Learning to Walk

we don't do it like that

I have followed a couple of news stories over the past few weeks concerning law and justice in other countries.  Both the stories came from Islamic countries.

In both cases charges were brought against women and in both cases they were found guilty and received custodial sentences.  Had either case been in Britain then there would have been no possibility at all of either of these women ending up in court.  But that doesn't mean that I think that it was wrong that they did because (a fact that it seems many here are missing) they aren't in Britain.

In the west there are established ways of doing things - personally, politically, legally, morally, and I'm sure many more.  But that is not to say that these ways are right; in fact I'm sure that there are many of us who would say that much of what we witness in our own society is less than ideal.  This is also the case in non-western contexts: there are laws, codes and expectations, some of which we may feel are wrong.  If and where this is the case then, of course, we have every right to make our feelings known (so long as we allow such protest in reverse.)  But it would be wrong of us to make the assumption that simply because "we don't do it like that" it means that others shouldn't also.

Unfortunately, I think that that is often how we operate.

business end

We are well and truly into the business end of term and the college library is getting busier by the day.  In some ways I am on top of my work in that I have two assignments due next Thursday and one is finished whilst the second is well on the way.  But in other respects I am still a long way off, namely in the fact that I have a Christology exam next Wednesday which I have barely given a thought to yet.  Then, when the exam is done, I have a final assignment to hand in 2 weeks today.

So a busy 10 days ahead.  But at the end of it there will only be 2 terms left.  Mental.

getting the gospel in your gut

'Getting the Gospel in your Gut' is the title of one of the articles that I have been looking through for my children's work assignment.  But this week I have been thinking about whether we really do get the gospels in our gut.  It stems from something that we talked about in our class on the Pauline letters earlier in the week, along the lines of whether or not we (Christians) place more importance on Paul as opposed to the teachings of Jesus that we find in the gospels.

This got me thinking.  In the past (almost) 5 years I have listened to and preached in sermon series working through various books of the bible but, when I think about it, never the gospels - at least not extended 'through the book' series.  I wonder why this is.  I have a friend who reads the gospels and asks questions based on what she reads.  They are questions that I would often not have thought to ask, coming out of what seems to be the 'plain sense' of the text.  All of this makes me wonder; is the reason that we (seem to) focus less on the gospels because we know that if we do the questions we will be called to ask and the application we will be asked to make will put us way further out of our comfort zones than we are prepared to go?

over and out

On Saturday I was supporting my adopted homeland, tonight it was the country of my birth.  The result was the same - disappointment on both occasions.  And the question now arises: who will we all support next summer?

mixed emotions

It is an evening of mixed emotion as Israel's victory has put qualification back in England's hands whilst Scotland's defeat has ended the dream for another few years.

training day

Tomorrow morning is the first 'Small Group Leaders Training Morning' since I came into the role of 'Small Group Coordinator.'  This week I have spent a lot of time preparing; for the presentation that I will be giving in the first session, the interactive time that will make up the third session, and producing handouts for all the leaders who will be there.  I have even tried my hand at script writing for a series of dramas to illustrate a point in the middle session.  Tonight I picked up a DVD that one of the church 'techies' put together as a "thank you" to the leaders from their members.  It really is excellent and I hope that it will set the tone for the morning as a whole.

the next step

I have been meeting with the Diocesan Director of Ordinands every month or two for the last year as part of the selection process for ordained ministry in the Scottish Episcopal Church.  It is a slow moving process but one which I am more and more coming to understand the necessity of, as it gives both the potential ordinand and the church the opportunity to spend time getting to know one another and to discern if this is the way in which God is leading.  The process was also a little delayed by the fact that the next step - meeting with the Bishop - couldn't go ahead until after you had been attending your church for 2 years.  For me this meant waiting until after August this year - again no bad thing with all the wedding preparation, the big day itself, and the honeymoon!

So, I met with the Bishop in September and was given the nod to move onto the next next stage, the Provincial Director of Ordinands.  Since then I have met my DDO again and we have discussed the sort of questions that I will be asked to respond to, tonight we are meeting again.  By and large I enjoy these times and working through the questions that they raise.  But I also look forward to getting on with the next step in the process as we seek to discern where it is that God may be leading us.

flying by

Time is really flying by:  We have been married nearly 5 months.  I am approaching the end of the first time of third year.  It won't be long until my wife is only 2 years older than me again.  This week I have had emails, and tonight a meeting, about Advent services.

application

In our New Testament class this morning we focused in on 1 Corinthians 8-10, looking especially at the application of 8:9 and not causing a brother to stumble.

Various things were discussed and at one point a certain topic, Free Masonry, was dominating the conversation.  A statement along the lines of "I don't see how you can be an evangelical Christian and a Free Mason," was made (to which I will add the disclaimer that that is what I understood to have been said.)

It is moments like that when I wish I never had to set foot in the place again, as I find this to be both insensitive, judgmental and bordering on arrogant.  I do not know enough about Free Masonry to make a call as to how it stands before God - is it sinning to be a Free Mason or not?  But even if we are to say that it is then the question remains as to whether or not this excludes a person from being a Christ follower.  I surely hope that it does not; because if it does then neither am I.  I am trying to follow Christ, but I often fail.  I am trying to follow Christ, but at times I put up idols ahead of him.  I am trying to follow Christ, but I am a sinner.

Of course, if Free Masonry is not compatible with the Christian life then it should be made clear that that is the case; as we do with a whole host of other sinful behaviours or belief structures.  But to suggest that it stops one from being a Christian...

This is the paradox of the Christian faith; "that whilst we were still sinners Christ died for us" (emphasis mine.)  It was not through anything that we were doing right that Christ took the fall.  Yet as a result those who commit to Him have been justified, they are being sanctified, and on the day that He returns they will be glorified.  Until then we are works in progress, on a journey, and - praise God - he meets us on that journey, while we are still far off, and brings us home.

forgetfulness

When we were kids my Mum used to nag me and my brothers to pack our bags the night before to make sure that we weren't in a big rush the next morning.  She made a good point and it is something that I try and do these days - with varying degrees of success!

This morning was one for which I had failed to prepare in advance and so I had to rush around the flat putting lots of things into bags in order to get out in time for YKW to give me a lift (which she was very kindly doing as I had lots of things to bring into college.)  So I got into college, did some emailing for work, and then settled down to do some study only to find that the bag that I had packed full of study materials was still where I had packed it...at home!

But thankfully my forgetfulness has proved to be something of a blessing in disguise as it has allowed me to dedicate the entire day to preparing various things for Saturday meaning that the rest of the week will be slightly less pressurised.  At least that's the theory...