Jesus Life 87 - Jesus Army

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wryly, “Something definitely does not resonate
as well – I don’t like the old rigid, structured set
up they had. But reading their stuff is like reading
the exploits of some explorer; you think ‘I want to
go where they went’, because the place they are
describing sounds almost mythical.”
Whose way of living was Wilf particularly attracted
to?
“Francis of Assisi, St John of the Cross, John
of Ruysbroeck...” His interest in Ruysbroeck, a
little known 14th Century Flemish mystic, was
initially inspired by the title of one of his books:
The Adornment of the Spiritual Marriage. “The
title sounded like a pretentious progressive
rock album,” grins Wilf, “just like the ones I
used to listen to! John of Ruysbroeck is just
completely far out really – unintelligible to the
modern ear! But, reading him, I felt, ‘This bloke
has gone somewhere, he’s got somewhere, he’s
found something in God and I want it.’ You
cannot help but be attracted.
“What John seemed to be talking about was
very simple, a relationship with God that went beyond
all that we do that identifies us as Christians
– the prayer, the bible reading, the sacraments.
The activity we do is all part of it, but the real
thing is something invisible; you can’t pin it down
to any of those things.
“I have found a very real, simple contentment
in following Jesus. I get distracted, can’t pray for
very long without thinking of something else – I
have a messy mind – but beyond all that is a
simple walk with Jesus.”
Wilf describes his ministry in the church as an
“axle” ministry, meaning he’s in the middle of
things, enabling the whole to work properly, and
engaging people in what they should be doing.
Others call him an intercessor – but he doesn’t
think he fits the bill. (He does, however, admit to
praying a lot.)
Being a pastor to many people means he has
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