Aslan is on the move
I hope you had a good bank holiday weekend? It was classic British weather where I live! Warm and sunny on Saturday then the rain came in during Sunday and lasted all day Monday.
I made sure that the grass was cut, and all my outdoor chores were done before the heavens opened. Monday was spent indoors, relaxing and catching up on a few things.
Yesterday was lovely, a little glimpse of summer? I am ready for a change and for something fresh and new.
Over the last few months, I have been made aware of something else that is new. This is not with the weather, or seasonal shift, it’s spiritual… God is up to something.
A few weeks ago, I was reminded of the phrase, ‘Aslan is on the move’. This is a quote from the brilliant, ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ by C.S. Lewis.
It is a quote from a fictional children’s book, but if you know the story, you know that Aslan is a metaphor for Jesus, and the story is about good defeating evil.
The phrase encapsulates a sense of expectancy and the beginning to change. I have noticed some things shifting in our church.
In recent weeks we have seen a significant healing, a growth in Sunday attendance and a huge interest, from a variety of people, wanting to know more about God.
I can only stand by and watch, God is stirring something. These kinds of things are not just happening here but in other places in the UK and around the world too.
Back in the book of Judges, in the Old Testament, there is the story of Samson (the one who had super-natural strength)…
“The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the Lord blessed him, and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan…”
God had a special plan for Samson from birth. These verses show us how God started to ‘stir’ something in Samson when he was just a boy.
I’m not sure exactly what was going on, but God was at work, getting Samson’s attention. We later read how God used Samson to rescue Israel. The stirring let to something!
I believe that the same ‘Spirit of the Lord’ is stirring people today:
God is awakening those who do not know Him to find out more about Jesus.
God is calling those who had a faith but had given up, back to Himself.
God is empowering Christians to be bolder in faith, in both words and actions.
God is doing something, which is compelling, exciting and life transforming. I do believe that ‘Aslan is on the move’. What is God ‘stirring’ in you?
God bless you :)
Gary Bastin - Hope Community Church leader