My Adventures with God: 55: God's Grace is Sufficient

Chapter 55 “God's Grace is sufficient”

As I keep saying; God is wonderful. Of course we all know that from the really huge things he has done – creating & sustaining the universe – providing salvation in Christ our Lord – the gift and power of the Holy Spirit. But as if that were not enough to fill our praises we see his continual concern and kindness right down to the very ordinary level.

Paul wrote that “we are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor 4:8ff). We at Vermont felt the same – the remaining two thirds of the congregation; my little family and me personally.

As a congregation the grace of God was spectacular. Nick and Shirley's followers were so self-convinced of their spiritual superiority that they were sure that if they pulled out of the up-front leadership roles they had been in, the church would swiftly collapse. We know they had convinced the archbishop that this was so – he wrote to the parish saying as much.

They had not taken the grace of God into account.

As they pulled out other people in the congregation stepped up. Some had great natural talent but had been pushed into the background by Nick and Shirley's people. Others were more reticent but felt that the Holy Spirit was pushing them to come forward. These began to demonstrate real (as opposed to Nick and Shirley's people's contrived) gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Ros. And Rob. Took over the younger youth group. Their son was in that age group. They were a really solid Christian couple, and Ros. the more extrovert of the pair had a real talent for coming up with great activities for the kids. So that ministry began to flourish.

A lady who with her husband had just returned from time in New Guinea where they were part of a very strong Christian community joined the church and offered to take over the senior youth group.

We had an influx of young men with life controlling problems but who now gave their lives to Jesus. My wife Sue started a bible study group for them. Interestingly they found that church on Sunday night and bible study on Tuesday night were not enough to see them through so they also met to pray together and encourage each other later in the week.

The prayer ministry team flourished. It was under the discipline of a nation wide organisation, so some in that ministry who had left our church under Nick and Shirley heard and now returned, and they were all mature Christians who also contributed in other roles in the church.

This evidence of God's grace in the lives of ordinary people flowing over into not just the survival but the reinvigoration and growth of all the multitude of ministries in the parish as Nick and Shirley's people abandoned them. There are so many I should mention, but I will limit myself to one.

The music ministry was a shining example. The new operating principle was servanthood. We were not there to please, let alone exhibit ourselves. We were to serve the congregation, in particular in aiding them to praise and adore God in song.

Midge took over as leader after Nick's wife Jane and all their followers walked out of it. The new “atmosphere” was so different. The group was small at first but grew steadily. Midge exemplified the servant leader. To the 8 am service she provided the old hymns that congregation loved. For the 10am the mixture of old and new worship music and the modern style of piano, singing group and song leader. For the evening 'youth service' she was a mother figure.

The old music group had done the largely 70's Charismatic music they liked at the evening service. One 14 year old when asked by her father said it was “Dork music”.

Now we had teenagers as the singing group. Some of the young men I spoke about earlier came out of the “grunge music” scene. They brought electric and base guitar (we already had drums and piano. We used a lot of “Hillsong” music, but “grungified”. Midge, although this was not her style of music mothered them, encouraged them, and accompanied them on piano. We were later also blessed with the help of very talented and gifted people who were studying at a nearby Bible college. Among them were Kylie who helped in youth group and singing and Ben who was a brilliant trumpeter and pianist who later married and served as missionaries in Russia; and Greg who played hymns at a pace that would have delighted Wesley, and enthused young people to this treasure store of praise was also the finest evangelistic preacher I have heard. He went as a missionary to Japan.

This servant attitude flowed on. The old folk hankered for the old 1662 “evensong” service, so we had this once a quarter in the afternoon. They loved the really old hymns, but their frail voices could no longer manage them. So young people, who liked a very different style of music came and sang hymns with them.

Another facet to Midge was this: Jane had once lambasted me because I changed sermon topic when she had based music on the old topic. Midge worked out that I generally didn't know myself what I was going to preach on, so she prayed for God to direct her choice of music. I found this out when I became curious at the fact that the music always seemed to compliment my sermon and I asked her how she picked it.

In our family everyone felt the pressure, but everyone received God's grace to survive. We were bound together by our love for Christ and our common commitment to his service. The kids, as their age allowed, played their part fantastically. Sue, as well as working part time the other side of town and driving the kids to and from school, was involved in a number of ministries such as her young adults bible study, and guidance. These young people coined a phrase, which was to called in for “an Aunty Sue talk”. We prayed and talked together as a couple and as a family. All the family were really supportive, without their support and “go-ahead” I could and would not have kept going.

Personally, it was all God! Everything I thought I had as a human strength was stripped away. I don't think the book “The Five love Languages” had even been written then, but I now know I am a “words of affirmation” person. To be under constant harping criticism of everything I did should have destroyed me. Indeed one of Shirley's emissaries had promised that they would either drive me out of the parish or to a breakdown within six months. The public humiliations I had endured at the hands of both Nick and Shirley and their supporters and the archbishop, bishop, and archdeacon I suspect were on a par with the Communist Chinese practices designed to break dissidents. The monthly church council meetings were a trial I could not have survived had not Christ given me a cocoon of his powerful protection.

Nick and Shirley's people worked out that I was surviving their onslaughts by outside spiritual power. But they told everyone far and wide that I was only surviving “by the power of Satan”. Really! Didn't they know that Christ defeated him on the cross! Didn't they know that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow… Didn't they even know they were channeling the Pharisees who accused Jesus of driving out demons “by the prince of demons”! But this is what they said and even some clergy around the diocese believed them.

God also provided us with people he called and equipped in what is often called “spiritual warfare”. These faithful people of prayer were an invaluable protection. But I was not of these special prayer warriors. Let me explain: we had two delightful Anglican nuns in our congregation. One time the head of their order visited our church from Sydney. After the service she asked to see me and gave me two words from the Lord. The first was “do not ever think of yourself as some great spiritual warrior, you are not, you are just my beloved little child.” the other was: “I will be with David wherever he goes”. They were both beautiful words of encouragement.