Trusting our minds...

This evening on abcNEWS Nightline in the States there will be a screening of a debate that took place at Mars Hill Church in Seattle on the topic: Does Satan Exist? Contending that Satan does exist was/will be Mark Driscoll, teaching pastor at Mars Hill, and Annie Lobert, founder of "Hookers for Jesus" and former prostitute herself. Arguing against the existence of Satan was Deepak Chopra, philosopher-come-self-help-guru, and Bishop Carlton Pearson, a former "fundamentalist" who has embraced an "inclusive" gospel.

I'd encourage you to watch the debate - I wouldn't encourage you to use the abcNEWS media player as it's terrible, so if you can figure out how to download the video then that's well worth the effort, if you can't figure it out then endure it anyway! Toward the end Driscoll asked Chopra why he so implicitly trusted his own mind if it was just the result of evolution. The question reminded me of C.S. Lewis' statement:

"If the solar system was brought about by an accidental collision, then the appearance of organic life on this planet was also an accident, and the whole evolution of Man was an accident too. If so, then all our present thoughts are mere accidents - the accidental by-product of the movement of atoms. And this holds for the thoughts of the materialists and astronomers as well as for anyone else's. But if their thoughts - i.e., Materialism and Astronomy - are mere accidental by-products, why should we believe them to be true? I see no reason for believing that one accident should be able to give me a correct account of all the other accidents. It's like expecting the accidental shape taken by the splash when you upset a milk-jug should give you a correct account of how the jug was made and why it was upset."

Chopra's response was to say that he didn't trust his mind, but that he trusted his "spirit", which still begs the question as to why he sees fit to trust his "spirit". The question is still left irritatingly unanswered!

Driscoll concluded with reading from 1 John 5:19 onward:

"We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life."

I'll conclude with that too!

God bless.

Dear Freedom

Today you can know that you are loved...

I'm just finishing up preparing this talk on whether Christians make better lovers. I've been listening to and quoting Ben Gibbard's (front man for Death Cab for Cutie) song "Someday You Will Be Loved". You can listen to the song on Spotify, it's from Death Cab's album "Plans". The song makes me grieve for our culture, for those abused and abusing day in, day out because our unwillingness to submit our lives, and particularly our sexuality, to the Lordship of Christ. The final verse should be a call to evangelism and reminds me of what we read in Romans 10:14.

"How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?"

"But I know your heart belongs to someone you've yet to meet" Their hearts belong to Jesus. Please read and weep with me.

"I once knew a girl
In the years of my youth
With eyes like the summer
All beauty and truth
In the morning I fled
Left a note and it read
Someday you will be loved.

I cannot pretend that I felt any regret
Cause each broken heart will eventually mend
As the blood runs red down the needle and thread
Someday you will be loved.

You'll be loved you'll be loved
Like you never have known
The memories of me
Will seem more like bad dreams
Just a series of blurs
Like I never occurred
Someday you will be loved.

You may feel alone when you're falling asleep
And everytime tears roll down your cheeks
But I know your heart belongs to someone you've yet to meet
Someday you will be loved."

God bless.

Dear Freedom

Scratching the surface...

It's ironic, but the shorter a talk is then the more difficult it is to write. Learning the art of writing, fashioning and delivering a ten minute talk is a difficult thing to do, let alone master! I'm currently trying to write a "meal-with-a-message" style talk on the question "Do Christians make better lovers?" I have eight to ten minutes to create an environment of trust in which questions of sex, relationships, love, sexuality and the like can be discussed in a productive way and one in which the gospel can shine as a light in a dark place. We find this subject to be particularly sensitive, personal and private and this makes the task all the harder...

Anyway... I should stop procrastinating!

God bless.

Dear Freedom

Smashing Idols

Why did Jonah run? (if you think it was out of fear, like I did, then you need this all the more!)

Why do we run? Where do we run? How do we run?

Can I thoroughly recommend to you Tim Keller's talks that he did at the Evangelist Conference in 2007. You can find the talks here.

"The expulsive replacement: rejoicing in Jesus in the face of your own idols."

God bless.

Dear Freedom

Theology --> Lifestyle

I read this with a student recently:

"And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God." (Colossians 1:9-10)

Theology is a word about God. Good theology will result in a good and God-honouring lifestyle. Bad theology...

God bless.

Dear Freedom

This week at Number 1…

At number one in the BBC Radio 1 singles chart is Flo Rida featuring Kesha singing “Right Round”. You can listen to it on Spotify and read the lyrics here.

The song is made up of a dialogue between Flo Rida and Kesha. The basic gist of the song is repeated in the title and the corus with:

“You spin my head right round, right round
When you go down, when you go down down”

The song is loaded with sexual innuendo and extols the virtues of girls, bling and beautiful bodies. The implication is that if you have enough money you can buy whatever you like, whether it’s material possessions or women. Flo Rida is very clear that he knows what he loves by how he spends his money: “My money love her like a numba one fan” and he goes onto sing that:

“From the top of the pole I watch her go down
She got me throwin my money around
Ain’t nothin more beautiful to be found
It’s goin down down”

So, what is there to commend in this song? Well, Flo Rida is very strong on his understanding that sex, beauty and relationship are good things; he shows us very clearly that our finances betray our hearts and he is very willing to put his mouth where his money is and vice versa! I wonder how Flo Rida would respond to Jesus when he says:

“Everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.” (Matthew 5:28-29)

Sadly though Flo Rida has taken what is a good thing and made it a “god” thing. This song does not encourage us to view women as humans made in the image of God, but as objects to be manipulated and possessed – literally bought! When Adam met Eve he sang her a song. He sang:

“This at last is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
because she was taken out of Man.” (Genesis 2:23)

The commentator Matthew Henry says of the creation of woman:

“That the woman was made of a rib out of the side of Adam; not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be beloved.”

We must ensure that we treasure all of mankind, both male and female, as made in the image of God and not persons for us to objectify, manipulate or possess in any way.

As we, and those around us, hear this song we might like to consider some questions to ask of it:

• Does the song put men and women on an equal footing as one another?

• Is it right for radio stations and artists to promote the objectifying of women?

• There’s a very strong view of the beauty of the human body and of sexuality, but what would a society be like if all the males acted like Flo Rida seeks to?

• Finally, we might like to ask the question the Jesus poses to all of us in Mark 8:36 when he asks “…what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”

For some helpful thoughts about Christianity, Christians and sex you might like to consider Mark Driscoll's series on Song of Songs, which can be found here.

God bless.

Dear Freedom

Engaging without paying...

For the last year or so I've been trying to figure out how to engage with the charts. I don't generally feel that listening to Radio 1's chart show is an abundantly good use of my time, particularly because it is so strung out. I also miss a lot of the lyrics and so it can often be a totally fruitless exercise! Whilst I enjoy radio I do find it frustrating that you don't get to choose what to listen to and when... I've also tried reading the lyrics of songs that do well in the charts and thinking through them that way, but then music is made to be music and to be listened to and not read... So, my conundrum was how can I listen to some of the music that our world is listening to at a time that is convenient for me, where I can listen over and over again by my own determining, that won't cost me money to download tracks and CDs and that is still legal?!

And along came Spotify.

If you don't use Spotify already then go over there now, download the program (it works on both PC and Mac - what more could you want!) and start listening. It's free, with a 30 second advert every 20 minutes, and you can listen to more or less anything whenever you like. It is legal, most of the major record labels have signed up to the service and around ten-thousand new tracks are being added every day.

Christians need to be seeking to read, listen to and engage with today's poets, musicians, and singer-songwriters and this is a fantastic resource to take advantage of...

God bless.

Dear Freedom

TUoS FREE Events Week 5

The final post from Carrie and Nathan the former evangelism secretaries for Sheffield CU.

Friday - 9.15pm

So here we are, our last event of the week has finished and the current exec have quite literally collapsed into a heap!

The sports quiz last night was a great time – we had a good number of people there, great fun was had by all and Graham gave a short but concise talk on Jesus calming the storm, asking everyone who they say Jesus is. Elsewhere CU members put on dialogue dinners - inviting their friends for dinner and to hear a testimony or short talk. The responses to these of course were mixed but praise God that people were bold enough to take the gospel to their friends.

Today we had our last lunchbar and evening talk. The lunchbar was called ‘Religious truth? Or just different personal paths to God?” Graham as ever spoke gently but respectfully, challenging the guests to investigate the claims of the Bible for themselves.

This evening we had two events running. In Coffee Revolution at the union Graham spoke on Jesus’ death and challenged people on the choice they had to make about who he was. There were fewer people than the last evening event but be praying that the people there have gone away challenged by what they heard and willing to keep thinking about the relevance for them. At the same time, International Café was hosting an international food evening at a local church. This gave an opportunity for international students to come and hear the gospel whilst enjoying tasty treats from around the world. There were a few of the regulars along with a few new faces, the gospel was proclaimed clearly, relationships were built on and good conversations were had.

It’s been a really exciting week, we’ve seen a great enthusiasm for mission from the CU members and some brilliant conversations had and relationships built up. It may be the end of the week but it’s really just the beginning. Please be praying that CU members don’t see this as the end of their ‘mission’ but will continue to be stepping out of their comfort zones and be living and speaking for Jesus continually, making evangelism a lifestyle rather than an event. We have the follow up course starting up on Tuesday, which will be a great opportunity for people to come, find out more and ask their questions. Pray that people will want to find out more and will have their lives transformed by the gospel.

TUoS FREE Events Week 4

There's an update from Pete Dray, the Northumbria events week speaker, on how things are going up here. He says:

"Please do keep praying for the Free outreach here. It's been quite a struggle over recent days - there are a small number of committed CU members, but pray that more get involved over the next couple of days. I'm speaking on Mark 7 tonight at a pub quiz, and then Mark 8 tomorrow night. Pray that there's something of a gathering of momentum, and that we see some of the same faces coming back."

From Nathan and Carrie in Sheffield:

Thursday - 16.30pm

Tiredness is beginning to bite for a lot of us today! But we are still really encouraged by everything that is going on and the stories we are hearing. Last night's event was a talk on 'FREE from religion' in a cafe in the Students' Union which was a great venue, contributing to a nice, informal atmosphere. Graham Daniels spoke well again and there were more non christians to hear the gospel. Continue to praise God that people are coming back to hear more and pray for both those who have been there along with those who aren't but need to be!

Its still really exciting to see the CU members behind events week so much with lots of them turning up again at 8.30 to get the day started with Bible and prayer. Another lunchbar today, on 'the Bible: an ancient book, untrustworthy and full of mistakes?'. A brilliant turnout, Graham was clear, gracious and challenging in his talk leaving people with plenty to think about. Be praying for the converstations that are continuing throughout the week, that we will be gentle and respectful in our answers.

Tonight is the CIS sports quiz being held in a local Indian restaurant. Be praying for people involved in Uni sports teams as they encourage their team mates to come along and for the CIS guys as they run it. For the non-sporty among the CU tonight is a chance for them to get together with their mates, have dinner and share a bit more of what they believe so be praying for opportunitites and boldness.

One day to go...

TUoS FREE Events Week 3

Wednesday - 16.40pm

Things feel like they're starting to go off here! There are so many reasons to be encouraged and praise God I'm not sure where to begin. One of the first things that come to mind is that Carrie and I as organisers are finding ourselves with time on our hands! The CU are all chipping in to help out and so everything that needs to be done gets done usually without us having to say anything. This means the we are more free to get involved with our own personal evangelism as well as our course work!

Last night Graham spoke on 'FREE to be honest' to a considerably smaller audience compared to the lunchbars, but these talks are aimed at people who are seeking in a much more meaningful way and the fact that 5 or 6 people heard the gospel explained clearly and personally from Mark's gospel is a reason to praise God. Please pray for the rest of the evening events, for those who come along and for Graham as he speaks.

Today's lunch bar was on 'Heaven: isn't trying my best enough to get me there?' Graham spoke very clearly and challenged people about their perceptions of what happens when we die. The questions were much more genuine from people who seemed to be truth seeking rather than arguing and conversations lasted well into the afternoon. Praise God for answered prayer! It has also been deeply encouraging to hear of people who have been meeting up with their friends and new acquaintances to discuss the talks afterwards. This is the epitome of what these events are designed to lead to so praise the Lord that that is what is happening!

I (Nathan) also had some encouraging chat with some of my hockey team mates after the match today (6-2 loss to York Uni 2nds - ouch!) and was able invite some of them to the Christians in Sport sports quiz tomorrow night - including one or two who I would have never thought would come! Please pray for the quiz that friends and team mates would come and hear the gospel. Also tomorrow night, CU members will be putting on 'dialogue dinners' which involve them inviting their friends for dinner and to hear a testimony or short talk. Please pray for those engaging in this more informal but still potentially scary evangelism and for the friends who come along.

TUoS FREE Events Week 2

Tuesday - 5.50pm

Our first evening event last night was something special. Wokmania was packed, the queues were immense and Graham delivered the gospel to around 120 non-Christians. It was a really encouraging evening and has led to more invites to events as well as friends meeting up for coffee to talk more about this Jesus thing! Praise God that we were able to put on such a big event, that so many heard the gospel and that for some at least it was not just a one night thing. Please pray also for those that were there that God would bring them back for more and keep the conversations flowing!

This morning as I walked around the union I was hugely encouraged by what was going on. Outside the union I saw CU members all over the place both handing out flyers and in conversation with people over questionnaires, at times in the cold and the rain. I also found myself not needing to organise a lot of things because they were already taken care of! It was hugely encouraging, even humbling to see everyone pulling together to see the gospel proclaimed. Praise God for the enthusiasm and efforts of the CU and pray that everyone would be similarly encouraged, especially when met with apathy and opposition by their friends, coursemates and others they talk to.

Today our lunchbar was on 'Has Science Killed God?' Ed Pennington from Christ Church, Fulwood spoke very well to a room of about 90-100 people (approx 50 non-Christians). There were questions afterwards, some which seem to be from people with an agenda who are less interested in searching for the truth than engaging in argument. This is of course not a new concept but please pray for both those who are so blind to the gospel of grace and also those who are genuinely seeking but may be put off by a hostile atmosphere. Whilst also praising God for the numbers of people who are coming and the clarity with which God's truth is being spoken.

TUoS FREE Events Week 1

This week Carrie and Nathan, the evangelism secretaries from the University of Sheffield Christian Union, will be "guest-blogging" on the goings on there so that you can pray for the week of events that they are putting on there. Here's their first post:

Monday - 5.15pm

So it's finally here! After months of planning, our events week is suddenly in full flow. We have had a hectic first day which began at 8.30 this morning with a team meeting and then a prayer meeting. We had good turn out with about 50 people which was quite a surprise and meant we had to spill out of the meeting room we had booked into the common area. Fortunately the cleaners didn't mind us blocking their way!

We spent the morning on the concourse outside the Student's Union main building with a stall where our CU Guests (CUGs) gave out tea, coffee and hot chocolate and CU members got involved with flyering and questionnaires. Its was fantastic to see so many getting into conversations with other students and inviting them to our lunchbar. Praise God that so many of the CU are passionate enough about the gospel to offer it to complete strangers!

The lunchbar today was called 'Suffering: Doesn't it prove that God is either powerless or heartless?' Graham Daniels spoke to a room of about 60 including 30 or 40 non christians and received a round of applause both before and afterwards! There were several sincere and respectful comments and questions and I for one was encouraged by the atmosphere. Praise God for the chance to broach a subject like this and pray for those who were present, that they would be thinking about what Graham spoke on, along with what they themselves believe and that they would come back to hear more!

We are currently preparing for our first evening event tonight at Wokmania, a local chinese all you can eat buffet. We have booked the whole restaurant out and have sold almost 190 tickets and are still getting requests for more. Graham will do a short talk called 'FREE from guilt' and we will use the event as an introduction to the rest of the week. Praise God that we have been able to sell so many tickets, that so many non-christians will be there and pray that God would speak through Graham to the people who hear him.

We thank God that there are so many supporting us in prayer - it is truly humbling to think of how many more people are a part of this events week than those who are here!

Blog update...

Apologies for my absence the last couple of weeks. I've been recuperating after the Newcastle Events Week as well as taking some time to catch up on reading and the like. I'm aware that I still owe the final roundup post for the Newcastle Events week as well as some photos, which I now do have! I'll try to get round to putting those up for the beginning of next week.

This week I've given over my blog to Carrie and Nathan. Please do be praying for The University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University as they hold their events weeks and particularly for Graham Daniels and the Christians in Sport team as they speak and spend time with the students.

This week is also the Northumbria University (in Newcastle) CU events week that I'm helping out at. Please do be praying for the CU members here; that they would have courage to be inviting along their friends, that they would take the opportunity afforded to them this week and that they would support their fellow CU members by helping out at the stall and around the campus. Pete Dray is here with us this week doing the talks and he will be updating his blog with the goings on and how you can particularly pray for him.

God bless.

Dear Freedom