Selah2020: Pause and Reflect

[This reflection by Helen Ruffhead was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 21/Jan/2024]

Recently we were asked in church which famous person we would most like to meet. I said Josephine Butler, whom most people have never heard of but I see as my greatest role model, after Jesus.

Josephine and her husband George, a clergyman, lived in Victorian times. Like Jesus, both of them cared deeply for those on the margins of society. Josephine visited women in the local workhouse and actually sat down and picked oakum with them, even though it was horrible work that took the skin off your fingers. As they worked together, they became friends and she was able to share the gospel with them.

Josephine and her husband cared for a number of so-called fallen women in their own home, including a prostitute dying of consumption and venereal disease. On her arrival, instead of sneaking her in by the servant’s entrance they took her to the front door and George escorted her up the steps. Following the example of Jesus, George treated this most despised woman with dignity and honour.

Josephine was particularly outraged by the double standards of Victorian society that branded women as “fallen”, while men were excused their moral lapses. In 1864 the Contagious Diseases Act was passed, which gave police the right to arrest any woman, on the mere suspicion that she might be a prostitute and subject her to a brutal physical examination. With the full support of her husband and sons, even though they knew that their careers would suffer and that they would be a laughing stock, Josephine campaigned to abolish this law. During her campaign, Josephine faced insults, extreme hostility and death threats. Just as Jesus had found, mixing with outcasts, exposing hypocrisy and challenging the authorities aroused fierce hatred. Society was outraged that she was talking about things that a lady should not even know exist, but she carried on for 17 years until at last the law was repealed.

Josephine also joined the campaign for the raising of the age of consent from 13 to 16, to protect young girls who were being forced or tricked into prostitution.

I see Josephine Butler as a great feminist in the best sense, not fighting for her own rights but helping her less fortunate sisters, speaking up for them and treating them with compassion and honour, just as Jesus did.

Resources:

Bible quotations: Unless otherwise specified, quotations are taken from the resources of Bible Gateway or Bible Hub, in accordance with the licencing conditions outlined on our Site Policies page.

Bible dates: Where appropriate, the dates given for Biblical events are based on the Bible Timeline resource
and are subject to the constraints defined on the corresponding webpage.

[This reflection by Dazz Jones was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 14/Jan/2024]

I don’t know about you but in the hustle and bustle of daily life, I find it’s not long before I begin to feel a little disconnected from God. However, the heartening and unchanging truth is that each one of us has the extraordinary opportunity to know Jesus personally and engage in heartfelt conversations with God every single day!

The very heart of the good news is the idea that we are not merely spectators in a distant relationship with ‘God on high’, but that we are his adopted children! So we are invited into an intimate and personal connection with Jesus. The writers of the Bible remind us that He is not a distant figure but a friend who walks beside us, understanding our joy, sorrow, and everything in between.

In prayer, we open a direct line of communication with Him, the Saviour and one through whom the universe was created. It’s an incredible opportunity to be able to open up our thoughts, concerns and feelings and invite Jesus in. In those moments of prayer, we can experience the profound reality of a God who listens, cares, and responds. It can be a transformative experience that changes our lives. It would empower us to face challenges with faith, find comfort in times of despair, and celebrate the blessings that surround us.

I am reminded by the Essential Jesus reading for Sunday 14th Jan, (which is the account of the temple being built and the people of God celebrating!) that being able to ‘commune with God’ is something I may just take for granted sometimes. The people of God were so excited to finally have a place to meet God in that they sacrificed so many of their livestock that the people forgot to count them. I wonder if the equivalent would be something like us giving away our homes, cars or life savings to charity in God’s name (I’m just guessing here … ) but I don’t know if I’ve ever felt excited enough to even approach that level of excitement.

As we move forward this year may God remind us that we are welcome to know Him and encourage us to pursue that goal with great gusto!

Are you joining us for the Essential Jesus reading plan? If you‘d like to you can do so here.

Resources:

Bible quotations: Unless otherwise specified, quotations are taken from the resources of Bible Gateway or Bible Hub, in accordance with the licencing conditions outlined on our Site Policies page.

Bible dates: Where appropriate, the dates given for Biblical events are based on the Bible Timeline resource
and are subject to the constraints defined on the corresponding webpage.

[This reflection by Dazz Jones was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 07/Jan/2024]

I’ve found it helpful to have that extra reason and accountability to get into God’s word and its been really fun so far to be following the theme of looking at Jesus.

I hope some of you might be discovering things about Him for the first time! Or that like me, if you’ve been reading the bible for what feels like “a long time” which can make it difficult to find ‘new’ things that we’ll be reminded of something we’ve forgotten or be reminded of things we’ve become too familiar with.

The struggle with the Bible being as old as it is, means that sometimes it’s hard to contextualise the stories to our own lives as it can feel a bit detached from our current reality. The thing I’m particularly enjoying at the moment is the reminder that Jesus was a real human being. Now, I don’t think I’d forgotten that fact, but I do feel particularly aware of it at the moment, as we read about Him specifically and as we look forward to reading more about His interactions with people.

The truth that he was a living breathing human being with thoughts, feelings and opinions about things is really significant for me right now. When I feel anxious, I can know that Jesus felt that too, if I feel excited he can relate to that. When people frustrate me or intrigue me and I read about Jesus interacting with people, I know that he would have been having thoughts, feelings and opinions about them too. Yet he always chooses to show people love and compassion; I get the impression that He would always find the best in anyone and pursue that wholeheartedly.

As difficult as that can be I think it’s the greatest of goals. Jesus asked us simply to Love God and Love others, and I think one of the best ways we can Love God is by loving others. Jesus showed us the way whilst he lived here among us and I’m excited to rediscover the significance of his living, breathing example over these next 90(ish) days.

Resources:

Bible quotations: Unless otherwise specified, quotations are taken from the resources of Bible Gateway or Bible Hub, in accordance with the licencing conditions outlined on our Site Policies page.

Bible dates: Where appropriate, the dates given for Biblical events are based on the Bible Timeline resource
and are subject to the constraints defined on the corresponding webpage.