Facing the Canon's son with J.John

so dad you've been in ministry for 30 years I how did that start how did the Philo trust come about well I came to faith in 1975 and I just I mean I started telling people about Jesus straightaway and somebody said to me oh you're an evangelist and I said what's an evangelist and they explained it to me and then somebody else later on said oh you're you're an evangelist then and I said oh yeah is somebody else said that and so I think I was already active and then I discovered that there was a particular term to go with it yeah and you're known for writing books and telling stories but when you first went to school in this country you didn't speak English how did how did that come about well my parents came from Cyprus a bit like refugees really to London after one of the wars out there and I was born in England and but when I was six months old and my brother was three my parents sent us back to Cyprus and we live with my grandmother and for several years and then when we came back obviously we could only speak Greek so when I went to school yeah I could I could only understand Greek and how what was that like well I can still remember certain things about just not having a clue you know where am i what are people you know saying and you do feel quite isolated a lot of confusion and a lot of frustration because you can't communicate and what do what were your parents doing at the time well partly the reason that they sent us back to Cyprus was that so at that time a lot of people from overseas were coming to England and many of them were trying to learn the language many of them were trying to work so they just thought well you know if granny looked hard for us they could get on with trying to do that so that was their reasoning yeah and what did they do oh is it my freshman and then my parents they ran a restaurant yeah but and it wasn't until college that you became a Christian and you call yourself an agnostic at the time when you became a Christian were you even searching for God what being Greek means that you are Greek Orthodox but all a lot of Orthodoxy it's it's kind of in twined with your culture so you can't be Greek and not be Greek Orthodox it's a bit like you're Jewish but you're an atheist but you're still Jewish so but grow we weren't really religious Greeks we were cultural Orthodox Greeks and so I didn't really know very much and I think agnostic was probably the best term for what I was like and then so when I went to college I didn't really know anything I didn't understand anything and how did from that place led you to becoming a Christian well I went to it was called Hendon College and I I met someone called Andy Connor my DS who's here tonight sitting there and he's Greek I'm Greek so it was Greek Greek kebab kebab yeah yeah so there's already something in common yeah and and he he basically I I remember at my baptism I said as a testimony before my baptism I said that my friend Andy built a bridge from him to me and when he did Christ Jesus walked over it and really that that's what he did he started telling me about Jesus it and he used to take me for a meal every Wednesday every week so that we could discuss the Bible it was 1 pound Tempe the meal it's funny what you remember isn't it but every Wednesday every week we would go and have this little lunch and we would talk about Jesus and when you'd finally made that decision you said earlier that you just started telling people about Jesus did it happen overnight or was it a gradual process well I I I began to follow Jesus on the 9th of February 1975 and then on the 10th of February I was walking to college so where I lived in college was you know a mile or so and as I was walking to college I saw a homeless man and I just kind of I don't know something in me kind of kind of now looking back I can see that God got my attention but I felt kind of moved and I stopped and I just said to this homeless man have you had breakfast and he said no I haven't I said well I'll take you for breakfast so I took him for breakfast and I said well where do you hang out he says well I hang out where you saw me I said no no wait you normally hang out he says you know where you saw me that's where I know where you hang out and I just thought goodness if he's telling me the truth that means Monday to Friday throughout September October November December and January I walk past him and I never saw him this is the first day I'm following Jesus and I'm seeing homeless people and I said two more listen I cannot do this every week I mean every day I said but I said how about would you like breakfast once a week hey I love breakfast once a week and he says can I bring my friends I said what you mean bring your friends and so we we were in this little cafe and there was a table of six I said I'll tell you what you can bring four friends and you and me and I said but the deal is you can all have breakfast but you've got to listen to me teach you the by board he's like yeah yeah we want Bible Bible Bible and I really didn't know very much and basically what Andy taught me week by week that's what I told them and I mean I remember the first week it was like this was my like devotional talk God he's really good he's really good the devil bad he's bad and then week by week the goose got a little bit longer you know as I learnt things was that your only experience of evangelism in those early weeks and months well no cuz well then I went to college and I found Andy nice and handy and I became a Christian last night and and Andy goes ask great brilliant he said now we'll start a Christian Union I said what's the Christian Union he says well it's a union of Christians so I said ah okay I said are there many of us he said well oh he goes I put a poster up to say if you're a Christian come come to this lecture theater and he said only two lecturers came he said anyway don't worry about it I'll see you later so I go off to a lecture and I sit next to my friend Richard and I said to Richard Richard I became a Christian last night he's a teacher I said I did I said it you're Christian you got to know I said what do you mean you don't know you should know so I got this little booklet that Andy had given me called journey into life I said Richard got a read it got a read it's really important so we're in the lecture we're kind of reading it and it gets to the end where you if you want to receive Jesus I said so you want to receive Jesus and Richard goes yeah yeah I do you gotta say to prayer if you don't stay the prayer you can't so he said the prayer in the lecture so I say well you better come to Christian Union meeting so I then introduced him to Andy and I remote was so funny and he said to more how're you been a Christian Richard and it was like well you know and so Andy became the president of the Christian Union I became the secretary and Richard was the treasurer and it was so funny there was some so my job was a secretary so so Andy would speak and then I were on my job as to try and get some speakers and things like that and then I I asked the minister at the church I said you know who the best speakers in London tell me where the best speakers in London and he gave me these names you know obviously I never heard of them because I only just heard of Jesus and so for example he's I wrote all these names down in John Stott anti cake John Stott and this person is supposed so I found the number and all souls Langham Place I mean I've never heard of it really so I rang rang up this lady answered the phone I said i lo so can I speak to John please and she said I'm sorry I said could I speak to John please John who is it John stoats so stone and she said eh you mean dr. staat I was hit on ok yeah all right doctor stop no no you can't what's it about art could he come next Tuesday to suit the Christian Union and I told John stop this story years later and John said J Johnny said if I'd only got the message I would have been there yeah so good it's quite moving actually so you had lots of experience even in those early months of telling people about Jesus did you go with Andy did you team up together outside of college as well well Andy then said to me write you now you're following Jesus what you got to do you've got to join a fellowship group a Bible study group and that was on a Wednesday night eh-eh-eh-eh so I was like oh yeah I couldn't get enough of it really yeah yeah Bible right and then he said Sunday we go to church here yeah and then after church do you screwed me okay yeah and in Saturday we do outreach I said what's that because we'll go out on the streets we tow people out Jesus okay you know I was like okay I just thought that's what you do junior to me this was all part of the deal part of the package so I arrived at the youth group on the Saturday and then we all got paired out and we were to go out and start telling people about Jesus inviting them and then a friend of ours wasn't a student he got admitted into a psychiatric hospital so we went to see him and then we were kind of anointing him with water and praying over him and then we saw all the other patients with all let's anoint them as well and pray for them anyway we were praying for so many people in there and we got locked in we had to climb over the wall to get out we were like we called ourselves Starsky and Hutch Starsky and Hutch for Jesus it's an amazing experiences and stories how did your family take your conversion oh not good not good as I said earlier to be Greek means your Greek Orthodox now you know orthodoxy is Christian but having become a follower of Christ and began going to an etch finger in charge and to my parents it appeared that I had changed my religion and and they thought I joined a cult so there was a yeah it was very awkward at home and where did you go in the end I went to Nats Barry Hospital in st. Albans which was a psychiatric hospital it's not it's closed down it's now a housing estate and I went there to the psychiatric hospital and started training as a psychiatric nurse so did you actually finish your finish college no so I didn't know so I went there because I could out I could be studying but I had accomodation I had a salary but the thing was I don't know I straightaway I started to Christian unions and I won for staff and one for patients I kind of more interested in that really and are the patients one was great it's a great because I advertise advertised biscuits and so loads of them would come and I was my biscuit was my biscuit I want my biscuit with a biscuit and about four weeks later I worked out the system you know and I timed it or they arrived to get a biscuit then ten minutes later they get a biscuit then ten minutes later get biscuit so and then in between you sandwich it with a bit of Jesus and after that you went to Northern Ireland no from there I went to st. John's Theological College and I studied theology yeah and then after that you and then from there I went yet to Northern Ireland and I was part of a center there called the Christian renewal center and I worked in the area reconciliation and that was during the Troubles out there and I was working in a prison called Crumlin Road prison so a real variety of work and yeah a lot of mission work it was it was quite demanding and very stretching and then he came back to not English during this time you met mum thankfully what yes yeah for you yeah how did how did you meet mum how did that flourish okay well yes so from Northern Ireland I then went back I went to Nottingham and I was on the staff of a church there called st. Nicholas in Nottingham and I worked with an amazing vicar and his wife called David and Joyce Huggett and just they were amazing and I I was director of evangelism and so I was working the church I was working in Nottingham and then further afield and I was doing a mission in Cambridge to reach overseas students who was studying English in Cambridge and this was in the summer and your mother was in her summer vacation from college running a coffee shop and we were using the coffee shop as one of the venues that we were you that we had multiple venues and that was one of the venues and she had to give me the keys when she finished you know using it for herself and then we would take over and then I start talking to her and and she said what are you doing and we explained that we were trying to tell people about Jesus and so I said are you a Christian and she's in there I'm not interested and I said whether you know you were to come and she's no no I'm not interested I'm not going to come I said well that's why you should come no I don't want to come and I'm not interested in not coming and as it will come anyway you know I don't believe it I said I know you don't believe it will come anyway come anyway anyways it turned out that in the end she goes home she has no intention of coming and then she gets on a bike and cycles three miles and comes to the meeting and she thought the music had been written for her the drama had been written for her I got out and gave a little tall and she thought we've been written for her and then I said if if you want to follow Jesus get up out of your seat and converse tan and at the front and she was the first person well done mom so I know well I was so impressed that she changed her mind I married her from that moment was all plain sailing into marriage no I did follow up follow sake could follow up and the thing is you're your mum came from generations of Christians so and and her parents Michael her father a clergyman her grandparents all clergy so she knew it all and I think some people are like that they know it they've grown up with it and I think it's a bit like a radio the radio works it's fine it's gray all you got to do is plug it in so I think there was a lot of components that are already in place but when she got plugged in the hole it wasn't like following up somebody who didn't have an understanding but then yeah I helped a little bit and then we became very good friends and then we dated for a year and then we got engaged and we had to wait 13 months because we got married on my first free Saturday those are the old days yeah the the busy days yeah well yeah I didn't know any better really I didn't really know and you you just took all the opportunities that were there you thought every opportunity was a god thing and but I've really a today the years yeah has I've been many times where you've done a really good talk and it's really flowed and it's been really passionate and then you've said if you'd like to come to the front to give yourself to Jesus and there's been absolute silence and no one's moved no that's never happened in 30 years Wow amazing yeah yeah it's the I I've never given an appeal in 30 years and no one has know no one's always someone has turned to Christ or made a recommitment or something I can't you know someone has either come back reaffirm their faith will come to Christ yeah there's been a a response of some kind and your you know your breed as such of calling people to the front is quite old school at your meetings when someone comes to the front and gives their life to Jesus does that actually make them a Christian well I I and II first showed me this when I was you know thinking about becoming Christian he said to me John I'm gonna show you in the Bible in the last book of the Bible Revelation chapter 3 verse 20 where it has that picture of Jesus knocking on the door of a house and it says if you hear the knock open the door let him in and I remember and he's saying to me have you heard Jesus knocking on the door and I said I think I have he said well have you opened the door I said well where's the door I mean I know where is the door and and he said look don't worry about where the door is just ask Jesus to break the door down and 9th of February 1975 10 o'clock I got down on my knees and I said Jesus if it's you that's knocking on the door break the door down my heart like ah ah I some it was happening in my heart I didn't know what it was something happened something happened and that that's my personal experience and that's the beginning of a journey with Christ it's the beginning and so you know I'm trying to get encourage people to open that door and I know it's only the beginning you know we have window cleaners but window cleaners only clean the windows outside they don't clean the windows inside do they and so you let Jesus in but then you've got to get the windows cleaned then you have taken down to the basement to clear out the cobwebs you've got to take him up into the attic to clean out the bats you've got to take him to this room that room this room there's so I think there's a whole ongoing journey and going back to those early days you know we we know you've done that the ten missions and all these big conferences what was it like you know when you first got married what were the missions like that you were doing did you take mum with you or how did you travel alone well in those early days we got married and then mum got a job and to support me and because if you I don't think she could believe it because we I was going to all these places and preaching and doing a whole weekend and the churches would give me a ten pound book token I remember kilee going is there anything else I said well I don't think that's all is it in the envelope no ten pound book token she goes Wow how are we going to pay the rent I said I said well you know we just have to pray about it really and so our life was a little bit like that I remember you know we had a home group and one day we didn't have any coffee and we didn't have any money no coffee and it was a bit embarrassing that we you know no money no coffee but we had it you have to offer coffee when people come and so we like oh Jesus please Lord please Lord and then the first person who arrived for the group brought coffee not knowing that we didn't have coffee and we didn't have money to go and buy coffee and things like that anyway it's a mum got a job and and then I was doing a lot of university missions at that time and know most of you know January would be I'd go and do a mission start on Monday finish on Saturday get back Saturday night Sunday off and then I go to the next one Monday come back Saturday night Sunday off then I do the third one then I do the fourth one so that's why I do so in fact I I worked out recently that in the 30 years I've been in ministry I've been away for seven years so you know family became a real priority for mum and then I started to adjust how we did things and I started hopefully you know get a better rhythm you must have done thousands of talks how long does it take you now to write a new the new talk what absolutely absolutely brand new talk the thing is I'm thinking about it all the time so because I'm constantly thinking I'm constantly crafting I'm constantly shaping I mean you know that's happening all the times I keep thinking of new ways to communicate but you know if say for example you said to me oh right I want you just you know can you prepare a talk on this subject okay assuming I didn't know anything about it it'd probably take me three days and you often unit you get up there and you don't use any notes and things like that is that because you've learnt it all in your head what you're going to say would you make it up on the spot well it varies no the thing is I eat it I prefer if not to use notes or simple notes now I have used nodes so for example when I do the just 10 series be on the 10 commandments because that's a teaching talk it's a little bit different and so you're you're kind of teaching preaching evangelistic you know it's got all those components in so I do use notes for that at other times I just use bullet points but if I can I try not to use anything I think it helps with communication it helps with connections but to do that you actually have to do more preparation so sometimes you don't have adequate time and so I will use notes when appropriate as we all know you're you're known for your storytelling and before we discuss that we're just going to have a look at a clip of you telling a story there was a man at an airport and he wanted to buy a bag of very small donuts and a coffee so he buys his bag of small donuts and buys his coffee and he's looking for somewhere to sit but all the tables are all taken but there's one table where there's one man sitting and he thinks oh I'll just go and sit opposite him so he goes there he puts his coffee down he puts his bags down he gets his coat off puts it on the chair sits down opens his coffee had a sip picks up the bag of donut opens it takes out a doughnut start eating it puts the bag down the man opposite stretches over picks up the bag of donuts opens it takes out a doughnut starts eating it puts the bag down smiles the other man cannot believe what he has just seen he cannot believe that the man has just stolen one of his doughnut he's thinking what I mean what is the world coming to what is the what but then he thinks well maybe you know the guy's not quite there or you know he better not say anything in case the guy kind of erupts and he's violent but he gives him one of these if looks could kill he picks up the bag of donut he takes out another donut he moves it near to his coffee as far away from the other man while he's sipping his coffee the man stretches over picks up the bag takes out another donut starts eating it puts it on the table pushes it back smile the other guy can't believe he's done it twice he's stolen two of my doughnuts he's amazing he's real angry but he decides not to say anything anyway the man gets up to leave so the other man thinks is a bad time here left here donut thief he put his coat on he picked up his bag and he then picked up the bag of donut there's one donor inside he takes it out he breaks it in half he puts half in his mouth but half on the bag he moves the bag he smiles he weighs off he goes the other guy thinks I'm not touching that doughnut your donut thief you're probably full of infection anyway he looks at his watch oh it's time for me to go he gets up he puts his coat on he then bends down to pick up his bag and sitting on top of his bag was his bag of donuts he was complaining he was complaining but the other man was stealing his doughnuts when in fact the other man was sharing his doughnut now listen to me listen to me God owns all the doughnuts how do you how do you come up with a story like that or where do you get your stories from well life some of my stories are true they are actually some are true some are magnified and because storytelling you're it's not so much I don't think it's an you're exaggerating the whole thing it's a bit like Jewish humor Jesus was incredibly funny and many times we don't understand it because we don't understand Jewish humor so you know he says to his disciples oh you know before you take the speck out of your you know somebody else's I take the Telegraph hold out your eye he's like you can imagine the disciples going Oh Lord that's a good one that is a good one and it's that kind of humor humor by exaggeration so sometimes I'll get an idea or I'll see something funny I didn't know half the time I I see things that are really funny and and I jot things down I think the thing is many of us do see things a lot but we don't always jot things down and if you don't jot things down you don't you won't remember it and then I'm crafting my thinking well how can I change this story to make the point that I need to make yeah and over your years of being a Christian and years of ministry you must have met wonderful people who has had a particular impact in your life what I have met I've been humbled and privileged to have met ya some fascinating people throughout Britain and around the world have we've had the privilege of going to 69 countries so obviously met a lot people from lots of different cultures and different continents and I have to say I think the person that made probably the deepest impact was Mother Teresa I was in Calcutta for a month and I was working with her and others and I I think they it was not just what they did mother trees and the Sisters of Charity but it's how they did it that deeply impacted me and when we were in the hospices and the way you spoke to dying people and I I'd not seen that before I'd not seen it done like that and I came back inspired with a heart that I just want to carry the presence of God that's where I first began to understand carrying the presence of God and when we used to go out onto the streets together it's all about we carry Jesus with carry Jesus with Jesus it's about Jesus we carry Jesus we love because of Jesus we see people through the eyes of Jesus and well you can imagine you know it was quite amazing and every morning I used to pray with mother Teresa and the Sisters of Charity and I remember the first day that I went it's like it's 6 o'clock in the morning and windows are open is really noisy as I thought can you concentrate the cars the beeping the noise how can you concentrate in you try and have prayer you know it's like I couldn't and that was about seven days later I'd be in there and I couldn't hear any other sounds but Jesus is this interesting great you know each day just learning to be still you know be still and know that I am God there's a great story about a reporter who saw Mother Teresa and the sisters of charity and what they were doing and the reporter said to her mother Teresa I've seen what you all do and it is remarkable but I hope you don't mind me saying even with all the good that you and your sisters do it's only a drop in the ocean and she very lovingly looked at him in the eye and said I yes but the ocean is made up of drops and I think sometimes you know we can get so overwhelmed that we don't do anything whereas let's just do something so that was a real experience and India's played quite a big role in in your formation you've seen quite amazing things when even when you're with Mother Teresa and when you've gone back yes and different times yes how is the house the different trips changed over the years well I wrote my last trip and it's so funny when you go to these different cultures sometimes the agenda completely changes you know I mean how long did it take for the day of Pentecost to be planned and prepared well it wasn't planned or prepared it just happened and I think sometimes we can over plan we can over prepare and then sometimes it's like you we over plan and over prepare and we always lock God out and I think sometimes you've got to be a bit more flexible so we got invited to go to India there's a center in India where 15,000 sick people come each week to hear about Jesus and to be prayed for now these are 15,000 seriously sick people and then they leave and then 15,000 the following week 15,000 the following week cetera every week 52 weeks a year has been going on for years and the government was so impressed that they extended the railway so that there's a separate station for this seat so I got asked to do the teachings on Jesus every day so you get up you've got 15,000 sick people let precede diseases all sorts of things so I've got to tell them about Jesus it's a bit of a challenge isn't it a real challenge and then we go and pray for the sick people and we went so one morning we were it was about a team of 10 of us and we got allocated in twos to go to different areas so I remember the one day okay j-john you and this person in the team right you go to those with leprosy so then we go over to those with leprosy and there's like two thousand people so we got to start praying and it's like oh Jesus Jesus you gotta help me you got to help me and went to the first person and I remember this I I you know I I knew Jesus could heal I didn't have a problem about that but we live in this world of miracle and mystery but I died with my little mustard seed faith I said I prayed over this first person and I said Jesus please please bring your healing grace over this woman and as I prayed that prayer as we all prayed that prayer her skin from here from the forehead here rolled started rolling down and it kept rolling kept rolling kept roll get rolling and it fell off you've got a completely new skin and so that gives you a little bit of a facelift so after that I was like come on come on come on and I came back from India with a greater sense of expectancy to not just preach the gospel but also to pray for the sick irrespective of what happens and to also pray for deliverance I just have to ask that you see these amazing things and why haven't you seen this you know those that form of miracle there's major miracles on a weekend week our in our local churches because you're we it's not just about faith no okay I look I'm a preacher I preach the gospel the more I do it the more people come to Christ and I think it's like most things the more we do it the more we're going to see and I interesting that Jesus told the story about the persistent Widow who kept knocking on the door you know the the judge'll you know I want my rights I want my rights but and Jesus used that as an analogy for persistent prayer so my my heart now my philosophy now is push pray until something happens and I think the more we do it the more we're going to see I do I really do the more we pray the more we're going to see and all the 65 countries that you've been to you must have met some interesting people that don't make the headlines are different from Mother Teresa who who would you say that you've met that's particularly stayed with you well in that we've been involved in ministry the Middle East for example for about 25 years doing reconciliation work and relief work and the relief work of Andrew white who's the vicar of Baghdad and the relief work of what we do in our ministry the Philo truss it's the same relief work and over a number of years in the Middle East we were trying to help a lot of very sick babies and sick children many of them deformed and many of them leading real medical help and we had about a hundred babies and children that we were looking after and so I went over to see how they you know how the work was going and we had our worker out there and so I went to see all these children babies and see what other things we could do and you know after about ten hours of this you really emotionally exhausted I mean emotionally exhausted so I said to our worker Hanna I said that's it I'm done I'm done we've gotta go and he said no no no no we've gotta go and see George I said who's George he says George's is this old man I said we're not doing old people this is baby day baby day so he was like oh please let's can see George all right let's go see George okay he's the last one to again see George and George is blind and he's got no legs and he's got one artificial leg so I said George why have you only got one hunter visual leg he said because I can't afford another leg I said George I'll buy you a leg and he grabbed me pulled me to himself he started kissing my forehead he started kissing my cheek kiss my lips he says you're an angel you're an angel I said I then know George if I'm an angel but you know I'll buy you a leg and then I thought where am I gonna get a leg from do I mean it's not like you can go to Tesco's is it and they I need a leg I need a leg so I thought I'd better ring Andrew white so I ring Andrew and he's in Baghdad he answers the phone us Andrew Andrew I need to get a leg for somebody and exactly at that point he was buying a knife or someone seriously at that moment he was buying a knife or somebody there was there was a man in his congregation who was deformed because is is I was gone out and so um Andrew was getting him a glass eye the exact time I needed to go and get a leg for George anyway we sorted George out we got him a lake and he was so happy but what was so funny I got home and kilee said to me how we know who did you meet I saw I met loads and loads of people she's a war whom you know and on that trip ah you know we met with the president we met with a prime minister we met with terrorists we met with the chief rabbi I couldn't remember any of them I said I met George I bought him a leg and do you know how much your leg cost Michael no fifteen hundred US dollars not bad really is it to change someone's alive over a decade ago God gave you this vision of the ten series talking about the 10 commandments yes when you first were given that vision all those years ago did you think we'd still be talking about it now you know you that you would continue to be doing this work with regards to the Ten Commandments well going back in 1999 church is the church you know we were all Christians we're all like seeking the Lord we're going to new New Year a new millennium there was a great sense of Lord you know what are you saying and and I thought I was seeking the Lord I really felt the Lord say preach the 10 commandments I really felt it and what was interesting okay I'd been a Christian from 1975 to 1999 and I'd never heard a sermon on the Ten Commandments like I'd never heard one I remember buying ten pads of paper and I laid out ten pads of paper on the table out and I you know one two three four and I numbered them to him and and I just start with blank pads a paper to start shaping these talks and start and I thought I'll just do them once but when I did it once and I saw the effect on people I just did another one and then another one and then another one and you know did 32 and then we thought wow okay let's let's provide this as a resource for churches and you know people have been doing it the thing is back to your question Michael the ten commandments are timeless they you know they were given by God for all people all cultures for all times and if we Christians would embrace them and practice them then we would be a better model for the world to practice these values and principles which we desperately need it must get quite tiring doing all the travelling and writing and telling the same stories over and over again do you is are there times where you've met people and you you beat you're reinvigorated your rien spired you know when you hear stories of what you did in the past or does that not really affect you those stories of people coming to Christ at your meetings well absolutely I mean the thing is yeah it is tiring people say oh you know how are you Jay John and you know I said well you know it's not too much wrong with the model it's the mileage and you know there's been quite a bit of my legend and there's a saying that if your output exceeds your input then your upkeep will be your downfall and you know I there were times in my life I'd say I had so many irons in the fire I actually put the fire out and you know you can burn the candle at both ends and then wake up and find out that you're not that bright after all you need to mean and III think I've learnt those lessons I've got to keep learning those lessons I don't think they're lessons that you'd learn once and you've learned them you got to keep learning them but in the midst of all of that when you know that you've helped somebody find Jesus help somebody on their journey seen the change and the transformation in their lives I mean it just inspires you it just inspires you I went to Sydney University 25 years ago to preach to do a mission and in fact so many students were coming to the mission meetings there was no auditorium big enough so we had to switch the meetings to the open air to accommodate the thousands of university students who are coming and I was in conversation after the meeting with somebody this other girl came and interrupted us and said I hated what you said so I you know I'm really sorry that you you think that and she's yeah she said you know church ruins people's lives as I I'm very sorry that you think that and I said if you got ten minutes and sure why that's a well you've got ten minutes you know I'll take you for a coffee she's what I'd to know I said well though it's up to you but if you want to I'll take you for a coffee and I took her coffee and I think you know I said look why are you so angry she's told me a bit I said well why don't you come tomorrow and hear me speak and then we'll go for a coffee and she was reluctant but she came we went for coffee I said why don't you come the next day and I'll take you for a coffee again reluctant but she came took her for coffee so why don't you come again she said okay I'll come and then I took her for coffee and then I said why don't you come for the final meeting and then hear me I'll take you for coffee I took it and she was converted five coffees converted now that girl is called Christine Caine and Christine Caine today is the director of a twenty-one that's a ministry that's trying to help free women trapped in human trafficking and she's a phenomenon and sometimes and it's not just people like Christian Kane it could be just you know somebody else that is just an ordinary person but you've helped them on the journey but when I think of people like that whether it's Christine or somebody else it's a real encouragement and that does energize you yeah there's there are those stories of being encouraged there's also times where we can often be let down by friends and we can be let down by other Christians and hurt by other Christians how how do we respond when those situations arise with you know graciousness on one hand and a sadness and hurt and the other yeah I mean there is disappointment and you do feel let down and you know there are times when I you know I've been slandered and I've been slandered publicly or somebody has perpetuated you know lies about me about what I've said or what we do and initially you know you do feel angry and and then you it takes a while it shouldn't take a while but maybe it's our humanity or my humanity but you then arrive at that place where you realize that the only thing to do is to forgive because if we don't forgive we break the bridge on which we miss cross so what's next what's next for you what's what's what's the future hold for the followed trust well you know I've been doing this for thirty years not just by myself obviously couldn't have done this without your mother and and I really mean that I could not have done that this couldn't have sustained it you know we've not only been married thirty years next year but she's my best friend and she's my partner and you know colleague and you know so that without mum I don't think this would have been possible so I do want to say that and I want to thank kilee for 30 years of ups and downs but it's been fun and it has been great is you know to be able to live locally but think globally that's been great that's been really good I think now 30 years three decades down next decade you know there's a verse in Ecclesiastes chapter 10 verse 10 and it says if the axe is blunt you have to use a lot of strength to chop wood that's obvious isn't it so what's the point of the proverb well the point of the proverb is if the axe is sharp you don't need to use a lot of strength chop wood in other words don't work harder work sharper or as the Americans would say works smarter so I think now in these next this next decade it's learning not to work with a blunt axe but a sharp axe I remember when I was working at the psychiatric hospital in Knapp spree there was a fantastic psychiatrist there that I got to know really well and worked with him a lot and when when he thought somebody was ready to leave he'd do one more test and he created this room he had this little room and what he did was that he would put the plug in the sink he would run the water and let the water overflow onto the floor and he would say to the patient here's a mop I want you to go into that room and I want you to mop up the floor and he would leave them in there for 10 minutes he then go in and see whether they switched off the plugs and unplugged let it go or were they still mopping so he wanted to know whether they could deal with the root cause or were they still mopping up the mess and I think so often in life in ministry all we're doing is mopping up the mess rather than discerning what's causing the mess and if it means I've got to just turn the taps off unplug the sink to stop this mess from happening I think I'm saying using that analogy to kind of say that you know what can we do these next 10 years 20 years 30 years maybe to kind of switch those taps off unplug equip the church more reach more people trained more evangelist more communicators clergy are remarkable they are I think church leaders pastors leaders are remarkable knowing a little of what they have to deal with it's easy I'm not sure I could do it and that's why I honor them and respect them but I think most church leaders are like GPS and a GP has to know a little about a lot whereas I'm an obstetrician so my area speciality is obstetrics so one of the things I'm you know want to do more and more and more is to be able to help church leaders still be a GP but also to embrace some of stet ryx so there's this you know how can we work sharper with church leaders with more communicators with technology the use of technology I think is a big one Michael we've got to seize it and just a final question not everyone that's here is watching is either clergy or in full-time ministry what how can people live their life to giving God the most glory in everyday life even without being in full-time ministry well you know the thing is if we are followers of Jesus what we're basically saying if we're followers of Jesus that Jesus is first in my life that's what we're saying and if you take that word first here are five questions that we could ask just to help us evaluate fi rst is he first in my finances is he first I in my interests is he first are in my relationships is he first s in my schedule is he first T in my troubles and if we can say his first in my finances interests relationships schedule troubles then that's a good sign he's first that can and dad thank you very much hi I'm Jay John I support compassion and compassion supports facing the Canon please enjoy the film changing the world begins with a child this is Moses he lives with his foster mother Mary she found him left for dead as a newborn baby on a garbage dump his life is very different today as he now receives support from a compassion project in a local church compassion offers each child they serve the opportunity to learn about Jesus and receive regular Christian training educational opportunities and help health care hygiene training and supplementary food where needed together all this empowers Moses to take his place in the church and the community and to show others the way to break the cycle of poverty it takes just 21 pounds a month to change the story for a child like Moses if you want to change the world it begins with a child it begins with you and it can begin now you you

Channel: Facing the Canon

Views: 53,704

Rating: 4.8945055 out of 5

Keywords: facing the canon, j.john, interview, jjohn, j john, philo trust, philo, trust, christianity, Jesus, Lord, God, Holy Spirit, michael john, son, j.john's son

Id: 4oaljzJ-Jas

Length: 58min 48sec (3528 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 14 2014