Reinhold's Journey

y, TODAY, and f.e.

Last week, after coming home from holidays, I kind of fell into a hole. Was worried about my past - seeing many deficits and things I had missed - and my future. On Sunday, I prayed with my wife and handed over all the worries, the "feeling unspiritual" and helplessness to Jesus. Once again.
Since then, I visited my old church with a lot of friendly hellos and a sincere postmodern worship time; enjoyed a visit and an old-fashioned chat with a grandmother from our house church who brought us self-made honey (her husband is "Lord over seven peoples") and who said how the little chat had strengthened her; had fun with lots of different young people who dropped in and out; watched a good movie with them; could pay all my debts and still have enough money on the bank; accepted a difficult talk which turned out a time where Jesus clearly spoke; watched the new-born baby of my niece on the Internet the same day she was born; visited a friend of my wife last night during a little bicycle trip and played with her 10-month old sweet girl - which made me, for the first time, look forward to being a granddad; and heard twice in the last 2 days how my past sermons helped people very concretely.
Now, that is life. And typically Jesus: you ask him for yesterday`s forgiveness, to take care of tomorrow`s cares, expect some spiritual Big Bang - and He shows you life TODAY. Real, everyday life with the invisible, but bright background of His presence. I think it was John Lennon who said "Life is what happens while you make plans for the future".

In car nation

4th Advent sunday. I am meditating Mary`s blog in Luke 1. A magnificent song of a simple girl that has just, by chance, been chosen to carry God into the world. The Almighty chooses to be no longer that. Giving up all God-likeness. Reduced to a sperm, having only strength left to invade an egg. The salvation of Creation, beginning with a 9 months period of rest in an ovary. Mary - Christ in her, the hope of glory. What a revolution! God is not acting "top-down" but entering our world through a woman and developing from the inside out. That`s how he scatters down the proud and exalts the humble.
This is His war against terror.The virus is stronger than the bomb. "Think. Empty your ideas from old concepts. I am doing a totally new thing", says God. "Do you not recognize it?"

Jesus who?

For some time, my inherited "evangelical faith with a charismatic topping" has become old and too small, like a dress that does not fit well any longer. Two weeks ago, we were at a healing conference - 1000 Christians, enthusiastic and moved by "waves of the Spirit", just me (and my wife) unmoved like a rock. It felt like Psalm 91:7-  "a thousand will fall at your side and ten thousand at your right side, but it shall not come near you".
The other thing is an ugly case between two leading Christians here in Switzerland, people being hurt, used (for the Kingdom`s sake), excluded, kicking back - what a vulnerable thing church is! I have felt for some time that we have a kind of Gospel, smaller than the Bible, streamlined, understandable, put in systems, easily manageable and transferable - but not nearly coming close to the mystery and Big Story that jumps at me when I read the Bible (even superficially).

I will spend the summer to find a new and fresh approach to this man Jesus whom I have known since a baby - and whom I know so little. I need it. I do not want to spend the rest of my life repeating formulas.

revival and death

I am sitting on the balcony, enjoying the marvelous early summer weather and reading Acts 5. This man Ananias and his wife who had to pay their dishonesty with their death - did they just want to impress the others?  Be part of the revival without having understood? Anyway, revival can be a deadly thing. Do we know what we do when we pray for it? God is truth and demands truthfulness in the inmost parts. Sheer luck I'm still alive.

My wife is away for a week and I enjoy the days, taking care of the house and having MUCH time to read and to work and to plan. Preparing conferences, travels, and working on my doctorate thesis. 

personal paradigm shift

Reading "The Church beyond the congregation" by James Thwaites, some things become clearer that mean a lot to me:

God and the heavens is not far away, but here. Just a thin membrane separates our world from His.

His world - what the Bible calls the third heaven - has full access to all the other worlds, including our visible one. In this way, He rules.

We, the Church, have a seat in His domain - Ephesians 2:6 tells us that -, thus there is some kind of co-ruling.

By living out His will in our marriages, families, and workplaces (Ephesians 5), we do "Spiritual warfare" (Eph. 6) . The word "church" needs to be extended to all of these areas.

Finally, I am getting an exciting new understanding of what He is about to do in our world. This concurs with all the observations I have made in the last years. So many people "leave" church in the religious sense in order to live church in the world. This is not an either-or, but sometimes you have to leave a powerful system almost by force in order to understand the larger context.

Extremes

Spring at last - extremely fast. A few days ago, there was hard winter with 30° below zero, now it is sometimes more than 25 plus in some places. If it is not end time, then at last spring. I enjoy it. Took a long bike ride with my daughter on Saturday - thats a good way to spend time and talk (when you have a coffee under way). Enjoy biking.

This is Easter week. Will have much time to reflect on suffering, dying and resurrecting.

Church at home and in the Pub

Last Sunday, we had House Church Celebration, this time only 20 people. I decided not to have a teaching sermon but have a conversation on prayer. We should teach each other. And I was amazed how full the range of experience and wisdom was. It is so important that Christians learn to share and to build each other up.
In the afternoon, a birthday party at a good friend`s 50th. Met many new people and learnt that one of his colleagues is a Christian. There are so many hidden, unchurched Christians around here!
In the evening, had my first sermon in Xstream Youth Church. Around 80 kids and some adults, in the meeting room in a Pub here in Steffisburg, right in the middle of the village. Was a bit scared at first whether I could communicate to a new Generation, but God was with us, and there was no barrier at all. Was a really good experience, will do it again. I count it a privilege and have a high respect of what God is doing among the New Generation.

God @ work

Things are moving. I feel I have to meet some leaders in the Thun area to discuss the planting of a new kind of church. More later. In personal talks, God takes me to my limits - and then shows that He is the one who is at work. The new joy that started last sunday remained.
The Portugal Evangelical Alliance has accepted a DAWN-type strategy as their official evangelistic strategy until 2012 - wow. I might go to Lisbon the coming weekend.

A safe place?

This morning, I went to Bern for a little demo against the liberation of Cannabis consum that our government is discussing. It seems that Switzerland is doomed to repeat all the nonsenses that other countries have overcome. Every morning, you smell the sweet smell of joints in the commuter trains, and teachers complain more and more about students that are no longer able to study. I love young people, and therefore we need to prevent this by all means. What is called "law enforcement" in the US, our media call "repression". This shows the deep, fundamental gap in world view between our continents.
At the same time: In the newspaper I read that among the 5 safest cities in the world, there are 3 from Switzerland. And Zürich is the city with the highest quality of life in all the world (they say). It is all a matter of definition, I guess

the Passion - violent?

I hear people here in Europe complaining about how "The Passion of Christ" is a "bloody" and violent movie. Funny nobody complained about Kill Bill a few months ago.... Oh, the hypocrisy of our society. Read a moving comment on the movie here.