Decision making

With the GFC hitting the Anglican Church hard over the last 12 months, some people at the top of our leadership have been called to make some pretty big decisions. I love watching it to be honest. I'm really sorry we lost the money, it's going to make a lot of very decent ministries much much harder to sustain, but the benefit of learning the process of decision making at it's extreme is an incalcuable asset.
Peter Jensen in his Synod address put it very simply- that the way forward is not panic, nor paralysis but prayerful persistance. It's the hardest of the 3 options, but I do believe he is correct ( how can something so alliterated be so spot on? I suppose he is the archbishop...). With my own decision making too I am trying to practice prayerful persistance. It is much more difficult then I first imagined. I often find myself in panic or paralysis. But I think part of it is moving through that...

More Sunday school...

I'm continually blown away by the girls I teach at Sunday school. They continue to surprise me with their insight and certainty, with the way that they challenge their own preconceptions on a minute by minute basis, their absorption of new information...after speaking to so many people stuck in their ways at the age of 18, after presenting evidence for Jesus to friends at uni and work and experiencing much more resistance to the gospel it is AMAZING to teach these girls.
I think I'm growing too an increasing appreciation for my co-leader Robbo. It's definately more appropriate to call myself his co-leader because his knowledge of scripture, succint delivery of complex theology and questioning skills are incredible. Today he gave a short spiel on leprosy which really gave the girls some insight into Jesus' miraculous nature and I had to make sure I didn't look too surprised at the flood of new information! I love having gun people like that around. I also feel very secure in the knowledge that he is watching what I do each lesson.

Lauren, who was the girl I wanted to do two ways to live with, is sprouting insight like you would not believe. (We DID actually do a two ways to live type thing with the whole group about a month ago now, which went really well) Today we began our lesson on thanking God with a short recap of last weeks lesson, which was on praying when we are in trouble. As part of it we prayed for two christian women in Iran who have been imprisoned for their faith. Lauren's head nearly bounced back "For REAL?" she asked and I assured her it was true. But a few minutes laster it was obviously still on her mind as I asked what we could be thankful for and she answered ' That we can live in a country where we're not persecuted for being Christian" I'd used the word persecution earlier but the rest is entirely her own articulation. Praise praise praise Jesus.

Later on as we were looking over the story of Jesus healing the ten lepers and only one coming back to thank him, I asked the girls if God expected us to thank him. Meryn piped up that God did not EXPECT us to, like he doesn't MAKE us to have faith or live well but he wants us to. That's hitting some serious theology right there, not all bang on the head but enough to understand the nature of a RELATIONSHIP with God. I'm so grateful to God for these girl's, this opportunity for ministry, these lessons and their responses. I hope he brings glory to his name through them.

He was lifted up...

I don't think it should always be this way, but I know I grow in awe of God everytime I learn something really intricate about his plan. We should always be in awe really, as we watch everyday unfold because each moment God allows to unfold is a small miracle. A gift from him to us, a token of his love.

But sometimes he gives us icing on our proverbial cakes.

I was reading a passage in John 12 this morning where Jesus predicts his death, telling us that he was to be lifted up...

27"Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28Father, glorify your name!"
Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again." 29The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
30Jesus said, "This voice was for your benefit, not mine. 31Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." 33He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

There's a few interesting ideas in this short piece- the concept of God's revelation to some people and not others (some perceived the voice as thunder, others as an angel), the concept of God's glory ( That even before Jesus God had been glorified, that He glorifies himself, and a total exploration of what that means and it's implications, of which I am duly interested and not even close to qualified enough to begin discussing...) and the inherent contradiction that Jesus proclaims he will NOT ask God to save him from this hour in the gospel of John, which is the only gospel to omit the prayer in the garden of Gethsamane for Jesus to achievelications his Father's will, not his own...

BUT all that aside, there's something else that's caught my attention. It's verse 33- He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

It's a strange little verse, the few commentaries I've looked at haven't even picked it up. CEV translates it 'Jesus was talking about the way he would be put to death' and the New KJV 'This He said, signifying by what death He would die'. In that respect I think the reading of it should be a revelation into how Jesus was physically to be put to death, rather then the quality or 'weight' of Jesus' death, though that is addressed in other passages.

So how was he to die? He was lifted up. Look at the preceeding verse... 32But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself. Jesus died on a cross. He was lifted up from the ground. He was not physically touching the earth when he left it. He wasn't stoned, or drowned or given a lethal dose of goodness knows what, he was HUNG-lifted up. Aside from all the theological connotations there's a physical presence to his words.

Mostly, this isn't read this way. The best note I could find on it was from a biblegateway commentary which addressed a reference to Isaiah...
The phrase lifting up echoes the description of the Suffering Servant in the fourth of the Servant Songs in Isaiah (Is 52:13--53:12; cf. Brown 1966:478). The description of the Servant being "raised and lifted up and highly exalted" is followed by a description of people being appalled at him because he was disfigured and marred (Is 52:13-14). This strange combination is seen in the lifting up of Jesus on the cross.
http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/John/Jesus-Hour-Arrives

My Lord was always above the earth, but physically so in death. I don't think it matters hugely from a theological perspective. There's no great fireworks or light shed onto how we should live differently. But there is another tiny piece of the puzzle that God shares with me, which more and more brings me delight in his sovereignty and faith in his complete control.

I love God.

10 things I've learnt this year

This isn't very 'biblical' per say but I felt it belonged here...

1. Many situations are best handled as though adults are small children.
2. Intelligence is responding to the world, not pre-empting it.
3. Irrespective of circumstance, our character shines through. Therefore it is ALWAYS worth working on our character, and never worth neglecting improvement of our character for our circumstance.
5. Answers are always mostly right, or mostly wrong, but rarely black and white.
6. Sleep is the best form of procrastination.
7. Speaking honestly is an art, and one of the most worthwhile things you can learn.
8. We are not obliged, neither are we expected to do anything, except love our God.
9. Forgiveness is not pretending that everything is ok, but making everything ok.
10. Our words not our actions sculpt and define us- our prayers, promises, songs, conversations and reports are the greatest insight to us as people. Fighting to define ourselves means upholding them to a standard we are proud of every single day.

Biblegateway has failed me!

I want to find a passage that supports the idea that the Spirit will not convict us of something outside of scripture...

Any suggestions?

Or thoughts on what the Spirit convicts us on?

On a tall tall cliff

For those of you who don't know, presently 2 days a week I'm working as an assistant at a preschool. Childcare is full on work, but kids can be incredible to work with and can teach you tons and tons about anything and everything. My friend Georgie says that kids are just little people who haven't learnt to act as though they aren't selfish yet.

Plus how could anyone be unhappy while cutting squares of coloured papaer into tiny pieces?

But today I read a book called 'On a tall tall cliff' which trumped even that. The story is about two friends, Puffle and Busby who live on the edge of a tall tall cliff. One day Puffle approaches Busby and asks him if he can borrow some things out of his garden, actually the entirity of his garden, including the plants. The story continues as Puffle asks Busby to 'lend' him everything he owns, from each section of his house, until nothing is left. After each request an illusive but insistant Puffle pronounces 'I know it's a lot to ask, but it will REALLY help'.

Just after Busby has given his entire house over the edge of the cliff collapses and where his house stood falls into the sea below. Puffle turns around and says 'See Busby, I've been studying our cliff for some time now and I knew what would happen- you have really helped Busby, you've really helped me to help you.'

The message is profoundly simple, but it still took me completely by surprise the first time I read it. See God doesn't ask us for everything for himself- he asks it so that we might be saved and grow in him.

Everyday Miracles