Shoutlouder

Christopher

// February 4th, 2010 // No Comments » // Thoughts

The Urban Dictionary says some nice things about my name… so nice I thought I’d post it here:

means Christ-bearer, only cool people are called Christopher…
Christopher is well cool
….Christophers will eventually realize the love that they’ve stored in a safe place for you. Christophers usually have the most gorgeous smile out there, and the most seductive voice. They’re someone you wouldn’t mind spending the rest of your entire life with. They have a tendancy to spend more time thinking of what to do for someone else than themselves. Christophers love adventure, new things, something to get their blood rushing and heart pounding.
….Take a deeper look at your Christopher before you let go, he might be the best thing that will ever happen to you.
…Christopher is a boy. He is something special.
He is smart,and funny, and completely adorable.
Guarenteed you will not meet anyone like him in your lifetime, so if you do meet him, you should be greatful.
…Christopher is awesome. love him.

I know it’s all a bit silly – but I liked what it said!

Counting the days

// January 20th, 2010 // No Comments » // Inspiration, Thoughts

It seems 2010 has started with a lot of counting of days!

Last week I was counting the days as we fasted and prayed for breakthrough across Hope City. Then this week I’m conscious that we’re now already at Day #11 of our ‘70 Days of You’ theme. It’s certainly making me think a lot about time and how much every day is such a big deal! It’s also making me think how fast time seems to flow past if we don’t give it enough thought!

This year I turn 34 years of age. My son turns 6. My daughter will turn 2. In September it will have been 5 full years since we took on our role pastoring the Leeds congregation of Hope City Church, 6 years since the congregation started out in the Radisson Hotel. It will also be 14 years that I’ve been married and 15 years that I’ve known the beautiful woman that I ended up marrying.

Time really does fly!

It feels like only yesterday that I was walking into school. It was just the other day that I was discovering a new and exciting church that was then called the Hope of Sheffield Christian Church. It seems just a blink of the eye since I first sat behind the wheel of a car and I could swear it was just the other week when I was saying goodbye to my parents as I left the family home for college – never to return to live there in full again.

Time doesn’t just fly – it zooms!

I can remember sitting at the top of a 600ft cliff enjoying a packed lunch whilst hiking in the Polish mountains with my wife. I can remember missing her dearly whilst on the other side of the world, riding at high speed across Darling Harbour in Sydney on a midnight speed cruise. There’s the memory of drinking iced coffee at the foot of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpa and the moment that I walked out of the middle of nowhere to share the Gospel in a small village somewhere deep in the countryside of Zambia.

Time doesn’t stop for anything.

As time passes by in the next few months I’ll be tasting the sights of New York, walking the streets of Warsaw and celebrating more birthdays and anniversaries that I can remember. I’ll see the completion of yet more of our vision for the Megacentre in Leeds, be part of the fast expanding work of our multi-congregations and be privileged to see God do even more incredible things in the lives of those around me.

Time is on the move.

The only question is what are you doing with yours? Is timing passing by unnoticed or unheeded? Is time running away from you? Is time running out? Or is time your friend? Are you making the most of it? Are you counting the days and making every single one of them count? Today is Day#11 of ‘70 Days of You’ – that means I’ve got 59 more days to look firmly in the mirror and make the changes that need to be made. Then when that’s done – there will be time for something new!

hijacked?

// July 15th, 2009 // No Comments » // Inspiration, Thoughts

So I’m just coming to the end of a day off a long day working on my cellar renovations (trying to create some office and ‘cave’ space for me in the house) when I get a call to say someone’s broken into our Leeds Megacentre. So off I trudge down to Mega in my dust covered clothes with bits of plaster still hanging out my hair to discover that someone’s broken in and nicked a TV off Reception. Three hours later I’m heading home to find an email notifying me of a difficult pastoral situation that needs my attention. So after some prayer and a much needed cup of tea – I finally hit the sack just before 1am to rise at the crack of dawn to another message to say the burglars have been back for the other 2 TVs… so off I head once more to Mega – with much need for a coffee – to await a team from CSI:Yorkshire and spend the day liasing with builders and security firms trying to sort out the gaping hole that needs filling….

(whew)

There are sometimes days in our lives when everything that happens is completely beyond our control. It’s impossible to predict when Mr Thrifty will visit your place next… or when other people’s lives spiral out of control because of unforseen or consequential circumstances… or when disease or ill health will strike…

But I’ve learnt there are always things that you can control whatever comes your way and that is your mind, your heart, your focus, your spirit, your relationship with God… . I could have got stressed out and got frustrated so many times over the last 24 hours – but I chose to see most of it for what it is – skirmishes – and realise that God is still very much in control!

See it’s no coincidence that over the last few weeks we’ve launched a schools project, a food hamper project and we’re in the middle of launching a huge family support project that has God’s favour written all over it! We’ve also seen some great fruit in church and I believe we’re heading towards one of the most exciting and fruitful seasons ever in Hope City Church.

So – guess what – someone doesn’t like that! There’s a prowling lion who is circling and waiting to pick off and exploit any weakness that he might find to stop us from fulfilling what God has called us to. What’s important to remember is – as long as you stay in the heart of God and seek to do His will and follow His call – that lion will remain toothless. The most that he can hope to do is pick off a few LCD TVs….

As for me and my house – we’re serving God and getting ready – cause all the signs are pointing towards an amazing season of God’s growth and increase!

everyone is writing a book these days

// August 20th, 2008 // No Comments » // Thoughts

I’m sat writing this as my wife sits with a couple of friends of ours who’ve written a book on dealing with being middle-aged or above. Next week on my list of ‘jobs to get done’ is the formatting of 2 books from Pastor Dave which he’ll be getting published sometime in the next month or so. Plus it seems most of the pastors whose blogs I follow have some new book in the pipeline, being released which is going to be the next best read in your life.

So it seems everyone is writing a book these days… I wonder if I have one in me? There’s so much happening in my life I’m not sure if I can bear thinking about writing something other than the odd blog post right now but I wonder – if I did make time to write – what would I write about?

Tell me what you think – what should I write? Or what would you write about if you could be bothered to!