Joy In The Word

Ann at In Christ Alone posted this entry about a room-mate and their time with the Word. As I read her short account I was struck by the situation. Her friend, feeling down came home and asked her to read a Bible story. "What? A Bible story? Ann, are you sure you're not pulling my leg? I'm thinking what really happened was that she came home, complained a bit, or maybe said nothing, sat down and flicked on the TV. If not the TV a CD or perhaps just decided to talk about whatever. Couldn't have been the Bible though." :)

Actually, I fully believe that Ann's account is faithful, and I found it a joy to read. What I wanted to say here was that I think what those two shared that day was what so many more of us should share far more often. I spend quite a bit of time with youth groups and despite the passion a lot of them have for their relationship with God, and all the time they put in by themselves, seeking God in prayer and the Word, the one thing I've noticed lacking is that there is no atmosphere for such things in a group setting. I don't know if it's fear or embarrassment, plain lack of interest or thoughtlessness, but rarely do I ever see friends getting together to share some of the word or pray together. The feeling is almost that if someone suggested such a thing everyone would acknowledge that it's a noble idea but then find a way to just carry on 'relaxing' or 'hanging out'.

Now I have nothing, of course, against 'hanging out'. I love it. However, the truth is that for too many Christians that's all they do, and because of it there lacks an atmosphere of respect and desire for the word of God. Due to this, I see so many who suffer from a lack of knowledge about the Bible either its content or how to handle it. They also suffer from a lack of faith and a lack of confidence in Christian things. In every other activity and endeavour in life - hobbies, sports, relationships, fashion, whatever - we humans bounce things off one another. It's how we learn and how we develop skills and deepen passions. We get together in groups and talk. We share ideas, thoughts, questions. We experiment and we have fun. Not in the things of God however, not with the Bible. We've lost the practise of celebration in faith. We celebrate everything else with one another, but rarely our faith and the Word of God.

This brings me back to something else that occurred to me a while ago. I was in a youth meeting and I had the chance to speak. "If we're honest", I said, "most of us would admit that one of the main reasons - if not the very main reason - we come here on this evening is to be with our friends." I continued, "Upon admitting that though, most of you would begin to feel guilty but what occurs to me is that I don't think that's bad at all. In fact, I think God approves. The reason I think He approves is because I think that's exactly what He does. He comes to be with His friends." Then I turned it round, "The thing is though, we don't even do that well."

If I asked you what the most important parts of your life are, what would you answer? Family? Faith? Does the way you pursue your relationships with your friends reflect that order or are they misrepresented?

A word to you who are more intellectual though. Such activity doesn't always have to be a debate or involved some deep writings that you've been pouring over. Often that seems to inaccessible to people, out of their reach. A simple reading of Scripture, a sharing of favourite passages, having a laugh over stories, dropping anecdotes and letting the Word of God, to quote Professor Keating in the movie The Dead Poets Society, "drip from our tongues like honey".

If only more of us would get together with our friends an on occasion (and more and more frequently) just read a story from the Bible. Share some thoughts, ponder some questions, I am convinced our spiritual life and faith would grow in leaps and bounds and our confidence would become strong. What we need to foster in our groups and among our friends is a true atmosphere of fellowship and of respect for, and joy in, the Word and God.

Originally posted here.

Cooking With Gas

Well here we are. It's been a few months in getting to this initial point and I expect a few more for things to really get going, but I'm ready for the start and looking forward to what may come.

It was just a few months ago that I was sat at a friend's computer when I saw their screen saver. It was one of those Windows scrolling text displays and the text rolling across the screen was Psalm 119:111, "Your statutes are my inheritance forever, they are the joy of my heart." Perhaps it's not the most striking verse in the Bible but that evening it hit me squarely. I wasn't sure why at the time, nor was I asking that question, it simply occurred to me that such was the attitude which we, as Christians should have towards Scripture, yet which often seems to be so lacking. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not overly pessimistic about the Church. I know that there are many out there who love God's word and who have been searching it and expounding it for many years. These are they who truly have taken the word of God as their inheritance and in love have given their lives to discovering and sharing its truth. Having received life from God through His Word they have been filled with joy time and again with Scripture being at the centre of it. Truly God's word has been the joy of their hearts and they have sought to honour the inheritance given them by Him who has gave it.

However, too much I see those who, for various reasons, take little joy in God's word. They spend only small amounts of time walking through its pages, and know only a minimum of its content. So many Christians, it seems, come to the word of God having been told about its life and truth and nourishment, about its wonders and joys, flavours and richness, but whenever they open it's pages they find only raw ingredients, flour, milk, eggs, salt and a pinch of spice here and there ; a diet that might perhaps be nourishing but is certainly not palatable. They stand like a new student in their new home in a kitchen full of ingredients, spices and equipment but end up always eating ready-made dinners or the same old beans on toast because they don't know where to start, are put off by past failed experiments, it seems like too much work, or it's just plain intimidating.

So it is, I think, that many Christians find themselves in sharing meetings where they feel they should say something but have nothing to offer. Groups of Christians who get together at a friends house, and together they all stand in the kitchen, equally bemused, and perhaps after a few nice ideas from one or two perky individuals, they all end up back on the sofa munching on Pringles, and eating microwaved meatballs. The kitchen remaining either untouched or a mess of flour, dirty bowls, whisks, and maybe a deflated cake or two.

Many of us have since then learned to cook, and some of us have had the privilege of growing up with those who were adept in the kitchen and gave us the knowledge and confidence to cook for ourselves. For others though, if the Word of God is an inheritance to them, it is one that remains unopened, or perhaps, having been opened and examined it has been left to one side, on the shelf, as too complicated or confusing. If it is a source of joy, it is only so on Sundays when a pastor has taken from it the needed ingredients and put them together in a way that produces a nourishing and enjoyable meal. The joy of such is seldom experienced alone.

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That day, reading the screensaver I realised acutely how much so many are missing out on, and me being me, as I felt my passion for the Word of God rising within me, I wanted to just turn around and somehow convey all that passion and those thoughts and desires to all around me. Well, it wasn't until a few days later that I was reading through some of John 17. I came to verse 22 and read about a glory given to Christ by His Father which He in turn passes to those who would follow Him afterwards. I pondered what that glory might be, what its nature was, and as I did so I began to think about how good it would be to have some friends, equally passionate about the word, who could share and discuss some of these things and help dig out some answers. I remember days at Bible college where we got to do things like that - perhaps some of the best moments of those three years. I also thought about groups I'd heard of, like Lewis' Inklings, and the fictional Dead Poets Society, where friends would gather in eager expectation to experience and share, joy and excitement through and over some literature or other; the combined joy and passion exceeding the sum total of that of each of the individuals together as each one fed off the other. To belong to such a group who with excitement and passion, curiosity and joy would pour over the Bible to discover its truth and embrace its joys would, I thought, be a magnificent thing. In this world where it seems there is so little regard for the word of God and not much desire for it, it would be a treasure.

"It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, the glory of kings is to search a matter out."

This blog is here as a remedy to that. It is my hope, and I believe that God is in it, that friends across the globe could come together as a community to share God's word. To dig deep into it, its mysteries and quandaries, and to reveal its treasures and share its delicacies. This is an expedition into the hidden world of God's word. Searching out new territory, taking hidden paths and discovering undisclosed wonders. To explore the realm which is our inheritance as masters and as novices. Teaching one another new skills and how to handle the tools necessary to become a proficient and reliable digger, passing down what we know, and have received from others before us. This is a journey of joy and excitement, of unity and shared passion.

To further that aim, I hope to add to this blog articles and pieces that offer new techniques and lessons in handling God's word and digging into it. A place where we can learn how to cook, and expand our repertoire as well as share recipes. Where we can learn new techniques and gain new tools for this unending journey of discovery.

What's more, and far be it from me to dictate to anyone's life, when I look to the lack in so many Christians' lives, it is my hope that maybe this could be an avenue where those who are looking might find some hope and a way to develop a love for and ability to get into the word of God and be able to rejoice in the joy and inheritance of God with those of who have already been blessed beyond expectation. One way I can see this happening is through the simple commitment and expression of those who are already 'good cooks in God's kitchen' or just have a similar passion for God's word. This blog is just one part - a gathering place, a central focal point, where we can come to bring up questions and thoughts - points of interest from which to choose the next goal and destination, and then from there to take that thought and question and for a period to take it and explore it. To share that thought with those around us - friends, family, near and far. Emails would be sent, phone calls made, and coffee or hot chocolate talked over. Grey cells would ponder and pages would be turned. Even better, for little pockets of believers to form in our area, coming together to discuss and explore and enjoy. Then from there, to gather what has been learned and return to share that here, a depository for the things discovered and treasures found.

I thank you for your time this far, and I hope that like Susan, Peter, Edmund and Lucy, declared kings and queens by Aslan in His land of Narnia, we can go forth as kings and queens into His Scripture, seeking it out with all the resources at our disposal and expending our efforts in taking up this challenge of God. I invite you to join me, to talk with those around you, and whether you are one who has for a long time desired to know how to cook, a lone chef eager to share recipes and learn new techniques, or one in community desirous to expand that communion, let us see what we can find on this opening of our inheritance and deepening of the joy of our hearts.