Lent 2010 - Week 3

Image via Wikipedia

This week we continue to look at our choices between wealth, time and God, with a further look at what the Bible has to say on the matter.

Jesus says something we all know, but sometimes find hard to put into practice:

"Then someone called from the crowd, “Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father’s estate with me.”
Jesus replied, “Friend, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that?” Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”

(my italics) Luke 12:13-15

It's hard isn't it? R and I have just got a new TV - he won it through work, and it IS amazing! Should we not be pleased with it? Should we not have it? It depends whether its the TV that matters the most. Jesus goes on to say:

"Then he told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’

“Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

Luke 12:16-21

Jesus doesn't say we can't have wealth, what he does say, is there really isn't much point in any of it if we don't have a rich relationship with God. And everything we have, everything we are, it flows through our relationship with Jesus. Its how the kingdom of heaven enters this world.

Everything belongs to God, everything flows through him. As it says in the Common Worship liturgy:

"Yours, Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the splendour, and the majesty; for everything in heaven and on earth is yours. All things come from you, and of your own do we give you."

And this isn't a concept restricted to the new testament. It is a golden thread through all scripture, that we should put first in our lives a rich relationship with Jesus, on the understanding that everything belongs to him in the first place:

‘I gave you a land on which you had not labored, and cities which you had not built, and you have lived in them; you are eating of vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’

“Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. “If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Joshua 24:13-15

This lent, lets ask ourselves - do we view all that we own as belonging to God? How do our actions reflect that? And, how are we actively growing a rich relationship with God?

Lent 2010 - Week 2

Image by stevendepolo via Flickr

Last week we looked at how Jesus calls us to give to those in need and how we can share the material wealth we have.

This week we turn to look at something more important than the possessions we have - our time. Jesus points out that we can't have two masters, that it will either be God or money:

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money."

Matthew 6:24 (New International Version)

I would like to suggest that it is because we only really have the time to devote our hearts, minds and actions to one - so with two in our lives, resentment creeps in.

And the pull of possessions is very strong on all of us. Just add up how much time you spend watching TV/on the internet/in the cinema each week. Now none of these things are bad, in fact they can be good, if for no other reason than they give you something to talk about with friends and family.

But time is precious and we need to consider what we spend it on.

There are less obvious "masters" to be considered - we all have work to do, whether paid, or in education but finding that "work-life balance" can be difficult. Its hard to take time to consider time when you don't have any. But all the same, if we are truly to be rich and not be a slave to the master consumerism, this issue of our time - needs time.

Because lets face it, TV time, essays at the last minute because we faffed earlier, extra hours in the office for a bit of overtime... they are worth nothing compared to family and friends. And the same goes for our friendship with God - I mean when we think about it in the light of day, which "master" do we really want? Friendship with our ipod or eternal friendship with the King?

Some times it takes a tragedy for us really realise it. It's then that we realise that the things we thought mattered (things which in daily life we might allow to "master" us) are worthless compared to the precious time we have with one another and with God.

This week, why not set aside an hour to consider your time. Figure out where an when you need to do that essential study/work and then book yourself some quality time in with God and with your family and friends. Because Jesus is right, we really can only have one master - and He is without doubt the most compassionate one.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Who do you run to? (dlunatic.wordpress.com)


• Those Who Scatter and The One Who Gathers (Luke 13:31-35) (gatheringinlight.com)


• Prosperity gospel: When Christianity and capitalism go together (network.nationalpost.com)

#1 Growing Faith - Fruit of the Spirit

Image via Wikipedia

If you go to "in the kitchen" on a Monday night, you will have already seen this idea for "Fruit of the Spirit".

This is of course, the nine attributes mentioned in Galatians 5 which God, through his Spirit is growing in our lives. They are good things:

Galatians 5:22-23 (New Living Translation)

^"22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"

While I was away at Sizewell over the half term (a few days for youth workers and their family) the speaker gave this suggestion: List the Fruit of the Spirit and then give yourself a mark out of ten.

Once you have done this, take a look at your marks and ask God which of these nine qualities he would like you to grow in - then commit to just that.

It might be that right now you are struggling with someone, this could be an indicator that God is growing patience in you. Or perhaps you are quick to judge or use harsh words? Maybe God wants to grow gentleness and kindness in you.

You get the idea.

Remember, this is the fruit of Gods work in our lives - we can't achieve this on our own! This means you need to find a way to connect to God in your life - when is a good time for you to pray? Are there people you could pray with? When do you read the Bible and how? What might help you with it?

I will be looking at some of these questions here on the youth worker blog and you will be able to find them under the label "Growing Faith"

Why not score yourself today, and look at it again at the beginning of the summer holidays? I also suggest you keep a few notes as you go along about how you are doing in your chosen fruit.

May we all grow to be more like Jesus.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Hs 01 By Their Fruits (slideshare.net)
• Quotables for 2/18/10 (justanotherclaypot.blogspot.com)
• February Edition of Pop Goes the Gospel (eagleviews.org)

Lent 2010 - week 1

Image via Wikipedia

This year's theme for lent from this corner of the blogosphere, is "giving up consumerism".

Now before you think of lentils and living in a tent, I'm aiming for more of a practical angle. We hear and read so much about reducing our carbon footprint, buying fair trade, giving to those in need. Jesus had plenty to say about that:

" When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you."

Matthew 6:2-4 (New Living Translation)

Interesting how Jesus says "when" you give to someone in need not "if". Now we all have finite resources. Some of us are too young or don't have the time because of school work, to have a job. So how can we give?

What is true of the world stage, is true of our personal lives. If we wish to see others have more, we need to have less. Whether that is less "carbon" or less cash. It might mean we have to cut down on our carbon footprint, or it might mean buying less clothes so we can afford fair trade ones.

As John the baptist said:

"The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same." Luke 3:11 (New International Version)

And in our country, there are not many people with only "one coat". It doesn't matter how old you are, it doesn't matter how much money you have - in fact cutting down on the amount of "stuff" you consume saves you money.

Love clothes? Buy second hand. In charge of the electricity bill? Swap to Ecotricity.

As we approach lent, why not do the traditional thing, and give something up? See whether is really is so bad to do without bottled water and make to with tap.

Over the next few weeks I will be continuing to look at what it means to give up consumerism and consume, our fair share of the resources - so that we too can learn to give in the quiet - God is the only one who sees it - way that Jesus suggests.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Food waste to provide green gas for carbon-conscious consumers (guardian.co.uk)


• Take a Bite Out of Your Carbon Footprint (treehugger.com)


• Instant coffee 'more environmentally friendly' (telegraph.co.uk)

The Fusioneer

Well its time to put into action something I have been meaning to do for ages - start a Fusion316 magazine. The idea is it will be online and also have a small print amount each month (not including the video/audio content obviously).

I want you to write about what interests you/bugs you/ gets you motivated...
you can write about pretty much anything, but here's some more info:

What is The Fusioneer?
It is the monthly magazine for Fusion3:16 run by the young people and youth workers. It is online and in print (you can ask the Fusion3:16 youth worker for a copy).
Can I volunteer to help run the Fusioneer?
If you are a regular attendant of something Fusion3:16 runs, or an older young person we still regularly keep up with... yes. We need people to help choose monthly content and write regular feature articles.
What Can I Submit to the Fusioneer and how? You can submit articles, short stories (up to 2500 words), poetry, art work (remember it will be in black and white in the printed version), video and audio - online version only! You need to email your submission to the Fusion3:16 youth worker by the 20th of the month. You can submit a one off article, or become a feature writer, where you write an article each month.

Topics for the magazine at the moment are:
World news
Local news
Fusion3:16 news
Poetry
Short Stories
Bible (write about your favorite passage)
Life (and how you see it or an article on an aspect of life that interests you)
Faith (what does it mean to be a young Christian right now?)
Artwork
Video/Audio

New year, new start

It's always a dilemma whether to make new years resolutions or not.

On one hand, its just a gimmick and no one ever keeps them anyway, but on the other hand, its a great opportunity for a new start, to do things we have been meaning to do.

To grasp life with both hands, all over again.

So what to resolve? If you are looking for something to help grow your relationship with God, how about a new Bible reading plan? YouVersion has a variety of reading plans and you can even get an app for your mobile if you want to read it on the go.

And if you want to do more than just read, the web site allows you to contribute your thoughts on your choice of verses, and you can follow other people too! You can even tweet your verses.

Or perhaps you might like to do something practical? How about something from the Living Lightly web pages? I have of course, mentioned this site before, but if you are wanting a fresh eco start, its the place to go.

And if you want to think more about this subject but don't know where to start, how about coming to the Cinematecus film night on February 26th? Its 7.30 to 9.30/10pm: We will watch the film "the age of stupid" followed by 15 minute first reactions discussion, 15 minutes to look at take action resources and the optional extra half hour for discussion.

You can see the details in my calendar on the blog.

Whatever you choose to do, I hope this year is one full of new opportunities and an ever deepening relationship with God -

Happy New Year!