Comments on: To Tell or not to Tell?

By: subo

subo — Sun, 17 May 2009 12:37:17 +0000

thanks for the affirmation Dave, at the minute am just praying for a new job, as don’t seem to even be able to get to stuff i want to, let alone chip in with more stuff

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 13 May 2009 21:44:22 +0000

Su – tell me when and where you do it and I will be there – sounds Brill !!

By: subo

subo — Wed, 13 May 2009 19:58:08 +0000

have to admit, I’d like to take part in an Art Instillation in the streets

I once stumbled into an Art Instillation in the Centre of Bristol, where an Artist was having a Tea Party, making Tea and asking people if they’d like to sit down and join in, all the artists were dressed up with pinny’s

I could imagine a colourful/psychodelic ‘Pilgrims Shrine’, where you could drink the water, and place your prayers into the wall, done in a way that invites people to consider the spiritual dimension of life, or just bring their situations to God

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 13 May 2009 08:28:24 +0000

The church in Liverpool included bigger stores – they asked the managers – perhaps a street at a time would work in Bristol? Love the art idea – church on Bristol Rd in Bath had an art exhibition one Sunday (cancelled the service!!) for local artists and was very well attended – mission imagination!

By: subo

subo — Wed, 13 May 2009 08:06:56 +0000

thats fab, visual stuff really helps your praying, also thats quite something to let people know, ‘we want to pray for you, we know it’s difficult for everyone at the moment’…

also there’s something about building trust, openness, community, understanding, empathy, togetherness …..

am wondering what a ’southern’ version might be, Brissol is so crammed with chain stores you’d have quite a walk to find little shops in the centre, and also i don’t belong to a very large church, there’s a strong arts trad. in Brissol – maybe there’s a bit of scope there.

By: Dave

Dave — Wed, 13 May 2009 07:32:43 +0000

Su – re ’street prayer’ – was in a church in Liverpool that had a great idea – they had visited every shop/business/institution in their neighbourhood and taken photo of key people (head teacher, shop owner, youth worker, night club manager, Drs, nurses, lollipop lady etc) and asked them what they would like the church to pray about – they then displayed their requests (with the photos) in church and got congregations to pray – simple but effective i thought!

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:49:25 +0000

what a great and moving story Graham – nice one – ps – what a great Street Pastor you are too! shalom – dave

By: Graham

Graham — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:33:58 +0000

Enjoyed reading all the thoughts about Street Pastors and the bigger picture about how we share our faith.
I definitely think things are moving in the right direction, for us as Christians to be in the streets engaging with people in this way and showing that we care, not through words but through our actions.
I like to think each of us is a tiny part of the wider picture of how God engages with individuals (links a chain idea). I often feel very inadequate but I think the main thing is to step out and ask him to show us who to talk to, then trust him to do the rest – he’s pretty good at that and I think we’d be amazed at how much God is already touching people’s lives without particular need for our words.
I’ve just come back from a short retreat, straight out on a night with the Street Pastors. I had ringing in my ears the story from the retreat centre, deep in rural Pembrokeshire….
The new director was agonising over whether he’d made a mistake giving up a very evangelical ministry with local business people, to be cloistered up in a centre for Christians. In desparation he told God how he felt, then suddenly complete strangers started appearing at the door of the centre, asking what it was all about. He found himself giving cups of tea and little guided tours of the centre to couples who said “we don’t understand it – something made us turn up your drive!” Most didn’t know if they even believed there was a God, but as each tour ended in the tiny chapel, the director just asked if they would like him to pray for God to bless them. Again and again, they would say “yes please” and invariably the couple would have an encounter with God, often breaking down in tears. Apart from a simple prayer of blessing no message was given, quite the opposite – each time, the director was prompted to quietly close the chapel door and just let God to speak to them. An hour or so later they’d appear at his door, profusely thankful for having met with an amazing God who loved them!

cheers – Graham

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:26:54 +0000

Nice one Sonia! All power to your elbow in the school – so important! Love the notion of ‘ordinary radical’! Like this Bakke quote too,

‘Urban Christian’ by Ray Bakke on page 76, “It is only in our rich Western countries that we have the luxury to divide two sides of a common coin – social action and evangelism. John Stott uses such images as the two belonging together like two blades of a pair of scissors or two wings of a bird. Christians who are still debating these priorities often miss the point that social action is not done in order to communicate the gospel, but as a sign or evidence that the gospel has already been received and acted upon. Social ministry is the loving service of Christians set free from sins and bondage by the risen Lord”

cheers – dave

ps – know what you mean re the shack!

By: soniamain

soniamain — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:16:39 +0000

be good to have a converstaion about the shack, I had such mixed thoughts and feeling about it- drove me mad, made me weep and at times made me cringe!