https://www.facebook.com/weareemmanuelchurch/videos/145886810783892
O Praise The Name (a capella, we are emmanuel with Simon Brading)
I was intrigued to receive an email from Nike announcing this month April, was about balance. Of course they were trying to sell my something, yoga clothes, but in some sense they were right. Perhaps April is about balance. We are emerging from our cocoons, we are blinking in the sunlight and learning to talk to each other face to face again. Shielding has shifted something within some of us and mixing with others is shocking to the system. Some of us have become oddly comfortable by being in seclusion. We need to reconfigure our balance, adjust our stance (golfing term). Something we need to do gently, and with caution. Still with social distancing and sucking in as much fresh air and enjoying wide open spaces as much as we can. It’s all a matter of balance, and sometimes we fall over! As the disciples re-grouped after the resurrection, they needed to get their balance back, things were not the same and they had a whole new concept and understanding to work with the Holy Spirit.
Just before my break hopefully you will recall the image of Christ and His Friend, the coptic icon. To recap when you look at the feet of Christ in the icon image you cannot see any feet, however the toes of Abbot Mena are clearly visible peeking out and even venturing out of the picture frame. The intention is to remind us that we are the hands and feet of Jesus. However we can only be the hands and feet of Christ with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is helping us balance what our intentions are with those of the intentions of the work to be done with God at the helm. It is work that cannot be done on our own terms alone. It is work to be done with others, we are never, never alone in God’s work, because if it is God’s work Jesus is working alongside us and the Holy Spirit is hopefully within us making that work happen.
Lectio 365 has been especially helpful these last couple of weeks whilst I recalibrate after a busy term and rest ahead of an even busier one. I have had my head stuck in research text books, so it has been a relief to get fresh air. Balance again. Too many books makes Jill a dull girl. I have enjoyed almost daily long walks and the outside has enabled me to appreciate all the blessings of creation God has given us. It has been cold, but it has been sunny and that is a superb balance. No too hot to get over heated on a long stomp through the fields and grey sky is washed over with blue and Simpsonesque fluffy clouds. As I walked and listened and became absorbed in the last Lent retreat session with Pray as You Go I was simply blown away with the statement “What is love asking me to do next?” Overwhelmingly I got a sense of 'be patient’. Patience is not one of my strong points, partly because part of what makes me is the ability to forget something almost instantly, so I tend to react quickly before I forget. I have a massive ‘put foot in mouth’ affliction. My Mum called me (amongst other things…) Little Miss Impetuousness. Stop laughing, I can hear you, you know! But He has made us in His likeness and we are precious to Him as His children. Warts and all, it is how we share that preciousness and use the gift of that preciousness with others. Without being an impetuous, talkative, Tigger on espresso, I would never have learnt (still learning) stillness, quietness, being silent (yes I can do that too, honest….) and all under the umbrella of discernment. Gifts I would never have realised if I had not been blessed with the seemingly negative ones of putting my size nines in ones own mouth! We look at our perceived faults and see what is not so well with us, and in asking God to show us our gifts we can begin to see when our eyes are opened that perhaps that overflowing biscuit tin is really the good hospitable host within us. The chatty person is really the good listener because without the bravery of opening a conversation how do you get someone to tell you how they really feel? So what is love asking you to do? Love is God. What is God asking us to do next? Is it be available to share your story of how He is working in your life? Are you being asked to be patient? Are you being asked to be kind? Are you asked to be joyous? Galatians 5:22-23 reminds us of the fruits of the Spirit.
"...But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law..."
On hearing and reading this perhaps our minds are drawn to 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7
“… Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres….”
for me “Love is patient” was the piece of Scripture I needed and need to take to heart.
Gina and Ollie should have been getting married this weekend. It has been difficult for them as they are caught in the Covid wind tunnel as it has been for us and many other families around the world. How do you respond with positivity when there is so much uncertainty? A friend put it succinctly ‘learn to be the lightening conductor’. Lightning is energy. Patience I am beginning to see is the energy of love. Patience is needed in fielding the questions of "what are they doing", "do they have a date yet", "what are they going to do", "have you made the dress yet" questions, that are hard to field as we balance so many 'what if's'. Jesus reminds us to 'not worry about tomorrow' Matthew 6:34 "... Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own..."
and like many other about to be married couples they have had enough worries and "what if's". Gina and Ollie do have some good news, Ollie has a new job in a great school in Berlin, Gina has plans to do another Masters, this time in English at a German university - for now a new country and house move takes precedence, they are culturally looking to the future with hope and positivity. Patience for them is also key, as they plan amid new country red tape and intercontinental house moves! My prayer for them is that patience, love, kindness and joy goes with them as they take another step on their journey as a young engaged couple planning their future together.
https://youtu.be/4RPUjuraS5U - Simple Gifts
Peace be with you friends. See you virtually for Celtic Morning Prayers at 9am tomorrow morning. Hopefully soon we can gather outside and resume some real human contact again!
Caroline :) <><
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