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I am currently in the process of reading a remarkable book by Kara Tippetts, 'The Hardest Peace: Expecting Grace in the Midst of Life's Hard.' Kara Tippetts, a wife and mother of four children, is facing a battle against cancer. Yet in the book she reveals a steadfast trust in Jesus, and she testifies to the reality of God's love, even in the darkest of times. Indeed, her battle with cancer isn't the only trying situation which she and her family have faced over the years.
One dramatic incident was when a raging fire threatened their home and they were given only a few minutes to pack what they could before having to abandon their house to the approaching fire. She writes:
'I grabbed pictures, journals, childhood memories, and love letters. It was all that had value to us when we were given minutes to decide what was most important.'
Ironically, they had only just moved into a new home. As Kara describes how she and her family drove away from their home, she writes,
'Those endless things that filled our giant moving truck suddenly lost their value. They became things, whereas the people next to me became my treasures. The contents of the relationships in our car were the things that mattered ... The fire showed me the meaninglessness of stuff in a new way'
It was not long after this episode that Kara was diagnosed with breast cancer, and a long and painful journey began. I look forward to reading the rest of this inspiring life-story.
One of the things which really hit me as I have been reading the book is how we can so easily fall into the trap of placing far too much value on our possessions, things which, in reality, are not all that important. As Sue and I continue to pack ready for our impending house move, we are faced with the truth of how much "stuff" we have collected over the years. When push comes to shove, the truth is that much of it is not of real value or importance. If we had to manage without it, we could.
A few days ago a very dear friend of ours lost her own battle with breast cancer. Another reminder that Kara Tippetts is so right when she states that what really matters is not our possessions but our relationships with the ones we love. Maybe we all need to refocus at times and adjust our priorities? Never forget what really matters.
I've been thinking recently about an incident which happened a few years ago, which initially rather took me by surprise. I was due to take an evening service at one of my churches in Doncaster. As is my custom, I had arrived well in advance (I hate being late for anything!) I was one of the first to arrive, and it was while there were only a few people in church that the incident happened.
I was standing at the front of the church, when in walked a middle-aged lady. I didn't recognise her, but as soon as she saw me, a large smile came over her face and she headed speedily in my direction. When she reached the spot where I saw standing, she threw her arms around me and gave me a hug. Now I quite enjoy being hugged, but when the hug comes from someone you don't know it can be a little bemusing!
It was apparent that the lady concerned knew who I was, but, struggle as I might, I couldn't recall who she was. As she began to speak, the situation was soon clarified. It transpired that quite some years earlier, during the period when I was a Minister in Stoke-on-Trent, I had baptised her granddaughter. The occasion had clearly been very important and memorable for the lady and her family, and it was good to hear news of how her granddaughter had progressed into her teenage years.
Baptism is one of the areas of Christian understanding where Christians have different perspectives. Some Christian denominations (Catholics, Anglicans and Methodists, for example) believe that it can be appropriate to baptise babies. Other denominations, such as Baptists and Pentecostals, believe that, based on what they see as the New Testament pattern, baptism is only for those who are old enough to have come to a personal faith in Jesus Christ. I can't begin to deal with the issue in a blog!
Yesterday I had the privilege of conducting the baptism of a 'young man' of 10 years old. I had earlier discussed the issue with him, and was satisfied that he believes in Jesus Christ and was serious about the desire to be baptised as a sign of his faith and his desire to follow Jesus. I was a little surprised when he then said that he wanted to be baptised, not in the more usual way in Methodism (the sprinkling with water on the head), but by total immersion!
We decided that we could best facilitate this by borrowing our daughter's "birthing pool". It did seem appropriate, as baptism is a sign of the new birth we have in Christ! The pool was placed in the church, and we eventually managed to get sufficient water into it for our purpose. I must confess that the water wasn't quite as warm as ideally it should have been, but this young man was determined! I so admire his willingness to go through the waters of baptism in such a public way. What a joy it was for those of us present to witness the baptism, and loud applause and cheers greeted him as he rose from the waters. I felt immensely privileged to have taken part.
Going right under the water in baptism is a powerful reminder that we are called to die to the old way of life (where we live to please ourselves) and rise to a new life where we live to please God. Of course, baptism is an outward symbol of an inward move of God. Whether a baptism is of a baby or someone who has developed their own faith, the most important thing is what comes afterwards. Baptism is an important staging post on the journey of following Jesus, but it is not the end of the journey.
The word Remembrance has been in great use in recent days. Yesterday was Remembrance Sunday, when up and down the country and in many places around the world, people will have been attending church services and other events to commemorate the end of World War I and to acknowledge the sacrifice of those who lost their lives in that terrible conflict and in other conflicts down through the years. Sadly, the "War to end all Wars" proved not to be so.
This year bears particular significance, being the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War. The poppy has become the symbol of remembrance, and the Installation which was created around the Tower of London is, by all accounts, very moving. I have seen many photographic images of the installation, but I am sure that visiting the Tower of London in person and seeing the sight of the 888,246 ceramic poppies (each representing one of the British military deaths in WWI), much be a particularly moving and poignant experience. Of the many images I have seen, the ones which stand out for me as being especially moving are those which feature a veteran, who, as they stand and look at the sea of poppies, must be remembering those colleagues in arms who lost their lives. Though the years pass by, many of the memories remain.
In our Sunday evening church service yesterday, I took a slightly different slant on the word remember, selecting a few uses of the word in the Bible. One of the verses I used came from the book of the Isaiah the prophet. The people to whom Isaiah spoke had gone through a time of exile in a foreign land. Although Isaiah encouraged them to rejoice at the prospect of a return to their homeland, the people were in no mood to celebrate, and cried out, 'The Lord has abandoned us! He has forgotten us.' They felt that they had been abandoned and forgotten by God. God responds with these words,
'Can a woman forget her own baby
and not love the child she bore?
Even if a mother should forget her child,
I will never forget you.
I have written your name on the palms of my hands.'
What an encouragement to know that even in the darkest of times, when we feel totally alone, God watches over us and is with us; his love surrounds us always, even when we cannot feel it. He will never forget us, our names are written (engraved) on the palms of his hands.
In January this year Sue and I experienced what could be described as a "trip of a lifetime" when we had the opportunity to visit my brother Phil and his family in New Zealand. Although we were only there for just over two weeks, we brought back with us so many great memories. We would love to visit again one day, but whether we will get another opportunity time alone will tell.
Phil lived then in a part of Auckland called Avondale (he and his wife Monika have since moved to another part of Auckland, probably to throw us off the scent in case we should ever decide to visit them again!) They were fortunate in that the position of their house was in close proximity to Oakley Creek. Two or three times during our stay with them we enjoyed a walk along the beautiful setting of the creek.
At one part of the Creek is a small waterfall. At the top of the waterfall is a stone ledge, and it soon became clear that this provides an ideal platform from which some daring people jump into the water below. As we walked by the waterfall one day, a few youngsters were having fun jumping into the pool at the bottom of the waterfall. As we watched, I noticed one young lady standing on the ledge. For quite some time she stood motionless, staring at the water below. It became clear that, although she wanted to join her friends in taking a leap from the ledge, fear was exerting a strong hold on her.
I watched, fascinated, as an internal battle raged in her heart and mind; I wondered whether her desire to jump would eventually overcome the fear which was holding her back. After what seemed like an age, she took a deep breath and jumped, to the cheers of all those watching. A few seconds later she emerged from the water, her face beaming: she had won the battle!
This memory came into my mind when I was reading a passage from the Biblical book of Joshua chapter 3 in preparation for a church service yesterday. Joshua had led the people to the borders of the Promised Land. The only thing preventing them entering the land was the River Jordan, which happened to be in flood. God's instruction to Joshua was that the Priests should step foot into the Jordan, and then God would make a way for them to cross the river. In other words, the priests had to first take the step of faith before they saw God meet their need.
The famous old evangelist Smith Wigglesworth once said, "Fear looks; faith leaps." Sometimes in the life of following Jesus we are called to take steps of faith before we can see how God will provide. It's scary, but God always comes up trumps. It took great courage (more than I have!) for the girl in Oakley Creek to take the leap of faith, but how happy she was that she had won the battle over her fear. What a blessing it can be when we trust God and step out in faith as he calls us.
