Cooksmill Green Congregational Church

How easily we forget!

Wow! What a weekend we’ve just had. Whether you’re a fan of the royalty or not, there was something for everyone if they had a mind to join in and appreciate it. From pomp and ceremony, spectacle, music, poetry, art… In amongst it all there were so many things that reminded me of passages in scripture – not just from the service in Westminster Cathedral.

I don’t want to put our new King on a pedestal and I get a real sense he wouldn’t want to be put on one, not by me or anyone else. Paul reminds us very clearly in chapter 3 of his letter to the Romans that none of us is perfect: ‘…For there is no distinction: ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,’ and by ‘all’ he means all of us.

King Charles was born into a destiny, not of his choosing, and there were times during his coronation when he looked distinctly uncomfortable with the attention. He had expressed a desire that people should not feel obliged to ‘pledge allegiance.’ Much of what the King has said and done in and outside of the service, gave me a true sense of his desire to serve rather than be served, trying, in his own way to follow Jesus’ ‘…the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, … (Matthew 20:28). In the service he said ‘I promise to serve you with loyalty, respect and love.’ This sentiment was also expressed by his son the Prince of Wales during his tribute to his father during the Coronation Concert.

The coronation and all the surrounding events have also given people an opportunity to consider much wider matters than just the crowning of one man

Stella McCartney (also at the Coronation Concert) on the subject of the environment talked about the pressing need for change, how in adversity beacons of light do shine, how the King has been shining a spotlight on conservation for over 50 years, championing hope and action.  She added ‘The work of healing our planet should be and must be the cause that unites us, never the cause that divides us. The planet earth is literally bigger than any of our differences we need to leave a safe and sustainable world for all generations to come.’  Yet Prince Charles as he was, with others like was him, were once ridiculed or ignored much like many of the prophets ofthe Old Testament when they predicted disaster!

Yesterday (Bank Holiday Monday) there were calls for people to get involved with volunteering in their local communities and charities, encouraged to serve each other, to help those in need. This weekend has been full of calls by many for loyalty, unity, respect and love, but this is not the first occasion when such sentiments have been expressed.  It happens at every national or world celebration, or in deed tragedy, it’s happened throughout history. Yet sadly, all too often, we forget and revert to our old ways.

At the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II she said, ‘Coronations are a declaration of our hopes for the future.’ Both the late Queen and our current King have declared a faith in Jesus, our greatest hope for the future.

We can do no better than heed what Jesus declared when he was asked, “which commandment is the most important of all?”

” ²⁹ Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. ³⁰ And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ ³¹ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:28b-31)

Prayer

Heavenly Father

We pray for our new King as he begins his reign,

And as we do so, we pray for all

Monarchs, Heads of State and leaders of Governments.

May they all use their positions of influence and power

To lead and serve their communities and Nations

With true loyalty, respect and love, compassion and justice for all.

And may we all in our turn

Serve You and each other with those same qualities.

Help us to remember all the good

And positive messages from this Coronation weekend

And above all to follow the example and teachings of

Your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Thought for the Month – April 2023

‘Complacency is the deadly enemy of spiritual progress. The contented soul is the stagnant soul’ – Pastor A.W.Tozer.

Just take a moment to reflect on what those words may mean to you and then I will begin….

Today, (Palm Sunday), is the start of the end to another Lenten journey as we enter another Holy Week, marking all the key events towards yet another Easter Sunday, that in turn will bring about the end of another Christian Season. When described in this lacklustre fashion, you can begin to understand what Pastor Tozer was on about, how spiritual apathy can begin to set in because of the repetitive cycle and the over-familiar expectation of what is to come during the week ahead. It was the same last year, and it will definitely be the same next year, but that complacency really should only be in relation to its setting within the liturgical calendar and importantly recognised as something entirely different and separate from the deeper, more emotional spiritual journey to be had, one that is there to be experienced for all who seek it, bringing a contemplative connection to what Jesus endured for us in the name of the new covenant, a covenant of love for the world.

Part of our Lenten observance should always be of course, to reflect on, and to recognise the cost of the New Covenant, written with the blood of Christ and obtained through the Passion of both His extreme suffering and brutal execution upon the cross, for if we become complacent (there’s that word again!) of the reality of what He actually endured for us, of the depth of love He had for each and every one of us in order to do it, then we can only serve to dilute and diminish the joyful message of salvation and hope, found within His rising on Easter Sunday.

The other very important point to note, is that this New Covenant is not written on any parchment or tablets of stone, for God in His wisdom made it a living part of us through His Son’s love, written upon our hearts and carved into our life’s purpose, we carry both it and Him within us wherever we go, and I find that the most beautiful of sentiments and for me is the true gift of Easter Day.

Our Christian faith is something that should always be comforting to us but never entirely comfortable, because if you reflect upon this point, on let’s say Good Friday, and find that this is exactly how you do feel, ‘comfortable’, then perhaps it’s time to revisit the words of Pastor Tozey and to challenge yourself in asking if complacency is the real reason for feeling that way?

May I wish you all a Happy Easter and a peaceful month of April.

Danny

An Easter Prayer

Dear Lord, may I realise each and every day what Your death and resurrection means for me. Forgiveness, love, and the ability to walk with You through this fallen world into eternal life. May I always find my satisfaction in You, assured of Your willingness to offer all that you are to me, my saviour, my redeemer, my passion. Amen.

Thought for the Month March 2023

Those of you who have got to know me will also know by now that, whilst I see benefits in the lectionary, our Christian festivals and seasonal periods, such as Advent and Lent (I adore Christmas and Easter), I also have concerns that we’re sometimes in danger of putting elements of our faith into neat little boxes to be taken out at the appropriate time.

Lent could be seen as one such season. The definitions of Lent cover things such as penance, fasting and self-denial, It’s a time when we reflect, among other things, on our own wrong doing and short comings, a time to re-evaluate our lives, a time to look ahead to the Passiontide. I’m not suggesting for one moment that we shouldn’t have Lent, in deed I think it’s a good idea. But this is not the only time in the year we should be thinking about these things. In fairness of course, if you are in a church that follows a liturgy, you will be reminded of many of these elements on a weekly basis (as we all should be). We’re also reminded of Easter every time we come to the Lord’s Table for Communion. Hopefully Lent helps us to re-focus that liturgy so that it doesn’t just become a parrot fashion chant!

While we reflect on a theological Lent as described, while we think of the terrible devastation occurring in the world, be it through war or natural disaster we shouldn’t forget the bible does not promise us a perfect world. In fact, quite the opposite it expressly warns us the opposite is true.  We do not live in a perfect world.

One of this week’s lectionary readings is John 1 1-17 which reminds us that God and Jesus have been there from the very start of creation. At the end of Matthew’s gospel Jesus tells His disciples ‘remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age’ (Matthew 28:20) NRSV. Throughout time God has been and will be here and while he is here, in spite of what the world and its inhabitants might do, we read in Genesis ‘As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.’ (Genesis 8:22) NRSV.

The 1^st of March was the start of the Meteorological Spring. As cold as it at the moment, new life is already springing from the ground, some birds seem to be busy building nests (the pigeons in our garden are), blossoms will soon be in evidence. God’s promises are good.

Every day is an opportunity to repent and reflect. At the same time every day is an opportunity to rejoice in the seeds of God’s creation. In reality of course, these things are difficult to rejoice in when you are burdened by life’s many pressures, illness, stress, homelessness… the list is endless. So for those of us that can, it is up to us to plant the seeds of God’s love, plant seeds of kindness and compassion support those who seek to bring relief and comfort. so that all God’s people can experience their own Meteorological Spring, which can start on any day, not just the 1st of March. We don’t have to wait for any day, or season or lectionary period to reflect on and spread God’s word.

Steve.

Prayer

Dear God

As we rejoice in the New Life of Spring,

As we start to look forward to the

Hope of Easter and the Cross,

Help us to be instruments of hope,

To bring courage and expectation

And New Life in you to those in despair.

In Jesus Name. Amen

Thought for The Month February 2023

Her indoors

Do you have a soul? If so, what’s it like? What do you do about it?

I imagine a number of you will simply answer “yes” to the first question and send this “thought” to the recycling bin. Some of you may feel angry that I am turning my thought inward at a time following the earthquake in Turkey when the thoughts and prayers of most of the world are outward bound. In which case apologies; yet, I would claim, this is possibly the most important question in your life and will need an answer long after the world has moved on to the next tragic news story.

Let’s start with the Virgin Mary and her song called the Magnificat. “My soul doth magnify the Lord…” Not my “voice”, not my “feelings”, not my “thoughts”, but my soul. Everything about the annunciation was bad news – a pregnancy outside marriage, with all the difficulties with your husband, your family, your in-laws, the local community that that involves. Not to mention morning sickness and the rest of it. It would not have been surprising if feelings and thoughts had given voice to dismay. That’s what your “flesh” would say; but her “spirit” spoke of pride, of trust in God, of exaltation.

I always used to tell my students not to include a dictionary definition of a topic in an essay, so here, breaking my own rule: “soul” can simply mean a person. Old King Cole was a merry old soul – not that he had a merry soul of whatever age-group, but that is the kind of person that he was. I think if he consumed all that tobacco and alcohol he wouldn’t have stayed a merry soul for many years. And if I were a king, I would want a full scale orchestra, chorus and soloists to keep me entertained, not some scrawny string trio.

So I don’t buy that definition. Let’s turn instead to Sir Thomas More in “A Man for all Seasons” talking about his refusal to countenance Henry VIII’s divorce: “And what would you do with a water spaniel that was afraid of water? You’d hang it! Well, as a spaniel is to water, so is a man to his own self. I will not give in because I oppose it—I do—not my pride, not my spleen, nor any other of my appetites but I do—I!”  That is a definition I do buy.

Or another unlikely authority from the same period, Sir Toby Belch, talking about a famous duellist: “souls and bodies hath he divorced three”. This refers to the Elizabethan view embedded deep in our view of Man that the soul is like a partner that stays with us through life, from which we are only separated at death. Is it true? Theologians have tried to prove it by weighing a body at the moment of death, seeing if there is a change of weight at this crucial moment of departure of the soul. A futile attempt, given that a quantity air is also lost at this point – from more than one orifice! You might like to think of it though as what W. S. Gilbert calls a “legal fiction” – even if you can’t prove that there is such a thing as a soul, it is better to act as if there is.

If there is a soul, then we all, Christian or otherwise, have one. Including Walt Whitman, who looked forward to the journey into eternity with his soul:

Sail forth — steer for the deep waters only,
For we are bound where mariner has not yet dared to go,
And we will risk the ship, ourselves and all.

O my brave soul!
O farther farther sail!
O daring joy, but safe! are they not all the seas of God?
O farther, farther, farther sail!

And so, as Valentine’s Day comes around, my advice to you is to be good to your soul. I don’t know what things yours goes for – mine is uplifted by music, performing it and listening to it. And sometimes by complete withdrawal and emptiness, for God is there too. Know your own soul and her needs: treat her well, with affection and the things that she loves. She deserves it for putting up with you all these years.

David

Thought for the Month January 2023

The beginning of a New Year has dawned and I pray it will be happy one for each and every one of you.

I think it’s true to say that each year brings mixed blessing for many people. We all have our highs and our lows, our triumphs and tragedies. This is not only true of individuals but for families, communities, nations, indeed the world. In some years the triumphs outweigh the tragedies – sometimes not.  2022 has sadly been a ‘sometimes not year’ for many people, with wars, economic crisis, fears over health and welfare… it seems to have been more tragedy than triumph!  and it would seem 2023 may be a continuation of the same.

It’s all too easy to feel like giving up and spiral into a sense of doom, we all start to blame leaders and politicians – sometimes with real justification. I appreciate that this is easier for some than others, but we all have a part to play in how our own lives, the lives of those around us and of society generally feels and develops. We don’t need to be like Private Frazer in Dad’s Army crying ‘We’re doomed Captain Mainwaring!’ We can be part of the solution, especially with God’s help.

In December’s ‘Thought for the Month’ and in in our Christmas Morning Service, we thought about the messages Christmas brings, How Jesus came to bring peace on earth, forgiveness, reconciliation and hope. The angels declared ‘Glad tiding of great joy.’ In the few days that surround Christmas, even in an increasingly commercially led world, signs of love, generosity, can still be found, people reconnect with one another. We also considered how we receive and how we respond to those messages. And I’d like to finish the season in the same vein.

Although the next few weeks may contain more bad news, harsh weather, wind, snow, ice… gradually spring will appear, green shoots, blossoms, new life springing forth. One of the earliest promises in the Bible is in Genesis 8: 22

²² As long as the earth endures,
    seedtime and harvest, cold and heat,
summer and winter, day and night,
    shall not cease.’

In spite of how it may seem sometimes, God is consistent and he keeps his promises. It is us I fear that are inconsistent.

Variety is the spice of life they say and yes, it’s truly wonderful, the seasons being just one example. In the church we move from Advent to Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Eastertide, all events marking hugely significant events in Jesus’ Life, primarily His Birth, Death and Resurrection. And it’s right and proper that we acknowledge and celebrate these events. In between the main festivals, the church has what is sometimes referred to as ‘Ordinary Time.’ Ordinary! Really? This ‘Ordinary Time’ is an opportunity to reflect on Jesus’ teachings, surely anything but ordinary and surely anything but seasonal.

So for one last time, then I promise to get off my hobby horse for a while, let’s not allow the message of Christmas, or Easter come to that, just have a seasonal affect. Let’s make Jesus’ teachings consistent in our lives. Not ordinary, not seasonal, but holy. Spreading compassion, love, forgiveness, reconciliation and hope throughout all the year.

Steve

Heavenly Father

Make this coming year, a year of

Peace, harmony and hope we pray.

Give us all the strength to face

Whatever it may bring

Knowing you will be there beside us,

All the way. Amen.