Monthly Message
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“ YOUR WAYS ARE NOT MY WAYS” (GOD) “Christmas is over …. the turkey’s made us fat …. please put a ten-pence in the old man’s hat ….”. Well… much of our life seems to involve coping with change, even if it’s the amount of change we occasionally toss towards those less fortunate than ourselves.
The image of the stubborn joiner and building contractor, Sam Oglethwaite, from Stanley Holloway’s humorous monologue, “Three Ha’pence a Foot” - with his chin just above the swollen River Orwell; still arguing with an elderly Noah about the price of timber for his Ark – springs to mind. The Old Testament’s Book of Job tells us that “… people are born to trouble …”. Job is the story of an honest man who suffered terribly and struggles to understand what is happening to him and why. The view taken by his mates is that if you suffer, you must have done something wrong (a common belief in biblical times) - although, happily, this is not an argument accepted by Job himself. Christians, of course, become familiar with the suffering of one who had done no wrong. Like most of us, he turned to God when the “chips were down” and sought an answer to his misfortune. Unlike most of us, he also turned to God frequently when things were going quite well . A lesson for us there, then. The past year will have presented many of us with trials, great and small - examples in our own lives of “Sod’s Law” - tests of our faith, I suppose. These can range from the shadow cast by the economic downturn, trying to understand why toast always falls marmalade side down, why Leeds United does not head the League table, to much more anxious moments, perhaps involving major changes in our lives or coping with the threat of serious illness. Perhaps we can begin to get things into perspective, when we accept that - Rule 1 - Sod’s Law wins out against all of us in the end ; death is a great ‘leveller‘. A comforting truth, however, is that faith is stronger than Sod’s Law. Perhaps we need to trust a little more and ask “ … how can I make something out of this mess …?”. Most folk I have known who’ve followed their faith have not been made foolish by it. It’s probably something to do with being given, in return, an inner contentment, a Comforter.
Casting my eyes over what I’ve been writing, I realize that I may, just may, be sounding a little bit grumpy. Why? What reason can I possibly have to be grumpy? When I see all the folk around the world wondering where their next meal is coming from or being oppressed by ruthless tyrannical regimes. And I didn’t have to spend Christmas Eve in a cardboard box in someone else’s doorway, did I? Not long ago, I was thinking about Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem, a journey they didn’t expect to take to a place they didn’t expect to find themselves visiting. How often do we find ourselves doing just that, even if it’s when we contend with illness or the illness of those near and dear? Then there were those wise men, also being surprised where they discovered God; and they were supposed to be used to having the answers. No faulty Sat-Navs in evidence in that story, although it is said they glanced upward from time to time at the stars. Nothing written though about them grumbling. I’ve become conscious of my attitude being observed. A feeling that God is on the touchline, watching my ‘game’ and he’s beginning to jot in his note-pad. I hope that He has not made a note of the complaining remarks I made a short while ago. I suppose he’s going to call me over again and explain that his Son doesn’t go around chuntering and grumbling. Well, his thoughts are probably not my thoughts anyway. But I wish my ways could be more like his ways – for just some of the time. New Year resolution, if a bit late – I must try and find God in the unexpected places; learn more about his ways. Reflect more on why my faith is so important to me. What’s that in his hand – oh no, not a yellow card! Article by Graham Pharo |
As I write this, rain is lashing the window pane on a windy afternoon in late December. I’ve just had through the letterbox a copy of the Environment Agency’s “Charlton Flood Alleviation Scheme” update for December. I applaud the work of those actively engaged locally in helping to safeguard village homes. Love for neighbour in action, which thankfully so many in our village communities show irrespective of whether they grace the threshold of a church.
The rain has stopped. I peer outside to see if there are any daffodil shoots breaking through; signs of Spring around the corner, bringing their own resurrection. Yes, there they are – tiny shoots of green. A horse is leaning over our fence to help itself to some crab apples whilst a blackbird awaits its turn.