Whenever we’re near a river or a beach, Garry likes to throw pebbles into the water, skimming them with skill so that the water ripples out as the pebble hits it. My efforts to emulate him never end in ripples; my pebbles tend to hit the water with a thud or plop and sink to the bottom without trace; not for me the pleasure of seeing the pebble skim lightly on or the water rippling out!

The ripple effect is defined as ‘the continuing and spreading results of an event or action.’ The healing of the cripple described in Acts 3 was like a pebble being thrown into water; it created ripples all around. Some of these were positive (2000 people being added to the church); some less favourable (an overnight stay in prison for Peter and John and a subsequent interrogation by the religious rulers resulting in being instructed not to speak in the name of Jesus again!) In all of this, however, we see how God can use one relatively small thing to have an impact that is far greater than we could ever have anticipated.

The gifts of God’s Spirit, including healings, are often used by God to do far more than we would expect. Healings are amazing and marvellous, but the work of God’s Spirit in an individual’s life is often the catalyst to bringing other people to faith and aiding the spread of the gospel message. It has an effect far beyond the personal, incredible and liberating though this is for the individual concerned. This applies to all those supernatural gifts Garry was talking about last week and is another reason we need to pray for these gifts to be seen in our time and in our church, because it’s not simply about one person being blessed and helped. As we see God move in power – whether that’s through a word of knowledge or wisdom or through a manifestation of God’s miraculous power or healing, through other languages or prophecy – our own faith increases and we are enabled to talk about what God has done to others who can visibly see God in action.

The ‘ripple effect’ doesn’t just apply to the miraculous, however. God always takes our small offerings and turns them into something bigger. The little boy’s lunch fed more than 5000 people. The widow’s jug of oil lasted far beyond one batch of loaves. When we do something in God’s name, however small and insignificant the act may look to others, it has the capacity to create a ‘ripple effect’, touching other people and drawing them closer to God. These things are often described as ‘acts of random kindness’, and certainly we should be seeking to demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit (including kindness, gentleness and goodness) to others as well as seeking God for the gifts of the Spirit. Everything we do has the power to touch others: let’s ensure we’re blessing and building others up in all we do and say.

The phrase ‘Sovereign Lord’ (from which we get our word ‘despot’, a ruler with absolute power) is not used very much in the New Testament, but it’s a reminder that God is in supreme control and cannot be thwarted by man’s scheming and plotting. Jeremiah says, ‘Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you’ (Jer 32:17) and the apostles, soaked in the Old Testament, pray to God in the assurance that He is firmly in control. No matter how much Herod and Pilate have schemed against Jesus, ‘they did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.’ (Acts 4:28) The machinations and plots of rulers and kings against the Lord’s Anointed One (see Ps 2) have a very special relevance to the believers as people try to restrain their confident witness, but these believers have absolute trust in God as Lord over all.

Hezekiah, when faced with a great threat from an opposing army led by Sennacherib, king of Assyria, prayed with similar confidence in God’s sovereignty: ‘Lord, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Give ear, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see; listen to the words Sennacherib has sent to ridicule the living God.’ (2 Kings 19:15-16) Bolstered by Isaiah’s prophecy, he saw thousands slaughtered without having to lift a hand: ‘That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there. One day, while he was worshipping in the temple of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son succeeded him as king.’ (2 Kings 19:35-37) God has ways of resolving situations that threaten us which we cannot even begin to comprehend.

Jesus reminded His disciples, ‘with God all things are possible.’ (Matt 19:26) The Sovereign Lord is our God!

Acts 4:23-31 gives us an indication of what happened next after the authorities threatened the apostles following the healing of the crippled man at the temple gates. Far from being cowed or terrified by the threats, the apostles gathered together with other believers and prayed, not for deliverance or escape from persecution but for the ability to continue witnessing boldly.

This confident response (so at variance with their fear and trembling following the crucifixion of Jesus) reflected their growing conviction that God was in control. In their prayers, they addressed Him as ‘Sovereign Lord’, acknowledging His role as creator and sustainer of the universe. Human opposition was seen as futile and fruitless; their reference again to Old Testament Scripture (Ps 2) showed that no matter what plotting and scheming exists against God’s Anointed One, it will not prevail.

If we are to live confident, courageous lives, witnessing for God in the face of opposition and persecution, we need to examine our view of God. Matt Redman says, “A big view of God is a cure for so many of the things in life that would stand in our way or slow us down in ministry. When we really grasp the heights of who He is, and the depths of His heart for us, and the strength of His power in us, we can live a whole different kind of life. The way we view God will radically affect how our lives operate… We must see and believe Him as big enough, kind enough, real enough and strong enough to move in power in our everyday lives – no matter what we’re facing. The first step for a worshipper is to confidently get to grips with just how magnificent and mighty He is. The next step is to let that confidence in God seep into the very depths of our hearts and minds, forming a holy confidence on the inside of us. When that truly happens, we will dream bigger dreams and live brighter lives.”

It’s crucially important that prayer starts with our eyes on God and not on the problem. The believers focussed on God’s authority, power and strength before they moved on to their situation and their petitions. So often, we plunge right into prayer, listing our woes and laments, but if we consider the framework of the Lord’s Prayer (Jesus’ ‘model prayer’ for us), this too begins with an awareness of who God is and an adoring response to this awareness: ‘our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.’ (Matt 6:9) Perhaps one reason we question whether God hears and answers our prayers (quite unlike these disciples whose prayers led to the room being shaken and them all being filled with the Holy Spirit and continuing to speak the word of God boldly!) is because we’re not praying from this same conviction that God is in control. When we truly see how big, magnificent and mighty God is, we will pray confidently and expectantly, certain of God’s goodness and ability to turn even disasters into dreams and tragedies into triumphs.

We had another fantastic day with 4FrontTheatre yesterday at Lacewood Primary School and Carrfield Primary School in Bolton-on-Dearne. Our thanks to both schools for allowing us to bring this show to about 600 local primary school children.

‘Fisherman’s Tail’ tells the story of Simon, Andrew, James and John, ordinary fishermen working on the Sea of Galilee whose lives are transformed by Jesus: They are used to fishermen’s tall tales, but the tale of how Jesus transforms their lives is no tall story!

The scene is set with a rousing song introduction and then the four fishermen have a competition to see who can catch a ‘netbreaker’:

They catch nothing until Jesus comes along, and then they catch more than they had anticipated!

Jesus calls them to become ‘fishers of men’ and their adventures with him transform them. In the musical, Jesus is represented by the life ring (powerful symbolism reminding us of Jesus’ mission to save and rescue us.)

They sing an amazing song describing the parables, miracles, deliverance ministry and teaching of Jesus and also describe the times that Jesus stilled the storm and walked on water:

They go on to describe Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and the opposition from religious leaders which led to His crucifixion. Peter’s denial is dealt with powerfully, as is the whole crucifixion scene. Peter sings mournfully about Jesus’s death as a martyr, ending with the plaintive question, ‘But what about us?’

The heavy emotion of the crucifixion soon turns to light-hearted comedy with the scenes describing the resurrection as told by Mary’s encounter with two angels. Having men play a woman is a standard pantomime feature, and the audience enjoyed voting for which of the four disciples would play Jesus (for the record, James and John, burly men with beards, performed this role twice, with Simon Peter, a lanky 6’4″ lad, having the last go!) These scenes were among the funniest in the show, with the angels’ song reflecting on the standard response of shock and awe when meeting angels (‘the aura divine’) and on Mary’s tears and joy as she meets Jesus.

The show goes on to describe various post-resurrection appearances of Jesus to the disciples (including to Thomas and, inevitably, the fishing scene described in John 21 and the restitution of Peter).

As they reach the end (‘tail’) of the tale, all four disciples reaffirm their love for Jesus and remind us that Jesus is sitll calling followers who will love him today.

We’ve had a wonderful day with the amazing team from 4FrontTheatre who have performed their show ‘Fisherman’s Tail’ three times – once at the Hill Primary School this morning, once for pupils of Gooseacre Primary School this afternoon and once for a public show this evening at St Helen’s Church Hall.

The team of four men worked their socks off carrying props to and fro and leaping around the stage in oilskins! They played the roles of Simon and Andrew, James and John, fishermen called by Jesus to be ‘fishers of men’ in a show which told the life story of Jesus in breathtaking detail. Songs looked at his life and ministry, from the parables to the miracles to his deliverance ministry and Messianic claims and also dealt with the crucifixion and resurrection in a simple but powerful way. The show contains enough slapstick and humour to keep the children giggling, but there is also pathos and seriousness when dealing with denial and death. The scenes when the angels tell Mary the news that Jesus is alive are probably amongst the funniest in the show; I’ve never seen it told from the angels’ point of view quite like this!

The four fishermen:

Slapstick comedy:

The fishermen in their boat, called to follow Jesus (represented by the lifebuoy… after all, Jesus saves!)

Fishermen facing a stormy sea:

Peter’s denial of Jesus:

‘John’ playing ‘Mary’ when the angels appear to her after the resurrection:

Jesus appearing to Mary after the resurrection:

Doubting Thomas feels the evidence for himself:

The finale:

Our thanks to both Primary schools in Thurnscoe for their support of the event and to St Helen’s for allowing us the use of their church hall today. We can’t wait for tomorrow’s shows at Lacewood Primary School and Carrfield Primary School in Bolton-on-Dearne.

There are two key words burning in my heart at present.

The first is ‘synergy.’ This word was brought to me by a minister at the start of Garry’s and my ministry as leaders of GPCC. ‘Synergy’ means ‘the interaction or cooperation of two or more organisations to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects.‘ I feel the interation and cooperation of local churches in our ‘Dearne Churches Together‘ network is producing something far greater than any of us could achieve individually. Moreover, our interaction and cooperation with 4FrontTheatre (who will be in our area once again today and tomorrow) is, I believe, enabling us to reach children in our community in a greater way than we could ever hope to achieve on our own. I am thrilled to be able to partner with this Christian theatre company, to support their talented team and to give local children the opportunity to hear the gospel message in such an entertaining and thought-provoking manner.

The second word which God has laid on my heart lately is ‘seminal’, which means ‘of essential importance’ or ‘strongly influencing later developments’. This word came to me a few weeks ago as I was proofreading the first draft of my former boss’s doctoral thesis. I felt his words on fundamental British values in education will prove to be prophetic and will strongly influence later developments in the education system in the UK. As I have been pondering this word, however, I feel that God is saying that what we all do now as Christians serving God in our communities and in our generation is seminal. Nicky Gumbel (Bible In One Year, 25 June 2019), says that prayer ‘can change the course of events’, citing David’s impact on the nation of Israel long after his death (see 1 Kings 15:4-6) For David’s sake, God preserved his line and raised up a king to succeed him (Abijah) and by making Jerusalem strong. (1 Kings 15:4) God had promised David an enduring kingdom (2 Sam 7:16) and David prayed for the fulfilment of this promise (2 Sam 7:25-26). Later in the book of Kings, we see how God kept this promise and how David’s prayers were seminal, strongly influencing later developments.

I believe what is happening in the Dearne currently reflects these two words, ‘synergy’ and ‘seminal’. Please pray for the outreach at the Hill school and Gooseacre in Thurnscoe and Lacewood and Carrfield schools in Bolton-on-Dearne this week and for the community performance of ‘Fisherman’s Tail’ this evening at St Helen’s Church Hall, where about 100 people are expected to be present. Pray for a harvest now, but also pray for the future impact of this outreach in our communities, that as the name of Jesus is lifted high now, there will be an ongoing impact throughout history because of our witness and prayers today.