Look for the Light- Look, See, Pray

I’m trying to teach myself the skill of seeing the signs of light and life in an unsettled world.

My photo is of bamboo- which can be VERY destructive if it gets its roots deep enough- and my eye was fixated by the one highlighted strip. The intensity of the light overexposed this strip: the camera couldn’t handle the contrast, so all the colour has bleached out leaving stems and leaves a silvery white. If you look closely, you can see some of these parts glow as they reflect glare which made the lens “flare.”

Bamboo, certainly many of the common varieties, can grow with extraordinary speed. Several inches in a day. Stems and shoots can force through soil, rock, or concrete: it can ruin the foundations of a building, or grow up through solid floors. At which point, it’s too late even to panic!

Bad governance, sometimes careless and sometimes evil, grows like bamboo. Ambition, greed and a lust for power afflict many of those who rise to prominence via wealth or political manipulation. It seems to me this process is clearly at work in the “great super-powers” and in many autocratic states.

Such darkness is not inevitable. The Berlin Wall was brought crashing down by people demanding liberty: Poland and the Czech/Slovak people shone a bright light of hope.

Putin will, one day, die. So will Trump. So will we all. Some of those deaths will make the world a better place for their passing! But ONE death makes the Light shine through Resurrection. Jesus, who was crucified by the “Establishment” of religion and Empire, inaugurated a new Kingdom of hope, of Love, grace, compassion, mercy, and justice: raised from death, Jesus reigns as Lord of all lords and will one day be acknowledged by all. Commoners, lords and ladies, rich and poor…

So if you see darkness growing in leaders, nations, and societies that do not show the values of the Kingdom of Jesus, don’t despair. Their day will pass. The Day of Jesus will never pass away. We see this Light in the actions of love and kindness, of bravery and boldness for the good, and in the transformed lives of those who are becoming like Jesus day by day. The light glows brighter against gathering darkness- and the darkness neither understands nor can overcome the Light of the World.

Please pray for leaders: not in blind approval of their actions, but that they be accountable to both God and the people they rule. Pray for any “outburst of light” you see, pray that Christ brings His Light into every dark place.

The Early Church often greeted each other with “Maranatha” which means “Come, O Lord.” It’s a word in need of more use…

Revelation 22:20 (NLT): “He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon!’ Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!”.

Why Do I Climb? – Look, See, Pray

It’s a photo of an old smuggler’s route in the Pyrenees. A steep climb up from the valley leading to a magnificent view. Stunning!

Much social energy and ambition is poured into “being a success” or attaining “celebrity status.” It is the equivalent of climbing a mountain to be seen, to be able to boast. As David McCullough Jr pointed out, it is better to “Climb mountains, not so the world can see you, but so you can see the world.”

(By the way, getting to the mountain top by using the chairlift doesn’t entitle a name change to “Edmund Hillary”…)

Standing over such a panorama as this changes our inner perspective. At least, it should do (in my opinion, anyway!) because the rugged vast beauty suggests that we are not the centre of the universe. Even if we’d like to be.

One of the deep lessons of spending thirty years as a pastor has come from standing on the highest available hills overlooking the communities I served- and simply seeing the whole area spread out. Being there and consciously praying for the people was both humbling and inspirational. Doing this “mountain climbing” at twilight was especially moving. Lighted windows and lit street lamps twinkled below whilst the stars above began to sparkle, signposts of the immensity of the Galaxy. The number of lights spoke of the number of people- and the importance of reaching every person with the Light of the World. Jesus said “Go into ALL the world…”

I don’t think the church or community knew I was up there- and I’m glad. I wasn’t there to be seen. I was there to recognise the scale of God’s everlasting loving-kindness to everyone I could see, know, or imagine- and pray. My one regret is that I might have done this more often.

In one of the temptations of Jesus, the devil took Jesus to the highest point and offered Him “all of this- if you will worship me.”

Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’” (See Luke 4)

The highest places and attainments in this world are dangerous indeed- they can make us proud unless they keep us humble. It’s always worth asking ourselves how we’re responding to the “mountains” in our world. Jesus came to serve.

October Roses- Look, See, Pray

Fewer rosebuds in the garden now October is here… the ones that survive the winds and rain are even more precious. Here is “Double Delight” which is blessed with a rich fragrance and creamy petals flushed with sumptuous raspberry pink. Gorgeous. Worth its place in any garden, in my opinion anyway.

Autumn chills and weather presage the coming of winter, when colour in the garden is rare and hard to find. Roses sometimes keep flowering into December- a lovely gift.

I have built two gardens from builder’s mudheaps- and restored two neglected gardens. Roses have ALWAYS been the plants that I use as the centrepieces of the borders. Despite the pain of thorns and the months of dormancy where roses are just aggressive sticks, I pay the price for their majestic colour, shape and scent willingly. The eruption of the new buds fills me with joy.

There are one or two strange gardeners who don’t like roses. Perhaps I’m biased, but I think they’re a lost cause!

The objects of our ambitions can take many forms. Some collect stamps, others strive for profit. Others are never satisfied, and cannot find contentment. What we choose to search for, to value, defines who we are. Jesus addressed this problem of identity and ambition, essentially by asking “Who are you?” and “What is your life purpose?”

Two questions that continue to nag at the heart of a society built on the acquisition of wealth and power… and with many people who want more than they have. So, rich or poor, powerful or not- what do we really want?

It seems people choosing wisely are as rare as rosebuds.

Jesus never said “Come to Me, and I will give you stress.” The offer He makes is “rest” – peace in a reconciled relationship with God.

How much do you think that’s worth?