Selah2020: Pause and Reflect

[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 27/Dec/2020]

We are in the middle of the season when Jesus came and made his home among us; his arrival was to a place rather different to what he had previously known. From the ‘heavenly realms’ to a messy stable, in an obscure town, to which his parents had travelled at the command of an invading overlord.

However, perhaps home is not actually a place? Last week my dad’s bungalow was sold, and the site of over forty years of family history and memories is no longer a part of our lives. But Dad is not there any more, and those memories live on in us, his family. It is the feelings that remain with us, and bring comfort, and joy.

Margaret Thatcher once said, ‘Home is where you go when you’ve nowhere else to go’, and many took it as a derogatory comment about the significance of home to her. But what she meant was that when your world falls apart, and everything by which you measure your significance has failed, home should be the place you can go to for refuge; secure in the knowledge that there you have value and are safe. When his world had fallen apart, despite all his appalling treatment of his father, the ‘Prodigal Son’ knew the only place left to go was home.

Over the last few months, we have had very little access to the church building, and to many of our congregation going back into the building will feel like coming home. But have we always been at home when we have taken shelter under God’s wings? Jill Rowe from Oasis once quoted ‘in the end we’re all just walking each other Home’ –perhaps we can make people in our town feel ‘at home’ not by bringing them to a building, but by how they feel in our presence, as we try to show Jesus to them. A quote attributed to Francis of Assisi says, ‘Preach the Gospel at all times – if necessary, use words.’ And Maya Angelou said, ‘I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel’.

So maybe home is when we bring a little bit of God’s Kingdom to our frontlines? That the people we meet will understand that they are loved unconditionally by God, because of the way we make them feel. That they will feel they have come home, as part of the family of God?

“From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help when my heart is overwhelmed. lead me to the towering rock of safety, for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings!”
[Psalm 61 vv 2-4. NLT Anglicised]

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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 10/May/2020]

“Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16 v 7

This Easter day just gone, I had a real desire to go to a sunrise service, to watch the sun come up and worship Jesus, so we set our alarm for 5.40, got dressed and set out to worship Jesus on Court Lodge field. My whole intention was to stand in the middle of the field and sing with all our hearts the old familiar Easter hymns I learnt as a child but all I could remember were the titles and not the actual words of each verse, added to which Dennis kept talking.

We walked along by the river which was litter free and the sound of the water babbling and the birds singing was beautiful. A mist was covering the whole field which almost seemed like God’s presence was covering the surrounding area. This was Court Lodge where we have prayer-walked and asked God to come in power.

We came back, drew faces on eggs, I used the wrong pen so when they came out of the pan after being boiled, the faces had disappeared. Judith said to me some years ago the verse over my head was, “ it takes the foolish things of the world to confound the wise” 1 Corinthians 1 v 27. That morning to some people may have seemed like the most foolish thing that anyone could ever do, a disaster, in fact.

It all was very simple, but Jesus met with us and believe it or not we’ll never forget the day we celebrated Easter in the middle of the Corona Virus 2020. It just proves that He is risen, He is risen indeed. Roll on Pentecost – looking forward to the fullness of His Holy Spirit and what Jesus will do then.
Every blessing
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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 03/May/2020]

Why do we worry?
It is such a horrible feeling and is clearly forbidden in the Bible, yet most of us do it. For many of us it starts off as a survival strategy. Those of us whose brains are affected by autism (like me) or childhood trauma often find that unexpected change temporarily freezes the brain, causing a response of sheer panic. Only by anticipating things that might happen can you prepare for them and cope when they arise. This can lead to sensible precautions like making a will, having a pot of money for emergencies or taking a spare pair of glasses on holiday, but once we have done this we need to let go of the worries, which is much easier said than done.

One thing I expect most of us never worried about was a new global virus, although it has resulted in things many of us feared, like sickness, financial insecurity, or the strain of caring for our children with no respite. The closure of all churches and being forbidden to meet friends is also the stuff of nightmares. Yet we can be thankful that these are not the actions of a brutal dictator but are safety measures designed to protect us from harm. When King David incurred God’s anger by taking a census of his fighting men, God gave him a choice of 3 punishments, famine, war or plague. David chose the plague saying: “Let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men.” (1 Chronicles 21 v 13)

Recently I felt God was asking me why I find it so hard to trust him, even though I know he loves me more than my friends do and more even than my mother did. My answer was “Your love is scary because it is so tough. You loved Jesus, but still allowed him and many of his followers to go through unimaginable suffering. My mother would never allow me to go through any suffering if she could prevent it.” I then remembered a time when I wish she had shown me tough love. The dentist recommended that I had 2 teeth out and a brace fitted to straighten my front teeth. I was so frightened of having teeth out that my mother agreed to leave them as they were, sparing me a small amount of pain but a giving me a lifetime of crooked teeth and an impaired bite. Looking back, I am thankful for the times when God has shown me tough love in the past, even though I struggled at the time, just as 6 year old Michael struggled with me when I gave him life-saving insulin injections.

Jesus said: “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16 v 33.
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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 15/Mar/2020]

“A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed.”

Job 14:5 NIV – God determines how long I will live.

Working in the NHS at this time it is very easy to become paranoid that every patient I come into contact with has coronavirus and to wash my hands raw. It is easy to become fearful each time I hear a cough. This is exacerbated when I read a newspaper or watch the news. There is a conflict with in me – do I go the way of the world and live in fear or do I have faith in God that He determines my days?

Many are praying Psalm 91 at this time:

“I will say of the Lord , ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’ Surely he
will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.”

Psalm 91:2-3, 7 NIV.

Of course I am praying that this disease will stop and praying protection from it for those I love. However, can I really expect that I will not be touched by this virus, that no-one I know will be ill or worse still, die? Is that how it works? That I can I hold onto these verses as a talisman and claim protection? It didn’t work against having miscarriages or against cancer or against heart disease or against dementia, all of which have touched my life or the lives of those around me.

However, what I can say is that God has been with me through all these times and He has sustained me. That He will be with me and you through this time and He will sustain us if we hold fast to Him. The verses I do hold on to are:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God
will be with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9 – God is with us.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling.”

Psalms 46:1 – 3 NKJV – God is present with us IN our troubles.

“I heard and my whole inner self trembled; My lips quivered at the sound. Decay and rottenness enter my bones, and I tremble in my place. Because I must wait quietly for the day of distress, for the people (or virus) to arise who will invade and attack us. Though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, though the yield of the olive fails and the fields produce no food, though the flock is cut off from the fold and there are no cattle in the stalls. Yet I will [choose to] rejoice in the Lord; I will [choose to] shout in exultation in the [victorious] God of my salvation!”

Habakkuk 3:16 – 18 AMP.
And like Habakkuk, I will choose to rejoice in the Lord, whatever happens.

And, of course, I will still wash my hands!

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[This reflection was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 08/Mar/2020]

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody.
There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realised that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have.

This story is relevant to most churches, where there are numerous jobs to be done and not enough volunteers. Usually there are a few very committed people who will fill the gaps by taking on far more than they should, but they can become burnt out or resentful of those who do nothing. Their children (and spouses) can also resent the time they devote to church activities, as I remember all too well. My father was deacon and organist and my mother taught Sunday school every single week for 35 years, as well as both of them taking on numerous other church jobs. When my sister was small she made a house of bricks and said “That’s church, where Daddy lives.”

Of course, some people have very little free time due to work and caring responsibilities, while others have health problems. Yet I believe the story of the widow’s mite applies to our time as much as our money. A very busy person may only be able to take on one small job, like helping in a children’s group once a month or joining the rota for teas and coffees or putting out chairs or giving lifts to church, but God will bless the little we can offer, just as he blessed the boy’s offering of his lunch and used it to feed 5,000.

If someone is feeling overburdened, perhaps the time has come to lay down a task, even if there is no-one else to do it. Sometimes it is right for things to come to an end. Jesus said “My yoke is easy and my burden is light” Matthew 11 v 30.

Jesus also said “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Matthew 9 v 37, 38. As we pray that prayer may we be willing to be part of the answer.
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