JesusBloggers.com

One of the joys of being a Christian is that we have brothers and sisters all over the world. One of the delights in being in a family of churches like Newfrontiers, which has a strong set of core values and a shared story, is that such ties are even stronger. Call it shared DNA, call it living in the shadow of Terry Virgo, whose example permeates the movement, or call it whatever you want, it is certainly very tangible.  From the moment I arrived in town and was met by a regular member who had given up his time to drive me from the airport, I knew I was among my family here at Jubilee Church St. Louis.

I have had a great few days.  All the informal times spent over food and around the Super Bowl have been very enjoyable. It was also really good to worship in an environment where I totally felt like I belonged.  Just the name of the church helped, since I attend a church called Jubilee back in London.  It also meets in a dark room with drums, keyboard and guitars blasting out worship, so that seemed familiar too! Seth urged us to be vigorous in our praise.  He said that it is like watching a football game when someone has made a good play.  The crowd roars with delight and celebrates the success.  As he put it, “Jesus made a good play!”

It seemed like the congregation, mixed both in age and race as it was at each of the Sunday morning services, did not really need that encouragement.  There was a clear sense of being caught up together to truly celebrate our champion.  The worship was punctuated in both services by some contributions in the form of words of encouragement or prophecy. This tended to include some explanation of what the person felt God was laying on their heart linked to a Bible passage. In each service at least one of these was shared by a young woman.  Again it was obvious, as at the other USA Newfrontiers churches I visited, just how involved in the mission these women are.  Later in the week some of the women who work for the church took time out of their day together with some of the guys to watch me record video on the resurrection for their Bible training course.

The church was on the second week of their series on sex titled XXXposed. The pastor here, a considerate, intentional man called Bryan Mowrey spoke on building blocks to intimacy.  It was a message from the heart and one much needed.  I never tire of listening to sermons about how to be a better husband.  I surely need to hear them.  Of course, it made me long even more than I already do for my reunion with my ever-lovely Andrée.  Bryan’s talk would also be helpful for an unmarried person. I especially liked his argument that the word “single” is very unhelpful.  You do not have to be alone.  You have Christ.  You have Christ’s bride.  He wants you to be fulfilled whatever your marriage status.  A Christian man or woman can be secure and happy without a spouse.  Paul even seems to hint that such unattached people are more free to serve God’s purposes.

Bryan went on to point out that there is something far worse than being unmarried and lonely:  being married and lonely.  Marrying someone who makes your life harder and more miserable is a big mistake from which it is almost impossible to recover from.  Worse still, of course, is realizing that you are the one making your partner’s life harder.  I pray that listening to this talk might help you to consider new ways of blessing your husband or wife if you have one, and may encourage you greatly even if you don’t.  You can download the audio.

It looks like I may well have to stay in St. Louis for an extra day due to snow in Chicago.  It is a measure of how at home I feel here, that I am almost pleased at that (despite the inconvenience to my plans that may cause!)

As I continue my time with the Newfrontiers Midwest churches , I am reminded of the old-time pioneers.  They would load up their family in a wagon and head out to where no-one they knew had gone before.  Eager to put down a stake as a marker and claim the ground, some of the old towns were barely built when the relentless march westwards would continue.  There is something of the same spirit here.

I spent the last twenty-four hours with Tommy Stanley, his family, and church in the Kansas City area.  Some of my UK readers will remember Tommy from his days leading worship at the last few Stoneleigh Bible Weeks that Newfrontiers used to run.  When I met him, despite being told of this history, I did not recognize him.  We enjoyed much laughter and a Kansas BBQ before heading out to a special meeting they had arranged for me to speak at.  When Tommy went to the front during the worship time and led us by bringing a contribution, I had a sudden sense of déjà vu. In a flash I was back at that event which was such an important influence on me.  Perhaps not surprisingly the worship time here was powerful and refreshing to my soul.

I really felt like I was welcomed into the family of Grace Church, Lee’s Summit.  They were a great congregation to speak to, and I also enjoyed a Q and A they put on for some of their men on Saturday morning over breakfast.

The visit felt too short, despite my growing desire to be home with my gorgeous wife and children.  Being able to connect with them over iChat has made this trip so much easier.  I was especially pleased to hear that they had worked out how to make donuts (that could save me a fortune at Krispy Kremes in the coming years!), that my son Joel has been getting certificates for good behavior at school, and that my son Henry was so pleased to have got a 5a for his literacy at school. This is apparently the highest grade his teacher had given for a few years for a year six child.  He now wants to be an author like his dad.  Such little things make you still feel connected to home.

I am now in St. Louis, staying with Mike and Teresa Lawson.  Having so many brothers and sisters all over the world willing to open their home to you is one of the many wonderful things about being a believer. I look forward to visiting The Journey later today and Jubilee tomorrow.

I have had a great time here in St. Joseph, Missouri.  I traveled down with two men who I now call dear friends, Jeff Gates, the pastor at Living Hope Church, St. Joseph and Ben Roed, who with his lovely wife Peggy, are serving in Living Hope and are being well trained by Jeff. It was wonderful to see how clearly Peggy and Ben complement each other. They are relatively newly married, but it was obvious to see how much of a support Peggy is to him, and how her strengths will continue to complement and at times hide his weaknesses! A wife who will make you look better than you are is a gift from God.

Single men, if you think you may have God’s hand on you, make sure you marry such a godly woman who will help you achieve everything God has for you. Quite frankly, such a wife will be more important than anyone else in helping to shape you, all the time doing so in a submissive and honoring way. Beware, however, that as much as a good woman can make you, the wrong kind of woman can completely ruin you for any significant work for God.  The women I have met here, including Jeff’s wife, have all impressed me with their commitment to the cause, their warmth, and their loving support for their husbands. Anyone who claims that the women in our churches are somehow not valued and not given room to serve their Lord has not spoken to some of the incredible women we have in our family of churches, fully caught up in God’s mission and playing very significant roles.

All this, of course, makes me miss my own better half even more.  If ever a woman has had to put up with a busy husband who has needed a lot of help, a lot of “releasing” to do things like go on a two-week trip to the USA, and  a whole bunch of raw edges in him for her to lovingly confront,  it is Mrs. Andrée Warnock.  Thank you darling for being such a good wife to me, far better than I deserve.  I pray that I may be an ever better husband to you, and I long for our reunion!

Another woman I have met here was Gail Robins, who together with her husband Chris, have served me wonderfully by opening their lovely home to me.  Her passion to open a consignment store made me think of Proverbs 31:

An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than jewels.
The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life . . .

She opens her hand to the poor
and reaches out her hands to the needy.

I was also impressed by the many Christians I met here both socially and during the meeting that was organized for me to speak on the resurrection.  Nobody anywhere has yet disagreed with my claim that we have all been neglecting the resurrection.  Yet we saw in the resurrection yesterday a wonderful tool to bring unity. As one of the  leaders of the three campus organizations that cancelled their own meetings to attend the meeting co-sponsored by Living Hope and Frederick Boulevard Church, St. Joseph’s said, “How could we refuse to listen to a talk on the resurrection of Jesus?”

Speaking of Frederick Boulevard, meeting their pastor Micah Fries was an absolute delight. One of many things that has impressed me about Jeff Gates this week is his eagerness to reach out and partner with other churches and Christian groups. Micah certainly seems to have needed no encouragement to make such a connection. He is sharp, bright, self-deprecating, willing to speak of what he sees as his own denomination’s strengths and weaknesses, and eager to learn from others. Being placed on a list of ten influential young Baptist pastors has not turned his head. I saw in this man a servant of the Lord, and it was enjoyable to spend some time connecting with him. I feel that God has given us this opportunity to meet for a purpose. I hope we can serve the Lord together in some capacity, even if it’s just engaging with each other’s online material.

It has been a great time, and as I prepare to leave for Kansas (known to me mainly in my youth for the Wizard of Oz!), I have many great memories from my time in St. Joseph. I am very keen on God’s work being done in big cities. Though this place is not a big city, however, God is also very interested in towns like this. Even its residents would admit that there is not much that marks out this place as very different from many other American cities. They were the home of the Pony Express, and a place where trade happened in early times with local native Americans, but there are few other major claims to fame. God is very committed to a place like this. He takes the weak things to shame the strong, and the things that are not to shame those who think they are something special.

I met many people who God has made to be very special indeed. This place will always have room in my heart. This is not least because it is the very first town outside my own country where God has taken me to proclaim his word. Seeing a mix of students and older adults getting excited about the significance of the resurrection we have all so failed to celebrate  was obviously the highlight of my trip so far. Please pray with me that those who heard me last night will continue to study the wondrous implications of Christ’s resurrection, and that we all may be better equipped by our Lord to share the full gospel with those we meet.

On my recent visit to northern England, I was able to interview the leader of the Newfrontiers North team. I was deeply impressed with what I saw and heard during the day as his team of around 100 people gathered. God is doing a great work in the North of England and many healthy growing churches have been planted. There was also an amazing sense of community and true friendship in the room. It was wonderful to see a group of leaders with very different gifts and personalities fused together into a team. The team laughed, but clearly also had a serious edge as they work hard together to continue the wonderful mission of seeing people meet with Jesus and be transformed by joining Christ’s church.   It was at the end of a day which excited me about what God is doing that I was delighted to film the following interview: