Life in London

Before my time in Grenada, I visited London at least once a year from 2007 to 2013, most times on my way to a destination on that side of the world. This trip was no different, as I chose this route to get to Indonesia. I was so happy to be able to spend time with my big sister, and her new family!

Liming with the Mrs. Ogunbonas

Dinner with the Ogunbonas, overlooking the city at night

I was also glad for the opportunity to reconnect with my friends from high school, one of which I had not seen since we graduated! It was lovely being able to talk about what was going on in each of our lives, and to encourage one another.

With my friend's children

Youth undaunted!!!!

One of the highlights of this trip was the opportunity to serve on the prayer team at Hillsong Europe Conference 2016. This was a gathering of members of Hillsong church from all over Europe, and even persons from Africa, South America and the Caribbean, all coming together to worship God and be encouraged from His Word. It was a powerful time of testimony and ministry, and I want to use the rest of this blog to share some of the truths shared there, along with some pictures of London in the summer :)

Loving the sunshine that is actually warm!

God wants us to live transformed lives, not conforming to the world around us. God does not want a mediocre church, but one that is gaining territory, advancing His kingdom.

Our confidence should not be connected to our accomplishments, but to our belonging in Christ. Sometimes our shortcomings and failures is what allows us to release God's gifting in our lives, as His strength is made perfect in our weakness.

View of Central London from the 10th floor of Tate Modern

Our faith needs something to work against: that's why we have challenges in life.

Faith cannot fix what we will not face. We should not live in denial.

If you live in the gap between where you are, and where you want to be, your faith will give way to frustration, and eventually despair. Instead, we should look back at the gap between where we are, and where God brought us from, and be encouraged.

The kingdom of God is likened to a mustard seed, because Jesus wanted to teach the power of potential. Faith is the ability to see potential before there is any evidence of progress.

What you are doing may seem insignificant, but little is much when God is in it.

When a seed is planted in the ground, it seems like it is gone, but that's when it is growing. We must survive the soil.

Don't hesitate to ask God for big things for fear that it will ruin His reputation if you don't get it. When we love God, He places a passion in our hearts that He wants us to fulfil, so don't be afraid to ask for the deep desires of your heart.

Don't pray small prayers that hold God back from being great. Don't underestimate the goodness that God wants to lavish on us. Don't limit His generosity.

God can work with whatever little we have.

Part of the church's job is to train others to influence their spheres (the areas of influence we have - home, school, work, community) in a godly way. There are spheres waiting for us to step into, so that we can define the atmosphere.

God is not looking for people who have never failed - He is looking for people who will never give up.

At the Globe Theatre for the Taming of the Shrew

Human beings have the unique ability to materialize the invisible. We can dream and create.

We are works of art, created in God's image to create the future.

God responds to the voice of faith, which must the louder than the negative voices around us. Faith moves the hand of God to do the miraculous in our life.

Our past mistakes are not greater than God's mercy. But we cannot step into our new life without laying aside the old.

Part of the prayer team

It was lovely serving on the prayer team, taking person's prayer requests before the start of the session. There are so many among us who are burdened and hurting, and I was privileged to be a part of the response to provide a space for them to lay their burdens before the Lord.

One prayer request that I took one the first night of the conference was from a young lady who said she is not feeling loved by God. On the final night of the conference, the speaker used the account of Jesus and blind Bartimaeus to show how we are not just another face in the crowd, but God cares deeply for us as individuals and is ready and willing to answer us when we call out to Him. The amazing thing was that speaker wasn't the one scheduled to share that night - the scheduled speaker was unwell, but it was clear that the Holy Spirit was using him to deliver the message His people needed to hear.

This was a tremendous week in London - can't wait to see what God has in store for us in Indonesia!!!

Shall we accept good from the Lord, and not trouble?

26 July - Ex-employee kills 19 persons in a knife attack at a care center for people with mental disabilities in Sagamihara, Japan

22 July - 18 year old kills 9 persons in a shopping mall in Munich, Germany

20 July - US airstrikes in Manbij, Syria kill 73 civilians, mainly women and children

15 July - Truck driver in Nice, France kills 84 persons as he plowed through crowds with a lorry

And this is only in the last two weeks. There were bombings in Belgium, mass and racial profile shootings in the United States, floods in Ghana and many other disasters worldwide since the start of this year. Many people are worried about their safety, and the safety of their loved ones. Others question how  a loving God can allow all this evil and destruction to take place.

Allow me to share some insights that came out our Youth Adults Sunday School class study on the book of Job a couple weeks ago:

*We do not have any control over loss

*God does not always act in the way we think He should. This causes us to struggle to make sense out of the challenges we face in life

*God sets limits to what Satan can do. He cannot act unless God gives him permission

*There is a heavenly scenario that is behind the earthly circumstances in our life

*Job never got an answer to the "why" question from God. "Why" assumes that you can understand the answer

*Job understood God's sovereign authority

*Job understood that his identity was not defined by his possessions

*Job recognised God's hand on his life in the midst of his loss

*Nothing is wrong with mourning your loss

*If we don't recognise that all we have comes from God, we will try to blame others when we suffer loss

*God is never wrong for taking anything away from us

*Satan does not stop his attacks against believers. He is never satisfied

*Our response in devastating situations show why we really love and serve God

*Even though Job did nothing to cause Satan's attack on his life, there was purpose behind it

*God has a plan for our lives, and it may not always be pleasant, or in alignment with our plan

*Job's wife struggled with faith vs. practicality. Her recommendations were based on what made sense in her mind, rather than on faith

*Job's friends earned the right to speak about his disaster because they showed sympathy and their wilingness to empathise with Job. They were willing to put aside their own agendas to mourn with him. Sometimes we are too quick to speak when persons suffer loss

*Adversity is not just a part of life, but it is a part of knowing God. Jesus Himself experienced suffering, so we cannot escape it

*That which produces pain, produces life. The suffering of the cross produces a type of humanity that never existed before - humans who have the very presence of God living in them, through the Holy Spirit

*It is not sinful to have and acknowledge our emotions in times of distress, even though what we say may not always line up with truth. We need to be careful, however, about how we act based on our emotions.

*Our emotions are connected to our thoughts and beliefs. If our emotion is based on a thought or belief that is not truth, we need to replace that thought or belief with truth.

*Our behaviour as Christians must be consistent with truth, irrespective of our emotions

*Good or bad is linked to the purposes of God, not His character

*Bad does not necessarily mean we have done something wrong; it depends on God's purposes

*We must leave space for people to go through the grieving process because they are human. There is no time limit for grief, and they may go through ups (don't get too exuberant when they do)  and downs (don't lose hope when they do)

*The law of cause and effect does not always apply in the face of disaster i.e. wicked men -> bad things happening. There are times when God intervenes

*Job had a desire to see God in the midst of his mess

*We should seek to know God for ourselves instead of depending on the multitude of advisors

*Only God's purposes can give meaning to the circumstances of life

As much as Job was upright and blameless, he struggled when faced with suffering, feeling hopeless as he came to the end of himself. He could not depend on his past track record - all he could do was hold on to God.

In the face of suffering, we must keep in mind that the only good thing we have in this life is God. Suffering causes our understanding of God to change. It is God's way of processing us. The fact that God sometimes allows us to be crushed, instead of just letting us die, means that God has a plan for us.

Job didn't just focus on the disaster he was experiencing - he acknowledged that his suffering came from God. He didn't think that he was evil because he was experiencing something bad. In spite of the darkness he was experiencing, Job had desires in his heart, and this gave him hope.


Questions for reflection:
*How is our relationship with God affected when He takes away what we feel we have a right to? (health, job, life)

*When God looks at our life, what is his testimony about us? (Have you considered my servant Job)

*What is our reflex action in times of unexpected tragedy? (Job's was worship)

*When we deal with difficult situations, do we hold fast to God at the end, or is our faith weakened?

*What do we do when our faith is not practical? (Is our practicality going to be surrendered to our faith?)

*Are you more or less inclined to love God, knowing that suffering is a part of life with Him?

Impacting communities through children

That 12 year old boy who gets so angry that he picks up a glass bottle to throw at a boy who disrespected him.

That 14 year old girl who tells you plainly, "My fadder not working anywhere he now come out of jail."

That 8 year old boy whose name you learn within the first half an hour of meeting him because he is constantly getting into trouble.

What do these children have in common? They all attend Vacation Bible Schools in their communities. They may or may not attend the Sunday School or the youth groups attached to the churches which host their VBS, but once the holidays come around they are drawn by the fun, snacks and prizes offered as incentives for those who can learn their memory verses or answer questions based on the Bible lessons shared.

Doing an activity to illustration the Romans 3:23 memory verse

It has been years since I taught VBS at a church. My July/August holidays are normally filled with camp preparations, camps, mission trips or spending time by family and friends on the way to mission trips. This year I committed to serve 1 1/2 weeks of VBS before I left Trinidad with two churches from Christian Brethren Assemblies, one in Morne Diablo and one in Los Bajos. I was grateful for the reminder of the powerful impact of this ministry to children in communities.

Closing program item

The theme we used was Amazing Grace. We focused on the fact that we were all sinners, deserving of the judgement of death, but thanks to God's amazing grace displayed through Jesus Christ, He provided a way for us to escape that judgement and be justified. The children were encouraged to accept Jesus' sacrifice of love, and tell others how they too could be partakers in His amazing grace.

Craft on display

The children in Morne Diablo came out in their numbers, and it was very encouraging to see the number of parents who came out to the Closing Program (more than 40) and were exposed to a clear presentation of the gospel through the items put on by the various classes. I was also very heartened to see seven boys enter the memory verse competition at the end of the week - four of them who were from my class :)

Craft depicting Noah's ark - one of the Bible lessons teaching salvation

At Los Bajos, we really saw the unity of believers as teachers came from all over south Trinidad to provide support to the VBS there. The children were very well behaved and very eager to participate in all the activities. Unfortunately I was unable to stay up until the end of that VBS, but I enjoyed the opportunity to build relationships with the children in my class. I hope to be able to stay in contact with them.

Youths asking God to help them turn away from sin in their lives

The 12 year old boy continued to attend the rest of the days of VBS and although he was a challenge to the teachers, we trust that the seeds which were sown would fall on good soil.

The 14 year old girl attended VBS faithfully even though some of her friends had chosen to go to another activity in the community.

The 8 year old boy received a prize at the end of the week for showing the most improvement in behaviour in His class.

Some of the Los Bajos posse

We pray that the impact of not just these VBSes, but all the efforts of evangelism among all Christian groups over the July/August period would minister not just to the children who attend, but would impact their families positively as well.

Ministry Moments

Earlier this year I was invited to co-facilitate a workshop at the Next Steps Missions camp. I had never heard about this initiative before, but after experiencing it, I wished that I could have encouraged more persons to be a part of it. The camp was organised by churches and mission organisations for persons who were interested in getting to know more about missions. The objective was to bring together mission agencies and persons burdened with missions, to equip the latter group with tools which would be beneficial on the field, while learning about opportunities to serve with the mission agencies.

Campers checking out booths of missions organisations

I had the privilege of presenting a workshop, along with Sunita Lochan, entitled "Training on using modern technology with partnership development." For this session we focused on the different technology tools which would be helpful in keeping ministry partners up to date on our ministry, and we also examined the positives and negatives of the role of social media in reporting on what God is doing in our ministry. Participants reported that the session was informative and relevant.

Some of the workshop participants

I also had the opportunity to be part of a panel consisting of persons involved in both long-term and short-term missions, where I shared on the topic "Spiritual exhaustion requiring encouragement, inspiration for ministry, personal devotion, and exemplary conduct". I was able to share about the importance of developing your personal relationship with God, so you can be better equipped to face challenges on the mission field. The questions posed to the panelists showed that participants were very interested in learning from our experiences. Feedback from campers showed that they were enlightened by the relevant information that was shared. We trust that many of them will answer God's call to go into all the world and preach the gospel.

As we continue preparation for ISCF Camp 2016, a retreat was held for those who were interested in serving as counselors at camp this year. During the weekend, they were exposed to a variety of activities to help in their preparation for camp.

Getting physically fit

Sports day fun

Having to plan and execute activities like Sports Day and Talent night helped the counselors understand what was expected of them, and how much can be accomplished even with a short preparation time. They understood how the campers would feel on mornings when they have to wake up early to study the word in devotions, and then exercise before breakfast. At the end of the retreat, they agreed that all the activities helped them to bond and develop a spirit of team work.

Early morning devotions

Uniting hearts in worship

There were also sessions conducted by the camp speakers, where they addressed topics which would be covered on camp, giving the counselors an opportunity to apply the Word to their lives first before ministering to the campers. These sessions were powerful and had a great impact on all who attended. Afterwards, one counselor noted "I now know what I need to do to help me be better in everyday life"

Interviews being held with first time counselors

Other sessions held over the weekend served to help the counselors put sin and holiness in the right perspective, and to understand the importance of what counseling is really about, and the great responsibility which is placed on them. We thank God for a successful weekend of information, encouragement and challenge.

Although I have not gone on any overseas trips with Is There Not A Cause for the year, I have still been active in the group. From sorting clothes to packing boxes to be shipped to Haiti to selling art and refreshments at shows, there is always something to do with ITNAC when I have a weekend to spare :) The funds from these sales go to helping our ministry partners in the work they do in Haiti and Kenya, as well as meeting the local needs which arise. Many lives continue to be impacted by the labours of the faithful few. 

Our art display at a recent show

 I continue to work with the Confident Kids Club at our Homework Club and Bible Club. There are some children who need additional support, because they are not up to the standard of the other children in their class. Others enjoy coming to Homework Club because it is more fun to do their homework with their friends, rather than at home alone. Recently, five of our students were successful at passing the SEA exams, including two who have been with us since the beginning in 2006. We continue to pray that they would work hard and do their best in their new schools.

Concentrating on their work

Paying close attention to the Bible Club lesson

At Bible Club this term we focused on Philippians 4:8. The children were challenged to filter the things that they allow to stay in their minds, focusing only on things which are true, noble, right, pure and lovely. In a world where there are so many things which are contrary to these virtues, we pray that the children would chose what is excellent and praiseworthy to enter their thoughts, because these are the things that would change their behavior.

Having fun at the Closing program

Thank you so much to those who have continued to support me - your encouragement and contributions have been invaluable, and your partnership has helped further the cause of Christ in this area of the vineyard.