By Jeff Fountain, Evangelical Focus. (Photo: Nicolas Ruiz/Unsplash)
Despite widespread rejection of Christianity, the gospel had continued to influence the European integration project, the fall of communism and Ukraine’s current struggle for freedom.
A tiny acorn, a retreat weekend in Norway, the papal visit to France and a dialogue in the European Parliament in Brussels wove for me this week a deep lesson on the renewal of Europe.
Last weekend I found myself among more lawyers, judges and magistrates than ever before in my life. I had been invited by a former YWAMer (Martin Franke above) to address an international Christian lawyers’ conference in Austria.
My topic was ‘the Gospel and the making of Europe – past, present and future’.
On the conference’s opening evening, Martin introduced the theme of Oaks of Righteousness by giving every participant a little acorn. Everything necessary for an oak to grow was already contained within the acorn, he explained.
Yet while the tiny acorn itself looked nothing like the oak it could become, it was highly potent for something enormous, strong, spreading and majestic.
We then read from Isaiah 61, the passage Jesus had read out loud in the synagogue, in which released captives would become oaks of righteousness to display God’s glory. ‘They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.’
My thoughts had immediately gone to the prior weekend in Norway when my wife and I had joined others from our annual Caleb Forum of former YWAM leaders.
We had agreed to share and record stories of the beginnings of YWAM in Europe. Loren Cunningham had recruited most of us – yes, like tiny acorns, I began to muse – from two small circles.