some new ice cream tubs

hmmm... how best to express this?

Imagine for me that you're tucking into a tub of Ben and Jerry's chocolate ice cream (the flavour is not diegetic to the story). You're enjoying the chocolate and you know you're a long way from finishing it. In fact, it's a never ending pot of icecream. The more you eat, the bigger it gets and the more delicious.

whilst your saliva pours, and your waist line is ever expanding, someone comes and offers you a tub of strawberry icecream. There's no cost, you're free to eat and you're free to eat both. What do you do? well, naturally (and again this isn't about what flavour is best) you decide to eat some of the strawberry too. Now you're in heaven. you have two pots of never ending, delicious ice cream.

Ok, it's a very poor analogy but it's a little how I'm feeling. Like someone has offered me a new pot of icecream, one that I've never really investigated or dug into. Since moving to London I've been going to a church that gives active forum for the practice of spiritual gifts. And becoming more so. Similarly, the CU also is open to the such like. The last couple fo years I've been sitting staring at the strawberry pot of icecream, more or less (and I'm still working all the theology out in my mind today) believing that I wasn't seeing a mirage, that the strawberry icecream does exist but not having the opportunity or nerve to pull off the lid and discover how it might taste. Until more recently.

Seeing power in other people's lives and reading over and over again 'the same POWER that raised Chrit form the dead is at work WITHIN YOU,' (I paraphrase) got me thinking. And calling on God to reveal his power and his glory. Not that I might be prasied but that through me he might be. Especially in the CU context and wthin church. I guess being persident of the CU has given me a hunger to see great things and the burden of responisbility makes me beg God for him to work in power. And I've seen a few things happening.

But the question arises, why do we not see more of this? So Sunday was pentecost and so church focused on the Holy Spirit. The disciples were told to go to Jersualem and WAIT for the Holy Spirit. They waited, praying (fasting?) for 11 days. And then the Spirit came. Is the key in the waiting? I know I'm too busy rushing onto the next thing, I read my Bible (that's the chocolate tub of icecream) and pray but how often do I wait, just abiding, listening to what God has to say and asking for his spirit to fill me again. being open and not putting God in a box, allowing him to work in me in anyway. Accepting that there maybe a new tub of icecream to start chewing.

So I don't know, the analogy isn't very good and it falls apart with any serious application of theology but I feel that I'm just beginning to dig into the strawberry icecream and finding exciting new treasures and expereinces (uh oh, it's that word) and a power that's beginning to work in and through me in a way I haven't seen before. bring it on...