http://blog.christianconnection.co.uk/i-was-wondering-about-playing-against-type/

* I made a decision, some time ago had to re-post other people's blog's but this caught my attention, so I'm reposting it.*

I was wondering… about playing against type

I had a type. It changed occasionally (OK, regularly), sometimes depending on the last film I had seen or whoever I had just passed in the street. But there was always someone – a hypothetical someone – who ticked all the boxes. An invisible standard, lurking in my subconscious, by which all potential suitors would be measured. I just had to wait for him to glide majestically into view.

And then I passed 30.

Maybe you’re there already; maybe the magical milestone is still to come, but whichever side of the big 3-0 you happen to reside, there’s something you might have noticed. Although I didn’t look dramatically different – well, apart from a sudden love for support tights and elasticated waists, obviously – once word was out perceptions changed. Have you seen ‘Bride Wars’? I won’t judge you if you say yes. Thanks to my hairy, tattooed brother (yes really) I have, and a concept from it stuck in my mind. In summary: 30 is the last age a man will go out with a woman of his own age; after that, he always goes younger. A woman over 30, therefore, should expect the attentions of older men, not men the same age, who would only be interested in younger women.

Hmm. Thankfully God didn’t write ‘Bride Wars’.

And yet it seemed some people enthusiastically bought into this notion. I was suddenly suggested as the perfect companion for significantly older men. In one case, I was solemnly assured, because the gentleman in question had “never grown up” (hopefully not one of those chaps fond of wearing nappies). I was also told if I could hang on for a few more years I could catch the second-time-rounders back on the ‘market’, or even bide my time, staring intently from a distance without introduction, for some poor chaps to recover from tragically being widowed. None of it seemed terribly romantic. Slightly alarming, yes. Sinister? Just a little. A pre-defined role as a companion to the heartbroken (or Peter Pan) and I – and maybe they -didn’t get much say in what happened next. So much for having a type. I was already being typecast.

But then I looked around at couples I knew and saw a lot more variety. Differences in age, culture, race, education, height, weight and background. Men older than women but also (gasp!) women older than men. One couple born on the same day in the same year now excited about becoming grandparents. Couples who met at youth group and university and church but also couples who met on blind dates, by chance in nightclubs, even on trains. Unexpected matches in which both flourished. Where types didn’t apply, because something deeper had kicked in.

So when long-time single friends* announced they had found love with older, divorced single parents despite having devoted years to hooking super-hot, younger, uncomplicated matches it made me wonder. On paper (or online) it can seem so straightforward. This is what I want. Don’t even talk to me if you don’t fit. The delightfully misused ‘God will give me the desires of my heart’ wheeled out to justify preferences, but unless we’re perfect (except me, obviously) we need to broaden our horizons. Let character, sense of humour, inspiring conversation, kindness, even differences and challenges, draw us to others. Prepare to be surprised. See what we might be missing. Say goodbye to types and hello to possibilities.

*Male and female. Did you guess? 

Written by Vicky Walker   Posted in: Dating, Singleness

About Vicky Walker

Vicky Walker is a writer and speaker, among other things. Her book ‘Do I have to be good all the time?’ about life, love and awkward moments is available now from www.vickywalker.info

To boldly go, where no-one has gone before !

To boldly go, where no-one has gone before !

When I was growing up, my parents and grandparents would take me and my two sisters on holidays to Ifracombe on the North Devon Coast, and more often or not we would go by the MV Balmoral, which would sail between Swansea and Ilfracombe in the Summer months, and while there go for boat trips that would sail from Ilfracombe harbour, I have  many happy memories of going there as child and early teenager, because of these memories I enjoy spending time by the Coast and now live in a Seaside Resort, although I have not been on a boat trip for a while, I'm fascinated both by boats and the Sea.

I remember a few years ago, while on holidays in Porthleven, Cornwall, spending time in the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth and had an interesting and enjoyable time there, although one thing I noticed more than others that the boats on display, none of them were in their original context , it was fascinating looking at these boats and reading all about them, but all them weren't doing the job they were designed and build for, yes, being on the water. Porthleven is a lovely, fishing village situated near Helston, and has a very picturesque harbour and I noticed that all the boats were doing the purpose they were designed and build for. Like other seaside holiday destinations, Porthleven has several shops selling goods to tourists, some of these shops sell model ships, they look exactly like the originals, but they could never do, the same job as the original ! they were just for display

For centuries Great Britain has been a maritime nation, and many of our national heroes have been sailors, from the historic figures like Sir Francis Drake, Horatio Nelson, Captain James Cook, to the fictional heroes such as Horatio Hornblower, many of our wars and the battles that we fought have involved fighting on Sea, from fighting the Spanish Armada, The Battle from Trafalgar, The Battle Of Jutland, The Battle of the River Plate. Most of our imports and exports travel by sea, the sea has important part to play into our history, present and future as Great Britain. The sea routes used today both for business and pleasure had to be discovered, and the ships that travel those routes use sea-charts to show them where they are going and how to get there, from the smallest cabin cruiser to the mighty container ship. Yet someone had to go out and navigate the sea in order for these sea-charts to be produced. Many of these men, such as Sir Francis Drake and Captain James Cook, stand tall throughout our history.

We see in our Bibles, countless references to sailing and to sea, from Noah's Voyage, to Jonah and we know that the Lord's Disciples Peter, Andrew, James and John were fisherman on the Sea of Galilee, and many of the early missionaries such as Paul, Barnabas, Silas, Mark, Timothy and Luke often travelled by sea to spread the Good News of the Gospel of Salvation to the people of the known world. In Ephesians 4:12, one of the meanings of the Greek Word we translate as equip is prepare a ship for voyage (one of the other meanings, is to set a broken bone).

In the 19th and 20th centuries many people left these shores and other shores to travel the world, to spread the Good News of the Gospel of Salvation, following the example of men like William Carey, John Wesley and George Whitfield, I remember growing up in small Pentecostal Church in the South Wales Valley's, and hearing about many men and women who went forth as missionaries, and being inspired by the reports that came back from our missionaries in places like Nigeria and India, I had the privilege not only of having a retired missionary as one of my Sunday School Teachers, and having two former missionary couples as my Pastor and his wife , but also being related to one of the earliest Pentecostal Pioneers from the United Kingdom to Nigeria, who in his later years inspired me to seek and serve God. While a student in Bible School, several of my lecturers had been missionaries, and I know how much they inspired me and my fellow students.

In the early part of the 21st Century, many of us may not have the same opportunities to travel to other lands following in the footsteps of our brothers and sisters who went before us, there are still opportunities we can take, perhaps in short-term mission trips, we have advancements in technology they didn't have anything  like the Internet, I remember being in School in the 1980's and never thought then I could not talk to people in places like America and Australia via a computer and a phone-line but to count them as friends as well. On the other hand we don't have to travel to other lands to be a missionary, we can be missionaries in our villages, towns, suburbs, cities but most importantly in our communities. I know that in the coming days, the Lord will inspire many of us to become missionaries on other towns, cities and regions throughout our own lands but other lands as well.

In the last 12-18 months, I have been greatly inspired by the writings of people like Alan J Roxburgh, Alan Hirsch, Neil Cole, Martin Robinson and Floyd McClung, especially when it comes to being Missional and being challenged by the concept of mission dei or God's Mission. I may not have the opportunities to travel to other lands to spread the Good News of the Gospel of Salvation, but it doesn't mean that there are no opportunities here in the United Kingdom. I've just read something that David Cameron, the Prime Minister here in the UK, said about Broken Britain and Social Recession. (If you would like to read more about Missional, I strongly recommend (Introducing the Missional Church by Alan J Roxburgh). Both my prayer and desire is to see God raise up His People here in the UK and other lands to see the spiritual needs in our own lands, and be willing to follow His direction either to pray, support or go, hopefully to do all, some of us He will send to our neighbours, some of us He will send to our streets, some to our towns and cities, but all He asks are we willing to go to those He will send us ?

Some of us in coming days, He will ask to be Pioneers, and to go where no-one has gone before or for some time, to break into new territory or to go and re-claim territory. I'm now going to share some Scriptures with you, and my Prayer is that God will use these Scriptures to challenge you for the first time or to challenge for you for the thousandth time, and follow his direction, which will not only impact your own live, but impact the lives of others, those who is sending you to.

If you're wondering if my title sounds familiar, it's from Star Trek, the days ahead will be days of challenge, courage and grace but most importantly of opportunity, and I pray that we take the courage and the grace, to take the opportunities those challenges will present to us.

Isa 6:8-9a TNIv

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?"

       And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" 9 He said, "Go and tell this people

Matt 28:19-20 NIv

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in [a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Romans 10:14015a NCV

 14 But before people can ask the Lord for help, they must believe in him; and before they can believe in him, they must hear about him; and for them to hear about the Lord, someone must tell them;15 and before someone can go and tell them, that person must be sent.

Yours by His Grace

Blair Humphreys 

Waiting.

Waiting.

I wonder how many of us enjoy waiting ? I know that I rather do something else, well I’m a man, and most men, and if not a lot of women will hopefully agree with me that men aren’t particularly good at waiting!

We seem to spend so much time in the day, waiting, perhaps it’s waiting for the Bus or Train, which always seem to be running late, if you’re anything like me, you keep checking your watch and the timetable, or if you’re desperate, sending a text message to the local Bus company timetable service, who then sent you a text message for the time of the next bus!

Several Supermarkets, here in the UK, now have  a self checkout service rather than a check out operator scaning  your goods, customers can now self-scan, it’s suppose to make things easier for customers but if you like me, you spend at least twice as long self-scanning than you would do at a more conventional check-out ! Maybe it’s a man thing !.

In the so-called Western or developed world, we seem constantly rushing or hurrying, trying to get places quicker or faster, we have Instant Coffee, Express Checkouts, Online Banking, Online Shopping, which is really cool, because you don’t have to queue and it’s delivered, sometimes even the next day.

I’ve had many moments where God has either spoken into or touched my life, I remember when God moved in my life as a somewhat angry, self centred and annoying teenager, a few of you  will remember me like that! Of all the years, I’ve prayed and sought God’s face, wept, read my Bible, keep going, nearly give up dozens of times, been disappointed, hurt, felt rejection.

Throughout the years despite all that has happened, I’m still here, still have questions that I can’t answer, been confused over so many things, and at least several times lost for words, failed, Yet Jesus still loves me, still cares for me, and is still by my side.

Some time ago, I went through a time of hurt and rejection, and although I didn't give up on my relationship with the Lord.  I had stopped going to Church. I was angry and confused both with myself, others and the Lord.  During this time, I had two significant dreams, in one dream one of the elders from a church I used to attend, and had left some years was praying with me in  his office, and the second dream was coming here to Southport, and both happened as in the dreams.

It has and will involve change on my part, but the only true option I have is to move forward, it means moving on and standing strong, It means giving my full attention to all the things God has spoken into my life and done in my life, it involves letting go of some things so that I can lay hold of other things, it’s means pain and sorrow, but also means joy and fulfilment. It means moving on from where I am to where God wants me to be.

Change is coming.

It’s taking longer than I expected, and although there seems to be a delay, these things come in God’s Timing and not ours. Yes I’m moving forward and staying focused, and when God will fulfill His promise, I’ve nearly given up a few times, even in the last few weeks, I don’t know how and when, or how long the journey will be, but I’m taking it one day, and one step at a time, and know in God’s timing I will arrive.

There are two scriptures that God has spoken into my life this last week. These are Habakkuk 2:3 and Hebrews 10:35-36

Habakkuk 2:3 Niv

3 For the revelation waits an appointed time;

it speaks of the end

and will not prove false.

Though it linger, wait for it;

it [c] will certainly come and will not delay.

Hebrews 10:35-36 TNiv

35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

Yours in Him

Blair Humphreys

Are we there yet? Looking at our Journey of Faith and Adventure. Part 3, Dealing with Distractions, Disappointments and Delays in reaching our Destiny or Destination.

Are we there yet? Looking at our Journey of Faith and Adventure.

Part 3, Dealing with Distractions, Disappointments and Delays in reaching our Destiny or Destination.

I mentioned in a previous post, that I’m Welsh and part of being Welsh is the love of singing or in my case attempting to sing !,  My dad is a member of a Male Voice Choir called Swansea Gospel Male Voice Choir, and especially in the Welsh Valleys there is a History of Choral Singing, (Choir Singing).

One of the most well recognised and most famous Welsh Hymns is Guide me, O thou Great Jehovah (or Redeemer) which was written by one of the most famous Welsh Hymn Writers, William Williams (Pantycelyn) although originally written in the Welsh Language as Arglwydd, arwain trwy'r anialwch, It’s known throughout the World as Guide me, O thou Great Jehovah it’s also known as The Welsh Rugby Hymn or Bread of Heaven, where it’s sung with equal gusto when Wales play Rugby to when it’s sung in the Chapels and Churches.

Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,

Pilgrim through this barren land;

I am weak, but thou art mighty;

Hold me with thy powerful hand:

Bread of heaven, bread of heaven

Feed me till I want no more.

Feed me till I want no more.

Open thou the crystal fountain

Whence the healing stream shall flow;

Let the fiery, cloudy pillar

Lead me all my journey through:

Strong deliverer, strong deliverer

Be thou still my strength and shield.

Be thou still my strength and shield.

When I tread the verge of Jordan,

Bid my anxious fears subside;

Death of death, and hell's destruction,

Land me safe on Canaan's side:

Songs of praises, songs of praises

I will ever give to thee.

I will ever give to thee.

Several weeks ago. I had the privilege to spend some time with one of my closest friends here in Southport, He and his wife are great friends to myself and others and are an inspirational couple, he’s also likes Organs especially Hammond Organs, a few weeks ago he had to go to South Wales to collect an Organ, so I went with him to help him collect it.   On the return journey we stopped at a Tesco Express Convenience Store to pick up refreshments and I had an urge for Welsh Cakes, so I picked up a pack of Brace’s Welsh Cakes and bought them home with me,  a few days later I was shopping at my local Asda and has I walked around the aisle’s I noticed tucked away in the Bakery Aisle, Brace’s Welsh Cakes, the Lord spoke to me through this, that he not would only provide me with the essentials here but would provide me with blessings here, because I’ve been obedient to Him.

After our successful trip to Wales, my friend asked me would I be interested in travelling to the north of Scotland with him to collect an Organ, I of course agreed because I believe part of being friends is helping each other, On our Journey we used two forms of navigation a Sat-Nav and a Road Atlas, on this journey we had to stop for fuel and food and we stopped at Carlisle, there were other people travelling that day, and although my friend and I were travelling to Scotland not everyone had the same destination as ourselves, as people either left the motorway because they were getting to their destination or they were joining the motorway to go to their destination,  I wondered to myself, firstly how long it would take to get to our destination and what would we find when we got there and what would it be like, on our journey we passed various road signs giving names of various locations like Glasgow, Stirling, Perth and Dundee and as some people kept leaving the road we were on and other people kept joining I wondered to myself how many people travelling had the same destination as we had. 

We shared the road with other travellers, and for part of the journey we travelled alongside each other, then they left us and in some ways we left others because our destination was different from them, on our journey we passed several places of interest such as The Falkirk Wheel and Stirling Castle, but even if those places are interesting,  they could have been a distraction to us, It would have quiet easy because of the distance we had to travel to  change our destination and go with the flow and go somewhere like Glasgow or Perth, but they weren’t our destination.

 We kept travelling and the further north we went we saw less and less traffic, we passed through several sets of traffic lights when we went through on the Green Light, it would have quiet easy in our eagerness to get to our destination gone through on Red or Amber Lights because we didn’t want to be delayed, eventually we arrived in the beautiful seaside town of Gardenstown in Aberdeenshire, none of the travellers we had seen on our journey had also arrived in Gardenstown and for part of our journey we had travelled alongside others, either for a small part or longer part of our journey.

In the Christian Life and Walk, we have two forms of Navigation, the Holy Spirit’s guidance in our life and the written word of God, The Bible,  I notice in our lives journey we use both forms of navigation and both lead us to the correct destination, there are/were other people travelling when we travelled and for part of our journey we travelled alongside each other but because our destination was different we've  parted  or part company at various junctions, we had to also stop for fuel and food,  so in our Christian Life and Walk we need to stop to be refreshed and recharged,  because our destination was further along that others destinations it would be easier and more convenient to change our destination but it wouldn’t have been our true destination or our goal, It would be easy to be distracted and because we had seen something that attracted us and it looks more achievable that our goal we settle in places that aren’t the correct location or best place for us, because of various things we can be delayed on our journey but we still arrive at our destination. But lets us keep going until we reach were God wants us to be.

I live in Southport, and our local train station is served by two train companies, Northern Rail who provide services to and from Manchester and Merseyrail who provide services to Liverpool, The Wirral and Chester, can you imagine if I decided to spend the day by visiting Chester but decided to travel to Manchester instead both have similar names but are two different places, Manchester is a great place but it wouldn’t have been my destination, when travelling to Chester you have to change trains at either Moorfields or Liverpool Central Stations , I could say to myself it has taken me 45 minutes to get to Liverpool, and it will  take another 50 minutes to get to Chester. I know I will stay here for a bit then move on to Chester but you end up in Liverpool which is a great place to visit but again not my destination, because Merseyrail is a local commuter line it stops at every train station between Southport and Liverpool one of these stations is Formby and in Formby there is a National Trust site that has a colony of Red Squirrels,  I could be distracted and decide to see these Red Squirrels, but again it’s not my destination!

Why I’m saying these things?  You may ask, I’m using this has an illustration, some of us have decided to go to places that aren’t our destination/destiny but have made it our destination or destiny because it’s similar to our destination or destiny and others have places where we need to change but we stay in a place that we needed to just to change at to get to our destination or destiny and then others have been distracted by things we’ve seen or have been told and yes we all say we’re happy and fulfilled where we are and God is blessing us,  yes this things may be true up to point but to reach the full potential of our destiny we need to be where God has called us to be in the first place, yes it will mean change and/or upset but we need to be where God wants us to be!

It says in Habakkuk 2:3 For still the vision awaits its appointed time it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it;    it will surely come; it will not delay.

It says in Ephesians 3:20 – 21. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.

Yours because of His Grace and Mercy

Blair Humphreys

Are we there yet? Looking at our Journey of Faith and Adventure Part 2: A personal story

Are we there yet?  Looking at our Journey of Faith and Adventure

Part 2: A personal story

While I’ve been writing this post, I’ve been watching a fascinating programme called Penguin – Spy in the Huddle on BBC 1.  In this episode the young penguins who have only known land have to take the leap of faith and jump into the Sea, it’s somewhere they’ve never seen or been before or indeed have experience and knowledge of. What will happen, will they drown or will they survive?  Although Penguins are Birds and look they should be able to fly, and they do spend some time on land, they’re designed and created to Swim, Can you imagine if one of these penguins decided that he or she wouldn’t go into the water they try to stay on land or learn to fly or indeed they jumped into the sea and decided that they wanted the seeming safety of dry land or some other penguin turns and says to them, Swimming tried it once and didn’t like it. However all the penguins did make into the sea and swim because that’s what they’ve been created to do, indeed called to do.

What do we do, when we’re challenged by the Lord to move away from what is familiar and safe to us?  Do we opt to stay where we are happy with the Status Quo, When God speaks to us, and gives us direction and promises if we obey Him. Do we spend time in prayer asking God to speak to us and give us direction?, because we may not like what he asks us to do or when He already has given us His direction, do we look at all our options or decide to play it safe,  are we scared of moving into something new because it may not work out ?

I now live in Southport, Merseyside which is a seaside resort in the North West of England, however when you hear me speak,  you realise that I’m Welsh, so what I’m doing in the North West of England you may ask?

Before we go any further I’m going to ask you to read Genesis 12, and look again at Abraham.

When I was a boy of about 11,  I give my life to the Lord Jesus when I realised that He died in my place for my sin on Calvary, and from that moment I became a Christian or a Disciple of Jesus and joined a Church Family in the South Wales Valleys, although I was raised in a Christian family and was raised in Biblical Values and Ethics and in a way was already part of that Church Family because my parents and grandparents where part of that Church, during this time my parents and grandparents would take myself, my two sisters on a family holiday to Ilfracombe in North Devon however now being a mature and adventurous 11 year old, I went to a Christian Youth Camp on The Gower Peninsula near Swansea for a week before joining the rest of my family in Ilfracombe. I realised there that part of being a Disciple was being involved in Mission or spreading the Good News of the Gospel in things like Evangelism.

I spent some interesting times from about 11 to 23, in a great Pentecostal Denomination mostly in the South Wales Valleys, although in the days before email and Facebook made good friends with other young people and some older people from related Churches from the UK and overseas. I spent two years in that Pentecostal Denomination’s Bible School which was about 30 miles from where I lived in Neath, (although I spent the first 17 years of my life in Melin Court, Clyne and Resolven). but when I heard the stories of both the men and women of God, the Pentecostal Pioneers who had gone before me, I was greatly challenged thinking there must be more than this, My Grandmother fuelled a lot of this desire in me, but lending me books by Arthur Wallis.

 My mind-set was established in Pentecostalism and being Welsh, I thank the Lord for my heritage and history and the friends I made there, but I realised aged 23 that the my journey of faith wasn’t with my friends I had grown up with, and reluctantly and with a heavy heart I knew God was moving me on to other pastures.

 It was during this time, The Toronto Blessing happened.  I wanted a fresh touch or anointing from the Lord so I could be refreshed and go back to the Pentecostal Church that was my spiritual home at the time and get my mind into gear,  I visited another Church in Neath and was prayed for, and for a few weeks everything was okay, but I was hungry for something different and I couldn’t find it where I was at the time, so I made a second visit to this new Church, and I asked one of the leaders, who later become one of my closest and dearest friends, a question and suddenly I asked how could I join.

When I look back over the last 20 years, I remember the challenges I’ve faced, the many times where I have felt life is an emotional rollercoaster! It was during one of these journeys on  life’s emotional rollercoaster,  I give up on Church, I remember being at my sister’s house in South Wales, and now using the technical phrase I didn’t know if I was coming or going,  I felt I needed to pray for direction, and asked the Lord where I had gone wrong.

  

  Some 10 years ago, I came here to Southport on Holiday and I felt that God was calling me and calling me to be a part of the Church family I’m now part of. I tried for several years to come here and nothing worked out, but hey I kept trying and of course kept failing, and eventually I give up and tried to forget about Southport.  I tried moving to another part of the country, and that ended badly and I give up on Church.  I was sitting on my sister’s sofa praying, and I felt I needed to send a text to a friend here, who I not spoken to for some time asking for his advice, his advice was to phone him, which I did, during our chat, he challenged me that I gone off –track and I needed to get back on track. I remember bursting into tears. It was after that call to my friend, I watched two television programmes that both mentioned Southport and realised that God was telling me something.  I arranged to visit here for a weekend in February 2011.

I remember going to Church on Sunday morning of that weekend and sitting in the back row, and when one of our elders was speaking and towards the end of his sermon, he quoted this Scripture

Numbers 10:29

English Standard Version Anglicised (ESVUK)

²⁹ And Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, “We are setting out for the place of which the Lord said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will do good to you, for the Lord has promised good to Israel.”

When I think of God’s grace, mercy, forgiveness and blessings, I just want to praise Him,  I tried to settle for second best, for the comforts of convenience, for an easy life of mediocrity, Yet God has been good and is being good today, kept challenging me to see the bigger picture, and to see there is more than we have experienced or seen before, although I’m from Neath in South Wales,  Southport is now my home.

The Lord says in Jeremiah 29:11 -13 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare[b] and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord.

God’s plans and purposes for our life are higher and better than our plans and purposes for our own lives, He has given our lives direction and destiny.  I’m not sure how my life would look now if I stayed in Neath and for some Neath is where God has placed and planted them and has called them to serve Him and His Church, but it wasn’t my calling and destiny, I will say that if feel your live has gone off – track and you’ve missed your calling and destiny, find your Southport or Canaan?

Yours in His Grace

Blair Humphreys

Are we there yet? Looking at our Journey of Faith and Adventure, Part 1

Are we there yet?  Looking at our Journey of Faith and Adventure

Part 1

In the Film Shrek 2, The Character Donkey, (voiced by Eddie Murphy) keeps asking his friends Shrek and Fiona are we nearly there yet on their journey to Far Far Away Land.

In Genesis 11, Terah, Abraham’s Father takes Abram (Abraham), Abram’s wife Sarai and his grandson Lot, the son of another son called Haran from the settlement of Ur of the Chaldeans (in modern day Iraq) to the land of Canaan, (modern day Israel), we don’t know why Terah had decided to leave Ur and settle in Canaan, but for some reason, he found the settlement of Haran (in modern day Turkey) and he settled and eventually died there, see Genesis 11:27 – 32

 27 Now these are the records of the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran; and Haran became the father of Lot. 28 Haran died [k]in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah [l]and Iscah. 30 Sarai was barren; she had no child. 31 Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went out [m]together from Ur of the Chaldeans in order to enter the land of Canaan; and they went as far as Haran, and [n]settled there. 32 The days of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran.

To get from Ur of Chaldeans to Canaan, the most direct route would be in a straight line directly across the desert, ancient travellers wouldn’t have travelled this route because of the dangers of travelling in the desert, they would have travelled through a region called The Fertile Crescent, because they could have found water and pasture for themselves and their livestock.

When God calls us to do something,  He doesn’t always lead us directly from point a to point b. He takes us in a circuitous route where we can find refreshment, encouragement and blessing, however sometimes we settle in places that God hasn’t called us to settle, we settle in places that are oasis of refreshment rather than our ultimate destination  this sometimes is because of convenience or sometimes because we’re afraid to move on. If you’re on a journey of faith, adventure and obedience to the Lord don’t stay in Ur, don’t settle in Haran keep moving to Canaan.

Sometime later, the Lord spoke to Terah’s son Abram (Abraham), and said to him in Genesis 12 1 The Lord said to Abram: Leave your country, your family, and your relatives and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will bless you and make your descendants into a great nation. You will become famous and be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless anyone who blesses you, but I will put a curse on anyone who puts a curse on you. Everyone on earth will be blessed because of you.[a]

Abraham could have stayed in Haran, he was settled, comfortable and at ease, life was easier staying at Home, than going on a Journey, yet there must have been something that drew him to obey the Lord.

One of the films that inspired me in 2012,  was Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit; An Unexpected Journey,  Bilbo Baggins played by Martin Freeman, a respectable Hobbit who has settled for a comfortable life and finds himself challenged by his friend the Wizard Gandalf and the company of Dwarves led by Thorin,  when Gandalf and Thorin’s company of Dwarves leave him behind because of his reluctance and desire for safety, security and comfort, he wakes up and realizes his mistake, and runs after his friends and when asked by his neighbours where he was going, he replies I’m off on an advantage and gets looks both of bemusement and confusion

How often when God challenges us to do something, we like our safety, security, comfort and easy life, it’s time like Bilbo Baggins to leave our Bagend and don’t let anything hold you back and move on with our adventure of faith, as the Lord directs and leads us forward.

See Genesis 12:4-9 4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, 6 Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak[c] of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord. 9 And Abram journeyed on, still going towards the Negeb.

In  Hebrews 11, we see the roll call of those who obeyed God by their faith and Abraham is one of those mentioned

8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. 11 By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore 13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, 18 of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” 19 He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

Yours by His Grace

Blair Humphreys

Southport, Merseyside

Are we living in the Past, the Present or the Future?, Part 1

Are we living in the Past, the Present or the Future?

Part 1: Living in the Past.

I often wonder what is the attraction of TV Programmes like ITV’s Downton Abbey  and  Alibi’s Murdoch Mysteries . ? Is it Nostalgia  for an earlier, seemingly more innocent age ?, perhaps with all the upheaval that we both see around us and read about that directly or indirectly affects our day to day lives, is living in or thinking  about the past some sort of safety net?

I live in Southport, Merseyside, and our local radio station Dune FM on Friday night from 7pm to 10pm plays 1980’s Music and I enjoy listening to some great and not so great songs from my younger days ! but I wouldn’t choose to travel back in time, like some Welsh version of Dr Who and try to live in those days.   I grew up in a small village in the South Wales Valleys called Melin Court, and spend time not only there but in other villages like Resolven and Clyne. Overall when I wear my rose tinted glasses I enjoyed my time growing up there, but if I could ask my teenage self the same question what would the answer be?

I enjoy music, and did Cse Music in School, (I also played on one of the School Chess Teams) I had the opportunity to visit the world famous Cavern Club in Liverpool , it’s one of the places the Beatles played, it was packed and overall I enjoyed my time there, there was a live band playing cover versions of songs by The Beatles and The Who. The atmosphere was electric, but one thing struck me, here’s a young band not playing their own songs but playing the songs of a previous generation!

My time at The Cavern Club lead me to think about why we sometimes try to live in the past, we let the circumstances of  our past, the influence of others,  past hurts, past disappointments,  feelings of hurt and sometimes bitterness govern our lives. We let the things that happened 5, 10, 15 or even 20 plus years influence how we live today, perhaps the hurt of a breakdown of a relationship that has happened in the past we don’t allow ourselves due to the fear of rejection or the fear of a failure to move on to a better relationship. Sometimes we try to eat the fruit of past blessings, happiness, success which like all fruit that was picked and not eaten, has become rotten, instead of picking and eating the new fruit for today.

The Prophet Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 43:18-19b, NivUk

“18 Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.    19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”

It’s easy to try to live in the past, but God calls us to move on and move forward to both bigger and better things.

The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 2:13-14NivUk

“ 13 Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead,    14 I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.”

So let us turn away from our past, because it’s a new beginning, a new start and a new season for us all.

Yours in His Grace

Blair Humphreys

Southport, Merseyside

*”I have no regrets about what happened in my younger days”