Category: Thought for the week

Vicars always want everyone to believe they’re always available to do anything, anytime. But in private, they admit their guilt because they cannot possibly manage everything they want, or ought to do.
Life for everyone is full of choices about what we do. Each person is different. For some life is so demanding there’s little choice other than to do the next thing, while others don’t know how to fill their time. Trying to be there for everyone all the time means you can’t give proper attention to anyone. If you make a succession of important phone calls, someone will complain that your phone is always engaged! On the other hand, no one should ever feel that there is nothing useful to do – there is a world of people who need our help and attention.
For all of us, the balance is important. Work is required, but so too is time for re-creation. One of the most important gifts of the Jewish tradition is the Sabbath. In the story, even God rested on the 7th day after 6 days creating. But Sabbath rest is not about being selfishly lazy – it’s about letting everything else rest too. In the ancient world that included slaves, certainly it included work animals and even the land itself. This rest is not about being lazy – it’s about attending to what sustains our lives, especially to God. If we squeeze that out of our lives completely, in the end we may find there’s nothing left.

Canon Christopher Ivory

Time to Remember
There are times in our lives when we remember things that are important to ourselves and others, we remember our own birthdays and those of others. We remember when we passed our exams at school and how important they were for our path in life.
We remember when we had our 18th or 21st birthday, we were then old enough to be able to vote. We remember when we passed our driving test and we remember more sombre things like the dates when someone close to us has died.
A few weeks ago we remembered the men and women who died in our two world wars and the sacrifice they gave of their lives for our freedom.
As Christians we look forward to the season that is upon us very shortly, Christmas. We remember that it is the celebration of when Jesus was born and we also remember at this time that this event was all in God’s plan for His son to come to earth and live as a man.
It was also in God’s plan that Jesus should give His life for us so that when we put our trust in Him we can be forgiven for all our wrong doing and live a life with God in the mix to help in all circumstances in life. To be our guide in our lives and our comfort in hard times and rejoice with us in the good times.
In the book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible there is a passage declaring that there is a ‘Time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven’.
Is it time you gave God an opportunity to be in your life?
Barbara, Kings Lynn Christian Fellowship

‘ Come to me ‘. That is a familiar phrase to parents. How often have you said this to your
children ? ‘ Come to mummy / daddy ‘ ,either to comfort them when they are tired and upset,or for a cuddle. The child responds and comes to you, trusting and knowing that you love and care.

We all have expectations in our lives and life can be so stressful when we face challenges and demands. We may be going through a difficult time due to a crisis , perhaps the loss of a loved one , or loneliness . We feel so helpless don’t we ? Who do we turn to ? Yes , friends and relatives can be very supportive . Often this may not be the case for many of us.

In the Gospel of Matthew chapter 11 verse 28 , Jesus says , ” Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened , and I will give you rest . ”
The kind of rest Jesus is offering is His peace , a calmness in the midst of a storm – life ‘s storm, adding God’s grace and mercy.

In one of my favourite hymns , ‘What A friend we have In Jesus ‘( Joseph Scriven ) a verse goes ,

Are we weak and heavy -laden
Cumbered with a load of care
Jesus only is our refuge ,
Take it to the Lord in prayer .

When we go to Jesus He welcomes us with open arms.

Sundari Nagamuthu . King’s Lynn Christian Fellowship

A Message of hope
Our present generation differs so much from previous generations in the way of communication. A few decades ago we relied on the Royal Mail delivery service or we used landline telephones to contact people. How different it is today with so many choices in instant communication. We can use mobiles, email, texts, and social media sites to communicate whatever we want, whenever we want and to whoever we want. It also gives the freedom for others to
contact us if they have a message to send.
For any communication to be successfully delivered, the recipient must first open the message and then read it. You may be surprised to hear that someone beyond the limits of our world has been communicating with people throughout every generation for thousands of years. So how easy is it to receive this communication and to understand it? The message is from God and is about a free gift together with many promises that come with that gift. God foretold about the wonderful gift of Jesus to all mankind who was born on the first Christmas day and grew up to to communicate a tremendous message of love, forgiveness and hope for everyone. But as with all communication, this has to be received and opened to find out exactly what God is saying.
God has arranged for His communication to be written down for us in the bible, but don’t worry if you haven’t got one because it is now easily accessible on your smart phone or tablet. A good place to start is in John’s gospel chapter 3. Will you open God’s communicated message for you today and join with many others
whose lives have been completely changed.

Geoff Duncombe
The Gateway Church Kings Lynn

The European Parliament voted for a new EU Transparency Directive on 12th June. Companies will now have to disclose more financial information about their activities. According to the European Commission ‘Civil society would benefit from increased transparency and could hold governments accountable to the revenues received from companies for exploiting natural resources’ ( European Commission MEMO Brussels, 12 June 2013). In short, transparency is anti-corruption.
On Sunday 16th June I gave a reading, chosen by Revd. Peter Cook, at a service to celebrate the renovation of the windows of Stanhoe Church. The reading was from the Book of Revelation which describes the New Jerusalem coming down from God. It contains the line……’the city of pure gold, like clear glass’, Rev. 21; 18.
On 24th June I joined a small group, organised by Fr. Michael Johnstone, on retreat at Ampleforth Abbey. During one of his set talks, the Prior, Fr. Terence Richardson, showed us slides of the church’s resurrection window showing Jesus rising from the tomb, radiating transparent gold. Jesus is transparent gold, and he is the father of transparent gold services.
In November I was asked to speak at a Macmillan Cancer Support charity dinner. I said this:
‘Whatever changes befall the NHS, we should be aiming to provide a service with the quality of transparent gold, equally available to rich and poor alike’.

Peter Coates

Sometimes, schools or voluntary organisations give members money to increase their funds. For example, the cash might be used to buy the ingredients to make cakes, whose sale makes a profit for the school or club.

This is not a new idea. In St Matthew’s Gospel there is the story, or parable, of the talents, in which a master gives differing amounts of money to servants according to their abilities.

Two servants invest the money and each doubles it. Although they each start with different amounts, they both receive the same praise because they each produce one hundred per cent return.

The servant of least ability, however, buries the money for fear of losing it. Instead of praising him for being careful, the master is furious.

He was angry because the servant had allowed fear to paralyse him. The servant was so afraid of losing the money that he would not even risk investing the money.

The Lord has entrusted lots of things to us: money, natural ability, spiritual gifts. Whatever we are involved in – work, our family, helping others – the aim should be to develop, increase, and grow what God has given us, for his honour and glory.

This means taking risks and refusing to let the fear of failure and ridicule stop us from pursuing success. In this way we express our gratitude to God for all that He has given us by making our talents grow.

Increase our talents. Could this be our New Year resolution?

John Cairns, King’s Lynn Catholic Church.

Twenty percent of us take time off from work every year for stress and five million in the UK admit to being stressed. When Jesus commands us not worry about our life, especially money, food, clothes and health – he is not just singing a first century version of “Don’t worry, Be Happy”. He is cutting right to the heart of our everyday lives.

He is being pretty radical too – He is telling us that we get stressed and overwork because we are living like little gods, who feel the burden for providing for ourselves. We were created to need to stop to eat and sleep and rest one day a week – but our 24-7 lifestyles are a form of idolatry. When we worry, we are showing we don’t think God will take care of us and that we are in fact little gods.

As Jerusalem businessmen worked at selling their wares and the priests worked at their religion and housewives worked at cleaning and shopping and cooking, Jesus died on the cross crying “It is finished”. He worked on our behalf to give us forgiveness. So we don’t have to work our way to heaven.

Will you confess you are too busy? Your worrying on God’s behalf and trust Him instead? Will you trust God to be God and just be happy to be His creature? He promises to give us rest from weariness and burdens and give is a light and easy yoke for life. Trust Him – He will deliver you from worry and stress

Andy Moyle (The Gateway Church)
Unashamedly adapted from Phil Moore’s Brilliant book Gagging Jesus (well worth buying from Amazon.co.uk)