Valley of the Shadow of Death

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at "The Valley of the Shadow of Death"

The Twenty-third Psalm
A Psalm of David

"The LORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever."

When we choose (some say we are chosen) to follow Jesus Christ we don't make the easiest choice. There are many other roads we can follow but none of these lead to our salvation. Following our saviour is the route we must take to come to God and this path is fraught with many dangers and wrong turnings along the way.

In the Old Testament we are reminded of Job's fall from grace as he lost all that he owned including his loved ones and faling ill to a disease likened to lepresy. He was advised by so called friends that he must have sinned badly and he should confess his sins to God. Yet he could not see where he had betrayed God that badly. God was testing him, guiding him through his own personal Valley of the Shadow of Death and because Job's faith never ceased (it may have buckled abit at times), God brought him out the other side.

Our Saviour Jesus Christ led a life following a path through a very dark valley. Tested by Satan in the wilderness for forty days Jesus proved His sinlessness and yet still endured hostility, loathing and ultimately death upon the cross. His whole three years of ministry must have seemed like a walk on the dark side but God rewarded Him with His resurrection and ascension into heaven to sit at His right-hand.

I'm reminded of the poem "Footprints in the Sands" by Mary Stevenson

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there were one set of footprints. This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints. So I said to the Lord, "You promised me Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there have only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, you have not been there for me?" The Lord replied, "The times when you have seen only one set of footprints, is when I carried you."

 Just the other day I was praying to God about my own personal journey through The Valley of the Shadow of Death. I wanted to see a sign that he was with me as I tripped over unforeseen bolders and got sucked under by the quicksand of financial uncertainty. Soon after my prayers I picked up the book "Godzone" by Mike Riddell which is a travellers guide through God's kingdom. In the chapter entitled "Lie of the Land" he very picturesquely describes the terrain that we, as Christians, will inevitably hike across on our journey to be with God. His description of "The Valley", a very dark, perilous road with steep sides that block out any sunlight seems to aptly paint the scene I feel myself in at the moment. But I am greatly inspired by the fact that a mountain peak awaits where we can basque in all God's glory which can be viewed to the horizons afar.

Ten years ago before I started on my Christian journey, a journey through The Valley of the Shadow of Death would have broken me. Today, knowing Christ is my guide and Saviour I can tread each dark step without any fear.

How fantastic is that?

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/
http://www.cryinthedark.org/
http://www.excellentbridge.com/

Many, many Christians experience extremely difficult, testing times. It may be ill health, relationship break ups or, like me at present, a harsh financial climate. We may wonder where God is as we desperately struggle in our own Valley of the Shadow of Death. It seems like there is no light at the end of the tunnel as we stumble over obstacle after obstacle, trapse through quagmires and dodge poisoned arrows. We can't climb the cliffs each side of the valley because they are to steep and treacherous so we have no choice but to soldier on.

Love Thy Neighbour

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at "Love Thy Neighbour".

"Ephesians 4:2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,"

The ability to "love" comes easy in some circumstances and somewhat more difficult in others. As Christians we are called upon to love and to love God, love Jesus and to love our family and friends comes quite easily and naturally. But we are called to love our enemies and those who have wronged us as well. How easy is it to show our love then?

When somebody has served injustice upon us, hurt our feelings, stolen from us or perhaps even physically harmed us, our human reactions are to feel angry; we want that person or persons to suffer like we have suffered. We seek justice or revenge. How can we possibly feel love in these circumstances?

A few days ago I was feeling a little like that with one of my bosses at work. I had been denied a couple of hours off to attend to a personal matter. If I wanted time off I should take it as holiday. I felt aggrieved because I knew I'd been putting in extra hours to get work completed and to catch up with paperwork, extra hours that I wasn't getting paid for and was taking me away from my family. How could this person be so unreasonable? What happened to the principle of "give and take"? And what's more I'd been honest about my intentions rather than "pulling a sickie".

My automatic reaction was to feel bitterness towards my boss and yet deep down I knew I shouldn't. Pangs of guilt welled up from within because as a Christian I knew I should exhibit love. So how could I smother my resentment and get myself back on the right track?

As on most occasions the answer was to turn to God and pray.

My prayer started by letting God know my frustrations although He would have known that already. I explained my feelings of injustice and then confessed my guilt because I didn't feel the love inside of me that He would want me to share. My words were flowing as I disclosed that I appreciated that my boss was probably under alot of work related pressures and that this person probably had other issues to contend with as well.

Hang on, I was beginning to feel sorry for my boss. I was feeling compassion flowing inside of me. The anger had evaporated with the warmth that was now filling my heart. Within just a few minutes of prayer my whole attitude was changing and I felt at peace once more.

Perhaps the issues I had were minor compared to some. Many people are bound by the strongholds of deep animosity and feelings of forgiveness are far from their hearts. Love may take a little longer to shine through in circumstance like these but most assuredly love will win the day in the end if we offer over our hearts to God and ask Him for His help.

How fantastic is that?

Freedom for the Dalits of India

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at the plight of the Dalit community in India.

Caste System

The caste system in India is an aspect of the Hindu religion and is not practiced amongst any other major religion throughout the world. Castes are a means of placing people into occupational groups and the hierarchical ranking determines the behaviour of one member of society towards another. In India there are four main classes:-

Brahmana

Kshatriya

Vaishya

Shudra

Lower castes are discouraged from desiring to climb the caste ladder so generations of people have their working and social lives predetermined. Castes very rarely inter-marry and are not interchangeable.

During his time of rule, Mahatma Gandhi introduced a fifth and lowly caste made up of lower castes and "untouchables".

Dalits

Dalits are regarded as the "untouchables". Historically Dalits have fallen below the four main castes but under Mahatma Gandhi were categorised into the new lowest caste. Their occupations were considered to be impure undertaking leatherwork, butchery, rubbish removal and the cleaning of streets, latrines and sewers. These activities were considered as polluting the individuals and this pollution was considered to be contagious by higher caste members. Dalits were segregated and banned from full Hindu life; they could not enter schools or temples and had to stay outside of villages.

The Indian government has made great strides to integrate Dalits into Indian society but problems still remain particularly in rural areas. It is widely speculated that bribery and corruption allows the continuation of abuse towards Dalit people especially in the area of human trafficking which extends into bonded labour, the sex trade, begging, abusive domestic service and the harvesting of body parts.

Human trafficking is modern day slavery and it is estimated that there are over 18 million Dalit victims although this could be a very under calculated estimation.

Child and Bonded Labour

From the ages of 4 to 5, children are forced to work in stone quarries, fields and street cleaning. They earn very little and are deprived of any schooling and never achieve even basic literacy skills. By adulthood many are sick, deformed or exhausted. Working virtually as slaves, they work to pay off debt. Debt has become their chains and in the majority of cases it isn't even their debt. They slave to pay off debt accrued by parents, guardians or relatives. Some children are even sold to pay off loans.

It isn't just children that are entrapped by bonded labour. Many adults are forced to work off debts in attrocious conditions, governed by disproportionately unfair contracts that have rolling terms and conditions.

Bonded labour has been outlawed by the Indian government yet the practice is still widely practiced. Officials are bribed not to launch investigations and bonded labourers and non government organisations trying to protect them are threatened with violence with such threats often being executed.

Dalits are the most victimised group when it comes to bonded labour as, because of their caste status, they are so vulnerable to discrimination and violation of human rights.

Sex Trafficking

Young girls are sold into the sex trade by their own relatives. They are first enticed, deceived or even kidnapped before being locked into brothels and forced into sex with clients. Any resistance is met with beatings with belts, sticks and even iron rods. They can even be drugged by their masters.

As prostitutes they can be made to have sex with between 10 and 25 clients per day. They are also made to breed so that sons can be taken into bonded labour and daughters used for prostitution. Children also become hostages to force mothers to comply with their masters demands. Although this is predominantly a female trade there are some boys trapped within this vile trade.

As would be expected, the risk of sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and AIDs is extremely high. Should any sex trade worker catch such diseases they are tossed aside, no longer being of any use to their employer. It is estimated that there are 3 million prostitutes in India of which 1.2 million are children. These people are also used for the growing demand in pornography, live internet feeds and sex tourism. Of all those that are trafficked for the sex trade, 90% are Dalits.

Child Beggars

Their are estimated to be 300,000 child beggars in India forced to beg by mafia-style gangs. Children are deliberately maimed; amputation of limbs, dousing with acid and blinding. The worse the injuries a child has the more money they are likely to get. They are actually taught in the art of begging and they are given beatings if they don't hit daily monetary targets. To hide from their misery many child beggars fall victim of solvent, alcohol or drug abuse.

Again Gangmasters bribe their way into immunity. Needless to say the vast majority of child beggars are drawn from the Dalit community.

Domestic Service

Domestic service abuse is not so easy to detect as it goes on in the privacy of homes. It is, though, considered to be a growing form of abuse particularly within the flourishing middle classes. In 2006 employment of children under the age of 14 was outlawed yet three-quartes of domestic workers are believed to be between the ages of 12 and 16. Ninety percent are girls.

There are two styles of domestic work. The first is to work in one household, living in but working day and night. The other is to work for a number of households in a week - sometimes in one day. Abuse comes in the form of excessive hours, degrading tasks, witholding food and pay and physical, sexual or emotional abuse.

Placement agencies find work for domestic workers. Some are legitimate but others are involved in the abusive practices. Agencies may entice workers into moving far away from home to find work, promising jobs and good pay which never seems to materialise. Eventually some workers will end up in bonded labour. Dalits are most at risk of falling into abuse from domestic services.

Harvesting of Body Parts

When we talk of harvesting of body parts it primarily means the selling of organs such as kidneys. There is a severe shortage of organs for transplant in India for which there is now a flourishing black market as people are transported (trafficked) around India to harvest their body parts. Because there has been little research into this trade it is difficult to estimate the extend of the problem but again it is estimated that 96% of kidney sales are to pay off debt. And yet people don't get all the money they are promised as brokers rake off a huge chunk of the sale price. It has also been known for day labourers to be forced at gunpoint to attend clinics. Because of poverty and discrimination, Dalits are the biggest victims of this trade.

Help Dalits in India

There are a few organisations around the world who are fighting and campaigning for freedom for the Dalit community. This isn't helped by the fact that persecution of Dalits is kept underground by corruption and violence even towards defenders of the abused community. Here in the United Kingdom, Dalit Freedom Network UK strives to highlight the plight of Dalits in India and seeks your support. If you would like to find out more or pledge your support please go to http://dfn.org.uk/.

How fantastic is that?

- semi skilled and unskilled labourers. - people engaged in commercial activity and businessmen. - people in public service, administration, maintenance of law and order and defence. - people engaged in scriptual education and teaching which is considered essential for the continuation of knowledge.

God Speaks

Welcome Christian Charity as we consider how God speaks.

2 Corinthians 8:10 Revised Standard Version "And in this matter I give my advice: it is best to complete what a year ago you began not only to do but to desire."

The Bible I tend to read from the most is the Revised Standard Version. It was the first Bible I was given as a child and although I have others it is the one that I carry with me wherever I go. Sentimental value I suppose.

When I go to Bible study class it often has to be followed meticulously as others read from their versions that are worded somewhat differently. And I have to say as I read the above verse from 2 Corinthians my first interpretation of it was probably wrong.

Just recently I have been at a crossroads as to a particular project I had embarked on. I was beginning to have doubts as to whether this was really what God was calling me to do. Naturally I prayed to Jesus to help guide me and as I read verse 10 from chapter 8 it really felt that God was telling me to persevere. It was about a year ago that I first decided on this particular venture and although it has hit some stumbling blocks recently it was still in my heart to try and see it through to the end. God speaks and the way I was reading his word I was getting encouragement to carry on.

The danger with taking a particular verse on its own is that the meaning can be distorted. When I looked at other Bible versions and read chapter 8 in its entirety it became clear that the apostle Paul was talking about giving. He was suggesting that what was started a year ago in the way of giving generously should still be continued as the desire should be matched by its completion.

I had gotten the wrong end of the stick because I had taken only the words from the verse which hadn't given me the full picture.

But did that really matter in this particular instance?

Although once I had done my research I had understood the true meaning, I had still been given the idea that I should carry on with my project. God speaks and he was appealing to my heart rather than my head wasn't he?

God speaks to us in many different ways and I'm sure he must get frustrated with me because he thinks I don't listen. But he does speak and his voice comes to us through other people, through experience, sometimes through gut instinct, and very often through his word as written in the Bible. Many times I have heard people say that they can go over passages from the Bible again and again and get a different message each time. They will see something different, feel something different, their hearts being touched in different ways, and this is God speaking to them in such a way that is relevant to them at the time.

God speaks.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

http://www.cryinthedark.org/  

Satan

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at Satan and how he can work in our lives if we aren't careful.

"James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

Do you have trouble understanding Satan?

For some people they struggle to visualise what or who the Devil really is. The characterisation of the Devil as a little fellow dressed in red, with small horns on his head and spouting a tail is a bit hard to swallow. This wouldn't be an accurate depiction of The Devil usually portrayed in cartoons or comic strips.

The words "Devil" and "Satan" amount to the same thing scriptually though "Devil" is likely to have derived from the Greek language and "Satan" from Hebrew.

The Devil works hard to tempt us into being disobedient to God. He plies us with evil and corrupt thoughts, confuses us with ideas that differ to what we can read in the bible, and bombard our minds with negative thoughts in times of trouble, when our faith is put to the test. Satan searches out our weaknesses and plays on them, telling us lies, trying to grind us down into submission. He is the spirit of evil.

God however provides us with a righteous spirit, the Holy Spirit. When we have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside us we have pure thoughts, positive thoughts, a desire to do what is right in God's eyes because we know that it is good for mankind. We are not doubtful because we know the word of God is the truth and we can trust His word.

Following The Devil's work, whether it be in thought, word or deed, will make us feel guilty and sorrowful. A Christian will hate the sin, and although none of us are likely to be able to claim that we a perfect Christians, we will despise any sin we commit and will seek forgiveness from God. Living a life filled with the Holy Spirit will leave us feeling joyous, content and peaceful having lived upto the truth.

Our saviour Jesus Christ was the embodiment of a life filled with the Holy Spirit. When spending forty days in the wilderness the Devil continuously tested Him but Jesus was always able to counter him with Gods words as written in scripture. This is really a master plan in fending off evil thoughts. When negativity abounds in the mind and confusion reigns it is really helpful to try and still the mind and then focus on Gods words. If a bible is at hand and the right passage can be found it will surely drive away Satan from the mind.

It's almost like our minds are the battle ground between the Devil and the Holy Spirit; each one trying to wrestle control of our intellect and our body. So does that mean that we have no control over who wins? Are we just the territory of which the two are fighting over?

We do have the ultimate say in whether evil controls our thoughts or the power of righteousness. Although it takes alot of consciousness to catch negative thinking when it creeps in, once we catch it we can push it aside and focus on more righteous thoughts. And when we do, we can feel the Holy Spirit entering our hearts. We don't have to sit on the fence. It is possible to decide between right or wrong, good or evil. God is the creator of all we see so that means he has ultimate control over Satan. We know through The Book of Revelations that one day Jesus will return and Satan will be defeated. So why not back the winner?

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

Stillness

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we contemplate stillness.

"Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

Last year I was in Romania with a group of volunteers as we helped the Christian charity Cry in the Dark with renovations to their orphanage Casa Lumina. It's always rewarding when doing such work particularly when we had all the young people around us inspecting our work and with some of them wanting to get involved as well. It gives a personal feel to the work knowing that these are the people that we are doing it for. Which made it very emotional as news unfolded during the week.

There are 22 orphans at Casa Lumina with varying degrees of life limiting illnesses or disabilities. Each one has a personal assistant and these personal assistants are not funded by the charity but by the government. During our trip it was announced that the government was pulling out of all funding of personal assistants. The economic crisis had hit Romania as hard if not harder than many countries in the Eurpean Union and this was one of the measures the powers that be had, in their wisdom, decided would claw some money back. This was devastating news with possibly devastating consequences. Without personal assistants, some, if not all of these young people could end up back in state run institutions; the places from which Cry in the Dark had strived so hard for so long to take them away from. But the consequences could be worse than that. It could feasibly take upto a year to get the orphans back into one of these institutions and if Casa Lumina had to close because of lack of finances they could end up on the streets.

One evening an emergency prayer meeting was called. We were invited to offer our prayers in an open session so all those who felt the need to openly say a prayer to God could do so. Many words were offered to The Lord in a desperate plea to help in this time of need, all being heartfelt as our emotions ran high. There were prayers for the leaders of the government, prayers for the trustees of the charity and prayers for the security of the orphans and staff alike. Then a simple prayer was offered.

"Be still and know that I am God"

The mood dramatically changed. When we realised that we needed to be in touch with God first and then he would answer our prayers, the sense of desperation and frustration evaporated. God is in control of everything for our good and yet in amongst all our emotions that obvious fact had been fundamentally overlooked. We had been looking at human ways of finding answers to the situation rather than just relying on God. Now in our stillness we could contemplate God's greatness and feel comforted that God would do right for Cry in the Dark and Casa Lumina.

Life has its ups and downs and when we seem to be on that downward slope we can feel angry, desperate, helpless. The tunnel can seem pitch black with not even a glimmer of light at the end of it and our despair and confusion can force a barrier between us and God. This is the time that we need to be still, and in that stillness focus on God. For God does things for our good.

As I write Casa Lumina is still providing amazing love and care for 22 young people. Cry in the Dark was founded on faith in God and has continued for over 13 years to support those in need in the impoverished areas around Bacau in North East Romania. In our stillness pray that this may long continue.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

Christians Today in Nigeria

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at Christians Today in Nigeria.

"2 Timothy 3:12

Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,"

　

Sometimes life may seem difficult with our financial difficulties, family issues and perhaps many people not understanding our Christian values and ways of thinking. Yet in the western world, in the United Kingdom, United States and Western Europe we have it really easy compared to many Christians in other parts of the world.

　

In 2003 I spent some time working in Nigeria, particularly in the city of Ibadan. Despite some rather hairy moments I've developed a fondness for the country and indeed many of my Facebook friends are Nigerian. So it deeply saddens me to see the current unrest that has hit the nation particularly in Central and North East Nigeria.

　

President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in parts of the north eastern states of Yobe and Borno and the central states of Plateau and Niger. This follows Christmas Day attacks on churches in Yobe, Plateau, Niger and Nigeria's capital Abuja. Indeed the bombing of St. Theresa's Catholic Church in Abuja left 37 people killed.

　

A radical Muslim group called Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for all these attacks. Boko Haram seemed to have been virtually extinct in 2009 and were even using primitive weapons such as poisoned darts for their attacks. Yet over the course of 2 years they have risen strongly and now reportedly have affiliations with other Islamic Fundamentalist Groups such as al-Quaida in the Islamic Maghreb and the Taliban. As I write, a deadline set by Boko Haram for all Christians today in Nigeria to move out of the North of Nigeria has past. They have also urged Muslims in the south to head Northwards as they believe their safety is under threat from the predominantly Christian population of the southern states. It doesn't bode well for immediate peace as it appears that they are set on creating two seperate states with the North being governed by Shari'a Law as currently happens in 12 states. We can perhaps gain more insight into their motives when we translate the name Boko Haram; "Western Education is sinful".

　

In 2011 it is estimated that Boko Haram had killed upto 600 people in their attacks on churches. Jos, the capital of Plateau State has seen many deadly clashes as it lies on the divide between Christians and Muslims. President Goodluck Jonathan has ordered the temporary closure of Nigeria's borders with Niger, Chad and Cameroon to prevent terrorists fleeing to the safety of their neighbours. The mood of Christians across Nigeria is understandably one of concern and anxiety. The National Youth Wing of the Christian Associate of Nigeria have been quoted as saying that they will not tolerate any further attacks on churches.

　

I hope and pray that Christians do not try to retaliate though there are many who can understand the desire to exact justice. I'm sure it is easy to say, coming from one who is an outsider, but justice is not ours to meter out but God's. God is the ultimate judge and in his wisdom he will punish. For Christians today in Nigeria they must try and find it in their hearts to love all, including those that persecute and attack them. Love is their greatest weapon.

　

I have to point out that I am no great scholar on Islam but it is my understanding that it is a peaceful religion at heart, which makes it difficult to comprehend why Islamic Fundamentalists want to perpetrate such acts of violence including suicide bombings like that at the offices of the United Nations in Abuja. Why anybody would want to resort to violence of any kind to enforce their will is beyond me.

　

President Goodluck Jonathan has an unenviable task ahead of him in trying to find a formula for peace. Indeed as a committed Christian himself he must feel that his life is in danger as well. It is my wish for the nation and friends that have found a place in my heart that they can live peacefully together with the love of God at their core. For the sake of all Christians today in Nigeria and their Muslim neighbours.

　

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindowamerica.html

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

Positive Faith

Welcome Christian Charity World and our look at Positive Faith.

"Philippians 4:6 ESV

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."

For many people 2012 is going to be a testing year. So many people are struggling financially and it isn't just individuals and their families. The financial crisis translates over to companies, local authorities, governments and nations. The Euro Zone is barely holding together as countries such as Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal all wrestle with a mountain of debt. As the forecast appears to be that Europe could see another period of recession, it seems that 2012 could be a really tough year.

On a personal front the finances are low as well and as I look to juggle the bills around to make ends meet I have to admit to having to force myself sometimes to be positive; having positive faith. So if we are fighting the evils of negative thinking how do we turn that around? How can we be positive when all seems lost?

Well the first thing to do is pray. Many people use prayer as the last resort, as a tool to use when all else fails. Turning to God should be our first port of call in all situations, good or bad. I know it is extremely hard to surrender control when times are hard particularly when there seems no end in sight. For people trying to create solutions in times of trouble, they develop the nasty habit of making rash decisions, decisions formed out of desperation. Two of the qualities of the fruits of the spirit are "patience" and "self control" and yet these can fly straight out of the window if we don't allow God to take control of our problems. Jesus was the finest example of having the virtues of the fruits of the spirit and He was also the greatest example of faith in His Father; positive faith.

I have over the past three years taken a great interest in a charity called Cry in the Dark. They have two projects working in Romania, their first and founding project was the creation of an orphange for children with life limiting illnesses and disabilities who were, at the time, homed in attrocious conditions at a state run institution. They started in 1998 with no money and virtually no resources and yet just two years later Cry in the Dark had created Casa Lumina, a home for 24 orphans in the town of Comanesti.

How did they do it? By prayer and an absolute faith in God through His son Jesus Christ.

Recently I was talking to the charity's financial adminstrator and he told me that he could never do a financial forecast for the charity. If he did then month on month they would appear to be in the red. Yet month on month they've been in the black. Although many times the going has been tough, God's hand in their work means they continue their amazing charitable work in Romania 13 years on.

At times it may feel like God isn't answering our prayers. Because our prayers aren't answered when we would like them to be it gives the impression that He isn't listening. But God does answer our prayers. He has our good at heart at all times and His timing is always perfect.

　

By having positive faith, knowing that God will answer our prayers, we can look forward to an abundant future provided by God, and we can then develop another of those qualities from the fruits of the spirit; Hope.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

False Idols

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at the subject of False Idols.

"2 Kings 17:33

So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away."

　

A good friend recently bought tickets for him, me and my son to go and watch my favourite football team play. Since boyhood I've proclaimed that I'm an avid supporter of Gillingham FC but in recent years my actual attendance has been extremely limited due both to a lack of finances and little time. Until recently I'd felt guilty that I could pledge allegiance to the team and yet not back them with my presence. After all wouldn't a true supporter be there for his team come what may; through thick and thin?

　

The fact that I was feeling bad about it perhaps meant that I was giving too much adoration to my chosen team. I was making Gillingham Football Club a False Idol. I remember as a boy attending my confirmation classes; the vicar accused me of treating football as my God because I'd missed one lesson to play for the school team. I couldn't see it at the time particularly as I felt commited to my team mates.

　

Ultimately our awe, adulation and devotion should be aimed in one direction only; at God through his son Jesus Christ. And if I feel bad about anything it should be the fact that I have offended him through my sins. I've heard it said that I shouldn't "beat myself up" if I sin as God forgives us as long as we repent. I'm speaking purely for myself here when I say that I feel that I do need to beat myself up when I sin. I need to know how God feels when I sin so that I can try and learn my lesson. Yes I sin daily particularly through thought, but I must recognise this so that I can attempt to lead a more righteous life.

　

I've also read that you know when you are a Christian when you hate the sin. Yes we continually sin but because we know it is wrong we detest that sin. When God is placed in such high regard that we care so desperately about the actions that offend him we have made him our idol. Not a false idol but our one and only God deserving of our worship.

　

By the way Gillingham beat Bristol Rovers 4 - 1.

　

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindowamerica.html

Cheerful Giving

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at Cheerful Giving.

2 Corinthians 9 — “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

I was very proud of my wife the other day. Seeing a "Big Issue" seller in the street she went and bought a cup of coffee and gave it to her. She gave it willingly and it gave her a warm glow in her heart for the rest of the day.

A very simple act you may think but it was a spontaneous gesture; an act of cheerful giving.

How many times have we passed beggars in the street? Do we look at them and begrudge giving them anything because we question as to whether the money we give will be spent wisely?

Very often homeless people have other issues. They can have drug problems, alcohol addiction, perhaps gambling issues. We refrain from giving because we doubt that our hard earned money will go towards food, a cup of tea or other things we consider necessities. Our giving then becomes subject to conditions. Is that the cheerful giving?

God calls us to give and give with a cheerful heart. It is not for us to judge a situation. If we give and give willingly, gladly, then we have fulfilled God's wish. If the receiver then chooses to spend the money on the wrong things then he (or she) has to answer to God. It can't be for us to make judgement on whether the person in need is justly deserving because we will never know all the circumstances that has drawn that person to that position. But God does. He knows that individuals full life history and He knows what is in their heart.

Cheerful giving doesn't have to be about sharing financially. It is also about sharing time, giving hospitality, listneing to somebody's woes, helping somebody in need. We may never know what effect our charity has on somebody but we can be content knowing that we have done The Lord's work. When we do see the difference that our act of kindness has on somebody we then feel truly rewarded.

How fantastic is that?

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindowamerica.html

Mary's Tale

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at Mary's Tale.

Luke 1: 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.”

Imagine what must have been going through Mary's mind when she was told that she would be with child despite the fact that she was a virgin. In those days girls who became pregnant out of wedlock could be stoned. It was totally frowned upon to be impregnated by any man other than the husband. And who would believe her.

" The Holy Spirit came upon you and put you in the family way? Yeh right!!"

And yet when the angel Gabriel stood before her as The Messenger from God she had the immense courage to say "OK". In Luke 1 she says

"I am the Lord's servant, may it be to me as you have said."

We can see in Mary's Tale, in her story, that she must have been extremely fearful of what the world would think of her; what the world would do to her. Yet she took on the role of being the mother to the Messiah with complete faith in God. She believed without a shadow of doubt that she was doing as God wanted.

It is probably fair to say that in the Western World, as Christians we have it relatively comfortable. Yes we have ridicule occasionally from those who really just don't "get it" but do we really suffer the backlash that Mary could possibly have received. It seems much harder to be a Christian in other areas of the world where religious conflict exists. Where Christianity is a minor religion Christians can suffer horrendous persecution; violence, attacks on their homes, imprisonment, even death. Again in our world of relative comfort it is hard to picture life under these extremes. Would our faith survive the test?

This isn't to trivialise the hardships and pressures of Christians in countries with religious freedooms. The worries of paying bills, keeping a roof over the heads of our loved ones can still weigh us down. God still tests our faith. But we must remain strong in our trust in God. It is amazing that we can off load our burdens onto God and He can sort them out for us. We can rest in His shadow if we just ask Him to.

God will only test our faith to the point that He knows we can take it. He won't try to break us. So for those who have always had life easy, never really had to face the downs in life, perhaps God hasn't felt that their faith is strong enough.

In Mary's Tale we can see that her strength of faith was tested and she was equal to it; which of course God knew it would. Which is just as well as the whole course of history would have changed and you and I wouldn't be experiencing the joy of being saved by our Saviour Jesus Christ.

How fantastic is that?

The Christmas Story

Welcome to Christian Charity World as we look at The Christmas Story.

"Luke 2: 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

A couple of years ago I rember talking to a good friend at a church service the Sunday after Christmas. I'd asked him if he'd had a good Christmas. He answered, "Yes, but I get extremely sad when people try to destroy The Christmas Story. It is such a beautiful story so why do people want to analyse and disect it so much?"

He'd obviously dwelt upon this point over the festive period and had somewhat dampened his spirits. I can understand his sorrow. Whether it be aetheists or historians, there seems to be a body of people that are bent on discrediting The Story. We can be told that Jesus wasn't born on the 25th December and this date has been hijacked from a pagan festival. It is said that it actually took The 3 Wise Men two years to find the baby Jesus so was unlikely to be found in the stable at that point.

Despite attempts to place doubt on The Christmas Story, whatever so called facts emerge, we are still left with the one undisputable fact, that Christ was born. What ever date he was born, he did arrive, and he came as our saviour. From my understanding, this has never been disproved.

Astrologers have declared that at the time of Jesus's birth, certain stars and heavenly bodies had moved into alignment such that a bright star appeared. Facts like this are giving credence to The Christmas Story rather than discrediting it and it also shows that God is in control as the prophocies of scripture unfold.

I wonder, as various people try to place falsehood on the birth of Christ whether these same people still join in the festivities. Do aetheists eat turkey and brussel sprouts, drink wine and offer presents? If so, isn't this a bit hypocritical?

Fortunately we know differently. Jesus came to this earth, born of a virgin and laid in a manger, in a stable. He came to be our king and to save us from our sins, to give us hope and a new life.

How fantastic is that?

Manger Trail

Welcome to Christian Charity World in this Season of Advent

Luke 2: 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

I know I’m not the first to feel that the true meaning of Christmas gets left out of many people’s celebrations. How many people do we know that quite happily eat, drink and be merry without giving a thought to the birth of a baby in a stable some 2011 years ago and laying its head down in a manger. Sometimes it is nice to remind others exactly what they are celebrating.

Certainly when we watch our little one’s portray the nativity scene this gives us a good nudge in the right direction, but last weekend I was extremely fortunate to be involved in our town’s Manger Trail. For those who are unaware of the nature of a Manger Trail, it takes children (and adults if they so wish) through various scenes of the nativity as they search for the baby Jesus. Within these scenes actors act out the various roles and try to make it interactive for the children. Our town’s Manger Trail started with an actress dressed up as a Christmas decoration acting very confused as to why she came out every year. She then took the group of children on a journey via scenes of wise men, King Herod, shepherds, Roman centurion, innkeeper and finally the stable where baby Jesus was found before heading off for donkey rides. In the process the children had to find the gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh and answer silly riddles from King Herod helping the children to take in the story whilst having fun at the same time.

A project such as this takes a lot of organising and being as this is the first time that a Manger Trail had been produced in the town the organizers were really unsure as to how successful this would be. Indeed, they were only aware of one other having been held in the country, so felt they were nervous trailblazers. Fortunately within the town there is a very strong Churches Together movement and it was marvellous how a combined effort spectacularly brought things together.

However, people were still wary of how many visitors would come through the doors. As the opening time drew closer the nerves set in. Yet as the doors were unlocked it was truly amazing how many children with their parents came flooding in. It was constant from start to end.

There was no entrance fee, just a suggested donation. The whole idea was to spread the Christmas message to as many children as possible, not to make it a money spinning venture. This wasn’t a professional production, just Christians working voluntarily together to help others understand the true meaning of Christmas. Everybody that took part were enthused by the experience and not one bad word was uttered.

It just goes to show that when God’s work is done with Him in mind and faith to shore it all up, God will come good every time.

How fantastic is that? 

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.com/

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindowamerica.html       

So Are We A Church?

Hebrews 10:25
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

When teaching on the subject of self growth and positive thinking many Life Coaches advocate the idea of only mixing with positive thinking people. They encourage you to socialise with the successful and avoid those who express any negative views or thoughts. Looking from the human perspective it does make sense. Being immersed in an environment where success is the only way to think will undoubtedly rub off in the end. One would no doubt start thinking in a successful and positive way.

So am I advocating that we should only mix with successful, positive thinking people?

No, not at all. I was thinking more about associating with Christians. Should we only mix with like minded people; those who follow Christ and and those have similar views on life as ourselves?

Well I answer this very ambiguously by saying Yes and No. I'll explain the "no" bit first of all. Our saviour Jesus Christ didn't continuously surround himself with believers. He mixed with sinners. He had a message to preach, souls to save. By surrounding himself with the people who got the message, those who knew and believed in all he said meant that he would not be spreading the word. He needed to address the non believers, the sinners in order to help save more souls.

Likewise we are called to witness. We are called to spread "The Gospel", the good news. This isn't going to happen if we preach to the converted. We need to engage those who don't believe, those who don't understand if we are going to fulfill our calling.

Now to answer the "yes" part of me sitting on the fence. I think it is very important that we also mix with fellow Christians and that word "fellow" means we create fellowship. If we go back to our group of success thinking people we recognise that their way of thinking rubs off on each other; they encourage each other. Likewise, being amongst other Christians our positive thoughts on life, our faith and testimonies encourages each other as we continue to experience our Christian adventures, journey on our Christian path through life. When we pray together our prayers can be so much more effective if we pray as a group.

And people coming together in the name of Christ is a church. A church isn't about the bricks and mortar that makes up the building; it's about the people. In countries where Christians are persecuted people come together in the name of Christ in secret, behind closed doors. This constitutes a church every much as the ones that we attend on Sunday mornings. I attend a wonderful bible study group that totals just seven people but we have some lively and encouraging discussions mixed with prayer and worship and I see this group as part of my church also.

So as Christians we have the opportunity of weaving a wonderful tapestry as we envelope ourselves with the good and the bad, the wealthy and the needy.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Welcome to Thoughts at Christian Charity World.

Matthew 6:25-27 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

Hands up all those who have complete, utter and absolute faith in God?

Can we really say that in our most dire and stress ladened moments that we don't worry or panic because we put all our trust in The Lord?

I've heard it said recently that worrying is not scriptural. I also read that to worry or be anxious is a sin. And yet it is very human to worry. Particularly in this economically burdensome times it is extremely difficult not to fret over where the next penny is coming from, how to keep the family clothed and fed. Yet the scriptures have many wonderful verses to dwell on in times of trouble. When the chips are down we can turn to the bible for help and inspiration.

From the moment I rediscovered my Christian adventure, it took another eight years before I actually understood what faith is truly about. It was my first real involvement with a Christian charity that opened my eyes to the meaning of faith, a trust in God and the power of prayer. Seeing how this charity had started with nothing; no money, no assets, just an amazing faith in God to help build a wonderful orphanage in Romania, is an incredible testimony to a belief that God will provide. And now seeing the fantastic work of many Christian charities as they do God's work with limited resources yet achieving such amazing results, strengthens my faith in God.

Let me give you some thoughtful Christian quotes about worry:

Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength.- Corrie Ten Boom

Knowing that God is faithful, it really helps me to not be captivated by worry. But knowing that He will do what He has said, He will cause it to happen, whatever He has promised, and then it causes me to be less involved in worrying about a situation.- Josh McDowell

Worry is the sin of distrusting the promise and providence of God, and yet it is a sin that Christians commit perhaps more frequently than any other.- John MacArthur

　

When we worry we ultimately concentrate on the problem. What we need to do is focus on the solution. If we pray to God we can then let go of the problem and allow God to come up with the answers. We can rest knowing that God will look after us if we positively believe he will.

　

How many times have we prayed to God for an answer when all else fails?

　

God ends up being the last port of call when really he should be the first. Our strength in a crisis doesn't come from our own making, it comes from God, and we should do well to remember that and give thanks and praise to him for it.

　

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

Delight in Doing The Lord's Work

(Psalms 40:8) I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart."

I recently attended the 50th birthday party of an old school friend (kind of gives away my age). It was a great evening and naturally at the end of the evening he gave a little speech. In this speech he imagined himself having a conversation with a stranger in a cafe. It went something like this.

Stranger: How many children do you have?

Friend: I have six.

Stranger: Wow, and where do you live?

Friend: Oh I live in a good part of town. I live in a five bedroom house and we overlook the neighbours swimming pool.

Stranger: And you have cars?

Friend: Yes my family have two cars.

Stranger: And your children, which school do they go to?

Friend: They go to a private school.

Stranger: Fantastic, and where do you go on holiday?

Friend: The last few holidays have been spent on the beach in Thailand.

Stranger: I'm so in awe of you. You must be extremely rich?

Friend: No my family and I haven't got a penny to our name.

When you look at the detail, my old school friend's lifestyle isn't quite as it seems. Yes having been married 18 years he and his wife have been blessed with six wonderful children.

The house they live in is owned by one of the organisations that he works for.

He does have two cars but he confesses that to call one of them "a car" is flattering said vehicle. The other acts purely as a family run-around.

The private education for the children comes courtesy of part time work he does for the school.

And the holiday? Well that is the give-away. He has spent the last eleven years in Thailand doing mission work. You see for the past twenty five years he and his wife have been doing God's work. His mission work has taken him to many countries visiting the poor, the sick and the vulnerable and he has spread the Word of the Lord where-ever he's gone.

He counts his blessings. He can see that the Lord has provided him with a wonderful life but he has willingly given his life to doing God's work. His faithfullness has been rewarded.

My old school friend may not have "net worth" but he has much more than that. He has the love of God, the love of a wonderful family and the love of some great friends.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

www.christian-charity-world.com/shopwindow.html

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

Reasons to be Cheerful

Romans 1 verse 7. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I have a wonderful new patio thanks very much to one of my neighbours who gave freely of his time to help me lay the slabs. If I'm honest about it, he laid the slabs whilst I looked on and tried to learn. The time it took would have cost me hundreds of pounds but as a neighbour he just said "I'm sure there'll be opportunities to return the favour". As friends and neighbour this is what we do. We help each other out and then we return the favour.

When we're subject to such neighbourliness we often feel the need to return that favour as soon as possible. That feeling of being in debt to somebody, albeit not financially, makes us restless until that debt is settled. We seek the opportunities to help our neighbours just to ease our minds.

Are we indebted to God?

Have we the same desire to settle any debts with God?

God has bestowed upon us so much in the way of blessings. He floods us with his grace and mercy despite our many sins. I may not be the richest person in my community but there are a heck of a lot more poorer people in the world than I. I have always been fed and watered and have a loving family and this is just the start of the blessings that God has given to me. He's even given me a brand new patio.

How conscious am I of what I owe to God?

How conscious am I of the debt I have to God?

How conscious am I of the debt that I owe to Jesus Christ?

In hindsight, not enough. I'm conscious of what I owe to my neighbour but I forget what I owe to The Lord. I can be conscious of what I owe to the bank in the way of mortgage payment but I forget about my monthly, weekly, daily repayments to God.

Through Moses, God rescued his chosen people from their sufferings in Egypt, but these same people soon forgot about God's grace and mercy. They fell into the ways of sin deviating greatly from the life that God longed for them to follow.

So how can I/we settle that debt with God?

God will continue to poor his blessings upon us. To show our gratitude we must try to live a holy life. By that I mean a life that is good, righteous and free from sin and in God's name. And we do this because we desire to please God. It may be a tall order I know. Only Jesus Christ led a sin free life. But if we truly want to please God we will endeavour to live a life as close to that of Jesus as possible. And when we do stray away from the straight and narrow, we know that if in our hearts we are extremely sorry then God will forgive us and continue to envelop us with his grace.

How fantastic is that?

A Wish or A Prayer

A good Christian friend of mine was recently challenged to explain the difference between a wish and a prayer. Hazel Butler is an accomplished writer and so consequently chose to answer in the written word in the form of a poem. To me these are beautiful words and Hazel has allowed me to share them here.

                                                            Wishing
I plunge my knife in virgin cake,
My eyes screwed tight, my wish to make;
Or pull the greasy chicken bone
My wish to others never known.
As coins I throw in wishing well
My hearts desires I throw as well.

And now it's time for Christmas lists
To Santa - That's if he exists!
So many hopes, desires, dreams;
The list is enless, yet it seems
That with the passing of the years
They fall on ever deafening ears.

                                                           Praying
My new found love - With Him I walk
Our hearts entwined, we laugh and talk.
I tell Him of the day that's gone
Of how my love for Him just shone
Because I knew how much He cared;
Oh! How I relished all we shared!
Of all we did and said and thought;
Of how His loving ways I'd caught;
How all my plans had Him in mind
And all my thoughts were re-defined
To how to please Him - Make Him smile
As we drew closer mile by mile.
His hope, ambitions, now made mine.
Our plans and wishes intertwine.
For now I clearly understood
His greatest longing was my good.

So prayer is love's communication -
Silence, worship, supplication.
Opening my inmost heart,
Allowing Him to have, not part,
But all my thinking, hearing, seeing,
Every part of all my being.
So I'll grow much more like Him
Not shooting prayers at every whim,
But resting in a love so vast
That it is safe for me to cast
My every need, concern and care
Into His hands - He's always there.
This mighty friend, who's endless power
Created sun and earth and flower,
Reveal Himself in many ways
But most of all within the maze
Of complex lives like yours and mine,
He reaches down with love divine
And then, in answer to my prayer,
Transforms with love the mess that's there

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

http://www.christian-charity-world.com/

Climb Every Mountain, Ford Every Stream

Job 12:7-10. But ask the animals, and they will teach you; or birds of the air and they will tell you; or speak to the earth and it will teach you; or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the lord has done this. In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.

In my earlier years when I hadn't really started my Christian journey I probably had alot of un-answered questions. I believe I was a good man but not really a Christian because I didn't understand or even know Jesus's part in a Christian's life. I didn't go to church save for the usual weddings, christenings and funerals. Yet that one question that always stood in the back of my mind was "How was the universe created?"

I had heard the "Big Bang" theory of how the universe came about; one single atom exploding to create galaxies, suns and planets but nobody could answer the question as to how that atom got there in the first place. And no doubt if some boffin scientist comes up with a theory we would still be left with the question as to how that came about. While to some the Big Bang theory is completely plausible we still don't know how the detenator was driggered.

This question was one of the reasons that I eventually came to faith. I reasoned that a greater power, an authority that we couldn't possibly understand must have created it all. It dawned on me that something far more intelligent than us human beings must be in control of the process. I have read somewhere that some mathematician had calculated the odds of this universe being created by chance. It stacked up at 10 to the power of unimaginable and his conclusion was that it was impossible that the world and all that surrounds it was created by chance.

Recently I was listening to a Christian radio programme and a pastor was delivering his thoughts on creation. He pointed out that if the sun was 5% closer to the earth then much of this world would be to hot to survive on. 5% further away and this world would be to cold for much to live. The sun has been placed in exactly the right place for life to be supported. The world is tilted on its axis at 23.5*. This is exactly the right position to give us the four seasons that we experience. Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter produces all its wonderful colours and glories because earth spins on exactly the right axis.

Could all this have developed by chance? Could all the glorious creation that we see around us be the product of some fluke? Or was it designed?

I certainly believe that God was the great architect and constructer of this world. He has sculpted every mountain, routed every stream and breathed life into every living creature. We only have to watch and observe the wonders of his creation to know that we are here by design and not by accident.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/

Be Still and Don't Make a Noise

Psalm 46
Be still and know that I am God

It's been an extremely hectic last two weeks. A thoroughly rewarding week in Romania with the charity Cry in the Dark was followed by seven days with the family in Blackpool. It has been a very socialable time having met many old friends and made new, and of course having two boys at the ages of seven and eleven, there is never a dull moment. This constituted my holiday for the year and at the moment I don't do "restful". It almost seems like I've come back to work for a rest.

For all the hustle, bustle and enjoyment there was always something missing and coming back to work kind of emphasised this as well. It was the quiet time. The time I have with God.

Granted I prayed to God and read a bit of the bible when I could catch a moment but I couldn't really say this was "quality time" with God. I wasn't really seeking God. A good part of my working day is spent alone. I drive to work and the majority of the time I work by myself. I am quiet and I have time to pray, think, look and listen. For some people this may sound boring and I know from the past it can be very easy to dwell on the negative aspects of life. But now that I am on a journey, my Christian journey, I can focus on my relationship with God and the joy that it brings. These are positive thoughts that fill me with hope rather than despair. I have peace in my heart and I have time to strengthen my faith.

If we can get away from all the man made structures of city life and immerse ourselves in God's creation, the countryside, we can feel so much closer to God. Being quiet and soaking up the stillness and the harmonious sounds of nature leaves us peaceful and rested. God offers us rest if we turn to him in times of trouble and we can find him if we can just be still.

How fantastic is that?

Terry Norrington

http://www.cryinthedark.org/