Feeling Weight.

I can't confess to be much of a sportsman, so please bare with me! But correct me if I'm wrong, can one cricketer, hold two bats, at the same time, hit two different balls, and play for two different teams? I'm guessing it's a no. One man can't have his feet in two camps. Someone can't cheer for opposing sides. I can't be oil and water and the same time, they just don't mix. If they do, one gets mixed up, one loses its intended form.

So I've been thinking about ribena. The stellar drink that is. I don't know whether in a wild moment you've ever sampled undiluted ribena, I know I have. It's potent, and distinctive, and when undiluted, I guess it's in its purist form. This past season I've realised that my longing is to be a purist. I want to be undiluted ribena. As mental as that sounds. Now I think we should probably drop the ribena chat, this is as far as that will take us really, as quite frankly even the most convincing ribena fans cannot confess their undying love for undiluted ribena, it's not pleasant or a productive experience. However, I thoroughly believe the pursuit of being a purist is. 

"A purist is one who desires that an item remain true to its essence and free from adulterating or diluting influences."

Undiluted ribena. So we live on Earth, true; however  I truly believe that we're called to lead a Kingdom life, so on the Earth, but not in the Earth I guess really. Kingdom life, is countercultural. It's a choice we make. We choose to be a purist. It won't just happen.

 "The Spirit of God whets our appetite by giving us a taste of what's ahead. He puts a little of heaven in our hearts so that we'll never settle for less." 2 Corinth 5:5 (MSG)

God graciously allows us heaven in our hearts so we can decipher the ways of the world and the ways of our Father, the ways of Heaven. 

A few years ago a close friend of mine who wasn't a Christian and I had a "discussion" I came away annoyed, upset and with one word on my lips, "shallow". Late that night I woke up with one word on my heart, but an entirely different one, "hollow". We patched up the argument, forgave each other and moved on, but I never forgot that one word, hollow. That's what the ways of the earth are, not shallow, they're deep, they're just entirely hollow. They're fleeting. They're charming to a certain degree, but they wear off, they're temporary, and leave us, really just more hollow than we were before. But "We are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago" Ephesians 2:10 (NLT). No more hollow kinder eggs then, it's time to get creme egg about this, filled. With the Holy Spirit in this instance, as opposed to fondant...

"Have as much hell as you want" (Rob Bell, Love Wins) I read this line, and I'll be honest, it hurt me. It's a hurtful statement on a lot of levels. People are plunged into personal hells each and every day, entirely outside of their own choice and control. But at the same length people plunge themselves in to their hells daily, by indulging and divulging things they should have put to bed quite some time. I know I certainly have. Example? People say silly things, things that yes, will offend us. We can't make people take their words back. But we can choose what happens with those words. We can let them become a thorn in the side, something that festers, gets infected, and only gets worse. Or? We can rip it out. Yes it might have hurt and it might hurt to get it out and submit it to God, but better to rip it out now, than wait for it to get infected when we'll need major surgery to get rid of that bad boy. Offense is inevitable, the suffering after it, well for me ,I realised, that's optional. Maybe "have as much as you want" is starting to make a bit more sense. Discipline and self control  don't sounds particularly "fun". But man, The Message translation of this verse put's it out pretty big.

 "How can you make a partnership out of right and wrong? That's not partnership; that's war. Is light best friends with dark? Does Christ go strolling with the Devil? Do trust and mistrust hold hands? Who would think of setting up pagan idols in God's holy Temple? But that is exactly what we are, each of us a temple in whom God lives. God himself put it this way: 

   "I'll live in them, move into them;
      I'll be their God and they'll be my people.
   So leave the corruption and compromise;
      leave it for good," says God.
   "Don't link up with those who will pollute you.
      I want you all for myself.
   I'll be a Father to you;
      you'll be sons and daughters to me." 

   The Word of the Master, God."

2 Corinthians 6:17

"So leave corruption and compromise, leave it for good" Man without mixture, uncompromised. Undiluted ribena is my aim. We are "Set free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2). We are a temple of the Living God (2 Corinth 6:16) We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). Man. I want to be a purist.

Only By Grace.

fac·et

noun /ˈfasət/ One side of something many-sided, esp. of a cut gem A particular aspect or feature of something. I believe God to be multifaceted, a tapestry of amazing, astounding and endless characteristics that I can't even begin to fathom. Grace is just one of them.

I've been thinking about grace a whole load recently and the phrase which keeps going round and round in my head is "only by grace". Everything we do, only by grace, unfathomable, unmerited, undeserved, unadulterated, amazing, grace. God is perfect, perfect in love, perfect in justice; yet in his justice he's also perfect in grace. I physically can't get my around the concept, grace is I guess, undeserved, unmerited favour, and it's completely and utterly unfair. It's the small child whining "it's not fair".

Yet “As the heavens are higher than the earth, 

   so are my ways higher than your ways 
   and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Isaiah 55:9 pretty much sums it up really, in my human-ness, I have no ability to get my around God's well "Godness", and quite frankly I love it. God has so many facets. I can delve into the mystery of God's many characteristics, I can muse, and explore, and it's beautiful, if anything it's my pleasure. However I can't rationalize God, or sanitize him, or predict or perfect the already perfect. So why do I sometimes think I'm in a position to place a roof on the being that created the skies? Frankly it's a waste of time. It's time to bathe in his mystery. Drown in his grace. And worship in reverential fear. I guess that's what I'm learning. Only God is ultimate.

 "Our God is in heaven;
   he does whatever pleases him"

(Psalm 115:3 NIV)

God chooses to show grace, when really I deserve anything but. God's gracious when I'm not plain-sailing, when i'm not easy company, and when i make things way harder than they need to be.

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you (Colossians 3:13 NLT) " That's a challenge if I ever heard one. When the world says one thing, I want to say the other. When the world rations forgiveness and skimps on grace, I want to show grace extravagantly, freely and without limit. Like God shows me, each and every day. I'm drowning in it, so now I need to start dealing in it; it's time for me to get extravagantly gracious.

There's a first time for everything.

"The devil is in the detail" As far as idioms go, I'd say that's a pretty strange one. And honestly, I'm pretty certain that's not the case. I'm pretty certain it's God in the detail.


Luke 12:7 "Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered"
Psalm 56:8 "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book"


If that isn't the detail, I'm really not sure what is.
So God in the detail-hold that thought.


Recently I've been mulling over my heroes, following some incredible preaches as a part of a Heroes series at my church. And the more I got to think about heroes, the more apparent that it became that one of the most prominent people in my life, one of my heroes, was neither famous nor prolific. No world-wide ministry, no mass conversions. He was none but my own grandad, Jim Todman.


Quiet and humble. Thoughtful, yet profoundly thought-provoking. I honestly believe my Grandad is the epitome of the servant heart. He's faithful in the large and little, extravagant in generosity, caring, patient, and gracious beyond belief. He's embedded in the word of God and has no need to talk about what he does, because he's living proof actions speak louder than words. His wisdom is astounding, sometimes in the times the says things, but even more so in the times he chooses not to say anything at all.


 ¹ "Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don't make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won't be applauding. ^2-4"When you do something for someone else, don't call attention to yourself. Matthew 6:1 MSG


My grandad serves one master, and one master only, his life is truly a show for one, his Father in heaven. No frivolousness or fakery. He's the real McCoy, genuine through and through.


I don't think he'll ever be fully aware of the impact he's had in my life, and how he's reveals God in each and every detail of his life. From washing the dishes to worshipping in a sunday morning service. I'm so honoured to know this man. A man that when he's called home, really will leave a legacy, a beautiful and tangible legacy, of a life led in generosity, faithfulness, grace and love. Love in every single detail.That's why I'm pretty certain it's God in the detail.


I guess I wanted to honour my grandad whilst writing this, an attempt to express how much I've learnt from him, and how much he still teaches me!!  We all have a hero on our doorstep, maybe a quiet, shy, unsung hero, but a hero nonetheless. My grandad is a hero to me, but who am I going to be a hero to? Who are you going to be a hero to? We all have the God given potential in us to be heroes. We just need to open our eyes. See it, and release it.