REVIVAL IN LEICESTER (23) - ALWAYS HOME

One of the delights of revival is the unity it creates. Not only between churches but within the congregation, across all ages and backgrounds.

We’ve just celebrated the end of another Leadership Year and Encounter Year at Chroma, for the students involved. Listening to their thoughts on the year was inspiring. Here we have a group of young people who are already turning the world upside down for Christ.

I loved the joy, the enthusiasm – the dancing! One student was planning to ‘upscale David’ with her dancing!

It’s so good that most will be staying in Leicester, and that for any that are moving on, as Pastor Steve said, ‘here will always be home.’

That’s true for the students, but it applies to all of us. What God is doing here is so precious, it will remain with us wherever we are in the world. And wherever we are, if you ask us about revival in Leicester, there will always be a smile. 

And maybe a dance….

The Power of Song

Songs can be powerful. And none more so than when on national television at unexpected moments. Stormzy taking Glastonbury ‘to church’ with his song ‘Blinded by Your Grace’. Even Susan Boyle on Britain’s Got Talent. Her rendition of ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ from Les Misérables was all the more powerful because it was so unexpected.

I remember as a kid watching the Beatles sing ‘Hey Jude’ on Top of the Pops. It was like nothing I’d heard before. And the audacity to keep on singing at the end well beyond the usual three-minute pop song time limit.

I was taken aback again this week, watching (belatedly) The Voice on ITV. Part way through, the audience cajole Tom Jones, one of the judges, into singing. At 82 years old, he’s not lost his ability to sing. But it was his choice of song that got me.

He lost his wife to cancer a few years ago. It was a turbulent marriage on occasions, but one that lasted. A friendship that started as 12-year-olds, they were married for nearly 60 years. As he began to sing, the emotion in his voice was unusual. About someone being there for another, but not crumbling if they fall. He explained at the end that it was about being there for his wife, Linda, and promising her he would carry on after she had gone. These were his words:

“My wife, you know, she was dying of lung cancer, so I said, you know, I was always able to fix stuff, to do things if she needed me, I was always there. She said, 'Don't crumble with me, don't fall now, you've done everything you can, you must carry on and do what you do.’”

It’s hard to be there for someone close to you but see that for once you can’t ‘fix stuff’. His response in song was poignant.

At the end, another of the judges, Anne-Marie, said it was one of the best moments in her life. And it wasn’t TV hyperbole for a change.

Living Globally

This is not meant as a political comment, but Brexit will not keep us out of Europe. Nor will building walls stop Central America from being next to the United States.

More importantly, nothing can stop clear and easy communication from taking place between these nations. We live in a Global World. That world is facilitated by the Internet and social media. If it’s blocked, it going to get through anyway.

Much of the recent popular protests in countries as diverse as Hong Kong and Lebanon started life on WhatsApp, Facebook and other forms of social media.

We trade globally too. If my wife (who is of Indian heritage) wanted to buy a new sari a few years back, she would go to the Melton Road (‘Little India’) in Leicester. She’d pay a premium for it. The shopkeeper had had to pay a wholesaler. He’s had to pay transport costs as well as dealing with wholesalers in India. Today she can go online and buy directly from the factory in India.

Sure, there may be tax and tariffs -the financial equivalent to a wall- but it doesn’t stop the trade.

And all that brings me to another thought. As a Christian, I hold in my hands the Book of Life. When people read the Bible, lives change. There’s power in the words. It’s God speaking with lives changed as a result.

I love that we no longer have to smuggle Bible’s into China. Even if Bible’s were banned, they’d still get through – thanks to the Internet. Electronic versions -legally and illegally- get through any barriers that nations and ideologies may care to put in its way.

I love that in Iran, a nation that outwardly prohibits Christian conversion, there’s one of the biggest Christian revivals taking place right now. 

I love that one of the major celebrities of our age has found a faith in Christ and is reading his Bible every night before he sleeps. There’s power in God’s Word.

I love that in our own family we are spread around the world. Our oldest son and daughter in law are in China. Our youngest daughter and son in law are in Africa. Our ‘adopted daughter’ and husband are in New Zealand. Our sponsored child is in Ghana. I can -and do- travel globally and find Christian friends and family wherever I go.

We live globally. We trade globally. And we share our faith globally. God does not recognise geography, politics or ideologies. I’m part of the biggest family in the world – one that transcends every barrier.

The Moment

That’s the picture. That’s the moment. I’m walking my younger daughter down the aisle in the idyllic setting of a Stellenbosch vineyard. And suddenly it’s very real.

Lois is trying to hold back the tears. We can see Dewaal awaiting her arrival. The biggest grin.

The picture shows me more stooped shouldered than I would like. Maybe that’s the price of bringing up four children. And is that grey hair behind my ears? I had no idea. Well, I don’t look there do I?

But mostly it’s a moment of intense happiness. All the tension of the days before the wedding dissipates. Friends smile and cheer. Roh and I say a resounding ‘We do!’ as Greg, the Pastor, asks who gives the bride away.

But even that’s not strictly true. We don’t lose. We gain.

On the way in to the country, I explained to the South African immigration officer that I was here for the wedding of my daughter.

‘Congratulations on your new son’ she said.

I didn’t understand.

‘Pardon?’

‘Congratulations. You’re not losing a daughter. You’re gaining a son!’

Such wisdom from unexpected places.

We have a son. And a wider family. We have smiles and memories. And we have that picture. That moment.

Leaning into Relationships

A 75 year study (yes, 75 years!) by Harvard University shows that long life and happiness is reflected by strong relationships.

This remarkable study is still going after all these years. Over 700 men started out being interviewed. Over 60 are still alive and in their nineties, and still being studied.

It’s not money or fame that gets you a long and satisfying life, its good relationships. Loneliness is a killer. Family feuds take a terrible toll on the person that holds the grudges. A happy marriage adds years to your life.

This is not rocket science- but it is social science. A real study over 75 years is hard to argue against.

It’s not the first time I have heard this either. Dr JohnTrickell did a study of various societies around the world that lived the longest. His conclusion as to what brought long life? Fun, friends, family and faith.

To have good friends throughout life is a blessing. To have a faith that brings about a friendship with Christ is even more precious.

So, lean in to relationships that give you satisfaction, friendship and fulfilment. You’ll be happier for it, and live longer.

Want to find out more about the study? This is a 12 minute history:

Using The F Word

A few years back I had the privilege of attending a pension’s event in Australia. (Stay with me- I know pensions is pretty much a ‘click to the next article’ subject). One of the guest speakers was Dr John Trickell. He was discussing longevity- a hot topic for us pension geeks!

Dr Trickell said we had to start using the ‘F’ words – fun, family, friendships and faith. It is these four ‘f’s that give us long life. He went on to prove it with research and data.

It makes sense. A good combination of a healthy lifestyle with lots of family and friends around. And linked to a real faith that there is more to life than just the latest paycheque or the newest gadget. (Which is why I HATE Black Friday by the way).

So it was interesting to note a new article on the BBC website today, investigating a community that lives a lot longer- and a lot healthier- than most. They are a church community in California.

Fun, family, friendships and faith. Try it. It works.

Nontando and the Merit Shop

The first time Miss Turner noticed her, she stood quietly at the back of a group of girls. She and her brother were fairly new arrivals at Bulembu, their parents having died of AIDS. Nontando was a shy girl, Miss Turner thought.

The girls were there to spend their merits. All the 400 rescued children were in school in Bulembu and merits were given for good work and good behaviour; rewards to spend. Miss Turner was particularly pleased to land the job of running the merit shop. She saw many of the children she cared for in the trauma unit- those that had been most deeply affected by their loss.

And she saw Nontando.

Each term, when the shop opened, Nontando came. And each term she stood with her friends, looking on as they spent their merits on sweets, books, toys and comics. But not Nontando. She just stood, quietly watching.

‘Hi Nontando, don’t you have any merits to spend?’

‘Yes Miss.’

‘So where are they? Where are your merits? What would you like? Sweets? A book maybe?’

‘No Miss. I don’t want anything today.’

Miss Turner was intrigued. Every time the shop opened, Nontando would be there. Every time, she stood and watched as her friends spent their merits. Miss Turner figured she was saving for something expensive. Maybe the beautiful coat that had been sent in recently?

Each time the shop opened, she asked the question. Each time, the same answer.

‘No Miss. I don’t want anything today.’

It was near the end of term when Miss Turner next saw Nontando. With a big smile on her face, she approached Miss Turner with a handful of ‘merits’.

Miss Turner smiled.

‘Nontando, you’re going to spend your merits. How wonderful! You have a lot there- you can get something really special! Are you after that lovely coat?’

‘No Miss.’

Slowly Nontando walked to the back of the merit shop and picked up a beautiful pair of black leather shoes.

‘Oh Nontando, I’m so sorry- those shoes would never fit you I’m afraid. They are far too small.’

‘No Miss. They are not for me. They’re for my little brother, Ciswe. You see, he’s not got any shoes. This is my present for him.’

There were tears in her eyes as Miss Turner closed the shop that day.

This is based on a true story although the children’s names have been changed. ‘Miss Turner’ is our daughter Lois who works in Bulembu. You can find more about the rescued children here: http://bulembu.org/

Two Giant Steps

Most of our journey through life is made in small steps. What the writer Eugene Peterson calls ‘A Long Obedience in the Same Direction.’ A coffee here, a meal there. A conversation one day, a car journey the next. Small integral parts of life’s direction.

Occasionally, a giant step comes along. For us two have come at once.

The first is the start of KingsGate Community Church Leicester. Our first (amazing!) meeting was last night. As someone who had spoken often of the possibility of KingsGate planting a new church into Leicester, it is the realisation of a dream. And a giant step.

The other giant step comes as we drop our youngest child, Lois, off at Heathrow later today, as she starts her long obedience in the same direction. She is travelling out to Bulembu in Swaziland to serve as a long term missionary. For us, it means an empty house for the first time, with the other three children having already moved away.

Two giant steps. Two key moments in our lives. And fuel for the journey as we continue our own long obedience.

Changing Expectations: Welcome to Holland

Sometimes things don't go as we expect. But it's how we deal with those moments that make us or break us. We can choose to complain forevermore about what 'should' have happened. Or we can embrace the change.

This is a short piece of prose from Emily Kingsley, a writer who's expectations changed one day. I'll let her tell you in her own words.....

WELCOME TO HOLLAND

by
Emily Perl Kingsley.

c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley.
 I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay. The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.
 

No Greater Power

There is no greater power than a community discovering what is cares about.
Ask "What's possible?" not "Whats wrong?" Keep asking.
Notice what you care about.
Assume that many others share your dreams.
Be brave enough to start a conversation that matters.
Talk to people you know.
Talk to people you never talk to.
Be intrigued by the differences you hear.
Expect to be surprised.
Treasure curiosity more that certainty.
Invite in everybody who cares to work on what's possible.
Acknowledge that everyone is an expert in something.
Know that creative solutions come from new connections.
Remember, you don't fear people whose story you know.
Real listening always brings people closer together.
Trust that meaningful conversations change your world.
Rely on human goodness. Stay together.

                                             Meg Wheatley

Thanks to Steve Pettican for bringing this to my attention

In Defense of Traditional Marriage

I became a Christian when I was 15 years old. Since then, the Bible has been my companion. It’s been a good book to base my life on.

More importantly, our nation is based on the Bible- on a set of Judaeo-Christian beliefs. It has been a good book to base our nation on. We don’t always get it right, but the belief system we have developed has served us well and given us solid foundations.

I saw our Prime Minister on the news last night. With little thought to our foundations, he intends to remove one. The Bible is clear- marriage is between one man and one woman. That’s what our nation is based on and we have historic records to that effect. Marriage goes back to the dawn of time. Marriage in our nation is written into our laws. Over 3000 laws refer to it. Many would have to be rewritten to remove the terms ‘husband’ and ‘wife’.

Cameron wants to change marriage. It’s not something that was in his manifesto. He has chosen to ignore the considerable reaction against his views. And, more importantly, he is trying to remove a foundation stone, whilst expecting the building above it to remain unaffected.

Marriage is bigger than the same-sex debate. It’s bigger than a Prime Ministers whim. It’s a foundation on which we have built our nation. It needs defending.

Winning Gold

Her name is Rebecca and I saw her on Saturday. She is maybe 9 or 10 years old, but I guess with a mental age of an infant. Her chair was amazing. It kept her body from twisting and held her head upright. There was a big smile on her face as her father teased her and tickled her and cheered her on as she ate.

Her name is Jessica and I saw her on Saturday. I guess she’s in her 20’s. Her race was amazing. She pulled away from the opposition to win the heptathlon gold. There was a big smile on her face as the crowd cheered her achievement.

Jessica has her gold medal. One day so will Rebecca.

The Right Shoes

Lois, my 20 year old daughter, declared recently that she wanted to start running. I offered to buy her her first pair of running shoes.

‘You need running shoes?’ she asked. ‘Yes of course’ I said.

‘Why? What’s wrong with my plimsolls?’ I gave a wry smile the way only Dad’s can.

A couple of hours later we were at Advanced Performance, the excellent running shop in Peterborough. It was only then that the full realisation of what was needed began to hit Lois. The first thing we saw was a guy in a shirt and tie running around the car park wearing new running shoes.

‘I’m not doing that! No way!’

‘But you have to if you want the right shoes. They won’t sell you any shoes without you trying them out to make sure they are right for you.’

‘Well I’m not running around the car park for any one!’

Half an hour later and with about ten pairs tried out and videoed on a running machine to check for pronation or supination (fancy terms referring to how your foot strikes the ground) and Lois was running round the car park on the way to owning her first pair of real running shoes.

Why all the bother? Because all our feet are different. Not just in size, but in the way we run. The wrong shoes, a lack of support to the ankle and you are on your way to severe muscle injuries and damaged knees.

What are we wearing as we run the race of life? Have we got the right shoes? The right support to our own personal race of life? What are we trusting in? Who are we trusting in? Who’s there to support us, listen to us, encourage us? Make sure you’re wearing the right shoes.

Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Hebrews12:1-2

In the Footsteps of an Eight Year Old

Today I walked in the footsteps of an eight year old.

I started at the primary school, looking into the window where he began school at five years of age. Elsie sat next to him that morning. She cried all day. He ignored her.

On past the school to the shops. Two are still there. The newsagents where his mum bought him his first plastic farm animals. And the chip shop- fish and chips on a Friday night.


Down the back streets, past the allotments, past where he fell off his bike. And there it is, home - Milford Avenue, Flixton, Manchester. The house he lived in from early childhood to age eight. Not much has changed. A new fence on the side. The paint is a different colour.

It’s the first time I have walked those streets in forty-eight years. All sorts of memories came flooding back. Running through the streets with my friends. Stopping pretty much anywhere, in any house, to ask for a drink of orange squash. Community was strong there. Sad memories too. I found myself grieving for the loss of my mum. It was her hand I held as I walked those streets all those years ago.

The path has taken many a turn from Milford Avenue. Birmingham, Leicester, South London, Crawley, Peterborough. And I’ve been grateful for every step. Grateful to God. Grateful to my friends and family who have shared the journey. If you are reading this as someone who has journeyed with me, thank you for your company.

And there’s more. There’s a path ahead. I can’t see where it leads, but like the days of my early childhood, I hold a hand. No longer my mum’s hand, but my Lord’s. He treads every step with me. He can see what I cannot. He knows every rock and boulder we need to negotiate. He leads, I follow. One day we will reach home together.

The Finish

Well, it’s done. The London Marathon that is. 5 hours and 24 minutes. Not my best time, but it was a hot day!

I’m pleased to record that my only injury (other than not being able to walk the next day!) is a cut lip. I managed this at about mile 22 when my coordination went slightly awry, trying to take a drink form a water bottle!

Thank you to all those that have so selflessly given towards the Esther Homes. As I write this, we are well over £18,000, with tax money to add back in as well. We will leave the site live for a while yet for any late-comers.

www.epoh.org.uk

For those that would like to follow our progress in buying and/or building the Esther Home, the EPOH web site will also keep you up to date with this. As it stands, we are hopeful that we may be able to part buy/part rent towards owning a building of our own.

With an event like this, there is always a list of thank-you’s. So here goes…

Thank you to:

- Lisa Ryan for her hours of patience setting up the site, and putting up with my impatience! For allowing our India work to join forces with her Africa work and also for the great seat at the marathon for Roh.
- Steve Cronau for the hours of work on the site and setting up the Paypal link when it became clear that the HMRC department wasn’t going to respond in time to set up Virgin Giving.
- Liz Lavies for all the treatment on my calves. And for refusing payment so the money could go to the Esther Homes.
- Mickey Vincent and all at Chroma Sport for the free printing of the running vest.
- Adam & Karen for putting me up for the night before the marathon. And Helen for the coordination.
- Tim Hunt for accompanying me on the marathon, and not making too many corny jokes.
- All my friends at churches past and present, friends within the pensions industry, friends at TLM, those on our India team, and everyone who has helped with contributions towards the fabulous amount we were able to make.
- And of course, Roh, Nathan & Joy, Elspeth & Rob, Josh and Lois. I’ll try not to complain too much at not being able to walk!

This is why I am running on Sunday

Please help sponsor me in the London Marathon:

www.epoh.org.uk

Pardon?

THE SCENE: Early Saturday morning. Ralph & Roh still in bed. Ralph snoozing. Roh doing and early morning Bible study.

ROH: “I didn’t realise how much the Ferris’s dislike Jesus”

RALPH (suddenly fully awake): “What did you say?!”

ROH: “The Ferris’s. They really hate Jesus.”

RALPH: “No they don’t.”

ROH: “They do!”

RALPH: “But Roh, Ian Ferris leads worship on Sunday’s and Gill works in the church office.”

ROH: “Not the Ferris’s you deaf old thing. The Pharisees!”

Changing Geography, Changing Seasons, Changing Family

There’s always something going on in our family. But even for our busy lives, the last couple of weeks have been pretty frantic.

Roh and I have just come back from India. We took a team of eight to help with charity projects and support the local church. As always, it was an amazing time. Lives changed for the good. Children without parents given a hope and a future. Dalit villages supported with medical camps and treatment from local and UK doctors. And a group of local churches supported and encouraged. My thanks to the team- though my observation would be that they have been as impacted as anyone in India!












Then it was straight up to Sheffield to celebrate our eldest son’s wedding to Joy. So congratulations Nathan and Joy. And Joy- welcome to this crazy family!



We all move through seasons- literal and metaphorical. This is such a season. The children all away from home for the first time. Two married, and our first grandchild earlier this year. So a new season for sure.

And just a change in geography for a week brings such impact. Which is the real world? I suspect that the poverty we see on each visit to India is much more the real picture. We are cocooned from this real world, enjoying as a nation such affluence when compared to the Dalit’s of India.

New geography, new seasons, new family. So new focus and new vision needed. And as we enter this later season of life, the need for new energy too. For every one of us, I ask, along with Paul in the Bible that “ God …make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!”

Jessica Louise

At 8.00 this morning Roh and I became proud grandparents! Congratulations to Elspeth and Rob.

Welcome to this world Jessica Louise Mill. May God's face shine on you every moment of every day. May you know peace in the world and peace in your heart. May you be a blessing to your parents and find God's blessing on your life. May you future always be clear before you and may you achieve all that God intends for your life.

A wonderful gift for Fathers Day.

The pages are rustling with adventure.....

A bit of a misquote from C S Lewis that, but appropriate to today. Today sees our youngest (by 20 minutes anyway!) on her way to Zimbabwe for a gap year, working with children in Bulawayo.

For Lois, it is the start of an adventure. The future pages of her journal are rustling with excitement, new experiences, new friends and new learnings along the way.

For us too the pages are rustling…. This is the start of a new phase in our lives. With Lois’ twin Josh at Uni and the older two well away from home, we have a new page to turn too. No kids at home! (well, we do have Jen lodging with us but not sure that counts!)

What will God write on those pages? New experiences for sure. New opportunities. A whole new chapter.