Sunday 28 June 2015

Capturing the Heart: Talk Notes



We had a guest speaker at Woodgreen this morning (28th June): Julian Hardyman, who is Senior Pastor at Eden Baptist Church, Cambridge. He spoke on the subject of 'idols' under the title: 'Capturing the Heart'.

We tend to think of idols as wooden or stone statues worshipped by unenlightened people of a bygone age. However, as Julian showed us so clearly, we each struggle with idolatry, because an idol is anything that has replaced God as primary in our hearts. An idol is something we trust, serve and love more than God. And while we might not recognise it an idol, we all have them. Julian helpfully reminded us that we all have surface idols which are shaped by deeper idols of the heart. It is only as we identify and deal with these deeper idols that we can know true joy.

Wonderfully, Jesus fulfils all the longings of our hearts for comfort, security, power, approval and control, which so often shape the surface idols we adopt.

One of the most helpful things Julian pointed us to in his talk, were three diagnostic tools - three sets of questions - we can ask ourselves to help identify our deeper idols. Why not carve out some time to work through these tests for yourself, slowly and honestly before the Lord?

We each need our hearts to recalibrated to worship God and love Jesus. Julian gave us a great introduction and some very practical tools this morning to help us do just that.


You can download the  slides from Julian's talk HERE as a pdf

You can listen to Julian's talk HERE

You can buy Julian's book on idols HERE

Thursday 25 June 2015

BOOK REVIEW: The Treasure Principle


Peter Barham, one of the Pastors at Woodgreen, reviews a little book with a big message that taken seriously would not only transform church finances but also our lives...


If you like small books, you'll like this one. If you don't like books that challenge your lifestyle, don't read this one!

The book's dimensions are just 16x12cm and only has 120 pages but the subtitle says it all. It's about 'unlocking the secret of joyful giving'. If we are true to ourselves we know that talking about giving for some reason makes us uncomfortable, and even Pastors can feel reticent to preach on the subject! Randy Alcorn (he's an American if you didn't know by his name) did not write this book to give us a guilt trip about giving but to reveal to us the joy of giving.

The book is very readable with insightful illustrations, many of them personal, but in particular he challenges us by pointing to what the Bible says and especially Jesus' view on the subject.

When thinking about Jesus statement to 'store up treasures in heaven' he says:

'You'll never see a hearse pulling a U-Haul. (That's a removal van to us in the UK) You can't take it with you but you can send it ahead...If wegive instead of keep, if we invest in the eternal instead of the temporal we store up treasures in heaven that will never stop paying dividends'
'My heart always goes where I put God's money. God isn't looking for donors for his kingdom. God wants your heart. He says show me your chequebook, your credit card statement, your receipts'

He tackles the question of whether we should use a tithe as a measure of how much we  give and says:

'I detest legalism... Every New Testament example of giving goes far beyond a tithe. However, none falls short of it...It's unhealthy to view tithing as a place to stop but it can still be a good place to start'.

One particular quote that struck me is 'God prospers me not to raise my standard of living butto raise my standard of giving'.  How perceptive is that. He asks why God has entrusted  America with so much, and tackles the practical question of how much we intend to leave the kids as an inheritance.

Randy Alcorn finishes by suggesting we fill out a 6 point 'Giving Covenant' backed up with some helpful questions we should ask God about our giving experience. Here's one of them:

'Father, what's the eternal downside in giving as much as I can give to you now? In contrast, what's the eternal downside of minimising my giving or delaying giving until later? Is there really a danger in giving too much too soon? Or is the true danger giving too little too late?'

Read this book if you want to to see giving as an investment in eternity. Read it at your peril if you only live for today and tomorrow.


Get your copy of the book in Woodgreen's online bookstore HERE




Friday 5 June 2015

'Honest Evangelism': a great book worth reading

'Honest Evangelism' is a book about overcoming evangelism phobia. And it's therefore a book every Christian needs to read! 

When was the last time you spoke one-to-one with a non-Christian friend about Jesus? Not about that you go to church, not about some moral or ethical issue in the news, not even that you're a 'Christian' (that's a misunderstood religious label by most people in the UK) - but about JESUS? If it was so long ago you can't remember - you (like me) - need this book!

Written by Rico Tice - author of the Christianity Explored course and Associate Minister at All Souls Langham Place, London - it's an honest look at why we often find speaking up for Jesus so difficult and what should motivate us to 'cross the painline'.

Some books on evangelism are discouraging because they pile on the guilt, but Rico has a disarming ability to motivate as well as diagnose. The end result is an immensely readable book - at times funny, at times challenging, at times deeply personal - that not only led me to a greater understanding of WHY I often find it hard to witness, but also HOW I can become more effective.

In the opening chapters, Rico diagnoses why we often find it hard to speak up about Jesus. In a culture that is increasingly hostile to the gospel, evangelism will be costly and we naturally shy away from this.

'I want to be honest: if you tell non-Christians about Jesus, it will be painful.'

However, Rico also goes on to show that while hostility to the gospel may be growing, so is hunger for significance and purpose. Secularism and materialism have left people feeling short changed. So when we share the gospel, while we should expect to get hit, we should also expect to find a longing for what the gospel offers and this should motivate us to cross the pain line.

Personally, I found chapter 3 the most insightful and helpful: 'Why we (still) won't evangelise'. Rico poses the question many a pastor has struggled to answer: why is it that mature, compassionate, committed Christians don't evangelise? His answer is right on the money: idolatry.

'Honest Evangelism' is worth the price tag for this chapter alone. Illustrating from his own personal experience, Rico shows how the idols in our hearts stop us speaking up for Jesus. We need to uproot idols such as approval, acceptance, respectability and love of self if we are to be effective witnesses.

'As long as Jesus is not my greatest love, I will keep quiet about him in order to serve my greatest love, my idol. I will keep quiet about him because I am afraid of losing my greatest love, my idol.'

The second half of the book is intensely practical.  Chapter 5 is entitled: 'What do I say?' Rather than just list the gospel truths we need to download in our non-Christian friends, Rico suggests a simple framework it can be helpful to keep in mind as we witness:

'First, what do I need to say? Identity. Mission. Call. That's the gospel. Jesus' identity - who he is. Jesus' mission - why he came. Jesus' call - what he wants from us. Second, how do I need to engage people as I talk about Identity, Mission and Call? Understanding. Agreement. Impact. To put it bluntly: Do they get it? Do they agree with it? What are they doing about it?'

It's not rocket science, but it IS incredibly sticky! I've found it a really simple way to make sure I stay on track as I share my faith. It reminds me that I need to stay on message and get to Jesus.

One of the things I most loved about 'Honest Evangelism' is that - unusually for an evangelist - Rico doesn't try to squeeze us all into his mould. Chapter 6 is entitled: 'Be Yourself' and I breathed a sigh of relief when I read it. God has given the Church some who are specially gifted Evangelists - with a capital E. They are a wonderful gift of God. However, in my experience they can often make the rest of us feel intimidated and inadequate.

However Rico helpfully shows that while not all Christians are Evangelists, all Christians are called to do the work of evangelism. Using biblical examples, he encourages us to witness in the way God has made us. Peter had a confrontational approach, Paul had a more intellectual approach, the blind man in John 9 shared his testimony, while the woman at the well  invited her friends to come and hear. And because we are all different, God puts us in local church communities so that we can reach all sorts of people.

'God has wired you to tell others in a way that allows you to be yourself. Evangelism is not just for extroverts, brainboxes or full-timers. It is your job and in the Lord's strength you can do it.'

The last couple of chapters are full of lots more practical wisdom on how to get started in the context of the post-Christian culture in which we now live. Again, Rico is both insightful and honest about the obstacles we face today as we seek to share the gospel:

'Witnessing takes time and effort... Research suggest that when people put their faith in Christ, on average it's taken two years from the point when they came into meaningful contact with a Christian who witnessed to them - and that time is growing.'

While - as the title suggests - 'Honest Evangelism' is always honest, it is also shot through with hope and faith in a God who is determined to save. In the last chapter Rico challenges us to have the same compassion Jesus had for lost people. We are to pray but we are also to be obedient. As I finished the book, I felt more determined than ever to 'cross the pain line' with my own friends and speak up about Jesus.

'Where is your harvest field? It's your workplace, your family, your street, your sports club, your social group. Who knows what harvest is there? Who knows how many people have been praying for years for the people you will sit next to or speak to today? This is the corner of the global harvest field where Jesus says to you: Go, proclaim the kingdom.'

Get your copy of 'Honest Evangelism' from our e-bookstore HERE