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.

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.


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Back to the Future

At the end of 2010 I wrote a letter to Pastor Gary of Hillsong London to update him of our progress over the year, BUT I wrote it looking back on 2011. I wanted to set in writing some of the things that we as a church will work hard to accomplish.

Steven Covey in his fantastic book "7 habits of highly effective people" stated that we should start with the end in mind. Andy Stanley also said that we should ask ourselves "what do we want people to become?" then work out the steps to get there. So take a read of what happens in 2011 and then let's begin to make it work.


31 December 2011

Hi Pastor Gary,

I thought I would give you an update on this last year of 2011. It has been a year of quite significant change for us in many areas. We have moved into our own building and at the same time made moves to make sure the church community is staying in the local community. Many of our Connect Groups are held in places where the public hangs out. We have also established Connect Groups that meet at different times to cater for different work & relationship needs. We have established a great relationship with Costa & Starbucks and also a few of the local pubs.

Our year started out with people seeking God in our prayer meetings and personal devotional time. We don't ever want to become a church that is dependant on our own efforts but relies on the Holy Spirit. We have always tried to give our best for God and then let Him do the rest.

Our Vision month of April was amazing. We started a 40 day fast on 1 March & finished on the day we took our Heart for the House offering. People fasted all sorters of things, food, social networking, television, coffee. It was great to see everyone's commitment to not only the fast but to seeking God throughout that period.

Our Heart for the House offering taken in April saw us be able to make the new building into an amazing place for us to meet and make an impact in the community. The building has a fantastic auditorium and place for Kids church. It has also enabled us to grow our United Youth and see leaders growing from our youth. Our campuses have expanded across the north east and into Tanzania. We now have 4 campuses with another one planned for next year. The Cowgate campus started with a connect group then the campus pastors moved onto the estate in order to have a local impact.

We have started a Wealth creation scheme. This is just people coming up with ideas to increase the finance within the church. The vision is always bigger that the resources, so as we increase our vision we need to increase our resources. Our increase in finances have enabled us to add two new members to our staff team. This has helped us to effectively pastor our campuses better and also the bolster our finance and administration processes.

Our "Double in Year" initiative has seen a huge increase right across the church. Because people are taking Jesus to the world, they are then able to bring people to our church community. We have doubled the number of Connect Groups, the number of people being baptised, the giving has seen huge increase and the number of people coming to Jesus for the first time has doubled.

As people are being added to the church community in all the campuses every week, not only are they being added but they are also being discipled. People are taking responsibility not only for their own growth but also for those around us in our community. People are getting together and helping each other pray, read the bible, serve in church and serve in the community. We have also given back the main responsibility for baptising people to the connect groups but mainly to the people who bring their friends in. They bring their friends & see them saved, they then have the privilege of baptising them.

We have programs that help with discipleship but it has been more about building a culture of discipleship. This has been particularly evident in our Men's Life. Our Breakfast Club has empowered the men to find their voice in discussions and the Real Men teaching nights have set a foundation for our identity as men in the church. We are now catching the established Sisterhood pretty fast.

Culture building has continued to be one of our priorities. We are also building a strong culture of hospitality and adding value to people by serving. Servolution has become a point of impacting our community through meeting needs where we can. All areas and generations in church life are involved in some way in Servolution. We have encouraged everyone to do what they can. There is no reason why everyone in our church community can't be involved. We have been able to increase our contribution to the local community where the building is as we now don't have to spend hours setting up and packing down. Through Servolution we have been able to distribute food and clothes to those in need, clean gardens and houses and reduce incidents of crime in Cowgate and the estate around the new building.

Our schools ministry kicked off this year in 1 school with Shine for girls & Strength for the boys. Some of them have started coming along to our Fuse & Wildlife nights. We are also starting to build a good reputation with the Head-teacher and teachers

We have not moved away from the 5 core values that we started out with. We still teach and model generosity, servanthood, submission, excellence and most importantly living for the cause of Christ. Our culture of connecting has gotten a lot stronger this year. We have moved away from just doing services on Sunday to making sure we use the day to connect and add value to each other's lives, especially the guests that walk through our door.

The Hillsong conferences have continued to help move us forward and give us a picture of what we are part of. People were making plans and putting things in place at the beginning of the year to make sure they could get there. It was fantastic to see that NCLC are still the largest sending, yet again beating Tom Rawls' church in Norwich.

Our church community is known for it's passion, it's generous nature and it's commitment to connection. I love that. But we are mostly know for our love for Christ and each other. We are called radical, weird, extreme and even fundamentalist by those that don't understand us. The great thing is we are not being ignored.

We are a church where the people who walk through our doors feeling broken are accepted. We are a church where people are finding their fit. We are a church were people are finding Christ and being made disciples.

Yours
Jon Cook



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"...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.