Practicing Gratitude in difficult times (2) 

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

It is always easy to be thankful in times of great joy, happiness and success but how is it naturally possible to be thankful when things are difficult, during times of sadness and grief. Especially now when all seems chaotic and a virus plagues our World and people are dying in great numbers on a daily basis. Gratitude and thankfulness do not come naturally – it is an act of choice; it is voluntary and when practiced as daily habit it is found to have the ability to change our lives.  There are benefits to Gratitude and Thankfulness. 

It has long since been a spiritual discipline for Christians and other faiths and it is now scientifically recognised for the benefits.  In the Old Testament it is recorded as a religious practice known as the ‘Sacrifice of Thanksgiving’ which is in fact a peace offering motivated by thanksgiving.  The offering included animal sacrifice and presentation of types of bread and it was a voluntary offering offered by the giver as an expression of thanks to God. This particular offering was presented to God by the Priest in the presence of the giver who following the offering was given the remaining portion of meat and bread. He was then able to share his portion in a feast with friends and family on the same day. This offering of thanksgiving was a moment celebration which connected the giver in relationship to God and in the final instance he too became a beneficiary of the sacrifice presented. This voluntary offering pleased God and that which was freely given as a gift became a blessing to not only the giver but also to his wider network of family and friends.  This religious rite is no longer a requirement or practice for Christians today because Jesus’ sacrificial death on the Cross however, there are principles here that can be carried forward into current everyday practices.  That of sacrifice; the act of giving or doing something that is of personal cost for someone who is considered worthy of such a gift. That is done or given voluntarily which communicates a willing desire to express our thanks to God. These principles can be seen to honour God and benefit us at the same time. 

Science recognises the benefits that Gratitude has upon our well-being, our state of mind and our general state of happiness.  By expressing gratitude people acknowledge what is good and positive in their lives, not only in the good times but especially in the more difficult times of lives.  Gratitude recognises the source of goodness beyond the self and connects humanity to something good and greater beyond humanity. Whether you consider yourself religious or non-religious the benefits of being thankful has been found to have a good and lasting effect upon our physical, emotional and mental state.  

As the nation we have been rightly concerned about the multiple effects of 2 pandemic Lockdowns in just less than a year; we continue to carry concerns about the present and the future of our health; the health of the nation and the health of the World.   Additionally, we are now faced with the busyness of preparing to exit this current Lockdown (2) on December 2^nd and Christmas celebrations unlike any other we have recently known.  However, the regular practice of Gratitude as a spiritual discipline will cause us to prayerfully stop for a moment each day, a moment when we turn outward, away from ourselves and begin to identify those good and positive things around us to be thankful for. When we do so we remember that our concentration on the things that we can identify as reasons to be thankful however great or small changes our focus, our feelings and outlook above those things that are more worrisome and prone to weigh us down.

Today we would do well to place at the top of our Gratitude list …

• NHS; Consultants, Doctors, nursing staff, hospital workers of every grade and volunteers who are keeping our health facilities open. 
• Keyworkers; Transport Workers, Delivery drivers, Street Cleaners and rubbish collectors, Supermarket Workers all those who are keeping the UK clean, moving and fed 
• Police and Army personnel maintaining law and order 
• Government; MP’s, Local Councillors

Thank you to all. Thank you for all that you are doing and will continue to do.  Thank you for all that you do at risk to yourselves and families on our behalf. May you all know God’s divine health, His good guidance, protection and wisdom during this time.

How about we make the act of Gratitude a daily practice? Why not make it a family challenge? Whether religious or non-religious…We can introduce the idea to our children and make it a family practice.  (See Link below – a Children’s story about Gratitude)*  We can challenge each other online or on the telephone to come up with 3 things to be thankful for…I leave you with this! What three things can you be thankful for today?   * https://karenharveycox.wordpress.com/2008/04/04/the-thankful-coat/

Dear Lord, help us in these difficult times to always remember to find something to be thankful for. Help us to remember that a grateful heart is not only of personal benefit to us but that it also has the power to benefit those around us  

(Posted 25th Nov)

Living Evergreen_In Trust 

God’s Message…“Blessed is the man who trusts me, God, the woman who sticks with God.  They’re like trees replanted in Eden, putting down roots near the rivers—Never a worry through the hottest of summers, never dropping a leaf, serene and calm through droughts, bearing fresh fruit every season.” Jeremiah 17:7-8

Today, we reflect on the idea that ‘Trusting in God’ comes loaded with blessing.  It is clear from the above text that the theme of God’s message to Israel is that of ‘Trust’ and the benefits associated with such an undertaking.  How is ‘trust usually defined’?   What does Jeremiah 17:7-8 help us define what it is to ‘trust’ in God and how may it differ? One online dictionary defines ‘Trust’ as a ‘firm belief in the reliability, truth, or ability of someone or something’ 

God tells us through Jeremiah that trusting in Him is far more than in his ability to do something, to act on our behalf, it is more than the support He offers.  God has on many occasions presented Himself to Israel as trustworthy, truthful, reliable, a powerful and active means of support and protection.   Yet here He reminds them again that Trust in Him is far from an empty activity, based on thought or decision alone.  There is a sense that God draws the trusted parted into His very being so that they are found to be in an oasis of sustaining, lifegiving nourishment having the ability to flourish in situations that are contrary to growth and productivity.  A decision to turn to God in ‘Trust’ connects an individual securely to Him.  Much more than this, God tells Israel that they would be like an ‘evergreen’; like ‘a plant that retains green leaves throughout the year, like a person or thing of enduring freshness, success, or popularity.  Such trust in Him would cause Israel to be productive and resourceful even in the harshest of situations.  This is God’s promise to Israel and to those who will go on to place their trust in Him.

However, God’s message to Israel began with the opposite state of Blessedness with that of the state of being Cursed.  Both states are determined by where God’s people choose to place their ‘Trust’; whether in Him or in others?  “Cursed is the strong one who depends on mere humans.  Who thinks he can make it on muscle alone and sets God aside as dead weight?  He’s like a tumbleweed on the prairie, out of touch with the good earth.  He lives rootless and aimless in a land where nothing grows.”  The complete opposite of those who disregard God, trust their own strength and the strengths others.  God declares their actions and movements to be Rootless, lacking in stability and unproductive 

Jeremiah’s message to Israel shows that being a believer in God doesn’t automatically translate into a believer who trust God.  It is possible to Believe in God and not trust Him, the danger for His Covenant people Israel; and Christian Believers is found when not trusting God leaves them open to sin; the failure to recognise His presence and reliability.  By so doing they reject God and choose lesser help, ultimately finding themselves wanting.  The choice before Israel and for Believers it seems is ever so simple; either we trust God, or we do not.  Yet is it that simple?   “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”  There is both the believing that God exists and a confident expectation that he will reward such trust placed in Him.  Here again, we see that ‘belief’ and ‘trust’ being a confident expectation in God can be separated.

An Old Testament Biblical story found in the Book of Ruth demonstrates very well the normally invisible distinction between Faith and Trust.  They are not the same in meaning or experience but closely related as one is dependent on the other.  The main character Naomi whose story we are given a window through which to peer, has found herself completely destitute following the death of her husband and two sons.  She is an immigrant in Moab, living through a period of great loss famine and as if there hope, it comes through the knowledge that there is food in her homeland, Bethlehem in Judah.  Naomi decides to leave Moab and return home and Ruth, one of her daughter-in-laws; a Moabitess decides to return with her.  Ruth gives up her homeland, all she knows and all religious affiliations and chooses God whom she until now, knows as Naomi’s God.  

They both arrive in Bethlehem and Naomi is greeted with much excitement from the people of her hometown however, Naomi’s response is far from happy or exited.  As they greet her by name, she replies, “Don’t call me Naomi...Instead, call me Mara for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me home empty. Why call me Naomi when the Lord has caused me to suffer and the Almighty has sent such tragedy upon me?”  When hard times hit, what happens to faith and trust in God? We see in the story that it had become very dark for Naomi; she even describes life as bitter and blames God for the tragedy that has now appeared in her life.  Yet, we see that Naomi believed in God, His existence and His divine providence, care and control over life and life events however, her trust in Him and His good plans for her had been completely shattered. This we learn by her expression of how she now sees God’s activity in her life.  A little something to be said about mistrust, as justifiable and warranted such a response is in the circumstances, the inability to mentally rest, to see the good in the midst of the bad, negative thoughts and assessments of the situation.  All added together prolongs the experience of suffering and anxiety opening also the door to look elsewhere or outside of God for a solution. 

How did God deal with her mistrust? From the text we witness no punitive response from God, but would there be?  No, for as we have learned that the willingness to ‘Trust’ relates to a matter of choice made by the ‘nation’ or the individual in question.  As a Covenant keeping God, He will continue to work in our favour according to His divine purpose unless our choice leads us to place our confidence in others.   He had great plans for Naomi and her wounded family.  Trust in God speaks of the ‘evergreen’ state that produces good out of disastrous situations, Naomi though she doubted God’s goodness had not chosen to trust in anyone other than Him. Naomi’s mistrust had not disconnected her from God, He stepped in to perform life changing results in her life according to her appointed Destiny.  

Beginning her new life Ruth spent her initial day working in the field, under religious law which makes provision for the poor to receive a portion of the Harvest especially put aside for them.  This day revealed to Naomi something of God’s activity in their lives, she sees God’s Hand and changes her perspective as Ruth reports back, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz. Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “Blessed be he of the Lord, who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!”  Knowing the end of the story we know that whilst this story begins with a tragic set of circumstances, it was not the end but a moment of transition; a moment of rewrite, a moment of movement and opportunity in the hands of Destiny.  A moment when God set out to create something new out of tragedy.  Ruth, the Moabitess’ marriage to Boaz results in the restoration of the legacy of Naomi’s dead son, Ruth’s husband.  A further reward becomes visible much later, when we learn that Ruth, the Moabitess is named as an ancestor of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  What a miracle of Destiny?  What has God got in store for you and me as we continue to trust in Him, even in times of great questioning?

As we face uncertain times, where are you placing your trust?  It may be time for a check …Evergreen or tumbleweed? Productive or idle and uncreative?  Serene and calm or anxious and worried?  Jeremiah’s delivers God’s Message to Israel identifying that there is a choice to be had in times of challenge, careful to present both sides… which state will you choose today?  Clearly Church there are benefits to Trusting God. 

Dear Father, continue to draw us to yourself through these trying times, may our questions, our doubt and fatigue be quieted as you sustain us and strengthen our willingness to remain, to look for your activity and place our trust in you to bring us through into a fruitful and productive end.  Amen

Great is Thy Faithfulness                                              https://youtu.be/2eQ1oal44wU

Oceans by Hillsong                                                     https://youtu.be/dy9nwe9_xzw      (Posted 22nd Nov)

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  |        Mid-Week Prayer  

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He thrusts out your enemies before you; It is he who cries, ‘Destroy them!’ Deuteronomy 33:27

The Picture which we are being given through the words of this text in Deuteronomy is one of the Immortal, ever living God; as a safe place, an asylum for those who are fleeing danger or in need of protection. Not only does God give Himself as a shelter, He also gives His ‘Everlasting Arms’ as a means of support beneath those in need.  It offers seekers the sense of a ‘firm footing’ and the ability to take a stand with courage and confidence.  Words like ‘everlasting’ and ‘eternal’ tell us that the refuge and arms offered possess properties far beyond all that which we know or can imagine, existing within the realm of the divine and the extraordinary. His ‘Arms’, in particular revealing supernatural strength which has the power to lift us emotionally and spiritually above those circumstances that threaten, cause distress, concern or worry.

As well as becoming our place of refuge and supernatural support, God drives away our enemies and declares their ultimate destruction.  Changes and shifts in our circumstance rests very much upon how much we believe in God’s words, His promises and how complete our faith is in His ability to deliver on all that He proclaims.  We will find as the Hymn states intimacy, an assurance of safety, security and peace.

Today as we pray, we place before God all that concern and threaten for Him to provide us with a powerful sense refuge and peace that we need. To provide us with the security, assurance and courage we need to face difficulties before us 

Pandemic; its effects, its end                      The Bereaved           

The NHS                                                          Those suffering Covid19      Vaccines

The UK Government                                     Economic recovery             

Financial resilience for those affected by job loss and furlough

Continued sense of community as we live through Lockdown 2                                             

Below are Words of an old and popular Hymn, ‘Everlasting Arms’ written in 1887 by A. Showalter and E. Hoffman inspired by the above text found in Deuteronomy.  Written as a means of comfort and encouragement to those suffering loss and difficulty. 

1. What a fellowship, what a joy divine
   Leaning on the everlasting arms
   What a blessedness, what a peace is mine
   Leaning on the everlasting arms

Chorus 

Leaning, leaning
Safe and secure from all alarms
Leaning, leaning
Leaning on the everlasting arms

2. What have I to dread, what have I to fear
   Leaning on the everlasting arms?
   I have blessed peace with my Lord so near
   Leaning on the everlasting arms

What a Fellowship, What Joy Divine                     https://youtu.be/d090G6A9cYE

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  |      Prayer …

Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me,
for in you I take refuge.
I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings

until the disaster has passed. Psalm 57:1

David is a man on the run, seeking to escape the hateful and murderous threats of King Saul.  The Psalm is penned by David documenting his distress and experience as an open prayer, a psalm that many have been grateful to have access to… how do you pray when in distress? How do we share our emotions with God? Is it okay to be completely honest with God about our feelings? We learn from the reading of the Psalm in full, that in the midst of distress and disaster David still found room in his heart to praise God.

David is a man in trouble and by his opening lines we sense that his back is against the wall and only God can help him now.  David had been on the run for some time, this we understand from the story recorded in 1 Samuel 21-23.  God is His only hope. David cries out for mercy and protection; he pleads for a favourable hearing and an offer of God’s defence and shelter from danger.

I take refuge ‘under the shadow of your wings’; a phrase used in a number of the Psalms; Jesus also uses similar imagery in Luke 13, He state,  “how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings.“  As we return to the picture of a ‘winged creature’ that David shares with us, it opens for us the question of what image does his words conjure for us personally?  I imagine an extraordinarily huge fearsome bird with an enormous wingspan.  An image of something that would not only seem protective but also generate a feeling within me of assured safety, offering undisputable protection.

Beyond this imagery, Biblical commentary provide another means to understand the meaning of the phrase, ‘under the shadow of your wing.’  This can be found in Exodus 25 and 37 relating to the ‘Ark of Covenant.’ “And make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends. The cherubim are to have their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the cover. Place the cover on top of the ark and put in the ark the tablets of the covenant law that I will give you. There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites.” Exodus 37:18-22

Between the wings of the Cherubims of gold is the cover of the ‘Ark of Covenant’; the designated meeting place of God with humanity.  God would communicate there with the High Priest "under the wings of the Cherubims" – under the wings of what is also known as the mercy seat. Mercy and God’s favour is to be found under the wings of the Cherubims, it is a legitimate and tangible place which David could have been referring to – a place that God had designed for the High Priest to go alone on behalf of humanity to meet with Him and receive a favourable response. However, through Jesus Christ’s death on the Cross we have a High Priest who has opened wide the door for not just one person but for all who believe and come in the name of Jesus.

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God…For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses…Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

In ‘our time of need’ and ‘until the disaster has passed’ are two states that we can relate currently.  Here we are again, just a few months after the end of the first lockdown we are a few days into lockdown 2.  What we thought was ending seems to threaten us with new vigour all over again.  We may not be on the run from like David from a murderous individual but none the less we are being threatened by an invisible enemy. Let us go under the shadow of God’s wings and boldly ask for His mercy and favour on behalf of our nation, our world as it moves through the grip of this pandemic – let us pray for God’s divine protection and covering until this disaster passes… Yes Lord, have Mercy upon us!!! (Posted 12/11/2020)

Sadly we are closed again in accordance with current advice

We look forward to welcoming you back as soon as possible 

We Prayer for your safety and health in these times

God bless

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Our Motto for 2020          Image- Fota Gardens, Cork, S.Ireland

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