Going Underground!

Hello again, it seems I never write this blog when I am sat at home! I am writing it today on the train on the way back home after a very busy Christmas and NewYear.

I spent Christmas up near Chester, where I was part of a team serving Christmas lunches on Christmas Day. This was really rewarding, although it was also really sad for a few reasons.

We served lunches to a wide range of people, from the old to young families and well off people who just did not want to be alone to homeless people.

There were two main things that saddened me when doing this. Firstly was an old man I had met before at food bank. We sat down and chatted for ages, but what was really sad was the fact he was so lonely.  All he wanted was to be around people. He also has memory problems which means he kept on repeating himself. I told him all about the Corps CAMEO (Come And Meet Each Other) group and he was keen to attend, but I am sure he will not remember and I'm really annoyed at myself now that I didn't have the sense at the time to write details on a piece of paper for him as a reminder.

Secondly we had a fair few homeless people come in for lunch. Which was great, but what saddened me was the fact three of them came in and registered for their free lunch. But then after about an hour got up and left. They went outside and took a few swigs from a dubious looking coke bottle and then were not seen again. It really saddened me that some people are so strongly addicted to drink or drugs that they would rather go out and spend a day in the cold and wet to get their fix rather than have a nice free meal in the warm and dry. 

Then I went to Kent with my Fiancee for New Year. I was planning on writing a post about New Years and fresh starts, but I think thats done a fair bit! All I will say is that the New Year is a great time to revive or renew Bible study or prayer. If you have a tablet or smart phone there is an app called you version Bible app. Its free and has loads of great reading plans, from ones that last a week to ones which help you read the whole Bible in a year. So why not check it out.

When we were in Kent we popped up to see friends in London. Now I am a Country boy, and I don't really like Cities that much; I'm not a fan of large groups of people; I am also not a fan of the Tube. I say I am not a fan of the Tube, I have always totally refused to ever get on it! There is no way on earth I ever wanted to get into a metal tube in a concrete tube deep under the ground! Do you get a sense of how strong my claustrophobia is here? 

But anyway back to the story in hand. We were in London and getting the overground trains from our friends house to the South bank to walk along the river. But it turned out a journey on the normal trains would not be as easy as we thought. It would be far more simple to go on the Underground. If you were there at the time you would have seen me in a moment of panic doing my best Mr T impression "I ain't getting on no tube train fool!" 

Then it dawned on me, I am sure God has plans for me this year which involve London, so there way no getting away from the fact; I needed to bite the bullet and get on the Tube. 

Which I did, not because I wanted too, but because I felt God wanted me to. I cant say it was the most enjoyable experience ever. But I survived and it was not as bad as I thought, (Although my fiancée might say the look on my face said something different!) So now I know I don't really have anything to worry about.

But what am I going on about? I am sure no one reads this blog to listen to me go on about how much I hate being enclosed! I would say the whole point of this post is to say if you feel God telling you to do something then do it! Don't hold back or make excuses. If God calls you to do something, he will give you the strength to do it. No matter how big or small it might seem to others.

As the writer of Psalms says:

In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. 

(Psalm 56:4 NIV)

So trust in God, you have nothing to fear! If he is calling you then he will give you the strength you need to do his will.