Unspeakable things - FOR PRAYER

Last week I was privileged to attend a prayer summit for children in the Middle East. I had been asked to represent Viva and had been given a 45 minute speaking slot. I have to confess that coming from Oxford I felt a slight fraud that I had been invited to address the mostly Arab speaking attendees.

Who was I as a westerner and a woman at that - to speak to majority Middle Eastern men about children. As I prayed and prepared I sensed a message forming…...
I realised that Oxford is not that far removed from the Middle East. The UK and Europe are now enveloped in engagement with the Middle East through the multitude of refugees currently fleeing the horrors of International conflict and terrorism.  I have personal involvement in a local school which is highly regarded for it's multi cultural flavour and identity. Within this school there is a both a muslim prayer space and a christian prayer space. Living in Oxford we face the daily challenge of loving our neighbours……those who may think very differently and whose cultures and ways of thinking may even oppose our own.

How do we develop a heart of worship and obedience in response to God within our families, communities, churches and children's ministries? The answer to this question is very much the same whether living in Oxford or Cairo and issues regarding children at risk within the Middle Eastern world are touching on our lives and becoming our problems here in Europe as we embrace refugees and displaced families. Our challenge is to love as Jesus loved and to walk as Jesus walked - with an ear to The Father of every family named under heaven and earth and a willingness to obey His voice. (Ephesians 3 v 14-19)

Outside of the prayer summit I had the honour of meeting some true champions for children at risk in the region. As I listened to their stories I began to hear of unspeakable things that happen on a daily basis to children. As I listened my conscience was pricked. A few years ago I had done some unofficial 'research' into what people thought to be the biggest issues facing children in the region. The shocking, virtually unanimous response, was that the majority of children are sexually abused. Here I was hearing it again…..

Several times last week I found tears flowing as I heard of young boys who were used as 'dancers' to satisfy the sexual cravings of sexually repressed men. I heard of young girls being made to wear white dresses again and again in the farcical enactment of being 'married' so that the 'abuse' could be reasoned as 'acceptable'…..and I felt sickened as I learnt of the death of innocence and childhood and more - the loss of life through warped and depraved sexual acts done to children. (We're talking children as young as 6 -7 years old)

BUT!
There is good news….even GREAT news. I caught a glimpse of God's heart of love and passion for the lost sons and daughters through the lives of some AMAZING champions who are acting on behalf of abused children. We need to pray for these precious 'mothers and fathers'…..for their protection, for favour, for governmental influence, that they will be free to speak on behalf of 'the child' and that they will be heard. May justice prevail against perpetrators of child sexual abuse as these issues come into the light. Pray that there will be enough concern raised around this regional issue that legislation is put in place, that surveys are done and statistics accrued to expose the 'hidden' and 'unspoken' evil of child sexual abuse. I urge you to pray with me that the government of God and His Kingdom will come and His will be done on earth as in heaven.

As we approach Christmas I leave you with this encouragement - and as a prayer pointer for the issues raised -

For unto us a chid is born.
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called 
Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of peace
Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His Kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgement and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
THE ZEAL OF THE LORD OF HOSTS WILL PERFORM THIS.

Isaiah 9 v 6-7

Are our children ready?

Unless you are one of those people who home school your children, don't have access to internet or television and refrain from having newspaper in your home, the chances are that your children will have been exposed to stuff that you would rather they weren't.

Living in the UK and as a foster carer I'm aware that in the interests of protecting children and keeping childhood safe, there is much I would like to prevent children from knowing. The fact is though - they do seem to find out. About sexuality issues, about war, about starvation, about ISIS…and the list goes on! Governments are now starting to dictate that children SHOULD know about certain stuff and would argue it's in a child's interests to know, about abuse, about sex in all it's various forms, about getting an abortion, about getting injections, the list goes on.  There is a subtle disempowerment of parents that has been taking place beneath our noses.

Sounds worrying eh?
Now for the better news….as we turn to the ancient script - our manual for life as God intended.
Here's a significant bit of history for you -
Thousands of years ago there was a young boy whose parents were followers of God. His name was Daniel. Around the same time there was a prophet, a seer called Jeremiah who warned this people group following after God that things were about to get tough and that they would be taken into captivity. Many didn't believe the prophet and carried on as normal thinking that all was well. Those who did believe were able to prepare their hearts and families for what was about to happen.
I reckon Daniel's family were one such family. They prepared themselves and him for captivity, teaching him to trust in the Lord and not fear.

The reason I 'suppose' this is because I can see no other reason why a young boy of say 14 would be able to withstand being taken into a Godless country and yet still remain in communion and relationship with God. Confidently so, if you read the full story of Daniel's life. It's a remarkable story.

I believe we live in days where there are 'signs of the times' happening all around us. If we are followers of Jesus and God's word then we would do well to take our children on the journey of faith through trials and difficulties - as Daniel's parents did. Rather than hide truth from him, they built up his faith and confidence that God was GOD!

I believe that hiding reality from children is unwise and I'd even go so far as to say - could rob them of the joy of knowing Father God in the midst of pain and suffering, and the adventure of faith through difficulty. I remember hearing the response of a church leader in New Orleans after the floods. When asked what he might have done differently, knowing what he now knew, his answer was - 'I would have prepared the children'.

I also remember speaking with a mother from Yemen around the time when Christian believers were being routed out of the region, women raped and families murdered in front of each other. With tears in her eyes she shared that she had prepared her two young girls by telling them that they may see a lot of blood but that soon they would be with Jesus…….

This is harrowing stuff to write about but with many western Nations now on high alert for terrorist attacks, we would be having our head in the sand to do nothing in preparation for what many believe is inevitable. Britain is considered under severe threat, that means a terrorist attack is highly likely.

My aim of writing is not to be a scaremonger but one who sounds the alarm to prepare ourselves in Christ - full of His love - ready to declare the gospel message that many will want and need to hear in the near future, and our children can be part of that! Just as Daniel was.

Yes it's Sunday and I haven't been to church!

Google 'church' and in 0.34 seconds you'll get 1,030,000,000 results! Mostly the images show the standard traditional building one comes to expect when one hears the word church. Having been born into a clerical family and being a pastors kid I was used to Sunday being the day when we went to 'church' -  for many years I went three times a day! When I turned my back on my faith as a teenager, the 'not going to church' thing was the hardest thing to shake off- old habits die hard! On hindsight I realise now that my 'faith' had become built around 'church' and the religious habit of 'worship' without the daily relationship and engagement with an awesome God who is in fact the creator and Father of all mankind.

Today things are different - Along with a hunger for gaining wisdom, understanding and revelation of God's love through the ancient book, there are many people who have been alongside me helping shape and influence the faith I hold to.  These people make up the 'body' that is representative of Jesus on earth.

So today being Sunday I have a day of rest and my heart turns to worship and my heart is FULL and thankful! I've been pondering all the people and circumstances that have come my way to help shape my life and create the person I am so far. I want this blog to be my act of worship in thankfulness to God for who He has connected me with over the years and how they have impacted my life. 

When I first encountered Father's grace and mercy and like the prodigal, returned to HOME to him, I was in Uni and it was the friends I made in the Christian fellowship that helped me engage on a day to day basis with a Father who was GOOD and GOD and wanted to share in our lives. I found a devotional book by Oswald Chambers whose daily nuggets fed my hungry heart and challenged my warped and often selfish thinking. I came across the worship of Keith Green whose music I listened to for days on end and which helped me learn to be a true worshipper. I read the book by his wife Melody after he was tragically killed in an aeroplane accident. I also read 'Out of the salt shaker' by Rebecca Manley Pippert and was hugely impacted by the challenge of sharing the good news.

Later when I married Brian we did 'officially' join a church - Our years with 'The Rainbow Church' were full and vibrant. Adrian and Pauline Hawkes were radical leaders for the 1980's and we were so blessed to walk alongside them and learn from them.  I remember a message preached at the beginning of one new year where Adrian laid out a 'manifesto' - how we can influence every sector of society. He encouraged the call upon many of us to be involved with education, retail, media etc and to dream BIG in God. Imagine that today - followers of Jesus who model His unconditional love and grace found across all sectors of society? This couple walked the talk and I credit much of our thinking today down to their model and influence. When we first got involved working globally with children at risk, it was the fact they had modelled fostering that enabled us to think in a micro / macro way and even consider becoming foster carers ourselves. 

Once our girls were born we were released and 'sent' to go to Oxford to work for Viva and a whole other world of Kingdom relationships opened up. Patrick and Emily MacDonald were a young couple who were following the call of God and it was a pleasure to stand alongside them and other radical lovers of Jesus and children to serve their vision. We found a local church who were so supportive of us and the work we were involved with  - Terry and Gwen Macmillan modelled such grace as leaders in enabling us to tuck under their wings, loving us, supporting and serving unconditionally. For them and others from 'Living Stones' we will remain always grateful. Although the church no longer meets as a 'church' officially, we still remain connected relationally with many precious ones who are part of God's HUGE family and we consider to be brothers and sisters.

Our time in Oxford has connected us relationally with many believers who we continue to meet with from time to time, often through divinely orchestrated circumstances. We have been so privileged to connect with Kingdom champions from around the world. There are too many to name individually but as I think of them now I pray for increase and blessings to govern their lives. The joy is that we observe great fruitfulness out of our friendships and Kingdom connections.

Now we are older we have the privilege of sharing our lives with other younger believers and for this I am also full of thanks. The 'Wellspring' group of artists, musicians, students and passionate lovers of Jesus who we've most recently connected with brings joy to my heart. It's not officially a recognised 'church' but our hearts and lives are becoming knit together with these precious sons and daughters who we seem to have the privilege of championing on in the faith. Interestingly this group of believers also connects us back relationally to our original 'sending' church and I honour and bless Dave and Sue Wisker and the New River church in Edmonton, London who we love to bits and who continue to love and encourage us too:-)  

Finally, I want to take a moment to acknowledge and appreciate the many ministries who we tap into for prayer, teaching and ongoing encouragements. The Prayer Foundation here in the UK with Rod and Julie Anderson, Glory of Zion in Texas with Chuck Pierce, Revival Fires, Bethel sermon of the week podcasts, IHOP Kansas City, Aslans Place with Paul Cox and The Sapphire leadership group with Arthur Burke.

Every Sunday when I speak to my mum she always asks me if I've been to 'church'.

This post is for you Mum! As I've recalled those to whom I'm thankful to God for, this has been my act of worship this morning - my heart if FULL of praise to a God who is raising up His ecclesia across the earth - (The Church)