Grace abounds

Just back from a week at the New Wine church conference (where the idea for this blog came from two years ago) and I thought I'd better report something. I'm sorry not to be able to report that this year I was on my feet dancing (see Could there be anything better than this?)..., but there were other things.

The worship music, as is the way today, was very high octane. I think the first bass drum beats scared the life out of the two guide dogs I could see! Certainly after that they left for the songs and returned to their owners for the talks! In fact most of the worship was led by Martin Smith, formerly lead singer of the popular group Delirious. He was very good at helping us to worship. I liked a new song from Australia called Oceans.

"You call me out upon the waters,
The great unknown where feet may fail
And there I find You in the mystery.
In oceans deep
My faith will stand.

And I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves.
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours and You are mine.

Your grace abounds in deepest waters.
Your sovereign hand
Will be my guide
Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me.
You've never failed and You won't start now.

So I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves....

Spirit, lead me where my trust is without borders.
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me.
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Saviour." 


Here it is sung in a Florida church: "Oceans" worship song. 

The line which struck me was "Your grace abounds in deepest waters". You'll understand why it appealed to me. It reminds me of St Paul rejoicing in his weakness because God's strength was made perfect in it. 

In her blog today, Bo Stern wrote something even more gritty. (She's the pastor whose husband has aggressive ALS/MND.) 

 "I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard this cliche which is well-meaning, but not very good theology:  God will never give you more than you can handle.  I suspect it’s a mashup of I Corinthians 10:13 (which is talking about temptation and sin) and too much time in the Hallmark store.

Regardless of its origins, it drives me a little crazy because it implies there’s a supernatural safety valve and don’t you worry, because when this battle gets really tough, He’ll fix it.

But for me, it is rough and He hasn’t.  Fixed it, that is.  He’s been with us in it.  He’s gone before us.  He comforts us on the days when strength and hope are so far in the rear view that I’m sure they’re gone for good.  He has been with us in this fight and we’re so thankful but make no mistake: it’s is well beyond our ability.  Beyond, beyond.  Super beyond.

And that’s okay, because He excels at being God when I cannot and He has a pretty impressive track record.  Nearly every Bible hero I admire faced a situation far outside their weight class.  Come to think of it, so have the people I admire most in my world.  Something beautiful happens in us when we are outnumbered and in over our heads, so let’s not wish those moments away or pump platitudes at people who are suffering because we aren’t sure what else to say; let’s just be thankful that He will be in the fights that are most definitely more than we can handle.  Let’s, in fact, rejoicewhen we are given opportunities to live, love, battle and forgive in ways that far exceed our own abilities.

Jesus said, “In this world, you will have trouble…”  (and I’m pretty sure He’s talking about the Big Stuff — the Red Sea-meets-Goliath-meets-fiery-furnace type of trouble) but cheer up!   He has – ultimately and eternally – overcome the world.  Weeping may last for this moment, but heaven will have the last laugh.

Count on it."  Bo Stern's myth buster No 2.

There's lots more I could recount from the week, but I had better process it and let it sink in.

Keeping hope in the storm

I've not been aware of this picture by Rembrandt "Christ
in the Storm" before today when a friend from University
who has cancer pointed it out. He likes especially the
cruciform mast and the use of light and dark contrasts. 

Two years ago, at the New Wine festival, from where this blog originated, some folk from Exmouth prayed with me. Since then they have become good friends. Sadly we didn't see one couple again as they set off on an expedition of faith. They are visionaries and pioneers. Nicky and Mike Temple began a blog for their friends, called "P is for pilgrim". Nicky has just posted one entitled Stormy Weather, illustrated, I assume, by some of Mike's great photographs (Mike Temple Photography). These are extracts:
"I have been pondering the storm and its effects over the past few weeks, pondering how we, as followers of Jesus, navigate the storms of life, how are we to ride the 'perfect' storm? How do we remain in victory through the storm? What does it look like to come through the storm without losing hope and remaining steadfast?" 

She writes about Brendan (the Celtic saint) and Reepicheep (!) in their coracles launching into uncharted waters, having to ride the storms and trust in God's navigation for them. I don't know what storms Nicky is talking about in her case, but they're clearly real; she loves to call God "Papa" (the English equivalent of Jesus's Aramaic name for him, "Abba"). And she also talks about the childhood experience of having a rotten day at school.
"Our storms often feel like 'one of those days' in which we're just getting it all wrong and bumbling our way through the wind and rain. It is so easy for shame and heaviness to set in but Papa is there, right there, closer than air, taking our head in his gentle hands and saying "I'm so proud of you". He loves us through the storm, pure, simple, powerful love that keeps no record of wrongs. Religion might measure how well we navigate the storm, keeping score of good days and bad - ticks and crosses. That is not the heart of Papa God. He knows storms are a messy business! He loves us through the raging seas and is not concerned with our response. He is concerned with loving us more fiercely than raging circumstances and telling us how well we're doing, how amazing we are! He never once abandons us. 

"He has a plan, a great plan that He is forging through the storm. All storms end and as we keep hope, as we cling, as we yield through them we are transformed and transported to new places in Him. I'm not sure when  my stormy weather will finally break, but I know it will. I believe that Jesus is good always, faithful always and kind always. He knows my heart, He understands me fully and loves me beyond imagining. So I can wait, I can ask for rescue and I can trust knowing that the sun will come out."

As I remember, Reepicheep, the valiant mouse, in the Narnia Chronicle The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, sailed in his coracle on a huge wave straight into Aslan's country. Scary but infinitely worth it.
I recommend Nicky's post.  Thank you, Nicky.

A late and welcome gift

Here we tend to leave birthday cards up for a fortnight from the day. So mine were still up on Wednesday evening when Pete and Jane called in with a present for me. It was a cd of worship music from the conference they'd been to in the spring, Word Alive. It includes some golden oldies like And can it be, some new and nearly new songs, and ends with the song variously known as It is well with my soul or When peace like a river. 

The last (and to my memory first) time I heard it was in April this year at Christ Church, Exmouth, when it was introduced by their worship leader, Katie Ranft, telling some of how it came to be written. It's a story of faith despite all the odds. Pete didn't know the story; so I looked it up on the internet, and found this (www.biblestudycharts.com/A_Daily_Hymn.html).

'This hymn was written by a Chicago lawyer, Horatio G Spafford. You might think to write a worship song titled, 'It is well with my soul', you would indeed have to be a rich, successful Chicago lawyer. But the words,"When sorrows like sea billows roll ... It is well with my soul”, were not written during the happiest period of Spafford's life. On the contrary, they came from a man who had suffered almost unimaginable personal tragedy.

'Horatio Spafford and his wife, Anna, were pretty well-known in 1860’s Chicago. And this was not just because of Horatio's legal career and business endeavours. The Spaffords were also prominent supporters and close  friends of D.L. Moody, the famous preacher. In 1870, however, things started to go wrong. The Spaffords' only son was killed by scarlet fever at the age of four. A year later, it was fire rather than fever that struck. Horatio had invested heavily in real estate on the shores of Lake Michigan. In 1871, every one of these holdings was wiped out by the great Chicago Fire.

'Aware of the toll that these disasters had taken on the family, Horatio decided to take his wife and four daughters on a holiday to England. And, not only did they need the rest -- DL Moody needed the help. He was travelling around Britain on one of his great evangelistic campaigns. Horatio and Anna planned to join Moody in late 1873. And so, the Spaffords travelled to New York in November, from where they were to catch the French steamer 'Ville de Havre' across the Atlantic. Yet just before they set sail, a last-minute business development forced Horatio to delay. Not wanting to ruin the family holiday, Spafford persuaded his family to go as planned. He would follow on later. With this decided, Anna and her four daughters sailed East to Europe while Spafford returned West to Chicago. Just nine days later, Spafford received a telegram from his wife in Wales. It read: "Saved alone."

Storm at Sea by Wilem van de Welde

'On November 2nd 1873, the 'Ville de Havre' had collided with 'The Lochearn', an English vessel. It sank in only 12 minutes, claiming the lives of 226 people. Anna Spafford had stood bravely on the deck, with her daughters Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta clinging desperately to her. Her last memory had been of her baby being torn violently from her arms by the force of the waters. Anna was only saved from the fate of her daughters by a plank which floated beneath her unconscious body and propped her up. When the survivors of the wreck had been rescued, Mrs. Spafford's first reaction was one of complete despair. Then she heard a voice speak to her, "You were spared for a purpose." And she immediately recalled the words of a friend, "It's easy to be grateful and good when you have so much, but take care that you are not a fair-weather friend to God."

'Upon hearing the terrible news, Horatio Spafford boarded the next ship out of New York to join his bereaved wife. Bertha Spafford (the fifth daughter of Horatio and Anna born later) explained that during her father's voyage, the captain of the ship had called him to the bridge. "A careful reckoning has been made", he said, "and I believe we are now passing the place where the de Havre was wrecked. The water is three miles deep." Horatio then returned to his cabin and penned the lyrics of his great hymn.

'The words which Spafford wrote that day come from 2 Kings 4:26. They echo the response of the Shunammite  woman to the sudden death of her only child. Though we are told "her soul is vexed within her", she still maintains that 'It is well." And Spafford's song reveals a man whose trust in the Lord is as unwavering as hers was.

'It would be very difficult for any of us to predict how we would react under circumstances similar to those experienced by the Spaffords. But we do know that the God who sustained them would also be with us. No matter what circumstances overtake us may we be able to say with Horatio Spafford...

Mahalia Jackson

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul!

It is well ... with my soul!

It is well, it is well, with my soul.'




I believe the Spaffords ended as missionaries in Jerusalem. If you'd like to listen to it, I recommend this version by the great singer, Mahalia Jackson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wziwGZq06PE. There's also a modern version of it by the group Jars of Clay, as well as a song based on it by singer-songwriter, Amy Grant, both of which I quite like.