Face-to-face encounter

Two weeks ago was the 60th anniversary of the day when I came bouncing into the world.  My birth was apparently a somewhat momentous event for my parents and, to a lesser extent, to the small East Yorkshire village where my family then lived.  After having had four girls, I arrived; I am told that the message soon rang round the village, "The Clarks have had a boy!"  About 6 years later, our little brother arrived to complete the family.

Although I have reached the age of 60, I am sure that none of my previous birthdays have been spent in such an unusual way.  For a start, my birthday only lasted for 13 hours, and most of it was spent in the air!  On the day before my birthday, I set off on the long flight to Auckland, New Zealand, to visit my brother Phil and his family.  Because New Zealand time is 11 hours ahead of UK time, it appears that somewhere along the route those 11 hours were lost.  We had a brief stopover in Singapore before arriving in Auckland late at night, just in time for some birthday cake, made by my sister-in-law Monika.  Though I've forgotten most of the events surrounding my previous 59 birthdays, I'm not going to forget number 60.

Up until shortly before my 60th, I had expected it to be a fairly normal type of birthday, even though reaching the age of 60 is a sort of milestone.  Then I learned that Phil had been diagnosed with terminal oesophageal cancer, and I came to the decision to visit him in New Zealand.  I hastily arranged flights for me and two of our sisters, which happened to mean that I would be in the air for most of my birthday.

I came to realise, when I first heard of Phil's illness, that responding to such news seems much more difficult when you are separated by around 11,400 miles.  You can't just pop round for a chat or a hug!  I am so grateful that I was granted compassionate leave by the Methodist Church and was able to book the flights and spent 6 full days with Phil and his lovely family.  It was a very precious time, with both laughter and tears, talking and praying.  I hope that our being there was of some little encouragement and support.  We continue to pray for a miracle, believing that with God all things are possible.

Modern communication methods are amazing and give opportunities for communication which could not have been imagined in times gone by.  But there is no substitute for being with someone in person.  Last Sunday was Pentecost Sunday, when we celebrated the outpouring of God's Holy Spirit.  The promise of Jesus is that all who believe in him will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Through his Spirit, God comes and makes his home in our lives - he comes to us in a personal way.  God is not a remote, far away figure, but one who longs to make himself know to us when we open our lives to him.  His presence is with us, he meets us face-to-face.

As a PS, if you are a praying person and would like to support Phil in prayer, click on HERE to find out how you can do it.