Author: korgrocker

We spent last weekend in Brockenhurst, a small town in the New Forest, boasting a main line station, one of the jewels in the suburban crown of the County of Hampshire. A pretty village, quirky shops, even Tesco and Sainsbury, full of tourists and locals alike, and even the occasional visitors with hooves, all intermingling in a scene of busyness. A place of affluence, expensive housing, multi-star hotels, up-market cars, Range Rovers, Audis, shouting out the prosperity of a society with money.

But in front of Tesco sat a beggar. A sad-looking man, seemingly mildly embarrassed, with a cup and a few coins on the ground in front of him. Who was he? What brought him to this place of all places? Where was he living? Why did he have to beg? Unanswered questions, but relevant nevertheless. But his presence shouted out the inherent inequalities of this age to a society populated by the have’s and the have not’s. An age with so many contradictions, so many differences, so much unfairness.

Jesus came for all men and women, rich and poor alike, beggars and accountants, single mums and doctors, paupers and priests. Matthew 5:3 states, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. Only when we truly come to that place of realising our spiritual poverty in repentance at the foot of the Cross, can we inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. We are all equal there, whether rich or poor.

But that’s all very well – what about my Brockenhurst beggar, or any beggar come to that? Society considers them a nuisance. Councils raise bye-laws banning them. The challenge to me is another verse in Matthew 5 – verse 42. “Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.” Stories abound of beggars earning large sums. Others spending what they get on drink or drugs. None of that is for me to judge – God Himself will do that one day. Perhaps I need to be more diligent in asking my heavenly Father for guidance and discernment so that I can do His will and take the time to compassionately minister to those genuinely in need. To those He wants to bless.

Two quotes have grabbed my attention this past week. The first from Nicky Gumbel – “Many people see only a hopeless end; but with Jesus you can enjoy an endless hope.” The second from Justin Welby during a recent television interview – “We can do nothing as Christians without a foundation of prayer”. Quotations articulating two intertwining threads, but with the common theme of communication, one with our Heavenly Father, and the other with a lost and dying world around us. Both these threads are fundamental to the Christian life.

Jesus exampled prayer. He taught His disciples how to pray. His ministry was impregnated with prayer. In John 10:30, Jesus declared that He was one with His Father. He was both God and man, but He still needed to commune with His Father, sometimes spending long hours in prayer with Him. And at the end of His ministry His selfless act at Calvary became the most significant event this world has ever seen. Is there a connection between His sacrificial death and His time spent in prayer? There has to be. Remember His prayers in Gethsemane?

And in Matthew 28, Jesus commissioned His disciples (and are we not His disciples?) to make “disciples of all the nations”. By bringing the Gospel into every opportunity afforded to them (and us). But “who?” and “where?” are questions that have to be answered as otherwise we could be in danger of wasting our time and resources. Only prayer could have preceded Jesus’ visit to the Pool of Bethesda, where he picked out just one man among many for His healing touch. And only prayer can bring into focus God’s will and purpose for reaching those heading for a “hopeless end”.  So where do we begin?

The beginning has to be on our knees. How else will we see our mandate confirmed and resourced? How else will we receive the instructions, clarifying the who and where? How else will we receive a prayer-backed, Heaven-inspired answer so essential before we venture into this world around us, riven as it is by so many issues, conflicts, distractions and miseries. The Great Commission methodology in 2019 is less likely to be a street corner, tract-based, sandwich board, “Turn or Burn”, preach, but more likely to be relationship-based, as the Holy Spirit leads us up from our knees to share the pleas from a God so filled with love, that He is desperate that none shall be lost (2 Peter 3:9). And this love encompasses our families, friends, neighbours, even “divine encounters” in the street. At least, that is, until God brings a Holy Spirit revival to this land once again, cutting through the issues of the day, and instead bringing a day far more important than the issues. Where people will once again connect with our Creator, realising their sinfulness and crying out, “How can I be saved?”. Then everything changes, and, as happened in the First Century, the world will be turned upside down once again.

So bring on revival Lord, but as we prayerfully wait, lets double and redouble our efforts in prayer and expect our Heavenly Father to speak to us, offering the insight into His will and purposes that we so desperately need. In my dog-walking meanderings through the local community, I pick out households and pray for a spirit of revival to visit them. He will one day!

Near to where I live there is a junction of a cycle path and two footpaths. The local council has thoughtfully placed a bin there. It’s a standard, rectangular-sided litter bin, about a metre or so high and sides half a metre. It’s had a hard life though, being bruised and battered and covered in graffiti. For some reason some passers by seem to want to take out their frustrations in life by abusing it. Occasionally, the bin is found on its side, no mean feat because it is attached to a slab of concrete. This has happened three times this week, but it’s been picked up and set back in its designed orientation, readying it to continue its thankless job of receiving the effluent from our throw away culture.

In the main, most members of the society in which we live conform to its social expectations without question. But there are some who don’t, and the imbibing of alcoholic beverages or other mind altering substances sometimes invokes a behavioural response that reflects the inner turmoil that must be going on within them. As someone drily said to me this week, “When the drink is in, the wits are out”.

However, this piece of litter bin mayhem reflects a degree of anti-socialism that exposes a disconnect between God’s design for mankind and how some behave. Sin plays a large part, but there is also pressure from a society that is stressed by secular, humanist and anti-God influences. In addition, the way our culture is largely based on material values and an economy dependent on mankind purchasing lots of “stuff”, just exacerbates the strains.

Jesus came for the drop-outs in society. Those who were caught up in circumstances beyond their control, such as illness, destitution, divorce, death, prostitution and so on. And in a society that had no safety net for the less fortunate. His message of hope resonated with so many in His time, and as we continue His work on earth, we must find opportunities to share the Gospel with those we meet. There has been a suicide of a young man in the next village in the past week or so. Another life lost, sacrificed on the altar of despair and hopelessness. The time is short and the harvest bountiful. Let’s pray for opportunities to share God’s love and grace with those needing to hear it.

In the BBC programme “Pointless”, Alexander Armstrong asks the contestants in turn, “Tell me all about yourself”. It really is a pointless question, because two or three sentences cannot give an answer. Invariably, people will describe themselves in terms of the jobs and hobbies they are involved in, taxi-drivers, teachers, doctors, or marketing executives. Even a vicar or two, I seem to remember. And the same with hobbies – some people have more unusual hobbies like bee keeping or lepidopterology, which they expound with a pride not exhibited by the readers or film watchers. But it doesn’t say much about themselves. What they are really like.

But if asked the same question as a Christian, what do I say? My favourite is, “I’m a pilgrim, traveling through the highways and byways of life, heading for a Heavenly home when my assignment to Planet Earth has come to an end.” But even then it doesn’t say much about who I am; rather it says what I’m doing. “Who am I?” is a much more complex question to answer. I have children and grandchildren, so I’m a father and grandfather. If I walk to the Co-op, I’m a shopper. If I then make some soup, I’m a cook. In a sense, I’m constantly reinventing myself, changing who I am in this terrestrial kingdom. But thankfully in God I am special and unchanging. Because God is unchanging, and I am His son. I have been blessed with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3). I am loved (Galatians 2:20). I am precious (Isaiah 43:4). I’m created in God’s own image (Genesis 1:27). And there are many more Scriptures that describe who I am in God’s kingdom.

Sadly, a citizen of the worldly culture in which we live doesn’t really know much about who they are, because they have no absolute values on which to base their conclusions. And so many people lapse into negative thoughts about themselves. They compare their waist size with an airbrushed model in a woman’s magazine and conclude they are fat, bringing on depression. Social media pushes ideas that are unattainable, bullying the more vulnerable. Advertising exposes our lack of sufficient funds to buy the next “must-have”. And so on. And the clamour of so much stress and conflict hitting our minds can induce confusion and mental illness, and lead to a conclusion that we are without identity and worth. But all the more reason why we should be sure of our identities in Christ, so that we can expose the shortcomings of the worldly kingdom with our testimonies, promoting the wonder of a kingdom, whose King took on the culture of His time and showed us a better way.

But I smile when I think of the look on Alexander’s face, if I said, “I’m a pilgrim…”. But don’t think I’ve lost my senses – I have no desire to appear on Pointless.

D-Day celebrations are being held for the 75th anniversary, 6th June 2019. Remembering the largest military naval, air and land operation ever attempted, and the mind-boggling numbers of casualties, is the very least we can do. The Queen today paid tribute to the heroism, courage and sacrifice of those who died, and quite rightly so. In the war years there was a sense of unity that bound people and communities together, as the UK faced a common foe. Just about everyone in the country, regardless of status, pulled together to do what they could, suffering hardship, deprivation and grief in the process. And we always need to remember, and insist that future generations also remember, the sacrifices paid by my parents’ generation, for the freedom of the society in which we live.

The post-Pentecost Early Church was birthed in a wonderful spirit of unity. Acts 2:44 “And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had.” Acts 4:32, “All the believers were united in heart and mind.” So what can a pilgrim tramping through the highways and by-ways of life make of the dysfunctional and disunited Church today? He looks on at the many denominations, different factions and beliefs, the rise of liberalistic theologies, the introduction of sinful practices into church liturgies and government, even the abandonment of many of the principles laid down in the First Century by men and women who were united in their determination to spread the Good News of Jesus in their communities, fulfilling the Great Commission. It would be easy to give a shrug and conveniently turn the head and consider something else. But Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “…I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it“. It is worth considering what Jesus didn’t say as well as what He did say. It isn’t a conditional statement with mankind as a dependency. It’s a straight forward statement of fact – Jesus will build His Church. So every Christian pilgrim needs to illuminate his meanderings through life with the teachings of Jesus, using the foundations laid down by the Apostles and the Early Church as stepping stones, doing our part to protect the unity of our faith, regardless of what others are doing. And we always need to remember, and insist that future generations also remember, the sacrifices paid by the heroes of our faith two thousand years ago.

Spring has sprung upon the world
New leaves stretching to the sky
A carpet of green has been unfurled
Bringing new life, replacing the dullness.

Spring has sprung again this year
Bird song echoes through the woods
The sound of praise without a care
Different calls breaking into true silence.

Spring has sprung bringing blessings
Cherry blossom scents the air
Clinging tight before the winds
Blows it all away.

Spring has sprung, a symphony of praise
All of creation joining together
Expressing its worship in many ways
To our Creator, our wondrous Saviour.

Maundy Thursday morning 2019. The day is dry but overcast, with lighter patches in the clouds towards the East and South. A slight mistiness hangs in the air, reducing the distant Saline Hill to a dim and indistinct outline. A cold but light breeze from the East comes and goes, lazily stirring the air, producing gusts and eddies of no real consequence. Archie, our pet Westie, is doing his usual nasal inspection of the blades of grass, tracking down another nice odour. I notice a patch of sun in the distance, illuminating the road, reflecting off parked cars, and I look up to find its source. The clouds are moving across the sky quite quickly, and they briefly part to form a bright patch, with a watery sun doing its best to break through. But it is the shape of the patch that catches my attention – I continue to look as the form of a heart develops before dissolving and disappearing, blown by the wind.

That heart shape reminded me again of what God did through His Son Jesus all those years ago. He loved the world so much that He sent His Son to die for us, taking on an undeserved punishment, and the sins of the world, past, present and future, that for all who believe in Him, we might gain life, eternally in His presence. God’s heart is that none will be lost to a dark and godless eternity. May all reading this blog this morning experience God’s love in a new way this Easter. Look up and find a heart. And find a loving Saviour.

I’m standing on the point adjacent to the causeway to St Mary’s Island at Whitley Bay. A gale from the South East is whipping up the North Sea into a wild mixture of waves and breakers, liberally spattered with surf, bubbles and spray. The foreshore is mainly rocky and shallow approaching the causeway, and the wind-blown waves morph into breakers, long and white, that rush up and over the more prominent rocks, eventually reaching the shore, there to vomit their watery contents over the rocks and sand, expending the energy of the wind-blown maelstrom into a final attempt to reach dry land. Momentarily the surf and bubble-topped, green-tinted water pauses, as though at a loss to know what to do next, before slowly returning to re-join the next wave coming in. Who could have thought that a molecule formed by two gases (hydrogen and oxygen) and combined with countless more, could present such a scene. But our God created it – we can wonder but not be surprised. Our Creator is the all-powerful Master Designer, Chemist and Engineer.

In Mark 4, we read that Jesus rebuked the wind and commanded the waves to be quiet. As I look out over the North Sea, absolute mayhem is taking place. As far as I can see there are waves, spray, breakers, all uniting in a mighty demonstration of stormy power. And yet, our Creator God can bring peace to the chaos by speaking a word. The storms of life can wear us down, as the waves have worn and polished the rocks around St Mary’s Island. So what problems am I hanging onto, feeling chaos and pain, when I have a God who can bring peace to my soul with a word? Hmmm…

Annie was a poet and hymn writer who lived from 1866 to 1932, and I was recently touched by her story. For most of her adult life she was gripped by arthritis, in great and constant pain, and was an invalid dependent on others for her personal care. But in spite of all her adversity, she could write this hymn:

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labours increase,
To added afflictions he addeth his mercy,
To multiplied trials he multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half-done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

His love has no limits, his grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of his infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

I have known people over the years who have a similar spirit, finding depths in God I can only marvel at. People who always seem to find something positive in their pain and suffering. A biographer wrote of Annie, “she felt what she wrote, and out of the crucible of suffering she was able to administer that comfort to others wherewith she herself had been comforted of God.” So if you are in pain today, remember Annie and be encouraged, as you draw on the “infinite riches in Jesus”. And for those of us who are not, let’s thank God for our health, and look for ways in which we can comfort and support those who are not so fortunate, using the resources God has given us.

I was reading Psalm 65 this morning and the last two verses particularly caught my eye.

The grasslands of the wilderness become a lush pasture
And the hillsides blossom with joy.
The meadows are clothed with flocks of sheep
And the valleys are carpeted with grain.
They all shout and sing for joy!

I love the word pictures in these short lines – “blossom with joy”, and “clothed with flocks”. “Carpeted with grain”. So expressive. Directing thoughts into musings about pastoral pictures based in our local rural landscapes in Scotland.

This winter has been milder than last and we have been blessed with an early display of snowdrops, crocuses, daffodils. It’s been a year since my friend David passed away. His legacy lives on in the community – in fact it is growing, because the daffodils and crocuses he planted are multiplying. And they came early this year to increase the blessings. The leaves on the trees and shrubs are starting to bud and burst into new growth. My rose tree is reaching out heavenwards with new shoots, confirming to the doubters that I didn’t kill it with the last pruning!

Talking about doubts, is there someone reading this blog this morning, who has doubts about God? Perhaps they have looked at world events, despairing over the political mayhem, the terrorist atrocity in New Zealand. Or their own circumstances filled with pain, or a lack of hope for the future? Perhaps the thought of having to face another day is starting to prevail, a thought forcing itself into your mind, even though unwelcome and intrusive, but still strident in its despair. Well, I felt God say to me in a gentle whisper, “Helloooo! I am still here – just look around at My creation”.

God never slumbers or sleeps. He never leaves things undone. He is constantly working to complete His plans, His will, His purposes for His creation. And that includes you and me. And I never get over the fact that the beauty and life in our natural world is under a curse, blighted and stunted by Adamic sin. One day creation’s groans, and our griefs and mourning, will be no more. And what will all creation, including you and me, be like then! It’s definitely worth lifting our eyes into the heavens, to get a glimpse into the real Heaven, our future home. And feel the relief of no more terrorism, Brexit, pain and grief flood into our souls.