October 20

"But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord." Jonah 1:2

Is it possible to hide out in the open? Follow me.

I think I must have developed my love for birds from being a Pathfinder. I have a bird table in my garden where I regularly put out nuts and seed to view them. On the way home the other day, perched on an outside bin by the side of the road, I saw a seagull. Nothing unusual about that you may say, but the city where I live is landlocked.

Landlocked, according to an online dictionary, means ‘enclosed or nearly enclosed by land.’ Whilst observing this rather large and healthy gull fight indulge in scraps from an industrial bin, I was thinking to myself, what is this sea loving bird doing in the middle of a city? I thought seagulls were supposed to live around the sea? So I did a little research.

According the experts there is no such thing as a seagull anymore, there are just gulls, some who are urban and others who live by the sea. Changes in fishing practices over the years and ever more landfills, as well as street litter, mean that these clever birds have adapted their practices and feast basically where there is the most food.

Are you from a big or a small church? I have the experience of growing up in a big church but being called by God (yes it wasn’t my bright idea) to worship in a small church. I have a friend, Christian but not SDA, who is attending my church someone whom I have known for many years. He said something to me that prompted this blog. After service one Sabbath he said the beauty and simplicity of our worship at Netherfield surprised him. Coming from a Pentecostal background he stated he was used to a more intense type of service. This was the conversation from that point verbatim.

“Seeing you here has made me realise that God puts people where he wants them”

“But Simon (name changed) it wasn’t my idea, all I trying to be is obedient and continue to worship as God intends me to.”

“But Richard I know many musicians with gifts less than yours who you would never find here, Why? Because they think the stage is too small. I am more encouraged now to look at my ministry differently.”

Now before I continue let me state this blog is not about music or me, but ministry. I had thought long and hard about writing about this but God had other ideas, as Shiella and Peter know only too well.

So do I consider myself to be hiding out in the open or am I a gull who has just adapted to another environment? I don’t know. Are you thinking of leaving your own church to find another one or just leaving? Are you contemplating another sized congregation? Or are you, like Jonah, considering running away from the Lord?

Think about your life with God and what he has tasked you to do. Next time you see a gull in the city centre think about Jonah. So to answer my original question, hiding from God to me is like attempting to hide in plain sight. As David the Psalmist writes,

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
⁸ If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.

 Psalm 139:7-10

Like ‘Women of Faith’ encourage God to make your heart his home.

Click on the picture to hear their song for today - “My Heart, Your home.”

       

     Housekeeping details for you

     The point of this short blog will become clear if you decide to use this reading in the way we intend it. Netherfield Seventh-day Adventist Church believes in healthy churches. You can see what that means if you head to the relevant Healthy Churches page of the website. We also want other churches to be healthy. That means you can join in our campaign to create healthy churches, with healthy people serving the people in those churches.

     A healthy church is one where Jesus comes first. A healthy church is one where the people work together to put Jesus first. One thing we are doing is to join people together to spread that news. I would like you to look at our prayer partners page. This will explain how we want you to use this short devotional. Very basically we want you to find a like-minded Christian friend who you will join with to : choose to pray together every day, decide together on a way to serve other people together, to help them grow as Christians - and to invite the Holy Spirit into your life every day. This blog that you will receive every day simply gives a common spiritual purpose. If you are a newcomer and want to join the blog with this object in mind click here