It was September 2000 and the Urban Saints staff team were brainstorming a range of ideas to raise the profile of the movement.
“We could all be sponsored to have our heads shaved” suggested Linda Jones, my PA.
The thought terrified me and I was quick to say no. I quite like my hair!
However, the idea would not die (!) and thanks to Linda’s persistence we agreed that we would go for a world record Head Shaving attempt in February 2001. The event would take place in the Harlequin Centre, Watford and we would aim to shave 100 heads – breaking the existing world record by 14 heads.
Two weeks before the main event we only had 35 people willing to part with their locks (including me!). Things weren’t looking optimistic. Should we cancel? No way – we felt that God had put everything in place for a special event and we knew that we now had to leave this big, crazy dream with Him. 2 days before the event and we still had just over 60. Worth the risk? Yes! I genuinely sensed that God had promised me that we wouldn’t be ashamed or embarrassed.
The day arrived and, against all odds, it was totally awesome. The atmosphere in the Harlequin Centre was electric. Local shops got involved by offering free cookies and coffee to those who took the plunge! We got to share with hundreds of people from the general public – AND 154 heads were shaved! The profile of Urban Saints was very positively raised – we even had a feature on BBC Newsround at the prime time 5:30pm slot – and we raised thousands of pounds for the ministry too.
It would have been so easy to cancel, but we had ‘just enough’ faith to hold on – to embrace risk – and I’m so glad we did.
It’s a fairly trivial example but it poses a great question. What’s your next faith risk? What opportunities are you creating for God to do immeasurably more than you can ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20)?
In the words of author John Ortberg, you can only walk on water if you’re prepared to get out of the boat.
May God give you wisdom to know the faith risks He’s asking you to take. May He give you courage to DO IT. May you know His favour as you say YES to Him.
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