This evening I had a great time with my wife, Megan, and our two kids, at Newlands Cricket stadium in Cape Town. No, there was no cricket match on that hallowed ground. Rather, we had gathered with thousands of other South Africans (I would guess about 20 000 or so) to be challenged by 'uncle' Angus Buchan, the potato farmer from KwaZulu Natal.
The event itself was superb - it was well organised, there was a wonderful spirit of optimism and Christian love throughout the sports field (even the gridlocked traffic to get to the stadium was quite pleasant!) From the pictures in this post you'll see that the stadium was quite full! There were almost no empty seats on the stands and the lawn, there were however a few unused corporate boxes.
We had the privilege of sitting in the Power Box, which helped a great deal since the wind was freezing!
The evening was opened with a welcome from my friend Graham Power, and then a great music team lead the gathering in worship. The worship could have fit into just about any congregation in South Africa. There was a healthy mix of languages, some hymns, some choruses, and good music interspersed with prayer. What I enjoyed about this evening, and also commented on when we were at the Mighty Men of God conference earlier this year, was that this was 'ordinary' worship. What I mean by this is that it is not a 40 piece band with a 200 member choir doing music of the quality that one is accustomed to hearing from a Hillsong CD. No, this was just straight forward, no performance, creating a place for persons to sing and pray about their love for their God and their hopes, dreams, and trust in the God with whom they are in relationship.
When Angus came up to speak he was his usual energetic self. His message was focused on spending time with God - he used the metaphor of a 'prayer closet' - he spoke of the Russian Orthodox custom of setting aside a specific place for prayer and devotion to God. The central emphasis of the message was to call his listeners to recenter their lives upon God who is the source of all that is loving, good, and life giving. Of course he used many of the familiar illustrations and stories for which he has become known, and he offered challenges to men, women, and young people, to honour God and bless one another. I am always surprised that a farmer would place such a strong emphasis upon racial harmony and reconciliation, and this evening was no different. Moreover, he touched upon the fact that his predominantly white and 'khoi' (so called 'coloured') audience should not be fearful and hopeless in the current political climate in South Africa. But rather that we should rise above the challenge and adversity of these situations to work and pray for a better South Africa for all her citizens.
I agree with some persons who have commented that Angus is radically evangelical, and that at times he exercises some interpretive license when using the Biblical text. I do believe, however, that he is sincere about his desire to know and love God fully, and to serve God's people with courage and grace. I have not always agreed with all of the statements and positions that Angus has put forward. However, I recognise the need for tolerance on my part, and acceptance of the good work that he is doing on his part. I would hope that when I make statements, or take up a position on a matter that others may struggle with, they would treat me in the same manner. It has been concerning for me to see the intolerance for his method and message among some whom I had considered much more open to varitey and plurality of position. I fear that if we become so rigid that we will only accept 'like minded' preaching and teaching, that we do a disservice to the Church and scoiety, and we betray our own fundamentalism and intollerance in the process.
The content of his message did not teach me anything new about the Christian faith. As he confessed, he is a simple person with a simple aim, namely evangelism. His passion and commitment to Christ is infectious and inspiring, however. If I think about him, Angus is a bit like the lumberjack who comes with a chainsaw and chops down a forest of trees. Others come and remove the branches and leaves, and still others will refine those trees and shape them to become something of grate value and use, like a toothpick, of a table, chair or something else. I did however, learn a few things about what the average person longs to hear and experience. Most persons want a simple straightforward message of challenge and encouragement. They want someone who encourages them to find and create hope in the midst of adverse circumstances. They want to relate to an ordinary person who has the courage to pray for the sick, to challenge their frailties and sin, and help them to move towards a transcendent solution.
Is this the kind of evening that I could grow through in my obedience and discipleship - yes, but not because I am learning new ideas or concepts, rather because I am encourage and challenged by others who choose to do so much more with a lot less training and input. But, I also recognise that this is a phenomenon. It is not something that will last forever. It will be remembered by many as a significant milestone on their journey, but they shall have to move on from this point.
I hope to be one of those who has grace enough to realise that when persons make a commitment to Christ, by whatever means, that I am privileged enough to disciple them for responsible, balanced, and God honouring living. I shall certainly follow up with the persons that I know who went to the event - and whatever 'response cards' get passed on to our organisation will be followed up with the same meticulous and loving care.
I am struggling to upload my pictures of the event... Please check back tomorrow to see if I was able to upload them.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008 at 4:17PM 
