Not a party political broadcast.

It can't have escaped your attention that in the UK we have our general election coming up. We can expect to see more and more picture of babies being kissed by politicians and our airwaves being overrun with political sound bites. If you are like me then by the time the election comes I have enough of it all.

But what should our response be to all of this as Christians? I have asked Pete Jobes one of our campus pastors to write a short guest blog for us on his views on what should be our response. So over to Pete.

It's election season in the UK. Posters on billboards demand your attention; politicians appear on our television screens, pleading for your vote. Celebrities tell you which way they're voting and encourage you to do the same, and the language of public debate becomes polarising and absolute.

It can seem as though everyone has an opinion and it can be hugely divisive; the other side are often seen not as our fellow men trying to do their best but branded as immoral, incapable, and many other things.

Where do we belong, as Christians, in election season? I've heard people say we should absent ourselves from the process and let it run its course and I've equally heard people say that failure to vote a particular way would be a betrayal of our beliefs; I've heard most stand points in-between too.

I believe firmly that our engagement in the political process is important. It's clear from the teaching of both Peter and Paul that they expected those in the early church to be good citizens. People were told to pray for, and submit to, their leaders regardless of whether they liked them.

Our vote is a privilege, a right that people died for, but it is also an opportunity. It is an opportunity for us to engage with the wider world and to represent Jesus within that. To influence the way our nation is governed for better or for worse.

So how do we engage with politics and how do we vote?

One of the most important things is the way that we behave. It amazes me how often people will talk about the love of God one day then write vicious political comments on their facebook the next. I used to do the same. But descending to vitriol and hate when we voice our opinions isn't showing the love of Christ to anyone.

I implore you, as followers of Christ, please let's always remember that we represent him. St. Peter lived in Rome under the brutal dictatorship of the Emperor Nero, and yet he said that the will of God was that we honour our leaders (1 Peter 2:13-17).
Nero would later have Peter crucified upside down and Paul beheaded. He launched a concerted effort to wipe out the Christian faith; and yet here is Peter saying that we submit and we honour leaders. That is a challenge, but I'm sure no mainstream candidate in the UK election is as diametrically opposed to our faith as Nero was.

Our language when we talk about politics should reflect submission and honour. That doesn't mean we condone bad things, nor does it mean we have no right to voice an opinion - on the contrary we do, but we must do so while behaving in a manner that reflects well on our saviour.

So often I have seen the worst and most aggressive political commentary come from those who profess faith; my friends, this should not be so.

As to voting? I'm sure there are people reading who already have a good idea who they will vote for, and others reading who don't know yet whether they will or who they will vote for.

I'd encourage you, vote with your conscience. Don't look to the way your family or your neighbourhood have always voted. Don't look to who has the best tie in the leadership debates, or who comes up with the pithiest ways to put down their rivals. Jesus said:

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: “Love your neighbour as yourself.”
- Matthew 22:37-39 (NIV)
So this should guide us in everything, including our politics. Look at the policies of the people you're considering voting for. Which of the options do you feel fits best with the life Jesus has called you to live? Are some of the parties appealing to fear and hate of your neighbour? Will a particular party help to establish a more just and fair society?

Pray about it; pray that God will help you to make an informed decision. He has given us the Word and the Holy Spirit to guide us.

And remember, no matter who we vote for, Jesus calls us to live a life of love and justice. How we vote is important, but how we live is more so.

Who is to blame?

This week we have seen more headlines of children vulnerable to abuse. We all want to know who is responsible. We want to know how can someone put these atrocities right. We want to know what is being done about it.

Unfortunately they are the wrong questions that we are asking. So all the time we are asking the wrong questions we will get the wrong answers.

So what are the right questions? The right questions start with not apportioning blame but claiming responsibility. If we start with the understanding that those children are our responsibility then the questions become very different. An old African proverb says "It takes a village to raise a child". We all play our part in raising children. The problems arises when we abdicate our responsibility. We become so involved in our own lives that we forget that God created us to live and thrive in community.

As society as a whole has become more individualistic, it becomes easier to lay the blame at someone else's door. Blame has NEVER solved a problem. Taking OWNERSHIP and RESPONSIBILITY will. Nehemiah said this "I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly towards you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses." (Neh 1:6-7) He aligned himself with the problem and from there started looking for the solution to the destruction of his city. As the church of Jesus Christ (who aligned Himself with the problem of sin and brought the solution from there) we too often move away from society's problems with the excuse that we are "not of this world". 

• Children being abused is not a government problem.
• The country's national debt and recession is not the government's problem.
• The riots that took place last year is not the problem of poverty.
• Human trafficking is not a police problem.
• Children's lack of literacy and numeracy skills is not an education department problem.
• Childhood mortality in Africa is not Africa's problem.
• Children in care is not a social services problem.
• Litter and pollution is not a local authority problem. 

They are all MY responsibility. They are YOUR responsibility. They are OUR responsibility.

We start looking for someone or organisation to blame because it is easier than to look at our own lives and say "I'm sorry, I did not play my part in looking after you". 
Please understand I am not saying that governments, local authorities, corporate business etc does not bear some weight of responsibility. 
They do. 
But so do we.
We can't do everything but we MUST do something.
If we began, each of us, to say that is my problem, how can I fix it, imagine what a difference we could make.
What small decision could you make today that begins to take ownership of a problem you see?
Pray with me a version of Nehemiah's prayer and then ACT.

 "I confess the sins we, including myself and my family, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly towards you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave us.

Here I am Lord send me"

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Where is my commitment?

The past six months have been pretty tough in many ways. This blog is not a "woe is me" moan but I do want to make a few points about what keeps me going. I have probably come closer to giving up and walking away from what I know God has called me to do than ever before. And as I write that last sentence there is a large clue as to why I keep going.

The Bible is not only the story of God's interaction and intention for mankind but it also gives great principles for our lives. Right the way through the narrative of God's word is a characteristic that is held in high honour but often given too little credence in our fast paced, easy-come easy-go world. That characteristic or virtue is commitment. The Bible will use the terms perseverance or faithfulness in similar contexts.

I look around and see that commitment is a virtue that is often found lacking. It is a virtue I have found lacking in my own life at times. How many times have I committed to losing weight and getting fitter, starting a project that lies unfinished, or even promising to take the kids somewhere and being too busy or too tired to fulfil my promise.

I don't know about you but a commitment is easy to give at the beginning or when things are going our way. Its when the going gets tough that commitment and perseverance are truly tested and seen. We are told that one of the outworkings of love is that it ALWAYS perseveres (1 Cor 13:7). We know that perseverance actually grows character in our lives (Romans 5:3-4).

Perseverance is actually hardest when we have a choice. If I am halfway home on my bike and the rain has soaked me to the skin, everything about me wants to quit but I know that I have no choice, I have to go on. Its much harder if its raining outside and I have committed myself to riding to work to get fit and save money but my car is sat in the driveway taunting me with how warm and cosy the drive will be compared to riding my bike.

What do we do when things don't go our way? Do we hold to our commitments and persevere in them or walk away?

Making a commitment means

• I can't just walk away from something when it is not going well.
• Its not so much about what I commit to but about it being part of my character.
• That if I persevere in my commitments I am becoming more like Christ (2 Thess 3:5)
• That I am walking in love.
• If I fulfil them and they are in the will of God then I will receive what He has promised (Heb 10:36)

I have seen too many people not persevere in their commitments when things are not to their liking. I don't want to run away. Just because I feel like it, it doesn't mean that I will. Coming close is actually a miss. Coming close to quitting, in the words of Pastor Matthew Barnett is a good thing because it means we have something to quit from. Coming close to quitting is actually completely persevering in our commitments. So be encouraged if you have come close to quitting but haven't, you are on the right road.

So, to finish, what keeps me going in my role as the senior leader in NCLC?

1. I fully believe God called me to start, grow and build this church.
2. Just because things aren't as I want them to be right now, I know they are not what they were but are closer to what they could be.
3. I have committed myself to seeing the lost become found and the found become disciples. Lives growing in God.
4. God has given me so much grace that I have to pass that through to other people.
5. I don't want to be known as a quitter.
6. I fully believe God called me to start, grow and build this church.

I have a choice, I can walk away but I will keeping going. You have a choice, what will yours be?

Hope this helps.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

"...in My name..."

When we are told to ask for things in the name of Jesus what does that really mean? 

Can I get away with asking for whatever I like and then just tagging it with "in the name of Jesus" and so expecting to get what I want.
I have been thinking about this lately and wondered what it means. When we look at what "in the name of Jesus actually means we get another sense of our relationship with Him and how we can expect Him to hear and answer our prayers.

"In the name of Jesus" (or "in my name") is stated several times in both the Old & New Testament. When this phrase is used it is used in the context of someone coming with the authority of the person they are naming. It also implies that they are under the authority of that same person. This is shown in Jesus' interaction with the centurion in Matt 8:9. He understood that only authority he had was that which was given to him. He was not coming in his own name.

When we do or ask for things in the name of Jesus, we need to ask ourselves have we really submitted ourselves to His authority. Do we trust that when He answers, the answer is from His will not ours. If He chooses not answer in our timing are we still under His authority?

1. Remember that if we are saying things in His name then we should also be under His complete authority.
2. Remember if we are doing things in His name, are we living in such a way that show we are reflecting the authority that He has over us.
3. Remember when we ask for things in His name, let's trust that He will give us whatever answer is best for us.