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What Is Man On Father’s Day?
June 19, 2011 – Rev. Ed Hird

 

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Is Anyone Thirsty?
June 12, 2011 – Rev. Ed Hird

-an excerpt from my June 12^th sermon ‘I am Thirsty’ from John 7

“….I come from a long line of Irish Brewer owners, some of whom liked the product too much. Vancouver has a drinking problem that it does not want to face. Hockey culture tends to normalize alcohol abuse and violence for our younger generation “…I was coming back from the airport on SkyTrain. There were a 100,000 other Canucks fans going one way or the other. They were excited. Thousands of exuberant and mostly well-behaved fans.  Surrounding the streets were full of swaggering young men. The Vancouver Province wrote about the police  doing liquour ‘tip-outs’ for 891 fans. A lot of these young men were very pumped and it wasn’t the Holy Spirit. It was other ‘spirits’, and they were mostly having a good time. They were on the edge, as they chanted on the Seabus ‘We want the cup, we want the cup, we want the cup!!’ They were getting angry at people that were not cheering with them. I could sense violence, that it has that potential. That is one of the reasons that I prayed that the Canucks will win…just to avoid these grumpy Canucks fans going violent or worse.  The Bible says in Ephesians 5:18 “Don’t be drunk with wine which leads to dissipation and disintegration, but instead be filled with the Holy Spirit.’

 

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It Is Not For You To Know
June 5, 2011 – Rev. Ed Hird

 

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Do You Love Me?
March 29, 2011 – Bishop Frank Lyon

 

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Show Us The Father
May 22, 2011 – Rev. Ed Hird

 

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A six-week series on the importance of Home Groups:

Know Ye Not You Are The Temple
1 Corinthians 3:10-23

February 20, 2011 – Rev Ed Hird

 

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God Gives The Increase
1 Corinthians 3:1-9

February 13, 2011 – Rev Ed Hird

 

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Nothing But Jesus Christ and Him Crucified
1 Corinthians 2:1-16

February 6, 2011 – Rev Ed Hird

 

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The Weakness and Foolishness of God
1 Corinthians 1:18–31

January 30, 2011 – Rev Ed Hird

 

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Say No To Division
1 Corinthians 1:10–18

January 23, 2011 – Rev Ed Hird

 

I’m On Aslan’s Side

By Rev Ed Hird

There is a renewed attention these days to CS Lewis’  fascinating Aslan character.  What is it about Aslan the Lion that even outdrew the mighty King Kong at the box office?  Why is Aslan so effective in breaking through our adult pessimism and negativity?

One of the most interesting Narnia creatures is the Marshwiggle, a symbol of negativity, pessimism, and reliable gloom.  In the Narnia Chronicles’ ‘Silver Chair’, the Green Witch says to the Narnians: “Put away these childish tricks.  I have work for you in the real world. There is no Narnia, no overworld, no sky, no sun, no Aslan.”  The Marshwiggle remarkably responds by affirming: “I ‘m on Aslan’s side even if there isn’t any Aslan to lead it.  I’m going to live as like a Narnian as I can, even if there isn’t any Narnia.”

It is easy to be cynical and bitter.  It took courage for the Marshwiggle to look past his natural negativity and cling to the promises of Aslan.  The Narnia Chronicles have been teaching me once again that only the childlike can enter the Kingdom of Narnia.  Even the Lion of Judah once said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matthew 18:3)

There is a major difference between being childish and childlike.  The Narnia Chronicles comments that “even in this world, of course, it is the stupidest children who are the most childish and the stupidest grownups who are the most grown-up.” The famous ‘love chapter’ of 1 Corinthians 13 encourages us ‘to put away childish things’ As the Pevensie children journeyed throughout their Narnia adventures, they became less childish and more mature both in outward appearance and inner character.  Yet simultaneously they became more childlike in their willingness to trust and admit their need for others, especially their need for Aslan.  In the Narnia blockbuster ‘The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe’, the children cry out ‘Aslan, I need your help’, to which Aslan responds “I know, but the future of Narnia depends on your courage.”  Only the truly childlike can be truly courageous.  If we depend on our own strength alone, life tends to sap us of our inner fortitude.

It takes real courage to admit how tough and sad life can sometimes be.  Only the truly childlike know how important it is to weep and grieve from time to time.  At the death of the Narnian King Caspian, “all three stood and wept. Even (Aslan) the Lion wept: great lion tears, each tear more precious than the earth would be if it was a single diamond.”  Childlike tears can be deeply healing. That is why Jesus said: “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.” That is why the shortest sentence in the entire bible is ‘Jesus wept’.  The Good Book poignantly says that Aslan puts every one of our tears in a bottle.

Perhaps most importantly, only the childlike can truly hear Aslan’s voice.  Aslan said to Polly regarding Uncle Andrew in ‘The Magician and His Nephew’: “He has made himself unable to hear my voice. If I spoke to him, he would only hear growlings and roarings.  Oh Adam’s sons, how cleverly you defend yourselves against all that might do you good.”  Aslan says to each of us: “Come farther in. Come farther up.  Come to the real land of Narnia, the land you have been looking for all your life.” Let Aslan give you ‘the wild kisses of a Lion’.  Let Aslan bring you to life as you walk with childlike faith through the Wardrobe.

The Rev. Ed Hird

Rector, St. Simon’s Church North Vancouver 

Anglican Mission in the Americas (Canada)

http://stsimonschurch.ca

-previously published in the North Shore News

-award-winning author of the book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada’

http://www.battleforthesoulofcanada.blogspot.com

p.s. In order to obtain a copy of the book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada’, please send a $18.50 cheque to ‘Ed Hird’, #1008-555 West 28th Street, North Vancouver, BC V7N 2J7. For mailing the book to the USA, please send $20.00 USD.  This can also be done by PAYPAL using the e-mail ed_hird@telus.net . Be sure to list your mailing address. The Battle for the Soul of Canada e-book can be obtained for $9.99 CDN/USD.

-Click to download a complimentary PDF copy of the Battle for the Soul study guide :  Seeking God’s Solution for a Spirit-Filled Canada

You can also download the complimentary Leader’s Guide PDF: Battle for the Soul Leaders Guide