SLE Pastor’s Desk – 21st October, 2012AD
On Wednesday night a small group of SLEers had the opportunity to listen to and be encouraged by the music of Stuart Townend – famed for helping to pen ‘How Deep The Father’s Love’ and ‘In Christ Alone’ among other great songs. It was an encouraging night with very different musical styling but always a focus upon the goodness of God revealed through his Son Jesus and his death and resurrection.
Heading back to my car I met a guy named Gerry who seemed a little disoriented after a night out on the town. Gerry, from Melbourne, was lost: his taxi had dropped him off in the wrong location and he had no clue which direction he was meant to go. Gerry’s disability also made it worse.
So I helped Gerry out, found out a little bit about him and where he was staying. It ends up he was walking the wrong direction so I picked him up in my car and drove him back to the right place.
Just before he got out of the car Gerry thanked me and said I was a ‘good man’. Not sure how to respond I stammered, ‘Well Gerry, it’s Jesus that makes me a good man.’ To which he replied, ‘Well, I’m not sure about that. Jesus isn’t for me. But you are a good man.’
We parted ways and as is my habit I thought through how the conversation could have gone and how I could have said this or that to make the gospel clearer. But in the end I ultimately have to trust that God can and may use this brief encounter to help draw Gerry closer to Jesus. The whole encounter reminded me of a wonderful song that Townend shared with us earlier that evening. A song purposefully written for someone like Gerry (and even you and me) to hear the great news of Jesus…
Come, all you vagabonds, come all you ‘don’t belongs’
Winners and losers, come, people like me.
Come all you travellers, tired from the journey,
Come wait a while, stay a while, welcomed you’ll be.
Come all you questioners looking for answers,
And searching for reasons and sense in it all;
Come all you fallen, and come all you broken,
Find strength for your body and food for your soul.
Come to the feast, there is room at the table.
Come let us meet in this place.
With the King of all kindness who welcomes us in,
With the wonder of love, and the power of grace.
The wonder of the love, and the power of grace.
Come those who worry ’bout houses and money,
And all those who don’t have a care in the world;
From every station and orientation,
The helpless, the hopeless, the young and the old.
Come all believers and dreamers and schemers,
And come all you restless just searching for home;
Movers and shakers and givers and takers,
The happy, the sad and the lost and alone.
Come self-sufficient with wearied ambition,
And come those who feel at the end of the road.
Fiery debaters and religion haters,
Accusers, abusers, the hurt and ignored.
Stuart Townend, Mark Edwards & Phil BaggaleyCopyright © 2011 Thankyou Music
Prayer Points
Give thanks that the Gospel is not only gracious and free, but available for all sorts of people from ‘vagabonds’ to middle-class Asians, from the homeless to Kings. Praise God that only He could come up with such a plan of salvation that is accessible by the whole of humanity.
Pray that as we finish another book of the bible in our church sermons that we would continue to reflect upon what has been learnt, what challenged we have faced, and what encouragement the Gospel of grace has given. Pray also that through 2 Timothy we would all be encouraged and strengthened to guard the Gospel.
Pray for students as they begin their final exam preparation. Pray that we as a church will find ways to loving support and care for our students. Pray also that even in the midst of exams and study that devotion to bible reading, prayer and meeting together will remain firm.