Fire in our hearts - The Jesus Army

FIRE IN OUR HEARTSCOMMUNICATE!sonal identity. Some left the church outright but a numberreturned after tasting what the world had to offer. But whetherthey stayed or not, all needed their own experience of Jesus.Twenty years had flown by since Noel and his friends hadpatiently won the hearts of people like Rufus and Jess, sittingwhere they sat — on orange boxes, drinking herbal tea andjust listening. Noel and Rufus now found themselves in a similarsituation with two of our teenage ‘rebels’.Nathan and Phil were both sons of Fellowship leaders. Nathan’sparents had joined our Oxford group in the early 70s.They were gripped with the vision of Christian communityand had left everything to follow it. Now, as a large family,they all lived at King’s House in the Warwickshire countryside.Nathan was 16 and making friends at sixth form college inRugby. A group of them had a good scene together and wouldoften meet up, chatting late into the night, playing reggaeand smoking dope. The brotherhood appealed to Nathan.There he could relax, be himself and do his own thing.Phil, who lived in our Nottingham house and attended dramaschool, was on a similar journey, experimenting and ‘findinghimself — often at all-night raves and parties, sleeping onfloors and returning home as little as possible.Nathan and Phil compared notes and smoked hash together.Nathan was the more emotional and keenly felt the conflictthat was raging within. ‘What’s happening to me?’ he askedhimself. ‘I love God and the church, so why am I going off therails like this ? Why do I want this scene ?’After one meeting Noel encouraged him:‘Nathan, you’re going to be a real man of God.’354