Windows On The Soul

This was one of those verses that stopped me in my tracks. Surely Christ's suffering was completed at Calvary, the redemptive death for the sins of all mankind? But no: Paul writes to the Colossians, that through his own suffering, he is helping to finish the remainder of Christ's suffering. When we are called to take up our cross and follow Jesus, the suffering of cross carrying is not just some unfortunate side-effect. We are called as partners in Christ's redemptive plan of love to the world. Suffering is the work . We are to hunger and thirst after righteousness, and face persecution. To comfort mourners requires feeling with them. To be a peacemaker requires stepping between warring factions. This is citizenship of the Kingdom. ---xxxXxxx--- Col.1:24 "Part of my work is to suffer for you ... for I am helping to finish up the remainder of Christ's suffering for His body, the Church" Rom.8:17 "Joint heirs with Christ...that we suffer wit...

In our years of “coffee shop” youth out-reach work, we put up with being sworn at, occasionally spat upon, and personal property damage. But I can’t think of any time when we felt in bodily danger. However, a week ago, such an incident did arise. In our 26 years of fund-raising for the Royal Children’s Hospital, we have volunteered our services to sell the Herald-Sun ‘WEG’ Premiership posters. Unfortunately, this year, the ‘out-of-towners’, Adelaide, won, and we were faced with trying to sell Adelaide premiership posters in the face of a rather angry, parochial crowd. Football crowds have always been a noisy fickle lot, but this was the worst I have ever endured. A boozed load-mouth slew our stock off the table, and as I turned, a swinging fist caught my cheek. I must confess, that my immediate thoughts did not include offering him my other one. Fortunately, his cohorts dragged him away and the incident was over as quickly as at started, but leaving my onlooking...

“In spring, blossom decorates the land and transforms familiar sites (and sights) into fairytale settings. Sedentary souls stir from winter’s long sleep and awake into spell-bound romantics. Hope comes alive - In Spring”. The tragedy of this past week has seen another young woman cut down in the prime of life, like our first spring flowers crushed by the hail storm. Not even a Shakespearian tragedy comes close to portraying the intrigue, manipulations, jealousies, bigotry, adulation, etc. that has surrounded this kindergarten teacher come princess. Yet it will be her charitable and humanitarian work that the world will remember, at least in the short term. How history records these events remains to be seen - history’s record is not good in remembering good works. It is these later works that remind us of another young man, in another place and time, cut down in the prime of his life. A man tempted in every manner possible, yet free of sin. A man who dared to touch l...

A dozen years ago, my wife and I were asked to counsel a young couple who had a young child with a minor congenital deformity. They had spent tens of thousands of dollars travelling to every major paediatric hospital in the world. The consistent answer was “Why come to us when you have the world’s best back in Melbourne”. But the saddest part of the situation was the father’s family’s almost complete rejection of the child - they simply couldn’t accept that any descendant of theirs could possibly be anything less than perfect. This is not an uncommon attitude in our ‘post-Christian’ society, and even some western Christians have great difficulty coming to terms with illness. It is soon forgotten that the wonderful life-style we can have, educational opportunities, justice, health care, ‘human rights’, the status of women, etc. are nearly all due to the work and influence of Christians. And yet society wants to keep the gifts and ignore the giver. The ‘world’ is not a natu...

I thank my parents that as a child I was taught to write an "I want" list. This helped me identify those things I "really" wanted well after the initial plea had faded. Then came the hard part of giving up some things to save up the money to buy my heart's desire. The same principles apply to our Christian walk. We want to serve, but are we prepared to pay the price? We want to be humble, but are we prepared to be humiliated? We want to be a true disciple, but are we prepared to truly discipline our body, mind and soul? We want to be loving, but that includes the "unlovely", and carries the cost of sacrifice, non-reciprocation, even outright hostility. We ask in pray, but are we willing to accept and obey the answers given? ----xxxXxxx---- Lk.18:18-23 "'What must I do to have eternal life?'...you lack one thing, sell all you have and distribute to the poor...he was very sorrowful for he was very rich" Mt.16:24 "If anyo...

" Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone " - this is the philosophy of the world - of "fair weather friends"! But Christians are called to march to the beat of a different drum. We are called to bear one-another's burdens for this is the "law of Christ". This is true religion. We even have Jesus' verbatim statement - " This is my command, that you love one-another ". But let's look at this from the side of the burdened - don't we all have our various burdens? Don't we pray to God for strength, healing, courage, support, encouragement, faith etc. Yet our Lord has commanded that these are the very things that we are to share with each other. Could I be so bold as to suggest that the answers to many of our prayers will/should come through the love of a fellow believer? Have you been the answer to some-ones prayers this week? " Lord, open my ears to hear your call, and my eyes to see you beckoning. Help me...

"Scripture Union is sad to announce the death of a staff worker in Rwanda.  Simon-Pierre Mugabo was a 34 year old schools evangelist who joined the staff in 1990. SU (Victoria) do not have the details of the circumstances of his death, or of the situation of his wife Marie and their one year old son." "SU has also been informed of the death of Israel Havugimana with his aged father and two children. Israel is a former SU staff worker, but was working with Africa Evangelistic Enterprise at the time of his death." "Please pray for the tragic political situation in Rwanda, and for other Christian workers in the area" Scripture Union "Outreach", Winter 1994 ---===X===--- Mt.16:24 "If any man wants to follow me, he must deny himself..." Ps.143:10 "Teach me to do your will, for you are my God..." Lk.14:26 "...does not love me more than family, he cannot be my disciple" Mt.26:42 "...if this cup ...