Steven Colborne's Blog, page 86

Advent Songathon (2 Dec)

Today’s song is a spiritual classic. I’ve heard it performed by at least half a dozen artists, including Johnny Cash, Eva Cassidy, and a particularly wonderful version by J.D. Sumner and the Stamps Quartet.

This version is by Sounds Like Reign, who I discovered through their vlogging channel on YouTube. As well as making great music, they also vlog about living in a tiny house and trying to serve God in all they do.

Advent Songathon (1 Dec)

I thought I’d kick things off with a song that is probably my favourite Christian song of all time. I almost cried with joy when I first heard this – not because it’s an emotional song, but because of its sheer brilliance.

This is definitely a song to lighten the mood when you’re going through a tough time, and what I love about it is that despite being incredibly light-hearted and fun, it is also totally sincere. I hope it brightens up your day.

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Advent Songathon

It’s the first day of December tomorrow and as I have a treasure trove of amazing spiritual songs in my collection I decided I’d like to share some of my favourites with you in the run up to Christmas. I’m going to share one song every day, ending on Christmas day, and this little project I will call my Advent Songathon.

I’ll pick from a diverse mix of genres, anything from gospel to choral music to Christian metal, but I’ll try and say a little about each song to give it some context. I really hope you’ll enjoy the songs and that there will be something new and lovable for everyone.

Look out for Song 1 tomorrow

Teach Me the Difference

One of the blogs I follow is called A Christian Thought for Today. A few days ago, Nathan, who runs the blog, posted something very concise (as is his way) but this particular prayer really spoke to me, so I thought I would share it with you:

Lord, please teach me the difference between being child-like and childish, between being humble and being self-deprecating, between being meek and being walked over, between having passion and being over zealous.  Lord, I have so much to learn. Help me to be an attentive student and to put into action in my daily life all that I learn from you. Amen.

I thought that these words captured something really important about the struggle of trying to live a godly life, and I’m sure that you ‘get it’ without me having to elaborate. So thank you Nathan for posting something so relatable, and I pray the Lord would teach us all those difficult lessons that are the subject of this post.

Sunday Reflection

Thank you Lord God for the joy of writing and connecting with people through the community of bloggers here on WordPress. I pray that in the coming week you would bless my readers, inspire them in their creative endeavours, and help them to be productive each day while having joy in their hearts.

I pray for freedom from any fear or anxiety about the week ahead for every person reading this post, and that Your peace would fill their bodies, minds, and spirits each and every day this week. May they wake up on Monday morning with energy and enthusiasm and a heart set on spiritual things; a desire to learn and grow, and to serve, as the week unfolds. Amen.

Friends, your prayers have meant a lot to me this week. My medical review on Wednesday went really well. The doctor tested my blood pressure, which he said was really good, and generally expressed no worry or concern about my health. Praise the Lord!

My housing meeting was scheduled for Friday, but this was cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances on the part of one of the attendees, so this will either be rescheduled or conducted over the phone or in writing. Miraculously, my anxiety over this assessment has dissipated a lot, and over the last couple of days I’ve felt a great deal of peace.

The situation with my neighbour is much improved. Although he still plays music loudly for a few hours most afternoons, I do not feel any significant hostility between us.

I have found great joy in getting up early (around 5am) and going for long walks in one of the parks near my flat. Yesterday I walked for around two hours, and in the crisp Autumnal sun it was really refreshing. I’m using the Health app on my phone to monitor my walking and have been doing around 10,000 steps a day, which is keeping the blood pumping!

I’ve also been working on my music project, and the next song I’ll be releasing (on December 10th) will be a worship song. It’s quite different to my other releases, more acoustic rather than electronic, and I’m really pleased with how the creative process is unfolding.

How are you feeling about the coming week? Let me know in the comments!

Peace and blessings,

Steven x

A True Story?

Let me preface this blog post by saying that I have a tremendous fear of God and I don’t take matters to do with heaven and hell lightly. That said, I do believe there is a place for humour in life, even when it comes to spiritual matters. With this is mind, I’d like to present you with a story I came across recently. I hope it brings a smile to your face

Gideon Bible Story

I was in Oxford last week visiting my father. We had arranged to meet in the centre of town for a coffee. I was running a little early, and he was running a little late, so I had some time to look in the Age UK charity shop before we met.

I gravitated towards the book section and noticed they had a Bible on display. Upon closer inspection I discovered it was a Gideon Bible. I have a love for Gideon Bibles as during my first spell in psychiatric hospital, when in a time of crisis, I asked a member of staff for a Bible, it was a Gideon Bible that was given to me.

If you don’t know the Gideons, they are a worldwide evangelical Christian organisation who distribute Bibles in hotels, hospitals, prisons, schools, and various other places. What I like about their Bibles is that they have a kind of index in the front, where you can easily find passages related to a particular subject or emotion. For instance, if you’re ‘Needing Peace’, ‘Thankful’, ‘Depressed’, or ‘In Temptation’, you are directed to a series of relevant scriptures.

While I understand that for more seasoned Bible readers this isn’t the best approach to Bible study (it’s better to read each book as a whole), for someone who is new to the Bible, as I was when I was in hospital that time, this is incredibly helpful. I found so much comfort in the passages I read and it was through my study of that Gideon Bible, while in hospital in 2007, that I first came to understand and believe the Gospel.

Several years ago while I was serving on a street outreach team I contacted the Gideons as I wanted to buy some Bibles that we could give to people we met on the street. They said they never sell Bibles to members of the public, and keep rigidly to their mission of distributing Bibles free of charge in places such as those mentioned above.

I was so delighted to find a Gideon Bible in the charity shop last week that I didn’t consider there was anything untoward going on, and I quickly purchased it (it cost about £1.50). It was only a little later when I was sitting with my father having coffee that I looked inside and read the words, ‘This Book is not to be sold’!

It’s a lovely Bible (King James Version) and I would like to bless someone with it, perhaps someone who is new in the faith or going through a tough time but has never read the Bible. Can you think of anyone who would like it? If so, drop me an email via the contact page and I’ll gladly send it to you, or directly to them (the photo that accompanies this post is of the actual Bible).

Do you have any experience of Gideon Bibles? Feel free to share in the comments below.

The Coming Week

It’s always difficult to know whether to write about personal matters on this blog. I really don’t want to drift away from my focus on theology and there’s always the worry that if I speak too openly I might regret it. After all, my blog isn’t anonymous, and in the blogosphere you’re only ever a Google search away from anyone with an Internet connection.

On the other hand, the books I’ve written have been very raw and honest, and I do believe that when we’re open and vulnerable it allows others to relate and empathise with us, which results in the forging of stronger and deeper connections. The other thing is it’s easier to pray for people when you know what’s going on with them, and I really need your prayers. To a large extent, the readers of this blog are my church family at the moment.

I have two brief prayer requests:

1) Over the last few days I’ve been wrestling with some difficult emotions; fear, anxiety, anger, confusion. Some of these feelings are linked to a particularly difficult relationship I have with someone close to me, and who I feel has caused me a great deal of emotional pain. I’ve had a long struggle, and plenty of therapy, around this particular relationship, and still it troubles me on a daily basis. I’m almost tired of asking for prayer around this particular relationship, but no, persistence is key, and so, dear reader, as I continue to pray I ask for your help as well.

2) Being to some extent under the care of the mental health services in my area means I am constantly having conversations with people who are materialists and don’t really have a spiritual focus. At the moment there is an issue with my housing, and several people have given me very ‘worldly’ advice about how to deal with the problem (i.e. you need to fight!).

I’m so grateful to one of my readers (I want to protect their privacy so I won’t mention their name, but you know who you are) who recently left me a comment with these words from a Christian song:

You’re strong enough to win without a fight

As I head into a difficult week, with two meetings in which I will be challenged in relation to health and housing issues, I need to keep the sentiment of this line at the forefront of my mind, so that I act in a loving and godly way at all times.

If you believe in God and are reading this, please say a prayer that God will be with me in these meetings, that I will conduct myself in a way that pleases Him, and that the outcomes will be favourable.

Thus endeth prayer request number 2.

Thank you so much, blogging family, I love you! Have a wonderful week, and if there’s anything I can pray about for you, let me know 

Lord Over my Life

Lord over my life,

You are behind my every breath.

You know me more intimately

Than I know myself.

With a troubled mind,

I cry out to you,

In a way familiar to all of those,

Who struggle with being human.

Lord, consider my predicament,

Search me and show me,

In what way do I err?

What must I do to once again

Feel your love, grace, and peace?

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9)

You have created a universe,

So expansive and complex,

That no man could ever fathom

Its workings.

You see smaller than the microscopes

And bigger than the telescopes

And all this with ease – such ease,

That you can sustain a universe,

For ten thousand years.

“Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite” (Psalm 147:5)

Lord, I’m so confused.

Moral decisions trouble me

Personalities trouble me

Circumstances trouble me

I am greatly grieved in my spirit

For I know not what I should do.

I feel an oppressive canopy

Over my mind

A ceiling that is solid

That you are holding in place.

It must be you, Lord,

Despite what others say,

For you have shown me,

You are in control of all things.

“Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases.” (Psalm 115:3)

Perhaps you have sent Satan to test me,

As I know others will suggest,

But you have revealed to me, Lord,

That you have power over all things,

The forces of good, and the forces of evil.

“The LORD works out everything to its proper end – even the wicked for a day of disaster” (Proverbs 16:4)

Perhaps it is for my protection

And part of a much grander plan

That you oppress my spirit.

Yet in this moment it troubles me

I fear I am acting incorrectly

That your wrath may be lurking

That you might unleash uncertainty

Or calamity, or disease, or distress

On my weak and troubled soul.

Do not punish me, Lord,

For I cannot act outside your will.

Please be merciful Lord,

Do not punish your own handiwork.

I am angry at this world, Lord God,

But I beg of you,

Do not let me ever be angry with You.

Be my hope and my security,

Hear my crying, see my tears,

And comfort me.

Assure me once again,

That you love me,

That everything will be okay.

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Lord, send an Angel,

To encamp around me

And protect me

From anyone

Or anything

That would seek to rob me

Of Your peace.

Give me wisdom,

Give me guidance,

Give me assurance,

Be tender,

Be kind,

Be merciful.

“Call on Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” (Psalm 50:15)

Let it be so. Amen.

An English Preacher

A few days ago I was reading through some of the latest posts from blogs I follow and came across a lovely poem by a man named Leonard Ravenhill. I hadn’t heard the name before so decided to investigate.

Ravenhill (1907-1994) was an English preacher and evangelist who spent the latter part of his life in the United States. He emphasised the need for revival and a return to the Christianity of the early church that we find chronicled in the Book of Acts. I found this interesting as there are parallels to the Last Reformation movement, which I have been involved with, and which has similar ambitions.

I thought I would simply offer you a taste of Ravenhill’s thinking in the form of eight quotes that I found attributed to him. Then, if you would like to investigate further, I have added some key links below.

“If weak in prayer, we are weak everywhere”

“Are the things you are living for worth Christ dying for?”

“A popular evangelist reaches your emotions. A true prophet reaches your conscience”

“Children can tell you what Channel 7 says, but not what Matthew 7 says”

“Maturity comes from obedience, not necessarily from age”

“The Bible is either absolute, or it’s obsolete”

“Any method of evangelism will work – if God is in it”

“A true shepherd leads the way. He does not merely point the way.”

For more on Leonard Ravenhill:

Ravenhill on Wikipedia

A brief biography

Official website

Have you come across Ravenhill before? Feel free to share anything you know about him in the comments below.