Spiritual Warfare? A sermon on Ephesians 6, 10-20

I watched Liverpool play their opening game of the season against West Brom the other week on MOTD, both of my sons having an interest in the fortunes of the team in red. There was this moment when the central defender had the ball on the edge of his own penalty area and as he looked at it intently and drew back his leg to pass it to a team mate a forward nipped round him unseen to try and poach the ball causing the defender to kick him accidentally in the leg and so concede a penalty. His pass might have looked good on the training pitch, but clearly he was playing as if there wasn’t an opposition nearby.

One of the mistakes that it is easy to make as Christians is to forget that by becoming Christians we enter into a spiritual battle.
First thing- we are in a battle. It can be confusing – we know that through Jesus’ death and resurrection the victory has been won, so it seems strange then to say that there is still an ongoing spiritual battle happening around us. This is because we live in the now and the not yet. Let me explain.
This is a bit like the time between D-day and VE-day in the Second World War. D-day in 1944 marked the turning point in World War II. From that point on, it was clear that the Allies had won the victory. However, it was almost another year until the Germans finally acknowledged their defeat and surrendered. Or like when the statue of Saddam was toppled, yet fighting continued in small pockets for a while afterwards.
We know that through Jesus’ death and resurrection, the enemy has been defeated. Jesus has claimed the victory. But until Jesus comes back to claim this victory once and for all, the enemy still attempts to cling on – and thus we are still in the midst of a spiritual battle.

Now you may not be totally comfortable talking about the devil and demons, but interestingly Jesus was, as was the writer Paul as we have just heard, but it’s also pretty clear that they didn’t spend their whole lives analysing whether or not something is a spiritual attack, so I guess we shouldn’t either. We know that the world is far from perfect and that we do not only see God’s will being done. We see illness and injustice, greed and lust. It would be a bit much to describe all of that as ‘spiritual attack’, but it is important to know there is a battle so that we understand the importance of the armour that Paul talks about. In particular we need to know that Satan’s biggest gripe is with the church, and so we must be especially careful that we play our part and don’t let him get a foot in.

Second thing-God gives as a means of defence. Note here that Paul’s language is one of defence. We don’t fight, but nor do we submit. We stand.
If you read what Paul wrote just before today’s passage, he says that the walk of the wise is characterized, in part, by the filling or control of the Holy Spirit (5:18), which, in turn is evident in our mutual submission one to another (5:21–6:9). So Paul focusses on the subject of our spiritual warfare immediately following his instructions on submission and obedience because this area is one in which Satan’s attacks can be expected. Submission is the giving up of our rights and the pursuit of our self-interest. The spiritual war is about not giving way, but standing fast. How often we tend to reverse these two. We are all too inclined to give up or to give in in matters where we should stand fast, and too eager to stand fast where we should give ground. We need to learn to stand where we are commanded to stand, and to submit where we are instructed to submit.

Remember, we aren’t the ones who fight the devil, because we are living in the light of a victory already won, but we have a part to play so in this passage, Paul uses very practical language – he does not say that by being a Christian we are automatically clothed in this armour. He says that we need to actively put it on.
To do that it can be helpful to recognise when we might be at our most susceptible to the enemy’s schemes. When we are more aware we are both more able to avoid these times, and be on our guard when we are particularly vulnerable to the enemy. For example the word STOP can be used as an acronym for: Stressed, Tired, Out of it (drink or drugs), Pained (reacting from a personal grievance or perceived injury). We need to learn to stop and think, ‘Am I in a particular vulnerable position at the moment? Am I hungry, or tired, or over-reacting because of my own issues?
Note that it was when Jesus was in the wilderness with no food that Satan tried to tempt him. I find that when I am doing something challenging or important in church that often I develop a migraine shortly afterwards, but only relatively recently did I learn, after Ali pointed it out, that I have what is called a ‘prodrome’, a bit just before, when I become emotionally distant, a bit stroppy, and sometimes a bit unaware of the specific boundaries around certain social settings. Which means I am in great danger of misunderstanding where people are coming from and so putting my foot in my mouth, or saying something hurtful. Which can threaten the success of whatever I am doing in church.

When a soldier goes into battle, he will make sure that every single part of his armour is pristine condition, certain that it will do its job. So our task today is to try to identify what part(s) of our armour are not in pristine condition:

• Do you struggle to accept the full truth of God’s promises and so need to tighten up the belt of truth? 
• Are there issues in your relationships that need to be addressed, so you need to spend time polishing the breastplate of righteousness? 
• Do you find yourself embroiled in conflict, fighting where no fight is needed, without feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace? 
• Are you plagued by doubts, unable to carry the shield of faith? 
• Perhaps you struggle to believe that you are saved, or more commonly that you are worthy to be saved, and so leave home without the helmet of salvation. 
• Or you are not confident in either your knowledge of what is written in the Bible nor in the guidance of God here with us in the present, and so leave the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, sitting in its scabbard?

Having identified this/these area(s), ask God to bring fresh revelation of this piece of armour and to clothe you afresh in it.

Last thing-claim the victory of God And then finally, when appropriately attired, claim God’s power over the enemy and pray for each other: We often totally underestimate the power that we have in Christ when we pray in the Spirit and when we call on his name. I have had quite some involvement in both deliverance and healing ministry, and have seen and experienced things that I cannot properly understand and have seen the most amazing things happen when, in faith, the name of Jesus is used. We literally have to call on the name of Jesus and open ourselves to letting God’s Spirit guide our prayers.. In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Susan is given a horn with which she is to blow in desperate need and help with then come. Susan first used it when she was attacked by Maugrim the wolf as the Battle of Aslan's Camp was about to break out. Peter heard it and saved her life.
When we call on the name of Jesus, we draw on the authority of Christ over the enemy and in doing so defeat the schemes of the enemy, and given how much the church gets up his nose, we need to be praying for each other.
We need to ask for God’s protection over our fellow Christians, particularly those in our own congregation. Part of my role is to pray for you lot, as well as for the people from this district who are not here, and part of your role is to pray for me and for all who minister to you in Christ’s name. It makes a difference.
If I am to be your pastor, your shepherd, then I am called to walk out in front, so I need your prayers to keep me from being attacked or distracted, so we don’t end up failing to get where God is calling us to.
I believe that God has great plans to grow his kingdom here, which means that we will be challenged. Are we ready to go into that battle, unified like the Roman foot-soldiers used to be when they made themselves into a tortoise with their shields? Will we stand against any attempt to derail us or divide us?

So in summary, we are in a spiritual battle, and the church is especially vulnerable to attack, so we are all called to take a stand by identifying the weak spots in our armour and strengthening them before putting them on and then praying for each other. Then we can claim the good news of the victory won for us.

Things to look for in a preacher

I've been wondering about preaching lately. Paul distinguishes it from teaching. It isn't just about giving some information in an understandable way. We can read a book to get that. Preaching is so much more than that.
There has to be an encounter, with the preacher holding people's attention as a stand-up comedian or a Shakespearean actor delivering a soliloquy might do, yet it isn't just a dramatic monologue either.
 Some sermons are easily memorable, utilising acronyms and mnemonics so that they can be recalled at a later date, while others make us feel as if the preacher is speaking right into our lives in such a personal way (s)he must have been going through our waste paper bins in order to know that much about us.
But then again, the truth is, most sermons aren't actually that good. I've delivered some real stinkers in my time and so I try my hardest not to do it again, to learn from my mistakes and to grow in my ministry.
So I was interested to read this by a preacher called Mark Driscoll (he's an American, don't you know). He gave a list of 16 things he looks for in a preacher (although his bit of the church does have a 17th essential requirement, that the preacher is male, but that's where he and I disagree).

1. Tell me about Jesus. Connect it all to Jesus. If you don’t mention Jesus a lot, you need to do something other than preach. And tell me that Jesus is a person, not just an idea. Help me to not only know him but to also like him.
2. Have one big idea. Hang all your other ideas on the one big idea. Otherwise, you will lose me or bore me. 3. Get my attention in the first 30 seconds without being gimmicky. Get to work. Don’t “blah blah blah” around, chitchat, or do announcements. That will make me start checking my phone. Get my attention, and let’s get to work.
4. Bring me along theologically and emotionally. Preaching is not a commentary. Commentaries are boring for even nerds to read. Your job is to do the nerd work and bring it to life. Raise your voice, grab my affections, and bring the living Word.
5. Make me like you, trust you, and respect you so that I can't dismiss you. If you want me to follow you, you have to get me to that point.
6. Avoid Christian jargon and explain your terms. The average person has no idea what fellowship means, or even God for that matter. So, tell us what you’re talking about and don’t assume we have your vocabulary.
 7. Don't have points as much as a direction and destination. Take me somewhere. Take me to a place of conviction, compassion, conversion, etc.
8. Don't show me how smart you are, because it makes me feel dumb. I assume you’re smart since you’re standing up talking and we’re all sitting down listening. If you quote words in some language I don’t know, or quote dead guys to show you’re a genius, that makes me feel dumb, which doesn’t serve me well. Don’t come off like that kid in school that the rest of us wanted to give a wedgie to every time they raised their hand.
9. Invite lost people to salvation. Some people in the seats aren’t Christians. So, tell them how to become one. Talk about sin, Jesus, and repentance. At some point in every sermon just do that. If you do, people will bring lost friends. Don’t be a coward.
10. Whether it feels like a wedding or a funeral, be emotionally engaging and compelling. Some sermons are a funeral—convicting, deep, hard hitting, and life shattering. Other sermons are a wedding—exciting, compelling, encouraging, and motivating. Pick an emotional path. Have an emotional trajectory to the sermon, not just a theological point. If you pass the audition and get to preach publicly, have the entire service flow emotionally. If we do wedding songs after a funeral sermon, I’m emotionally confused. Likewise, if we’re singing melancholy hymns after a big motivational sermon, I’m also emotionally confused. So, you and the guy in skinny jeans with the guitar have got to get this figured out together.
11. Look like someone who has it together from clothes to haircut to overall presentation. You don’t need to be a model, but you should look presentable. If you have bed-head, your fly open, keep losing your place in your notes, your shoe is untied, your mic battery dies, and you say, “Um,” a lot because you’re unprepared, I may feel sorry for you but I’m not following you because you don’t seem to have a clue where you are going.
12. Tell the truth and don't be a coward. Look me in the eye and don't flinch. Don’t apologize for what God’s Word says—just say it. Say it like you mean it. Say it like it’s true. Sure, I may despise you, but at least I’ll know what God said. Get over your fear of man and assume that I may just hate you.
13. If you get lost or mess up, make a joke about yourself and keep me interested. I know at some point you’re going to mess up. The Bible is perfect, you aren’t. If I can laugh at you while laughing with you, I’ll trust you.
14. Don’t just preach repentance but also practice it. Don’t talk about everyone else’s sin and never your own. Don’t tell me all the victories you’ve had or that your sin was a long time ago. Jesus is the hero, not you. I don’t trust smug, religious folks who preach how great they are and how I can become like them. It’s smarmy.
15. Answer some objections. You know how most of us are going to push back, question, disagree, or wiggle off the conviction hook. So, anticipate those objections and answer some. Brawl with me a bit, show me you can go a few rounds, get me in a corner, and work me over until I give in and obey God. But, you have to work at it.
16. "It" is the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in you and through you. I’m looking to see if you have it. I can’t explain it, but I know it when I see it.

Prayer? Matthew 6, 5-8

Prayer is a funny thing. Have you wondered what it is and why people do it? Does something become a prayer if we add “Amen” to the end? Or if someone says “let’s pray” at the beginning? Or we all shut our eyes and put our hands together?
It may surprise you to know that about ¾ of people who would not describe themselves as religious admit to praying most weeks. Remember the “Pray 4 Muamba” phenomenon?

When Ali and I got married it was an important step in our road to coming back into a relationship with Christ. Being one of those thoroughly modern couples, we were happy with our level of commitment to each other without any need for a legal certificate or anything. But our hearts began to stir within us, and we reached a stage where we both wanted to get married…in church. Although neither of us would call ourselves Christian, we felt it important to make our vows in the name of the One who made the universe, rather than just sign a bit of paper. So we were married, inviting God into our relationship.
And things began to change.
Not long afterwards I had a really busy day doing all sorts of things around the area. I got home early evening with our sons, and as I made them their tea I realised that I had lost my wedding ring. I realised that I would need to retrace my steps, but as Ali was working a late shift, I could not even begin that process until she got home at 10pm. It was a long and frustrating wait, but as she came home I gave her her supper and said “I’m off out to look for my ring”. It was dark. I had a small torch. It was late. I started looking under the bonnet of our car and in the gutters all the way up the road. No joy. I then went round to a friend’s who I had helped with his car earlier. Again, I looked under the bonnet, in every nook and cranny, in the gutters, up the road etc. We got his neighbours to move their cars. It was after midnight now. Finally I drove over to the park where I had taken the boys earlier to play on the swings. I felt really dejected. It was a massive park. We had played all round it. My torch battery was almost extinct, giving a candle-like glow. It was raining and pitch dark.
I began to pray. I said “Lord God, we have trusted in You and sealed our relationship in your name. That ring is a symbol of your involvement in our lives. If I find that ring, I will know that you are real and I will be your servant from now on”
I walked over to the play area and as I got there the clouds parted just for an instant and the moon shone through. I looked at my feet and saw a silvery glint. I bent down, and there, trodden down below ground level and barely visible in any conditions, was my ring.
It may have been a coincidence, but since becoming a Christian I‘ve found it amazing how many coincidences happen when we pray.

So is praying just something we do when we’re in a spot of bother? It’s more than that. It’s the most important thing we can do. It is how we can develop a relationship with our father in heaven. In Matthew chapter 6 Jesus talked about prayer. Notice that Jesus doesn’t start this sentence “if you pray…” His assumption is that anyone who wants to know more of God will pray. “When you pray…” he starts. Jesus knows that to be a disciple we absolutely have to pray. It isn’t an option.
So this passage is not encouraging us to pray, it is telling us how to do it, and he said that it’s something we should do without showing off. We don’t have to worry about whether we are good at it or not, or about what other people might think. I have met so many people who admit to not praying much because they don’t know what to say that would sound good. It’s not about what other people hear and see. It is about us and god, and it is something to do with our relationship with God. Jesus goes on to teach us us what we now call the lord’s prayer which we will look at next week, and it begins “our father…”, pointing towards our family relationship with God.
Why bother praying? Surely God knows what we think and want and need, so there’s no need to ask, right? But prayer is about building our relationship with God. Its not much of a relationship if we don’t communicate. We pray because it keeps us in relationship with God. Think about all the important relationships in your life. The way that we strengthen our relationships is that we communicate, perhaps by getting together, or by speaking or writing or touching. If we stop communicating then our relationships will be weakened, and if we stop altogether then the relationship is broken (at least until we get in touch once more). So we pray because it deepens our relationship with God.
Another reason to pray is simply that it does change things. When people pray, things happen. Jesus said “ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened to you”. When people pray things happen. We need to remember that God is outside of time and space, and so hears all prayers simultaneously. It’s not like we convince him to change his mind, it is that his will becomes more obvious here on earth as we pray.

One of the main objections to praying often comes from people who say that they prayed for something and it didn’t happen. When my mate Mark became ill and died a few years back it was despite hundreds of people asking for God to heal him. Was God just not listening?
There are all sorts of reasons why we may think a prayer has not been heard. One may be that our hearts are not right with God, we are holding on to stuff, or we are just asking for stuff to meet our own desires. James 4,3 when you ask you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. It’s important that we spend time working on our relationship with God, through prayer, study and other Christians, in order to be better able to discern his will for us and the world. I want a Porsche, but I know that it isn’t God’s will that I have one, so I don’t pray for one.
Also, sometimes God doesn’t seem to answer our prayers because what we have asked for isn’t good for us. We may pray to be successful in a job interview, but actually be better suited to something else and in need of a shove in that direction. God may seem to be ignoring our prayers when actually he is saying “no” or perhaps “wait”. He doesn’t always say yes. I do not understand why my friend died. I’m gutted. It makes no sense. He was on fire for Jesus, had a lovely wife and three young kids, training to be a minister. I know that I am faced with the choice of just stopping believing, or believing that God is just nasty. Or I can say “I’m going to go on believing in spite of the fact that I don’t understand, in spite of my pain and confusion. I will trust you Lord” I doubt if I will ever understand-in this life at least. We can never fully know God’s will, but we can hope that we’ll understand when we get to meet him face to face.

 Last point, when and where do we pray? Should we do it in the morning or at night? Must we be in church? Actually, we can pray anytime, any place. We can pray all day. We are maintaining a relationship with God, so should make time for it whenever we can. I used to ride a motorbike, and used to spend two hours a day on it. As I rode I used to say the Jesus prayer over and over. When I got places I often found that I needed to find a pen and paper as ideas had come to me that needed recording, even though I’d been doing the talking. Jesus also warns us here against public shows of looking holy. There’s no need to involve others, or even to let them know what you’re doing. Praying on your own is great. It’s between you and God, so just go and do it somewhere quiet if you can. Bible notes can help, like "daily bread" or "everyday with Jesus". And there are also many examples in the bible of people praying together. It feels a bit weird doing it out loud with other people. I remember first time I did it. I’d not long finished an Alpha course and went with a friend to a meeting of local church leaders who were discussing how to make church more accessible. I didn’t know this, and actually we were sort of gatecrashing, but they let us in and we listened. I felt moved to pray out loud, and prayed that my friend and I could be a blessing to the church and the community. We left that meeting as co-leaders of a house group for young adults. We were also the only members, but within a year we had eighteen members, an 800% growth rate. Prayer is at the heart of Christianity, because it is about a relationship with God. That’s why it’s the most important activity of our lives.

Living like today is your last day on earth. Ephesians 5, 15-20

A man had a check up at the doctor, and when he went to get his results the doctor said, “I have bad news and worse news. Which would you like first?”.
“I’ll have the bad news first, I guess” the man replied.
“Well, the bad news is that your tests confirm that you only have 24 hours to live”
“What? This is terrible…etc. What could be worse than that?"
“I meant to tell you yesterday, but I forgot”.

Last week Ali’s dad was rushed into hospital struggling to catch his breath, feeling terrible. Heart problem quickly diagnosed and pacemaker fitted. This week I read in paper about a super-fit 40-something out jogging, collapsed and died of natural causes.

 The fact of the matter is that we often make assumptions about how long we have to live, but we may not have long at all. Ali’s dad reflected the other day that he is going to live every day like it is his last. I wonder what that might mean to you, living every day like it is your last. It would certainly concentrate the mind on what is and what isn’t important. Often this turn of phrase is used to describe care-free, fun-filled living, partying and behaving irresponsibly. Is that what you would mean?
Paul is exhorting his hearers to really examine their value systems and to be careful, effectively living each day as if it is their last, focussing on what is most important, making the most of their time “as the days are evil”. If we don’t do it we are in danger of falling into sin, of missing the mark, of becoming disconnected from God.

One of our sons used to sleep walk; we sometimes found him wandering around the house in a somewhat confused state, and he had no recollection in the morning.
The other used to sleep-talk, uttering stuff that had no apparent meaning.

As Christians we are liable to sleep-walking in our faith, unaware of what is actually going on around us and unaware of what we are doing. Many, many Christians have fallen into this trap, identifying themselves as Christians, joining churches, developing ministry areas, and yet not spending any time nurturing their faith or growing in their relationship with God and so over time find that their lifestyles do not reflect what they profess to believe. Many Christians are disconnected from God. Is that how you would want to spend your final day on earth?

The other trap that we can fall into is that of sleep-talking; by not really being aware of what we want to say and who it is we want to say it to we manage to make the gospel completely unintelligible. Many churches do this, too, speaking a language that only they can understand (like “salvation”, redemption” “sin”, “repentance”), using a medium that suits them but not necessarily their hearers (like traditional Sunday services or songs that fail to connect with the present generation). God calls us to live in His love and also to share that love, drawing others into that same relationship with Him. Would you want to spend your final day having nothing intelligible to say to those around you?

So what do we do? It’s simple. Don’t give in to the stuff around us that feels good, that makes us comfortable and yet bears no fruit. Don’t spend your life drunk, he says, meaning it both literally as this is an abuse of the body and mind God gave you, and figuratively as this severely limits how much you can focus on God. If we fill ourselves with wine or with anything else, how much room can there be for God?
“Be filled with the Spirit” he says, singing spiritual songs and making melody in your hearts, giving thanks to God at all times. Paul knows how easy it is the become distracted by the world and to take things for granted, to turn what is a good news story into something that weighs us and those around us down. He knows that church members can get caught up in the minutiae to the extent that they lose contact with God. Church members can feel let-down that they are not being provided for in the way that they used to be or in the way that they feel entitled to. And the solution? Be filled with the spirit, singing songs in your hearts and giving thanks.
Paul is using a pro-active, positive approach here. This is something we make happen rather than something that happens to us. We are to pray every day to be filled with the Spirit, that the fruit of the spirit will be evident to all. As Christians we must strive to have our last day on earth, and every day between then and now, described in terms of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Then we know we were Spirit filled. And our songs to God should come from our hearts. It’s not about singing what we know or what we are comfortable with, or even what we like. It is about offering to God everything we feel in song, and to do so in the context of gratitude for all he has done and is doing for us. So my prayer for us all is that we live this day as if it is our last, to the glory of God, Father Son and Holy Spirit.

Maturity and Unity

This the sermon I gave at the 9am Communion Service on 5th August on Ephesians 4, 1-16.

Big idea: To be truly united in Christ we all need to become mature in our faith
SHOW holiness, KNOW yourself, GROW others.

1: SHOW holiness: Our call is to live ‘worthy lives’-fruit of spirit-humble, gentle, patient, seeking after unity at all times.
“Make every effort”. It’s not easy to treat each other well within the church. We know the ideal, that we all cosy up nicely and agree with each other, but the truth is that for many people it is more accurate to say that church would be much better if only the other people who went were nicer or behaved better. But listen to what Paul commands here-he urges us to live a life worthy of the call we have received. He knew then as he wrote to the church in Ephesus what is just as true now, that the best way to measure any community, any grouping, is to look at how they are towards each other. How we treat each other within the church is crucial to our mission and ministry, because if we don’t display holiness in our internal dealings then we have not earned any right to proclaim the gospel into anyone else’s life. So Paul exhorts us to make every effort. It is true that we will have differences, but how we work through them is crucial. We need to keep checking as we engage with each other, asking ourselves not “am I in the right?” but “am I being gentle, humble etc?”

2: KNOW yourself: We are given different roles within the body-5 fold ministry-to build up the church.
Many people are called into leadership in the church-many more than necessarily get formally recognised within the current structures of the c of e. And they are called to do it differently, using different gifts. One of the things anyone called to leadership needs to be able to do is to recognise and draw upon the spiritual gifts given to them by God in order to be able to properly develop their ministry. What is your primary focus? Apostolic ministry, that is going to where the gospel isn’t in order to share it? I know that this is a significant part of my calling, which is why I will always be somewhat frustrated as a vicar. My heart is with the 4 or 5 thousand people in this district who aren’t here today. Or is it to be prophetic, speaking God’s word into situations around us? I know this isn’t really me, but I do recognise this pattern very strongly in Alison with her mental health work. Or to be an evangelist, bringing people into God’s kingdom? Again, I’d love to say that this is me, but actually I rarely close the deal. I’m more of a planter and waterer than a reaper. Or perhaps a pastor, a shepherd, one who looks after the flock. Traditionally this has been the role of the vicar and it is a responsibility I take seriously, but although I have gifts in this area as shown in my nursing career I know it isn’t my primary strength and I rely on others to help me. Or finally is your focus on teaching, on communicating the truths of the gospel to those within the church? About myself I would say that this is my second main area of ministry. You might not agree. But what about yourself? How do you order what you do for others? And how do you deal with others who do it differently? Well, Paul tells us here that the reason we do it is to build others up. So one important way we work out what our focus is is that we look for where we see fruit from our actions. We look for feedback. And when we see others doing something different we look for the same, for people being built up. That’s what I had tested as I went through discernment. None of it can be about us. Ministry isn’t cool. It isn’t an accolade. It isn’t something to boast in. It doesn’t give us power or worth, it doesn’t earn us a place in heaven. It is a responsibility, a burden, an effort, but one that we undertake in response to our call to live in the freedom of Christ.

3: GROW others: Aim is to become mature in faith, no longer infants. Then we are truly united.
And we do it all in order to keep the church alive. Living things grow, and growth requires change. Our main responsibility in leadership is to ensure that the church is always changing, always growing in love, always moving towards the heart of Christ so that we can speak the truth about God. To stay alive the church needs to help every member to move from infancy to maturity, helping them to find what their gifts may be. We need to encourage new apostles who will go where the church isn’t, new prophets, new evangelists, new pastors and new teachers so that we can remain united in purpose.

What is Worship? Part 4-Worshipping when it's difficult

Ok, not one of Rev Clive's Random Musings at all, but one of Alison's...

Faster, Higher, Stronger: the sacrifice of worship in the dark times..

Psalm 130 from The Message
2 Help, God—the bottom has fallen out of my life! Master, hear my cry for help! Listen hard! Open your ears! Listen to my cries for mercy.
3-4 If you, God, kept records on wrongdoings, who would stand a chance? As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit, and that's why you're worshipped.
5-6 I pray to God—my life a prayer— and wait for what he'll say and do. My life's on the line before God, my Lord, waiting and watching till morning, waiting and watching till morning.
7-8 O Israel, wait and watch for God— with God's arrival comes love, with God's arrival comes generous redemption. No doubt about it—he'll redeem Israel, buy back Israel from captivity to sin.

Today we're ending our look at worship, so I'm going to start with a brief recap before we look at psalm 130 and what God has to say to us about worship in spite of our circumstances..
Clive shared with us.. we need to worship in spirit and truth. It doesn't matter where or how we do it, but we need to do it with integrity and in tune with the spirit of God, and what he is telling us today, here and now.
He also talked about why we do what we do in church, praising god, the apostle's teaching, sharing with each other and breaking bread.
Then he talked about whole life worship being about Christ like living, preferring each others needs to our own, living in community and mutual respect.
I love the psalms, they've got me through some horrible times, and I love that God has given them to us as a template for how to respond in worship during those times.
Who is tuning in to the Olympics? I've been reflecting on what it means to be an Olympian, to be capable of such immense achievements. Part of what is essential is sacrifice; getting up early, working incredibly hard all day, missing out on the things of normal life in order to reach a goal. And as I've heard the athletes talk, there's been a common theme; sacrifice, pain, disappointment, but through it all holding on, keeping the faith, knowing it's worth it. They are made to function in this way, to use their bodies to reach incredible heights.
And we are all made, Olympian or not, to worship God. Faster, higher, stronger is the Olympic motto, and it's a great motto for our worship lives too.It's our primary calling and function.
But how do we really worship God when everything else that anchors us is stripped away? How do we make the sacrifice, maintain the discipline, keep our hearts right? How do we go faster, higher, stronger? We are called to worship God, whatever our feelings or circumstances.

To help us out with thinking about this, I'll be highlighting three things. They are..

1. Worship is not about me, and how hard things are for me. 
2. Worship is a discipline, and a choice. 
3. I will worship God wherever and however I am. 

1. Part of what Clive's response to the call of God to ordained ministry has meant for me and our children is that we have been to lots of different churches. We are very experienced in varying styles of worship, and we know a lot about church politics, and the things that people get fired up about. And therefore I have learnt a lot about worshipping God in new places, when I'm feeling like an outsider, like God isn't with me as I've moved yet again. But I have to worship him, to do it with my new brothers and sisters, whatever the cost. I'm made to do it. It isn't about me. Hear what the psalmist says.. If you, God, kept records on wrongdoings, who would stand a chance? As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit, and that's why you're worshipped. These were really hard times as he wrote, as he cried out to God. It wasn't the comfortable life that we are used to, it puts our struggles into perspective. Worship is not about me, and how hard things are for me. None of us deserve God's love, but he gives it to us anyway, and we are made to worship him. 
2. When we first moved to Coventry, it was a very difficult time. My dad was very unwell, Clive's best friend was dying, and then died, Clive was then very unwell and hospitalised. The children and I were alone in a new place. I was angry with God, very angry. I didn't want to worship God, my life had been disrupted in a major way. It wasn't a small thing, just being in a new church with new people. People were dead and dying, and I was scared and alone. So what should we do in these situations? Should we give up on God if we feel like he's given up on us? Hear what the psalmist says.. I pray to God—my life a prayer— and wait for what he'll say and do. My life's on the line before God, my Lord, waiting and watching till morning, waiting and watching till morning. For the psalmist there was nothing else to do but wait, pray..'my life a prayer'..And that's what I did. Prayed, worshipped, waited and watched. Worship is a choice and a discipline. We hang on in there and wait on the lord. And he comes. My dad was healed miraculously. Clive came home. I chose to worship God in a new and dark place. And I learnt who my brothers and sisters in Christ in our new church were, as they recognised the sacrifice we had made to be with them, to respond to God's call, and they supported me. Worship is a discipline and a choice. Through making that choice we reach new heights in our relationship with God and with each other. Higher and stronger. 
3. So what of us, here today? My newest friends in Christ, what if we are in that dark and desperate place today, watching and waiting? Hear what the psalmist says.. O Israel, wait and watch for God— with God's arrival comes love, with God's arrival comes generous redemption. No doubt about it—he'll redeem Israel, buy back Israel from captivity to sin. There is hope, even when we can't see it, and we can't trust it. But the psalmist knows. God's love will reach us, whatever our current circumstances and whatever the outcome. I will worship God wherever and however I am. If our worship is about God, not us, if we are disciplined, and make the choice, if we worship whatever the cost, we will win the medals! And if you are finding that impossible to hear, if life is so dark you can't remember what the light looks like, I'd love to pray for you. Or if you know you've lost your discipline, or have become bogged down in stuff that doesn't matter, I'd love to pray for you. 

So why don't we stand together, as God's broken but redeemed people, and let's pray.. The psalmist says.. If you, God, kept records on wrongdoings, who would stand a chance? As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit, and that's why you're worshipped. Let's ask God to place on our hearts those things that he wants to change, to make new, those things that we need to ask forgiveness for... Thank you that you are the God of forgiveness, and we are made to worship you. Thank you for the fresh start you give us all today.. And Jesus, I ask in your precious name that you would lift up those who are broken today, that you would shine your love and renewal into their lives. Thank you so much that as we wait and watch for you, as we worship you, you come to breath new life by your spirit. Thank you Jesus. Amen.