For the past few days I have been in Manchester, at Covenant School of Ministries, School of the Word. I have been teaching on 'Who is God?' Actually, it's better to say I was talking about God with the students there; they already know him very well. My task was to explain what the different names and attributes that God reveals in the Bible mean. It was a marvelous experience.
On the drive home to Cardiff last night I reflected on the past three days and why I had enjoyed it so much. It wasn't just the fact that I was back in the classroom, enjoying the dynamic of theological discussion, it was much more than that. Eventually I understood: for three days I had the privilege of talking about and to God himself, the One who makes sense of everything and the One who in reality it's all about. There is nothing more meaningful, because our relationship with and revelation of God affects everything else.
Sometimes our lives are caught up in the 'business' of God, things to do with God, rather than God himself. It's easy to fall into this trap, especially when one is involved in church leadership and ministry. The 'business' of church should never replace the reason for church: God himself. Now, I am not advocating that all we do as leaders is to sit and talk all the time about God. There is work to do. But getting the balance right is key: time spent with God will determine our effectiveness for him. John Wesley used to say that there was so much to be done in the day that if he didn't spend several hours of the day with God then he wouldn't get it all done. I think I know what he meant.
