Radio shropshire Christmas pause for thought

It was one frosty December day, many years ago now but I still remember her very well 

 

A lady in her early 60's I guess ,smartly dressed for the cold weather, and from the bags she carried she'd evidently been doing Christmas shopping. I couldn't see inside the bags - but the bags themselves bore the names of well known stores 

I'm going to call this woman Jane ( not her real name)..

 

She'd left the bright lights and the noise of the High Street - not just to come in from the cold .. but into the quietness of a church building.

 

I welcomed her and introduced myself as the churches minister and asked if she'd been doing her Christmas shopping. 

 

Actually it was obvious she had - so it was a pretty stupid question really - and she didn't answer either! But to my amazement tears welled up in her eyes and she was soon sobbing uncontrollably her shoulders heaving with grief.

 

30 minutes and a cup of coffee later we talked, slowly at first but then her words came out in a torrent she shared with me that just a few months earlier she had lost her husband.

 

How she had wanted, indeed longed, to keep up appearances for the sake of the children and their children and up to this point she was doing well,but coming into a quiet building from a busy street  and talking to a complete stranger meant her deep grief found expression in her many tears

Maybe you're dreaming of a White Christmas looking forward hugely to what we call the festive season and having yourself what Bing Crosby  describes as a very merry Christmas.

 

And I do  hope your Christmas  is filled with good things.. but there is another kind of Christmas - not white - but blue.

 

It is the kind of Christmas I remember the year my dad died

It is the kind of Christmas  the bereft  family’s of those children and adults killed in Newtown Connecticut will be experiencing this and every year for there is something especially difficult about tragedy at Christmas

That was the kind of Christmas Jane was having  all those years ago ,and perhaps you too have been bereaved –we often feel the pain most acutely at Christmas don’t we?

 

Or perhaps you have lost your job and you're wondering how you'll pay back that loan or clear that credit card bill or you're worried about your health or your children or your parents or your marriage.

 

For many of us Christmas simply cannot bear the weight of expectation of happiness we place upon it

 

Now this is never easy but if you're dreading Christmas there are things that may help to dispel the darkness: You can find somebody to talk to ,whether it's a friend or perhaps a great charity like the Samaritans  or Relate who are there to help

 

Or if  memories of Christmas past  are just too painful is it  possible perhaps  to change your routine and go and help out at a church or charity or at a Christmas lunch, or even go for a walk in the country

 

These are not miracle cures but they can sometimes help get your pain into perspective

 

And perhaps we can also think about - what for me as a Christian - is the real meaning of Christmas:  Jesus came, not as a flash of light but as a tiny baby whose first cries were heard by a peasant girl The hands that first held him were , blistered, and dirty .the hands of a carpenter

 

here was a lot of grief and uncertainty around that first Christmas - a day that God became a vulnerable baby in Lucados words "he who sustained the world became dependant on the nourishment of a young girl”

And as the baby grew into a man he was to experience  suffering and rejection bereavement and pain and even death He understands our suffering he cares for us. The Light came into a dark world  that first Christmas and the darkness could never destroy it.

 

It would be unrealistic to expect everyone to have a Happy Christmas but my hope is we can in the depths of our hearts (even if they are troubled hearts) have a peaceful one.. and I wish a peaceful Christmas for you.

Radio Shropshire Pause for thought July 1st 2012

Not quite a random photo! -this took place outside Central on Friday and Saturday night and the youngsters who were taking part in slum survivor from the 6th form CU and SYFC were also on the programme it was good to meet them at the studio

Mike, I nearly asked you if you remember what you were doing this time last week but you were here!

I heard you talking to Dave Mathias about the Euros and particularly the England game –The nation was full of anticipation.

This time last week the  St Georges flags were flying from cars and houses alike

This time last week hope was rising ,optimism was in the air  surely we would beat the Italians and progress to the semi finals …..even I thought we had a chance

It didn’t quite turn out like that  …   I got back from the evening service bang on time for kick off  (strange coincidence that!)  The TV was already on   I was  ready to go The rest as they say is history they also say history repeats itself and as far as England  goes it sure does following.. the tension and stress of the game we witnessed the 12 yard lottery of penalties and of course we lost!!

Ecstasy followed by inevitable agony….the carnival is over for us

But I am here today to say all is not lost there is still the opportunity to celebrate this summer ,to party

The Diamond Jubilee celebrations continue indeed - Shropshire Diamond Jubilee Pageant is being held at RAF Cosford, in presence of Queen and Duke of Edinburgh on July 12^th

Then ,of course there are the Olympics we can celebrate every gold,silver or bronze medal even if it is in some minor sport that none of us have ever heard of ,or would usually pay attention to.

There will be plenty of opportunities for the nation to party

I think that is great

Yes there are times to grieve and to be sad  but there is also a time to celebrate

It is important to celebrate on a local as well as national level

In the last week I was present as a couple renewed the marriage vows they had first taken at Shrewsbury Register Office 38 years ago –children, grand children ,great grand children  came along to celebrate

I was also present at a splendid 10^th birthday party for our churches women’s  ministry CLEO

You don’t have to be a card manufacturer to think that it’s important to mark special occasions

Remembering someone’s birthday ,taking a colleague who is retiring out for a drink, marking an exam success ,all these make people feel valued ,cared for ,wanted

There is power in celebration!

As I read the gospels I am astonished just how much time Jesus spent eating and drinking, so much that his enemies accused him of doing it to excess, he goes to a wedding turns water into wine, he eats at the home of Mathew the tax collector, he feeds 5000 people he has a last supper with his followers even after the resurrection he eats fish with the disciples. As one writer puts it” in the gospels Jesus always appears to be going to a meal at a meal or coming from a meal ,often he was celebrating” No wonder Luke tells us “The Son of Man came eating and drinking”

Not everyone approved of these celebrations many religious people said

why is he eating with these sinners ?

But Jesus loves people he loves parties he loves celebrating.

Mark those special occasions in people’s lives, throw a party for them it need not be expensive ,it doesn’t have to be grand or ostentatious -,display an” attitude of gratitude” to your family & friends- show them you care

……perhaps even more radically bless others and  throw a party for people who have little  Jesus said when you give a feast invite the poor the crippled the lame the blind and you will be blessed … they may not be able to repay you but God will

So forget the euros ….let it  go! Barring a miracle ..(which is always possible )  we won’t  even win the world cup in two years time but we still have loads of reasons to party and to celebrate this summer!

Getting involved.! Radio Shropshire pause for thought- Dec 4th 2011

It was the evening of May 14th and early morning of May 15th 2006

A British Mountain Climber David Sharp perhaps ill equipped, and certainly climbing alone - had run out of Oxygen, and lay helpless and dying on a freezing night on the North east route of Mount Everest

What exactly happened that day is controversial but it is probable that many other climbers passed the dying man as they went up and came down Everest that day

It appears no one stopped and helped David - They were all too busy pursuing their own ambition trying to achieve their own goal
They would not surrender their dream to help a human being in need
They left David to die a cold and lonely Death on the mountain

In Advent we begin to turn our thoughts towards Christmas and the great message of Christmas is that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us In the person of Jesus Immortal God became a vulnerable baby .

I am so pleased that Jesus didn’t pass by on the other side he didn’t ignore us in our trouble and in our pain but he came down and as the Bible puts it he humbled himself and became obedient to death –even death on a cross!

Jesus didn’t wash his hands of humanity he got his hands dirty helping us
He call us to love people too He calls us to get involved



On Tuesday night I was at a great evening held at a local church building hearing about all the churches in Shrewsbury are doing to help our community
 It was inspirational to see so many churches living out the call of Jesus to love our neighbour as we love ourselves
There are churches in Shrewsbury, and indeed all over Shropshire, doing amazing things such as running debt advice centres ,food banks ,teaching NVQ skills ,helping the homeless ,the lonely ,the bereaved and the disturbed ,caring for their fellow human beings- getting involved

But of course it is not just Christians doing that thousands and thousands of others are as well

This is something we can all do -we can all get involve-d We can all engage with our fellow human beings

It really is all about relationships!

You may simply come across somebody as you walk or shop or go cycling today - They may need your help
Giving that help might be costly or time consuming ,its conceivable it could take all day

You could walk by on the other side as the people did in the parable  Jesus once told  or like the good Samaritan  you could stop and get involved

But even if you don’t come across someone by chance there are still people out there who need your help why not volunteer to help in a local hospice ,or charity shop with meals on wheels or collecting for cancer research

Its not just mountaineers who can be too focused on achieving their own goals and ambitions we all can

But if we help those in need then not only will we bless them and build community we may also prove

that Jesus words are really true -It is more blessed to give than to receive!

Radio Shropshire Pause for thought Remembrance Sunday

Picture painted by Harriet Davis with a little help -from Trust website



I turned the key in the lock and opened the large wooden door which led into a bright and spacious hallway

Stepping inside my eyes were drawn to a photo, hanging on the wall, in an ornate gold coloured frame, in the the photo a happy young girl smiling; not just with her mouth or her eyes but with her whole face.

I had never seen a picture of her before, and there was no writing to identify the smiling girl but I knew her name was Harriet.

Turning away from the from the photo I saw firstly, a large lift with a glass door straight ahead, and then looking left down a long corridor with white walls I could see another wide doorway and through the glass in the door I could see a swimming pool

Exploring the house revealed not just wonderful views of the Pembrokeshire coastline and the autumn sun shining on the rough sea, but other more prosaic things, special baths and toilet seats and hoists and adapted beds -all things that are too familiar to those who inhabit or indeed knows someone who inhabits a world full of disability aids
And the smiling girl in the photograph is Harriet Davis. The trust we rented the property from bears her name

A leaflet lifted from a small wooden table tells us that Harriet had a rare degenerative disease , which meant she lost most of her motor abilities but that seaside holidays were a source of great joy to her until her death in 1992 at the age of just 11.

Inspired by Harriet’s memory her mum and dad founded the trust so that other disabled children could enjoy holidays too in this wonderfully adapted house

Memory can be totally inspirational!


Today is Remembrance Sunday a day when in small chapels and large churches and at war memorials throughout Shropshire and the United Kingdom these familiar words from Laurence Binyons poem for the fallen will be said as they are every year

"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
we will remember them."
The British Legion do a phenomenal job They certainly remember and keep alive the memory of brave men and women who in conflicts as far apart as Belgium and the Falkland’s ,Burma and Afghanistan died in the service of their country
But they don’t just remember the memory spurs them to act to raise money to care for the survivors in a whole host of different ways from pensions advice to building centres where wounded service personnel can be rehabilitated to live lives to the full.

Like Harriet’s parents -the painful memory of the past inspires a future dream
What do you do with your painful memories?- do they fester deep inside or do you allow them to motivate you to build a better world- to inspire future dreams

At the heart of the Christian faith is a painful memory of a crucified man on a cross
Christians think about the cross often
Christians believe in the words of the old hymn that Jesus died "that we might be forgiven" and the memory of that death and the resurrection that follows should energise & inspire us to live for him- to love as He loved and serve as He served