Bit of a Nothing Blog ... but at least you know I am Alive!

Sorry ...

... I really hoped to get some momentum with my blogs. Truth is that there is so much to blog about! So many things have happened and are happening around our lives and ministry. BIG problem is our Internet. In the last month it has been on around 5 or 6 part-days!! Even Mary is beginning to complain ... and that's something! We are looking fir different options but o far there are none. Aaaaaaggggghhhh..

I am sitting in an Internet cafe again, but it is not the nicest of places with so many teenage guys blowing up and shooting the enemy playing their crazy violent games! Hard to get some decent thought processes going! Whatever brain I have after 39.99 years of use is finding it hard to put some words together!

What's been happening here?

* Just back from AoG National Conference
* Many kids discharged from HMCH ... Ryan going to Italy!
* SBTC Week of Refreshing
* SBTC Graduation

I only have a few days left of being in my thirties!!! I will be 40 on Thursday 28th May!! I am looking back, planning ahead and working out my life!

Blog soon ... promise! Just pray for good Internet!!!! Thanks

Iron Shrpens Iron

Over the last weeks, I have had the amazing privilege of listening to three great men of God - Reinhard Bonkke, Ed Silvoso and David Shearman. All of them have done a significant work for the Lord in different ways.

Reinhard Bonkke - Incredible evangelist to Africa. I first heard about him as a teenager at an AoG conference. At that time he was making a 34000-seater tent that was going to touch Africa. Little did he know that the tent was far too small! Now he sees literally millions of people come to his evangelistic crusades and in 2009 alone, more than 2 million people have accepted Christ through his ministry. Incredible.

I was honoured to go with David Strachan to Singapore for the celebration of Reinhard's 50 years in the ministry ... what a weekend! Planetshakers were the worship leaders, so you can imagine how powerful the services were!

As I listened and watched this great man, what did I learn?

* Passion for souls. He has an incredible passion to 'plunder hell and populate heaven.'

* Integrity - He has not been tarnished by scandal or accusations. He has been a man of honour for many years and does not strive after worldly possessions. He even sold his house in the states to pay for an evangelistic crusade!

* Focus - He knows who he is, where he is an where he is going

* Mentor - He is mentoring young men to work with him and one day he will release them into what he ha started. The work will go on.

I was invited by Brian Burton - a British AoG Missionary in Thailand - to go to a 'Transform Our World' Conference in Phuket last month. The main speaker was Ed Silvoso. I felt it was very strategic for where we are at Cornerstone so I brought our three leaders with me. I had met and heard Ed Silvoso in the 90's because there was a strong link made with his ministry and my home church in Fraserburgh. He has recently written a book about Transformation and I felt that we needed to be there. We had a great conference and I had the opportunity to spend some time with Ed, his wife and his world team.

He is still an excellent communicator and his heart is to see Marketplace Ministers throughout the world in our churches. His presentations were excellent and very challenging.

What did I learn from this man?

* Loves people - seemed to me like he really genuinely loves people. There were many of his team there and they testified about how Ed had really poured his life into theirs. Again, he was a mentorer.

* Burden - He has a tremendous burden to see Christians raised up to minister on the fields of work they live in. The world will only be transformed when the Pastors and Christian leaders raise up and recognise that not every person in their church needs to go to the ministry via Bible School! Teachers can reach teachers, shopkeepers can reach shopkeepers ... we need to raise up Marketplace Ministers.

* Networking - Ed and his ministry is known all over the world. He knows the power of networking and synergy. He knows what he needs to become and needs to say to get his message through to a lot of leaders from a lot of backgrounds in a lot of nations.

* Transformation - At eth end of the day, Ed longs for societies and cities to be transformed. It is great to have a revival in church but far better to see a transformation in the community! We need both! If Christians touch God in the church, reach and bless people in their work places.. transformation will come!

This week I am attending the Philippine General Council of the AoG Conference in Cebu, Philippines. One of the speakers in David Shearman from Nottingham, UK. David has been one of our national AoG Leaders for many years and is very respected in the movement. He has built a great church in Nottingham of around 1500 people. He has wonderful gifts in teaching and preaching with a strong prophetic edge.

When I know he was coming, I decided to email and ask if I could spend time with him and even help him while he was here. Si this week has been great for me. We have spent a lot of time together and I really am challenged by this man. What have I leaned so far?

* Commitment and resilience - This man has been in Nottingham for 44 years - around 38 as the Senior Leader. Say no more. That's commitment. Many struggles over the years, but here he is still serving God and overseeing His work. He is committed to British AoG, his local church, to missions and to his family. God, make me passionately committed!

* Prophetic - over here in the Philippines, the gifts of the Hole Spirit are not taught about much. You would never go to an AoG church and hear a prophetic word. But David has an amazing gift of prophecy - not only as words but also when he ministers the word of God. When he was preaching yesterday, I was thinking, "Wow, you are saying and touching things in your message that you know nothing about but are significant words from God." God, make me prophetic!

* Mentoring - David has been known as a man who mentors the next generation. I love that. His heart is to train those coming behind. He does this at a local, national and international level. This makes him a great man.

* Humility - when you speak and share with David Shearman for any length of time you will see tears. This week I have seen him kneel in the services in times of consecration. As we speak together I have seen his compassion. His interest as I simply share my life and heart with him. It is so easy to get a hard heart in the ministry. But David has reminded me again of the importance of humility and compassion. Of we don't have these in our lives ... we might as well give up!

So these three men have impacted me in many ways. I feel that God has been bringing me on a crash course this year to learn from these men and to sharpen my life and ministry. You may say,” Well, what a waste of your time, effort and money. Why can't you just listen to CD's and stay at home?"

Sometimes you have to be where the men of God are. There is something called Impartation ... when a man or woman of God lays hands on you, prays for you and imparts things of God into your life. You can't get this from buying a CD. You gotta go. Actually, going in itself is a sign to God that you are serious about what He wants to bring us into. You will never waste money of your goal is to receive from the Lord. He will always bless your life in so many ways. God loves "Those who have set their hearts to pilgrimage" Chasing the blessings? No. Cherishing the anointing? Yes.

I am a blessed man. I feel challenged and refreshed by what these men have said, but also how they have lived and are living. They are all, I think, in their 60's and I can see that the fire and passion of God is alive and well in each of them. I pray that they all 'Finish Well."

And how about you? Well, my advice is to get around men and women of God who can impart something into your life. Get around people who will speak truth to you. Get around people who have proved themselves to be faithful. Get around people who can pour what they have into you. Get around people who will stretch you and challenge you. Get around people who are changing our world for God.

You can sit in a church all your life and never be challenged. You plan your vacations to go to places where your soul will be happy but where your spirit is never fed. Why don't you change your heart? Why not, for maybe the first time, say, "God, I want to go and see what you are doing in this world. I want to go and spend time with a person who is making an impact for you. I want to experience you at work. I want to be challenged. I want to be refreshed. I want to learn new things."

If you have the heart to go ... God will have the heart to bless. And your life will be changed ... forever!

Michael Angelo said, "The problem for most of us is not that we aim too high and miss, but that we aim too low ... and hit."

Selah

Crazy River in Santiago

Here is the river in Santiago last week! Unbelievable. See the power lines ... they are usually 15-20ft in the air. That's how high we are talking about. Scary stuff.

How Can a City Be Changed?

Over the last week I have been really challenged by what I have seen, heard and experienced. What we think changes us; but also what wee see, hear and experience moulds and shapes our lives. No matter how much philosophy we know or ideas we may hold on to ... when disaster comes, what we go through and how we respond to what we go through shows what we really believe and trust in.

Last week I watched my friends and fellow workers homes go under a deluge of water and mud. I saw it. I also saw for myself how they reacted. My aunty Betty emailed me and said,"I cannot believe their faces (smiles)" I heard what they said and I experienced their deep emotions and positive attitude. They have preached louder last week than in the last 5 years behind a pulpit.

How can we change city? The same way in which I have been changed. Seeing. Experiencing. Hearing.

There are a few basic things that you see in the first few chapters of Acts - the beginning, the blueprint for the church.

1. Prayer
2. Power
3. Presence
4. Provision
5. Proclamation

Why is this still so important today? How can we still follow this simple example?

1. Prayer - believe it or not, prayer is still the key that will unlock doors and open the way for a clear vision. If we pray ... He will answer. In this age of ready made videos & DVD's, there is still no shortcut to revival or transformed societies. It starts with a group of people who are desperate for God to do something and even more desperate to be used by Him. Many churches are doing everything EXCEPT pray. Our fruit will be little and our vision will be good ideas.

2. Power - I am a Pentecostal, and I have preached so many times about the miracles, signs and wonders. We need them today etc. etc. And we do. this unbelieving generation demands a sign that God is alive and sometimes only a miracle will prove He is there and He has power.

We have been faced with many challenges in the past 9 years and we could tell you story after story of the miraculous power of God. When you trust Him ... He turns up. Back in the UK I believe that people need to experience the power of God. Not just read about it or hear about it ... but experience it. Trouble is that very few Pastors and leaders see a true miracle from one years end to another. We need to experience the power of God.

3. Presence - and where do we need this power? On the streets. In the hospitals. In our homes. In our workplace. Church was not made to be in church building alone. Church was designed to be where the people were. My views on church have changed so much in my few years here.

A few months ago God spoke to me. He said, "Mark, 99% of people in this city will never come to Cornerstone." What an encouraging word! Thanks Lord. He lead me to read the Gospel of Mark. Then I realised. Probably 90% of the ministry of Christ was done on the streets - in people's homes, in the market, in the Fields, in the villages. When I looked at my church experience over the years, I realised that 90% of all ministry in most churches is done INSIDE the church building. We gather a few but multitudes outside never hear.

God designed the church to have presence in the marketplace. this is where we belong. What about a church that never goes on to the streets, never reaches out to the strangers, never touches the poor? What kind of a church is that? That, my friend is not a church as God designed; it is a group of Christians who meet together for the sake of meeting together. We are right when we call it 'Meetings" - we meet and leave. The church is not an end ... but a means to an end. Church without evangelism is not a church at all. A church with no presence on the streets is a church that needs to wake up and smell the harvest.

4. Provision - the early church ministered to the poor, fed the widows and found themselves reaching out into the felt needs of Jerusalem. This is so importance. I am really beginning to see that there is an invisible secret that we know little about by reading the book of Acts. Yes, power and miracles are important for people to experience. But I believe that many accepted Christ because they SAW a church that ministered to the poor day in day out. Not a fortnightly rota with a few buns and soup, but a group of people who cared consistently and selflessly.

They gave. They fed. They prayed for people. They clothed. The sacrificed what they had. They ministered. Every day.

I have seen the power of kindness last week. By giving out a few cakes and noodles last week I felt true appreciation from people whose lives were falling apart. They said things like, :I will never forget your kindness." Or "No-one cares for us apart from Cornerstone." or "Nobody came but you." They SAW something. Their felt need was met. Random acts of loving kindness can break the hardest heart.

When we schedule evangelistic programmes and powerful events, let us remember that a simple act of kindness and love can be just as powerful as the most wonderful message! Yes, we need people to experience the power. But just as important, we need people to SEE that we really care. We provide. We give. We sacrifice.

5. Proclamation - Our mission at Cornerstone is "to Make Jesus Famous" People in Santiago need to be connected to Him ... the source of life and everything we need. In the early church, it was all about Jesus. In every message in Acts, the Apostles preached Jesus.

Today, we still need people to HEAR that Jesus is the only one that can save, heal, deliver and bring joy, purpose and life! We still have a message to proclaim! Praise God, the way in which we can share the message has changed - blogs, podcasts, internet, powerpoints etc. etc ... but the basic message is still the same. Amazing.

I believe the people in Jerusalem SAW the care and compassion of these young Christians; They experience the miraculous power of God and they heard the message of Christ. They believed, repented, were baptised ... and the church grew from strength to strength, from street to street, family to family. News about what was happening was the talk of the town. Being with Christians was the place to be. The whole city was filled with awe and great joy.

How I wish one day people will write this about Santiago!

Can a city be changed? Yes. Absolutely. But somehow we have to allow the people to see, experience and hear what God is all about. He needs no props. When He turns up things will never be the same again. I feel we have to change the way we think. Allow God to show us new paradigms. New levels.

Gotta go and catch my bus!

What do yo think? Please leave a comment and lets get talking!

Selah

It Is Well ...

Yesterday was was one of the most incredible days I have lived! I went to bed and it seemed as though the water was in my brain and between my ears .. I had seen so much of the stuff! Every time I closed my eyes I saw fast, muddy water that looked like coffee!

It was heavy rain again last night and I feared the worst. I left St James Subdivision and literally hundreds of people were sitting on their tricycles or standing in the mud waiting for the water to subside. With the heavy rain I thought that they would have to wait a long time. But praise God ... I found out this morning that the water finally subsided in Pastor Adonis' house at 1am!

Mary & I went to St James this morning to see the pastors and their families .. as well as many families who have sent their kids to our school in the past or at the present. A lovely christian lady texted us to swing by her house to take some food for the people. She gave us ten big boxes of noodles, two boxes of Coffee sachets and hundreds of buns. My car was full.




When we entered St James, it was like a war zone! Che, one of our members, showed me how high the water came in her house (above) and look at her belongings! Everyone, and I mean everyone, had all their earthly possessions out on the street or in their garden and all of them were busy cleaning their furniture and possessions. We saw mattresses that were drenched... sofas that were soaking... everywhere!

We visited Pastor Jun and he had already cleaned his house and had gone to help Pastor Adonis. Pastor Marlou was almost finished his house. We went to Pastor Adonis' house ... what an absolute mess! His whole house had been caked in mud. The mud was around a foot deep and the water was about 7 feet - touching the ceiling! When we saw him he was busy washing his furniture ... with a toothbrush. I told him he'd better not brush his teeth tonight! How can this man smile when everything he has has been under the water? Incredible.


Pastor Adonis took a step of faith three months ago and rented the house next to his to start a new Cornerstone Church. He pays for the rent himself and he and his family, along with some neighbours, really sacrifices to make this simple house into a place of worship. I went there a few weeks ago and there was around 60-70 people attending! Below are the photos before the typhoon.


But when I saw the devastation in the church .. I was so sad. All the PA equipment was covered in mud. The musical instruments - drums, keyboard, guitars - looked as if they were pretty much destroyed. The floor of the church was covered in mud. I just felt in the spirit, " We will get this place more beautiful than before!"



Some of our Cornerstone members' houses are in a bad way too. I said to one member, "Yesterday was a terrible day for you." His response? "Yes, but today is a day of challenge and opportunity for me and for us." In all of my travels in these last two days I have never heard one complaint or angry word. Filipinos are people of resilience, respect and gratitude ... and I admire and love them more and more.

I was so proud of our Cornerstone Pastors and workers. Yesterday, Henry told me they fed 2000 people with Congee! He was so tired. But he asked if I had any money to give him ingredients to make another 1000 meals today! So he rose at 4am and started making food for everyone again. I met them going around every street in St James with free food. People came with huge pots ... and we filled them. These people were so busy cleaning they had no time to cook ... but thanks to Henry and the team a great need was met. We also went round on tricycles giving out coffee, noodles and buns! Meals on wheels ... Cornerstone style!




I heard on the news that 24 people died in Isabela. When I saw the river yesterday, I knew that some people would have had no chance. Please pray for those who have lost so much. Pray for our Pastors as they try and get back to a normal life in their homes. Pray that we westerners could learn from these Filipinos about how to live by faith, how to respond to difficulty and how to smile. Pray for many Muslim families who had their homes completely destroyed. Pray for our Cornerstone churches .. that they would reach out and touch lives in this hour of need. Pray for all our Pastors and staff and all the people we know in Santiago who are going to bed in wet homes with no electricity tonight.

Thanks for all your prayers. If you have only started reading the blog in the last day or two, why don't you bookmark this page and check it out from time to time. Please sign our Guestbook on the right and leave a message or comment.

I leave you with the words of an old hymn that I have been singing away over the last few days:

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But, Lord, ‘tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh voice of the Lord!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul...

... and that, my friend, is the most important thing.

Selah

P.s. - there is one good thing that came out of the typhoon. Pastor Winston found two fish in his living room as he was cleaning it out! Will make a nice snack!

Water Water Everywhere ...

Last night Typhoon Emong hit us here in the Philippines. The rain was incredible and caused flash floods. Many houses were completely submerged and people climbed on their roofs to be safe. This is the morning after...

Emergency: Pray for us!

Over the last few days it has been raining heavily here in Northern Philippines. Yesterday we were warned of a typhoon that was sweeping towards us in Isabela. Some typhoons are very destructive with heavy winds, some are destructive with heavy rain ... but when you get the two together, that's when real trouble comes. And that's what happened last night...

The rain was pouring down last night. We had to wade through the water to get to the Bible School for a meeting. We were worried because many of our Pastors live in a place called St James, which is very prone to flooding. In 2007, our Pastors had to evacuate five times. But for two years there has been no floods and the government was confident that the problem had been solved.

But this morning we met one of our Teachers who lives in St James - Teacher Jennifer. She told us that she had a horrific night. She lives alone and she woke up at 2am to find the water coming up past her bed...and rising fast. She grabbed some things in her bag and ran. She left her mobile phone in her house along with everything else. She walked to Sefton Village through the storm .. and that's a long way in those conditions. On the way she was so exhausted that she just dropped her bag and let it float away. She has no way of knowing what has been destroyed in her house because it is completely submerged in water.

I texted all our pastors and staff who lived in St James. Pastor Jun told me that they were ok but stranded in their house. His pregnant wife Emmy Lou was sitting on a chair that was on top of their table. Jun said that even in the typhoon she looked like a queen! Most of our staff did not respond, so I decided to go and see for myself.

I went past the bakery and ordered 500 cakes. I went to the town while they prepared the cakes and I could not believe what I saw. On the bridges of Santiago hundred of people were looking over the river. But now, it was more like a raging ocean. Water was everywhere. The elecrticity lines were literally inches from the flowing water. People's houses were submerged. Many were on the roofs with all their worldly possessions. There was a boat going around saving people. I couldn't believe my eyes.

The police officer in charge said that in all his years as a policeman in Santiago, this was the worst floods he had ever seen. I went to St James and didn't get very far. Even the main road down to the homes was flooded ... and I know that this road was far higher than the homes below. I went around and gave out my cakes. The people were so grateful ... even though many had lost so much. I felt, "What's a cake when their world was falling apart?" But anyway, it brought a lot of happiness to many people (especially kids!) and sometimes all you need to know is that someone cares.

The police told us a few hours ago that the water was going to go higher. But as I went back to St James, I was happy to see it was receding. Please pray that he water will continue to recede. They say they are going to open up some dams nearby and that would raise the levels again. Please pray.

As I speak, I don't know the full extent of the floods. I know that all of our staff are OK but that many will have lost most of their possessions. The Pastors of Cornerstone who were not effected by the flood have been working hard helping people. Pastor Henry has just finished making meals for 1000 people and he , along with Pastor Danny, is going to find those who have no home and no hope. We are planning to use the church or fir centre as a place of refuge, if needed.

Please please pray that there are no casualties. Please pray that at this difficult time we will be able to touch the lives of thousands with practical love. Pray that out of this typhoon many will turn to Christ. Pray for our staff that have suffered and that are worried. Pray for Jennifer and Pastor Adonis ... they are the worst affected and Jun said that he was so upset watching Adonis as he stood and watched his house go under the water. Adonis' roof is almost covered with water ... everything will be destroyed.

I will do another blog tomorrow with an update. Sefton Village is ok because it is high up. My family are doing well, although Lydia is a bit upset about Pastors Jun's house and the house of her friends (Adonis' kids)

I am continually amazed at the attitude and resilience of Filipinos. Time and time again they suffer so mush with typhoons, earthquakes, volcanoes ... and yet they seem to rise up and get on with life so quickly. I am just thanking the Lord today that in all my life in UK I have never had to go through what these lovely people go through again and again. Count your blessings ... and don't hold on too much to things that perish.

Many thanks for your concern. You mean the world to us ... especially in times like these.