Monthly Archives: July 2024

For all the saints…

1 Reply

I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; before the ‘gods’ I will sing your praise. I will bow down towards your holy temple and will praise your name for your love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word. When I called, you answered me; you made me bold and stout-hearted.

May all the kings of the earth praise you, O Lord, when they hear the words of your mouth. May they sing of the ways of the Lord, for the glory of the Lord is great.

Though the Lord is on high, he looks upon the lowly, but the proud he knows from afar. Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes, with your right hand you save me. The Lord will fulfil his purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures for ever – do not abandon the works of your hands.

(Ps 138)

For all the saints who from their labours rest, who Thee by faith before the world confessed, Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest. Halleluia, Halleluia!

Thou wast their rock, their fortress and their might; Thou, Lord their captain in the well-fought fight; Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true light. Halleluia, Halleluia!

(W.W. How, 1823-97)

There is an old postcard in my bible, faded and not very attractive, a design which I would not have chosen to buy for myself… so why is it there, after 36 years? Because it was written and given to me by one of the most precious of the saints who graced my early life and young adulthood, a lady called Mary Inglis. Mary never married, but her ‘family’ was huge! Everyone who met her knew that they were loved, that they mattered to God, and the fruit of her prayers and faithful loving service will only be fully known in the new creation, when one by one, untold numbers will seek her out to thank her for the way that she touched their lives!

Mary wrote this card and referred me to this psalm, in a particularly painful and dark time of my life. Her gentleness and love made her words all the more precious, and I have treasured the card ever since – a reminder of a bright spirit wholly surrendered to her Lord, and given over to loving others in his name. The psalm was one she had shared recently with friends, praying together for one another as each in her own way was facing troubles and challenges, and needing that priceless reassurance that the Lord would fulfil his gracious purposes for each one.

I hope that I have learnt from Mary’s example, or that I am still learning from it, since I am a slow learner… I know that to make time to write words of encouragement can be one of the most powerful ways we can show God’s love to one another; I know that to pursue a quiet life of service and love is not to be insignificant in the kingdom; I know that to share one’s journey of faith with others is to be strengthened and made glad, as we see one another growing in faith, see prayers answered, and are renewed in hope. I know too that she would shrink from any great praise, and would direct all such admiration to her beloved Lord and Saviour, delighting only in humble service and shunning pride in any ‘achievements’.

It has been such sweet food for my spirit to take time to remember Mary, and to write of her life and influence on me – I do indeed praise and thank God for all the saints whom I have been blessed to know, and who now rest from their labours. I thank God for their example, and the encouragement it is to remember how they lived by faith, how they clung to Christ in times of trial, and how they loved, oh how they loved!

May God grant us in our turn the wisdom and willingness to serve his church in this way. May we see and take opportunities to love, to recognise and affirm one another; to speak words of encouragement and comfort; to share our own journey of faith. May we in our turn prove the faithfulness of our Lord, and with the psalmist rejoice in his enduring love, resting in the assurance of his will and purpose to fulfil all he has planned for us in his kingdom.

Lord, for the years…

Leave a reply

Lord, for the years your love has kept and guided, urged and inspired us, cheered us on our way, sought us and saved us, pardoned and provided, Lord of the years, we bring our thanks today.

Lord, for ourselves, in living power remake us – self on the cross and Christ upon the throne, past put behind us, for the future take us, Lord of our lives, to live for Christ alone,

(T. Dudley Smith, 1926- )

Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. for,

“Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”..

..in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behaviour in Christ may be ashamed of their slander…

(1Pet.3.8-16)

“.. to live for Christ alone..” a motivation for marriage, a purpose for our lives both as individuals and as husband and wife. I believe that when I was called into marriage, it was so that in that context, I might live for my Lord. He had and has work for me to do as a wife, and as a mother – and now a grandmother. Those things are not distractions from my calling as a believer. For me, they are my calling! I have rejoiced to live my life of faith in those places, and could not have fulfilled those tasks without the constant presence and enabling, the love and strength of my Father in heaven.

The journey is not over yet, but as the years pass, the tasks change, and I need fresh anointing of grace, wisdom and strength for the new situations where I serve. As I contemplate another anniversary, I want to give thanks for the years down which – as the opening line of the quoted hymn says – my Lord has kept and guided me. There remain mysteries, unanswered questions about why certain things have happened – or not happened – but my overwhelming sense is of being cared for, provided for, and always conscious of my heavenly Father’s sustaining love.

I give thanks for other marriages which inspire me to persevere in faith; to continue looking for new ways in which to serve my Saviour in the places to which he has brought me. I give thanks for the wisdom of those who have gone before, walking by faith and modelling that gracious dependence on God which teaches me how to live now. I give thanks for those who have let me see that their marriages are not perfect, and yet who know that within that context, they are called to serve one another and to love their Saviour and serve their communities. Yes, there may be a few ideal marriages out there, but most of us are sinners, married to sinners, trying our best to grow in love, forgiveness and patience – and so grateful to God for enabling us to keep going.

We made promises, all those years ago, trusting that God would help us to keep them. And as I consider the years, I see how each fresh resolution to keep on trying, keep on forgiving, keep on asking for forgiveness, has been part of the perseverance which I am called to. I didn’t know when I made those promises, just what the years would bring, but I knew something of the God whom I was trusting to bring me through them. Day-by-day and week-by-week, as I kept walking in obedience, he has walked me down the years, and now there is only a heart full of gratitude for all that he has done – often in spite of me – through this married life.

Thank you, Father, for your faithfulness to us down the years. May we not now neglect the fresh opportunities that you have given us to love and serve you in this new chapter of our lives. Let our lives as husband and wife prove a means of blessing to one another and also to your church and the wider community. May we live for you, in harmonious and fruitful companionship, ever thankful for your presence with us, through Jesus our Lord, Amen.

Abundant living…

Leave a reply

‘But this is my word’, Jesus continued ,’for those of you who are listening: love your enemies! Do good to people who hate you! Bless people who curse you! Pray for people who treat you badly… Whatever you want people to do to you, do that to them. If you love those who love you, what’s special about that?… No: love your enemies, do good and lend without expecting any return. Your reward will be great! You will be children of the Highest! He is generous, you see, to the stingy and the wicked. You must be merciful, just as your father is merciful. Don’t judge, and you won’t be judged. Don’t condemn, and you won’t be condemned. Forgive, and you’ll be forgiven. Give, and it will be given you: a good helping, squashed down, shaken in, and overflowing – that’s what will land in your lap. Yes: the ration you give to others is the ration you’ll get back for yourself.’

(Lk 6.27-38: NT Wright translation, 2001)

Do not repay anyone evil for evil. .. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge, I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. 

(Rom 12. 17-21)

Jesus came to usher in the ‘age to come’, the kingdom of God unveiled in the heart of a kingdom ruled by the powers of this age, where humankind had been held in bondage, enslaved and unable to fulfil the role for which we were created – to live for and with our God, stewards of his creation and bearing his image. From the outset of his ministry, Jesus consistently overturned expectations about what God was like, and what it looked like to honour, and live in freedom with him.

The religious leaders of Judaism in his day were trying to bring in God’s kingdom by tighter and tighter adherence to the law, laying a huge burden on the people to get it right. Instead of this, Jesus came like a tornado of fresh air, light and boundary-breaking! Jesus said that if our hearts were right with God – in humble repentance, and joyful depending faith – then we had entered the kingdom of God, it was among us and we were loved and secured by God in his family. Jesus set aside the legal observances, turning the spotlight on the heart, and asking – “do you love and trust me above all these rules; above your racial purity; above your wealth and status in Israel?” Jesus came and poured out God’s love unstintingly, with a breathtaking abandon and – in the eyes of the Pharisees and teachers of the law – a reckless disregard for tradition! And time after time, Jesus called those who believed in him to live as he did – because this recklessly generous life reflects the heart of our God, the love which held nothing back when it came to doing for us what we desperately need and cannot do for ourselves.

Do I believe that God is astonishingly merciful? Well, yes I do, because he reached me and rescued me, and continues to seek out those like me who have done nothing to deserve his favour. Do I see God’s provision of sun and rain, day and night, for every human being on the planet? Yes, I do! He does not grudge us the good gifts we receive, and more than that, He chooses to show grace and love even to those who persist in dishonouring and grieving his holy, loving heart.

As I contemplate the way that God’s kingdom generosity pours out from Jesus, I am challenged to consider my own attitudes and behaviour: do I consistently choose to love, to give, to rejoice and live in the light, no matter what happens to me? Am I grudging or giving with gladness? Which attitude honours the God who gave his son for me? Which way of living will rightly mirror the God whose grace is amazing, and whose goodness is readily shown to those who reject him?

O Lord, God of heaven, in your mercy work in me that I might live to honour you by living abundantly, generously, giving as you give, forgiving and eager to do good that others might thrive. Show me what I have to spend in this way – my words, my time, my love… Show me where I am miserly, fearful and indifferent – release me to live for you, showing me what it looks like here and now to be like my Father in heaven. Let me follow my Saviour in a life of selfless love, that you might be glorified and lives transformed. In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.

Outlook.. changeable!

Leave a reply

He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.

But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children – with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.

The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all. Praise the Lord, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word. Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts, you servants who do his will. Praise the Lord, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the Lord, O my soul.

(Ps 103. 10-22)

There is a child in my heart; a child who fears to grieve those she loves, who is deeply ashamed to cause trouble or hurt, who longs to see those around her happy and untroubled. The child often apologises for things that may not be her fault, in an attempt to smooth over discomfort. The child is terrified to express desires, or make choices which may cause discomfort or inconvenience to others. The child is often tired of her failings, and of not managing to grow out of them. The child struggles to see any difference between her failings, and herself – often wishing that she herself were out of the way, so that the lives of those she loves could run without the continual irritant of her faults. The child sees little value in her own contribution to life, except as far as she can please others and make their lives better.

The adult in my heart knows that she is made by God for a purpose; made to know and be known by him; made to serve and delight in him; made to delight in the world, in other people, and all the good gifts which he gives day by day. The adult knows that she is loved, saved, guarded by eternal arms and assured of an inheritance in the world to come. The adult knows that she is forgiven, and forgiven again; and that the love that matters will never fail her and knows her heart’s desire is to be made pure.

The voices of the child and the adult are vying for my attention; first one, and then the other speaks loudest, and as a result I am in a pitiable state of turmoil, at the mercy of some deep, destabilising emotions. The outlook changes not only from day-to-day, but almost minute to minute, and it is very tiring. In such a condition, I do my utmost to cling to the rock which is my Saviour’s love and saving power; his settled disposition for my eternal good. I seek the discipline to recall and meditate on God’s promises to me, promises to forgive, and to transform. I seek ways to lift my head up out of my own mess to look at the great big story of His-story – of God making His kingdom come, and His will be done. In that gloriously wide perspective there lies the possibility of renewed confidence, of peace and the conviction that the battle is won, and I walk under the victor’s flag. The struggles which beset me are put into their place and revealed as skirmishes with the enemy of God’s children, who is using my weakness to draw me away from my Saviour, and bind me in a dungeon of self-pity and despair.

I WILL NOT be bound; I WILL claim the victory which Christ has won over all the powers of evil in this world. And this I do because by the Spirit, God will do it for me! He does not change, when I do. He does not weaken or get distracted. Let my soul praise the Lord!

Heavenly Father, Almighty and Everlasting, whose faithful love never fails, and whose purposes are sure of being fulfilled, I praise and thank you for your steadfastness. You know that I am struggling in these days, fighting a wall of noise which accuses me of failure, stirring up every old shameful act, and every memory of a good deed not done. Have mercy on me, you know that I am but dust. In your fathomless compassion, restore in me by your Spirit, the faith, hope and upwelling gratitude which should be the heartbeat and rhythm of my life as your child. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.