Billy Graham

Today's news of the passing into glory of Billy Graham reminds me of the great debt I owe to his ministry.  It has come in the form of people whose lives were changed during his London evangelistic meetings, several of whom have been key leaders in churches I have served.

Not so long after arriving in the (now) London Borough of Haringey, I had reason to travel to the old site of his 1950s Haringay Arena  meetings.  It is now a retail park.  You may not find the Lord there but you will find plenty of casual workers waiting for vans to pick them up for another illegal (?) day's work.  It was a stark reminder that times move on.

Sixty plus years later secular and social pressures would make such an evangelist and such an event very difficult to keep on its intended track of winning souls for Christ.  Mind you, the harshest things I have seen written about Billy Graham and/or his ministry have been written by (alleged) Christians and it is unlikely that any contemporary internet troll could come up with anything any more vitriolic.

Billy Graham diligently rose above all such political and theological spewing anger and simply preached Christ.  Was he always infallibly true?  Of course not.  Did he point people toward the One who is?  Of course he did.

It is easy to complain about a signpost.  It's worded incorrectly, it has spray paint on, it should be positioned differently, the typeface is ugly, the colour is wrong.  In the end, if it points uncounted numbers of people to the right destination - that is a good signpost.

And when it is gone, it will be missed unless it is replaced.

And today we miss Billy Graham.

“Someday you will read or hear that Billy Graham is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it. I shall be more alive than I am now. I will just have changed my address. I will have gone into the presence of God.” Billy Graham

Two Months back in London

So, what's been new about being back in London, two months on?

Here's five things:

1. Akee and Saltfish for breakfast

This was a first for me:  there are other ways to get it such as flying to Jamaica where it is a National Dish but one of the beauties of London is that the world comes to you instead of having to travel the world.  Akee and Saltfish was on offer at one of our local church's Prayer Breakfasts and it's very nice (as long as, like me, you like fish!).  Well, didn't Jesus serve fish for breakfast by Galilee?

 

2. Flight Tracking

Ah yes; not only can you sit in the garden watching the planes overhead approaching Heathrow - these days you can use the FlightRadar app to identify every passing plane and its flight route.  A dangerously addictive practice on a warm summer morning.

 

3. M25 monitoring
Of course there are apps to do this but our bedroom window works as well even though we are miles inside the motorway.  It's quite complicated but here goes:

a) When the northern section of the M25 Motorway is badly congested - especially in the rush hour if there is an accident, the traffic tries to get round London on the next best road, the North Circular. 

b) The North Circular is too busy in its own right, but especially so a mile north of where we live where it both narrows and (after being like a motorway) suddenly requires a right turn at some traffic signals.  Not good.  Very not good when there is extra traffic.

c) The extra traffic tries to avoid this gridlock by using two roads that are even nearer our house.  These roads in turn have traffic lights and are usually congested.  Now they are mega-congested.

d) To try to make some progress some more enterprising cars and vans try using nearby streets to at least get 10 or 20 vehicles ahead in the new gridlock. 

So when our usually quiet street suddenly has several cars using it, it is as good as certain that miles away there is a problem on the M25 . . .

4. Instant Recycling by White Van
The day we moved into our house there was a broken washing machine to throw away.  Everywhere else I've lived disposal of this would require spending money for the local council to take it away or finding a generous-hearted friend with a pickup truck or trailer.  We were advised to simply put it on the pavement (sidewalk).

Within an hour a van passed by, then stopped, and a man asked, "Can I take that?".  It was in the van in seconds and gone.  Whenever you walk up a residential street there seems to be something outside to be taken - this morning a fireplace up the street.  Later on it is always gone!

5. Council Plums
Granted this is a suburb thing, but it is fairly amazing to me that some of the trees in the streets near us are plum trees.  You have to negotiate squished ones on the pavement but also you can take unsquished one home to eat!  Thank you, Haringey Council!