Archive for April, 2009
Posted on April 29, 2009 - by Tim L
Bev’s story
Bev Docherty, “who passed out of church at 11 and has learnt more in the past six months at the Bridge than she has ever done in her past ## years!”
How long have you been involved at the Bridge?
We have been coming along to the Bridge since August 2008. We came to support our son and daughter after they had been to the Reckless holiday club. Someone mentioned at the badminton club run by the Bridge that they were running the ‘Bridge Olympics’ on the following Sunday. We came along, had a great time, lots of fun and games and have been coming ever since. We wanted to know more and what it was all about.
Why do you come?
I love that the Bridge is so ‘chilled out’. There is no falseness about it all, no pomp and ceremony. It is easy to understand what is said and talked about, it makes sense to me. We have just been looking at the fruits of the Spirit and it has been so practical and earthy and I have really been able to connect with it. The presentations make use of PowerPoint slides, songs, films, DVD’s, You tube clips and songs, and it is all put across in way that I can understand and make sense of.
The people are so lovely and friendly too. They have made us feel very welcome and ‘at home’.
What do you get out of coming to the Bridge?
I have felt like someone has turned the lights on at Wembley stadium. In the past I have been trying to find my way around with a torch and not doing that well. Now the lights at Wembley are on 70 to 80%. I had remembered that Jesus had said he was the light, Tim showed me where that was in John’s gospel and it has had such an impact on me. I have been reading Tom Wright’s “John,…for everyone” I have found it really helpful. I am now doing an Alpha course too. It is brilliant.
Posted on April 26, 2009 - by Tim L
Questions Jesus asked
Religious leaders are supposed to be full of answers, aren’t they? But you’d never know it from listening to Jesus talk. Surprisingly he was full of questions.
Why did Jesus ask so many questions? What did he want to know? How did people avoid answering him? Jesus asked many questions but he had one single purpose in mind. The one thing he is so passionately pursuing isn’t answers - come along for the summer term and find out what he is pursuing.
This week we look at asking questions.
Children get to a certain age and all they seem to do ask questions. I don’t know if you have ever experienced that?
The Why? Questions seems to come up and awful? Why does this happen? Why do I have to do that? Why? Why? Why? No doubt there are some parents hear who have been driven to distraction by it.
Children also seem to think and expect that adults know all of the answers to life’s questions. But again there ge ta certain point in time when the children realise that adults don’t know all of the answers and it can come as areal shock to children or YP and adults alike. For adults in can be particularly hard to accept. You might come across it now trying to help children with their homework and you feel as though you are the one who needs to go to school to understand what they are trying to do.
For children it is part of their growing up and having to become mature adults. Similarly for adults the adulation for a parent that comes from a child who thinks their parents are all seeing, all knowing and all powerful - makes them sound like God doesn’t it? - means that some parents never admit that they are wrong or don’t
know anything.
We have a saying in our house “That was a Peter Houghton statement”. Claire’s dad always had an answer when they were kids to every question they asked even if he did not know anything about it. He would just say whatever he said confidently and he would get away with it.
Now in Mark’s gospel in chapter 13 there is a whole load of stuff about how the world will end. A bit like if the bumble bees die out all humans will die 4 years later.
28“Take a lesson from the fig tree. From the moment you notice its buds form, the merest hint of green, you know summer’s just around the corner. 29And so it is with you. When you see all these things, you know he is at the door. 30Don’t take this lightly. I’m not just saying this for some future generation, but for this one, too-these things will happen. 31Sky and earth will wear out; my words won’t wear out.
32“But the exact day and hour? No one knows that, not even heaven’s angels, not even the Son. Only the Father. 33So keep a sharp lookout, for you don’t know the timetable. 34It’s like a man who takes a trip, leaving home and putting his servants in charge, each assigned a task, and commanding the gatekeeper to stand watch.
Mark 13; 28-34 (The Message)
What Einstein, like Jesus, was unable to predict was when it would happen. But it is not the events of the end time and when it will happen that we are looking at here. What I want us to look at or note is that Jesus did not know when it was going to happen either and he says he does not know it was going to happen. Even Jesus, the son of God who has such a great relationship with the Father does not know when the end will come. Only the Father knows that. Hold on a minute, Tim you are saying that Jesus did not know something. But he is the Son of God, the divine one. How can that be? If Jesus did not know everything it means he can be taught.
In one of the letters in the early church it is quite clear that Jesus gave up things when he came to live amongst us. He gave up knowing everything and being everywhere at once. It is amazing for those early Christian writers to admit that Jesus did not know some things. If they were trying to cook the books then this was a mistake because, because it makes Jesus look, well human!
But this is not the only account of Jesus’ humanity.
Have a look at this from Luke’s gospel.
46The next day they found him in the Temple seated among the teachers, listening to them and asking questions.
Luke 2;46 (The Message)
Jesus got lost! But he was also asking questions. It is true that all who heard him were astonished, but Jesus asked questions. Contrast that with some of the other stories about Jesus that were circulating about in the 1st Century.
There was a Gospel called “the infancy Gospel of Thomas.” In it we learn that as a boy Jesus is very powerful and barely aware of his own strength. A bit like Clarke Kent, getting used to his powers in the TV series Smallville. In the
infancy Gospel of Thomas we learn that Jesus makes birds out of some clay. He then claps his hands and the birds come to life and fly off. On another occasion he is playing with a friend who falls through the roof of a house and dies, but Jesus just brings him back to life. Contrast this with what Luke reports about Jesus getting lost and asking questions. Now which Jesus would you find it easier to identify with?
Jesus asked questions all of his life. He made a habit of it. InMark’s gospel there are 67 episodes recoded of conversations taking place. Jesus asked 50 questions in those 67 accounts. If you met Jesus was he was more like to ask you something than he was to tell you something.
Jesus is always asking questions; What is Jesus asking you today?
Based on, with permission, Jesus asked. What he wanted to know Introduction, Conrad Gempf, Zondervan, 2003. http://www.amazon.com/Jesus-Asked-Conrad-Gempf/dp/031024773X. To learn more about Conrad go to http://www.lst.ac.uk/index.php?pageid=71
Posted on April 22, 2009 - by Tim L
Josef Yates’ story - Easter Sunday 2009
Well how great is our God?
Can I just take this time to say thanks for coming to the Bridge tonight, even if you have to put up with seeing me.
So why am I here? Why am I going through with this? Well to be honest I am doing this for one person, and he is probably one of most awesome people I’ve met. As well he does so many great things for all of us what some of us might not know about yet. The person who I’m talking about is God. The one and only- the one who can move the mountains, the one who is mighty to save. However I can probably guess that some of you are asking “why are you following him?” and “what are you doing!” and this is what my story is all about. My story begins when I was just a young child, a baby even. I was baptised on this day (Easter Sunday) in a church called Saint Catherine’s where my parents go to church, and all of us made our home there. While I was there my parents always encouraged me to do readings in front of my peers in the congregation and I even became an altar server (which wasn’t my soul aim!) but as time goes on I knew I wasn’t happy there, and I began to fall away from my faith and stopped believing. I then began to put this thought into my head that there is no one that loves me and that if God did love me he’d do something by now.
During this time until the summer 2008 I was your typical 15/16 year old boy- football lover, girls, and not thinking highly of school (them things haven’t really changed!) but I knew that I was putting a front on my life as I going through a break up and some other personal things which nearly dented my own life. Last summer my friend Anna was getting baptised and she motioned it was at the Bridge and it was a Christian place of worship. Then I used to be against it because of past experience - but I went for her sake, but just experiencing her baptism and the bridge itself was mind blowing and I could sense that this could have been a start of something special. Then Saint John’s where running an alpha course where questions of life are put to the people who are on the course. It involves a talk and a discussion. Me being me I went all the funny guy- until I got there and experienced what John was saying and it just shook me that someone could be watching my back. Then when it came to the last day of alpha we had a praying day, where everyone receives prayer and seeks the holy spirit- However I wasn’t sure what to expect so I went up and I received prayer from 2 pairs of people John McGinley and Else Tarrbitt and Liz Cain and Atlee Deeming . But then as soon as they were working their magic with prayer the next thing I was on the floor with a constant voice going through my head saying “you are home, you have come back, and from now on you are disciple” then was the first of many things to come which i can’t get into with limited time available. But as some of you know my Grandmother from Ireland Mary Shannon died on the 28th November 2007, and I thought that was it she’s gone- but now I know after an encounter with God that she is in a better place and if we as his children follow his chosen path for us will be honoured to sit with him when our time is up.
I can conclude by saying why The Bridge? Well first it’s easy to get to being a Burbage boy, but I had a sense that I knew that my growing relationship with the great one can get better. I also consider it as my home as well, and the people who come here are always very good to me and I can’t thank them enough for the continued friendship they offer me. Finally I can conclude with why am I doing this? Well now is the time for me to commit my life to God and make a decision to follow him now and seek his guidance- and
Thanks and appreciation.
Josef Yates, a 16 year old who can do quite a good Peter Kay impression
Posted on April 12, 2009 - by Tim L
Easter Sunday
There was once a community of people that lived in a world that was grey. The grass was grey, the sky was not blue but grey. Everyone’s hair was grey, the rainbow had only shades of grey in it, even milk was grey. It was very difficult to tell teams apart on a sports field and spring time was no where near as much fun - There were only grey daffodils for a start. If you have ever felt like you have lived in a world of grey you know how difficult it can be, especially when you have lived with colour. This people had lived only ever with grey, it was all they had known. For us it would be like living a really dense think fog all of the time - although it was probably worse.
Anyway one day a ,man came along and talked about a better place, a place which was not just grey but had something called ‘colour’ in it. Those who live din grey world were amazed at such a thing. ‘Colour’ they had never heard that word before, he talked about blue and red and yellow. He never seemed to use the word grey at all.
A few of them were persuaded to take a journey on a bus to this better place. As you can imagine they were very excited, but a bit scared at the same time of visiting this colour world. The bus set off and as you can imagine there was lots of talking and discussing. There were lots of ‘are we there yet?’ and they had eaten all of their grey cheese sandwiches by the time an hour had passed.
Eventually they arrived. It was truly beautiful. But the new world hurt their eyes, they were not used to so much colour, it was so, …it was so bright. It was a bit like the light being switched on in the morning when you have just woken up. It made them blink, hard, some shielded their eyes. They were invited to get off the bus and they did, but,… well, the grass hurt their feet, some even cut their feet on it. What was wrong? Grey grass never hurts like this it was always soft and never cut your feet. The man tried to persuade them to stay, they would get used to the colour, the glare and the ‘hard’ grass and streams. They would get used to the fact that this world seemed more solid, more stable, compared to them and their grey world. But they would not stay, and they got back on their bus and travelled back to their grey world
(Based on C. S. Lewis The Great Divorce)
Bible reading
But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples told him, “We saw the Master.”
But he said, “Unless I see the nail holes in his hands, put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand in his side, I won’t believe it.”Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.”
Then he focused his attention on Thomas. “Take your finger and examine my hands.Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don’t be unbelieving. Believe.”
Thomas said, “My Master! My God!”
Jesus said, “So, you believe because you’ve seen with your own eyes. Even better blessings are in store for those who believe without seeing.”John 20:27-29 (The Message)
Who thinks the bible passage we have just looked at has a ghost in it? Did you see it?
Where was it? Jesus walked through the walls because he had to, the doors were locked. The Disciples were still worried for their lives and what the Jewish authorities might do them.
Just hold on a minute. Let’s turn it around through 180 degrees. What happens if Jesus is the one who is more real than this world? What happens if the walls of that room compared to Jesus were not as ’solid’? What happens if you turn to the person next to you and look at them and compared to the resurrected Jesus they are a ghost?
Now don’t go round getting frightened, because I know some of you will be when it comes to ghosts. But Christians make an audacious claim about Jesus. Some would say it is a ridiculous claim, a fanciful claim. Christians claim that Jesus was resurrected and that in being resurrected he became more real than the world we live in right now. He was the first fruit of the new heaven and new earth.
Mind blowing, scary and amazing all at the same time.
In the world when Jesus was alive ‘resurrection’ was never used to mean ‘live after death’. It was used to denote new bodily life after. This is what Christian hope is firmly based upon. It does not mean ‘going to heaven’ or even ‘escaping death’ but it does mean coming to bodily life again after bodily death.
This world is grey compared to what the new heaven and earth will be like in all it’s colour and solidness.
The invitation is the same today, as it was to Thomas. Thomas the ‘muddled, dogged Disciple determined not to be taken in, standing in his rights not to believe anything until he got solid evidence, was confronted by the smiling Jesus who had just walked through a locked door” Make no mistake these appearances of Jesus to the Disciples seems to show he belonged to this world and a different world. And what was Thomas’s response? It was just the same as Jo’s today, “My Master, my God”
What about you? What do you respond? Leave the grey world behind and come and live in colour.
You do have an opportunity to respond now as we share a special meal together.
Bible reading -
Let me go over with you again exactly what goes on in the Lord’s Supper and why it is so centrally important. I received my instructions from the Master himself and passed them on to you. The Master, Jesus, on the night of his betrayal, took bread. Having given thanks, he broke it and said,This is my body, broken for you.
Do this to remember me.After supper, he did the same thing with the cup:
This cup is my blood, my new covenant with you.
Each time you drink this cup, remember me.What you must solemnly realize is that every time you eat this bread and every time you drink this cup, you re-enact in your words and actions the death of the Master. You will be drawn back to this meal again and again until the Master returns. You must never let familiarity breed contempt.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (The Message)
Words of invitation
The table of Jesus is your place of gathering
Here you are welcomed, wanted, loved
Here there is a place set for you
So come all you who thirst
All you who hunger for the bread of life
All you whose souls cry out for healing
Come all you who are weary
All you who are bowed down with worry
All you who ache with the tiredness of living
Come all you poor
All you who are without food or refuge
Ail you who go hungry in a fat land
Come all you who are lost
All you who search for meaning but cannot find it
All you who have no place of belonging
Jesus invites you
Draw near with faith
Receive the body of our Lord Jesus Christ which he gave for you and his blood which he shed for you
Eat and drink in remembrance that Christ died for you and feed on him in your hearts by faith with thanksgiving.
If this is part of your story, if you would like to be part of the community that tells this story, if you want to remember, then come. Come with family, come with friends, come as you are, for all is ready
There will be 4 areas around the room. At two of them you will be able to receive the bread and wine from someone, at the other two you will be able to serve yourself.
The will be some music playing and some pictures on the screen.
Posted on April 7, 2009 - by Tim L
Christian Renewal Celebration
On Easter Sunday, April 12th, we will be celebrating with Josef Yates his ‘beginning again with God’.
It will be a party and a celebration of life over death. Come and join us at 5.10pm
Posted on April 7, 2009 - by Tim L
Good Friday
Come and join us for a walk of Christian witness
Good Friday in town - meet at 11am at St. Peters Church or meet at 48 Southfield Road at 10.45 (to park your car), walk down to Hinckley Market Square 11.30am -12 noon. Please come and join us for drinks and hot cross buns at 48 Southfield Road from 12.30 onwards.
Posted on April 5, 2009 - by Tim L
Lent Week 7 - Palm Sunday
Today is celebrated as Palm Sunday in the Christian Church. It’s when we remember Jesus travelling into Jerusalem knowing that the end point is near. That he will face betrayal and death. We are all sitting here thinking next week is Easter and thinking of all the extra things we may have to do or activities we’ve got planned. We might be looking forward to and hoping for a whole mountain of chocolate or other presents to arrive in our homes next Sunday. As the play suggests we need to make sure that in all of that preparation we don’t forget the events of the first Easter and the amazing love that Jesus showed to all of us. His death on the cross shows us all that it is possible for each one of us to live in relationship with the God who made us both on this earth and in heaven.
Whenever there’s a big gathering such as the G20 summit
[The G-20 is an informal forum that promotes open and constructive discussion between industrial and emerging-market countries on key issues related to global economic stability. By contributing to the strengthening of the international financial architecture and providing opportunities for dialogue on national policies, international co-operation, and international financial institutions, the G-20 helps to support growth and development across the globe.]
There is also a protest opportunity as these pictures show. When national leaders gather it’s a good time for organizations to try and get their message heard. While the national leaders are flying into international airports and bringing their own security teams with them, then the counter procession also kicks into gear. Banners are made, plans are organized, megaphones are dusted down.
It was no different in around 30AD. As Jesus rides the donkey into Jerusalem this is a carefully orchestrated procession, not the mad cap impulsive move you might have thought. Its carefully planned on two counts - first, Jesus knows his Old Testament very well and he knows that the prophets have spoken about the King, the one who saves God’s people, who will enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey. It’s in a book called Zechariah if you want to check it out. So Jesus plans this procession to coincide with the start of the Passover which is a very important week in the Jewish calendar. So to all those who know the Jewish story Jesus is very carefully planning to say to anyone who wants to watch, “hey, that King you’re waiting for - well he’s here, I’m the one, it’s me!”. Jesus also demonstrates that wry, ironic sense of fun that he has too, instead of riding a fully grown donkey, he rides a colt, a young donkey, you can imagine his feet brushing the floor as the procession makes it way into Jerusalem.
The second point in the story relates to the fact that this is the start of the Passover week. The population of Jerusalem is going to swell from around 45,000 people to nearer 180,000 and so the Roman prefect (guy in charge!) made sure that he was in the city too, to keep order along with his garrison of troops. So as Jesus is riding his donkey into town so too is Pontius Pilate on the other side of Jerusalem. He is going to make sure that the Jewish people remembered who was really in charge. Picture this procession though, rich deep red cloth, bright shining breastplates, polished leather, cavalrymen on horseback and the head of the procession full of pomp and ceremony would have been Pontius himself.
So now on the same day we have the civic and ceremonial and the protest gathering to make itself heard. You can choose which you think is which!
Which one is the show of power, the show of authority? Who was throwing down the gauntlet to who?
So on one side of the town you could be watching the soldiers, enjoying their show of power, admiring the good looking men, hoping to catch someone’s eye. Would you be wishing you could join in, be one of the cavalry, part of the glamour and the prestige? Would you be at the front, with a good view, or nervously casting around at the back, only getting a glimpse now and then?
Imagine for a moment that you were at the other side of the town watching Jesus’ procession into Jerusalem. Would you get the irony, the send up? Would you be puzzled, thinking what on earth is going on here? Would you join in the party atmosphere, any excuse for a party is a good one? Would you be looking to see if you were being watched? You might get reported if you’re involved in the counter-procession to the civic ceremony on the other side of town! Or would you be joining in, any cause is a good cause if it stands against the Romans?
The crowds on both sides of the city were looking for someone with the power to make their lives safe and happy. They were looking for something to believe in, something to follow, something that made sense of their lives. Would it be the Romans or would it be Jesus?
If you were there and had the choice, which procession would you be watching? The two processions sum up the daily choice we faced with. Which side will you choose? But before you decide - the benefit of hindsight - there is a health warning to be observed.
Those who thought Jesus was the answer, that he fulfilled the prophecies of the one who save God’s people had a shock coming. They wanted a King, a leader who through control and physical power would overrun the Romans and give the Jewish people back their land and their freedom. Jesus knew that for many of the people cheering at the side of the road that day, they were only prepared to acknowledge him as King if he fulfilled their picture of what that King should do and be - a warrior, a freedom fighter, a King who would beat off all challenge to his throne.
Jesus response to that was to offer his life. His rallying call for his “army” was one of self-sacrifice, humility and obedience. Not exactly the strong, controlling message of our champion that we might want to see or hear.
Reading
Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death-and the worst kind of death at that: a crucifixion.
Philippians 2: 5-8 (The Message)
Response
In any crowd, there are a number of different types of people. If you are part of or see the walk of witness next Friday you’ll see them all here in Hinckley!
wholehearted - tying their colours to the mast.
enquiring - what’s this all about? What’s going on?
not involved - its nothing to do with me, I’ll make the best of whoever’s in charge
timid - want to do the right thing but full of fear
unworthy - I can’t be of any help, I’m useless
looking good - I don’t get it but I think I should be involved
unfriendly - I got involved once before and got hurt/let down
image-conscious - he’s ridiculous, I’m not associating with him
You might be able to think of others.
Take a few moments to put yourself in that crowd as Jesus rides his donkey, feet dragging on the ground, a motley crew of ordinary people following after him. Hopes high, waiting for something new to happen.
Which one are you? Which one would you like to be? Take a few moments just to think about it?
Then as we sing the final song this evening, if you would like to respond to what God’s been saying to you this evening then come to the cross.
AT THE FOOT OF THE CROSS
Where I kneel in adoration,
And I lay my burdens down
I exchange all my sin
For the promise of salvation,
And Your name across my brow.
At the foot of the cross
I give up my vain ambition,
And I leave my selfish pride.
In the peace that is there
Will You restore my vision
In all the places I am blind?
I will wait here at the cross. (x4)
At the foot of the cross
There is healing for this nation,
There is rest for those who wait;
And the love that we find
Is the hope of all creation,
We are stunned by what You gave.
We will wait here at the cross. (x4)
We will wait at the cross,
A hungry generation,
With our broken hearts and lives.
Will You hear, will You come,
Will You fill our desperation?
O God, let this be the time.
We will wait here at the cross. (x4)
Tré Sheppard
Copyright © 2002 Thankyou Music