Focus helps us realise Vision

Been playing about with my camera trying to work out how to focus on different aspects of the picture. It got me thinking about focus! Someone once said "Focus on where you want to go, not on what you fear." I admire focus.

I find that I am drawn to clarity, I don't like ambiguity, which is sometimes difficult to deal with as I am aware that at times our world can be ambiguous.

I am not overly appreciative of words like "Dialogue" or "Process" I understand the need of these words and often find myself in dialogue and working through a process, but if these wander without any focus I lose interest.

I like these words - vision and focus. I once heard someone say "Vision is the ability to imagine an alternative reality" it's focus that helps us realise vision.

Over the years I have met plenty of people with vision; the difference between the ones who are realising their vision and the ones who aren't is focus. Focus enables us to see clearly. Focus also helps us to see if our vision is unrealistic. I am constantly asking myself these sorts of focus questions "is my vision unrealistic?" or "Do I have the faith to believe for what is apparently an unrealistic vision?" even "Is this vision from God or is it just my own ego playing games with me?"



When we get clear focus around the origins and realities of vision we then need to shift our focus to these kind of questions:

"What do I need to achieve my vision?" resources, including people, are essential, although we must never sacrifice people for vision. "How long will it take?" we often give up if it doesn't happen quickly enough, partly a result of living in an instant culture! "What sacrifices will I have to make? " this is an important question that requires focus and realism! "Am I willing to pay the price? " once again an important question.

All said and done, most visions go wrong at their inception. If vision is not correctly birthed, in a faith filled, realistic, focussed manner, I believe it will fail.

Rock

Here's a thought

I am who I am.

I am doing what I am meant to be doing.

I am in the place I am meant to be.

We generally need to come to a place in life, where we are happy with ourselves. I am moving towards that place, trying not to let my culture whisper to loudly in my ear; telling me how I need to look, what I need to wear, what I need to own, to be truly happy....

I am not defined by position, or what I earn.

Feeling secure is important.

God is my rock.

Out and about

Been out and about for the last 6 days! I went to Northern Ireland for the 10th birthday celebration of 24-7prayer, then flew to the UK for a 24-7 council meeting in Guildford. Did a little bit of teaching at the UK 24-7 prayer training course called Transit. Then yesterday popped along with Pete Greig to Holy Trinity Brompton for their early morning prayer. Had a few hours to spare in Kensington so went to the Natural History Museum and then the V&A which is a truly wonderful museum.

Got to Stansted yesterday afternoon for my flight home, we boarded on time but once we got on the plane we didn't take off for over 2 hours!!! It was a nightmare, once air traffic control gave us the all clear to leave we had to wait a further 20 minutes while they defrosted the plane!!! I took this shot just before we boarded bu we waited so long it froze again....



So today I am tired, but it is warm and sunny here and my soul is being restored.

Weathered

This piece of wood has been weathered by the wind and the rain, just like this tree has been bent and shaped over the years. It's a good little picture of life. We get shaped by it!!!!



How much of our lives do we actually change? and how much is it us just becoming more of who we truly are?

A friend and supporter of our work here in Ibiza has recently felt called to move to Iceland, he's allowing life to shape and change him. It's fantastic thing to see, so here's another new blog! Let me introduce to Simon Turner pioneer and adventurer, king of a man.

I read this in a book by a guy called David Adam called “A Desert in the ocean”:

“Life is meant to be an adventure. When we cease to reach out and stretch ourselves something in us dies or we feel frustrated; for life to be lived to the full it has to be adventurous. I believe that God calls us to adventure, to extend ourselves, and to seek new horizons. Our God is the God who makes all things new and he wants us to walk in newness of life. A relationship with God will extend our vision, our sensitivity and indeed our whole life. Whenever life gets static or dull God calls us out to risk and be renewed”

A Grey Day

Went for a walk with the family yesterday, we had an uber chilled day, with absolutely nothing to do and no one to see. I like days like that, we don't get as many of them as I would like. It was a grey day. We walked up to an ancient watch tower and back.

This is always slightly nerve wracking with two sons who insist on going close to the edge. I can be a bit of a nervous dad at moments like this. Although it was well worth the walk as the scenery was great.



The watch towers were built between the 16th and 18th centuries, they were to provide warning of attacks on the island by corsairs (pirates). A fire would be lit on top and people would flee into the heavily fortified churches that you can find in Ibiza. At one time the whole island was covered with these watch towers, so that when a fire was lit the warning could be passed right around the island. A bit Lord of the rings like!




I would to love to live in one of these! if it had electricity, hot running water, heating, insulation, good road access and decent broadband internet!

Heres a blog you should check out "Caught up in something bigger" Charl is a wonderful lady working in Reading running a cafe in a rough council estate, her thoughts and life are very interesting, she's one of my heroes.

Manhood!!!

I wrote this here a while ago, but decided to re-visit it and re-write it.

These are my personal thoughts on manhood, I have friends who have been consistently let down by men, which annoys me and wrote this in an angry moment wishing men especially christian men would get their act together!

I do wonder if the longer a woman goes without a man the choosier she becomes, she has established a single adult life and he has to fit in with her, the other view could be that the longer a woman goes without a man she becomes more desperate. I'm not saying this is true in every case, the same probably applies to men. A lot of men are also a little pre-occupied with their careers/ministries/money-making-rubbish.

What makes a good man? Obviously I am going to use generalisations and be quite self referenced but here goes.

Sensitive yet strong:, is that possible? I think so. We need to be willing to express our feelings and even on occasion cry, but then we must not be too teary! some men use tears and sadness to win women over, it’s pathetic. I cried at my wedding I was overwhelmed by the beauty of my wife and the commitment we were making. Woman in general like to listen but we shouldn’t abuse this wonderful skill by always talking about our problems and issues to win the sympathy vote. Strong for me means being able to get a grip, hold it together, take control but also have the ability to release control, allow someone else to hold it together and be secure enough to cope with someone else being in charge.

Passionate: Love God with a passion, love your children with a passion, be passionate about football (or whatever it is that floats your boat) Oh! and love your woman with passion, she should occasionally have to tell you to calm down and take your brain out of your willy.

Romantic: Women need perfume, flowers, lingerie, jewellery and nice food. It’s easier then you think to make it happen. I have also found that its good to clean the house, make the bed and pick my clothes up from the bedroom floor.

Decisive: make a decision, any decision just be decisive it’s okay to be wrong, but please be decisive.

Say sorry: don’t just say it because you think that is what people want to hear, live life with the knowledge that you won’t always be right and you will make wrong decisions, be humble enough to admit this and please verbalise your apology.

Work on your appearance: - women do, the least we could do is repay the compliment.

Learn to cook: and don’t expect to be thanked when you occasionally do it.

Listen: this is very helpful, you don't always have to solve the problem sometimes people just want to be heard.

Don’t take ladies for granted: there are other men out there!

Be jealous: but not possessive, control freaks are scary.

Dance with your woman: you don't need rhythm it's good to hold each other and work up a sweat together in public.

Laugh: Do this a lot and don’t take yourself to seriously.

Be serious: when you need to be and don’t try to get out of every emotional or sensitive situation by cracking a joke.

Never hit a woman: never swear at a woman, personally hitting is worse than swearing, you will swear at your woman, even if it’s just in your head.

Never tell your lady she needs to lose weight: unless you feel she is in danger of having a heart condition or developing diabetes!

Don’t believe all they tell you in marriage prep: you should not let the sun go down on your anger is true but sometimes it is just better to huff and puff role over and go to sleep and talk about it in the morning. Tired arguments escalate into silly arguments, stuff gets said that is a response to your tiredness not the argument.

Getting Naked: when talking with guys who are in a relationship with a girl, they often have all sorts of little niggles, doubts and worries, most of which come from them having lived at home for too long or their desire to find another mother , I often say "if you play your cards right you could be married in 18 months and rolling about naked with her" I don't understand why more men don't get this???

24-7 communities and marriage

I’m doing a wedding this week, it got me thinking about marriage in general. When 24-7 prayer started out there were loads of young single people now there are loads of young married couples. I’ve been married 18 years this year and also as a pastor of a church I have witnessed all sorts of marital blessings and stresses over the years. So here are a few thoughts on marriage.


1. Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church, laying his life down for her. This is where I have seen some marriages go worng. A husband is not willing to lay down his life for the sake of his wife. He will not cease his business travel or re adjust his career path for the sake of his wife, He will not lay down his traveling ministry for the sake of his wife, He will not alter his social life for the sake of his wife, basically he will not lay down his life for the sake of his wife…. Then when it all starts to fall apart incompatability is cited as one of the major reasons for break up. Or the wife finds someone who is around and is willing to sacrifice a bit of themselves to be with her. Self and selfishness destroy marriages.

2. Man or woman work hard, come in tired, veg out in front of the TV, have a brief chat about the day, read the paper, make a few phonecalls, check facebook, go to bed and doze off tired and disinterested. Wife or husband drops children of at school meets someone on the school run who isn’t tired who listens to them and has time for them, soon thoughts drift to "what if they where the one?" they are more attentive, more interested, more fun then stuff happens. “we talk for hours, without running out of things to say”……the same can happen to the partner at work; he/she works with a member of the opposite sex 8 hours a day 5 days a week they talk loads, they soon run out of trivial things to share and end up sharing deeper stuff before you know it you have a potential situation on your hands. Man comes home to stressed out wife who has been wrestling with two children all day, she’s tired harassed and just needs to off load, quickly he compares her to the interesting woman at work and before you know it an affair is born.

3. Men who have affairs always say “the sex is great” of course it is… but relationships aren’t solely birthed in sex. Rob Parsons says that in early relationships the sex is always great but in about 3 years time you’re going to come home from work and your new partner is going to say “have you put the bins out?” .

4. A growing area where affairs are born is over the phone or on the internet, facebook, skype, texts can all get a bit flirty. Even voice conversations can get out of hand. The power of the internet for fueling fantasy is immense and small sparks of overtly flirtatious friendly behaviour online can soon start a fire.

5. Most affairs happen in the mind before they physically take place, with men more often than not it is lust, with women it is often a fantasy, not purely sexual more imagining another existence! More women used to use chat rooms pretending to be other people than men!

I don’t know why I wanted to put all this out there, but if you are considering an affair right now. Can I just say it is messy and people will be get hurt. I might try and put some tips up tomorrow about how to keep it fresh.

Light

This is my favourite passage in the bible, I memorized it in the King James version as a child and i still like this version best, the English is beautiful, however the meaning and impact of this passage is more beautiful than the mere words that try to express it.


"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

The same was in the beginning with God.

All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.

He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

Boat House

I love these old boat houses, many are semi carved into the wall. Now a days you are as likely to find someone storing there summer speed boat in one of these as you are a fishing boat.



The deterioration from sun and salt has given this door a particular beauty.



Hope you've enjoyed the snaps this week?

Peace

I went for a beautiful walk ay Cala Comte yesterday with Bruce, it was really so peaceful and re-energising. I took quite a few shots, but more than the photos came away with an overwhelming sense of peace.

I read this this morning "One of the great human pursuits is true peace: the freedom to relax without being weighed down by fears and concerns. This is the peace that God promises those who follow Him. "



Paul said this "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."



Ghandi said “Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real must be unaffected by outside circumstances.”



Jesus said this "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."




For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.



"The LORD bless you
and keep you;

the LORD make his face shine upon you
and be gracious to you;

the LORD turn his face toward you
and give you peace." '

It was a peaceful day, I hope you have one to

bibles

We have such a lot of preparation for the summer to get through that it's keeping us pretty busy. We really want to go to another level of organisation and effectiveness this year.

One of the things is the 24-7 Ibiza Bible, someone has donated £2000 to kick the project off, but that still leaves me £8000 to raise. This will get us 5000 bibles, with our own cover blurb and design. I am going to sell half of them, with the strap line of every one you buy we will give another one away for free.

I like the idea of putting Bibles directly into peoples hands. It cuts out the middle man, the person who has to explain it, it allows people direct contact with truth. The word can speak for itself.

This of course won't be an impersonal random hand out, this will be in an area that we will have spent 6 summers in, this is us giving out bibles to people we know and people who know us. It should be fun.

Stimulated

One of the things I love about Ibiza is the great coffee you get. I am not a coffee snob, I will have instant coffee first thing in the morning, but when I am out and about I enjoy a cortado or a cafe solo. A cafe solo is basically and expresso and a cortado is an expresso with added warm milk.

I remember once doing an interview with a christian magazine, they asked me, what sustained me? and foolishly I replied "Red Bull" I think they were looking for something a little more spiritual!

I wonder if we all need a little stimulation from time to time, more of the Holy Spirit for instance. Has anyone else ever wondered how that really works? "More Lord" has often been the cry of the western church what do we mean by that? Have we not got enough already? Are we using what we have? (thats of course if you treat the Holy Spirit like some form of coffee!) "More Lord" for what? So we can feel better? Feel closer to God? what's the "More" all about if we don't use it?

Sometimes I want to shout "Closer Lord" I don't want more of God I want to feel closer to God who already dwells in me! Does that make sense?

"More Lord' sounds greedy.....

I'm off for a coffee, you should check out this great little article at On Coffee it made me laugh.

Is frustration the birthplace of vision?

Hope you like this one? I was just testing the macro settings!

Every week I meet with Bruce and Tracy we work through a set of questions. One of those questions is "Have I withheld forgiveness, remained frustrated or damaged another person with my words? "

Now two of these subjects, withholding forgiveness and damaging people with your words, are relatively easy to call or be called on. Remaining frustrated is harder.

Is it right to remain frustrated? I once heard someone say that "Frustration is the birthplace of vision" I think he should have said "one of the birth places of vision" or " can be the birthplace of vision".

Frustration that goes unchecked can quickly turn to bitterness, resentment and anger. You're frustrated that your life isn't going anywhere you either get bitter and resentful that you don't get the breaks, or you allow the frustration to drive you to change.

Wilberforce was frustrated with slavery, Mother Teresa was frustrated with destitution, Bob Geldolf was frustrated with the Ethiopian famine, out of their frustration came change. Therefore leaving me to ponder does God allow us to become frustrated in order that we affect change?

If we bring it down a few levels, people can frustrate you, organisations, institutions and even the church can be great sources of frustration. It's what we do with that frustration that matters, do we get fresh energy, fresh drive to bring about change or do we allow our frustration to grow? Frustration can be spread in much the same way as vision, one person gets it and then expresses it with passion to someone else. Frustration can soon spread throughout an organisation or a church like a rather out of control virus. The biggest problem being that people of different maturity levels get infected with the same levels of frustration and then responses to said frustration can be all over the show, breeding disunity, apathy, bitterness and eventually, in extreme cases, death.

If you are in a place of frustration my advice would be allow it to birth vision not spread despair.