Last night in our study on James, we looked at the way that the rich and the poor were treating Communion (see 1 Corinthians 11:17-22). Paul found nothing to commend in the selfishness of the rich who brought plenty to the love feast, but equally took plenty!

It’s always good to focus on what we are really doing when we take Communion and ponder the sacrifice Christ has made for us. Here are two very different songs on the same theme:

Matt Redman’s ‘Remembrance’:
‘Remembrance’, Matt Redman

Charlie Hall’s ‘Mystery’:
‘Mystery’, Charlie Hall
‘Sweet Jesus Christ, my sanity.
Sweet Jesus Christ, my clarity…
Bread of heaven, broken for me…
Christ has died
Christ is risen
Christ will come again.’

I am currently reading a book by Eugene Peterson (no surprise there, huh?!) called ‘Subversive Spirituality’. I read it a little bit at a time (unlike my normal method of reading, which is to devour a book hungrily in one sitting, aiming for the world speed reading record at the same time!), partly in the same way that you might linger over a meal you are really enjoying, not wanting the experience to end, partly because I have to ‘chew on’ the things he writes about in order to fully digest them.

Reading Eugene Peterson for me is like putting on a pair of new shoes and finding they are so comfortable that it feels like you have been wearing them forever. (That, incidentally, is not something that happens very often to me. Buying new shoes is normally one of the most stressful things I do, an event forced on me when the previous pair of comfortable old slipppers literally fall to pieces and I notice holes in the soles and get damp feet! I am no Imelda Marcos, but rather a loyal lover of the most comfortable footwear I can find and am loathe to change it once I’ve found it!) I find that he articulates things I have been musing about for a long time in such a way that I smile with a sense of real familiarity. ‘So that’s how it is! Yes, that’s what I’ve been trying to say!’ The words themselves may be new to me, but the ease and comfort with which the words penetrate my soul indicate that I have been walking along this path for some time.

Today’s moment of recognition came as I read the following:
“Busyness is the enemy of spirituality. It is essentially laziness. It is doing the easy thing instead of the hard thing. It is filling our time with our own actions instead of paying attention to God’s actions. It is taking charge.” (Eugene Peterson, ‘Subversive Spirituality’ P 237).

I suspect I will be digesting this thought for some time. I have spent the week chipping away at a jobs’ list that is alarming in length and full of ‘urgent’ and ‘important’ things that ‘must’ be done. I have long wrestled with this differentiation between ‘urgent’ and ‘important’, between what I must necessarily do as part of the everyday routines and the things that are necessary to my spiritual growth and how to recognise the difference between the two and how to balance the two.

A long time ago my son asked me why I worked so hard. He was too young to have heard of the Protestant work ethic and I think he was somewhat surprised by my answer. I said that I worked so hard because I was fundamentally lazy.

This is the first time I have ever seen anyone else equate busyness with laziness. The two are normally viewed as opposites. I don’t see them as opposites. To have the two things linked together by someone else is like putting my feet into those new shoes and finding they fit perfectly. I do recognise in myself a desire to be in control, and work (even work imposed on us by others, where we have to do things that perhaps we don’t want to do or deem important ourselves) can easily fuel this desire. The reason that ‘filling our time with our own actions’ can seem such a virtuous thing to do is that it puts us in the driving seat. We are in charge.

That is why I believe busyness can be an enemy of spirituality. I believe it fuels the ego and leaves us more interested in what we can do than in what God is doing. It fuels our self-importance and leads us to think we can get by without God.

So I have deliberately and intentionally sat here with a cup of coffee typing this rather than rushing to start the jobs’ list (which ironically continues to grow, even when I cross off all the things I have managed to do this week!) I believe I need to attend to my spiritual life and slow down long enough to listen to God and find out what He is saying and doing. That was the secret of Jesus’s success: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (John 5:19) If Jesus Himself had to rely on His Father and could do nothing by Himself, I certainly cannot hope to grow spiritually while I am busy doing my own thing, being in charge. And funnily enough, Jesus also said that if we put Him first, all the things that we worry about will fall into place (Matthew 6:33). So I think it’s worth taking time out of our busyness to sit at the feet of Jesus and learn from Him.

Dave continued the Bible study on James last night, looking at James 1:9-12. This discussion on the brother in humble circumstances and the rich must not be taken out of the context of James’s words on enduring through trials and persevering in times of testing. Whether we consider material wealth (or lack of it) or spiritual wealth (or lack of it) to be the main points of discussion here, James reinforces the topsy-turvy teaching of Jesus, that humility always has to precede exaltation and that we need to keep the ‘long vision’ in view if we are not to become discouraged. Asaph certainly knew all about the dangers of looking at the rich and envying them (see Psalm 73.) The answer to those nagging doubts is to enter the sanctuary and look not only at who God is but at the sure and certain justice of God. As the Parable of the Rich Fool illustrates (Luke 12:13-21) and as James reiterates, wealth is transitory (“the rich will fade away even while they go about their business”), but those who learn perseverance will ultimately receive the crown of life (James 1:12).

It’s not always easy to keep perspective and James was writing to Christians who were undoubtedly suffering great hardship. But, as Paul reminds us in Romans 8, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” (Rom 8:18) That is the fuel that keeps us persevering through all the trials James talks about in chapter 1.

God has given all kinds of gifts to the church. You can read about these in Romans 12 and in 1 Corinthians 12. Mingled with all the spectacular gifts (of healings, prophecies, words of wisdom and discernment of spirits, for example) are others which seem, frankly, more mundane. Paul says “God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.” (1 Cor 12:28) Every time I read this passage, I am struck by the way ‘helping’ comes right after miracles and gifts of healing!

Helping is not often perceived as being ‘all that special’. Perhaps it’s because we often help others out of our strengths that we don’t think very much about it. If I can help someone to do something, maybe that’s because I can do that thing and so it doesn’t really seem very unusual to me. But helping someone, when viewed from the other side, is so very precious. If you have ever been on the receiving end of help, you know that it really does indeed make all the difference!

Helping in practical ways that are borne out of a prayerful desire to serve God with all that we are and all that we have is something that blesses God’s heart, because it actually reflects His character. Over the past few months, church members have been bringing tinned food and clothing to church, working with the Salvation Army and other local churches to serve the poor and needy in the area in practical ways. John tells us “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:17-18) We’ve been trying to live out those verses by helping others.

Last week, Captain Adrian Lee came to collect the latest batch of stuff we’ve collected.

When you look at the amount of things that have been given in just a month, it’s amazing.

We are immensely grateful: to Mark and Debbie for having the courage to step out in faith and urge us to continue helping the poor, rather than viewing it as an ‘occasional’ ministry; to Chris and Adrian for working with the Salvation Army in Goldthorpe and for being willing to allow us to be involved in this work; to our local church leadership for being willing to take up new challenges and provide new opportunities for helping; to members of the Methodist Church at Great Houghton who have joined in so enthusiastically with this project; to every church member for being willing to give up a little of what they have to meet the needs of those who have nothing. All those helped are local families known personally to Chris and Adrian.

I’m quite certain that most of those involved in this ministry don’t really think they are doing anything very special. They are helping others in ways that seem ‘obvious’ to them. I’m equally certain that those on the receiving end of the ministry view it very differently, as a lifeline and a real blessing.

Jesus said, “If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.” (Matt 10:42) Giving a tin of beans or a packet of soup may seem to us to be that ‘cup of cold water’: nothing very special, certainly nothing very spiritual. But when we offer those in need something that they need with love in our hearts, then we are reflecting the generosity and kindness of God and that must always be a good thing!

On Pentecost Sunday, Garry spoke about ‘receiving the present’, looking at Matthew 6:25-34. The ‘present’ he was talking about was not the gift of the Holy Spirit per se, however, but the gift of today, the gift of living in the now, with an appreciation of who God is and all that He has done that comes from remembering the past and is fuelled by the hope and anticipation of the future.

The past should not be ignored. When we are downcast, it’s good to remember all God is and all He has done (Ps 42:6). We have to remember, recall and repent (Rev 2:4-5). First and foremost, we should remember God’s character (Deut 8:1-3, 1 Cor 10:6-7). Who God is determines what He does. He will never change; He will never leave us or forsake us. He is utterly faithful and His view of what is right and wrong does not change. In the present, God may seem far away or we may not understand what He is doing, but recalling who He is helps us in the everyday. We are not to lose the proven past in the heat of the moment. Sometimes all we have to hold on to is who God is!

We also need to remember the sovereignty of God. God rules over all the nations. He is in control. He is working for the good of His people. Sometimes, in the busyness of the present and the difficulties of everyday life, we worry, scheme, plot and plan, being like Abraham, wanting to ‘help God out’ at times. We need to remind ourselves of God’s acts in the past, so that we can get the bigger picture of all He is doing. 1 Chron 16:7-13 shows us that David appointed Levites to ‘make known among the nations what God has done.’ We have to remember this and proclaim it to others. God steps into history and acts; He steps into our history and acts! It’s not just a question of being spectators of what God has done. He has done marvellous things on our behalf (see Deut 5:14-15). Moreoever, it is God’s promise which sustains our life (Ps 119:50). We were once alienated from God and cast off, but now He has broken down the dividing wall of hostility and brought us near to God (see Ephesians 2). The photo gallery in our church building is a vivid testimony to all God has done for us. The Open Day in July will be another occasion to remember what God has done for us!

The call to remember the past should not cause us to live in the past, however. We can (to paraphrase Sara Groves’s words) ‘paint pictures of Egypt’, remembering the past with rose-coloured glasses, leaving out certain parts and looking back with nostalgia. We have to live in the present.

At the same time, future hope fuels the fires of the present. Hope aids us in our daily struggles. It gives us a focus for faith. It keeps us going and gives us perspective. Rom 5:1-5 talks about the certainty of hope and Rom 8:23-28 tells us that hope is patient. We also have boldness in hope (2 Cor 3:12). Hope anchors us and fuels us, but we cannot live in the future either. Life will be better then. We yearn for perfection. But hope is like a Sat-Nav, plotting the course for us in the journey to our final destination.

Jesus had joy to fuel Him through the agonies of the cross (Heb 12:1-3). Sometimes, in the present, we have to endure. Things don’t necessarily get better or improve here on earth. Sometimes our own foolishness leads to consequences that are difficult to endure (see Jacob.) Sometimes, the actions of other people cause us heartache and hold us back (see Joseph.) But God is able to redeem everything for His good. Moreover, in the everyday now, God gives us joy (see John 16:20). There is joy even in suffering.

What does God want us to do today, then? First of all, we are called to work and whatever we do, we have to do it wholeheartedly, as unto the Lord. Secondly, we can encourage (Heb 3:15), understanding the significance of encouragement. Finally, we are called to live in the present (James 4:13-15), for today is all we have. We have to receive God’s gift of the present and serve Him now, seeking first the kingdom of God and understanding both the role of the past in shaping us and the future in inspiring us.

Stephen preached from 1 Cor 1:25-31 this morning, focussing especially on vs 25, which seems to have been a recurring theme lately: “for the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.”

He has been working on the suspension of a Mini recently, using the trusted Haynes’ manual to guide him through repairs. The ‘difficulty’ rating of this job was 4, higher than ones he had previously done.

The first side took time, but was completed successfully; when working on the second side, however, it took longer and one of the new parts just would not fit in the right place. No matter what force or strength Stephen used, it would not go into place and it appeared that the job would not be completed.

After much prayer, Stephen reached the conclusion he had come to the end of both his wisdom and strength, but ‘it’s got to be simple’! One part was rotated and hey!presto! the other part clicked into place. Sometimes we don’t have all the answers or all the strength to complete a job. God’s never in that position, however!

God is neither foolish nor weak, but from our human perspective, He can certainly seem so. The things He does and the way in which He works often look foolish to us. Salvation appears foolish to our natural wisdom, but we have to receive His free gift by faith. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross appeared foolish to many, for He chose not to save Himself, but to sacrifice Himself for our sins. We have to learn to see things with spiritual, not natural, eyes.

Verse 25 teaches us:
(1) God often carries out His mightiest plans in ways that seem weak or foolish to us.
(2) God is great. If His ‘lowest’ powers are so much greater than our ‘highest’ ones, He must be great! Our most amazing creations and achievements are nothing compared to God’s. He is the Almighty!