, and who you refuse to let go.” Does this mean we need to pray about everyone God brings across our path? I mean, some people are very hard to befriend and we sometimes wish they would walk away.  These may be the very ones God wants you to demonstrate His love to; the ones who actually need someone walking alongside of them. These, probably not very likeable folk, may never have seen God’s love in action – especially in their own lives.

Others choose to walk away of their own accord even though you really would like them to stay. You really have an affinity with them, but they just don’t want to know anything about God’s love at all. They are self-sufficient thank you very much and they don’t need you – so they choose to walk away. How do you ‘refuse to let them go’?

We, who are family, often don’t realise that those God brings across our paths need a man or woman of faith to befriend them. How often do we extend the hand? We are great at welcoming family but often very slow to welcome strangers, who may also need to meet God, into our world. We are even slower to open our doors to them. Yet this is exactly what God may want us to do. In giving them even so little as a glass of water, we may have been answering God’s call to them by showing His love. By sharing even what little we may have and showing a little hospitality, we may have “entertained angels”.

It is surely time to give compassion and love a chance. It is surely time to start being the church, rather than just talking about it and showing the world nothing of God’s love for all of them. God loves every single person out there – they just don’t all know it yet – unless or until we show them.

Just Do It ??

Let the Next Generation Preach

Preach the Gospel

I remember so well the morning I was sitting thinking about an up-coming ministry trip. The previous such trip had been to Norway when my job was to do all the administration – to organise the stops, the speaking and ministry schedule, and then to be part of the ministry team praying for folk, and giving words of prophecy, laying on of hands and healing. Imagine my surprise then, when the pastor of our ‘home’ or host church on this next trip asked us to split the team into two so we could preach and minister in two or three different places on the Sunday. I was to preach at one of the services !! Very scary moment !!!

The day before we left for the trip, my phone rang and a lady I have known for a while said, “I have a word for you.” Then she read this passage over me as a prophecy. 2 Timothy 4:1-5 “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:  Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.  For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.  But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” All subsequently went fine on the trip. I’m not saying I preached up a storm but it was OK – despite my nerves.

So this morning, when our church announced the preachers for the day, I was excited for them. Pastor had chosen four of the rising, younger generation to share the platform, each bringing a different perspective on Psalm 84. As far as I knew, none had ever preached before but Pastor was bringing through the next generation of leaders. It is a brave decision to give your pulpit over to one novice, let alone four of them. I daresay, had Pastor chosen perhaps for them to share the preaching of the Gospel, it would have worked out just as well. As it was, it was a resounding success. None of the new people were very young but also none had ever been asked to preach before, and it was obvious the Lord was with them. The anointing was there, the presence was there, the ministry was there. It was excellent.

It was exciting to see a new generation of preachers being birthed into their calling. It was even more exciting to sense Holy Spirit’s approval of the whole meeting. How many other Pastors are secure enough in their church to hand the pulpit over to untrained and untried preachers. These young people fulfilled 1 Tim 4:1-5 and they did so admirably. Sure they were nervous, sure they were a little uncertain, sure they tripped over the odd word here and there. But God birthed four budding preachers today. Who knows if we may have seen the very first sermon of another Wesley or another Spurgeon.

It is surely time to step out of our comfort zones and allow God to birth the next generation of preachers of His Gospel. It is time to give the younger members the opportunity to try their wings – some will surely fly and soar like eagles. Everyone agreed afterwards that we had seen something special today.

How about your church? Are you birthing the next generation into their callings or will you, like so many before you, regard their gifting as a threat and stifle them – maybe even get rid of the threat?

Encouraging You

Encouraging You

I want to encourage someone today.

This morning I woke up with an encouraging message on my mind. There are many who go to churches where folk are encouraged to share a prayer or a thought that may encourage others. However, there are also many who think that their prayer; their thought isn’t good enough to share with everybody.

The Lord showed me our own church sanctuary and He showed me people and their thoughts as the morning progressed. This is roughly how it went.

“Lord, I can’t say that. I don’t have the passion Jim has. I cannot express myself well enough. I am not an exhorter like Jim.” The Lord answered, “Do not worry about the words you use, I will use them for you, and your message will hit home where I intend it to hit home.”

Someone else said, “I can’t pray that Lord. I cannot pray like Ted prays. I don’t have his gift with words like Ted does. His prayers are beautiful – mine are so plain.” The Lord answered, “Have you not read in My Word, your prayers ascend as a fragrance before My throne. I collect your prayers just as much as I collect Ted’s prayers – in a sweet smelling perfumed bowl. Use your own words – I look at your heart before I listen to your words, so say them anyway. They will achieve whatever I want them to achieve.”

The Lord is encouraging all who would pray to pray, in their own words, not taking notice of anyone else. Just pray to God and allow the world to listen. The same with encouragement, just say the words because God will use your words – simple or complex – to reach the hearts of those He wants to reach.

Step out of your comfort zone but trust God whilst doing so. He will use you as much as He will use the most eloquent speaker or pray-er.

Just do it.