IF

Last week Christian Aid launched a new campaign: IF




Many of you will know that I am running the 2013 London Marathon for Christian Aid, attempting to raise £2000. Every Thursday I will post something about their work somewhere in the world. Every Monday I will write about how my training is going.

You can sponsor me by visiting www.virginmoneygiving.com/keithtarring

But that's not what I wanted

Young children have the ability to speak the truth when an adult might choose to be more tactful. On unwrapping a Christmas present a child might openly look disappointed and say something like, 'Oh, that's not what I wanted - I wanted a ...'. As an adult I might think that way but would probably voice my disappointment in a different way: 'thank you - that's really kind of you'. What do we say when God doesn't give us quite what we want?

Last week we were thinking a little about prayer, from Mark 1: see here and here if you missed those posts.

When we move into Mark 2 we come across a story that is popular in Sunday School - the story of the paralysed man who was let down through the roof so that Jesus could heal him.

Word has spread that Jesus was healing people and so it is a safe assumption to believe that these men brought the paralysed man to be healed - physically. The story tells us that they made a hole in the roof and lowered the man down to Jesus, and when Jesus saw their faith he said to the man, "your sins are forgiven".

It's not until Jesus' authority to forgive sins is questioned (because only God can do that) that he tells the man to get up and walk - as a sign to those asking the questions that Jesus is who he claims to be and that he does have the authority to forgive sins.

One of the things that you find when you read the Bible is that there are so many gaps in the story - things we're simply not told. This is one of those stories. 

I wonder what the man and his friends thought when Jesus said, 'your sins are forgiven'? Did they think - 'that's nice but what about his legs?'...'we didn't carry him all this way only to have to carry him all the way home again!'

If the teachers of the law hadn't questioned Jesus' authority would Jesus have healed the man physically?

Why did Jesus choose to forgive this man? There is no record of him saying 'your sins are forgiven' to anyone else he'd healed over the past few days.

We can speculate, and sometimes it is good to put ourselves into the story and allow God to speak to us that way, but we can't be sure on our answers to these questions.

I think that what this story does help us to see is that Jesus can forgive sins and that this is more important than many of the things that we might see as priorities. We may come to God with our requests - but the most important thing is forgiveness - and God has promised that when we confess our sin he forgives us (1 John 1:9). Do I believe that God knows best, or when God answers my prayers in unexpected ways do I say 'but that's not what I wanted'?

Tuesday's Tune - 3

Here's the next instalment of some of our favourite hymns and songs that relate to the service we had a few weeks ago. This week's song is 'I know whom I have believed'. The person who chose this song for us says:

This hymn was written by Major Whittle (1840 -1901). Daniel Webster Whittle was born in Massachusetts. He was brought up as a Christian. He joined the Army during the American civil war and rose to become a Major. He lost an arm in battle and also spent time in a POW camp. When he was asked to pray for a dying boy in the POW camp he knelt down, rededicated himself and then prayed for the boy. Hence started his Christian journey. 

With the encouragement by his friend D L Moody he wrote about 200 hymns of which this is probably one the best known. 

This hymn shows his unshakeable faith. Every verse reflects a different aspect of theology. This hymn is a direct quotation of 2 Timothy 1:12 and I feel that this hymn sums up my faith and hope beautifully.

Marathon Update - 12 weeks to go

Well, this week's training did survive the snow and ice, but only thanks to the purchase of a pair of Yaktrax. Certainly cheaper than joining a gym, and more interesting than running on a treadmill.

Yaktrax fit to the bottom of the shoes and provide great grip on the snow and ice. So all my sessions happened this week although I didn't quite manage the speeds that were planned for the two faster sessions. So to compromise I ran the slower sessions slightly faster and the faster sessions slightly slower. Total mileage this week was just over 32 miles. As I mentioned last week this was a 'cut back' week so my long run was only 10 miles.

Needless to say I'm glad to see the back of the snow and the ice. Everything can get back to normal this week.

This week is going to be quite a challenge with two hard fast sessions on Monday and Wednesday and then a long run of 16 miles later in the week. Once again there are five sessions this week with a total mileage of 38 miles.

Next week I'll tell you about the different sessions that make up my training schedule.

In the meantime here's a little bit more about Yaktrax.

Chris Tomlin at Number One

Here's Chris Tomlin talking on Fox News about his latest album, Burning Lights, going to number one, and some other things close to his heart.

Hopefully over the next few weeks I'll get the chance to share some of the great songs from this album - which has been the soundtrack to at least 30 miles of running since it came out.

Prayer and Miracles

This post follows on from Wednesday - if you missed that click here to start with.

Simon and Andrew brought their problem to Jesus immediately - and immediately Jesus did something about it. So why doesn't it seem to work that way in my life?

It is a serious mistake to think that Jesus and the disciples had a comfortable and trouble free life because they simply prayed for miracles and God gave them what they wanted. Earlier in chapter 1 we find Jesus being sent by the Spirit into the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted by Satan. Then John the Baptist finds himself in prison where later he is beheaded. As we continue to read through the New Testament we find that Jesus and most of the disciples suffered and were ultimately killed because of their faith. The fact that God performed miracles was no guarantee of an easy life. The miracles were a signpost to something else.

Prayer is not about bringing a list of requests to God - so that God conforms to my wishes. Prayer is about putting myself in a place where I allow God to transform me so that I want what God wants. Sometimes that may mean a miracle - of the healing variety. They do happen.

But at other times it means that I have to walk the valley of the shadow of death - and trust that God walks with me; trust that God knows what is going on; trust that God loves me - and that for whatever reason (a reason that is totally beyond me at this particular point in time) this is God's best for me. And within the context of the storm, rather than panic, I allow God to give me the peace that is beyond all understanding. A peace that comes from knowing, as we thought with Tuesday's Tune, that because of God's love and forgiveness, it is well.

Listen to this message here

Give a man a fish

There are now only 85 days to go until the London Marathon - which I am running to help raise £2000 for Christian Aid. Each Thursday I am posting a short video to highlight one aspect of the work of Christian Aid. Last week we looked at their work campaigning for tax justice - putting pressure on rich governments to ensure that tax regulations do not benefit the rich and the expense of the poor.

This week's video shows how the provision of a boat, new nets, a new smoking oven and training in new fishing techniques allow fishing communities in places like Sierra Leone to not only feed themselves, but provide a source of income so allows families to work their way out of poverty. 

Projects like this demonstrate how aid is not simply about providing communities with food - so that they need to keep on coming back for more. It is about empowering communities to provide for themselves. This particular project highlights the wisdom of the Chinese proverb that says 

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime

To sponsor me please visit www.virginmoneygiving.com/keithtarring

Every little helps. Thank you.

Don't Panic

When trouble or crisis hits what's the first thing that you do? Panic? Phone your Mum? Pray? In Mark 1:30 Simon and Andrew take Jesus and James and John home, but Simon's mother-in-law is ill with a fever. There is no paracetamol to hand. But Mark tells us that immediately (TNIV) they told Jesus about her. So Jesus helps her up and the fever goes.

I'm sure that most Christians, if you were to ask them what you should do when trouble strikes, would respond 'pray' - but how many of us do? 

Simon and Andrew had just seen Jesus heal a man by driving out an evil spirit. In comparison a fever probably didn't seem too big a deal. But for many of us, our experience of prayer is that all too often God doesn't seem to answer. People get sick and we pray for them and they get worse. Or else they go to the doctor and respond to the medicine - just like everyone else. So why should I pray immediately - in fact, why should I pray at all?

Miracles were very important for Mark - although his is the shortest gospel he records the most miracles. The miracles were a sign that Jesus was the Messiah. They were also a sign that the Kingdom of God was at hand. As God moves in, the powers of darkness have to move out. The trouble was that most people started to focus on the signpost rather than what it was pointing to. Crowds looked for Jesus in order to see or experience a healing miracle. But Jesus wasn't just here to perform miracles, he was here to proclaim the Kingdom of God and bring people to repentance and belief. It got so bad that Jesus wasn't even free to enter the villages anymore (Mark 1:38 & 45).

So then, what is prayer and why should we pray?

In all the busyness of his ministry Jesus took time out to pray - time when he could be alone with God without distraction. The only time this was possible was very early in the morning when everyone else was still asleep (Mark 1:35). If Jesus felt the need to spend time with God - how much more do we need regular time with God.

But what's the point if my prayers don't get answered? Come back on Friday for a few thoughts on that question.

Tuesday's Tune - 2

It will come as no surprise to those who have been following this blog for a while that when it was my turn to choose my favourite hymn / song I went with something from Chris Tomlin.

Christian funerals should be extremely powerful. There is an incredible emotional mix going on. Obviously there is grief and sadness and it is right that there are tears. But then there is also the amazing hope that we have in Jesus. The hope of the resurrection.

There is the promise of God that no matter what we go through, God has promised to be with us every step of the way. No matter what my story is - there is a bigger story. My story fits into God's story. And therefore I can say, 'It is well, it is well, with my soul'.

In the first clip Chris Tomlin talks about how he came to write this song. He talks about the bridge and how it builds. I love this part of the song. 

Marathon Update - 13 Weeks to go

Last week's training went well - even with the snow that arrived on Friday. Originally forecast for about 12pm on Friday, I moved my runs around hoping to get my long 14 mile run in on Friday morning before the snow. The snow came early, starting about 8.45am, but I still managed to get out and do 14.2 miles - fresh snow provides enough grip for a steady pace.

The snow was still sufficiently crunchy and fresh on Saturday morning to allow for a 'slow' 7 miles. The snow might be a real pain, but it does make for some beautiful scenery - my 7 miles included 2 local parks, one of which has a few minutes amongst the trees - I could almost be running in the woods!

So last week's training was not affected by the weather, with all 5 sessions going to plan and a total of 34 miles run.

Fresh snow during Sunday means that Monday morning's run might be able to go ahead - but after that I'm expecting the pavements to turn into ice rinks - like they were on Sunday morning.

This week there are again 5 sessions planned but this is a 'cut back' week in the schedule. Every few weeks there is a slightly easier week to allow the body to recover and adjust to the ever longer and longer runs. The long run this week is cut back to 'only' 10 miles, but there is more emphasis on the shorter faster runs - not good in the snow. I might have to make enquiries at local gyms to find out if any of them do a one week membership deal that only involves using their treadmills. Looking at the forecast it seems that the ice is certainly going to be around for most of the week.

New series

If you have a short attention span then you've probably stopped reading this post already. But if you're still with me: this term, on Sunday mornings, we're looking at the first part of Mark's gospel. Mark is the shortest gospel, full of action, constantly moving on to the next thing - none of the long speeches that you might find in the other gospels. Mark wants to introduce us to Jesus and Mark wants us to come to the conclusion that Jesus is who he claimed to be and that following him really is worth it.

When Jesus calls his first four disciples in Mark 1:16-20 they immediately leave everything and follow him. But Jesus doesn't just call them to follow, he gives them a task to do (17). 

Mark wants us to be under no illusion - following Jesus won't be easy. Jesus, after the high point of his baptism, is immediately led into the wilderness where he is tempted by Satan. John, after the high of seeing crowds responding to his preaching and getting baptised, finds himself in prison. We won't get as far as chapter 8 in this series but there (8:34-35) Jesus says, 'whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it'. The first disciples leave everything to follow Jesus.

Are you following Jesus? What has he called you to? Are you doing it?

All aboard the tax bus

Those of you who visit this blog on a regular basis will know that in April I am running the London Marathon for Christian Aid. Each Monday I am writing a post about how my training is going.

But what do Christian Aid do? Christian Aid are involved in lots of projects across the world. Their aim is that we might all be able to live life to the full, free from poverty. In this time of recession we have heard a lot of negative responses to the value of third world aid - how it all ends up in the wrong hands, how it makes communities dependant on 'the west' etc etc. Over the next few weeks, through a number of videos, hopefully we will see how the work of Christian Aid and its partners on the ground in some of the poorest communities really are able to make a difference.

Every penny that we raise together really does make a difference. As we will see, a lot of what Christian Aid do is not about providing with people with aid in the form of food or medicines - but rather it is about giving them a helping hand so that they are then able to go on and work their own way out of poverty. 

So, for example, £6.50 is all it costs to provide a large and small hoe, and a large and small farming knife - s set of basic tools that will allow communities in rural Sierra Leone to farm the land and grow crops. £24 can buy an energy efficient stove for a family in Tajikistan. This cuts fuel consumption - and therefore energy bills. It also cuts unhealthy smoke fumes - leading to improved health. With less being spent on fuel and medicines families are free to make choices about sending children to school etc.

If you would like to sponsor me to run the marathon then please visit my sponsorship page at www.virginmoneygiving.com/keithtarring

This video highlights another aspect of the work of Christian Aid - putting pressure on governments to ensure fairness where current systems favour the well off at the expense of the poor.

Tuesday's Tune 1

We all know from experience that music has the ability to affect us emotionally - songs can be very powerful. We also know that some songs have the ability to get in our heads and stay there for days on end. Sometimes this is good - sometimes it's really annoying. 

On Sunday evening we had a look at some our favourite songs and hymns. And over the next few weeks, on a Tuesday morning, I'm going to link to some of those songs that were mentioned. Hopefully some of them will get stuck in your head and spend the day there - not just the tunes but particularly the words.

First up was 'How great Thou art' which was chosen along with the following video from 1961.

The person who chose this hymn on Sunday writes:

'Then Sings My Soul' is addressed to the Lord and stirs my heart to pull out all the stops and praise him. It was translated from a Swedish song, using the Swedish tune, and it was often sung by George Beverly Shea (now aged 103) at Billy Graham crusades, like the one I attended in 1950 during the week of my conversion to Christ.

Marathon Update - 14 weeks to go

Now there are only 14 weeks to go until the marathon. Last week's training went to plan although my 13 mile long run turned out to be 13.7 miles - and I felt better after that than after last week's 10 miles. Wednesday's run was planned to included a middle 3 miles in 21 minutes - I did it in 21 minutes and 15 seconds. After the time off due to illness over Christmas/New Year I was pleased with this - and a little surprised to get so close to 21 minutes. Overall I did a total of just under 34 miles in 5 sessions.

This week's plan is another 5 sessions covering a total of between 34-35 miles, with a long run of 14 miles.

The biggest worry for this coming week is the prospect of snow. No snow here please. The snow is not the main problem - it is the icy pavements that follow over the next few days - which make running impossible.

I may have mentioned that I am running the marathon for Christian Aid and aiming to raise £2000. If you would like to sponsor me you can do so by visiting www.virginmoneygiving.com/keithtarring

This short video gives a brief introduction to their work.

Let your light shine

This is the third Christmas present we looked at on Sunday.

It's a small clip-on light designed to clip to the sleeve of a running top. The light can be set to constant or flash and ensures that when you're running in the dark you are visible - particularly to motorists.

In Matthew 5:14-16 Jesus says that his disciples are the light of the world - their good deeds will be visible - and will bring glory to God.

Some people would want us to believe that faith is something that is private. A person is free to believe what they want as long as it stays behind closed doors. But Jesus tells us that faith is something that is visible - because faith affects absolutely everything. Our beliefs affect what we do and what we say, and why we do it. So to say that faith is to be confined to being behind closed doors shows a total lack of understanding of faith and belief.

So, as we go into a new year, let us determine that we will be the light of the world. That our faith will be visible. And that the glory will go to God.

Have your tool-kit at the ready

Here is the second of my Christmas presents that we looked at on Sunday.

It's a 17 piece multi-tool designed for cyclists. It's small enough to fit into a pocket and means that if your chain breaks or your brakes fail you are able to make some running repairs that will enable you to get home.

In life, things break. Things don't always go to plan. So what do we do when things go wrong? What about those situations that arise which have no answers, no solutions, no fix? If we don't know what is just around the corner how can we prepare for it?

We need to make sure that we have our tool kit at hand - and that we know how to use it. So what are the sort of tools that we need to hand? What are the sorts of disciplines that we need to be developing in the good times so that they are in place when things get tough.

Prayer, reading and memorising the Bible. When the storm strikes it is important to know the truth. And then in the storm we remind ourselves and hold on to these truths - e.g. Psalm 46:1-3; and we ask God to help us believe.

Leave no stone unturned

On Sunday we thought about how we often miss the things that God has done because we go round with our eyes closed.

Geocaches are hidden in such a way that they should not be seen or found by accident by members of the public. But once you have the co-ordinates and the clue it will only take a few minutes for you to locate the cache.

In Matthew 13 the disciples ask Jesus why he is always speaking in parables. They knew that parables were stories that had a point - but it wasn't always easy to work out what the point was - wouldn't it be easier if Jesus just told them the point and forgot about the nice story?

Jesus was speaking to the crowds and to the disciples. One of the things that distinguished the disciples from the crowds was that the crowds were content with the story - the disciples wanted to know the point - and then they wanted to obey and apply it.

When we read the Bible we are not just reading an ordinary book. As Christians we believe it is the word of God and that it is a living and active book - a book that has the power to transform our lives. It is a book that is full of hidden treasures. When we know the treasure is there we will look for it. When you're looking for a geocache and you know that a cache is in the area where you are you literally leave no stone or log unturned in your search for the prize.

As we read the Bible this year let's pray that God will reveal himself to us in the pages of the Bible. Let's not be content just to dip into the Bible every now and again. But instead let's get serious. Let's read it regularly and prayerfully. Let's make sure that we are part of a church or a study group that wants to read, to understand and apply the Bible to our lives.

15 Weeks and Counting

There are now only 15 weeks to go until the London Marathon 2013, so serious training starts today.

My schedule has been slightly disrupted by illness just before Christmas and just after New Year which messed up over two weeks of training, but I'm hoping that I can pretty much pick up where I expected to be.

So, this week I have about 33 miles scheduled over 5 sessions including running 3 miles in 21 minutes on Wednesday and then hopefully a 13 mile long run on Friday or Saturday.

Also I will be eating no more chocolate, biscuits, or crisps for the next 15 weeks.

Am I nervous? A little. According to my schedule I'll be running about 17 miles in 5 weeks time. Knowing how I felt after 10 miles on Saturday there is always the fear of the constant risk of injury.

Do I have a target - other than just getting round? Yes. Sub 4 hours - ideally 3:45.

Now you know. I'll update you each week on my progress - and if you see me eating chocolate...

What are you missing?

On Sunday morning we used a few of my Christmas presents to think about some of the small things we can do in 2013 that have the potential to make a big difference. Here's the first present.

Now it might just look like a bolt - but of course that would not make a very exciting Christmas present. This is in fact a magnetic geocache. It unscrews to reveal a hidden log book inside.

What is it for? The is a geocache for me to hide somewhere - as I mentioned it is magnetic - for others to find and log their visit. There are millions of geocaches hidden all over the planet - there are about 50 hidden within 2 miles of the church. But most people do not know they are there and so they just walk by day after day. But for those who geocache these things are there waiting to be found.

[If you want to find out a bit more about geocaching read this post].

I'm sure that lots of us walk around every day and we miss so much simply because we're not looking for it, or because we're going too fast, or because we're being distracted by something else. And I expect that lots of us miss the things that God is doing.

So maybe in 2013 we need to slow down a bit and keep our eyes open a little more and be on the look out for what God is doing. This may simply be something incredible or beautiful in creation - a spider's web covered in dew on your walk to school in the morning. Something that just causes us to pause - to say 'wow' - and to thank God for his creation.

Happy New Year

I know it is a few days late - but happy New Year. Check back tomorrow and we'll start thinking about small things we can do that could make a big difference for 2013.