IN FOCUS
September 2006
Church - our future?
It is now twelve months since a new housing estate was completed at the bottom of the road where I live. Access for the building of this estate was made possible by opening up the cul-de-sac. Apart from taking away the privacy of our small estate, it has now brought, of course, more families with an increase of children. We see this happening in so many areas. House building multiplying - population growing - but are our small churches growing?
We, as Christians, have a task and I confess it's not an easy one. What do we have to do to encourage parents with their children to come to church - and show them what they are missing?
Where I live very few families attend church. In fact I know of only two families. One has a son who has been a missionary for twelve months and is now in Tasmania. I sometimes wonder if the families who don't attend church know about Jesus.
Lifestyles today are quite different from when I was young. Most parents work and Sunday becomes a family outing day. Perhaps their parents never went to church so they probably don't have the desire or feel the need to encourage their children to attend. Around us we see churches closing down, transformed into warehouses or businesses - even demolished.
The summer holidays are practically over and during this time I have seen a lot of bored children. It saddens me to see so many children roaming the streets, even on Sundays. At Central we are very fortunate. We have so many small children and young people. After all, they are the church of tomorrow.
In Luke Chapter 9 v 2 Jesus sends the twelve disciples to proclaim the Kingdom of God. I know there are Christian parents who have children who are not interested ingoing to church. It can be very difficult. I remember reading in 'Light for our Path' 2006 about Family Matters. The reading on page 21 for Tuesday January 17th begins with, 'God has no grandchildren'.
Jesus doesn't forsake us so we must not forsake him and pray for the future of our churches.
Vina Walton
From our Minister
Dear Friends
The summer months this year have, on the whole, been very pleasant and have enabled us to have a break from some of the usual routines and maybe do some different things. I hope that it has been a time for relaxation, for some exploration, and for some time to reflect on what has gone and what is before us.
This summer the church meeting agreed to continue to use the Norfolk Room to serve refreshments throughout August and, thanks to Pauline and Albert, a rota of helpers was found to enable this to happen. The demand has been quite amazing and most days the Norfolk Room has been fully occupied for most of each morning and this has allowed lots of the regular and occasional visitors alike to come and enjoy the warmth of the friendship on offer and also witness the attractive display which has been created by the Publicity Team. It never ceases to amaze me just how many people come onto our premises and this summer there has been a very creative and informative display of material expressing something of the life and witness of Central for all to see and to discover more of what we are about.
It seems to me that people come to our "coffee shop" for all sorts of reasons. Some people come to find space for themselves and some come to find warmth and friendship. Some come to find purpose and hope, while others come to somewhere familiar and to a place where they feel welcome and feel they belong. Some come and meet their friends and it is used by some as the meeting place after they have done their shopping. People may seem to just come for a cup of tea or coffee but most come for much more than that and I believe we at Central have shown that we have something more than just a smile and a friendly word to offer and this I believe is the love of Jesus which is our motivation and our driving force.
As we move into September we will be starting up our regular activities but we will also be starting some new activities, including two Alpha Courses, and then in early October we will start a new course for those who wish to grow in their discipleship. These are there to allow us to grow, to share and to help us understand more about the Christian faith and how we express it to others. It is to allow us to ask the difficult questions, to fill in the gaps in our understanding, and to give us support and encouragement so that we can cope with the difficult times when we don't always feel able to smile and say the friendly words. I hope that all church members will come along to one of the Alpha Courses we will run whether this autumn or next year as we can only encourage others if we know something about it.
Finally, I hope you have signed up to come on the Church Weekend which is now only a week or so away. This should be a great opportunity to be together and enjoy each other's company and to bring together our creativity in worship of the one who loves us and thinks we are very special - our loving God.
May you value all the blessings which God gives you.
With every blessing,
Bob
Betty Gallimore
I have only known Betty in her less active years but she has always been a delight to visit and always tried to smile through every situation. She spoke positively about every aspect of her life, she coped very bravely and courageously with the pain and discomfort she suffered and she was always so certain that God was looking after her and would continue to look after her.
Betty was a lovely person whose presence alone made you feel better and she will be missed. She will be remembered for all sorts of reasons but I suspect she will be remembered not so much for what she has done or achieved but for what she was like.
I feel privileged to have conducted her funeral service on the 15th August and to meet June and Roy and all the other members of her family and I feel this was the occasion which Betty would have wanted. I do recognise though that there were a number of folk who would have wanted to be there but were away on holiday and I have agreed with June to set aside some time one Sunday morning in the autumn to have a time of thanksgiving for Betty when we can gather together in different circumstances and celebrate Betty's life and her confident faith.
Bob
Edale Mountain Rescue Team
Mr Neil Rodin, Chairman of the Edale Mountain Rescue Team, has kindly agreed to give a talk on the evening of Thursday, September 28th 2006. This is to be in the Norfolk Room at Central commencing at 7.30pm.
This is an open meeting and all are welcome. It will naturally be of particular value to walkers and climbers, and, in view of the long and splendid tradition of walking in the Sheffield area, may well be of interest to others as well. It is very easy, when walking in calm conditions with magical views, to forget how rapidly can change in the hills. When it does, it is always reassuring to know that there are in the whole of Britain groups of people like Neil and his colleagues who are prepared to leave whatever they are doing and set off, at a moment's notice, on a rescue expedition. Over the years thousands of lives must have been saved by these teams.
There is no charge for this evening. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be served. A collection in aid of the Edale Mountain Rescue Team will be taken at the meeting.
We very much look forward to welcoming Neil who is, indeed, no stranger to Central.
Tony Bentall
The Way Children See Things!
NUDITY
I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the back seat, "Mom! That lady isn't wearing a seat belt!
HONESTY
My son Zachary, 4, came screaming out of the bathroom to tell me he'd dropped his toothbrush in the toilet. So I fished it out and threw it in the garbage. Zachary stood there thinking for a moment, then ran to my bathroom and came out with my toothbrush. He held it up and said with a charming little smile, "We better throw this one out too then, 'cause it fell in the toilet a few days ago.
OPINIONS
On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a Note from his mother. The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents."
KETCHUP
A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup to come out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone. "It's the minister, Mommy," the child said to her mother. Then she added, "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle."
MORE NUDITY
A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter haven't you ever seen a little boy before?"
ELDERLY
While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins, I used to take my 4- year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds The various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers and wheelchairs, unfailingly intrigued her. One day I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she merely turned and whispered, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"
DRESS-UP
A little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her dad donning his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit." "And why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a headache the next morning."
DEATH
While walking along the sidewalk in front of his church, our minister heard the intoning of a prayer that nearly made his collar wilt. Apparently, his 5-year-old son and his playmates had found a dead robin. Feeling that proper burial should be performed, they had secured a small box and cotton batting, then dug a hole and made ready for the disposal of the deceased The minister's son was chosen to say the appropriate prayers and with sonorous dignity intoned his version of what he thought his Father always said: "Glory be unto the Faaaather, and unto the Sonnn .. and into the hole he gooooes."
SCHOOL
A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm just wasting my time," she said to her mother. "I can't read! I can't write and they won't let me talk!"
BIBLE
A little boy opened the big family bible. He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages. Suddenly, something fell out of the Bible. He picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed in between the pages. "Mama, look what I found", the boy called out." What have you got there, dear?" With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered, "I think it's Adam's underwear!"
A Reminder
Thinking of throwing your old mobile phone away? - think again!
Christian Aid can turn your old phone into cash to support vital work in more than 50 countries. Christian Aid receives £3.50 for every phone donated.
£3.50 could pay to vaccinate 21 children in India against life-threatening diseases.
There are an estimated 60 million redundant mobile phones in the UK, which are potentially hazardous to the environment. But they can be recycled, or reused in developing countries.
By donating your old phone you will not only be supporting overseas development programmes and UK campaigns tackling global poverty and injustice, you will also be helping to provide affordable technology in countries where it's most needed.
Any warm clothes?
As the weather begins to change and reminds us that winter is on its way, there are many people who do not have appropriate clothing to help keep them warm and protected. We have contact with some of these through the Soup Run and ASSIST.
We have had specific requests for clothing for a young man of average height and weight and also a family - mum(size 16), dad and three children aged 7+, 5+ (boys) and a girl of 2+.
If you can help, please let Ann Hammond or Hilary Wignall know.
There is always a great need for socks, gloves, hats and warm jumpers on the Soup Run throughout the winter. All donations are always very gratefully received.
A new grandson for Bob and Sylvia
On Sunday 20th August our daughter Debbie gave birth to Daniel Colm, weighing in at 9lb 12ozs. We were staying with Debbie and Paul when she went into labour, and we stayed in Cranleigh long enough to enjoy a lot of cuddles and we were even given the privilege of taking him out for a walk in his buggy. With three grandsons you may have noticed that Sylvia's handbag has had to be enlarged in order to accommodate all the photos!
Bob and Sylvia.
Autumn Alpha Courses
REMINDER - the ALPHA COURSES start on Monday 25th September, at 12.30pm or on Tuesday 26th September, at 6pm.
If you are going to join the Monday course, this will start at 12.30pm with lunch together, followed by the video presentation and discussion and we will finish by 3pm. This will take place at church.
If you are going to join the Tuesday course, this will take place at Elaine's home in Gleadless, and will start with a meal at 6pm followed by the video presentation and discussion, and will finish by 8.30pm.
Please decide which course best suits you and sign up for one of them.
If you need further details please have a word with Bob, Elaine or Hilary.
Can you help?
The Meningitis Research Foundation, which I am supporting, has sent me some leaflets and posters which they have asked be displayed in doctor's surgeries and health centres to make people more aware of the symptoms of meningitis and the work which is going on. I would be grateful if members and friends at Central would take some of these to their doctors and ask if they can be displayed. Since having meningitis myself last January I have become increasingly aware how many others have suffered from this and how essential it is that the symptoms are spotted quickly so that appropriate treatment can be applied. I was lucky and I want others to be as lucky as I was. I hope you can help. If so, have a word with me.
Sylvia
Harvest Thanksgiving 2006
In last month's 'In Focus' we explained that this year our aim is to support Christian Aid by collecting funds to provide some gifts to be treasured by people in the Third World.
Small gift bags are being provided for you to make your gifts and these will be given out after the Service on Sunday 24th September. Remember our Harvest Thanksgiving is on Sunday 8th October.
Harvest Gift envelopes will also be available in the Norfolk Room for those who visit us for coffee etc to make a contribution if they wish to do so.
Can you help to change a broken world - by giving?
City of Sanctuary News September 2006
Come to our Anniversary Celebration
On Tuesday 3rd October we will be celebrating one year of working towards a City of Sanctuary with an evening meal, speakers and discussion forum at Victoria Hall in the city centre.
It will be an opportunity to meet other volunteers, supporters and asylum-seekers, to review our progress so far, and to explore together our vision for City of Sanctuary in the future. It is also ideal for anyone who is interested in finding out more about the campaign.
The evening will start at 6pm with dinner provided by local community caterers, followed by speakers and workshops. The event is free, but places are limited and need to be booked in advance by contacting sanctuarysheffield@fastmail.co.uk
City of Sanctuary Beermats
We have produced a series of beermats with thought-provoking facts about asylum issues, for free distribution in venues around Sheffield. If you could help by taking some of these into your local pub, bar or cafe, please let me know. Community Conflict Resolution Training - 'Seeking Asylum - Finding Home' 28th and 29th November at St Mary's Conference Centre, Bramall Lane A skills-oriented training course for community workers, asylum seekers, refugees, mediators, educators and anyone interested in facilitating issues of diversity and conflict within the local and global community. I have attached the full details of this event. We have some free places available for refugees and asylum-seekers. Please mention this to anyone you know who may be interested and ask them to contact me. We would particularly welcome the involvement of asylum-seekers and refugees who are active in their own communities.
Welcoming Churches
This is a forum for churches to share ideas and experiences about how to welcome and include asylum-seekers, refugees and new migrants in their communities. It is ecumenical and open to anyone who is involved in a church community in South Yorkshire. The next meeting is on Wednesday 18th October, please contact me if you are interested in attending. Each year over 2000 children and babies are detained and the figure is increasing annually. Detained children are highly susceptible to suffering ill effects from their unnecessary experience and even though there are viable alternatives as demonstrated in Sweden, Australia and the USA, the practice continues here in the UK Over 13,500 members of the public have supported the campaign since March 2006 by contacting the Home Secretary and lobbying their MPs and MSPs. Mid July saw the successful parliamentary launch of the No Place for a Child Campaign report at the House of Commons. The report was commissioned by a concerned group of Parliamentarians from all parties and was written by John Bercow MP, Lord Dubs & Evan Harris MP. The report was well received by the MPs, Peers and other parties in attendance.
The assembled MPs heard an impassioned account of the experience of detention from a mother who had been detained with her children on two separate occasions. She spoke movingly about the devastating psychological effects detention has had on her children.
Read the report: Alternatives to immigration detention of families and children www.noplaceforachild.org/alternatives.htm
137 MPs signed a parliamentary motion backing the campaign. There has also been coverage in the media, with articles in the Guardian and Independent on Sunday, on-line pieces on the BBC and Daily Mail websites, and broadcast coverage on BBC Radio Five Live, Sky News Radio and most recently on Woman's Hour on Radio Four. To listen to this interview please click on the following link: www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/02/2006_30_fri.shtml
The campaign is highlighting the effect detention has on children and demonstrates that there are alternatives. The report has been presented to ministers at the Home Office and we need to continue applying pressure until the detention of children is ended.
This month we are also launching an appeal to donors about this issue. To find out more about the appeal and to read a case study of a family that has experienced detention here in the UK, please visit: www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/supportus/supporters_update_following.html
Thank you all who have supported this campaign so far. We will keep you informed on how it progresses.' (From an e-mail - Editor)
2007 Publications
I am already beginning to receive order forms for the various publications for next year. These are for REFORM, Prayer Handbooks, Bible Reading notes and URC diaries.
I shall be taking orders shortly for these items. If you wish to continue with your present order do let me know. If you wish to place a fresh order do have a word with me - if you wish to see copies of the 2006 material this can be made available.
If we maintain orders for over 20 copies 0f REFORM then the cost will be £12.75 for the year. The Prayer Handbooks will cost £3.35. Diaries (red, green, brown or blue) cost £5.00. I do not have a price for the IBRA notes but last year they cost £5.10.
Geoffrey W Wood
Organ Recital - and our thanks
We have been very pleased and very grateful that Rex Thompson has been able to play the organ for us when Jonathan is unavailable. This is an opportunity to say a big 'thank you' to Rex for being with us on these occasions.Rex has this year become President of the Sheffield and District Organist and Choirmaster Association. During the year of office the President hosts a concert and Rex asked if this could be at Central. So we are delighted that on Thursday 19th October at 7.30pm Rex and invited guest artistes will be entertaining the Association - and you are also invited to be present. So do come along and support Rex in his year of office as President of the Association.
More details - and a reminder- in next month's 'In Focus'.
Geoffrey W Wood
No Place for a Child Campaign
'As many of you already know the Refugee Council has been a key player in the No Place for a Child campaign which has been running since March 2006. We are calling for an end to the detention of children in immigration detention centres. You may have noticed several news stories on the detention of children recently, so we felt it was timely to let you know how the campaign has been progressing. On Saturday 30th September ASSIST are holding a classical music benefit concert to raise funds to support destitute and homeless asylum-seekers. 7.30pm at the Quaker Meeting House, St. James St, Sheffield S1 Suggested donation on the night £7.50 and £3.00
Street Collection September 16th, 10am - 4pm
Volunteer street collectors are needed for this event at Ecclesall Road precinct. Please email offers of help to myradav@lineone.net. Tel: 0114 258 7616 (evenings)
Seeking Asylum - Finding Home:
A Process-oriented approach to Community Conflict Resolution 28th and 29th November 2006 in Sheffield at St Mary's Conference Centre, Bramall Lane with Jan Dworkin, Senior Process Work trainer, Portland, Oregon, USA
A skills-oriented training course for community workers, asylum seekers, refugees, mediators, educators and anyone interested in facilitating issues of diversity and conflict within the local and global community.
Hopefully our seminar group will represent the diversity present in the local community. We will work on collective issues including exploration of asylum seeking and hosting asylum seekers. In addition to understanding the issue on a social/political level, we will look at asylum seeking and experiences of home and homelessness as inner, relationship and group dynamics. We will learn new skills to facilitate conflicts that arise around these issues using a holistic, process-oriented perspective.
By trusting the wisdom of conflict and diversity and using a precise methodology to unfold what is hidden in a group or for change and growth.community, participants will learn to transform disturbances and make them allies
All are welcome who are interested in learning, so if this description attracts you, please come if you can.
Seminar organized by Process Work Sheffield, in partnership with City of Sanctuary, Mediation Sheffield, Northern Refugee Centre For further information contact Gina Clayton or Mike Fitter on 0114 272 4290 (pwsheffield@blueyonder.co.uk) or Kerri Cripps on 0114 258 7861
The final part of Rev Elizabeth Caswell's Moderatorial Address
Part Two - Grace in Creation
In the beginning, God" (Genesis 1: 1); There is one unifying force, one life, one meaning; and planet earth but one tiny part of a whole we can scarcely imagine. But it is our part, all we have. Tend it, treasure it! Well, of course. But actually, doing that is going to require work and sacrifice. It will require human ingenuity and technological advance; it will require political will and uncompromising resolve. It will, it does, require both global decisions and personal responsibility.
It is quite annoying having the kitchen festooned with bags and boxes for plastic and tin and foil and paper and . ah, well. It's a small price to pay. But we also need to be sure that there really is positive re-cycling taking place when it leaves the house. And for every hundred of us who are simply doing our bit - turning down the thermostat, switching off rather than leaving on stand-by, re-cycling the rubbish, we need the one or two who will be our leaders, our campaigners, our mentors, the 'green' (whether also red, blue or yellow it is not for me to say!) politicians of a new generation who will advocate new technology and ensure its development and application. We will not stop people driving cars - private transport has virtually become an inalienable right. We have to face the fact of what human beings are like and devise strategies that make goodness attractive. We are, warped and distorted as we are by self-interest, nevertheless made in the image of the Creator: creative, imaginative, curious; we can imagine and invent, develop and produce what is needed for cleaner private transport. And more quickly perhaps, we could choose to devise and fund a safe, cheap, reliable, integrated public transport system which would really tempt urban dwellers to use it. But it never gets beyond the talking stage.
Politics! Politics and faith do belong together, have to mix. Out of belief in the overflowing, joyous generosity, the sheer grace of creation, let us rein in our selfishness, and embark on imaginative, urgent care for the planet. And because we are all one, all part of the whole, our response to the grace of God in creation will embrace our fellow creatures. Locusts can do a pretty neat job on affecting other creatures, but whether we like it or not, in the influencing and shaping the environment game humans really 'take the biscuit .' And we manipulate, hurt and harm each other, along with our furred, feathered and finned friends.
For years now through support of Christian Aid, Commitment for Life, the World Development Movement; through Debt campaigning and Make Poverty History, we have, with all people of good-will, of many faiths and none, sought justice for the peoples of the earth who are afflicted by drought, famine and the political repression which prevents prosperity. "Do not grow weary in well-doing", the apostle tells us. The sheer grace, the abundance of creation, provokes in us an answering generosity and quest for sharing. Those of us who have grown up in a society which has taught us to be greedy, wasteful and dissatisfied have so much to learn, and so much to un-learn. The struggle for trade justice and for debt cancellation goes on; it is fuelled by our theology and requires our steady commitment. There are few quick fixes in the world of global issues.
The quest for trade justice and the eradication of communal poverty reminds us of how many people travel the world seeking prosperity in foreign countries, longing for a better future. Some come to our shores, seeking asylum as they flee repressive regimes; seeking work as they flee poverty. Some are tricked and duped by their own people, and by ours, into modern forms of slavery - bought and sold like marketable goods. We should be ashamed of attitudes and policies which make their plight worse, and of the lack of control of the internet and the media which feeds the obsession with sex and violence that pollutes western culture and helps to create an insatiable market for the sexual exploitation of women and children. Let the gospel of God's grace, of overwhelming generosity and compassion reaching out to all people without regard to race, gender or age, motivate us to work for the transformation of our sick and sad society. God, in your grace, transform our world!
Part Three -Grace in salvation
The gospels tell us that Jesus wore a seamless robe. Our response to God's grace is also seamless: "in the beginning the word was with God . full of grace and truth" (John 1: 1, 14). It is the same God who both creates and re-creates; who encounters us in the created order and in the person of Jesus Christ; whose truth is discovered in observation, experiment and in history, experience and poetry. God is revealed, chooses to be revealed, in many different ways - the revelation is grace.
Exemplars of grace . grace takes us beyond justice. It takes us into the new world of relationship and reconciliation, of mercy and forgiveness. It takes us to the place of hope. In this world which we enter by faith, by trust in the reality of who Jesus is, and what He has done for us, sinners are forgiven, transformation is espoused and begun, attitudes are changed, behaviour altered, old wounds healed.
Start and finish times: Tuesday 28th November 10.00am to 5.30pm Wednesday 29th 10.00am to 5.00pm (lunch breaks will start at 1.00pm approximately on both days)
About Jan Dworkin
Jan Dworkin PhD is a certified Process Worker and co-founder of the Process Work Institute in Portland, Oregon and the Global Process Institute. She has a private psychotherapy practice and travels and teaches Process Work internationally.
Jan has been passionate about Worldwork and Open Forum since it was developed by Arnold Mindell and colleagues in Zurich in the late 1980s. She has written a number of articles on the subject and worked on many conflict resolution projects, town meetings and Worldwork trainings over the last fifteen years.
She has had many pet projects on Worldwork themes. She has taught conflict resolution to teens in the schools. She conducts a yearly training course with a multi-cultural group of Catholic missionaries from Africa, Asia, Europe and South America on issues such as racism, homophobia and sexuality. She is involved with a cross-border project in Northern Ireland. She is working on the development of a diversity training program to bring to the corporate world. Jan is also an artist and an avid long distance cyclist. www.jandworkin.com
Whilst this looks a challenging and expensive seminar, I think it important that we are aware of what is happening in our city to educate, inform and enlighten about what the way forward could be in our very mixed, cross-cultural society today. Hopefully, there will be someone within our fellowship who will be able to be part of this and pass on to us what they have learned.
Cost of seminar, including lunches and refreshments Full rate £160 (£140 if deposit paid by 14th October) Reduced rate £80
Limited number of reduced rate places available to self-funding individuals and small voluntary sector organisations. Please enquire.
Some free places available to refugees and asylum seekers.
Apply for sponsorship from one of the partnership organisations: City of Sanctuary phone 0114 250 8058; MESH phone 0114 241 2771; NRC contact Muhammad Gaas on 0114 241 2783 before 14th October 2006
Booking
To book send (non refundable) deposit of £40 to Gina Clayton, 118 Broomspring Lane, Sheffield S10 2FD (cheques payable to Process Work Sheffield) Please give full contact details and let us know any dietary requirements.
About Process Work
Process-oriented group work is based on the concept of deep democracy, a philosophy which believes that in order to create sustainable community, all voices must have the opportunity to express themselves. It takes psychology beyond individual work into areas of social consciousness and facilitation awareness. Further, it takes politics beyond problem solving to creating community, a most sacred and perennial interest of human beings.
About the seminar
Some of the skills participants might expect to learn include: Learning to facilitate one's inner diversity and conflict Conflict facilitation and mediation for 2-party disputes Group process with small and large groups Methods for Open Forum Skills for working with the dynamics of rank and privilege Facilitating under fire: working with hot spots and altered states of consciousness such as grief and revenge
Fear gives way to confidence, despair to hope. A community of love is created in which old rivalries, racial tensions and gender difference melt away as one human family breaks bread and drinks wine round the table and remembers the Christ whose body was broken, whose blood was shed, who became the living, dying way into the real, abundant living which is a relationship of trust with God, whose Spirit accomplishes and enables in us that glad obedience to God's way which we cannot reach on our own.
The cross shows us that there are no limits on God's love; forgiveness streams to us, bearing the full cost of wrong, accepting the separation and the pain, breathing in the deadly poisons of sin and breathing out the oxygen of grace.
In our dealings with one another that is what God requires and enables: we must forgive as the Lord forgave us (Col 3: 13). Of course grace is more than forgiveness, but it is never less than forgiveness. It is more because it is about change and growth, hope for the future as well as sorrow for the past. It is about redemption and transformation, about the possibility that even in this world we can begin to become the people God calls us to be. We receive grace; we live in grace, that is our calling.
"Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you: A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back. (Luke 6: 37, 38).
Graced people, be gracious. Let the exuberant, generous, hilarious creative energy of God inform our relationships, our serving, our politics, our giving. Let us be what we are, children of God, "chips off the old block", reflections of the light.
A river runs through us, the river of life. It's not a Reformed river, a Catholic river, an Anglican, Methodist or Baptist river. It's not Orthodox, Salvationist, Coptic or Pentecostal. Call it what you like. It's just water . Ganges, Thames, Nile or Seine . it's just water affected by local conditions. It's all off to the Ocean. Same source, same destination.
Don't pollute it. Drink it. Share it. Let this water spring up in us and bear fruit in us, until at the last, reconciled and made whole, we tumble into the ocean from whence we came, attaining by grace the universal unity which is God's purpose and plan in Christ
Prayer Focus
Week One
As the school and university year commences, pray for our children and young people as they move on and up - some are just changing classes; others are changing schools; some will be facing important exams that will affect their future and have important decisions to make in the coming months; yet others will begin life away from home at university or will be continuing their studies. It is good that we have so many to care about - may we help them grow in the love and faith that Christ shows us.
Week Two
On Tuesday 12th this week there is to be a meeting at Central of IMSY (Industrial Mission in South Yorkshire). This mission does valuable work within the world of work in South Yorkshire. Whilst much of the work is done by ordained ministers and priests, there is still a very useful job being done by lay chaplains. Training is given and there is a great need for people within the city centre, particularly in some of the large retail outlets. Pray for the work that IMSY does and for those to whom they minister. Pray, also, for those who might offer themselves for this work after the meeting.
Week Three
JCS1 meets on Saturday 23rd in Central (9.30am for 10am). We hope that this will mark the continuation of the city centre churches work together over the coming months. Over the previous months there have been many opportunities to meet to worship, study and share fellowship. This is a wonderful way in which can demonstrate to others how we can work together. Pray for the growth and witness that can come from such fellowship. Why don't you come and see what it is all about?
Week Four
Our next ALPHA course begins tomorrow. Focus on those who will come to explore and rediscover what our faith is all about. This is so important within and without the life of our fellowship. Here is an opportunity for anyone to share a meal during the day, listen to a challenging and inspiring speaker, then discuss ideas and thoughts afterwards. Others will be meeting on a Tuesday evening at Elaine's home, which gives a chance for others who cannot come during the day. Pray that these sessions will inspire and strengthen our church fellowship in the months and years to come.
