Not Just

Sometimes a church meeting is not just a church meeting. It's an encounter - When the reality of the King comes so close that you sense His kindness, His compassion, His vivid Personhood as though you could see Him. Like today. It all started off much the same as any other Sunday morning: leisurely preparations, beautiful drive over Ou Kaapse Weg (Old Cape Road), through the green quietness of Tokai; into the smiling company of fellow Christ followers in the marquee. And there it was. In the simple rolling out of the story of Jesus interacting with such kindness and respect with the woman of loose morals, against the backdrop of the sharp and jagged criticism of the religious leaders of the time. And there it was. In Jesus reaching out to the religious also - no discarding of them, but confronting them with truth, wanting their eyes to be opened too. And there it was In the singing from newly, or re-newedly, "stunned-by-the-love-of-Christ" hearts. And there it was. In the numbers of people who said "Yes" to the magnificent offer of God's rescuing grace in Christ. One woman said to me, over coffee, after the meeting - "I haven't cried in a meeting for years. Today I was overwhelmed again with gratitude". Like waves, the sense of thankfulness washed over her afresh. That's a miracle - you can't drum that up for yourself no matter how much you try. What a gift! Someone else said, "I felt my cheeks go hot a couple of times as I recognized my own faulty attitudes," but she marvelled at the lack of condemnation she experienced. All she was aware of was an invigorating refreshing of her connection with Jesus. Only He can do that. So, there it was, in both these stories, there too. I sense this may have been a watershed day - For me - Maybe for many.