Purposeful Purity

Praying in the public square

2012-02-12T21:13:00.002Z

*A RECENT ARTICLE OF INTEREST* 'It's time for Christians to fight back'. Which National Secular Society initiative feeds the poor or cures the ill, asks Cristina Odone.
She makes an interesting point. Not sure about the language she uses, though.

For those of you who aren't British/ haven't heard, the latest Christian debate to get fired up in the newspapers has been that of a council in Devon whose practice of saying prayers before council meetings has been ruled unlawful.

To read reports on it, follow these links:
The Telegraph report
The Guardian report
The Local Devon report

A couple of key questions are raised here.
One: Is it in the interest of democratic ideals to outlaw the council from praying?
Two: Is England a 'Christian country', and to what extent should we be trying to defend that?

So, question one - Is this ruling in the interest of democracy? It is strange to note that the atheist councillor seems to think that it is, despite the fact that the local council he works for twice voted against removing prayer from meetings. In fact, this could easily be interpreted as an active decision by the councillor in question to ignore freedom to practice religion and to ignore the majority's view in pursuit of his own agenda. I'm not sure what huge issue atheists have with prayer in meetings, anyway- yes, it may be silly if there is actually no God to pray to, but it's not actually offensive or exclusive. In the Guardian, the councillor is quoted as saying that his issue with it was that 'younger people- people in their 30s and 40s- just say 'No way' when they hear there are prayers'. Of course, regardless of the fact that he has no actual quotes from any of these 'younger people', it seems very odd that he regards people in their 40s as too immature to actually attend a council meeting a voice a complaint against prayer if they had one. Certainly, if the council had been inundated with complaints about it, remove the practice. That, however, does not seem to be the case. This councillor also falls prey to a slightly awkward moment of statistics invention, saying 'I think 90% of the population are indifferent' - a statistic that doesn't help his cause, given that indifference in people suggests that the prayers were not a problem.
I don't understand the whole issue of praying being 'illegal' before meetings, but it does seem to come down to loopholes and legal fidgeywidgeyness (technical term) and not actually any great democratic 'wins'.

Question two- the issue of a Christian country. No matter how many times bishops and Christian politicians or lawyers say it, (or even if the Queen says it!) we do not *actually* live in a 'Christian' country. Yes, a lot of our laws are grounded in Christian belief, but that does not *actually* mean this is a 'Christian' place to live. Actual followers of Christ are by far and away the minority, and, besides, the prayers being said at these meetings were not necessarily Christian, given that 'all faiths are welcome to come along and say prayers.' My advice would be that Christians stop using this as an argument. Rather than protect our heritage (which is not the same as present reality) we should be protecting freedom of speech and religion.

Hannah

Songs for a lost generation

2012-02-11T17:53:00.001Z

Hello.
Since I've been in a pretty dark mood of late, my listening habits have reflected that - and I realised that a lot of the secular music I was indulging in, leading to nice long brooding sessions, probably nicely summed up what my world view and my mind would be like without Christ.
I'm not saying that all non-Christians wander around feeling purposeless and miserable- that's always seemed to me to be a bit of a silly argument, when so many object to that interpretation of their lives. I'm just acknowledging that I certainly would, given my character and propensity for self-pity when my eyes don't look upwards. My life would be a series of attempts at filling emptiness.
I've chosen some songs to share here the things I've been listening to recently which seem to pick this darkness up.

1. Radiohead- How to Disappear Completely

2. Lana Del Rey- Born to Die

3. MGMT- Time to Pretend

4. Elbow- The Night will always win

5. Regina Spektor- Eet

6. Kings of Convenience- Homesick

7. Leonard Cohen- The Stranger Song

8. Tom Waits- Goin' Out West

Oh dear. Even a lot of the names are depressing! To add to the pitying overload, here is an excellent poem that sums up this distance from a creator God: Alone with Everybody by Charles Bukowski.
Enjoy.
I strongly recommend that you don't try to sample all of this in one sitting. That would be silly and sad.
God Bless you. Let us be filled with praise that This Is Not It!
Hannah

Atheism and Appealing to Authority

2012-02-06T21:37:00.001Z

Hello.
So, last blog post I mentioned that despite everything- and being pretty tired of putting trust in God when feeling rejected- I found atheism not that convincing. Thought I could clarify here. There are a couple of things that have been bothering me about atheist arguments for a while and the mistakes they make which they accuse theists of making a lot of the time.

1) Appealing to authority. So, a lot of the time, atheists get all worked up that Christians either appeal to the authority of the Bible or point out that there are lots of clever people who are Christians. They call this out as 'appealing to authority' and thus not being a proper argument. A couple of things strike me about this. One: A lot of the time, Christians only point out that plenty of clever, scientifically minded people are Christians because since the dawning of new atheism it has become acceptable for atheists to decry faith as representative of a severe lack of intelligence and awareness. Of course, there are plenty of stupid Christians - but there are also plenty of stupid atheists, as well as being plenty of clever men and women on both sides of the argument. Intelligence clearly has nothing to do with it, even though atheists insist on bringing that up - and, in doing so, 'appeal to authority' themselves.

I have even noticed a sharp increase in atheists using the fallacious strategy of 'reductio ad absurdum' - making things seem ridiculous through exaggeration - like comparing a flying spaghetti monster or Father Christmas to God. After a few seconds thought, it is obvious that Christian faith is not at all comparable to any sensible degree with these things, and yet very intelligent men can get away with using arguments like "There may be fairies at the bottom of the garden. There is no evidence for it, but can't prove that there aren't any, so shouldn't we be agnostic with respect to fairies?" (See Richard Dawkins for more little golden nuggets like that). This is quite boring. A lot of Christians argue a reasonable faith very badly, too, but at least generally Christians don't go on about how stupid and illogical all other positions are. (And if we are, shame on us! There is humbly debating and there is just being an unpleasant, proud human being.)
Of course, it helps when you realise that people don't get argued into the family of God - the pressure to look clever comes off slightly.

2) The thing about the Bible. There is this popular line used by atheists which basically says that Christians use a circular argument when it comes to the authority of the Bible. It goes something like this: Christian: I believe that the Bible is the word of God.
Non-believer: Why?
Christian: Because the Bible says that it is the word of God.
Non-believer: FAIL. There is no external authority on which you can rely. Thus a circular argument.

A couple of things on this. One- it is actually very important that the Bible claims it is the word of God. If we believed that the Bible was the word of God but it didn't say so itself, that would be very awkward indeed. Two- we need to think of it more like this. You have this friend who is a brain surgeon. You introduce them as a brain surgeon, and the sceptic says 'How do I know this person is a brain surgeon?' Your friend says 'Well, I am a brain surgeon.' Sceptic says 'that proves nothing.' What is the logical next step? Friend performs some brain surgery to prove they aren't lying. (Or gets out ID. Whichever is easiest. The latter is probably less messy at a dinner party.) Anyway, the point is- we then need to let the Bible stand on its own two feet and demonstrate that it is powerful and good in what it says and the impact it has. If it is good and powerful, it can be tested to be so.

A final thought - on what authority do atheists rely for their assurance of the non-existence of God? Often, I hear atheists call 'religious people' narrow-minded - but in reality the only people who aren't narrow minded are agnostics- people who have made no decision whatsoever. Such people don't really exist. We all hold to some kind of belief system which excludes others, whether we're aware of it or not.

To finish on a fantastic quote from Dawkins (that's not sarcasm- I genuinely really like this, though probably not for the reasons I'm supposed to...)
"By all means let's be open-minded, but not so open-minded that our brains drop out".
God Bless.
Hannah

P.S. Cambridge Christian Union mission week began today. -->
Here's a link to the website- please be praying!
Real Life 2012

Angry with God.

2012-02-03T18:57:00.000Z

You know it's a low point when you go through the following thought process:
'Right now, I seem to have very little faith in a father God - but the arguments for atheism don't convince me, really, and Christianity is definitely the best one out of the options. I guess I'll stick with it for now.' I had a look at the British Humanist Association website the other day, almost hoping to read something sensible or tangible or honest. I didn't. Not convinced, even though I half wanted to be.

I want to be honest on this blog. Hearing about the lives of Christian 'success stories', who talk as those they live one long journey of answered prayers and blessings gets a little tiring when things are hard, and I imagine I'm not the only one feeling that way. So here we go - what I've been thinking and feeling for the last few months.

I've been angry with God. Bitter sums it up well. Things seem to improve, and there is a 'grace period' in the difficult stuff, and then people get sick again and sad again and broken again and it's as though we're back where we were, crying out for mercy and wholeness and peace - for some time to heal before the tough stuff falls. I'm talking about family stuff, mostly. But other relationships have crumbled too. Inside, I am grieving and tired, and outside I have to just keep going - there are others to support, who have much bigger issues than I do, and there are people to reach with the love of God. I've been resenting this. Other Christians, other non-Christians. Basically Other People. A lot of pain about it all, and this constant longing to know in my heart what I tell myself in my head - that God loves me and calls me his child. A lot of tears, and then a lot of feeling very, very, numb.

I struggle with guilt a lot. The endless cycles of it that spin round my head at the end of each day when I try and talk to God are quite remarkable. Guilt for not doing something, and then if I do it, guilt at my motivations, prayer that God would change my motivations, followed by frustration that they haven't been changed, followed by guilt at my frustration, followed by guilt at feeling guilty when I've been told so many times 'Don't feel guilty! The gospel frees you from that!' I don't feel free.
So I do things. I fill the void of numb, hurting, bitter stuff by doing Christian things. They make me happy. They make me feel useful, and I really do long to see other people healed and found in God's love. But I struggle to get there myself.

How can I reach people with God's love when I am unsure myself? When prayer seems to go unanswered, when I am resentful of change without guidance and when I am exhibiting the emotional range of a manic, tired, toddler?

I've been re-learning the gospel and what God is like. I am acting like a child, because a child I am. I haven't fully learnt it yet. I suppose it will take a lifetime. I've been reading a book called 'He Loves Me' by Wayne Jacobson. It is not a fancy theological tome. I'm not even sure about everything he says, but then, I'm not sure about anything at the moment. But it has helped me. It has presented me with God as a father in an honest way, determined that I should see his love, manifest on the cross, if nothing else. It is teaching me, slowly, to turn back and live in God's love, with no requirements on me to do anything to stay there. If you are hurting, I recommend it.

Things hurt. Being a Christian is hard.

Things and Thoughts

2012-01-18T21:26:00.001Z

Bleugh. Cambridge. Bleugh.

Enough of that. I'm sure most of you have seen the 'Why I hate religion, but love Jesus' video. If not, here it is.

Like all things that get such widespread coverage on the internet, there's been a lot of feedback, with some Christians questioning the premise of the video. I think, personally, it's a bit harsh. The guy (Jeff Bethke) has clearly got across the gospel, and even if he has been a bit obtuse about the meaning of 'religion' (he actually means false religion, it seems) we know what he means. Let's show a little more love for his passion for Jesus. Anyway, he also responded very humbly to criticism from Christians. Seems like a good guy.
If you're interested, here are the links to a Christian response, and then the response to the response (if that makes sense) from Kevin Bethke.

From 'The Gospel Coalition: 'Does Jesus hate religion? Kinda, sorta, not really'

Kevin's follow-up from The Gospel Coalition

Some other things to share, too.
A friend of mine has been doing a really exciting project with Tearfund's 'Emerging Generation' programme. She is getting as many people as possible to upload a photo to a facebook page with an encouraging message for women in poverty. These will then be woven into a giant woolen 'thing' and taken to parliament as a petition, before being cut up and distributed to different women's groups around the world to show them that they are not forgotten, and are beautifully made.
It's called The 139 Project (Check out Psalm 139!) and if you click here you can find out more on the facebook page. Please do- it's a wonderful thing.

Finally - Something really tragic to share- a horrifying indicator of the way in which our society views the most vulnerable. God, have mercy on us! Click here to read the struggle of one girl to have the right to life - a toddler with Wolf-hirschhorn disease.

God Bless,
Hannah
P.S. Proper post coming soon, promise! On the subject of 'Getting angry with God' - something I have become very well acquainted with...

Persecuted Christians

2012-01-02T23:15:00.002Z

Even the secular world is noticing.

The Economist: 'Christians and Lions'

The Telegraph: 'How Can We Remain Silent While Christians Are Being Persecuted?'

'Pakistani Christian On Death Row Cooks Own Meals For Fear Of Being Poisoned'

Perhaps there is another New Year's Resolution here. To pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

2012- New year and all that.

2012-01-01T18:53:00.002Z

What a clichéd blog post this is going to be. Ah well.
Have you noticed that trying to pick a 'Christian' resolution tends to come down to the same 'could do better' attitude towards your relationship with God? Well, this post is just going to be a short list of suggestions for things you could do positively this year (just pick one!), specific ways to serve God, others or yourself while avoiding the ever-lengthening list of areas you know you're rubbish in. These are all things I've taken up in the past (and am still doing, which is an amazing testimony to their helpfulness, given my complete lack of sticking-power!).

1. Read the Bible in a year. Wait a minute, before you skip this suggestion entirely. I started doing this a couple of months ago, and got really intimidated by all the crazy plans and systems you can find online. My recommendation is to get one of these....
Basically just a mixed up Bible, with 3 readings for each day of the year- one from the Old Testament, one from the New and one from either Psalms or Proverbs. It's all helpfully split up in the right chunks for you, without any extra commentary or notes. Only takes 15-20 minutes reading each day to do the section set.

2. Start a prayer diary. I've been doing this for a few years now. I'm really easily distracted, so writing down my prayers helps massively with concentration. Also fantastic to be able to read back over the way God has been working, and remember prayers that have been answered when things get tough. You don't have to do this every day, though I find it helpful. Low pressure- it's just between you and God.

3. Start sponsoring a child through Compassion UK. (Or Compassion US...). Make a commitment to pay for a child's needs, pray for them and write to them regularly. Just wonderful. An amazing blessing to receive letters from them. Click here to find out more.

4. Sign up to serve in your Church's children's ministry. I bet they need more people. They always do.

5. Pick a Christian charity close to your heart and commit to praying for them and for their specific needs daily. Need suggestions? I have many...!

Have a blessed 2012.

'Purity's Big Pay Off/Premarital sex is a big rip-off: Review

2011-12-31T00:11:00.002Z

Hello.
The 'Purity' in the title of this blog does not just refer to sexuality, as is often assumed by those who hear of it. Purity is important in all areas of the Christian life, most importantly purity of heart. Of course, sexual purity is important too, and the author of 'Purity's Big Payoff' (Donna Schillinger) has kindly sent me a copy of her book, which addresses that very issue - from the perspective of 18 different people, who share their stories.

It's a double sided book- one side telling 9 stories of people who saved sex til marriage, the other with 9 accounts of sexual sin and its consequences. Standard fare, really, though the honesty of those writing is touching and encouraging. One good thing, which you rarely get these days in Christian discussions about sex, was the fact that the book does include at least one account in which true redemption from sexual sin is recorded- someone who makes huge mistakes, but still ends in a relationship in which their past is completely wiped out. So often, the desire to be really strict and clear on boundaries leads Christians to a complete lack of sympathy or concern for those who have already sinned sexually, leaving them feeling as though there is no true redemption or forgiveness- at least not from humans. This book fortunately sidesteps that. An interesting read.

It says nothing particularly new or innovative, but on this subject that is probably for the best. Perhaps a good collection of cautionary tales to buy for someone struggling with the issue, or to use in youth groups. Also has explanations in many of the stories about how the individuals ended up indulging sexual sin, which is helpful for parents/youth leaders etc to know how to help other young people to not make the same mistake. A lot of it seems to come down to lack of discussion of the issue, boundaries being blurred and unrealistic expectations of sex and relationships.
So. Worth looking at, (and buying!) certainly. Click here to follow a link to the book's blog.

P.S: FORGOT TO POST A LINK TO THIS ARTICLE- 'SEX IS NOT JUST FOR GROWN-UPS'. WILL FOLLOW UP WITH COMMENT SOON. WORTH READING. QUITE SAD.

Emmanuel; the challenge of God With Us.

2011-12-26T00:11:00.003Z

Merry Christmas! (I realise that this posted on the 26th, but it was just after midnight, so still counts in my eyes)

I did a post on the name 'Emmanuel' last year as well (click here to read it), but I have developed a little in understanding and thoughts from last year - at least I think I have - so I want to have a stab at it again, and try to more fully grasp the implications of a name containing such a promise.
Though this may not be the immediate definition of Christmas that comes to mind, today is the end of advent - a time set aside in the Christian calendar for the specific purpose of preparing the heart and mind through penitence and reflection- making oneself ready for the celebration of Jesus' birth with a focus drawn towards God and his goodness....

Whoops. Obviously I missed the memo on that one this year. It was only this morning, sitting in Church and waiting to take communion that I realised how unfit my mind and heart were for dwelling of my Saviour, and how little thought I had given to my relationship with God in the busy leading-up-to-Christmas-bit. Before going to receive bread and wine, I was thinking about what Jesus says to those on their way to the temple who have an unresolved quarrel;

"If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother; then come and offer your gift." (Matt. 5v23-4)

The same kind of principle applies when taking communion - in the Anglican Church the peace is shared beforehand as a sign that we are reconciled as the body of Christ before remembering our Lord's death together. I have allowed so much disunity and resentfulness to reign over the last month! The name 'Emmanuel' draws on this too. 'God With Us' - an encouragement and a challenge. God freely entered a world which was at war with him, and that still lives in a way which betrays him. Jesus wonderfully accepts and forgives us on no merit of our own, but if God is With Us, we can expect him to begin to shape our lives and hearts into a place fit for his presence. Indeed, we should long to live lives that are fit dwelling places for Jesus Christ!

One of the conversations I had with a Muslim friend of mine in Morocco was concerning the idea of heaven. He viewed it as a place where all human desires were met- you could have anything you wanted. I asked him how God could stand to live in a place where the greedy, lustful, selfish wants of humans were fulfilled at their every whim. He replied (and I'm not claiming this is Orthodox Islam by any means!) that God probably wouldn't be there most of the time so that humans could have their fun!
It sounds shocking and even a little ridiculous to us that a concept of heaven could look like that, but I'm pretty sure that's how I treat the idea of 'God With Us'. Give me the good stuff- keep the need for a change of heart in me. Give me the Christmas stuff, but please, don't ask me to be patient with my brother! (He's really irritating... ;) )

God With Us. Do we seek to live as dwelling places for the Lord God Almighty, the Word made flesh, the Prince of Peace?

P.S. The Queen's Christmas speech was truly excellent this year, and talks a lot about the gospel of forgiveness. Check it out ( and I really recommend you do) by clicking here.

P.P.S. And, because it's Christmas, a really good comparison of views of Father Christmas and God. In rhyme.

Prince of Peace- Lennon's accidental theological insight.

2011-12-21T17:12:00.001Z

Hello,
Sorrysorrysorry for not posting sooner/more regularly/properly. Will try to buck up on that over holidays. Starting with a seasonal name of God.

I am Not At Peace. We just got back from a family holiday with a Christian company on which the ministry leader pointed out that it is incredibly rare to meet Christian who is truly at peace and content in their relationship with God. This includes me. So determined am I to make it better, to read my Bible more, pray more deeply and more fervently, live in a more holy manner, that I do not rest in his love and remember that all this is by grace alone. Only then is there peace.

What is peace like in the Bible? What is the 'Shalom' promised to the follower of God in Isaiah 26? ("You will keep him in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you"). It is this abiding sense of security and rest - despite circumstances - not swayed by life but entrenched in the soul. So I hear. I can't remember knowing that.
What does the name 'Prince of Peace' say about the nature of the coming Messiah this Christmas, and what did the angels mean when they heralded his arrival with the announcement 'on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests' (Luke 2)? Let's pick out 2 things.

1. For the Messiah's coming to bring peace, there has to have been a lack of peace before it, and a need for reconciliation. Between whom? God and man. By this announcement, the angels proclaim that Man has been at war with God, but the coming Christ will offer a truce, a white flag, a coming together again. 'Happy Christmas, War is over'- Who'd have thought John Lennon would have hit on the message of God by accident?! With that reconciliation, we are offered peace. That offer doesn't end with repentance and conversion. God is still offering me peace and reconciliation today, each time I turn from him or trust my own worth and end up frustrated at my dysfunction as a disciple.

2. If that peace has been offered to us, we are in a position to present it to others. On our family holiday, the ministry leader (he was fantastic, by the way!) described the Christian walk as a 'ministry of reconciliation' in which we are commissioned to play a part in reconciling people to God through demonstrating the loving peace of Christ. What a wonderful, inspirational, challenging way to look at the work of evangelism! How encouraging to know that we are ambassadors for the great Offer of Peace between God and Man, as grateful recipients ourselves.
May the Prince of Peace bless you this Christmas.
Hannah

P.S. Lots of stuff has happened this last week. A lot of it is concerning death. I am going to pick out the death of Christopher Hitchens, Cameron's 'Christian' speech, the death of Kim Jong Il and the death-after-birth of a supposedly handicapped aborted baby. While I don't have time to write posts on each one individually, I've picked out articles or people who I think have handled them well/contribute to discussion. Click on links below.

-Douglas Wilson on the death of Christopher Hitchens- A Christian who knew him better than most, having been on tour with him. (See my recent 'Collision' post for more details.)
-Open Doors International on the death of Kim Jong Il- what does the position for the persecuted look like now?
-Read the article in the Independent here on the botched diagnosis and then botched abortion of a baby. Most tragic part of this for me is the fact that this baby was unwanted before it was discovered to be 'normal'.
-Read Cameron's entire speech concerning the KJV anniversary here (don't just read the articles about it!) There are so many comments on it (mostly coming to the conclusion that he doesn't appear to have faith in Jesus Christ, and so is not a Christian) that I'll let you pick your own, not suggest one.

Collision film- Hitchens on God the Father.

2011-12-09T22:27:00.001Z

Hello there.
At the end of term I watched the film 'Collision' with my student group at Church. Check out the website here. Basically it documents the tour of debates between Christopher Hitchens and Douglas Wilson across America, as they promoted their joint book 'Is Christianity Good For The World?' Advert for the film is below. Good points were made on both sides, and to be honest it was pretty evenly matched. Also entertaining to watch as a film, particularly seeing the good relationship between the two of them despite their opposing views. Also plenty of melodramatic music and flying round in helicopters to add to the general effect. The point I want to pick out, though, is the frankly saddening view of fatherhood and God as a father that was put forward by Hitchens.

In Hitch-22, he says that 'nobody but a lugubrious serf can possibly wish for a father that never goes away'. This sums up the sort of approach he takes in Collision - a combined fear and loathing of a God who is a perpetual father, never allowing you to 'grow up' and never stepping aside to let you take on adult independence. For one, this is a sad view of what earthly fathers are like. In Hitchens' eyes, protective love becomes domineering and selfish- and perhaps many fathers do fall into this category. One can understand why a father like that would not be wanted forever, (though I still can't say the same about my relationship with my dad!) but for Hitchens to have this view of what fathers are like is tragic. Worse, of course, is to take the failings of earthly fathers and to apply them to our heavenly father- who is love in its perfection. To do this is to misunderstand the nature of God as described in the Bible. The other side of this is to misunderstand the nature of humans. Hitchens seems to think that we 'grow up', and that our need for discipline and provision ends, somehow. How wrong he is! We are constantly reliant on our heavenly father, whether we are aware of it or not. As both creator and redeemer, he commands our beginning and gives us hope for our end.

Hitchens is an incredibly intelligent man. He is eloquent, insightful, a remarkable moralist, a creditable voice of reason. But he does not seem to understand the human heart. We will never grow out of God's fatherhood. It is a gift from him that he refuses to abandon us, despite our constant rejection of his blessings.

God Bless you, Mr Hitchens.
Hannah.

Some things.

2011-12-03T10:14:00.001Z

I've allowed 2 weeks to go by without posting. My apologies. Nearly done with term now, after which I have some big questions I want to address on here which have running around my brain for a while. For now, though, I'm still working- and just want to share with you a few good things- a Musician, a Film, a Blog and a Bit Of Amusement.

1. The Musician. Musician of choice at the moment is Jon Foreman, lead singer of Switchfoot and also excellent solo artist. Personally, I prefer his solo stuff. Here's a couple of my favourites (though I have lots more, including Instead of a Show, which is a song using the words of Amos 5v21-24 and Isaiah 1v13-18, and Lord, Save me from myself, which beautifully depicts the sin of the heart.)

2. The Film. A while back I saw Shadowlands, the film of C.S. Lewis's relationship with his wife, Joy, and his struggle with God while she was dying from cancer. Can't remember the last time a film made me cry so much. Very worth watching. Very challenging and honest. If you've read the book 'A Grief Observed' (C.S. Lewis's diary/book about the pain after Joy's death) you'll recognise a lot of the lines in the film.

3. The Blog. Joy Loewen. All about ministering to Muslim women. Really inspiring and helpful - and a really interesting and blessed ministry! Check it out by clicking here.

4. A Bit of Amusement. The Bethlehemian Rhapsody. No words really needed to describe this one.

God Bless,
Hannah

66 Cities- Raw Bible- Real People

2011-11-15T22:17:00.001Z

Hello hello hello from manic Cambridge.

So. Imagine visiting each of the 66 cities in Britain, in 66 days, and preaching from each of the 66 books of the Bible in that time - one for each city. Imagine that you don't know who you'll meet or where you'll go for each day- you just send out a few emails and wait for God to guide the rest. Such was the experience of Robert Farrell, a minister who has just finished exactly this project, with the support of Premier Christian Radio. I picked up one of his emails in Cambridge when he was here, and got to meet him. So many interesting stories and wonderful news of what God is doing in cities across Britain! I took him along to the people at Christian Heritage in Cambridge, and he also came along on homeless outreach with us.
Check out his blog by clicking here. You can find your own city and see what happened there, watch interviews with people he met and listen to his talks from each book. He met people from pretty much every walk of life- students, bishops, the head of the army, cocaine addicts, social workers... it's all found on his blog!
Oh, and below is the interview he did with me about church, the Bible, preaching, broken Britain...etc. I had forgotten how much I dislike the sound of my own voice. I apologise in advance for the grating middle-class tone that you are about to experience. Plus the awkward close up of my face.

Lest we forget.

2011-11-11T18:37:00.006Z

Hello,

Apologies once again for shockingly irregular posting. Not sure this one even counts as it's a repeat of things I wrote a couple of years ago. Sadly, things don't change. Nothing new under the sun.

Today, as I'm sure you're aware, was Remembrance Day- the day that commemorates the official end of World War 1 and has since come to symbolise a day to remember all those who have fallen in battle, and their families who are suffering. This is all very well- but how as Christians is this especially important?

Is war justifiable as a christian? What should the Christian attitude be to the death, destruction, and devastation caused by war? Is war moral, immoral, or amoral? Are all wars the same morally and ethically? When can Christians participate in war, and when should protest? Can Christians fight against other Christians? If we go to war, does Christianity provide guidance for the conduct of war on a strategic or personal level? Does Christian doctrine promote war or peace? When a Christian begins to think about how to apply his or her faith to the realm of warfare, these are some of the first questions that must be addressed. If we believe that our faith matters and that the Bible should be applied all parts of our lives, then we must think about its application in global affairs as well as at home.

I don't know the answers to these all these questions- or even most of them- but in Romans 12:18 Paul writes "If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men"

The Christian philosopher Arthur Holmes writes, "To call war anything less than evil would be self-deception. The Christian conscience has throughout history recognized the tragic character of war. The issue that tears the Christian conscience is not whether war is good, but whether it is in all cases avoidable."

On my heart at the moment in particular is the way in which children get entangled in conflict- particularly child soldiers. I can't find any Christian charities who have a major ministry focus in this area. Do you know of any?

Today I challenge you to remember that all people are precious to God- and to recall that in today's modern approach to warfare a war may be 'unavoidable' but still create huge damage and affect thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of soldier and civilian lives. Please choose an area of the world which is torn apart by conflict and set aside some time each day to pray for those involved.

Wikipedia lists all current conflict in the world- and the dates which said conflict began. It is shocking and sad to discover that many of them started mid-way through the 20th century.

Hannah.

Some things

2011-10-31T13:01:00.000Z

OhmygoodnessIhaven'tpostedinalongtime. Apologies. I have things to talk about.
Things I've been doing and want to share-

1. I went to the William Lane Craig debate at the Cambridge Union- debating "This house believes that God is not a delusion". It was disappointing. The main problem was that 'God' was not defined, leading to much time wasting and fallacious arguments- from both sides, which was a shame. The points put forward by the proposition are listed below- I'm not going to bother assessing them- the only one that really held any major weight with me was the 'moral argument'- but I have to say that the whole thing made me very glad that I have a living relationship with my redeeming creator, not with a philosophical idea!

A Moral Argument

1) If God does not exist, then objective moral values do not exist.

2) At least one objective moral value exists.

3) Therefore, God exists.

A Cosmological Argument

1) Everything that exists has an explanation of its existence, either in the necessity of its own nature or in an external cause.

2) The universe exists.

3) Therefore the universe has an explanation of its existence.

4) If the universe has an explanation of its existence, that explanation is God.

5) Therefore, the explanation of the universe's existence is God.

An Ontological Argument

1) If it is possible that God exists, then God exists.

2) It is possible that God exists.

3) Therefore, God exists

2. I also went to a talk run by Cambridge Christian Union with the title 'What is God's problem with gay people?' I have to say, I went with a great deal of trepidation- desperately trying to reserve judgement on whether this was very brave and honest or very stupid. Thankfully, it was the former- the speaker was Jonathan Berry, director of True Freedom Trust. As an organisation who works specifically with Christians who wish to have help with same sex attraction struggles, and since Jonathan Berry was a Christian celibate homosexual who had left behind a homosexual relationship after his conversion, it was really well pitched. It succeeded in coming across honestly and based on the Bible- but also very gently and humbly, emphasising that God does not in fact have a particular problem with gay people- rather he has a more general problem with our sin. Take a look at the True Freedom Trust website by clicking here. You can read Berry's testimony by following the link on the home page. So, thank God for what they do!

3. On a slightly lighter note- some things that I like a lot. Check out cartoonchurch.com- very entertaining, particularly for those with an anglican background. Also visit wordlive.org. Really useful for daily Bible study, inspiration, motivation and stimulation. Some funny stuff too. Finally, I really like the music of Sara Groves. Thought I'd share a couple of her songs with you.

God Bless.

Hannah

Conversion Just Is Not Enough.

2011-10-18T20:41:00.001+01:00

Before I start ranting, you need to click and read this article: 'Church HIV prayer cure claims cause 3 deaths'.

Read it? Good. For those who can't read it for some reason, basically, the gist is that a Church in London run by the third-richest clergyman from Nigeria has been telling HIV sufferers to trust in God's healing power and not their medication, leading to death. The Church also sprays anointing healing water on people. Called the 'Synagogue Church of all Nations', you can check out their website by clicking here.

So. Aside from the painful use of the word 'evangelical' to describe these people, I'm not here complaining about the BBC. I'm here appalled at this indication of the widespread problem caused by conversion without teaching from the Bible. I have seen similar things amongst those in the Congolese community where I live- individuals who are passionate Christians, without understanding what that means- and so being duped by Pastors who confuse pagan superstition and Christian faith, promote a kind of prosperity gospel and control the lives of the members of their Church.

It is true that biblical Christian teaching is growing in Africa - but the situation is truly desperate if instances like this are happening in London, where these vulnerable, suffering individuals should be being cared for. At a Church like this one where their Pastor is actually referred to as 'prophet' on their website, it is evident that serious control over those who need help is being had.
Reading that article should sicken us. And guess what? It's our fault. Instead of being willing to reach outside of our comfort zone a little- even in our own city to a fellow Christian- we have let those seeking refuge and security in this country become victims of their own people. We need to be training a generation of young African pastors and teachers in the Bible. It's so easy to look at Africa and see a growing Church, and be thrilled, and so we should be - but that isn't enough. We shouldn't let that be enough to soothe our consciences. Conversion is only the start.

The call is to go and make disciples of all nations, not meet a conversion quota!
So, in response to this, I suppose there are a couple of things.
1. Befriend the refugee or asylum seeker. This is a direct command in the Bible. See Leviticus 19v34: "The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself".
Also, check out one of God's major complaints against the people of Israel:
Ezekiel 22v29: "The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery; they have oppressed the poor and needy, and have extorted from the alien without redress." Does that sound familiar? We're culpable too!
2. Pray for Wycliffe Bible translators, particularly those working to translate into African languages.
Pray for those who are teaching the Bible.

Here's a video demonstrating the need in just one country in Africa... And just think- God is bringing these people to us in England. There is truly no excuse not to support and teach our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Stuff to share

2011-10-15T08:43:00.001+01:00

Hello,
I have this sinking feeling that my posting has got increasingly sporadic this term. Busy, but not excused. My apologies. I have a veritable cornucopia of things to share with you today!
First up:
-It's Operation Christmas Child time. Samaritan's Purse need more boxes filled and more support as they try to reach even more children than ever this year. Visit the website here to find out more and get resources. No excuses either- from the 1st November you can even make your box to send and choose items with an interactive packing tool online and they'll make it for you!
Second:
-Compassion have a blog now! Very exciting. Check out the UK one by clicking here, and the US one by clicking here.
Neeeexxxxt:
-Anti-Slavery Day in London. 18th October is Anti-Slavery Day in the UK, and as well as all the general stuff going on (visit website here for more info) CARE's 'Loose the Chains' organisation will be taking part in a special service at Holy Trinity Church, Clapham, on Wednesday 19th October at 7.45pm. Contributions from Andy Flanagan, Lord Alton, Nola Leach and the Kensington Temple Youth Gospel Choir. Free Entrance. Please be praying for all the events happening around this time, but particularly the EU Anti-Slavery Day in Brussels, hosted by some MEPs.
And:
-I strongly encourage you to sign up to receive Release International's Prisoners of Faith email alerts, so that you know which countries and individuals need prayer each month. Get involved! We are a global church- when one part of the body of Christ is hurt, we should cry out in pain. Here's the link.
Finally:
-Christian Political Engagement in Europe. A challenge that must be met. Here's an invitation to attend the 'Beyond Individualism' conference on Friday the 25th and Saturday the 26th of November in London. Speakers include Bishop Nazir-Ali, Lord Glasman, Philip Blond, Franck Margain... the list goes on. Here's the website for those interested.

That should keep you busy...
God Bless,
Hannah

Evangelism experience: First Contact.

2011-10-09T15:19:00.000+01:00

Hey. How's it going? Massive pile of work to do? Me too.
So, anyway...
A few days ago we did this thing as a Christian Union called 'First Contact' evangelism- essentially evangelism with complete strangers. This included a free tea and coffee stand, but also pairs of Christians going round with a survey about students' views on the Christian faith, to research topics for our talks over the next year.
I have a couple of interesting points to note from this. I thought it would go badly. People don't want to be stopped anyway normally, and if religion is the topic of conversation it's even less likely to go down well.
But- and here's the point- people stopped, listened and chatted. Why? Because we were asking them what they thought. The survey was 3 quick questions;
1. What is your opinion of Christianity? a) it's harmful b) irrelevant c) good but not for me d) Jesus is central to my life e) other.
2. Where do you think your opinion has come from? a) parents b) the Church c) media d) own reading e) other
3. If you could ask God one question, what would it be?
It was amazing how willing people were to open up about their experiences of faith and Christianity in particular when asked what they thought instead of being told what I thought. Generally they ended up asking me my opinion anyway, but the difference was that they felt like a valued individual instead of someone on the receiving end of a sale.
People like to share their opinions and to feel as though their opinions matter. I think this does translate over into the way we do more day to day evangelism, amongst friends and relatives. Jesus treated people as individuals, not impersonal projects. We're not a business, trying to make efficient returns on our work, we're the family of Christ.

Secondly, there is a strange temptation inside us to pigeon-hole people before we've even met them. We just look at their facial expression, their clothes, the way they carry themselves, and we've already decided the kind of person they are. Doing first contact evangelism, it was surprisingly easy to fall into the trap of thinking 'that person doesn't look like they'd want to talk about Jesus' and so not go up to them. The same danger plays out in relationships we have with non-Christians. We decide somewhere deep down that such a person would never want to talk about God and so we don't even bother praying for them! We somehow decide that they are a lost cause when we know full well that such a judgement is directly anti-biblical.
I'm reminded of Paul in particular, who went from being an expert at persecuting Christians to leading the early Church.

So, in both of these mistakes- forcing our view on someone and ignoring people we judge as 'too lost', we push God out of the picture and have demonstrated a lack of faith in his power. In the first case, we think we need to convert and so have to tell people what we think they should hear, when in fact only God changes a heart. In the second case we limit God's power by thinking that only those who seem 'open' to us are capable of accepting Christ.
Lord, I do believe- help my unbelief!
Hannah

Emails, forms, admin: God's work.

2011-10-04T18:52:00.000+01:00

I'm a big ideas person. I like looking at the overall plan and scribbling down plans and grand designs. I'm also far too abstract. I'd rather think up the idea and then hope it comes into fruition somehow and somewhere far away from me without me actually having to do any of the boring bits. Fortunately, God seems to be determined to shake that quite proud, lazy attitude right out of me. Currently my admin inbox and 'to-do list' is bordering on the overwhelming, especially combined with the pressure of freshers week and the frankly tiring task of meeting and greeting...

So, this is a blog post that I am writing to myself- like pretty much all the 'life-advice' I write on here!
I suppose it's the difference between having an attitude of duty or joy towards these little things. And I know that- I know that I should have an attitude of joy. I suspect most of you have heard that said to you before, and agree that it should be the case. But there is such a big difference between knowing this is the case and actually getting it- and I know I haven't got it.

Verse meditation time. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving"
Colossians 3:23

There's really not much to comment on with this verse. Just reading it and asking that God would help it to sink into my heart.
Another thing. Here's a video sermon from Adrian Warnock on the book of Esther and serving Jesus at work.
God Bless,
Hannah

Serving Jesus at work from Jubilee Church on Vimeo.

This is the day that the LORD has made

2011-10-01T10:14:00.001+01:00

Let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Start your day today with Psalm 118. A song of struggle and rejoicing.

God Bless you. Hannah.

Dysfunctional Disciple.

2011-09-28T16:02:00.001+01:00

It's that time of year again. Cambridge is starting on Saturday, and I'm back there tomorrow to see friends in International Freshers Week. I've just got back from our Christian Union house-party, in which God immensely challenged me with how far I have to go before I will really reflect the saving truth of the gospel in my own life. Pride, doubts over God's sovereignty, a lazy prayer life, mixed motivations in everything I do, a lack of urgency and genuine joy in my sharing of what Jesus has done.... the list goes on! And really they all spring from the same spring of being reluctant in allowing the Holy Spirit to change me. Our speaker at the house-party pointed out the difference between knowing something and 'getting it'. I know in my head that God answers prayer, wants to bring people to him, has good plans for me and is the only source of real satisfaction, but do I really get that in my heart? Does it just stop at my head? I think a lot of the time it does. Those occasional bursts of joy when the knowledge of what Jesus has done and what it means really sinks into me are not enough if they are followed by apathy in prayer and a sense of dutiful awkwardness in my Christian witness to others. How can I convince them when I don't seem convinced myself? Where is the overwhelming passion for Jesus that makes all other things grey and senseless in comparison? Where is my honesty before God and other people?

It's comforting to know that Paul gets it.
He wrote: "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do"
Romans 7.15

I know that God has changed me. I pray that he will continue to do so. I desperately need it!
God Bless you. Hannah.

“I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am” John Newton.

'Only God knows'- Some Morocco reflections.

2011-09-25T22:20:00.000+01:00

Hello,
Long time no speaky. Back from Morocco, had a bit of time to adjust, have finally got over the phase of saying 'in Morocco it's x degrees - this country is stupidly cold' every time I go outside. So now for some thoughts on it all. As I wrote before I went (I think) one of my primary reasons for going out there was to find out whether I felt able to/called to work in a country like that in North Africa or the Middle East. My answer to that question? I don't know yet. A calling from God just isn't the bolt of lightning that most of us want it to be a lot of the time. It is seeing a need and deciding whether God wants you to meet it in a certain way. Out in the mountain villages where I stayed the people there will not say anything will happen for definite. If black, wet-looking clouds arrive on the horizon and you suggest it will rain tomorrow, their response is that 'only God knows'. Nothing is certain, not for humans. Theologically, they're exactly right on this. I just don't know yet.

The street of our hostel in Marrakech

For a woman working in the Arab World, it's incredibly difficult. Freedom to be alone is lost. Conversation about many subjects is lost. Clothing you want to wear goes. Places you want to visit are not always accessible. It's really hard. There was a massive language barrier with other women. The educated men all spoke french, so we could communicate. The women spoke only their native language and could not be in the same room as strange men, so I hardly saw them when I was with Alex and John (who lives there).

For a Christian working in the Arab World, it's incredibly difficult. You just can't openly talk about your faith with the hope of converting someone- it's illegal to leave Islam. Churches in Morocco are secret. Bibles in native languages are limited. Contact with other Christians once you're there is ill-advised. There is not the freedom of speech and religion we enjoy so much in this country, where you can share your faith with a Muslim without fear the majority of the time.

For a Westerner working in the Arab World, it's incredibly difficult. It's not just the language- though that is hard, too- it's the completely alien food, weather, social norms, activities, formality... these things are not bad, not in the slightest, and being there for a short period of time meant that they were exciting and enjoyable. But could I do it for 20 years as John has? Leave all the comforts and idiosyncratic sillyness of England? I don't know.

One thing that was refreshing and strange and good in many ways was the experience of explaining what I believed to a Muslim friend over several days, and beginning to understand where the difference of approach is for Muslims. In England, one is constantly fighting the corner of God's existence. In Morocco, that is assumed- what you're fighting instead is the corner of God's loving character. They believe, like us, that God is perfect, all-powerful, all-knowing, holy and good- they just have a different definition for what holy, good and perfect looks like. New challenges, new ways of thinking. Could I do it? Only God knows.

Bible Art

2011-09-13T10:25:00.000+01:00

Ok, so I thought my post about going to Morocco would be the last one I did before I left for Marrakech, but then I got sent a link to these wonderful images and I had to share them.
Jim Lepage, a Christian artist, has done a series of graphic print style images- at least one to represent every book in the Bible. He's currently finishing the New Testament, and they are just brilliant.
Follow this link to have a look. I recommend scrolling down to the bottom of the page to Genesis and working up as you look at them so you get the images from the start of the Bible to the end, instead of the other way round.
I've picked some of my favourites to share here to entice you to the website...
Anyway. Off to Morocco. Speak soon.

God Bless,

Hannah.

Morocco

2011-09-12T10:43:00.001+01:00

I'm off there soon, with my boyfriend and a Church mission partner who has worked out there for the last decade. Despite the fact that I have my Lonely Planet guide and my Moroccan arabic phrase book, I still don't feel quite prepared yet.
I think the reason is that I've lost sight of my reason for going. In all the excitement of looking at places to visit and buying ridiculously expensive insect repellent, I've sort of forgotten momentarily that I had planned to take this trip in the first place in response to a call to serve Muslims that I feel God has placed on me. I wanted to discover the need for Christian witness in the arab world and then work out how God wanted me to respond to it. Of course, it might be that I respond to that need in the UK instead of abroad- but I felt it was important to experience the lives of those who live in traditional Muslim communities.
I'm going to spend about a week of my time out there visiting and staying in villages in the Atlas Mountains outside Marrakech.
I leave on Tuesday evening, so this is my last post before I get back, unless I find an internet cafe there.
I would appreciate prayer for safety and for wisdom as I interact with people there, as well as humility under God as I represent the Christian faith.
If you're interested in learning more about mission in the Arab World, I've been following the work of a few organisations that it's worth looking at.

1. Arab World Ministries, now linked to Pioneers. Visit their website here.
2. MECO International, 'partners in mission with Middle Eastern Churches.' Click here.
3. Reach Across, 'Helping Muslims follow Jesus'. Follow this link.
4. Finally, FFM (Fellowship of Faith for Muslims). Specifically for prayer ministry. Link here.

God Bless, and I imagine I'll have lots to share when I get back!
Hannah

Awareness Sunday- 9/11

2011-09-10T12:59:00.001+01:00

Hello.
Tomorrow, as I'm sure you're all aware, is September 11th- the 10th anniversary of the tragic events in 2001. My thoughts and prayers are particularly with my American readership as they reflect on this tragedy.
In response to this, tomorrow is also Awareness Sunday- 'A path to peace'. It is 'a day of remembrance and reconciliation to spread a message of compassion and awareness' to help stop violence in the name of religion. You can visit the website for the campaign by clicking here. Christians around the world are called to pray, use the resources on the website in churches and at home, take part in an 'awareness workshop' or donate to the cause. Here's a video explaining more:

Awareness Sunday from Awareness Sunday on Vimeo.

I also want to share with you the 'Father's Love Letter', a paraphrased collection of Bible verses about God's love for us. Visit their website here to see it in lots of different languages and download cards, videos, audioclips...etc etc. Here is one video of it, set to music by Audrey Assad.

God bless you.
Hannah.

Our Maker

2011-09-06T17:08:00.000+01:00

Hello,
Back to doing names of God again- I miss looking at them when I don't for a while. On with this little series, and after looking at creation arguments on this blog I thought that considering the name Jehovah-Hoseenu (The LORD our Maker) would be appropriate.

Where does it come from? Psalm 95v6...
"Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker".

This verse addresses one of the key objections people have to the idea that they need forgiveness. It seems to go along the lines of "I don't need forgiveness from God. I haven't sinned against him. Maybe I need forgiveness from other people, but I don't owe God anything". Well, here we have a verse that brings us back to the beginning, and reminds us that it is in fact very simple. If God is 'our maker'- if 'Jehovah-Hoseenu' is who he is- then he must be worshipped. We must kneel before him. We don't even need the 10 commandments to get that far (though they do point out the same thing)- it is clear that the relationship between Creator and created is a relationship of worship- of gratitude for all we have through the creator's power.
For those who believe there probably is a God, but don't see what they've 'done to him', take them to this verse. As creatures who are created, we live each day taking of God's good gifts, and without gratitude or even acknowledgment of him. This demands repentance and turning to seek his face.
Hannah x
Some more from Psalm 95:
"In his hands are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. Come, let us bow down in worship..."
"Today, if only you would hear his voice, 'Do not harden your hearts..."

Things to do, people to see, places to go...

2011-09-04T16:01:00.005+01:00

Hello.
Right. Whole volley of events and things to recommend.

First off the mark: The Reasonable Faith Tour, with William Lane Craig- a Professor described by Sam Harris as “the one Christian apologist who seems to have put the fear of God into many of my fellow atheists”. Professor Craig will be responding to 'The God Delusion' and Stephen Hawking's 'The Grand Design' in a series of debates and public lectures involving many renowned atheistic professors. It begins in the second half of October, and I'm going to be attending his lecture in Cambridge- though there are many others happening around the country. Click here to visit the tour homepage and find out more about dates etc.

Secondly: Release International, a charity working as 'the voice of persecuted Christians' is holding a prayer vigil outside the North Korean embassy in London on the 9th September, North Korea's national day. The event has been organised by South Koreans and defectors from the North as part of the 'One Day' campaign for religious freedom there. Click here to visit the Release Homepage, which has more details. Even if you can't go, sign the petition.

Thirdly: Christian Aid, Tearfund and Cafod are leading the 'Bearing Witness' day of campaign and worship in Manchester on the 1st October, the day before the Conservative Party conference. The focus will be on climate change and global poverty. Want to go or pray for the event? Click to here to read more.

Finally- and I think I've recommended this before- but do consider signing the 'Right to Know' Campaign- guaranteeing women considering an abortion full and free access to independent information, advice and counselling. Visit the website here.

That's it for now.
Hannah x

No Adam, no faith?

2011-09-03T16:38:00.001+01:00

Hello,

I'm back from family holiday- but before I wax lyrical about the merits of a lazy french existence with much eating, sleeping and sitting/cycling in sun, I want to talk a little bit about an article I read in the paper on the way home. So. Yesterday's (I think) Times newspaper contained an article about a theologian in America who has lost his job at 'Calvin College' in America after losing faith in a literal interpretation of the genesis story. Unfortunately I couldn't find it on the Times website, but I've found a Daily Mail report of the same thing- and somewhat reluctantly- are going to link to them. In this instance, at least, I can confirm that they've written something accurate. Follow this link to read it.

....So. You've read it? Did it make you feel a little weary? It certainly did me. Here the Christian Church is, flogging the same dead horse, creating division where it isn't needed. Perhaps I just haven't understood the words of Calvin Collge's statement of faith, but I certainly hold to their conviction that "The Bible is the authoritative, Spirit-breathed Word of God, fully reliable in leading believers to know God and to walk with Christ in newness of life" (taken from their website), and yet I also hold to the conviction that belief in an 'old earth', 'young earth' or 'somewhere-in-the-middle earth' does not contradict this. I'm not sure Schneider stepped over any lines, really. Perhaps Adam and Eve were people especially chosen by God to live in relationship with him, unlike other 'humanoids'. Perhaps this is where the soul comes in. Perhaps I'm wrong. Perhaps I once had a tail. Perhaps I didn't, and macro-evolution is based on too little evidence to be called scientific fact. I'm no expert on Science, and yet it seems clear to me that belief in the saving grace of Jesus Christ is not necessarily hindered by any of these view-points.

The issue brought up by a representative of Calvinist belief pointed out that if there wasn't an original Adam, then Paul's description of Jesus Christ as a second Adam, bringing life where the first Adam brought death through sin. (See Romans 5v12-21), thus explaining the importance placed on a literal interpretation position.

Hmm. He makes a good point, though I'm still not sure why holding to the idea that the world is more than a few thousand years old makes this an impossibility- or even the belief that Adam and Eve weren't the first 'homo sapiens' type beings. I don't know enough about Science- or the Bible, really, to register much of an informed opinion, but what smacks me most about the whole episode is the sadness we should feel at a Church falling apart. Of course we must be strict on preventing heretical viewpoints into places of Christian education, but this simply isn't one. It's far more important that these differences of interpretation are brought into the body of Christ, and that we are all willing to listen, learn, and one day laugh at ourselves when we find out just how wrong we all were- about so many things.

Hannah x
P.s. See comments on this post for a little more expansion on Genesis.

Guest Post: Why I think I might be an annihilationist...

2011-08-22T21:13:00.001+01:00

Right. I'm off for 11 days on holiday with the family- far away from the glorious trappings of the internet, so I'm afraid I'm abandoning ship for now- but to keep my more conservative readers guessing whether I've gone mad/liberal/to the dark side, I've got a guest post to share on why annihilationism might be a viable option for biblical interpretation. The following is written (by Alex Irving) to begin discussion and explore what the Bible says about death further. Hannah x

"Martin Luther has said that we know about as much about life after the return of Jesus as an unborn baby knows of the world outside the womb. For the most part, I reckon he’s right. We have been told some stuff about what life will be like after Jesus’ return, but not enough to be definitive about anything. As this is the case, whenever we start to talk about what will happen at this point, it’s best to be humble and ready to laugh at how wrong we can get it when it all becomes clear. Despite recent speculation, the Bible clearly teaches that there is a negative aspect of life after the return of Jesus and that many will experience it. That being said, I think I might just be ready to start thinking that annihilationism isn’t totally off the wall. By this I mean that there is an unpleasant alternative to eternal life in unbroken fellowship with God, but that it is possible that this is not eternal torment but the absence of life. I have three reasons for thinking that this is possible.

First, throughout scripture the result of relating to God properly is life and the punishment for failing to do so is death. In the Garden of Eden, we see this dynamic introduced as by their disobedience Adam and Eve forfeit their offer to continually receive life from God via the Tree of Life. Then again in Deuteronomy where the people of Israel are implored to covenant faithfulness with the following words: ‘I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. ‘Choose life so that you and your descendents may live’ (Deuteronomy 30.19). Finally, in the teaching of Jesus, Jesus seems to contrast the eternal punishment of ‘Hell’ not by eternal bliss, but by eternal life (John 5.29, Matthew 25.46). Jesus’ remarks of eternal punishment are not so unequivocal as may have been thought. One thing does seem quite clear to me throughout scripture: the greatest gift God can give is life, and this has been given in the death and resurrection of God the Son Jesus Christ. Conversely, the greatest punishment God gives seems to be death.

Second, I find it hard to understand how the God of creation (who created in free and overwhelming love) could take the option of eternal torment. It simply seems out of character. True, God delights in justice and will punish sin. However, I would need some convincing that it is coherent to say the God of creation who loves that which has been made would punish by eternal torment. The one who created and so prizes life (he declared the life made ‘very good’) seems to me to be in a perfect position to say that the ultimate bad is death.

Third, the unconditional immortality of the human is not – so far as I can see- a doctrine that we are encouraged to believe in scripture. Humanity does not have immortality inherent in them, they must receive it from God. This is why there was a tree of life in the Garden of Eden and will be in the new creation and why we must receive life from the bread of life, Jesus Christ. I have a suspicion that the idea that all are resurrected to eternal life is a victory for the Gnostic heresy through the back door. Jesus teaches that those who have done good will come out of their graves to the ‘resurrection of life while those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation’ (John 5.29). Again, the punishment of condemnation is not contrasted by eternal bliss, rather by eternal life when this mortal body will put on immortality, received from God (1 Corinthians 15.53-54). It was an aspect of Gnostic teaching that no person could be lost irretrievably. It could just be that this old heresy has kept some influence even to the modern day.

I hope that this has confirmed to you that the Bible does teach there is a negative alternative to eternal life, but that it isn’t absolutely clear what that is and we should all bear with one another humbly when we talk about it."

2 Poems.

2011-08-20T12:13:00.001+01:00

I really like R.S. Thomas. Here's why:

The Bright Field
I have seen the sun break through
to illuminate a small field
for a while, and gone my way
and forgotten it. But that was the pearl
of great price, the one field that had
treasure in it. I realize now
that I must give all that I have
to possess it. Life is not hurrying
on to a receding future, nor hankering after
an imagined past. It is the turning
aside like Moses to the miracle
of the lit bush, to a brightness
that seemed as transitory as your youth
once, but is the eternity that awaits you.

Praise
I praise you because
you are artist and scientist
in one. When I am somewhat
fearful of your power,
your ability to work miracles
with a set-square, I hear
you murmuring to yourself
in a notation Beethoven
dreamed of but never achieved.
You run off your scales of
rain water and sea water, play
the chords of the morning
and evening light, sculpture
with shadow, join together leaf
by leaf, when spring
comes, the stanzas of
an immense poem. You speak
all languages and none,
answering our most complex
prayers with the simplicity
of a flower, confronting
us, when we would domesticate you
to our uses, with the rioting
viruses under our lens.

Worth more than many sparrows.

2011-08-18T10:44:00.002+01:00

Today is AS Level and A Level results day for lots and lots of people- including my sister. (For the non-English reading this, these are the exams you take in the last 2 years of High School).

For those getting results, the drama tends to begin several hours before they actually clutch the bit of paper in their hands. Some repeatedly checking their Uni applications online for a glimmer of good news before they face the dreaded envelope, others feigning apathy, and some bursting into tears before they've even been told the results out of sheer nerves. For them, it seems their fate- their entire lives- lies in the hands of those horrible exam boards- Edexcel, AQA and OCR. I say this because I went through exactly the same thing a year ago as I waited to hear from my university. Would the world end if I didn't get a certain grade? I was pretty sure it would.

Our little birdy visitor.

Yesterday a bird flew into our glass kitchen door and fell, with a nasty thump, onto the pavement outside. We rushed to look at it- to put it upright and check that it wasn't in too much pain. It was stunned and scared- but eventually was able to fly away again- relatively unharmed, and freshly equipped with a knowledge of nasty transparent things. It was a tiny creature- a little brown bird, alone and trying to recover from its own mistake in flying headlong into a house. It reminded me, with a smile, of Jesus' words to a scared, sometimes foolish, bunch of people about 2000 years ago;
"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." Matthew 10v29-30.
To my dear friends collecting results today; sometimes we mess up. Sometimes we feel like the system has messed us up. But God does not do that. God knew the movements of that tiny bird which flew into my window- he knows and loves your movements in a far greater way. You are worth more than many sparrows to him, and he will uphold you. Your future is in his hands, and he loves you and wants to cherish you back to peace in him.

Pray for all those getting results today- that they will know their worth in the eyes of God, and not in the eyes of the academic process!
Hannah x

'Letter to a Christian Nation'- and general apologetics.

2011-08-16T12:35:00.001+01:00

So, this is a book by Sam Harris, which is a response to Christian faith in America- essentially attempting to discredit, disprove and dismiss belief in God- particularly the Christian one.

First thing I recommend you do is read it. It is well written, convincing and raises interesting points that need to be addressed. It is also very short, which makes it easy to read, but also means it fails to actually back up or expand on any of the (sometimes a bit silly) statements made.

The second thing I recommend you do is read a response to it. I've found a pretty good one on "Tekton: Education and Apologetics Ministry", and you can click here to read it. Of course, I need a slight disclaimer to go along with any recommendation- these are not my thoughts, nor do I condone everything said or the way someone says it. This response in particular is an excellent analysis of the flaws in Harris' arguments, but has a tendency to sometimes come across as condescending/patronising/sarcastic- to be honest, in much the same style as Harris writes, and exactly as I would be tempted to write too, and have done many times! I'm not suggesting that this is not a good response. It is a very good one, and has helped me a lot. But would it help an atheist in the same way?

The more you talk to atheists who have the mega-chip against religion on their shoulder, the more you realise that by responding in kind to the tone they take, the less convincing you become. And I've certainly learnt that through my own mistakes. What we really need is patience- a giant, humble, wall of it, surrounding our emotional response when someone attacks what is most important to us.

To finish off, I want to give you my top apologetics books- not only ones that are well reasoned and based on clear logic, but ones with a humble, servant-hearted tone that breaks down the defence of non-believers, not building it up.

1. "Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis.
Actually, all of Lewis' books are written well and usefully. Perhaps because Lewis came from an unbelieving position and found faith through his own reasoned thought. More of his books I suggest are 'God in the dock' and 'The problem of pain'.
2. "The Reason for God" by Tim Keller.
It's become a modern classic. I don't know many Christians who haven't read it or been recommended it. It really is incredibly helpful, and, even more helpfully, Keller has also released it in DVD format- in which he discusses each chapter topic with a group of atheists, listening to their problems and responding.
3. "Not God's Type" by Holly Ordway.
I picked this one because it's an autobiography of an academic's journey from atheism to faith in Christ. She records the different stumbling blocks she came across and how she was helped over them by patient, loving Christians around her.
4. "The Dawkins Letters" by David Robertson.
This is in direct response to 'The God Delusion', and so is particularly recommended for those atheists who are faithful followers to the new atheist movement. He writes it as a series of responses to 'athiest myths' which he comes across in the Dawkins' book.
5. "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel.
Another written by an ex-atheist who came to faith through researching Jesus. He has a whole series with the titles 'The Case for....'. I haven't read all of them- but I hear they're all pretty good.
6. "God's Undertaker: Has Science buried God?" by Professor John Lennox.
Excellent- really excellent- for any budding scientists. Written by an Oxford prof. I found some of the maths bits a little tricky to understand, but this is hardly surprising, given that my relationship with that sphere ended when I invented formulas on my GCSE Physics paper.
My prayer for myself is that through the example of others I might learn greater humility in the way I talk about my saviour.
Hannah x

Ownership and giving

2011-08-15T19:13:00.000+01:00

The title: our theme at the Christian drama camp I was helping at last week. We were considering things like 'God owns the lot', 'What do we own?', 'What should we give?' and 'How to live generously'. The opposites of owning and giving and their places in the Christian life got me thinking. So I wrote some thoughts based on a few different Bible verses.

I have not- and yet
I have
in abundance.
I am a stranger, an alien
A brother, a friend.
I am despised and loved
A slave and free
Breaking my heart has brought healing to me.

Hannah x

Some interesting things to consider.

2011-08-13T23:07:00.002+01:00

Hello,
Sorry I've been gone for so long- just got back from helping on a Christian drama camp. More on that later. Found an interesting article I wanted to share with you: entitled "Dutch rethink Christianity for a doubtful world" (follow the link to read the article) it essentially follows the work of a man trying to adapt Christianity for a new era- and it seems, in doing so, he has taken little bits from ancient heresies and patched them rather attractively together.
E.g: "I don't think he was a god or a half god. I think he was a man, but he was a special man because he was very good in living from out of love, from out of the spirit of God he found inside himself." Here, ladies and gents, we have...Ebionism. If only these individuals wanting to make the Netherlands a 'laboratory for Christianity, experimenting with radical new ways of understanding the faith' knew that there is nothing 'radical' or 'new' about what they're doing!

Anyway.
In other 'things'- a tongue in cheek song that raises an interesting point. Keen to know what you think. Is it too far? I really like it. Hmm.

Hannah x

Bible in a minute

2011-08-02T11:20:00.000+01:00

I liked this video. Enjoy!

Becoming what we are made to be?

2011-07-31T18:45:00.010+01:00

Hello.
So. I went to a wedding yesterday (a really wonderful, moving one) of two friends of mine, and during the Church service the address was given on Philippians 4v4-8. The Reverend talked about the command to rejoice which is given, and the way in which a married couple- through their love for each other- can help each other become the people they were made to be.

This got me thinking. There is a sort of New Age idea which exists around this concept. I suppose one could call it a pop psychology really; the 'Be the best you can be' mantra. It reminded me of a song by Mumford and Sons (not a Christian band) called Sigh No More (click on this link to listen to it) which explores this, and the role of love. It includes the lyrics 'Love; it will not betray you, dismay or enslave you, it will set you free- to be more like the man you were made to be'. It goes on to say 'there is a design, an alignment, a cry of my heart to see the beauty of love as it was made to be'.

(By the way, I typed in 'Become a better you' into google and couldn't believe it when there was actually a book by that title- by Joel Osteen, no less. I highly recommend that you DON'T READ IT. But here's the amusing photo!)

Anyway- Is this biblical? Can we legitimately talk about being who we were made to be, or are we just making the gospel feel all nice and self-helpy round the edges? Yes, I think we can. We can't make ourselves who were meant to be, but the Holy Spirit can through the redeeming work of Jesus Christ. We can also support each other as we strive to live as we are made to.

This post is from now just a collection of Bible verses around the topic of becoming who were made to be- God's children, made in God's image. The lyrics from the song 'Sigh No More' seem to fit very well into a picture of God's love for us and what it does- frees us from sin to be his children. His love makes us who we were meant to be.
In 'God in the Dock', C.S. Lewis wrote that 'Love is not affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved persons ultimate good'. In God's love for us, he wishes that which is best for us- to be who he designed us to be. That is be best we can be.

We must first look at verses which describe how we were made to live, and then those which tell us that we can be restored to this.
'So God created mankind in his own image... male and female he created them.' Genesis 1v27.
It's all got to start with Genesis. This is what man was made to be- a creature in relationship with God, under his authority, cherished and loved by him, and in relationship with other human beings, cherishing and loving them.

'I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you... to be you God' Genesis 17v7
'I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God' Exodus 6v7
'And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,^{and to observe the LORD’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good? Deuteronomy 10v12-13}
^{'He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.' Micah 6v8}
^{In Christ, we are promised a return to what we were made to be.}
'Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!' 2 Corinthians 5v17
'You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus' Galatians 3v26
'We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works' Ephesians 2v10
'God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God' 2 Corinthians 5v21
'I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full' John 10v10
'We love because he first loved us' 1 John 4v19
'We die to sin, how can we live in it any longer?' Romans 6v2

Become who you were made to be! Hannah x

2 years old...and a bit.

2011-07-29T22:38:00.001+01:00

Happy Birthday to Purposeful Purity!
This blog is 2 years old this month- around this time, I think...
So, a little reflection on the last two years, and Christian blogging in general. What have I learnt? Have I learnt anything at all?

1. I've begun to learn the line between personal sharing and appropriate sharing. One of the problems I've encountered is the desire to share stories and experiences, while remembering to respect the privacy of others- and my own. Remembering that a blog is not a personal diary and that anyone can read it is tricky! I can't remember how many times my mum has caught things in posts that shouldn't have been there and told me to remove them!

2. I've also begun to learn the importance of 'cooling off periods' before writing. There have also been several occasions when I have written something (either saved in a draft or published) that was the result of an angry/dissatisfied moment and later regretted it. Editing is always good, but sometimes it's too late, and others have already read the result of my irritable nature...

3. I've had to remind myself over and over that I am writing this blog as a service to my relationship with God and to other people, not to prove how witty/intelligent or theologically sound I am. This has meant removing more and more of myself from posts (unless it's helpful) and putting more and more of God in.

4. I've learnt how good for me spiritually this blog is! To be honest, this blog has probably been far better for me than for any of my readers. The process of accountability- having to regularly write because of my blog commitment- has meant that I've had to assess what God has been teaching me every few days, and it's opened my eyes over and over to things that busyness or apathy might otherwise have overlooked.

5. Finally- I want to thank you, if you're reading this, for reading! There are few things more encouraging than hearing from people who have benefited from or want to add thoughts to posts I've done. It reminds me what a wonderful family of Christ I belong to.
God Bless, and hopefully happy reading for another year...
Hannah x

P.S. I have some other posts to recommend you, while I'm thanking you for reading mine. As no doubt all of you will know, John Stott- the granddaddy of modern day evangelicalism (as I call him) died a couple of days ago. Follow this link to Adrian Warnock's blog which has a collection of memorial posts, giving thoughts and reflections on his life and service.

STUFF

2011-07-28T13:53:00.001+01:00

Hello,
So I've been looking through all the things I brought back from Keswick and I have many, many wonderful things to share with you!

First off: the lectures at Keswick were excellent. Want to have a listen to Dr Helen Roseveare, Ajith Fernando, Tim Chester, Patrick Fung, Jason Mandryk and more? And that was just Week One this year! The talks from last year can be downloaded by following this link, and talks from this year are being added at the moment. I particularly recommend Helen Roseveare's lecture- only £3, and life changing.
Secondly: I went a little bit book crazy. 10ofthose.com were selling, and happen to be very good at it-as well as having a really good, cheap Christian book collection. I particularly recommend Dr Roseveare's books- my sister has nearly every book by her and they are challenging, inspiring and full of humility and love for Jesus. Try 'Enough'- very short, very good, and is an autobiography combined with commentary on the sufficiency of Christ. Click here to read more.

Another book: "Church History- A Crash Course for the Curious" by Christopher Catherwood. Unashamedly written by an evangelical Christian who teaches at Cambridge University, it covers Christ to the twentieth century, and is engaging, informative and, thankfully, relatively brief! 200 pages later, you'll understand a lot more about where we've come from. Particularly interesting was the assessment of changing global Christianity and the pinpointing of key events which give us lessons for the contemporary church- e.g. legalising Christianity in 312 A.D. made Christianity acceptable- even fashionable- but had the negative effect of tying the faith to politics.
Aaaand... one more. 'Dear Abdullah'- by Robert Scott. The book addresses 8 questions that Muslims ask about Christianity. Does what it says. Very well.

No more books for now- a song instead. Not from Keswick, but expresses the frustration and sadness felt by the Christian trying to share their faith- and has helped me to find better ways with which to share the importance of my faith. Sorry about the lame video to go with it- I couldn't find another version of the song. Enjoy!

Hannah x

I want to be a lot less like me.

2011-07-24T00:35:00.001+01:00

Hello,
Just got back from the Keswick Convention- and can happily say that it is the best Christian conference I have ever been to. And it's free. Come next year, and find out more here!
Highlights included Dr Helen Roseveare (more on her books and life later) and Ajith Fernando.
So, what did I learn? Or have I just come away from another week of determining to try harder?

1. I have come away with a far greater sense of the importance of the Holy Spirit and a fervent, consistent, prayer life. Tim Chester (who was also speaking) said in one of his talks that prayer was nothing more, nothing less, than a child speaking to her father. I should do it a lot more.

2. I came away with a heightened sense of missional responsibility. The theme of the week was 'The Word to the World', and I ended up making a public commitment to a life of Christian ministry. I've always felt slightly awkward about and a bit disdainful of those 'come up to the front' things, but, of course, God has a sense of humour, and made me leave my distant onlooker seat and go and get prayed for. How embarrassing.

3. The meaning of that commitment. At first, I felt like I'd fooled everyone a little bit, really- I'm still at uni, after all, and have no idea what God wants me to do- other than that I want to do Christian 'stuff'- so I thought I hadn't exactly committed to anything special. Then my mother said I should start 'practicing' (she was quite excited) and I was suddenly struck by the extent of my failings for someone who wants to do mission work. My motivations, actions and attitude were all wrong. I felt overawed by how weak I was as a follower of Christ- all I can do, really, is pray that the Holy Spirit would make me a lot less like me and a lot more like Jesus.

The gospel does not work to merely enhance or upgrade our personalities. It should work to completely renew us - make us a new creation! The old self must be put to death. As Dr Helen Roseveare pointed out, in discussing what she saw as the privilege of sacrifice;
"If the clay jar gets broken in the course of the job, what matter? It's only a clay jar!" We are only vessels, carrying to others the beautiful, life-giving message of Jesus Christ.

Hannah x

Jehovah-Shammah: The LORD is there

2011-07-14T21:44:00.001+01:00

Hello :)
Back to considering names of God- and this one is particularly poignant at the moment, as I've been reading a lot on the persecuted Church in the news.

This name comes from the last sentence of the book of Ezekiel- a prophet speaking into the pain, struggle and alienation of an exiled people. It is the name given to the Holy City promised to God's people, seen by Ezekiel in a vision.
There are extensive chapters of build-up - 8, to be precise, (40-48) in which Ezekiel describes the place in intimate detail, complete with measurements of every section of land. This is a clear promise of salvation for the Israelites. This is no vague hope, no fuzzy picture, no maybes or ifs or buts. "Because I swore with uplifted hand to give it to your forefathers, this land will be your inheritance" Ezekiel 47v14.
It is a land of restoration for the tribes of Israel, a tangible hope, completed with one of the most beautiful names of God in the entire Bible;

"And the name of the city from that time on will be: The LORD is there." Ezekiel 48v35

Jehovah-Shammah! The LORD is there!
In all the slavery, loneliness, rejection- the Israelites could hear the whispered promise of the God who loved them- a promise of intimacy with their heavenly creator. It is an early vision of the heavenly city, a name given to his people, his Church. The name of his people is that he is there. Is there a better way to be defined than by God's presence? And how much more, then, can we feel the hope of Emmanuel, God With Us? We have the same promise, but we have the blessing of looking at it after its fulfillment in Christ! God is with us now! In the persecution of the Christian facing Shariah law- the LORD is there! In the house Church facing pressure from the government for a subversive message- the LORD is there! In the pain of sickness, loneliness, accusations and death, our heavenly father upholds his promise.

But not only is he with us now- like the Israelites, we, too, can look forward to that Holy City where God will dwell with his people in completion, forever. Ezekiel's vision and John's vision in Revelation are not so different. The same promises stand.

Ezekiel 47v11: "Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing"
Revelation 22v2: "On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations".

Where God is, there is healing also.
A promise maintained throughout the Bible, from the estranged Israelites, to the God-man Jesus Christ, to the estranged Church, finally reaching completion in his recreation. He was there with us. He is there with us. He will be there with us.
Jehovah-Shammah. Emmanuel.

Let us pray for our persecuted and suffering brothers and sisters in Christ that they will be comforted by this truth. Pray for the recent victims of the bombing on a Church in Nigeria. Pray for Christians facing a new regime in North Sudan. Pray for those in North Korea, a black hole for freedom. Pray for Egypt, Pakistan, Eritrea.
Praise God that he is there!
Hannah x

Abortion update: Where we are now.

2011-07-11T14:05:00.000+01:00

I could say things, but the following articles speak for themselves.

The Telegraph: 26 babies aborted for cleft lips or palates

BBC News: Late abortion figures released

The Telegraph: TV adverts for abortion clinics go ahead

Oxford News: Pro-life rally stopped

Christian Medical Comment: Hope for independent counselling comes closer

Hannah x

After we've kissed dating goodbye: One single man's perspective.

2011-07-10T11:06:00.003+01:00

As a sequel to my post on the problem of church and singleness, I am very excited to share the following thoughts with you, kindly written by a single friend of mine. In his mid-twenties and currently doing an MA in theology and philosophy alongside working for the Ministry of Justice, he has lots of insightful, experience based ideas to share. He also has his own blog: visit "Till we have faces". Highly recommended.

"I want to focus on how Jesus carried out his ministry as a single man and how this affects our understanding of singleness and single men, especially in evangelical Churchmanship, today.

The first thing to note is that Jesus had a community, where the skills and talents he exhibited were acknowledged and utilized at a very early age.

I love reading the passages of scripture where the Lord, as a young man, baffles the great teachers in the temple with his astute grasp of the Torah and his Temple declaration of conviction to change the political and spiritual climate of his generation, or when the people from his home town ask questions like: ‘Who does this big-shot preacher think he is? Isn’t he Joseph, the carpenter, and Mary’s little boy?!’ From the offset in the Gospel narratives we have Jesus beginning his ministry as a youngster and then a thirty year old man a force and independence that causes even those who form his first relationship community, his parents, to ask Him if He is getting ahead of himself, to which he replies: ‘I am about my Father’s business.’ A good start.

This is the first point I think I have to share:-singleness enables you to give yourself over fully, and very early on in life, to an all consuming passion for God when He calls. Jesus did not leave home at thirteen, the age of manhood in Judaism, to a- few years later- find a wife, marry her, and have children and live life hand-to-mouth, as would have been the case for most Hebrews at the time. This fact is the first counter- cultural thing to note about His ministry which chimes with us today as well. Jesus leaves home, gets together with a bunch of odd, yet committed, friends, sets his face against the status quo, and makes known His message from God to the world.

Conversely today, many men and women in the western Church are in an emotional and relational tug of war between their call to radical godly-independence and exciting freedom on the one hand, and their desire for the security of a relationship (to be ‘in love’ eros ad nauseum) on the other. The tug is increasingly imbalanced towards the pro-relationship side these days by an endemic Church culture of relationship books, seminars, weekends away, small groups and the hormonal heat of your average Christian Union community.

This means that when, as often as not, the strain of adolescence that bears its weight upon the young disciple could be making them seek God with an almost crazed fervour; they have not been able to answer—like that great fisherman—the call away from their domestic delights to the way and delights of Christ-centred work. And please don’t think I’m talking here about ‘God wants you to be a Bible-smuggling missionary in North Korea’, callings may be far less dangerous to your body and life than that [my vocation for example, politics and academia, involve physical dangers about as risky as spilling coffee on my lap], but the call of God is as dangerous a threat to your desire for emotional satisfaction and reassurance from the person and people you find yourself attracted to, or in a relationship with, very early on in life. Though I know the process of growing up is tough, we have been warned of the service to two masters. We have a Lord and saviour who says that ‘the harvest is plenteous but the labourers are few, pray that God will provide workers for the harvest’ and we have a God that is saying to many racing-heart young people currently, ‘Leave that alone, we’ll come back to it later, right now we have a job to do’.

Too many ‘fishers-of-men’ and women are left behind as they choose the relationship road- and leave the work they could have done, and done joyfully, to the special ‘called’ single people. This is the second point I want to stress, change your Christian language and mindset towards singleness: single people are no more ‘special’ or gifted than the next person.

I have no magic powers of comfort or chastity; independent people have just had to get through those moments of loneliness that people in, or about to be in, relationships dread. This choice however to ‘feel the burn’ usually means a powerful dependence and commitment to God that, as Hannah has highlighted in her previous post, St Paul wishes all Christians could have. God becomes my strength when I’m in need of support or lonely in my vocation, and He becomes my point of adoration when there is no one, as of yet, to serenade.

My second lesson would be; learn how to rejoice in one’s singleness, while it lasts.

Some young men think they are in the Singleness Departure Lounge; just waiting for their relationship flight to come in, they get tired, miserable, and impatient. They may spend this time pumping iron, preening themselves, reading every fad and plan going about ‘what women want’ and find they are still waiting. My advice? Stop waiting! Enjoy the place you are at. Meet with other brothers and sisters, travel, laugh, build platonic relationships with people in your field, and yes… some of them may blossom into relationships! Though bear in mind that neither I, nor you, should see myself as on standby for Miss ‘x’-- a mere half-man who must always be on the look out for that elusive Venus Aphrodite. It is too often a common occurrence in Church-relationship advice circles for people to say ‘do, or don’t do, this because you must bear in mind your future wife/husband’. I’m sorry—I thought that we were supposed to be ‘doing all things to the glory of God’—not abstaining because ‘my future husband won’t like my having a sexual history’, or ‘I’d better get a high paying but soulless job as women like a man with financial security’? No, we are encouraged to present our lives and bodies as a living sacrifice to God, not merely as starter kits for a relationship with another fallen human. Men must regain their sense of adventure and authority in their singleness.

The second type of Bachelorhood/singleness that I will end this post on must be drawn from my own experience and involves a hero of mine, C S Lewis. Other young men will have to reckon with the fact that there will come a day when they will be ‘forced to feel.’ What I mean by this is, if you are a man like me and enjoy independence too much at times, there is a danger that you will only consider the rigidity and limitations a relationship can bring, and ignore the God-given joys to be experienced therein when the time is right.

In my eyes, having not fallen prey to the train-track of home/university-relationship, and the inevitable ‘make-do marriage’ has been a liberating experience; however an inverted selfishness can develop at around my age where you enter into the home stretch of 25-30. You become very conservative with your emotional self and you run the risk of exchanging one spiritual stronghold—an overdependence on a boyfriend/girlfriend for value and affection—for another: refusing to acknowledge when you feel deeply for a good and Godly potential partner.

It is the vulnerability of loving, the emotional cost and possibility of rejection that horrifies the man-about-town who is used to being master of his own destiny. However, as I am currently finding out, largely by the guidance of wiser, more mature, people; this is actually a spiritually maturing experience to have.

Like getting through the initial loneliness of a break-up, or never having had a relationship: allowing yourself to feel for someone [regardless of the un/likelihood of ‘success’ in securing their affections], when you have never really felt so before, can send you right back to the Cross, your knees, and your Bible as quickly as to the woman/man in question! It was Lewis’s quote in The Four Loves, and my having made the acquaintance of a particularly powerful Christian woman, that punched through my safe, emotional-bookshelf and made me face up to these words:

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket - safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, and irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation. The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell."

I can see now that, had I not had those years of independence to find out who I ‘Nathaniel Grant’ really was (as the song says) in Christ alone: I would not be able to cope with the trying matters of the heart I can foresee arising in the not too distant future. I learned (am always learning) to love God first and foremost, it was whilst I was about ‘my Father’s business’ that I happened upon my ability to feel with my heart for another as well as know how rich my singleness is. That, for me, is when you truly understand that a relationship is a gift of grace, not an emotional band-aid."

"There is a place of commanded blessing"

2011-07-09T08:57:00.002+01:00

Song to share with you: 'There is a place of commanded blessing' by Robin Mark.
Written by a Northern Irishman in the 90s, the theme of breaking down dividing walls in the body of Christ is particularly poignant.

What a message to bring to the Church today!
Hannah x

The Relationship Obsession: Why we've got it wrong.

2011-07-08T19:34:00.002+01:00

If you are a Christian in your late teens/20s/early 30s who is/has ever been single, you may have experienced one or more of the following:
- Pressure from a Church to be 'paired up'/the feeling of being in a Christian dating pool at any social event
- Feelings of insecurity and rejection from Church life for being single
- Fear that you'll never have the life you're 'supposed to' if you don't get married
- Resentment towards God that he hasn't given you someone to marry
- Resentment towards other Christians who are 'smug marrieds' (as Bridget Jones calls them)
- Frustration towards people who go on and on about how wonderful married life is (particularly in sermons!)

Evidently, none of these are good, healthy, 'body of Christ' type feelings to have to experience. I admit that part of these emotions are down to individuals and their personal relationship with God, and the need to work through certain issues, but a lot of it is the Church's responsibility as a wider body. Young Christians seem to fall into the trap over and over- particularly young Christian women- of desire for marriage above all else.

*Quick disclaimer before I continue- I am in a relationship, and so will try not to make any pretense at understanding these difficulties. I will try to keep this at an observational level only.*

There are more unmarried people in Church congregations than ever before, but they are being made to feel like outsiders. The fact that this is a problem is clear in the huge number of books being written now with the aim of reassuring Christians that being single is 'ok' and 'normal'. As a demonstration of this: I found a very interesting website called 'Purposeful Singleness' which has topics and book recommendations for the struggling Christian. I'm not saying they're not meeting a need- of course they are. I'm saying that the Church should ensure that this need doesn't arise in the first place. While we've been busy trying to reclaim relationships for purity under God and his plan for them we've just steam rollered on into the other extreme of making it feel as though anyone not in a relationship doesn't have a plan from God!

For example: In America (of course...) there is a couple called Eric and Leslie Ludy who write books about manhood, womanhood, relationships etc. One of their books is an autobiographical account of their own love story, called 'When dreams come true'. Now, they've also written a book called 'Sacred Singleness'- but that is one amongst many many others on relationships. Another is called 'When God writes your love story'. Women are encouraged to wait for a man who is a 'warrior poet' who will treat them like a 'princess'. With their readership of mostly teenage girls, they are in danger of falling prey to a way of thinking which is focused on finding your perfect partner, not realising that you have him in Jesus Christ.

What can we do? What should we do? I have some thoughts- not sure how much they're worth, but...

-1. Recognise that singles need relationships too. We are relational beings- that much is clear. But those relationships do not have to be limited to romantic ones. Families and married couples in Churches need to embrace single people as a crucial part of their lives, commit time to them (if they don't, they WILL become boring and only talk about their children) and maintain friendships individually. This also means making it possible for single people to have friendships with other single people without pressure to get married or start a relationship- something that seems almost impossible for a Church to achieve.

-2. Recognise that being single is not some kind of curse. I wonder when a Youth Worker last read the following verses with a group of Christian teenagers:

Now about virgins: I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy. ²⁶ Because of the present crisis, I think that it is good for a man to remain as he is. ²⁷Are you pledged to a woman? Do not seek to be released. Are you free from such a commitment? Do not look for a wife. ²⁸ But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this.
²⁹ What I mean, brothers and sisters, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they do not; ³⁰ those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; ³¹ those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away.
³² I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord’s affairs—how he can please the Lord. ³³ But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife— ³⁴ and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. ³⁵ I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord. (1 Corinthians 7v25-35)

3. Recognise the need for sensitivity. Women in particular (though men do too) tend to struggle with the constant barrage of messages from Church about how great marriage is. This has sort of arisen from the secular attack on marriage that the Church has needed to address, but from conversations I've had it seems that the collateral damage has been isolating single people, a lack of support single mothers and an obsession with a 'godly partner' amongst Christians.

4. Be careful not to go too far the other way. Of course, we also have to be careful not to make single Christians feel like their lot in life is singleness, and that God has 'destined' them for that. There is a rather peculiar desperation in the Church to get everyone married off by the age of 30 (for women it's younger!) and a kind of 'lost hope' mentality about anyone older than that.

*Final disclaimer- I hope this hasn't come across as arrogant or know-it-all. This post is the result of several conversations with single Christians and a desire to get across the problems they are faced with in the Church.*
Hannah x

'Stolen'- A UK trafficking film.

2011-07-05T13:01:00.003+01:00

Recommendation for you- the film 'Stolen' is currently available to watch on BBC iplayer. It's only 1 hour and 30 minutes, but is an excellent, saddening, thought provoking look at the way in which children from different countries and backgrounds are brought to the UK with the hope of a better life- but end up in slave labour. Well worth your time. (Click here to watch it.)

If you're interested in finding out more, the Christian organisation Hope For Justice works specifically in the UK rescuing victims of human trafficking. They have groups which meet together across the UK to pray, campaign and take action. If you've got the time and the heart for this work, consider getting involved, donating or supporting them in prayer.

Raped for Profit, The European Sex Trafficking from Hopeforjustice on Vimeo.

Hannah x

"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners" Isaiah 61v1.

Finding the line of legislation.

2011-07-03T16:01:00.001+01:00

Hello.
So, I went to an excellent, thought provoking conference yesterday run by Christian Concern (click here for more information) called 'Awake Arise', focusing on the family. With speakers there including Bishop Nazir-Ali, the editor of Evangelicals Now, the leader of the Christian People's Alliance and Dr Lisa Nolland, there was certainly a lot of food for thought.
Here are my questions: To what extent should Christians be attempting to change legislation?
Should we be praying for changed hearts instead, given that we cannot expect Christian conduct from non-Christians?
So, problems to address-
1. We live in an increasingly secularised democracy, not a theocracy. As such, Christian belief systems can't be forced upon society. A couple of examples- laws against blasphemy and homosexuals living together shouldn't be demanded of a government.
But-
2. We live in a democracy, and so must have free speech to express Christian beliefs on issues such as these. Given this freedom, we must also be allowed to exercise it. (e.g. not having to marry homosexuals in churches and being free to evangelise without fear of persecution.)
And-
3. There is a democratic cut-off point, which I believe is the protection of the vulnerable in society. This means that we should be striving to change laws which threaten those made in God's image, such as abortion laws, the sexualisation of children, women trapped under abusive Shariah Law and the rights of those in care homes to be given the best chance possible in life by providing both a father and mother in adoption and fostering.

This middle ground is hard to get right, and too often we swing one way or the other- either desiring to interfere in areas not ours to change (preventing sin against God) or not bothering to intervene where we must (preventing sin against humans). Above all else, the thing that will bring change to society is the changing of hearts by God. We must pray for this, and, in particular, attempt to protect and nurture the next generation of this country so that they might hear and believe. We must engage with our leaders, but do so where we are called to do it.
Finally-
4. We must first change ourselves. The Church (each of us) is in disarray- full of apathy, pride and unwillingness to respond to God's command to seek justice.

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7v14

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1v27

Hannah x

Oh and another thing... Children's work.

2011-06-30T12:57:00.001+01:00

Whilst we're on pet peeves, here's another- the state of children's work and how it's done in churches. Having the mental age of an 8 year old myself, and having done quite a bit of this over the years (I reckon it's a height thing- being barely 5ft 2, children feel they can meet me- literally- at my level) I feel in quite a good position to comment on this.
The issue here is really a lack of leaders and helpers in children's groups who either don't put enough effort into preparation of just don't understand children. Here's some advice from me (an overgrown child) to those attempting to take on arguably the most important task a chuch has.

1. There is no smoke without a fire. If a child is misbehaving in your group, it is either because 2) they are bored, b) they don't respect your authority or c) they're not getting enough attention. Or all of the above. This is largely the group leader's fault/responsibility. Children do not yet have the layer of social awareness adults have- they will just be honest with you. If they're bored, you'll know.

2. What can you do? Remember that this is not school. Don't make any child do something they don't want to do or embarrass any child by making them read aloud etc. Don't punish mistakes without bad intentions (e.g. spilling a drink, an overexcited talker). You are not there to give rules, you are there to change hearts. It is likely that you are one of the only adults they will know outside their family who is a Christian. You have a responsibility to make faith personal and accessible.

Practical pointers:
-Avoid bad behaviour/children getting left out by sitting them on cushions on the floor in a circle, not in rows on chairs like school.
-Let them run around- or, if a small room, jump, shout and dance to music. You need to exhaust them if you are going to have any chance of getting them quiet for a Bible reading.
-Change the activity/focus slightly every 5-10 minutes. Children have a short concentration span. Don't try to fight this.
-Give rewards. Again, this isn't school. Sweets once a week won't destroy their health, and helps keep order and win affection and respect.
-When studying the Bible, ask questions. Not closed ones- avoid 'whos' and 'whats', especially for slightly older children. Change it to 'why'. Children love that question! That's far more interesting, and there's nothing worse than a teacher who just gets people to state the obvious.
E.g. Opening of Acts as a study. Good questions are: 'Why would Luke want to record all this stuff for Theophilus?' and 'Why did Jesus appear to lots of people?'. Bad questions are things like 'Who is this written do?' and 'What did Jesus do?'.
-Don't force them to pray in a certain way. Give them freedom to explore different ways of talking to God.
-Bring them together as a united group- e.g. sponsoring a child, maybe organising something to show in church.
-Children like minor responsibilities- e.g doing the register, writing on the board, getting drinks. Give them something to do!
-Let them run and shout even more. A good, focused and short Bible study with 45 minutes of games and biscuits is far better and more helpful than trying to do an hour long exercise in getting them to shut up.
-Love them. They are children of the most high God, given into your hands to cherish. Make friends with them. Join in the games yourself and ask them about themselves.
-Pray for them. Every day.
Rant over!
Hannah x
"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" Proverbs 22v6

'He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”' Mark 9v36-37

Snobbery and the Christian

2011-06-26T21:40:00.000+01:00

Poor effort on my part with posting, I'm afraid. But I'm back from Cambridge for 3 months now, so back to regular writing. Hooray! Let's start with one of my pet hates- and, when I say pet hate, I mean it's something I hate about myself- Christian snobbery.

Inevitably, being at Cambridge means that the type of snobbery I most frequently encounter (and am myself in danger of) is the academic type, so I'm going to look at that as an example. Snobbery of any kind is rooted in the sin of pride, and, in this case, the explicit belief that you/your views are superior to others'. There is, of course, an important distinction to make here- there is a clear difference between disagreeing with an opinion (thinking someone is wrong) and letting that disagreement lower your opinion of the person/heighten your opinion of yourself. It is this creation of inequality that we are concerned with here. Academic snobbery in Christian circles can be seen in (but is not limited to) the following manifestations:
- An individual liking/reading an author/theologian that you dislike/disagree with, and thus deeming them less theologically sound/able than yourself
- Thinking an individual reading a Bible translation you don't like is inferior/less subtle/less sound in their understanding than you
- Thinking the worship music an individual likes is a reflection of how 'good' they are theologically.
- Even thinking some denominations/churches are for those with inferior Christian knowledge/discernment.
- Mockery/jokes about other Christians. This is probably the most dangerous one.

Again, let me reiterate that I do not see anything wrong with healthy theological debate/opinion. It is also of course important that we challenge unbiblical positions or institutions. But if we let that lead to a sense of superiority, we have fallen into the trap of thinking that any wisdom or understanding we have is through our own strength. Often, of course, the things we argue about (bible translations, minor exegetical differences, worship styles) are not worth causing division over. We should be seeking unity in Christ, which is only possible through a humble heart, a willingness to listen and a willingness to admit we may be wrong.

As I said at the beginning of this post, I am preaching to myself as much as anyone else as I write this. Cambridge is full to bursting with pride and selfish ambition. This can spill over into the Christian life too. We desire, as sinful humans, to rank ourselves. We want to know who we are better than and who we need to beat. It is a constant struggle to avoid letting an academic interest in my faith and its implications become snobbery in the face of those who are less knowledgeable in some things.
Pray for humility and a greater understanding of our own foolishness and lack of understanding!
Hannah x

"Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them" Proverbs 26v12

"For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?" 1 Corinthians 4v7

The Search for Salvation

2011-06-14T16:43:00.000+01:00

Exams are finally over- so I'm back. Hello :)

"Come to me, all who labour and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest' Matthew 11v28.

We are all seeking salvation- just most people don't know what they need saving from. If you ask a non-Christian what is important to them, or what they value most, they'll most likely answer with the secular trinity of family, friends and the self. They put these things on a pedestal in the hope that these things will be salvation- from something. They try to say that the problem is loneliness, or fear of rejection, or earthly poverty. That 'God-shaped vacuum' Pascal is credited with describing is a vacuum that springs from the knowledge that something is not right- something must change- humanity needs to be saved from something. We try new governments, new worldviews, even new medicines in the hope that we can save ourselves- ultimately from death.

Here's the problem in the human heart: it doesn't know what it needs saving from. Once there is recognition that we need salvation from ourselves, and not an outside force, only then can the gospel penetrate and heal. Things like poverty and loneliness are only symptons of the sin in the heart of man. We need people to understand that they are trying to prevent symptons, not the disease.

Here's why I picked Matthew 11v28 for this thought about salvation- it seems that so many non-Christians spend a lifetime searching for a solution without knowing what the problem is. Do we need saving from Captialism? Communism? Sickness? Inequality? No. They are desperate to right wrongs and seek 'justice' and 'equality', but will only ultimately be met with disappointment. This is a verse of peace for them. The search is over- they can rest in the knowledge that they do not need to discover what the world needs saving from anymore. They must only accept God's heavenly diagnosis of what the problem is- their heart- and then accept his cure.

"And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" John 8v32

Hannah x

'Good without God?' with Prof. Oliver O'Donovan

2011-05-20T23:09:00.000+01:00

Hello
It feels like I haven't done a proper post in ages. Exams etc. Not that much fun to talk about, so instead let's look at a talk I went to recently, run by The Veritas Forum. In examining the foundation for ethics,
Professor O'Donovan (this is a link to his wikipedia page) went through the following:
'What difference does Christian theology make to ethics?'
'Is a theological foundation necessary for ethics?'
'To what extent can there be a fruitful dialogue between Christian and secular ethics?'

So. Here's what I gleaned from it. He opened with a joke that relied on a word I didn't understand, so I did feel throughout the talk as though I was skimming a pathetic amount of fat off the top of what was a vast, creamy pot of understanding. But anyway. What did I pick up?
-He defined ethics as a disciplined relection on thinking towards action, and, with faith based ethics, it is the question of coupling this with theology- leaving 'realities that faith knows coupled with thought towards action'. Or, if you prefer, 'What does God require of us?'
-The 'us', he made clear, was both a public and private consideration. The inclusion of God to ethics changes the thinking from one based on your perspective of the world to God's perspective (at least, that's what I think...)

Next, I suppose, is the question of whether ethical living can exist outside of God. O'Donovan asked whether a 'secular ethic' based on common-sense, or a default form of goodness could be established- but, of course, this is complicated by the fact that within the 'secular' umbrella are hundreds of different world-views, all vying with each other.

Something I thought he should probably have said (maybe he did and I didn't understand it) was that the question of 'goodness' really comes down to what you perceive as 'good'. Whether there are universal morals (humans made in God's image etc) is another question entirely, but unless we have God's perspective on what is 'good' then we've got it wrong. If there is a God, then he is the only one in a position to judge who is 'good' and 'bad'.

But I digress. Back to O'Donovan. Next set of ideas he set forth were ones based around what a Christian ethic looks like, and why it can exist. So, 'God's will is not significant in ethics because it is axiomatic, but because it is a reality'. God is the centre of ethics, not just the starting point. What does this mean? What does ethics look like in practice?
1. We are responsible agents. In existing, we have a calling put on us by God. An inescapable responsibility to respond. We are, however, free to choose how we respond to it. (I think he was talking about ethical living specifically here- let's not get confused with salvation just yet)
2. The world has value and goodness. Creation/the World enables consistent, coherent principles. Creation is also good in itself, not just my projection of thinking it is good onto it. Gratitude in response to the world's goodness (God's goodness in tangible form) demands a response.
3. We have been given time to act. This all sounded pretty Gandalf-y to me, but I suppose in that lies a lot of truth. God's purposes for the future mean that we can act in line with them, and live 'good' lives.

Ethics highlights questions that ethics alone cannot answer, like 'Why do we want to do good?' and 'Is this all relative?'. Ethics leads to theology.
Ethics is not a case of just not misbehaving, but is a call to actively do good.

Now for the salvation bit.
In the light of the cross, we have been given the freedom to do 'good'. Without the cross and resurrection, ethical living comes to nothing- but with God's grace we are able to do good things.

Complicated ideas. Not sure all of them addressed the question. But very, very interesting.
Hannah x

Stuff I like this month

2011-05-13T20:19:00.001+01:00

This isn't really a proper blog post- my apologies. But I do have some things I want to share, so I might as well stick them all together.

1. Inside the Human Body: TV programme on the BBC. It goes through, as the presenter puts it, the 'small miracles' that happen inside you every day. Absolutely fascinating. See what our God can do! So far, there's been 'Creation' and 'First to Last'. Trust me- this stuff is amazing.
Here's the link to the first in the series.

2. Childhood regression. I have rediscovered the Donut Man. Perhaps it's just the stress of exams, or the fact that I've always been slightly unhinged, but I'm sure this stuff doesn't get old. And the theology seems a lot better than some of the stuff we sing nowadays. It's Nice. Nice and American. And I really, really, wish I were 6 again. Here's what I remember watching as a child:
"In him we live...and move....and have...our beeeeing..."

3. Work, work, do not shirk. Look to the ant, you sluggard! Here's a link to a sermon I heard at my church last Sunday on Wisdom and Sluggardliness which made me feel incredibly uncomfortable. Which means it was excellent. You can listen to it here.

4. ...And here's a little clip from Joshua Harris about technology and self-control. On a similar topic to sluggardliness.

Exam Term in Cambridge: Part 1

2011-05-06T12:25:00.003+01:00

AAAARRRRRGGGHHHHHHHH. That is all.

My Peace.

2011-05-05T18:37:00.001+01:00

This is what he looked like. Honest.

I haven't done a 'Name of God' blog post in a while, and I've really missed it.

So, today is one that I really need to hear- JEHOVAH-SHALOM. The LORD is peace. Where does it come from? Who called out to God and called him peace? Wait for it. This is really good. Gideon did.
Gideon, the same man who tested God over and over again to check that it was really God talking to him! The same man who, at the start of his story, we find threshing corn in a winepress (not very easy or sensible) out of fear of his enemies.

This man has the misfortune of following Deborah in the book of Judges, known for her leadership and courageousness. His story is filled with doubt and fear, and you sort of wonder if he were named ironically - His name means 'destroyer' or 'mighty warrior', and it certainly takes a while to get him there. In Judges 6, he is given the command to 'save Israel' (v14). No easy task, admittedly. He doesn't believe it's God, demands proof - and when God demonstrates his power Gideon is very, very afraid.
"But the LORD said to him, 'Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.' So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and called it The LORD is Peace." Judges 6v23-24

Gideon finds peace in God's promise of life. Peace enough, in fact, to go and destroy an altar to Baal belonging to his own father. Later, he doubts again. But he is willing to be obedient in the light of God's promises and the peace they bring. Do we find peace in God's promises? God has promised to rescue us from sin and death, and restore us to newness of life and a full relationship with him. That, surely, should give me peace!

"God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing" C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity.

What does it mean to be peaceful? Even when we're stressed, we should still feel at peace in God. That is an abiding, fulfilling reserve of peace - not the kind you pick up through yoga or a good night's sleep. This kind of peace comes from trusting in God - the God who sacrificed his own son for me - that he would fulfill his promises despite the difficulties I can see. That's what Gideon had. Peace in the knowledge of the promises God had made to him.
"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29v11

Peace be with you! Hannah x

24/7 Prayer Week

2011-05-03T18:13:00.000+01:00

Hello,
I never like to recommend/promote things I'm not actually supporting/doing myself, so now that I've finally managed to get involved in 24/7 prayer I'm bursting to tell you about it!
Essentially, this week in Cambridge a prayer room has been set up for '24/7 prayer'. You book a slot, go along and sit in the prayer room for your allotted hour praying and reflecting on the messages, verses, images, maps etc etc that cover the walls. They're also doing a series of prayer walks around the city of Cambridge on topics like 'wisdom', 'The Bible', 'creativity', 'justice'...

I went to the prayer room tired, regretting picking a morning slot, a little grumpy, stressed, and wondering about how I would fill an hour. When my hour was up, I didn't want to leave. I ended up on my knees before God, marveling at the wondrous knowledge that I could dwell in the presence of my heavenly father, who had been waiting to listen. To me, of all people!

So. If you're in Cambridge, get involved. Here is the link to the website.
If you're not in Cambridge, pray anyway! Pray particularly for the team behind 24/7 prayer, for the impact it will have on Cambridge and thank God that he is willing to listen and respond to our requests. Here in Cambridge, we're praying for a revival. Why not set up a 24/7 prayer week in your own town/city? I've found another organisation who set up 24/7 prayer weeks as well. Have a look here. See what you can do. Or, rather, see what God wants to do through you.
Hannah x

Miracles For Sale: Derren Brown on faith healers.

2011-05-02T18:31:00.000+01:00

If you haven't seen the programme, here's the link to watch it on 4od, and, for overseas viewers, the whole thing can be watched here on youtube.
In this exposé of the scams and greed of many faith healers, Derren Brown selects an ordinary British citizen, teaches them how to be a 'faith healer' (how to influence, manipulate and trick people) and takes them to Texas to demonstrate there that the people claiming to do miracles, telling people to throw away their medicine, telling them that if they aren't healed it's because they don't have faith (and then asking for money) are con-artists- corrupt, selfish, cruel individuals willing to deceive the poor and vulnerable for their own gain.
And, actually, the programme was very well done. Derren Brown was an evangelical Christian until his late teens, at which point he became an atheist. But unlike others with a similar past, it was not a programme with the intention of condemning Christianity, faith or the miraculous. In fact, Derren worked closely with several Christians, including an organisation called the Trinity Foundation (website link here), who work to expose and denounce corruption and fraud in the American church.

And it raised a lot of questions. Personally, I believe that the early apostles were special cases, and that healing through touch or the laying on of hands no longer happens, but that miraculous healings can still happen through prayer. (I've seen it in my own family.)
It's important to note, however, that Paul lists 'gifts of healing' and 'miraculous powers' as spiritual gifts. (1 Corinthians 12v9-10) So what do we do with this? How do we know the difference? Probably the best thing to do is go and look at the way the early church leaders used the gift of healing. If you turn to Acts 3, the story of Peter and John healing the crippled beggar makes it very clear.

"Silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give you"- healing is an act of servant-heartedness. They gain nothing, ask for nothing, receive nothing. In fact, the next chapter tells the story of the beginnings of persecution.

"In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk" - healing is done simply, humbly, without show or drama. Emotions are not provoked. It is blunt, straightforward.

"Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we have made this man walk?" No claims of their own godliness or power. They do not presume to be better, more faithful, more successful than the man they heal, or than anyone standing nearby.

Of course, Derren Brown hadn't actually exposed anything new- many people have been working for a long time to reveal the truth about faith healers, particularly in America, and Derren actually used a lot of their footage and evidence in explaining the 'tricks of the trade'. He did do one new thing, however. In going to America with a fake faith healer, demonstrating that this ordinary man could do the same things that 'faith healers' could do, he made the whole thing a lot more personal. It was hard to watch- many devoted Christians came to his 'revival night', he fooled people on the streets, he gained the trust of pastors. Suddenly, the impact on the individual victims of faith-healing scams became obvious.

Prayer for the American Church - that they would protect their members from this kind of victimisation. Pray for healing, too, for those damaged by faith healers and their empty promises.
Hannah x

'Love Wins'?

2011-04-30T12:57:00.001+01:00

Hello,
Just a quick something of interest to share.
No doubt quite a few of you have heard of the new book by Rob Bell, entitled 'Love Wins'. Essentially a promotion of universalism, or Rob Bell expressing serious problems with the way the Bible talks about hell, as far as I can tell, though I haven't actually managed to get round to reading it yet. For those of you, like me, who are interested in hearing what he has to say without having to go out and buy the book (or indeed read it!) here is the link to the video interview he did on it at Premier Radio. It's about an hour long- but, if you don't want to even spend that long, it even has highlights to watch from the debate, on 'universalism', 'evangelicalism', 'hell' and 'heresy?'

The interview is mostly carried out by Adrian Warnock- I suppose it could be considered a debate, really. As a followup, Adrian has done a series of blog posts on the issues surrounding the book. They can be read on his website - follow this link. People have managed to make it all very complicated, but is seems to come down to the question of 'Can a loving God send people to hell?'
Let me know what you think, particularly if you've managed to read it!
Hannah x

One Christian's perspective on the Royal Wedding

2011-04-29T16:51:00.004+01:00

So, as the entire world knows (nearly a 1/4 of it apparently tuned in) today was the Royal Wedding. As someone with quite strong tendencies towards a republic, I found it difficult to 'appreciate' the day. However, I'm going to try and get past that (republican or royalist is NOT a matter of Christian conscience), and instead address some of the issues surrounding the current royal family, and what our response should be to an event like this.

Firstly, there are things to take issue with over a wedding on this scale. The estimates/guesses of cost are hitting about 70 million- a mammoth figure. At a time when the country is in a state of economic crisis, it seems an extravagant use of money. The advantages of the couple holding back on cost were pretty significant- it would demonstrate to those opposed to the Royal Family that they aren't as far removed and uninterested as people might think, instead demonstrating concern for the people who will now live under them.

King Mswati III of Swaziland

Secondly, the controversial guest list contains the names of leaders of prominent dictatorships from around the world. This failure on the part of the Royal Family to identify with those suffering under cruel, controlling regimes demonstrates that the wedding was not merely a celebration of love before God (which it should be) but a political minefield. Human rights campaigners were outraged over this, and, as Christians, we should all be trying to protect the dignity of creatures made in God's image.

Thirdly, the reigning monarch is the head of the Church of England. Whilst the current Queen has been relatively good at this- she is, by all accounts, a godly woman- those who are to follow in her place do not have the same track record of upholding the institution. The 'protestant' emphasis placed on the Royal family is hypocrisy.

On the other hand- (and yes, I am capable of having two hands on an issue!) a wedding is a day in which two people are bound together in the eyes of God. As such, whatever our opinion of the monarchy, we should be praying for them and for blessing over their marriage; that they will set an example to the nation. The Bible also calls us to pray for our leaders. Whether I like it or not, they are still the head of the Church of England. They need prayer. Finally, the service took place in a church, before the Archbishop, and the address was given by the Bishop of London. We should pray that those watching the wedding (all 2 billion of them, apparently) will be given a glimpse into the message of the Christian faith and will find a hunger to know more.

So, we pray for the Royal Family, in particular the new couple, as we do for all our leaders. But that doesn't mean that we shouldn't also recognise the godlessness of our nation, and pray for changing of hearts. We are not of this world, but are looking forward to the most wonderful wedding of all time - that of the people of God to Jesus Christ.
Hannah x

Back in Cambridge

2011-04-26T20:24:00.004+01:00

There are many seasons in the work God calls each of us to. It's just a case of working out which one you're in at the moment.
I just got back from The Cambridge Christian Union training for its new reps - of which I am one - and, as was inevitable, I went with a frankly annoying number of questions as to how things were run, and how people think they should be run. Our purpose is to make disciples. How do we do that? Are we doing it right? As should be the case, I was met with patience, humility and a lot of wisdom. I'm back in Cambridge at the start of the 3rd out of 9 terms I have here.
2 big things I came away with.

1. Whilst I'm at Cambridge, one of my biggest priorities is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Interestingly, I had sort of considered that since that was a life-long priority, Cambridge would be a great place to get equipped for doing that, and to talk to non-Christian friends when I could. Turns out, that's not the case. In fact, my university career is the time that evangelism is going to be easiest, and probably most fruitful. It's not enough to say that I'm here in Cambridge to 'serve God' - the temptation is to go along with the knowledge that, since all things in my life should be to the glory of God, I don't need to do anything specific, but just get on with it. That's not what Jesus said. He gave us a clear imperative. GO, therefore, and make disciples of all nations.

2. The only way I can share the gospel of Jesus Christ is in full reliance on God. How do I do that? I pray. I don't pray nearly enough for God's help. Why? Because either I believe I can do things better than God can, or I'm not convinced he's really listening. I need humility. I believe. Help my unbelief.

Which season am I in? A season with a clear focus on spreading the good news to students around the University of Cambridge. That's all. Obviously, I want to get a good degree. I want to develop my passion for social action. I want to make and uphold friendships. But if any of these things get in the way of an eternal perspective, they are getting in the way of a full submission to the will of God.

"Do you want arguments for soul winning? Look up to Heaven, and ask yourself how sinners can ever reach those harps of gold and learn their everlasting song, unless they have someone to tell them of Jesus, who is mighty to save. But the best argument of all is to be found in the wounds of Jesus. You want to honour Him, you desire to put many crowns upon His head, and this you can best do by winning souls for Him. These are the spoils that He covets, these are the trophies for which He fights, these are the jewels that shall be His best adornment."
C.H. Spurgeon

His Kingdom come!
Hannah x

More stuff

2011-04-19T00:59:00.000+01:00

Hello,
Apologies for lack of posting this week- have just got back from New Word Alive - if you don't know what it is, follow that link to visit the website and have a look- essentially, it's a Christian conference for all ages and backgrounds based on the Bible and brings Christians together for worship and teaching. Really recommend you coming along next year, if you can. If you want to hear/watch talks from the week, you can buy them online on the website. Only £1 for an MP3. With speakers from all over the world there, it's worth it! I want to recommend two of them particularly- Archbishop Ben Kwashi from Nigeria, and David Cook from Australia.
So, I've come back with a load of stuff for you. I'll try to get back into normal posting later this week, but the countdown to Cambridge has begun...

So: first off, something up on the BBC worth watching other than Masterchef. Watch 'Does Christianity Have A Future?', hosted by Ann Widdecombe. She examines the supposed decline and fall of Christianity in Britain. One particularly interesting bit was the examination of the 'secular trinity' that runs the lives of people today: Family, Friends and The Self, and the reactions of individuals who experience a break down in this trio- they seem to turn to spirituality.

Secondly, the ever lengthening book recommendation list. 'Son of Hamas' by Mosab Hassan Yousef. As the title implies, he was the son of one of the leaders of Hamas in Palestine. His life was changed when he became a Christian and realised that 'loving your enemies' was the only way to bring peace to the middle east. Genuinely one of the best autobiographies I've ever read. Honest and humble in his telling of his experiences on the side of Hamas and then working secretly against them, he is a wonderful example of how the gospel can penetrate even places which seem the darkest. Here is the website- watch videos of him talking on various issues, view his blog and find out more about him here.

Another book- Operation World. I bought this one too, and it is essentially a guide to the world today. Each country is profiled, with breakdowns of the politics, economy and the religious situation there, particularly the treatment of Christians and a their history in the country. Excellent as a prayer resource, but also just makes really interesting reading.

Finally, a song. We sang this one at New Word Alive. I'm convinced it's not a congregation song- for one thing the tune is un-singable for, say, 96% of the population- but it is beautiful as a piece to reflect on. Here it is.

The Gospel according to Grayling.

2011-04-08T18:26:00.001+01:00

And yes, I mean that completely literally. In case you haven't heard, A.C. Grayling (you know, the militant secularist with the floppy hair) has just released his very own 'improved' version of the Bible, called 'The Good Book'.
It contains the books of Genesis, Wisdom, Parables, Concord, Lamentations, Consolations, Songs, Sages, Histories, Proverbs, The Lawgiver, Acts, Epistles and The Good.
All are compilations done by Grayling of eminent philosophers and thinkers from ancient times to the present day. Grayling is the only representative of the 21st century. It is laid out in 'bible' format, with pages in two columns, and an oddly formal style that seems mockingly in keeping with the anniversary of the King James Bible.
But anyway. Obviously, this is not only frankly ridiculous (the oxymoronic factor of an atheist bible is obviously lost on a man who has no concept of spirituality) but also quite offensive, provocative and blasphemous.
But I don't want to dwell on that. It's a little boring, after you get over the initial irritation (and it's £25! Obviously not a guide for the masses then)
I want to dwell on the question that it provoked in my head. Do I think I could better the Bible? I believe it's the word of God, but if I could, wouldn't it be nice to just chop out a few bits here and there? The harder to explain bits? And, actually, when I thought about it, I realised that, if anything, I was worse than Grayling. He doesn't believe the Bible is the word of God. If he wants to change it, it doesn't mean anything anyway. But I do, and I still kind of think in some places I would do it differently.
I pray for more patience and a greater desire to study God's word, so that I might better understand God's character as the Bible has it. I pray that I might not just brush things aside that I find difficult, nor be ashamed to admit that I do- that instead I might research for myself, ask others, and most of all ask God for a true understanding of the Bible's message of good news.
Hannah x x

Good Stuff

2011-04-05T17:06:00.008+01:00

Don't say I never give you anything.
1) First, I'm going to give you something to do: get involved in campaigning for the new amendment to current 'health and social care' laws, which will mean that women have the right to access independent counselling and advice before being passed on to an abortion provider who has a vested financial interest in their decision.
Please, write to your MP. Advertise this amendment. Information and ways to take action are all on the following website. They'll even forward your email to your MP for you.
Find out more on the 'Right To Know' website - follow this link.

2) Second, I'm going to give you a book recommendation, which is actually very much related to number one. If you haven't read 'Ethics in a permissive society' by William Barclay, you should. A clear, simple to read and understand introduction to the problem of Christian ethics declining.
Here's a little extract from the beginning:
"If you want to put it in one sentence, ethics is the science of behaviour. Ethics is the bit of religion that tells us how we ought to behave. Now it so happens that in regard to ethics we are facing today a situation which the Christian church never had to face before"
He goes through the Old Testament ethic as the roots of the Christian one, and then considers the ethics of Jesus and Paul, before addressing wider topics like 'work', 'pleasure', 'money' and 'community'. Try to lay aside some of his more heretical opinions for a minute- on the topic of ethics, he is excellent. Follow this link to read an article about his views.

3) Another thing! Aren't you lucky. I went to Prom Praise on Saturday evening. With Lou Fellingham, the All Souls Orchestra and church choirs from across the globe leading worship and Rico Tice doing a 'pause for thought', it was brilliant. But don't worry if you missed out- follow this link to see when are where else prom praise is happening in the UK, or take a look at the recordings on the website. Lou Fellingham was singing songs from her new album 'Step into the light', which I also recommend- and all her stuff, really.
And I'll even give you a little taster below of videos from previous years of prom praise, and some of Lou.

My wonderful mother.

2011-04-03T16:05:00.003+01:00

Hello there :)
It's mother's day today.

(For those of you who forgot, feel awkward, stop reading and go and call your mum.) I often write about my inspirations on this blog- people who inspire me, things they've said and done. So today it's my mum's turn- the woman who has most influenced my walk with Jesus. Let me tell you a bit about this remarkable, godly woman. In so many parts of her life, I see her reflecting the love of God.

Her own mother died after a long struggle with breast cancer when she was a teenager - and yet even without her own mum as support she has served and guided our family wonderfully, teaching her children what it looks like to live a Christ-centred life.

She is a doctor, working many hours every week with vulnerable adults, addicts and the mentally ill. Whether in prisons or with the elderly, she is willing to serve, never seeking her own professional or financial gain.

Whilst working she has raised five children - 3 with life-threatening genetic diseases. She has not let this encourage bitterness, but has instead brought her problems before God, and we have seen miracles happen. Indeed, she was the one who diagnosed my older brother, saving his life. She seems tireless to us - her and my dad spend so much time each day driving us places, finding new opportunities for us, supporting our school work, giving us the things we need - most importantly teaching us what the Bible says, spending time praying with us and praying for us.

She has recovered from breast cancer herself. In all her treatment and surgery, I never once heard her complain or express anger towards God. While she was still recovering, she went back to work - both as a doctor and in the role of a mother for her children.

She opens her house to others. Whether they are struggling friends of ours, other families who need support or the church youth group, she is constantly using the blessing of the house we have in the service of God. She finds time to come alongside young people who don't have anyone else on a personal level, mothering them as well - feeding them, taking them places, talking to adults for them when they can't do it. She counts no possessions as her own, but gives them willingly to God.

She is fun. She finds wonderful things for her children to do all the time. She can laugh at herself and laugh with others. She is my friend. She is a friend to so many. She is beautiful, clever, gentle and kind. My mother, a wonderful woman in Christ!
Hannah x
"Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life...she gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family...she opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy...she is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all" Proverbs 31v 11-29

The Light at the end of tunnel...

2011-03-31T21:13:00.002+01:00

Bible's Buried Secrets is over on the BBC. Needless to say, I have not enjoyed the experience. I can't remember the last time I felt so bored and so annoyed at the same time.
I watched the final episode today, (you can watch it on this link) and honestly tried to be a little more impartial and open to the possibility that her arguments, while wrong, might at least be logically valid.
And then, in the last installment, she claimed that the garden of Eden was actually just the carvings of foliage inside the temple of Jerusalem, and that Adam was a King who tended it for God, who was kicked out of the 'garden' when the Babylonians burnt the temple down. And yes, she says it seriously.
But, aside from all this conjecture relayed as fact (we'll look at how she does it in a minute) the most frustrating thing was that she seemed under the impression that in saying that
a) The Garden of Eden was an actual place
and
b) That Adam was an actual person who lived a few thousand years ago, not in the primeval creation of the world
she was somehow opposed to Christianity. These two statements aren't. What she does with them is. Let's take a look, shall we?
So, she starts by laying out her main issues with the garden of eden story.
"the story has had a devastating grip on the western imagination. It's helped shape the belief that human nature is fundamentally bad". Which, of course, is what she is really trying to do- shake people's belief in Christianity. To be honest, finding humans to be fundamentally bad and in need of God certainly doesn't seem devastating, to me. It is the basis of western thought and culture- two things not to be dismissed lightly.
In Book of Genesis, she claims, there is "no inherent sin, no fall of mankind, and the serpent is not satan...all of these Christian ideas are completely alien ot the book of Genesis"
-God specifically curses Adam and Eve for their disobedience, and takes away the tree of life. Clear sin and fall. The snake is an interesting one- it may not directly be satan, but in its manipulation of God's words that ends in the sin of Eve, it is clear that he is a villain (which Dr Stavrakopouli later denies).
And, the icing: "for centuries Eve's actions have been used as a reason to suppress women, to be fearful of female sexuality" Sexuality doesn't come into the story of eden at all.

So, after that opening (with lots of shots of apple orchards, and closeups of a bright green snake) we go on a search for some archaeology to support her claim that the garden of eden was a temple constructed to worship God. Here's the evidence:

Assyrian relief of Nineveh garden

1. An assyrian stone relief of the city of Nineveh- it shows a tower surrounded by gardens. Gardens, being fertile, were a status of power. I think the irony of comparing Nineveh and the Garden of Eden was lost on her.
2. So, if Gardens were power, the owner was a King. A palace and garden complex has been discovered in Syria from the 18th century BC, and it seems that Kings of other nations (not the Israelites, mind you) constructed sacred gardens to worship the gods.
So, obviously, this means that the story of Eden is actually talking about a King of the Israelites who made a garden to worship God. Obviously.
Ok. Moving on. We get on to the only vaguely sensible bit of the programme- the fact that Eden has a geographical location. And then it gets silly again, because she puts that location right inside the temple in Jerusalem. In her words, "I believe Eden is the ancient Jerusalem temple". A lot of this, it seems, is based on the fact that the Bible mentions Cherubim guardin Eden, and there are large stone cherubim outside a temple in Syria, and the description of Solomon's temple being covered in carved greenery (2 Chronicles 3).
She rounds all this silliness off by saying that "serpent worship was once an accepted part of the Jerusalem temple" (on what grounds?!) and the bit about the serpent was written in to discourage it.

So, I've finished the series. Thank goodness for that. Let's finish with one of her best misunderstandings of Christianity so far: "it's only baptism that can wipe away the stain of sin". Good to be reassured she knows her stuff.
If you want to read some people who are far more intelligent and qualified than I am who have offered critiques of the series, I recommend
Evangelical Textual Criticism and Paleobabble (thanks, Nicholas Wilson!) and A Reluctant Sinner.
Enjoy.
Hannah x

The Place of Apologetics

2011-03-30T00:19:00.005+01:00

So, this particular topic came about after I went to a lecture on spiritual experience last term.
It raised a lot of questions like
'Can personal spiritual experience be used adequately as an argument?'
'Are spiritual experiences even reliable?'
'Can they be trusted without further theological support?'
Amidst all this, it got me considering the particular problem of the place of apologetics next to personal experience of God in evangelism. I have a special place in my heart for the practice of apologetics - I believe it's become increasingly important in a a secularised society determined to dismiss/disprove the claims of the Christian faith.
But is it enough? When we tell people about the gospel, should we be more reliant on personal application and experience of relationship with God than on set answers to questions we think people want the answers to?

Spiritual experience evidently has its own problems. As any psychologist will tell you, it can be very much constructed- around our language, our society, even around our own desires: prosperity gospel style- we wish to be rich, so in our heads God tells us that is what he desires for us too. It can sometimes push people down the anti-intellectual route, which is dangerous (love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and MIND and strength) and its ephemerality is a constant issue- once the experience is over, if faith is based solely on that then it can struggle when it doesn't get more of the same. Blumhardt wrote:
"One is so often deceived in one's feelings of blessing and spiritual transcendence. 'Where did God go?' I had such warm feelings, but now I am so cold!' Someone asked me this one. I answered him, 'Exactly! I just wish all (such) spiritual 'warm feelings' would die away, so that you might be excited about heaven, instead of trying to be justified on earth!'"

However, it also seems clear that the Christian faith is one based on a living, spiritual relationship. I think Blumhardt goes too far - we have been given the holy spirit as a guide and helper, and God does speak to his people. He promises to do so in the Bible. The gospels themselves are based on individual experiences of Jesus' ministry. It is theology (and then from that apologetics) that finds its root in experience of God, not the other way round.
Clearly, apologetics is not enough by itself....

People are not converted through human argument, but through God changing hearts and bringing them to himself. It is very rare for a Christian to claim confidence in their faith through their rational understanding alone. But then where does it fit in? First of all, that rational side to understanding faith is very important in helping to test spiritual experience and so be honest with ourselves and with others. We have the Bible, the constant revelation of God, and if someone's experience of God doesn't match with what the Bible records about him and his work through the holy spirit, we can question it.

Secondly, I'm going to be a little controversial and suggest that spiritual experience can be part of Apologetics- it is a manifestation of God's power, and if it is taken in context and told with sensitivity to others, it can be a powerful support for the truthfulness of the gospel. The rational and the spiritual in a person don't have to be separated, and actually probably shouldn't be.

Finally, the two- spiritual experience and apologetics/theology- have their own roles to play in the life of the Christian. Spiritual experience and the starting of a relationship with God starts the life, but it is the Bible and knowledge of truth as well as experience of it that maintains it.
I want to finish with another couple of quotes from the same guy I used earlier: Christoph Blumhardt. These two might seem to contradict with my other quotation from him, but they don't when you realise that he is not against spiritual experience, but against the wrong kind.

"One single little impression of God's power, one experience of God in us that carries us up for a moment into the heights, is more helpful than anything we human beings can do"

"The reliable mark of the Holy Spirit at work is not so much divine peace as divine pangs, the anxiety and unsettled feeling that accompanies profound change. Were the pangs to cease and only peace remain, it would soon turn out to be a false peace, like a woman whose birth-pangs cease and her child is stillborn"
Can apologetics ever replace the truth of Christ being breathed into someone's life? No.
Hannah x

Child Refuge

2011-03-28T12:44:00.001+01:00

This is a website set up to help children who are victims of sexual abuse, to inform the church and to encourage it to act in response. Very helpful and very challenging.
Lots of stuff on there I didn't know. Follow this link.

Take a few minutes to have a look and respond in prayer.
Hannah x

Who's up for Round 2?

2011-03-23T20:45:00.005Z

So, the 2nd part of the series 'Bible's Buried Secrets' is up on the internet. Follow this link to watch it.
This time, we take on the question 'Did God have a wife?'
Her main points are the following:
1. The Israelites were a subset of the Canaanites, and believed in many Gods
2. The chief God of the Canaanites, 'El' was the same as YHWH, and he was married to Asherah, as head of a Council of Gods
3. The scribes, who wrote the Old Testament in the 6th century BC, tried to conceal all this
4. Monotheism is a patriarchal belief that disempowers women

She begins by going on and on and on and on about the Bible's scribes attempting to promote a religious agenda, thus concealing the truth that the Israelites indulged in pagan worship. Sort of an awkward thing to say, really, since the Bible says time and again that the Israelites strayed from the one true God and worshiped others. Basically, once this has been acknowledged, her running around in the desert finding bits of Baal statues to prove that he was kicking around at the same time is rendered pointless- the Bible doesn't try to disagree with her. In a sort of ironic twist, she picks out the story of Baal's priests and Elijah as proof that the scribes of the Old Testament were trying to cover this up by writing a story about God's supremacy. Of course, this story also makes perfectly clear that the Israelites weren't faithful to God. (This can be found in 1 Kings 18v16-40)

Ok, the second thing she goes on...and on...and on about. The God 'El'. This is a word that, in hebrew, just means 'God'- a sort of generic term, which is part of many names used in the Bible instead of YHWH. However, because the chief God of the Canaanites is also called 'El', and Jacob calls a place 'Bethel' (House of God), then obviously they are the same person. Of course, conveniently she ignores the fact that the God of the Canaanites and the God of Israel have very different characteristics, and that God claims, time and time again, to be one, (You shall have no other Gods but me) whilst the 'El' of the Canaanites is the head of a 'council' of Gods.
Now, this is where it gets really interesting/silly (depending on your opinion).

She takes the following verses, and uses them to prove that the Israelites were a polytheistic people. (Bear in mind throughout all this that this in direct contradiction to her insistence that we must not take the Bible as a source of history).

1 Kings 22v19: "Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left."
She says this host means the 'council' of other Gods.

Exodus 15v11: "Who among the gods is like you, O LORD? Who is like you--majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?"
This couldn't possibly be a disparaging remark about the ineffectiveness of false Gods, could it? According to her, no.

Psalm 82v1: "A Psalm of Asaph. God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment"
Some translations say 'heavenly beings', some people say this is again a reference to judgment on false gods (e.g. Exodus 12v12). I would say the important thing here is that this is a piece of poetry, and to base a theory of canaanite polytheism on a poem is laughable.

Genesis 1v26: 'Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness"'
This was the only bit of the whole programme that made me smile. Yes, God is one. But he is 3 in 1. He is relationship itself. How glorious! And yet how sad that she has just missed it completely.

Ok, final big point she makes before I round up with some entertaining quotes from this episode. Last of all, she says that Asherah (a goddess frequently mentioned in the Bible) must have been the wife of God because she was the wife of the Canaanite chief God. Looking at archaeology, there have been female figurines found across Israel from between the 6th-9th century BC. (Incidently, around the time that the Israelites went overboard on idol worship). Of course, there isn't really enough evidence to suggest that these are definitely Asherah. The only really interesting thing she showed on the programme was a piece of pottery that had the inscription 'YHWH and his Asherah'. More idol worship? It's from the 10th century BC. Interpret what you will.

She then goes to Deuteronomy 33v3, which says: "He came with myriads of holy ones". Apparently, if you change the hebrew letters a bit for the word translated as holy ones, it makes Asherah.
I've got my own little fact for you. If you change the letters a bit for the word flour, you get hour. FASCINATING. According to her, 'the majority of Biblical scholars now accept (her theory)', and that the eventual change to the monotheism we have today was the result of a systematic purge by the Bible's authors, around the time of the Babylonian invasion.

I'm not sure when we entered into the realms of conjecture, but it was a long time ago, and she's still grinning and strolling the sands.
So, Asherah as a goddess? Apparently her 'tree of life' symbol became the menorah, and Asherah herself is resurrected in Mary. Awkward....
So, to end with a few choice quotations.
"The evidence (for God being one of many) is there for anyone to see"
"People of faith can sometimes see in the Bible what they want" (She's an atheist. A person of faith finding what she wants in the Bible. Awkward awkward awkward.)
"Monotheism brought with it a terrible consequence; God is exclusively male, and so to be male is to be like God" (Complete ignorance of the Christian belief of a God that transcends gender in that way)
"Monotheism disempowers women"
"Israelite and Canaanite religion were almost one and the same"
"The Bible is an unreliable source. It's not telling us the truth about these ancient people"
Tune in next time, for her interpretation of the garden of Eden.
Hannah x x

Simple Living

2011-03-22T16:12:00.001Z

Hello hello hello. Next post will be on the Place of Apologetics, I promise!
For Lent, I've been doing something called 'The Carbon Fast' that Tearfund have been promoting (follow that link to check it out) and in their daily emails, they've brought up the concept of living simply over and over again. It reminded me of the following verse:
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to be in plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or want" Philippians 4v12

What is Simple Living? Less stuff. More appreciation of life. More space for God. Not really a hippy thing (at least, I hope not- I really like red meat) but instead a rejection of consumerism and the trappings that come with it, instead finding all contentment and all needs met in Christ. Simple Living is closeness to God.

That's one side of it. The other side is that Simple Living is not just something to enhance your own spiritual life- it is an ethical choice. To live simply is to protect the environment as much as possible in the daily choices you make. To live simply is to protect the oppressed across the world by buying fairtrade goods in the knowledge that you do not have to be reliant on what is offered you for contentment.
Here's the link to a website that the Carbon Fast directed me to- Breathe: a Christian organisation that promote Simple Living and blog about it. Just like they have, I'm going to try and do a 'Start somewhere' plan to address my own life and the ways I should live more simply.
Hannah x

Bible's Buried Secrets

2011-03-18T17:49:00.004Z

So, I would really like this post to be about
a) Collecting my thoughts at the end of my second term
or
b) On the place of apologetics as I promised.
But it won't be on either of those things, because I've found something to be annoyed about. And just as I was beginning to mellow.
Today's source of irritation? A new programme on the BBC called the 'Bible's buried secrets'. (Follow this link to watch it online)

Note all the sweaty people in the background ACTUALLY DIGGING.

If you can't watch it online, let me summarise: a senior lecturer from Exeter University (in biblical studies no less, which makes me sad) wanders around Israel claiming that David never had a Kingdom and never even existed, to irritating music that wouldn't be out of place in Die Hard. She does this by visiting sites which DO suggest David's existence and then attempting to discredit them, despite support for these places from other leading academics.

So, once you've watched it, and if you haven't bitten through your computer in despair post-experience, here are my thoughts:
Let's go from the top, shall we? Her first argument- that the Bible wrongly portrays the Philistines as uncultured and barbaric- is ridiculous. A) Because the Bible never does this (see 1 Samuel 6- clearly they've got culture) and B) Because this contributes nothing to the question of David's Kingdom/existence. Her claim that in the Bible the Philistines are 'unfairly maligned as thugs' is not a claim based on historical evidence. There is nothing to show that the Philistines weren't 'thug'-like in battle.
Secondly, she considers evidence for an 'empire'. She admits the difficulty of 'numerous layers of excavations', and yet despite this there has still been a successful excavation in Magiddo, which matches the 6 chambered gates in Hazar and Gezer, claimed by Solomon (1 Kings 9v15). She attempts to discredit this through the dating of it by using- wait for it- pottery found 10 miles away that was from the 9th century. ....Yes. I'm convinced.

She then takes issue with the lack of evidence for a 'complex urban life' to support the idea of an Empire. BUT in 2007 there was a find in Khirbet Qeiyafa- the remains of a fortified city, and a more recent find in the Archaeological park of Jerusalem could well be David's 'offices' (2 Samuel 5v17). She then questions their dating on the grounds of-WAIT FOR IT-repeated excavations, and thus a confusion of evidence. She again claims a 9th, not 10th century date- which, on the grounds of her own argument, she shouldn't do. Repeated excavations would, if she is correct, inhibit any kind of dating.

So, after all this, she starts to ask (eyebrows still twitching away like a maniac) did David ever exist? And, yes, we have more evidence for him- a stone slab that mentions him, that was found in Dan and dates to the early 8th century BC.
She then speaks to a scholar, who points out that the Bible's record of David does not work in line with a mythical figure- he is multi-dimensional- why would the Israelites create a hero who was a murderer and adulterer? She doesn't come back on this, but then summarises by going off to look at evidence for King Omri (1 Kings 16v21-27). Apparently, the fact that we have evidence for him disproves David's existence because we don't have as much for David- even though the evidence for the two of them is the same- a record on a stone slab. She's so clever it hurts.

Finally, finally, she looks at some maps from the last 200 years which have an 'anti-Northern spin', and, obviously, that anti-Northern spin must have been the same back when the the record of David was written. This gives her enough evidence to make the claim that she doesn't 'believe that Israel and Judah were ever united' but were 'independent rival kingdoms'.

So, tune in next time for more attempts to disprove the Bible's truthfulness that don't add up, and to watch her stroll the hills of Israel to a melodramatic soundtrack and occasionally pretend to dig. I certainly shall be.
Hannah x x

Responding to Japan

2011-03-15T17:30:00.000Z

Sorry for lack of posting recently- and this will be quite pathetically brief. In fact, I'm just going to purloin a post by Adrian Warnock on his blog - '10 ways a Christian should respond to Japan'.
Read it. It's excellent.
The last few weeks have seemed full of tragedy, conflict and pain around the world- New Zealand, deaths in Libya and surrounding countries, continued persecution of Christians in the Middle East. Really, the 10 things Adrian lists can be applied to all these things.

Let's not forget that we are global citizens. Let's not forget that we pray to a God who listens.

The other thing it is important to remember is that time and again the gospel has triumphed through suffering. Think of the explosion of Churches across North Africa and in China. Meanwhile, our own contented country of materialism has squeezed the gospel out in a sense of sufficiency without Christ. This has prompted the question of the roles of apologetics and 'religious experience' in conversion. So, next post will be looking at the two and the problems with both.

I'm leaving Cambridge on Friday, so should hopefully have some time to do it then...
Hannah x

My alter-ego.

2011-03-05T18:19:00.000Z

Post no. 201. Can't quite believe it.

So, I've been thinking about how I approach God, and my constant failure to be truly grateful and reverently full of joy before him. How do I change that? Speculation. Life without Jesus. Jekyll and Hyde style- what would/could I be like without the saving grace of God? Without the changing power of the spirit?
1. Which hidden sins do I most struggle with?
2. What parts of my personality might be exaggerated and darkened without God?

And no, I'm not just letting my love of Gothic literature run away from me in a desperate attempt at a tenuous link.

Ephesians 4v22
"You were taught, with regard to your former life, to put off your old self which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on your new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness"

Colossians 3v5
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature..."

Colossians 3v9
"Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on your new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its creator"

What is your 'old self'? How has Christ changed and restored you? If you have that creative bent, I know one person who actually wrote a series of short sketches around his alter-ego. Think about the changes God has done in you. Then come before him in joy.

As for me, I think about how I might have been- "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing..."
Hannah

Why I love the Book of James

2011-03-03T17:39:00.000Z

You'll find out when you read it.
So go and read it!
That is all.

Making plans and being willing to break them: Some things don't matter.

2011-03-01T20:04:00.001Z

Hello there :)
I like making lists.
I like writing down all the things I need to do and crossing them off.
I like checking my diary and making sure I keep to it.
I like the sense of control over my life that comes with knowing all the things I need to get done have been done.
I like counting all the smarties in a packet before I eat them and putting them in colour piles.

Just kidding. Well, with the last one anyway. I only do that when I'm really, really bored.
"There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Jesus Christ does not cry "Mine!"' Abraham Kuyper.
So, whilst we hold the thought of the organised freak University has turned me into next to the absolute overlordship of Jesus Christ, let's look at
Matthew 6v31-34.
"So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
This verse speaks to two kinds of Christian, generally.

Type 1:I'm the type who plans. Ask me about tomorrow. Next week. Next month. Next year. Next 10 years. I'll tell you what I want to be doing. Hey, I'm planning how to serve God. That makes my obsessive inability to be fully reliant on him OK.
Type 2:"What's a diary? I don't even know what lectures I have today, let alone what I'm doing next year. God has it in control, anyway. I'll just keep going. Tomorrow has enough troubles, and all that."

Both of these charming individuals have got it wrong- and, somehow, in the last year I have swung merrily from one extreme to the other. Aaah, Cambridge.
Both (I do hope obviously- they are hideous caricatures- except the first one is actually me) are wrong. Both have missed the point of seeking 'first his kingdom and his righteousness'. This means trying to serve God and also spending time searching after him. And then you'll get stuff. Right? I may be wrong (apparently it can happen) but no. I take this verse as saying God will provide the things you need to do the work he wants you to do.
Type 1: Not trusting that God is sovereign over your plans to serve him.
Type 2: Hoping God will do all the hard work.

Here's a little quote from Lewis Carroll, in which Alice and the Cheshire Cat discuss this great theological issue:

"Cheshire Puss," she began, rather timidly, as she did not at all know whether it would like the name: however, it only grinned a little wider. "Come, it`s pleased so far," thought Alice, and she went on, "Would you tell me, please which way I ought to walk from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the Cat.
"I don`t much care where - " said Alice.
"Then it doesn`t matter which way you walk," said the Cat.
" - so long as I get somewhere," Alice added as an explanation.
"Oh, you're sure to do that," said the Cat, "if you only walk long enough."

We should know where we want to go- A Place Where We Can Serve God. But we should allow God to decide the route. He'll bless that destination.
Hannah x x

Memory verse time.

2011-02-22T19:04:00.000Z

Actually, when I went to youth group, it really was.

My goodness, but I feel a combination of obnoxiously holy and sickeningly patronising writing this post. But then, I am writing mostly to instruct myself- does that make it better?

Here's what I read yesterday that brought the Sunday school teacher out in me:
"Should you not, besides reading the Bible, store your memories richly with the promises of God? You can recollect the sayings of great men; you treasure up the verses of renowned poets; ought you not to be profound in your knowledge of the words of God, so that you may be able to quote them readily when you would solve a difficulty, or overthrow a doubt?" Spurgeon

And you know what? The fact that it was this quote that drew me to realise I didn't spend enough time studying and memorising my Bible directly is an ironic qualification of the issue. It wasn't Jesus' knowledge of the scripture as he was being tempted, or verses like 'Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path'. I didn't listen to God telling me to study his word- I had to hear it from another human being! Epic fail.
At Cambridge, the academic mentality can threaten to take over- I'm not even studying theology but I still find myself getting far too involved in biblical debates instead of spending time reading and committing to memory the word of God. Understanding the Bible works in threes- (as do all the best things!)
-Reading the Bible
-Reflecting on it in prayer
-Seeking the help of older, wiser Christians.
At the moment, I think that order is probably the best one. So, memory verse time. Today I suggest
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. Colossians 3:16

And guess what- I've even found a memory verse website- The Scripture Typer. Gives you different categories of verses, and you can sign up to take part in memory verse exercises- how helpful that will be, I'm not sure- but at least it's not charging you for bits of the Bible, which seems to be a common theme on the internet.
God Bless!
"For the word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword..." Hebrews 4v12

Pornography

2011-02-20T17:56:00.001Z

Apologies for such a long absence- but, now I'm back, let's jump in the deep end.

The Cambridge Union held a debate on thursday called "This house believes pornography does a good public service".

As a Christian, I don't think it a debatable position- clearly opposed to it- but when I looked at those who were standing in opposition in the chamber, the problem of pornography was given a whole new perspective for me. Suddenly the sinfulness of pornography was heightened, expanded, highlighted. When the Church does discuss pornography and the like, it condemns it on the obvious grounds that it is indulging in sexual sin- not keeping your mind pure for your future/current husband/wife. It damages relationships. It can encourage the objectification of your partner.

"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4v8

But- and here's something I hadn't actually previously seriously considered- watching pornography is far more damaging than that. Introducing Shelley Lubben, who spoke at the debate. (Apparently debating is not her forte- but it doesn't make her wrong.) As an ex-porn 'star' turned chaplain, she is in constant battle against the sex industry, wanting to expose the damage done to those (particularly the women) involved. By watching pornography, you are condoning the physical and mental abuse of women who are often desperate, struggling with addiction, and rejected from society. Women (and men!) made in the image of God, and for whom Jesus Christ was glad to die.

"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Isaiah 58:6"
Pornography is not sexy. On her website, Shelley has pages of testimonials from those who have suffered in the sex trade. Here's the link. Makes quite disturbing reading. In fact, her whole website is pretty enlightening. And here's the link to the charity she runs: Pink Cross Foundation.

Pray for the students who heard the debate on Thursday.
Hannah x x

The Great Omission.

2011-02-10T22:07:00.000Z

Geddit? Geddit?

Ah, how I love slightly lame Christian puns.

Here in Cambridge, we're about to finish 'Main Event Week'- essentially evangelism week for students, in which talks and college discussions are put on every day, and we spend a lot of time praying, putting up posters and encouraging each other to invite friends along. And, for some, it works - people have come to talks, questions are being asked, people are getting excited.
But it's been hard. Really hard. Especially when those asking questions are some of the most intelligent young people in the country, and the questions they ask are often the kinds that whole books- and lifetimes- are spent trying to answer. I've spent a lot of time feeling stressed about this - and I know a lot of Christians who have felt inequipped.
And that brings us on to the really, really bad pun. Jesus told us to

"Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you".
(Matthew 28v19)

One of the biggest encouragements I have had this week is hearing that someone who has been struggling to keep the faith went along to the talks and, through the teaching there, has been stirred with love for Jesus once again. Clearly, she had not had the support she needed- made a disciple, but not taught. We seem to miss out this second part of what we are called to do. They are two sides of one coin. If you make disciples but don't teach, you don't show love. If you don't make disciples, you can't show love.
A couple of things here:

1. We have a responsibility to those who hear the gospel and want more of it. They are at their most vulnerable just after receiving the good news, and we must be prepared to teach them with patience, humility and wisdom, taking the time behind the scenes to sit and listen and read the Bible with them. Taking someone to a talk and not following up with them is not a demonstration of love.

2. We need to tell Christians that they need to do this. A lot of time is spent on trying to work out the best way to tell people the gospel - but when it's your friends (and that's where you're best equipped) it often comes down to bravery and reliance on God to work in their hearts. What we need to do is help Christians to follow up- help them to lead one to one Bible studies, to deal sensitively with questions, and, most of all, to be humble and patient.

Please pray for the follow up of Main Event here in Cambridge. Check out the website here.
Hannah x x

Serving: Better under a Christian banner?

2011-02-08T21:04:00.000Z

Is it better/more productive to serve a Christian charity or as a group of Christians than it is to work as a Christian in a secular charity? I've experienced both. And I'm not sure where my interest should be.

Which one spreads the gospel? Is it even possible to do the latter choice anymore? I'm not sure of the answer, but it's starting to bother me slightly. If you work in a secular organisation, your audience for the gospel changes- it becomes your co-workers. But- and here's the thing- will they (who are themselves working for a charity) think that being a christian has made any contribution to your desire to serve others?
If you work as a group of Christians, you are openly spreading the gospel in what you do- but if this isn't done in the right way, your desire to serve could be seen as just a big conversion strategy, as opposed to an expression of love for others.

I'm inclined towards thinking that serving alongside your brothers and sisters in Christ is better. But then is that just because it's easier? Certainly, it's frustrating being unable to discuss your faith when serving in a secular environment, but it's often just not appropriate.

How effective is an action without accompanying words? How do you let someone know you're a Christian and God loves them when serving if you are working for a secular charity?

I don't know the answers to these questions. I'm sort of hoping one of you do.

Perhaps, after all that, it's better to just trust that God will use your desire to serve others and make something good out of your messy attempt.
Hannah x x

Get your prayer on.

2011-02-01T19:41:00.002Z

New month, old sufferings.
Couple of things to suggest for prayer material, and things that need practical response from Christians.

Firstly, this week is Poverty and Homelessness Action Week. Check out the website here. It has a prayer calendar, lists of events and ways you can serve. Have a look, even if just to keep it in your head and remind you to pray.

Secondly, Christian Solidarity Worldwide have released a report on North Korea's political prison camp system, and the persecution of not only Christians but all kinds of people who have, whether or not to their knowledge, disobeyed the inhumane regime that the country operates under. You can download it here. It makes quite long, very painful, very disturbing reading. Not to be read by younger people.

Finally, another prayer tool: Tearfund have created something called 'One Voice', and online prayer space for the global poverty prayer movement. Add a prayer, pray for the things others have written on it. Here's the link.
The vision of a church united in prayer is not possible if you're not praying.
Hannah x x

"The Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." Romans 8v26

Major surgery: Dealing with my dragon skin

2011-01-26T14:14:00.000Z

Hello.
My own ability to fall back into habitual sin astounds me sometimes. I have a wonderful, Christian, loving family, a boyfriend who supports me and prays with me, an excellent church that preaches the Bible, I am surrounded by Christian friends, and, most of all, I have been given the Holy Spirit and God's word as a guide to how I should live.

And yet habitual sin hangs around. It's almost like some kind of sickening achievement that my sinful nature still manages to triumph over all of this in directing what I do. When the base, physical nature that all humans have seems to overcome the image of God that I am created in, you can start to understand why so many world religions have their focus as escaping the physical, removing oneself from one's body and accessing a higher, spiritual plane. It's a load of rubbish, of course- God created us with bodies that we should worship him with- but the idea of just leaving behind my physical, sinful humanity does seem like a much easier solution.

Instead, Jesus calls us to major surgery. It's supposed to hurt. As metaphorically as Matthew 18:8 is taken ('If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire'), it is by no means a metaphor of just wriggling out of your sinful skin and asking for a new one. It's really, really, hard. When habitual sin has settled in place, it's like living with a tic buried in your skin - it sits in one, small place, but its presence poisons and damages the rest of the body. It has to go.

Have you read 'The Voyage of The Dawn Treader?' (I won't be seeing the film- the advert was enough to convince me that one of my favourite childhood books had been effectively ruined by Hollywood.) There is a scene in it when Eustace, a thoroughly unpleasant little boy, who has been turned into a dragon is healed of this enchantment by Aslan. It is an image of the transformation we must undergo. You can read it here.

This week, I am battling the removal of habitual sin.
Hannah x x

The Rebel's Guide to Joy

2011-01-19T14:13:00.000Z

This link I've found works wonderfully well as a post following one on depression!
Mark Driscoll has done a series of sermons on Philippians, called the Rebel's Guide to Joy. All of them can be watched online here, on the website of his church, Mars Hill.

Here is the first of the series, in which he introduces the problem of the pursuit of happiness:

Oh, and here is a video linked to the series he did, on the life of Johnny Cash, one of my favourite artists, and someone who turned to Christ:

Really recommend that you take some time to watch some from the series - as you'll see on the website, he has divided his sermons into themes- joy in loneliness, joy in suffering, joy in humility, joy in conflict, joy in exhaustion, joy in anxiety....
Hope these help.
Hannah x x

The black dog of depression

2011-01-18T16:46:00.003Z

Churchill described depression as 'the black dog that chases God away'.

From my own experience, I can vouch for that - when your ability to feel excitement, happiness, peace is deadened, it becomes much, much harder to feel joy in the Lord. And then you can't see God anymore. He's still there, but you can't see him - don't want to see him, because it makes you feel guilty when you are so blessed that you should feel so low, or because it makes you angry with God when you question why things would happen to you that make you feel this way, and because you know you are allowing numbing resentment and self pity to creep in.

How does one get rid of that feeling? If I knew the answer, I would be writing a very different post. When you become incapable of counter-balancing the things you know from the Bible (God is in control, he is good, he loves me, he understands my feelings) with what you experience (I can't see God, I am miserable, I don't understand why) then our understanding of God becomes messed up, and we enter into messy human logic (Either God doesn't care or he's not there).

You feel anxious about the future. Feel as if you are to blame for things that go wrong. You can't embrace the freedom of a life in Christ properly - it doesn't fill you with joy. You become frustrated and distant from those around you. Lonely, but you don't want to talk to anyone.

What to do? Bring your suffering before God. Confess to him your doubt and your loneliness.
                     Bring your suffering before a Christian friend or church member - preferably older,
                    or a parent - and tell them that you are in need of help. Pray together. Ask advice.
   Most people will have felt this way at some point.
                    If you think you want to, bring it before someone who is trained to help.

It probably won't go away for a while. Sometimes, if something has happened, the resulting pain will never fully be gone. But it gets easier, and the 'God of all comfort' is with you.
Hannah xx

Back at Uni: Great is his faithfulness.

2011-01-15T21:20:00.000Z

Hello,
Back at Uni. Term 2 of 9 coming up.
I know that I should not feel anxious about changes and things to come. I know that it will not add a day to my life, that my nervousness and stress about the future is a sign that I do not trust in God, that he is in complete control and works all things to the good of those who love him. I know all these things. But it does not stop me worrying. It doesn't stop me from writing list after list of jobs to do and things to organise, so that I feel more in control. And it doesn't stop my nervousness as I begin another term.

I was trying - desperately - to calm myself down earlier as I arrived in Cambridge. (By the way, silently yelling at yourself to CALM DOWN doesn't work...) The best decision I've made in a while is to spend some time reading the Bible and listening to 'Great is thy Faithfulness'.

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Specifically, I listened to Mark Edward's version of it, which has no words and is beautiful. As I said the words to myself, I realised for the first time their significance. I also realised that I was unable to try and calm myself down. I was also unable to try and trust God all by myself. Being human, I am rubbish at doing what I want to do:

"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." Romans 7:15-18

I have to ask God to give me the ability to trust him.
Hannah x
P.S: Here is a link to Mark Edward's music- you can listen to some samples of his jazzed up, chilled out hymns.

Compass Direct News: also overdue recommendation!

2011-01-13T19:36:00.003Z

Hello,

As I continue to think about ways I can use intercessory prayer, I want to recommend an informative website that has helped me to pray for our Christian brothers and sisters.

As "news from the frontline of persecution", it "is a news service dedicated to providing exclusive news, penetrating reports, moving interviews and insightful analyses of situations and events facing Christians persecuted for their faith.
Compass Direct News maintains an extensive network of news bureaus and correspondents around the world. Whether you are a media outlet, organization, church, or just a concerned individual, you'll find Compass Direct News an invaluable resource with information presented in a way you can use"

Anyway, that's what they say about themselves! But it's true - they are fantastically helpful, particularly in focusing prayer on various different countries, as it gives regular updates for 36 places where Christians are under oppression.

Make sure you also check out some of the other websites that encourage prayer and support for the persecuted church- here are some links for them: Release International, International Christian Concern.

I also suggest 'Tortured For Christ', by Richard Wurmbrand- a wonderful, hard, beautiful book, about his fight against the oppression of Romanian communism. (Click on the link to see a website about his work.)

Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.—Hebrews 13:3

Hannah xx

I Dared to Call him Father

2011-01-12T22:52:00.001Z

Hello hello.

Here's a book review that's long overdue. You'll find this book in the 'things we love' carousel, with a link to it on amazon, but I wanted to tell you a bit more about it. I've been thinking a lot recently about the relationship between Christians and Muslims. Obviously, this is becoming more and more relevant to the UK, and so everyone- not just the missionary- needs to start thinking about how we can reach out to our Muslim friends and neighbours with the good news of Christ.

This book was one of the first I read about the experience of Christians in the Middle East. An autobiography in which Bilquis Sheikh details her journey to Christ, it gives an insight into the struggles and changes she underwent living in Pakistan after she was converted through a vision and hearing stories of Jesus on the radio. Compelling, encouraging reading, she is open with the problems she faces with temporal issues, like her sharp tongue and pride. One of my favourite bits was her asking God if her death could be quick and painless, as she didn't think she had what it took to be a martyr - beautifully honest with God, and distanced from the trappings that come with what can sometimes be a shallow, westernised Christianity.

Definitely worth a read. She is inspiring in her passion and patience with those around her who do not understand her change. As the title suggests, it also helps to explain the differences in Muslim and Christian beliefs, and how this woman found freedom.

"And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" John 8v32
Hannah x

My idle intercessions.

2011-01-10T20:56:00.000Z

Hello.
Something I've noticed - looking back through my prayer diary - is the repetitiveness of my prayers for others. Often it sort of gets round to just listing the people I want to pray for, and then putting 'Amen'. Now, obviously, God knows why I am praying for these people - but it certainly isn't the most compassionate or personal way to remember people in my prayers! It was starting to feel like a 'to do' list of people to pray for. But once I start to actually think about what I want God to do for someone individually, it helps me to work out how I can be better towards them and help them myself. New plan. Better thing to do would be to spend time each evening praying for one particular person, reflecting on why I want to bring them before God, and praying over how God can use me in that person's life. Sort of a prayer timetable, really. Intercessory prayer is incredibly powerful and important- but like any discipline, it needs practice and loving intention behind it. If your heart is not in your words, why should your heavenly father listen?
Hannah x

"And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words" Matthew 6v7

Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. Ecclesiastes 5v2

Good Works

2011-01-03T21:30:00.001Z

Right. So, we've worked out that good works come from salvation, putting the spotlight on those who have 'faith' and bear 'bad fruit'
A follow up from last time- when I was writing the post below on James, I realised I didn't actually know/could define for myself what a 'good work' was- but, according to Paul, we are created in Christ Jesus for good works, so I'd better work it out. Perhaps I should have avoided this rather tricky topic like....well, like an evangelical avoids a hard-to-explain thing, but I haven't. So, onwards we go.
Thinking in the most basic terms, 'good works' are things you do that are good. So, in Christian terms, things you do that are godly.
This opens up questions-
Are there specific good works- like disciplines, really- that we are all called to do?
Do different people have callings to different works for Christ?

Best to go back to what the Bible tells us. Jesus sums up the commandments in one glorious statement in Matthew: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

The first comes from the second, really. Augustine wrote that you should 'love God and do as you please'. Good works will come from that love. Good works must, then, be based in love, or they will not be good.
Oooh, and Paul says it too: 1 Corinthians 13. (Click on my little purple links to see passages, by the way)
I think there are good works that we are all called to do, most certainly.
"What does the LORD require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8"
One can also see, however, that there are many good works that are directly linked to the giftings of the Holy Spirit. And, suddenly, I've opened up another question for myself:
How do we know which good works we are called to do?
Hannah xx
P.S. Excellent website to recommend- once you've read this one, you won't come back to me!
Check out "Bible-teaching-about.com"

A person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

2011-01-01T19:59:00.001Z

Quick game. Who wrote this?

a) Martin Luther (looking stunning in black here)
b) Pope Gregory IX
c) Jesus' brother

Aaaand the winner is... C! Not only that, but you can read it in James 2.
Just to ramp things up before we dive in, take a look at Ephesians 2v8-9:
"For by grace you have been savedthrough faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
Hmmm. Awkward.
This verse in James is one that is pretty tricky to try and worm your way around. You can't put it down to a different translation, or a question of misquoting (read the rest of James chapter 2- if it doesn't make you squirm, you don't know what the word 'squirm' means) instead, we have to take it as "A person is justified by works and not by faith alone". Why is James saying this? It seems that the Jews he wrote to had not understood the moral imperative of the gospel. They weren't not doing bad things, but they hadn't understood that they must actively do good. In other words, the gospel doesn't exist to get you into heaven, it exists to make you more like God.
Let's look at the next bit of Ephesians: "Forwe are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,which God prepared beforehand,that we should walk in them." 2v10.
We are created to do good works! That is why we are here.
....
I think my next post will be looking at what a 'good work' is.

But waitwaitwait! That doesn't really explain why we have this seemingly massive contradiction. I think he's saying that a faith without works is not a faith at all. Works being the demonstration of faith. It's the link between your faith and faithfulness to God. Like conjoined twins (or, as my boyfriend said, like fun and cricket...) the two are inseparable. If you have saving faith, you will be faithful to the law that comes with that. And the law that must be followed? Read James! It's short and straightforward and very uncomfortable.

Salvation does not come from works, but works from salvation.

My head hurts.
Hannah x x

Emmanuel

2010-12-24T13:34:00.000Z

Hello hello hello,

A special 'Christmas' name of God! It was pretty tricky selecting one, to be honest- so many of the names of God are fulfilled in the person of Jesus. But 'Emmanuel', quoted from Isaiah 7:14 (“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”) in Matthew 1:23, means God With Us. What better way to describe the word being made flesh and making his dwelling amongst his people? Consider the richness of this description of God, as supported in the following passages...
Check out:

John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

1John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.
The event that we celebrate tomorrow is the fulfillment of hundreds of years of waiting for a messiah, of sacrifice and separation from the holy of holies. (The inner part of the temple where God dwelt for his people) After the pain of a disenfranchised people of God, oppressed by a foreign nation and divided, God chooses to come to his people and suffer for them. God With Us!

What will it mean to you this Christmas that God is with you? Is he with you in every part of your Christmas celebrations? Does his will determine the way you treat others when you are stressed and tired and there are at least a million more brussel sprouts to peel? Does he provoke generosity and kindness and love for others in you? But- most of all- is God With Us the rest of the year? After all, Jesus wasn't born on December 25th. Let the word become flesh and dwell with you all year round.
Merry Christmas!

God's Politics

2010-12-22T14:24:00.001Z

Hello, I'm back, with a...
Wait for it....

Book recommendation for you!
Written by Jim Wallis, this book addresses the issue with assigning a political view to God. Instead, 'faith must be free to challenge both right and left from a consistent moral ground.' It draws attention to the moral inconsistencies made by the Democrats and Republicans in America.
Of course, American politics functions very differently to that of Britain- but each chapter deals with different moral issues that are universal and essential for all Christians to consider.
Here's a little insight into what's inside..

Part 1: Take back the faith (co-opted by the right, dismissed by the left), A lack of vision (too narrow or none at all) Is there a Politics of God (God is personal, never private)

It then takes on questions such as 'How should your faith influence your politics?' and 'When did Jesus become a selective moralist?' Definitely worth reading. Even if you don't agree with some bits, it encourages some serious thought! (It was written in 2005, just after George Bush was re-elected, so it's also a fascinating insight into recent American political history.)
Ooooh, and Jim Wallis also has a blog you can look at! Here it is. Enjoy.
Hannah xx

Christian Rap.. and goodbye for a week

2010-12-10T22:38:00.000Z

Firstly, yes, I have actually found some rap music that I like. I'm almost embarrassed to admit it.
Artist name: Lacrae. Very good. Basically raps biblical truths. Again, this will be the first and last rap artist that I actually buy music from.
Here's a sample: wait for the twist at the end!

Oh, and here's another:

And otherwise, I am away on holiday for a week with family! Will be recording a holiday prayer diary whilst there, as I should have lots more time than usual, so I'll write up some stuff when I get back.
See you soon!
Hannah xx

URGENT APPEAL FROM OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD

2010-12-07T21:05:00.001Z

From Samaritan's Purse:

With just 19 days left before Christmas, we have little time to fill a container with 8,000 shoeboxes – each created online at Shoebox World – and send it out to children in Swaziland. Will you help us reach our target?

We don’t want these children to miss out, but right now we are more than 6,000 shoeboxes short – that’s 6,000 children who will not receive a special gift this year.

Follow this link to make your shoebox! It literally took me less than 5 minutes to do, and could make a child's day.
Hannah xx

The Miracle of Grace.

2010-12-06T18:59:00.000Z

Hello,
I am back from University for 6 weeks. Certainly not complaining! But here's a thought that is going round and round in my head:
Jesus' blood even has to atone for the 'good' things I do as I try to serve God.
Really. I am that sinful. I think the longer the one is a Christian, the more one becomes aware of one's need for grace. (And yes, I just used 'one'. That's what Cambridge does to you.) Of course, the longer you are a Christian, the more Christ-like you will also become- but even the things we do in service of God are tainted with sin. This was becoming incredibly frustrating for me. Over the last couple of weeks I've felt incapable of doing anything to serve God and others because all my actions were tainted with selfishness or some other form of sin. I felt as though the only way I could serve God without it being about me was to give all my money to charity anonymously- but then how could others see God's glory through me?
I couldn't work out how to 'let my light shine before men' but also not 'let my left hand know what my right hand was doing'.
I was wondering whether it was even possible for me to serve God at all in my sinful state. And then my (wonderful) boyfriend pointed out that my service to God was only acceptable because Jesus' blood had atoned for my pathetic efforts as well. That's how big grace is! It has even covered the things that I deem to be 'good'. Praise God! I am able to use my life and body as a living sacrifice because of Jesus.

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 2 Cor. 12v9
God Bless you. Hannah xx

Thankful prayer and El Roi: The God who Sees

2010-11-26T11:13:00.001Z

Finally, finally, I am writing this post. Apologies that it's been over a week.

It was Thanksgiving yesterday in America. We don't celebrate it here- somehow a day dedicated to being cheerfully thankful doesn't seem quite in tune with the British attitude! But anyway, we should be more thankful. Maybe we're not celebrating the pilgrims passing on their diseases to the Native Americans (no comment..) but we certainly don't spend nearly enough time praising God. A friend of mine proposed a new way of praying this week. She suggested that instead of other kinds of prayer, you just spend a week thanking God for his goodness and all his blessings, listing reasons to praise him and then responding to it by praising! What a thought. I'm going to try it, and maybe you'd like to too. We never really spend sufficient time marvelling at all the wonderful gifts and especially all the grace that has been poured out on us.

So, back to Names of God, and considering the implications of calling God 'El Roi'. This one was one I found particularly interesting, because, being 'the God who sees', the expectation was automatically one that it would be concerning God's punishment of sin. But no. This name is used of God by his suffering people. Specifically, by Hagar, the servant of Sarah and Abram, who is forced to run away after being ill treated, pregnant with Abram's son.
After she meets the 'angel of the LORD', the Bible says that
She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees me."Genesis 6v13
It is in the deepest despair and rejection- alone in the desert, cast out from everything she knew- that God reaches down to Hagar and comforts her. This is not an isolated incident for the people of Israel. It reminds me of God's words to Moses out of the burning bush. Inherent in this name is the concept of God's sovereignty and omniscience, but also his love for each of his children. He is the God who knows whenever a sparrow falls to the ground. And we are worth more than many sparrows! We can take great comfort in this. God sees the injustice of this world, and the hurt of the individual. And he will judge it, and restore it. God sees us. But he doesn't just see us as the omniscient Gods of some other religions do. He sees us and responds. To finish, read Psalm 121- and here are two different song versions of it, to suit all musical tastes! (Don't say I don't spoil you...)

Hannah xx

Remembrance Sunday

2010-11-14T12:00:00.001Z

As the Sunday following Remembrance Day, 2 minutes of silence fell in churches across Britain today, remembering the lives of those given for our safety and freedom. It is difficult for anyone to condone war. Last year I wrote the following post: Lest we forget, and, sadly, but inevitably, the same struggles and issues stand today as they did then. Take a read of it and consider choosing a country to pray for from the website attached to the post.
However, this year I want to turn to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians in the Middle East, and consider where our support should be as Christians. You may have guessed that my thoughts are turning, on this day of remembering the horrors of war, to the question of Christian Zionism. I'm not sure I am decided on what I believe about it. I went to a showing of the film 'With God on our side' yesterday. Not the most unbiased discussion of the topic I've seen, but it did make clear the point that whatever one's theological perspective is on Christian Zionism, it is not right for Christians to condone the treatment of the Palestinians across that area.
Here's the trailer:

With God On Our Side Trailer from Porter Speakman Jr on Vimeo.

Let me know what you think. And remember the sacrifice of others today.
"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."John 15v13
Hannah xx

My Banner

2010-11-10T21:10:00.000Z

Yeah....liberté, égalité, fraternité...

Sorry for brief absence. Cambridge. is. crazy.

Fortunately, I picked this name of God at quite an opportune time for me. What am I struggling against? Oh, so many things! Slothfulness, tiredness, feeling low, loneliness...
But in all, it is God- Jehovah Nissi, who is my banner, my rallying point in battle. A flag or banner is a sign of victory. Think Olympic Games. Think revolutions. We're in to win, and we already have in Christ. Isn't that remarkable? What is your struggle? Have you gone to God?
The name Jehovah Nissi is used by Moses after the defeat of the Amalekites in Exodus 17v8-16. Have a read of it, and be inspired!
Are we willing to raise our hands up in prayer as Moses did? Rallying round a banner suggests a whole group to me. Are we willing to go to others and ask for help in lifting up our hands when we get tired?
Take a moment to thank God for his ever-present help and strength, and for his ultimate victory over death in Christ. Rally back to him! Considering the names of God has helped me to better understand God's love for his people- that he would go to such trouble to reveal aspects of his nature to us in ways we can understand. Time to rest, rally myself, and respond to God. I love cheesy evangelical alliterated groups of three!
Hannah xx