Our Father!

On Sunday 19th June we had an hour long family service for Father's Day. Tizz, our youth worker, spoke on 'Our Father! Can faith help us here?' As we believe fatherhood is important, especially as 'absent fathers' and 'justice for fathers' are current issues, we sought to underline its importance with a service having a mixture of hymns, modern worship songs, games for children, drama, prayers, an inspiring message on 'Our Father' around the Lord's Prayer from father of two, Tizz, and a surprise give away at the end of the service for dads and lads - Yorkie bars - but not for girls! (They get daffodils on Mother's Day!).

The Cost of Pentecostal Fire

One of my mission friends Fouad Kahwagi said this yesterday : "No church planting movement has ever been observed yet where extraordinary prayer was not a key ingredient". This is a personal observation, as is mine here. I am in a church where people want 'revival' and I am sure some are praying hard for it. But how many will it take? How many will pray the price? I don't know. I look at my own life and ask, 'do I pray enough?' Fire is often associated with Pentecost - with what seemed to be tongues of fire that rested on the disciples in the upper room nearly 2000 years ago after Jesus had ascended into heaven. Fire spreads as we know only too well this week after the heath fires in Dorset. Stephen Jeffreys was a great British evangelist and older brother to the eloquent George Jeffreys. Converted during the Welsh Revival that began in 1904, Stephen began his ministry at Cwmtwrch near Swansea in 1912. A further visit that year in December extended to a seven-week mission reaping 130 converts from the small village. Thus began a dramatic ministry as a full-time itinerant evangelist which reaped thousands of souls and was confirmed by signs and wonders wherever he went. Scores of young men caught the heavenly breeze and began to pioneer new works for God during this time of visitation. Outstanding miracles of healing occurred and a constant flow of converts were won to Christ. "One of the most far-reaching effects of his ministry was the way he seemed to trigger off so many others to follow suit, and the whole character of the British Pentecostal Movement changed." (Donald Gee). May the heavenly breeze take the fire of the Holy Spirit and bring salvation more and more to the churches in the Meon Valley. But will we pray for the wind to blow?

Pray

Travelling the road less travelled

I met Colin at our church in Hampshire today. He paid a visit whilst our Toddler group was in church and our ladies treated him kindly. I came up to church and met him. We had a good chat and he twice refused my offer to buy him lunch! He spoke very highly of a Baptist pastor called Simon in Devon, and his wife. He had two books with him, one on scientist John Harrison (Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time) by Dava Sobel and the other a compendium 'Philosophy As It Is'. He sang a few lines of Bob Dylan to me! He gave his account of how he came to be on the road six years ago and how the pastor and his wife played a part in helping him in Exeter I think it was. He allowed me to take a photograph of him as I was a photographer before I came here. He was glad to be on the road as it saved him from the demon drink - all after he was set upon and near beaten to death. You never know who you might meet next.