Fire in our hearts - Jesus Army

FIRE IN OUR HEARTS
CITY ON A HILL
He reflected on the past. Ten years had passed since he’d
been baptised in the Spirit. After leading his college Christian
Union, he’d thrown himself into youth work, and considered
being a missionary, but the fires had dimmed until he’d
only been happy when out rock-climbing.
Mick remembered how stunned he’d been in 1975 when he
saw the change in his sister. After moving to Bugbrooke with
her husband, and then discovering the Jesus Fellowship, she
had bubbled over with enthusiasm. So Mick had visited the
chapel and found God again.
How he’d wept with remorse when he looked at his expensive
climbing gear. Jesus had been pushed into second place
— but no longer. Mick tried to bring the community inspiration
to his church in Leicester but after eighteen months of
frustration he left for Bugbrooke.
‘You’ll never look back now,’ the Lord had whispered as he
drove down the M1. ‘This is the road to maturity.’
Mick smiled as he remembered. It was true. He hadn’t
looked back. As he watched the morning shadows creep over
the frost, he thought of teas on the lawn, the bleating of sheep,
learning Pete’s songs, community lettuce-planting, and meditations
in the garden. He’d shared his inspirations, his trials,
his tears, his life. Now they were off to Warwickshire.
The previous summer we’d received prophetic direction
from Isaiah 54: ‘Enlarge the place of your tent... lengthen
your cords, strengthen your stakes’ (Is 54:2). We were to
spread abroad, and bear ‘sons and daughters’. We’d received
wisdom about ‘Mother Zion’ and recognised, as Paul wrote,
that spiritual Jerusalem is our mother (Gal 4:26). In the atmosphere
of love many came to spiritual birth amongst us.
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