kindling fires of faith

It's been a day when little bursts of time have seen some major things going on.

A fifteen minute visit to the school achieved a lot again today, for instance.

I took the chance to take the P5 teacher a neatly packaged set of answers to the exercise I'd done with all the children yesterday. I figured coffee time was best and sure enough it proved to be a fruitful time again!

I had another teacher ask me if I'd do a bit for his P7 class. A different theme this time - they were studying 'saints' he said and would I maybe help. I'll happily jump at any such request, and so I'll wait and see just what transpires from that.

It gives another chance for more of this involvement with the children which provides the sort of context where I'm more than just a name and face and get to be a person that they know. And knowing me, I hope they come to recognise and know the Lord himself as well.

It was good, too, to fix a time at the start of next week to be seeing the teacher who's keen to develop an SU group in the school.

And, of course, I had the chance to chat as well with the P5 teacher herself. And the Head. And a couple of other members of staff as well. The talking's always good. For bit by bit they open up and touch on matters other than the superficial stuff which only casual contact brings.

I've been following through as well the 'fire' I accidentally started. I have to say I don't know whether to be stoking this fire or trying to put it out!

It seems so small and petty a thing, I think the Lord must laugh out loud at how ridiculous the rules by which his church is run become.

The 'fire' itself is hardly dying down. According to the rules I can't baptise the children of a couple who are members of Christ's church, despite the fact they worship with us here and find themselves increasingly and happily involved meanwhile - because their names are on a congregation's roll elsewhere.

Rolls and rules ... but what about relationships as well?

I sometimes think no wonder people leave 'the church' and say, Just give me Christ. I often feel the same!

What a great time I had in the evening, though! These were the fires of faith being stoked tonight as I had time again with the couple I see on an almost weekly basis in their home.

We've been talking a lot about how God speaks and how relationship with Christ can be a thing experienced by us. And bit by bit each week we seem to move a little further down the road. Which is great. I love the chat with them and I never know just where the time will lead.

Tonight as we sat and chatted round their table with a mug of coffee to hand, it was as if the Lord just gave me a Scripture passage and said, study this passage tonight. And so we did.

I suggested to them, You want to hear God speaking? Well, we'll turn to his word and listen in and maybe you'll hear his voice.

It was a remarkable evening. Because I think they heard his voice! Speaking with them, to them, about their situation. Directly, powerfully, and ever so clearly.

It was the kind of spine-tingling, goose-pimple, scary but I-wouldn't-miss-this-for-the-world type of thing. I think they just heard his voice. As we read and thought through the Scripture.

Like the Lord was saying to them as we read the story there - It's your story. You're in this story, too.

I thought about it afterwards. I've met with them now for a good many weeks: and, yes, we have good and illuminating chat: we toss around just who this person Jesus is and why we can be sure and what it means and where it leads and how he can be known. And it's good. Helpful.

But in two brief hours tonight, exposure to the Bible brought walls of their perplexity and doubt come tumbling down. I think they found it exciting, inspiring, almost like a major revelation and a massive revolution in their hearts. One short evening and a person's perspective can somehow be changed for good!

I guess that's how it is with Jesus Christ. 30 years of patient, silent, next-to-nothing living in a distant, northern town: and then the world is changed in 3 short years.

He did it way back then - and hasn't lost that touch!

It is just like a fire. You huff and puff and blow and blow and work to get it going. And then, in a single instant, the thing erupts in flame. The fires of faith, kindled and lit by the flash of fire from the Spirit of God himself.

Awesome!