Risky Business

I believe in God. That’s not a very challenging or informative statement. Commonly, it expresses that I believe that God exists; you may also infer that I consider God to be generally a good thing.
In English translations of the New Testament, there is a lot of talk about believing. Jesus repeatedly encouraged people to 'believe in' him. But Jesus wasn’t asking people to believe that he existed - that would hardly have been difficult for them - or even to believe that is was the Christ or the Son of God - those ideas were only just beginning to be associated with him. Jesus was asking people to trust him - thats the meaning of the word he was using.
Trust is subtly different from belief. Trust is specific. You may be willing to trust me with a small amount of money, or trust that I am a generally well-meaning person. But you would be unwise to trust me to style your hair, and utterly foolish to trust me to perform routine surgery on you. We trust specific people to do specific things. The same needs to apply to our relationship with God.
What are we trusting God for?
Often, talk about trusting God is unhelpfully vague. Trust is a decision to embark on a particular action when the outcome of that action is, at least in part, beyond our control. I get a mechanic to service my car because I don’t understand how my car works. When I next drive my car, I put my trust in the mechanic’s understanding and integrity.
So what do we actually trust God for?
Trust requires action, and it involves risk. When I sit on a chair, I trust that it will hold my weight. If it doesn’t, I will end up on the floor. We trust God when we perform certain actions which rely of him in a way that is beyond our control - actions that we would not perform if we didn’t trust God.
Jesus asks us to trust him. He asks us to live differently in this world, trusting that his way is a better way, even though it may be costly for us.
How often to you really trust God?

Small is Beautiful - Sunday 7th May 2017

When four young students in ancient Babylon began to meet together to discuss their shared love of the food, customs and beliefs of Jerusalem (their place of birth), something started which had a positive impact on the future of both cities for generations to come.
When four young Galilean fishermen - who often talked together about their hopes for the future of their nation and their faith - decided to take a holiday to listen to the teaching of John the Baptist, something started which continues to have an impact across this planet, even today.
It is amazing what God can do with a handful of people who share a common interest and have the determination to put their ideas into action.
Human culture is frequently obsessed with size. Be it in business, politics or religion, we assume that bigger is better. God appears to see things differently. More often than not, when God does something wonderful its origins lie in efforts of a small group of people who got together around a common interest.
Churchill famously said, “Never was so much owed by so many to so few.” He was referring to the efforts of the Royal Air Force, but the same words could just as well be applied to those whose determined efforts have brought the the good news of God’s love to our corner of this world.
In big church congregations our potency for God’s kingdom is easily lost or diluted. It is when we get together in small groups that things begin to make a difference. Small is indeed beautiful in God’s eyes.