This week I watched an interesting dvd, borrowed from someone just back from a Christian conference. This was about Street Pastors. Street Pastors do similar work to us but the target age-group is older than the kids with whom we are building relationships. Young adults and older teenagers fall out of pubs and clubs high on alcohol etc, then get cared for by Street Pastors, some of whom are in their 80's!!!
The interesting part is the emphasis that Street Pastors put on prayer. As a rule their evening amounts to a team praying before going out, then a prayer team staying back at base constantly praying until the out-team returns. The overall result of this prayer/action combo is that the Assistant Chief Constable (covering Torbay) says in interview that crime is down 25%, violent crime and burglary being the main benefactors of this reduction. He calls this 'significant' and points out that the crime is only reduced in the area where Street Pastors are active.
For me it's really encouraging that a secular body such as the Police can see that Street Pastors is making a difference. The challenge might be, however, for the Police to understand that Street Pastors aren't going out because of their community spirit alone but because of the Holy Spirit. In other words, their good works should never be separated from their motivation in Jesus Christ. For Street Pastors to go out in their own strength would be folly. For the Police or any other body not to recognise that Street Pastors' work is inextricably linked with the power of the Lord Jesus Christ would be a massive disservice to Street Pastors, and to God.
The same is true for Outside Light. Yes, we want a better-balanced community, but we want it to be one in which God's rules apply, not our own. After all, there's nothing wrong with God's rules - many of our laws are based on them. We have the Ten Commandments as the foundation for our laws; in fact my all-time favourite Billy Graham quote is, 'They're the Ten Commandments, they aint the Ten Sugges'ions'. How good it is to have a clear line that we know not to cross, instead of the moving goalpost 'rules' of our secular society that become eroded by time and by people continually pushing at their boundaries. I was listening to the radio today about how many more young people are using alcohol than 15 years' ago - the rules may not have changed but they're getting hold of it somehow, so the reason for the increase is that the rules are not being adequately enforced, perhaps. The further Society moves away from God's rules, the more trouble it gets into!
Outside Light has, on occasion, had the luxury of a team that's large enough to be able to leave a small prayer team back at base, constantly praying. And when that's happened, there's been a general positive feeling that this has been worthwhile - there's been a really positive atmosphere. Contrast this with Tuesday night's report below. We have to find a way to ensure that our out-teams are covered in prayer for the entire time we're out. There's no question in my mind that it makes a real difference.
Monday – a 'different' evening to the usual. Just Michelle, Mary and I went out as Phil and George are both on their holidays, John was poorly and Helen had a lot of OL admin she wanted to do, so we left her back at base. I really didn’t want the hassle of taking the goalposts/balls etc to the field as I was the only chap that night and my knees creek too much these days to kick a ball around. Anyway, we got to the Vyne and within 30 seconds one of the lads, K, asked if we’d bought the football stuff. He wasn’t impressed that I hadn’t, so I made my apologies, returned home and collected the balls.
Got back to the field with the balls, the lads arrived at the same time from The Vyne drop-in and within minutes had joined up with another group of lads, and a (fit) dad who invited them to get into a game. Thus, God’s plans were not thwarted by my lack of health, spirit, motivation and energy. There’s certainly a change in dynamic when these lads are kept occupied; football is by far their favourite activity, I would say. This is another way of saying that all the time they’re doing stuff the Devil isn’t making work for their ‘idle hands’.
What’s very interesting is that the lads, as well as the girls, have taken really well to the various craft activities that Michelle and Mary do with them. One of these involves platting pieces of coloured string in order to make patterned strips of material. At their age I wouldn’t have been seen dead doing ‘girl-stuff’. So what’s different now?
Reflecting on this, it occurred that at their age I wasn’t at all comfortable with girls let-alone with participating in what’s generally regarded as feminine activities - perhaps because then I didn’t hang out with them in parks and on street corners – I engaged with girls only at school when there wasn’t that much opportunity to build relationship. Perhaps, therefore, there is a positive aspect to young people meeting with their friends, even if it’s outside where they can be an annoyance to others. At the very least, these should be confident as they grow into adulthood. Over-confidence can lead to problems, but confidence is generally an empowering thing; don’t you agree?
Inside The Vyne this week, Eileen organised a live band – with OL/Vyne volunteer Barnaby on drums. I heard only a little of their performance but they sounded good together. Bookings for weddings, funerals and bar mitzvahs are being taken right now.
After we’d packed up and were walking away, three of the lads said ‘thanks’ for going back to get the football kit. It doesn't go unnoticed when we do things for them - although sometimes we might wonder.
Tuesday
Again, because Phil, Nancy, Nick and Jo were on holiday, and other OL volunteers were away also, I thought it might just be me starting out from New Life Church. Another confession: to be honest, I had hoped I’d be the only one to turn up that evening. We have a strict rule for our own protection as well as that of the kids, that we work in pairs as a minimum. I really didn't want to go out as I was having at attack of the 5.30-7.00-blues, a malaise that comes over me, curiously, every Monday and Tuesday evening but soon passes when I'm actually there and usually changes to positively-charged excitement by the time we return to base. I was also a little tired as a result of going out on Monday evening and having helped with Monday's and Tuesday's Baptist Church (Knaphill) Kids’ Holiday Clubs – although it has to be said these were more pleasure than pain. Anyway, to pass time while I waited to see if anyone else was coming, I picked up a Bible, flicked it open and the first words I saw were in Galatians, 6:9, ‘Let us not become weary in doing good for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up’. No sooner had I read that than Simon (Coign Church) turned up – and after praying we went out.
We took the goalposts, arrived at the field and I thought we’d got away with it, as there were no kids there. Then within no more than a minute, they started to arrive. So we set up the goals, the girls cottoned on to me and together we played basket ball, while Simon played football in goal. Despite me being nearer to 60 than 50 and 6'5", the girls are always really chatty and wanting to talk.
Everything went well, except at the end of the evening. Whereas we usually have more volunteers to help pack up, this evening Simon had started to pack one of the goals, while another lad (who usually helps us and for whom we're really thankful) packed the other goal at the other end of the field. As I walked back toward the football area I saw that Simon had a large group of lads around him and they were being boisterous – more so than usual. They had hold of pieces of the goalposts and were attempting to hit one-another with them, and another young lad was swinging one of the weights around, (I used these to keep the goalposts in place) but if he'd dropped it onto his foot or someone else's, it would have broken a few bones, no doubt whatsoever). I’m afraid I let rip, as loudly as I could, I told them we wouldn’t bring the equipment again unless they put it down. For a couple of seconds there was stunned silence, (I can’t remember any volunteer shouting at them before like that). However after a couple of the younger ones made silly ‘ooooh’ noises, the older lads handed the kit back to me. What I was really pleased about was that one of the older lads who capitulated, was the only one who has ever made a threat of physical violence to an OL volunteer, who happened to be me. Of course he didn't follow through on that occasion, and on this one, he simply handed the pole back and said, 'here y'ar mate' and cycled off. Good job too, else next week I was planning to take some string to see how he'd like platting it into different shapes. :o)
We don't get to Heaven by following rules, nevertheless rules are there to be followed and to help us. This week we got by with the bare minumum that OL's rules allow. The kids in Old Woking took liberties with our rules and the result could have been dire for them and for Outside Light because of the litigious society in which we're living.
Blessings
John
No comments:
Post a Comment