Bleetings

One of our pastors has been encouraging us recently to be more inventive in our methods of greeting each other, rather than resorting to a nominal (and rather boring) "Hi". He began by pouring forth that he wished that "the hooves of a thousand camels may bless your fields". My friends and I found this rather an amusing and diverting thought. A good friend demonstrated her amusement by texting me in the middle of my busy nursing clinic to wish that my "needles be always sharp" and that I "receive a hundredfold patients forever". I wasn't sure whether that was a blessing or a curse at the time and so, with a smile, text her back (knowing she's a busy housewife) blessing her with "the joy of a thousand ironing board covers upon her head".

This rather fun attempt at elaborate greetings actually set me thinking about greetings and whether actually they are forms of blessings. Why? Well the simple "Good morning" greeting originated from the rather more lovely "God give you a good morning". "Good day" from "God give you a good day". And so on. I'm sure there are more. It set me to thinking how when we greet someone we have the opportunity to bless them too.

I'm not planning to run around greeting people with completely illogical greetings every hour of the day - I might get myself consigned to a loony bin if I do. But I think I'll be paying a little more attention (at least on the inside) to what I greet people with and what blessings I might be bestowing with the greeting. So perhaps I should call it a "Bleeting".

Bravery versus fear

I've been thinking about bravery and fear a bit recently. From my viewpoint on myself I don't think I'm a very brave person. Other people's opinion seems to differ greatly from my own. I see the effort that I have to put in to get over myself and do things. Other people simply see what is done at the end of the effort.
It's made me consider the idea that bravery is not an absence of fear but simply a repeated overcoming of it.
I'm guessing that if fear was completely absent from my (or anyone's - for that matter) life, then I might be likely to do all manner of completely irrational, illogical or completely foolish things (My friends might be reading this, laughing and mumbling that I do them anyway). Fear perhaps is one of the foundations that common sense is based on. Fear keeps us from doing stupid things that would end life.
But if fear is not overcome at times it can keep us from doing things that end the fun in life. It can hold us back from achieving and experiencing so much.

So I'm guessing I shall battle with my personal fears and insecurities for the rest of my life. But as long as I never let them hold me back from who and what I should be then they could be the very indicators of the value of the things I do and achieve with my life.

Privilage

I've been thinking a bit recently about how incredible my church is and how much we have and how easy it is to take for granted.
We've just been to London. Not sightseeing, but being part of the sights for a day. Why? So that we can tell people about Jesus. We walked - on the road - through some of the busiest streets of London in the middle of a Saturday in summer. Right from Hyde Park Corner to Trafalgar Square. Singing, dancing, shouting, praying, mexican-waving. Following this extraordinary outburst of colour we took over Trafalgar Square for the whole afternoon. Dancing, shouting, talking, singing, laughing, drama-ing...all so that people could have a chance to hear about Jesus and all that he has done and can do for them.
To anyone who has never heard this it might seem like front-page news. Sadly to some in my church it has become almost routine and they have lost the excitement and joy that comes with throwing themselves wholeheartedly into something like that.
Dear God, may I never get that boring. Save me from my own passive nature that I may never take for granted the opportunities that you give us. Keep my heart from shutting out all that is new and hiding behind it's own insecurities. Keep me sensible to the amazing privilage that you have given us. To be those who can carry your name at these times in these places.

Love

I was listening to someone talking on Monday evening about love. He was saying that in his experience of building church and winning people for Jesus it was a case of just needing to love them and then God would do the rest. That if people had other agendas than simply loving people life started to get difficult and complicated.
Sounds profound I guess. But I think he's right.
It made me think back to the young women that I've helped to find their way in Jesus and to find their place within the church. I'm certainly not perfect and I'm sure I misunderstood them more times than I care to remember. I'm also sure that I loved them very much indeed - and still do. I'd do pretty much anything for all of them.
I still maintain that the fact that the majority of these young women is still in the church has an awful lot to do with God and not very much to do with me at all. God did a lot whilst I stood in the corner with a proverbial open mouth. I just loved them - very imperfectly.
Thank Goodness that the Grace of God is the element within our individual and corporate walks with Him that makes the difference.

Time

I guess there have been more blog posts about time than anyone could be bothered to count - certainly more than I'd care to imagine. I don't think I'm a deep enough thinker to come up with anything that no-one has thought of before. But sometimes it's the little things that get my attention rather than the unfathomable depths that some people manage to understand!
And I've been thinking today - where does the time that I waste go to?
I've said lots of times in my life that I want my time to count for Jesus. That I want Him to use me. But the time that I spend sightlessly admiring the view through my office window, or the time that I spend checking twitter for the 30th time....where does that go? Does it count for anything at all? Does it help me to "relax"? Is it simply "gone" and no-one knows where to. Is there actualy an angel in heaven who has the thankless task of going through the moments of my days and doing the equations between time well spent and time wasted. And what is time that has been wasted recorded as anyway? Is it like an appointment book with just blank spaces? What goes in there.
I don't have answers to this by the way......just questions. And some of those are rather vague!

Man, Movement, Machine, Monument

Recently one of our leaders spoke in a Sunday morning service about a very real danger that faces the churches of today. That is the danger of turning from a movement of life into a machine and then a monument to what "has been".
I felt challenged and reminded of a trip to Lindisfarne Island which I took with two of my friends a couple of years ago when I was still at Uni. I had a moment with God on finding how disenchanted I was with the monuments to bygones on the island. That was the inspiration for the poem that follows.

On a small windy island a long way North
Stands a church, from the austerity of which, Celtic Saints strode forth.
But it now stands silent, empty, just a monument,
Just a place where all those "seeking peace" are sent.

And I wonder, whilst I walk around the echoing insides,
How we lost the verve and passion that consumed their lives?
Where it was along the path we completely missed the way,
And turned this house of praise into a museum for today.

So wandering outside and glancing over a small wall,
The sea reflects the sun and holds me in it's thrall.
A living spectacle of changing, dancing light
Presents a view of briliance before my captured sight.

And then I hear inside my heart the still small voice of God.
And hear Him say "This is how I want my people to be,
Not still, nor silent, not hollow, bound to sod,
But moving, shining - a living reflection of Me."

Dear God

I've been inspired recently by reading a very lovely, lighthearted little book that has a deeper message. It's written by a man who claims to be a lapsed athiest and it's a book of "short prayers for long days".
Little sentances to God about the mundane, the funny and the perplexing things in life.
I loved reading it. It used to belong to my Grandad, but he's now able to talk face to face with God.
It inspired me to just talk to God more. God is interested in the everyday happenings in our lives. He doesn't just want a shopping list of prayer or an hour here or there. He wants to be able to be involved, to laugh with us or cry with us.
You see, there's a scarey bit in my bible. It says that at the end of time some will come to the gates of heaven and want to go in saying to God that they've done all kinds of things in His name, but He'll tell them to go....because He doesn't know them. How sad to have lived a life of duty in His name with no relationship.
So. Whilst my Twitter friends may think I've gone a little off the wall with my "Dear God" posts. It's just another way to talk to my God about my life. To get to know Him....and let Him get to know me too.