From Russia with Blessings

It is great to be home, to be with friends and loved ones. One Psalm was on my mind during the four weeks of my travels. Having crossed a few national borders, some open and welcoming, others tight, rough and hostile I though of birds flying over all barriers freely, and the 84^th psalm was on my mind. Written by sons of Korah, who were the doorkeepers at the Temple (1^st Chronicles 26:18) this psalm gives an interesting perspective on life. They stood at the Temple doors taking turns with other families and every time they were away from the Temple they longed to return: “My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.” (v.2)

No one was able to walk over or into the Temple simply for pleasure, yet the little sparrow has found a home there, and the swallow a nest for herself and for her young, a place near the altar. Imagine that! Having a home right at the altar of God’s Presence! Even the busy restless sparrow quieting down and finding rest at the altar. The cheap bird, used often as a symbol of insignificance, residing right at the throne seat of God.

This Sabbath I invite you to look at the three blessings offered by the sons of Korah that are so meaningful to all of us.

Verse 4: Blessed and happy are those who can live in God’s house, always singing God’s praises.

Verse 5: Blessed and happy are those who are strong in the LORD, who have set the main road of their minds, the highway of their imagination toward God, who are on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.

Verse 12: O LORD Almighty! Blessed and happy are those who trust in you.

As I traveled I pondered these thoughts knowing that everywhere I’ll go I’d find God’s House and God’s people journeying together in the same direction. Indeed I met happy people who became a blessing to me in every city, in every church I visited.

On my journey I experienced over and over that it is better to be one day in God’s courts than a thousand elsewhere. I am back here in London in a familiar court, in a familiar House of Praise and Prayer, reminding my faith-family of the blessing and happiness that is available through worship, reminding to set our minds on the journey, to keep in plain view the Heavenly Jerusalem, and inviting all to find happiness in trusting God wholly.

Love will “Tell London” that Jesus is coming Soon

This week I had one of those AHA! moments. I was reading during my devotional time 2^nd Peter and these words came flooding at me:

…as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue…But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness…

That’s in 2^nd Peter 1:5-9. peter is giving a balanced picture of a believer, balanced picture of a Christian community. Such living offers rewards every moment. Without these virtues – blindness, shortsightedness, cannot see what’s right before you.

The reason I got so excited is that these virtues express the eight quality characteristics that a healthy church must have. We’ve been talking about our church health and improving quality of the eight essential fundamentals:

Loving Relationships, Caring Groups,

Inspiring Worship, Passionate Spirituality,

Evangelism for Needs, Ministry by Gifts,

Empowering Leaders, Functional Structures

The Apostle Peter makes clear that when we grow in these – we become productive, fruitful, we grow!!!

One thing all growing churches have in common – they are Loving Churches! Churches that place highest priority on Loving Relationships improve in every other category. Love is the ultimate goal and destination for every Christian. It is the goal of our church family.

The only way we begin to Tell London, to tell our families, to tell our co-workers, our kids, that Jesus is coming soon – when we love them and wish them to be saved with Jesus. Love will Tell!!!

Traditional Christian churches had entered the Lent season 21^st of February reminding each other of the Suffering of Jesus on our behalf, in preparation for his Sacrifice. The secular world tells us that faith in Jesus maybe historical but is pointless. Most recently James Cameron, (Canadian film director of the “Titanic” fame) says he found Jesus’ family tomb. We could laugh just as God laughs at scoffers (Psalm 2:4), knowing the real truth – the Love of Jesus transforming our lives, ever active today, because Jesus is alive.

What we need is the evidence that the world may see Jesus – and that is possible only when we love one another. (John 13;35) May our Loving Relationships become our identity card.

Love will Tell!

“Tell London” by telling your children

Are you telling, preparing to tell, thinking about it? I am talking about telling our community that Jesus is Coming Soon. We had planned focus on the family for the whole month of February and it was interesting to see how “coincidental” (there is no such a thing as chance with God) it was as the community around us focuses on the same thing – FAMILY!!!

I got an e-mail from some church members after preaching on parental responsibility alerting me of a few articles in the London Free Press this past week – about fathers who avoid paying child support, about parental neglect and lack of discipline in the family. The local 1290AM radio had been talking about reasons poor parenting of some is affecting the rest of community by drawing resources away from those who want to succeed. The CTV and few other stations had been talking this week about the whole society going downhill, attributing it directly to the lack of education and discipline within family.

All these communications inadvertently connect the current conditions of the family to the role of a mother! Either excusing mothers by saying they have not enough resources by fathers not supporting, or by being depressed and alone; or by blaming them for spending too much time in the workplace and neglecting the relational needs of their children, or simply by blaming the high stress and inflation on forcing both parents to work to survive the standards of living. In any case – every story links family issues to the Mother’s Role.

Not surprisingly – the bible mentions mother every time the character and accomplishments of a ruler mentioned. Read Kings & Chronicles: so & so reigned…and his mother’s name was… Ancients connected directly what the man did in his life – walking right in the eyes of the LORD or doing evil in the sight of the LORD – to the role of mother in their life.

The classic book on parenting - Adventist Home – says this: “The home should be to the children the most attractive place in the world, and the mother's presence should be its greatest attraction.” (p.21)

The influence of the church and that of a pastor is limited by mother’s role in the family: “…the mother has her line of work. She is to bring her children to Jesus for His blessing. She is to cherish the words of Christ and teach them to her children. From their babyhood she is to discipline them to self-restraint and self-denial, to habits of neatness and order. The mother can bring up her children so that they will come with open, tender hearts to hear the words of God's servants. The Lord has need of mothers who in every line of the home life will improve their God-given talents and fit their children for the family of heaven.” (p.236)

Are you telling your children that Jesus is Coming Soon? How are your daily actions of shopping, organizing your home, taking a time off communicate to your children your faith that Jesus is coming soon?

Tell London: Jesus is Coming Soon

Last Sabbath we were privileged to have Halsey Peat from the Conference Communication department dialogue with us on how we communicate the Gospel. In his presentation he reminded a simple rule of 5W&1H which determines interest level in all communication:

Who? What? Where? When? Why? & How?

The title statement “Tell London: Jesus is coming soon!” answers all the above mentioned questions:

What should we do? TELL!!!!

What should we tell? à Jesus is coming soon.

Who? Everyone of us to everyone we know, and don’t know yet.

Where? Obviously here in London, starting with the most close relationships, and people nearest to us.

Why? Because Jesus is coming soon.

When? A.S.A.P. (as soon as possible) à that’s what SOON means

This will happen if you truly believe this. The reason many are not telling, and just going through religious motions of liturgical rituals because the urgency of faith is gone.

q How? that’s where every person can design their own personal strategy; that’s where every ministry interprets means, sources, venues and approaches.

Today I want to focus on one particular of this – authenticity of telling. Telling goes beyond words – it’s our whole lifestyle. And who’s better know and first to receive than members of our families. Last week I’ve challenged husbands to take a spiritual responsibility for their families. Today my appeal is for parents in general. For brevity I will simply quote few statements from a classic on parenting called Child Guidance from the pen of inspiration:

It is in the home that the education of the child is to begin. Here is his first school. Here, with his parents as instructors, he is to learn the lessons that are to guide him throughout life …Let not home education be regarded as a secondary matter. It occupies the first place in all true education. Fathers and mothers have entrusted to them the molding of their children's minds. Home education is not by any means to be neglected. Those who neglect it neglect a religious duty. (p.17-18)

Parents, for Christ's sake do not blunder in your most important work, that of molding the characters of your children for time and for eternity. An error on your part in neglect of faithful instruction… will prove their ruin. Your course may give a wrong direction to all their future (p. 170)

Speaking of parents who do not walk the talk Ellen White says: “Such parents drive their children away from God, by talking to them on religious subjects; for the Christian religion is made unattractive and even repulsive by this misrepresentation of truth. Children will say, "Well, if that is religion, I do not want anything of it." (p.286)

How do you tell your children that Jesus is Coming Soon?

Tell London” Mission begins at Home

We’ve been dialoguing about our dream to tell every household in London that Jesus is coming soon. Since October 14^th our Church promotes the Initiative to make Evangelism a Lifestyle. When we tell our neighborhood – together we tell all London. When we tell London, and other churches tell their cities – we Tell Ontario. When each Conference tells their province – we Tell Canada, and together we Tell the World.

But where do we begin? How do we do it? Quite often eyes of all turn to leaders – pastor will do it, elders will do it. Surely the minister can put Evangelism before all things….As I seek Divine Counsel I recall a testimony given by one of our church pioneers: “The minister's duties lie around him, nigh and afar off; but his first duty is to his children. He should not become so engrossed with his outside duties as to neglect the instruction which his children need…To a large degree the happiness of men and women and the success of the church depend upon home influence... Nothing can excuse the minister for neglecting the inner circle for the larger circle outside. The spiritual welfare of his family comes first. Great good done for others cannot cancel the debt that he owes to God to care for his own children.”

(Adventist Home 353-354)

WOW! If God will not excuse even the pastor from taking care of the family’s spirituality first, what shall we say about a plumber, a doctor, a teacher, a builder? Making a buck and a name should never take a priority over taking care of family’s spirituality. Even evangelistic efforts, the most noble efforts of presenting eternal things to people should come as a secondary after taking care of Spirituality in the Family.

Our Evangeliving begins at home. Our first witnessing begins to our spouses and children. And today I will talk more to the Christian husbands. The most popular TV show since 2004 is said to be the “Desperate Housewives.” I’ve never seen a full episode, once glanced over a few minutes – senseless foolishness. But then I ask myself – is it just a play, or is it a portrayal of our present reality? How many desperate wives are out there because their husbands have never taken the responsibility as spiritual leaders?

Why such an emphasis on husbands? Well, Biblically speaking – when Eve got Adam in trouble God did not ask Eve but Adam – “where are you?” The husband’s got God’s order for the ultimate responsibility for the home.

Among many appeals made to Christian husbands by early Church leaders one in the 1^st letter of Peter (3:7) gives powerful motivation: Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.

Husbands, do you want your prayers to be heard? Take the responsibility seriously, both: for God’s gift in your wife, and for God’s gifts in your children. May our families be the first place that London will meet Jesus!