Towards the end of April Richard and I were able to spend a few days at the Intercontinental Church Society (ICS) conference in the Netherlands, only about 40 km from where the Van Leer family now live. It was good to see Sam on one of the days. ICS is an Anglican mission society that supports churches, chaplains and others in Europe and further afield, and aims to make known "the Christ of the Scriptures to people of any nationality who speak English". They helped St Ursula's with a grant for Sam's first year with us. Every year they hold a conference for ICS Chaplains and their families. Richard is an associate member, and this was our third conference since we moved to Berne. We are very glad that we were able to go. I would like to share with you some thoughts on two items in the programme: the series of Bible Studies by Jonathan Lamb, on the book of the prophet Habakkuk, and a seminar on "helping your church to reach out to international students".
The Bible studies were amazingly helpful and relevant in present circumstances. I confess that this is not a book of the Old Testament that I know well (I had to ask Richard where to find it!) but the message is very clear. Habakkuk was written at a time of change, disasters and uncertainty. The prophet is carrying a huge burden for the people of his day; he calls on God for help but it seems that God is not listening. But as he talks to God, he begins to realize that God is at work, he is in control, and he has a purpose which will be carried out. The message is that we can bring our problems to God, and we can trust him. We can tell God how we feel, and he does hear us. Like Habakkuk, we must watch and wait. We must listen to God with a submissive spirit and a responsive heart. However, he will act at the right time, and we must wait patiently. There is a vision for the appointed time, says God. "If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay" (2:5). We must be steadfast in our faith, and, as the speaker expressed it, we must learn to "live in the waiting room". By chapter 3, the prophet has moved from asking God why, through waiting and woe, to worship, for which the speaker identified four keys: hold the Lord in respect or awe, rest in Him, rejoice in the Lord, and rely on Him. Whatever is happening, we must rejoice in the Lord. "I will exult in the God of my salvation," says the prophet. "God the Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, and makes me tread upon the heights" (3:18,19). We both felt that God was speaking to us through these Bible studies.
Habakkuk 2:14 says: "the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." The speaker reminded us that it is up to us to declare God's glory. He quoted: "Mission exists because worship doesn't."
This links in with the seminar on reaching foreign students. The seminar I really wanted to go to ("Music as a part of worship today") had been cancelled, so I thought I might as well go to the one on mission among students. It turned out to be challenging! We were each asked to say what our church was doing about reaching foreign English-speaking students, and I realized that, as far as I know, as a church we are doing nothing. (Some individuals may well be doing something, but I am not aware of any church policy of reaching out to students.) Yet we are in a university city, with many foreign students who need to be reached with the gospel, and for many of them English is easier than German.
As I thought about this, feeling somewhat ashamed, I asked myself whether we at St Ursula's are doing much at all about reaching others. Clearly some of you are very good at welcoming those strangers who come through our doors, and no doubt some of you do invite friends and neighbours to come along to church with you, or to attend your housegroup or Bible study. But are we doing enough? Do we as a church take mission seriously? I have heard it said that we need to get our own house in order before we can invite others in. If the first disciples had waited until they had worked everything out, and got themselves sorted, the church would never have come into being. Of course we have much to put right, but the gospel is too vital, and too many people are living outside its light, for us to wait until we are nearer to perfection. St Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful"..But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong" (1 Corinthians 1:27). We are in good company!
Those few days away were an oasis of peace for us, with a clear reminder that we can trust God with our present and our future.
I find it all too easy to forget the lessons I have learned, once I am back home with the same difficulties to face as before.
Habakkuk's problems were not solved when he came to the end of his writing, but he had changed.
As the speaker said, the prophet had come from confusion to confidence, from fear to faith, from 'why?' to worship.
May that be the experience of us all.
Lynne Pamplin
P.S. We have ordered CDs of the talks on Habakkuk, so let us know if you would like to listen to them.