Ann and Andrew were not very religious. In fact, at birth, Govinda and Celeste were registered as having no religion. Not Roman Catholic like their mother. Not Anglican like their father.None. It was completely without precedent and caused quite a furore when the time came for Govinda’s primary school registration. “He will choose a religion for himself when he is ready,” they said to the bewildered registrar.
So concerned were Govinda’s teachers for the state of his soul that he was automatically chosen to participate in anything religious. One teacher cast him as Joseph at every Christmas play. While another made him pray for the class regularly.
18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:19 has become one of the most popular verses of the bible. It has come to be called ‘the great commission’ and it has been used as the basis for the stereotypical ‘missionary’ who travels to remote places of the globe bringing the good news of the gospel.
In recent times, there has been arising a movement that is calling the church back to discipleship. Many have noticed that the missionary foundation of the early church has largely been replaced with evangelism and church attendance. ‘Winning souls for Christ’ has become an exercise in getting your programme on television or radio or social media and then getting people into your church service and then making an altar call so that they give their lives to Christ and eventually get baptized. And voila! There it is the modern interpretation of Mat 28:19! I don’t believe this is what Jesus wanted His church to look like for one main reason; this can all happen without a single genuine relationship between two people. Christianity is personal and relational because Christ is personal and relational. Discipleship cannot be impersonal and non-communal. But before I dig into that, let me talk about what the reaction to this commercial church ethos has been.
I have seen two reactions:
Some church leaders have sought to have a greater missionary focus in their church. Sending people out to reach untouched people groups in some churches has again become a central pillar.
Some people have abandoned the current building/service centric church culture altogether and returned to the early church model of meeting in small groups that are less hierarchical and more intimate.
The fact that there are people who have heard the call of God back to discipleship (and I believe this is a move initiated by God) and who have been convicted enough to do something about it is wonderful! I love it! But what I want to talk about today is less about what we do and more about who we are. I believe too often we do things out of a reaction to something bad and we create an exaggeration in the other direction. Like a pendulum, we swing all the way to the other side bringing criticism, division and cliquishness. Instead, I want to invite us to see what God is calling us to be and let that truth shine right where we are (which probably has some good things that God does not want us to throw out completely). I believe that as the church matures, we will see less moves of God that have been immortalized (or more correctly; mortalized) into denominations (Protestant, Pentecostal, Charismatic to name a few) and more continuous unification and maturing as we build upon the truths that brought us to where we are now, adding to it the current revelations of God.
OK so what are the truths that I believe God is calling us to embody today whether we are part of a mega church or a small study group? We can learn a lot from the added context of verses 18 and 20:
The centrality of Christ: A) The whole mission is based on the fact that Christ has been given all authority in heaven and in earth (vs 18). Christ is on a mission to build his church and nothing can stop Him. B) We are discipling others in obedience to Christ (vs 20a). We are not making disciples of ourselves really; we are exposing others to our own discipleship to Christ and inviting them to emulate us. Only disciples make disciples. Conversely, converts make converts. The emphasis is on obedience to the commands of Christ not on the profession of faith. C) Christ Himself is part of the process. (vs 20b). Discipleship takes place in the presence of Christ. This is not some remote activity that we perpetuate until Christ returns. Jesus wants to be in this thing with us. Intimacy and partnership with Christ must be deep within our identity and the heart of what we bring to the world.
Discipleship is personal: A disciple in the most practical sense is a life-student. A disciple emulates the totality of the teacher’s life. The disciples practically lived with Jesus. He opened up His life to them like he did with no one else. We cannot make disciples at arms-length. We must demonstrate to others how we are wrestling with the practice of observing all that Jesus has commanded us personally. We must show what discipleship looks like in practice. We must have the humility to allow others to interrogate our lives to understand our motives and struggles and even our failures.
So here are three things that I am excited about! Three things that I am eager to see arising in the church:
Leaders that disclose more of their personal lives from the pulpit. Don’t just tell me what God says and what I should be doing. Tell me what God has been pulling on you about. Tell me where the rubber is hitting the road for you. What are you struggling with? What are you contending for? Why is this message that you are preaching burning for you right now? I want to know where Christ is at work in you and what that looks like in practice.
Believers that build authentic friendships. Don’t just come to church and go home. Find one or two believers and build a friendship. Have people in your life with whom you can share your heart and your failures without condemnation or judgment. Talk about real issues like your struggle with porn or your struggle to be submissive to your unsaved husband. Get real and let that speaking the truth in love build us up into mature Christians. Build safe spaces with people in our lives where we can be vulnerable and allow Christ to touch us in the midst of authentic community.
Missionaries re-invented. True missionaries do not really go to convert people. (Yes there were/are lots of false missionaries in my opinion) True missionaries go to demonstrate the love of Christ, sow the seeds of the Word, water it and leave the conversion business to Christ. As I have said before, making disciples is about demonstrating up-close our own discipleship to Christ. In the current context where almost any corner of the globe can be reached instantly, I believe that the urgency to reach people with the gospel is far less of a commission to travel somewhere geographically and much more of a mandate to take Christ with us into our sphere of influence. Every facet of our lives must be missionary; our profession, our marriage, our parenting, our recreation. We must be demonstrating Christ to the world in every thing we do! Are we discipling our children? Are we being open with our lives at work? Are we sharing the reason for our hope in our professional circles? And please do not picture the corrupt image of the portrayal of a perfect Christian life and a holier-than-thou attitude. I mean authentic Christianity. I mean being open about why you are different, imperfect but different.
You can do all of these things without starting a ministry or leaving your church (and I have nothing against either). Just choose to live a missionary life. It’s that simple yet that profound. You can start today!
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
One of the most common mistakes that I’ve made in my life is judging people that I don’t know. We all do it right? Right? (Please tell me it’s not just me.) We assign characteristics and even worse, motives, to people we have never even talked to! When you think about it, it’s crazy. Or sometimes we’ve met a few people from a particular religion or political party or ethnicity or neighbourhood and we judge the whole based on the few. Everybody who crosses our path who fits the demographic is destined for our bad books. Crazy!
One of the most constructive habits we can cultivate to counteract this bad habit is to try to have authentic interactions with as many varied persons as you can. They say one bad apple spoils the whole bunch, but I have found that it works just as powerfully the other way around; one person can change your perspective of a whole nation. That’s one of the reasons that I love travel so much. I just love to touch, taste and see what looks different to me; what I’ve never experienced before. I love the practice of discovery.
I think the art of building bridges across divides of misunderstanding is even more critical in this fake news world that we currently inhabit. Don’t stay behind your computer/smartphone and pelt stones at the particular group that you love to hate, go out and meet them. One of my favourite examples of this is Daryl Davis. Daryl Davis is a black guy who befriends Klu Klux Klan members. So far, according to this article , he has persuaded 200 members to give up their robes. Now that is someone I would like to emulate. I’m not saying that we will always get someone to agree with our point of view, but we might gain a friend and we definitely will learn something.
Frankly, I don’t think I have ever convinced anybody to my way of thinking (I probably haven’t tried very hard) but I have learned a lot from people with vastly different views to mine and in some cases I’ve come around to their way of thinking. I believe 200% in Christ but I’ve learned a lot from agnostics. I used to believe in beating my children but due solely to a few people in my life with strong views against corporal punishment I am now trying different disciplinary methods. (Admittedly, I am tempted to return to my old ways at every major disciplinary impasse). I used to think Brexiters were myopic but recently I actually met one guy who was outspoken enough to share his views. It was enlightening. His reasoning was sound, and I left the conversation feeling a bit convicted for judging my Brexit friends so harshly and convinced that both sides of the argument had merit.
And this brings me to the final point I wish to make. Please, don’t be afraid to share your views passionately. The most you could be is wrong. There is nothing I find more frustrating than someone who has a strong view but refuses to share it! I know not everyone may be as comfortable (excited even) with debate and confrontation and conflict as I am, but I find it so sad to walk away from someone without ever receiving the gift of their viewpoint. Some say people walk away from these debates unchanged but I disagree. Rarely will I change my view on the spot but I always think about it for days after and a fresh perspective does change how I view things. Even if it is a small adjustment, it’s worthwhile. Some say you should never discuss politics or religion (basically anything that will upset anyone). I say that’s precisely what we should be talking about. It’s what matters. That’s how we evolve as a species, by taking the best of everyone’s ideas and moving forward together.
OK OK I’m off that soapbox…. So…. Get out there and go talk to someone new today!
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
I woke up one morning this week with the epiphany that there are a vast number of Christians who have never heard the voice of God. Not only did I wake up with this thought in my head, but I also felt God’s emotions in my heart. He has such a deep grief over this fact, because His longing is for all of His children to hear His voice. He is always speaking but we often do not recognize it.
But today, if you are reading this, He wants you to hear Him!
The first thing He wants you to know is that hearing His voice is normal. Do not believe the lies and fallacies in your mind that say that only special people hear from God or that that was only in biblical times. NO, God is speaking to you every day!
The second lie that many of us have accepted as truth is that God is impersonal. God speaks through creation and through the scriptures. That is true. But that is often interpreted in an impersonal way. As in, He speaks to everyone in general. His grandeur and majesty and wisdom are there for all to see in the splendour, beauty and intelligence of creation. That is a wonderful truth! His statutes and commands and truth has been laid out in the scriptures for all who would search it out! Also true! But…. have you heard His personal whispers to you in the dawn? Has your heart burned as you read a verse that you knew was put there specifically for you in that moment? If not, God has more for you.
God is personal. He wants to relate to you personally; one on one.
Here are three truths that have helped me to hear God’s voice more clearly:
God speaks your language. God does not speak English or Spanish or Greek or Hebrew for that matter. God speaks to your heart and soul in a way that is easiest for you to understand and it is precisely for this reason that we often miss His voice. Because hearing His voice is amazingly natural to us, it is easy to think that it’s just our own thoughts. For example, I heard a woman once talking about the way in which her husband heard God that was quite amusing but also very powerful. Her husband loved G.I. Joe and God would often bring to his mind scenes from the tv show to guide him in situations. He would know what God wanted him to do in a situation based on a scene in the tv show that God would bring to his mind. Let that sink in. What are you into? How do you process things? What’s your personality? Expect to hear God in your own language. Don’t look for a deep voice from heaven or the appearance of an angel. Don’t relegate God to speaking only through a bible verse, He has so much more resources at His command to get to you. God is in you. The Holy Spirit dwells in you. He is speaking in the very mundane dialogue of your life.
There are absolutely no coincidences. Your co-worker did not just happen to mention that issue that you are thinking about. That verse that popped up in your email was not randomly applicable to something that is troubling you. God is using all the resources at His disposal (which is the entire universe) to reach you personally. He loves you that much. He wants a relationship with you that much.
God can handle your mistakes. This is critical because the number one fear where hearing God’s voice is concerned is the fear that we mistake our own voice or the enemy’s voice for God’s. This fear has crippled us into disconnected orphans who only believe what we read in the bible or the preacher says on a Sunday. This is NOT how God intended us to live! Living by faith also means taking a chance that that feeling you have or thought that you cannot shake is God. What you need to know is that even if it is not, God will honour your pure intention and take care of you. The first ways in which I learned to hear from God was the distress in my spirit that I felt when I went the wrong way. You heard that? Going down the wrong path is just another opportunity to hear God! Listen, God is BIG; HUGE. He really can handle his children fumbling as they try to discern His leading in their lives. It is really not a big deal.
John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
I’m praying that you start a new journey with God today, confident that He is speaking to you and that you absolutely are able to hear His voice!
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
I was cruising down the highway, heading to work, minding my own business, listening to music when suddenly a police car with sirens blaring and lights flashing appeared behind me. I assumed they wanted to pass, so I pulled to the inner lane. They stayed on my tail and the driver signaled for me to stop. “What could they possibly want?” I thought. I pulled onto the shoulder, turned down my music and rolled down my glass.
One of the officers approached, “Good morning sir, you were driving above the speed limit.”
“OK”, I said.
“Driver’s permit and insurance please.” I passed him the documents. He seemed relieved and slightly surprised that I had accepted my fate so calmly.
After writing up the ticket, he handed me my documents and the ticket. “Have a good morning sir.”
“Thank you. You too.” He looked even more surprised and smiled. I pulled off and took care to stay below the limit for the remainder of my journey to the office.
Later that day I examined the ticket. The price of my infraction was TT$1000. It was enough to cause some internal pain as I thought about the status of my bank account. Then I realized that the officer had spelled my name wrong…. and just like that a moral dilemma was berthed.
Legitimately, I did not need to pay this ticket because the person charged was not me. Sad to say, I grappled with this temptation for a few days well. I had committed the crime, but I could escape the penalty due to a technicality. I even wondered if the officer’s error was God’s providence. My conscience, however, would not allow me to justify my considered course of action with the God card. What should I do?
Eventually, I paid the ticket and walked away from my test with a feeling of victory and renewed awareness of my vulnerability. In the end I was bound by a law higher than the law of the land; a moral code that knew wrong was wrong no matter the legal loopholes that were available.
Everyday, all of us walk this path. It may manifest itself in different circumstances, but the test is the same. When these moral decisions confront us, the choice is always the same; to do what is right or to do what we can get away with.
It seems to me that there is a growing movement to push the moral line away from what is right to what is legal. Less and less the question asked is, ‘What is the right thing to do in this situation?’ and more often the question is, ‘What are our contractual or legal obligations?’ or, ‘What is the company policy?’ In fact, it amazes me how easily even the standard of legality gets thrown aside if common practice dictates otherwise. It disturbs me how wealth and social status have become accepted reasons to live unaccountable to the law. I remember an incident publicized on social media where a well-connected woman was caught driving without a driver’s permit or insurance for her luxury vehicle and seemed more incensed that the police pulled her aside than contrite for her lawlessness. Just last month I heard someone admit quite casually that they had paid to get their driver’s permit after failing the exam.
Where are we heading? Do we really want to live in a society where everyone does whatever they can get away with?
Why are we ok to not pay workers/contractors on time for work they have done, or to use every advantage we have in business deals to ensure we gain as much as we can at the expense of the other party, or to use our contacts and wealth to live outside of the law?
We are losing our moral moorings. But how do we get them back? Do we even want to? I certainly don’t have all the answers but I’m willing to ask the questions. I’m willing to challenge myself and the people in my sphere. I’m willing to push back in the board room and in the dining room. I’m willing to engage and grapple and fight for the type of society that I want my children and grandchildren to inherit. A society where we do onto others as we want done unto us. A society where we protect the weak not take advantage of them. A society where we promote the common good over our personal gain. What would happen if we devoted less of our energy toward trying to ensure that OUR children are advantaged, wealthy and favoured and more of our energy to ensuring that EVERYONE can thrive?
That’s what I’m fighting for… who’s with me?
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
When it comes to relationships, deeper is better than broader. A meaningful relationship with one person is better than one hundred Facebook friends. Why is that Matik? Well I’m glad you asked! It’s because the real value of a relationship is only experienced when people can be real, and people can only be real when enough trust has been established to allow the vulnerability that being one’s true self entails.
Somewhere I read that disclosure is the currency of intimacy and it has stuck with me because it’s absolutely true. Relationships deepen as we share a little about our true thoughts and true feelings and if we are not rejected or mocked or judged but rather accepted then we share a little more. Then the other person may feel safe to share as well and soon enough a real friendship is established. The ultimate example of this should be a married couple of course. If you cannot be absolutely yourself with your spouse and feel absolutely safe, then something is amiss.
But why do I say that these intimate relationships are better than all the other platonic ones that we have? For two reasons:
1.In any relationship in which you are not authentic, where you are keeping it professional, or where you are only showing your best side, you are missing opportunities for growth. You are missing opportunities for suggestions and feedback that could make your life dramatically more enriched. For example, when I go on business trips I like to share the challenges that my organization is currently facing with my business contacts because this has always been an amazing generator of partnerships and opportunities for my company. You never know what solutions and mutually beneficial relationships are out there unless you share. This principle has also been true in my personal friendships. People carry around a wealth of wisdom that they have gained through their experiences that you may never benefit from unless you have a real conversation with them. On the most intimate level, everyone needs love and to be known and accepted. Sharing your innermost self is a risk but the rewards are huge. Your soul blossoms in love. Usually but not always we get this kind of unconditional love from our parents, but they need not be the only ones. They should not be the only ones.
2.Of course, this works both ways. The people in your life also need you. The real you needs to show up because your family and friends need to see your awesomeness. You have something that no one else can give. You are a walking growth opportunity for those around you. This is not giving advice (nobody really takes advice from someone they do not feel connected with anyway). This is more than that; it’s sharing your soul. Your naked soul is beautiful and speaks without you saying a word.
Let me tell you a story. Last Sunday morning I woke up and I did not feel like going to church. I felt like I should just spend some time taking it slow. You know, a lazy family kinda morning. “But I can’t, I have a friend that I promised to take to church and I have to lead worship” I thought. I had good reasons and skipping church can’t be a good thing, right? Then my friend messaged to say that she was not going to church. Hmmm, one excuse down but I still had to lead worship. So, I went to pick up my two youngest children who had spent the night at my parents house. They were in the same mood and I knew I would be late if the tug-of-war to get them out the house ensued. They were about to sit with my parents at the breakfast table where a pile of hot pancakes was waiting. You get the scene. I still ignored my instincts and went to church without them. Guess what? There was some mix-up and we were locked out of the church building that we use. Eventually, I went back by my parents, but I knew that I had missed it. I had missed a moment to laugh and talk and deepen relationship with my children and parents.
I love my brothers and sisters at my church, but relationships aren’t built in a church service. If we are not intentional about it, we can be the most regular church-service-goers; smiling, shaking hands and giving hugs and it can all be meaningless because it’s all superficial. Choosing one brother or sister to call regularly or hang out with can be that monumental step from going to church toward being the church.
Now don’t get me wrong this is risky, messy business. Our true selves aren’t pretty sometimes and building meaningful relationships takes work. There will be hurts, misunderstandings, rejections…these are the risks but the rewards far far outweigh them! This message is doubly applicable to men whom I have found to be the most superficial creatures. You can have a friendship with a guy for decades and talk about nothing more impactful to his core being than football. We really need to step up men.
Go deep my friends and you will be rewarded with authentic joy!
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
The Christian rapper, Flame, has a song called All In that I love to blast when I’m in my ‘gangsta Jesus’ mood. The concept of being ‘all-in’ is a term borrowed from the card game of poker. It means that a player has bet it all by putting all of his or her chips into the pot and has no plays left. The song always challenges me to put it all on the line for Jesus.
There are so many ways in which I still hold back from a full throttle, all or nothing, radical pursuit of Christ and yet I am decidedly dissatisfied with the state of my spiritual life. In this contradiction of what I’m willing to give versus what I want to get, the truth is laid bare; the only one holding me back is… me.
What am I willing to give to God? A few minutes of my time in the morning. A little percentage of my salary each month. Off and on obedience when it’s convenient to my agenda. A lukewarm commitment to loving people unconditionally. These little scraps of my life are not what God is yearning for. He wants me to be all-in. He wants me to entrust my life completely into His service and care in the ultimate union of God and man. This is what He wants for all of us.
He said, “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind”. God wants everything. His fullness is reserved for those who will devote themselves to Him completely. There are no half-measures with God.
Perhaps, the thing that is hindering me most from more of God’s presence in my life right now; the thing that He most wants me to let go of in this season; is my dignity. My dignity is the chip that I still have tightly clutched in my fist. The dictionary defines dignity as the state or quality of being worthy of honour or respect. I don’t tell strangers about Jesus or pray for healing for them because I don’t want to look foolish. I want to maintain my dignity. That’s the truth.
But I pray like the early church fathers did for greater faith and greater boldness! I pray that I would step out of my comfort zone and risk it all that the name of Christ may be lifted up!
Are you all-in? What’s holding you back from a ‘no holds barred’ pursuit of Christ? Let it go! Give it all! Let us stir each other up to do great exploits for God! I would love if you would share a testimony of how God turned up when you took a risk? It would really encourage me and others to step out in faith as well.
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
Self-preservation is a natural instinct. While, in the majority of today’s societies protecting oneself from physical harm is not a daily concern, our natural instincts have adapted and remain relevant to the corporate arena where we fight to preserve our jobs and our income.
Unfortunately, we have become very short-sighted where this is concerned. Daily, I see people at all levels of the corporate world, from workers to managers to shareholders, make decisions that may reap short term gains, but in the long run are self-destructive. Let me illustrate:
Some workers find a variety of ways to do work in overtime that could be done during normal working hours. This may result in thousands of extra dollars in their pocket every month but what is the effect on the profitability of the company that provides their livelihood? When they and thousands of their co-workers are without jobs, what next?
Unions encourage these same employees to agitate for more pay and turn a blind eye to corruption and unproductive practices as they focus on collecting their dues. I wonder if they consider that workers that are unemployed can no longer pay union dues. The chickens always return home to roost.
Management is by no means innocent of this destructive virus of looking after #1 at the expense of others. How many managers and supervisors are unwilling to stand up to shareholders and take a stand for what is right or what is in the best interest of the company because they are afraid of losing their jobs? Everybody tows the line to look like a star for a day and hopefully move up the corporate ladder. ‘Our people are our most important assets’, ‘we value our people’ and similar slogans have become sad buzz words in some companies where workers are forced into working long hours with ever-increasing job descriptions and no training under threat of losing their jobs.
Then there are the shareholders who want all their dividends NOW. There is no reinvestment in the sustainability of the business for the next 10 or 20 years. Shareholders with this type of short-term mindset are the most destructive force in the business as this culture permeates down through the whole organization. Often this is accompanied by an autocratic leadership style where the directors see their role as performance (slave)drivers who keep the managers on their toes. Neither poor performance nor differing views are tolerated and there isn’t an ear for feedback from the ground. Directors are not partners with the executive to craft a sustainable business but rather task masters to ensure maximum (short-term) returns to the shareholders’ pockets.
Maybe I have painted an overly pessimistic picture but the stories I read in the newspapers seem to bear evidence that I’m not far off from reality. We have to begin to look beyond ourselves. A new business model needs to arise. All the stakeholders need to become partners in sustainable value creation. Shareholders, managers, employees, unions… forging a sustainable future together. Our survival depends on it.
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
One of the most profound analogies for the church of Jesus Christ is the human body. 1 Corinthians 12:21 states:
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”
This is commonly interpreted as the fact that we need each other as individuals, which is completely true. However, I believe that we can also apply this verse at a local congregation or denomination level. Every single assembly, movement and denomination that follows Christ is needed; has something valuable to offer, something without which the rest of us will never experience the fullness of Christ Himself.
It seems that the standard membership package for many churches includes a deep drink of ‘We Alone Have The Truth’ flavoured Kool-Aid. I once belonged to a church like that. We were told that we were on the ‘cutting edge’ of what God was doing in the earth and I believed it too… until. Until, I left and began to read and listen to ‘other’ stuff. Until I began to hear the whispers of the Holy Spirit confirming deep truths through the mouths and pages of women and men outside of what was familiar territory up to that point.
I believe that this kind of arrogant thinking is fast becoming extinct. I see the signs in every denomination. There is arising a people who are not afraid to cross the divide and tap into the variety that is needed for the Body to grow. I am convinced beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Body of Christ will not mature into the fullness of Christ unless we come to the revelation that every Christian group has something to offer that we need. It’s not a nice to have but a necessity; like a balanced diet is necessary to keep the physical body healthy.
I experience this daily with my girlfriend. She is Roman Catholic and I attend an Evangelical church (although I do not identify with any one denomination). As our relationship has grown our faith has widened and deepened. As we have shared perspectives, which are sometimes oppositional, we have come to appreciate God from different perspectives and it has enriched our walk with God immensely.
We have to be aware of the possibility that our religious leaders could be manipulating us with lies for fear of losing their flock. We have to be aware that people are afraid of anything they don’t understand. Don’t take what is said from the pulpit as the gospel (pun intended). Go visit another church one Sunday and see for yourself. Listen to the messages for yourself even if ‘they’ say that person is a heretic. More and more I have found that when people (especially very religious people) say that so-and-so church or person is teaching heresy that there is a good chance that God is in the midst. Study the bible and test every doctrine for yourself.
Like the beautiful stained glass windows often seen in churches, every person and every group may shine a different colour but together when the Son-light shines through we become a beautiful work of art crafted by the Master.
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
Benjamin Franklin said nothing is certain except death and taxes. Well I’m not sure about taxes, but death certainly appears to be a permanent feature in this physical life. I’ve been thinking a bit more about death recently, not only in the human sense but also in a more general sense; the death of a project or a business venture or a company. In Trinidad & Tobago, the Petroleum Company of Trinidad & Tobago Limited (Petrotrin) refinery recently announced its closure. Petrotrin employs thousands of workers and contractors and has been a part of the oil and gas industry in Trinidad & Tobago for decades. The economic and psychological trauma for a small nation of 1.4 million people is very real. But is it the end?
A good friend of mine gave me Tim Ferriss’ book; ‘Tribe of Mentors: Short Life Advice from the Best in the World’ for my birthday last week. (Happy birthday to me! 😁). In it, Samin Nosrat is quoted as saying, “Endings don’t have to be failures, especially when you choose to end a project or shut down a business… Even the best gigs don’t last forever. Nor should they.” One morning while jogging, this quote intersected poignantly with my thoughts of Petrotrin and the economy.
I had just completed a 45-minute run in the park close to my home (I won’t mention the mileage :/) and I was warming-down with the walk back to my house. It was a beautiful morning. The sky was blue, and the foliage was lush. A neighbor was cutting his lawn and that lovely smell of freshly mowed lawn filled the air. Then I had a weird thought; the death of a whole lot of grass was giving life to thousands of plants as the mowed leaves died and rotted and formed compost that enriched the soil. I began to see all the things dying all around that were giving life to new things. Nature is very adept at recycling. In fact, the very oil that Petrotrin refines into gasoline and diesel and jet fuel consists of millions of dead prehistoric plants and animals. It was then that Nosrat’s quote came back to me and I thought about how this cycle of death and life could also be applied to a wider cross-section of life experiences.
A failed business could cause an economy to re-invent itself. A lost job could be the impetus for the birth of a businessman. Ten failed inventions are the seedbed for a hugely successful one. A school dropout could be a world changer.
Loss is painful, but I have a renewed optimism that the end of something, even something good, is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it can be a good thing as we become open to the possibilities of new births in places we would have previously overlooked. Perhaps, we would even make new discoveries of dimensions within ourselves that could only be birthed in the pain of loss.
Joyfully,
Copyright 2018, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
