STREETREACH

Was at the Touchdown service on Sunday past, it's a Down Presbytery youth event that moves round different churches in the area held every couple of months. Was a really encouraging service, challenging message from Gods word, and re-iterating many of the thoughts and feelings I have been having recently. The main crux of the evening focussed in on Streetreach, the follow up event of Summer Madness, and basically informed us of the its vision, and challenged the young people to get involved. It basically aims to take the love of Christ onto the streets of Belfast, enabling young people to get involved in practical servant-hearted evangelism in their local communities.
Its vision focusses on the words of Paul in Galatians 5 vs. 6 that ""The only thing that matters is faith expressed through love."
As youth leaders we meet this Wednesday night to prayerfully consider the possibilities of running a youth mission over the summer months. Something thats been on my heart recently is the whole servant-hearted approach to mission, and something along the lines of practical community service, expressing the love of Christ to the community in Boardmills through the hands and feet of our young people is I feel something to give prayerful consideration

When the world closed its eyes, he opened his arms.

This is the tagline to the film Hotel Rwanda that I went to see on Wednesday night, the most compelling film I have seen in quite a while. It was one of those films where after the final credits had been shown, everyone in the cinema remained in their seats, numbed from the story they has just watched, not really knowing what to say or do.
Reflecting now on the film i'm still gripped by many of the same emotions of shame and disgust at the attitudes of the affluent west (and I include myself in this), as we sit by and allowed this mass genocide massacre to happen without really giving it a fleeting thought.
This film focusses on the story of one man Paul Rusesabagina, who turned the hotel he managed into a sanctuary to save over 1,000 Tutsi's from the genocide against their people. Similarities and parallels struck me throughout of the Good Samaritan passage in the bible, and the compassion shown by Christ in his life and ministry. It also underlined for me the sheer depravity of mankind in war-like situations to massacre thousands of people simply because they were of a different religious/political/ethnic/social/racial background.
This film underlined for me the difference between compassion and pity - pity is feeling sorry for hurting people in their time of need, compassion is actually doing something constructive to help alleviate their pain and suffering in whatever form that may take.
Theres an interesting article in The Guardian this week reminding us of the current attrocities in Darfur which are verging on genocide extremes.

24 today : another year older, another year wiser, getting to that stage of life where you should be settling down, starting a family and all that scary stuff.
To be honest it's a day just the same as any other - work as usual, youth leaders meeting tonight, nothing out of the ordinary.
Had a look at this site to see who I share a birthday with, and what items of interest occured on this day throughout history. The conclusion - well not a lot really. But for me it signifies the passing of another year in my life : yesterday i was 23, today i'm 24.
And as I sit and reflect on my life thus far, praise God I can see how his hand has been in it through the years, and will be for its duration. I can see the words of the apostle Paul ring true in my life that "in everything God works for the good of those who love him." Romans 8vs.28. What an assuring thought, what an awesome promise from a loving father, what a fantastic message to take into my 24th year