From:-
TORCH TRUST FOR THE BLIND, Torch House, Torch Way, Northampton Road, Market
Harborough, Leicestershire, LE16 9HL, U.K.
Telephone: (01858) 438260, Fax: (01858) 438275, email: info@torchtrust.org
Charity Number 1095904.
See,
He is praying – Cornelius
Studies
in the Book of Revelation
I am writing this whilst staying in
These energetic climbers are a reminder of what Christians
should be like – those who day by day are climbing upward to a heavenly
destination. In the
But climbing upward is never easy; it’s hard work, and
there are rocks and rough places to cause us to stumble. Sometimes we slip
backwards a little on the loose stones. How well this illustrates the Christian
journey, which Jesus never said would be easy. The important thing is to keep
going and not lose heart.
High up in the Swiss
Michael Stafford and the
Editors
by
I am sure all of us who are Christians firmly believe God guides our lives. We can see it so clearly as we look back. But if you are like me you often struggle to find God’s guidance as you travel life’s journey. It’s immensely frustrating. We want God to show us the right way, but despite our desire to learn His will for our lives and looking everywhere for signals from Him, we seem to stumble about in the dark. Although we have been promised a guide, it seems He is whispering directions so quietly we struggle to hear them. If only God would just tell us which way to go and how to make the choices that face us, it would be so much easier to be sure we are doing His will.
Recently I was asked to preach on the subject: “The Holy Spirit – our guide”. I referred to the one place in the Bible that describes the Holy Spirit in this way: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.” (John 16:13-14).
First I was caught by what Jesus doesn’t say. He doesn’t say that the Holy Spirit guides us by telling us where to go and what to do.
What He does say is that the Holy Spirit will guide us
into all truth. The Holy Spirit is to be our “truth-guide”.
Where is the truth to be found? Jesus said He was “the way, the truth and
the life”. This was the answer He gave to Thomas who was asking Him for
directions – for how to get to where Jesus was going. Jesus explained that
it wasn’t a matter of navigation but of relationship – relationship with Jesus,
God’s son. And the Holy Spirit mediates this relationship: He takes “what is mine, making it known to
you.” The Holy Spirit is in the truth business just as Jesus is. Jesus told
Pilate, “. . . for this reason I was born, and for this
I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of
truth listens to me."
The Holy Spirit helps us sort out what’s true – to straighten out our thinking and our attitudes and align them with Jesus’. He helps us to follow Jesus and through following Jesus we are brought closer to God himself.
Perhaps the overarching theme of the Old Testament is that
God reaches out to man with the desire that we should seek Him – with our whole
being: “if . . . you seek the
LORD your God, you will find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and
with all your soul.” (Deuteronomy 4:29). And the story of the Gospels is that
God reaches out to us in Jesus and invites us to follow Him.”
It occurs
to me that there can’t be much difference between an authentic seeking after
God, a committed following of Jesus and a genuine submission to the guidance of
the Holy Spirit. After all, they are three persons comprising our one God. If
we are passionate about Jesus and determined to follow Him, if we love God with
all our heart, soul, strength and mind then I believe we can’t stray far
off track – the Holy Spirit is with us, guiding us towards the truth.
I just
wonder whether we spend too much time looking for the Holy Spirit’s guidance in
the decisions and choices of our life. Why are we so often looking outside of
ourselves for guidance when the Holy Spirit lives within us? If we allow Him to
shape our thinking, our desires and our attitudes then surely we can throw
ourselves into serving the Lord we love in whatever way lies before us.
When
I was seeking God’s will over joining Torch, I studied
As
There’s a familiar quote from Proverbs that springs to mind:
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6, TNIV)
God promises straight paths. Sometimes our life journey seems anything but straightforward but we can be assured that God has us on the direct path to heaven. But there are two conditions. First, that we trust God. No half-measures either – it’s that we trust with all our heart. Second, that we submit our lives to God – that He may rule in our choices.
It means that if we trust God wholly and put Him in charge, then what follows spontaneously is that God straightens out our lives – it’s a promise.
by Mum Heath (co-founder of
[In the Issue 3 2005 of The Torch, we included Shalom Christian Outreach in the Workers Together slot. This time, we hear from Mrs Heath about a holiday run by the organisation for disabled people.]
It all seemed to be going wrong the week before the holiday held at Pilgrim Hall near Uckfield. A vital piece of equipment broke, and a car we were relying on was out of commission, one of us had tooth trouble, and, the last straw, the speaker, Rev Roland Fidge, had to cancel, as his wife was critically ill. We prayed for Roland and Beryl; they had served the Lord so faithfully for years.
But what could we do? Braille and giant print literature had been provided by our colleagues from Torch, so we wanted to use them if possible, even though they were specifically for the message Roland was going to bring. Roland sent a copy of his notes, but I found it impossible to take more than the outline he had given. It was rather like David trying to fight Goliath in Saul’s armour!
At the welcome time, Sandy who was chairing the meeting, prayed that we would all be able to leave our heavy “baggage” at the Cross, whatever it was. The Lord did the impossible, for the messages went straight to our hearts. People were moved to tears, some made life-changing decisions during those few days. One young lady helper at Pilgrim Hall came to a living faith in Christ. Her joy was infectious.
God’s blessing reached people physically too, as they yielded their burdens to the Lord. It touched us all, sighted, visually impaired, deaf-blind, people who relied on wheelchairs, all of us! It was awesome to see how the Lord brought joy into so many situations.
The majority of those attending were aged from 24 to mid-fifties. Some of them were starved of Christian fellowship, and others were on the point of giving up. We all needed a touch from the Lord and we had it.
There were discussion times too. One such time was particularly interesting when we discussed the difficulties encountered when a person with a disability tried to find a spiritual home. There were valuable points raised from both sides, and several sighted workers in churches added useful comments. Carol Pearson introduced people to the Echurch which she monitors, and which a number of people found helpful.
There was swimming, walks, visits to the bookshop, outings, and a concert on the Wednesday evening when friends from a distance came. The programme included items by Marilyn and Tracy who were with us for the holiday.
Over all, that sense of the presence of the Lord was so real. Folk said as they left, “We’ll never be the same again!”
I lift up my eyes to the
hills – where does my help come from?
My help comes from
the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot
slip – He who watches over you will not slumber;
Indeed, He who
watches over
The Lord watches over you – the
Lord is your shade at your right hand;
The sun will not
harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from
all harm – He will watch over your life;
The Lord will watch
over your coming and going, both now and for evermore.
Exhibitions – numerous contacts have been made at exhibitions attended by Torch this year. These now need to be followed up.
DAISY books – the library of DAISY audio recorded books is increasing.
Graphic design – Ranieri, a Brazilian volunteer who is based at Torch HRC as a helper there, is a graduate in graphic design, and is at present providing invaluable assistance with our print literature and website.
Here is someone who would like to correspond with others. If you are from a European country, you may like to braille a letter to this person. Introduce yourself by giving your name, your correct postal address, your age, and some information about yourself, your family and your country.
Anybody reading this who would like us to include their name and information in our next bulletin, send in your full name, postal address, age, and tell us about the things you enjoy doing. The aim of having a penfriend is to develop a friendship and exchange information and ideas.
LAWL FAROUK OLUWA TOYOSI, c/o Tolu Ogunse, PO Box 9762, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria, West Africa. He would like to correspond with people from European countries and of the same sex.
by Mum
Heath (co-founder of
Mighty things happen when we pray. Last time we read of
Saul of
Cornelius was a Roman Centurion, in charge of the Italian
Regiment based in
Meanwhile, at Simon the Tanner’s house, Peter was praying on the housetop, miles away. He became hungry, and asked for something to eat. As he waited for his food, he had a vision of a large sheet being let down from heaven, holding all kinds of animals.
“Rise, Peter, kill and eat,” said the voice of the angel.
“Not so, Lord! I have never eaten anything which our law calls unclean!”
The voice replied, “What God has cleansed you must not call common or unclean”.
Three times this vision appeared, and Peter began to wonder what God was trying to say to him. There was a knock at the door. Peter could hear some voices asking for him. With his mind full of the vision, the angel called to him, “Three men are seeking you. Go down from the roof, and go with them, I have sent them.”
Wondering what was happening,
Peter obeyed, and set off for
Cornelius had gathered several of his friends together in the meantime, all anxious to meet Peter and to hear his message.
As Peter faced these Gentiles, he said, “You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with people of another nation, but God has just shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean, so I am here. Why did you send for me?”
“Four days ago,” Cornelius began, “I was praying in my house, and a man in bright clothes stood before me. He said, ‘Cornelius, your prayers have been heard. Send now for Simon Peter, and he will show you what to do.’ So I sent for you at once, and we all want to hear all that you have to tell us.”
Well, that was but the beginning. For as Peter prayed, the Holy Spirit fell on those men and they were filled with new life, and realised that they had been accepted by the Lord Jesus into His family. Marvelling at what had happened, Peter told them that they should be baptised, as Jesus had commanded His disciples to do. He stayed with these new converts for a few days, showing them the way forward to follow Jesus.
The result? Peter realised that
the message of the gospel was not just for the Jewish converts, but for all. As
a result, the good news spread across the whole area round the Mediterranean
Sea, even reaching
Who knows what could happen if we were to spend more time in prayer, and be ready to obey His will as Peter and Cornelius did?
“Unbelief puts our circumstances between us and God. But faith puts God between us and our circumstances.” (F B Meyer)
by James Brookman
When I started working for Torch 6 months ago, after having worked as a secondary school teacher for the previous 12 years, I jokingly told others it felt like I had died and gone to heaven. However in reality I had just taken one more step along the road to heaven on a journey that started as a child 40 years ago.
Sadly for me much of my spiritual journey has been blighted by mild indifference; although I’ve been an active Christian from a young age all too often I drift along in my faith until the next “crisis” shakes me out of my complacency.
However a pattern has emerged of God’s faithfulness to me which is always stronger than my indifference to Him. In the past when I yet again fell back to sleep when the alarm clock went off instead of having my quiet time I might have started the day muttering the old saying: “the road to hell is paved with good intentions”; nowadays as the certainties of God’s love have become more entrenched within me I will say to myself in a similar situation “the road to heaven is paved with God’s mercy and grace” – a sentiment that is not only more truthful but also a bit more positive!
God has blessed me with many “turning points” along my road to heaven. One seemingly innocuous experience that happened about 10 years ago still affects me to this day; I was sitting in the evening service in my church in Lancaster minding my own business when the curate who wasn’t particularly given to such things suddenly stopped whilst leading the service, looked at me and said, “James, God has loved you with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3). Now you might say “so what, God has loved all of us with an everlasting love”, but for me it was really significant; I needed to know that God loved me with an everlasting love.
Another turning point occurred in 1999 when I started
a 2-year contract teaching in a Christian school in
My most recent turning point has been coming to work for Torch. When I worked as a teacher I rarely had time to read Christian books but now as the co-ordinator of audio transcription I’m constantly immersed in the things and all the better for it. I’ve also enjoyed working with the blind and partially sighted people I’ve met through Torch. They are an inspiration and it is a real privilege to be with them as we journey together on our collective road to heaven.
[Editor’s note: James is married to Sarah and they live in Evesham with their 3 sons William, Peter and Edward aged 8, 6 and 3.]
by
These chapters span the whole of time, describing the
great cosmic battle of which we are part.
The battle is all about Jesus, clearly the male child in chapter 12 verse 5: “She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron sceptre.”
The chief of the spiritual forces of evil is the devil: “Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads” (v 3); “The great dragon, that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.” (v 9). The dragon has two servants: the beast from the sea, and the beast from the earth. But who is the woman? “A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.” (chapter 12 verses 1 and 2). I believe that the woman is the church universal – that is everyone who personally believes, from Old and New Testament times, the church age, and to the end of time.
The sun and moon beneath her feet could be a reference to Joseph’s dream in Genesis 37:9, the patriarchal family of Jacob. The twelve stars could refer to church leadership. Do you remember our first study where we rejoiced that the stars, the leaders of the seven churches, were held securely in Jesus’ hands? (chapter 1 verse 20). So the vision of the woman includes God’s people from all eras. The first battle is over the actual incarnation of Jesus. “The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born.” (v 5). The church is nothing without Jesus. “He is the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). But Satan failed. Jesus was born, lived, died on the cross, rose from death, and ascended; thus completing His work of salvation. “Her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.” (v 5).
The second battle is in heaven. “There was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But they were not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down” (vs 7 to 9). The spiritual realm is vast compared to our world. We only get a small glimpse of what happens there. Another insight can be found in Isaiah 14 verses 12 to 14: “How you have fallen from heaven, oh morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will make myself like the most high.’”
The third battle, described in the remainder of this section, is now, here on earth. “When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.” (v 13). The church becomes the focus of Satan’s attacks. “Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring – those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.” (v 17).
In chapter 13, Satan brings in two of his evil assistants. “I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.” (vs 1 and 2). Satan uses earthly powers with all their ferocity. The ten crowns speak of mighty power and authority. “He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.” (v 7). We only have to look at human history, and the world today, to see Satan’s trademark everywhere. Jesus told us to be salt in the world (Matthew 5:13), but we must not be disappointed when our efforts fail, because our hope is not in politics.
“Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon.” (v 11). This second beast is like a gentle lamb, but he has a raucous voice. This is counterfeit religion. “He made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast,” (v 12). He performed miracles and set up powerful talking images. This beast controlled the world’s finances through the mark which is the name of the beast. “If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man’s number. His number is 666.” (v 18). Though this number has intrigued many, I think it’s interpretation is fairly straightforward. We learnt in Study One that 7 is the number of perfection. 666 is the best humans can do, and is a mutilation of perfection. Western religion often pursues material rather than spiritual treasures as in the prosperity gospel.
The
Chapter 14 opens with Jesus taking control of the battle.
“Then I looked, and there before me was the lamb, standing on
One of the angels “had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth” (v 6). This section ends with two harvests. Jesus is ready: “One ‘like a son of man’ with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. The harvest of the earth is ripe.” (vs 14 -15). This is the in-gathering of believers. The second harvest is of unbelievers. “The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath.” (v 19). Which harvest will you be in?