NOVEMBER 2011 - Vol. 33, No. 11

A Recognised Lay Minister writes:

Dear Friends,

Our Rector will return from her sabbatical this month and we’ll be pleased to hear what she’s experienced and learned during the last few weeks. In her absence, we have been thankful for the help of visiting clergy, as well as being grateful to our licensed readers for leading more services. When I ‘did my bit’ at St Mary’s Harvest Thanksgiving service, I mentioned being “substitutes” in Glynis’s absence. We are not the only ones.

During November, we think of those in the armed services who have committed themselves to combating injustice and standing up for the oppressed and weak who cannot defend themselves. These individuals have risked their lives as “substitutes” for those who are unable to fight strong dictators and violent regimes. Many have made the ultimate sacrifice, so that others would be able to live in peace. We commemorate their courage and self-sacrifice in our Services of Remembrance on 13^th November, and we thank God for them all.

Jesus was the greatest “substitute” of all, when He died for our sins on the cross. He loves us so much that He died in our place, taking the punishment we deserve. Because of Jesus, we now have direct access to God, in prayer, because God no longer recognises our sins, our disobedience to Him, which would otherwise be a barrier between us. Those sins were washed completely away by Jesus’ death, and we are free to live the lives God made us for – if we follow Jesus. We can be assured of His presence in all that we do, and in difficult or sad times. God made us in His image and loves us as His sons and daughters.

It doesn’t end there – we have the Holy Spirit, who helps us to become more like Jesus. That means we can be tools in Jesus’ hands, doing His work. We sing a song including the words “Brother, Sister, let me serve you – let me be as Christ to you”. We can never be a substitute for Jesus, but we can point others to Him, by committing our lives to Him and sharing with others the love He gives us, through our words, actions and prayers.

There is no substitute for following Jesus.

With my love and prayers,

Sue Shaw

OCTOBER 2011 - Vol.33 No. 10

A Licensed Reader writes: 

Dear Friends,

‘Hi.  How r u?  I’m here 4 u always.  Lol J xxx’

We live in busy, frenetic times when everything seems to be reduced to a minimum – including the ways in which we communicate with each other.  This in turn can lead to misunderstandings or different ways of understanding.  Take the text message above: what does ‘lol’ mean to you? Apparently it is the most commonly used acronym in the English language. Even so, people cannot agree on its meaning. Some say it means ‘laugh out loud’ while others insist it means ‘lots of love’. 

When it comes to the good news that is the Gospel of Christ we can be reassured that either definition would fit.  Even in the worst of times when things seem at their darkest for whatever reason, we can know that the Lord is with us in the midst of the suffering and pain.  How can we know this?  Because he lived among us some 2,000 years ago, knowing our laughter and our tears; because he suffered greatly for us taking upon himself our burdens and undergoing scourging and crucifixion on our behalf and because he rose again, triumphantly defeating death and opening the doors to eternal life to all who would follow him, trust in him and laugh with him.

As the stealthy burglar found out one evening; he had waited patiently for the family to pack their car, lock up the house and leave for a few days.  When all was quiet he found a way in to the house which was in darkness.  Making his way to the living room he pushed open the door and went in.  As his eyes adjusted to the limited light he saw some items which would be easy to remove and started to put them in his sack.  Suddenly a voice spoke “I see you and Jesus sees you”.  He whirled around; no-one was there.  He shivered, laughed to himself and turned back to what he was doing.

“I see you and Jesus sees you” the voice announced again.  He turned on his torch and flashed it around the room, and noticed a parrot’s cage in the corner from which, for a third time, came the words: “I see you and Jesus sees you”.  He laughed and lowered the beam of his torch to the floor below the cage.  Just as he recognised the outline of a huge Doberman Pinscher, the parrot screeched “Attack, Jesus, attack!”

It’s good to laugh as we remember that Jesus is always with us.

‘Hi.  How r u?  I’m here 4 u always.  Lol J xxx’

With my love and prayers

Sue Waterston