Too late?

Much was made in the media (and continues) of the recent sad death of television presenter Caroline Flack, who reportedly took her own life at the age of 40.  This was headline news for several days. 

I was interested in a pertinent and thought-provoking comment from a Facebook friend:

“Following the very sad death of Caroline Flack, the BBC newsreader tells viewers, 'if you've been affected by this...'. What a pity they don't seem to expect viewers to be affected when they report hundreds dead in war or famine, when boats full of desperate migrants sink, when schoolchildren are shot by the dozen..”

In the days since Caroline Flack’s death, various ‘celebrities’ seem to have been falling over themselves to say how much they loved and valued Caroline and what a great person she was.  I wonder how many of them ever took the time to tell her that while she was still alive.  This question was prompted by a funeral service which I took recently.  One of the deceased’s family gave a moving tribute, and spoke of his love for the person who had died.  He went on to reflect that he wished he had taken more opportunity to express these feelings while his loved one was still alive.  It’s so sad when we fail to take such opportunities when we have them.  Once a person has died, it’s too late.

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, and officially the start of Lent.  I have been pondering on how to observe Lent this year.  One thing I have decided is to stop using social media during the period.  I have already removed Twitter from my phone, and actually feel much better for it already!  Although there are some good and positive things on Twitter, there is so much that is negative, vindictive and abusive.  In fact, I may keep off Twitter for good, apart from making the occasional post.

I am also making a commitment to do what I can to avoid speaking negatively about people and being critical; in other words, to observe St Paul’s instructions, ‘encourage one another and build each other up’ (! Thessalonians 5.11).  Despite what the old ‘sticks and stones’ proverb says, words can be tremendously hurtful and discouraging.  I want to try to use my words in as positive and helpful a way as I can.

I do wonder whether Caroline Flack really know how loved she was, and whether, if she had done, it might have influenced her actions.  Who knows how many people we can influence in positive ways by our kind, loving and encouraging words?

Holiday reflections

Sue and I have recently returned from a week’s holiday in Derbyshire.  It was a much-needed and enjoyable break, despite the somewhat inclement weather at times.   We were staying in a tiny hamlet called Blore.  Ilam Park and Hall are about a mile away, and one day I decided to make the journey on foot (the weather was rather wet, but I made sure I had my waterproofs with me).  Ilam Park and Hall are owned by the National Trust, so I decided that having braved the weather I deserved a cream tea in the National Trust café, and very enjoyable it was, too.

Situated within the grounds of Ilam Park is the ancient Church of the Holy Cross.  As I approached the church I walked through the churchyard and noticed in particular one of the gravestones which I found rather poignant.  It was the grave of someone who had died in January 1956 at the tender age of just 3 weeks.  The fact that he had died at such a young age just a few months after I was born, was a reminder to me of how fragile human life is.  None of us know how long we have to live our earthly lives.  That young life lasted just 3 weeks, whereas mine has lasted (so far) 64+ years.  What a precious gift life is, something we should never take for granted.  I was challenged by the question, “How have I used the years of life which I have been given?”

As I walked around the church, I came across a rack of various booklets etc., one of which took my attention.  It was a little booklet titled, “Words for the journey”, which consisted of 31 days of short Bible passages.  The introduction to the booklet states, “We hope that they will inspire you on your daily journey through life”, and the first Bible quote given is from Psalm 27 verse 11, ‘Teach me how to live, O LORD; Lead me along the right path.’  A reminder that in our journey of life, if we open ourselves to God he will lead us and show us the right ways.

Although God always wants the best for us, and has given us the Bible to show us his ways for our life, he also gives us freewill.  We can either choose God’s way or we can choose our own way.  When we arrived at our holiday destination, much of the landscape was covered in snow.  I noticed a sign on some grass near our accommodation which asked, “Please keep to the path to save the grass.”  Notwithstanding that request, alongside the sign were footprints in the snow.  Clearly some people either couldn’t read or decided that they knew better!

Choosing to go our own way rather than God’s way will inevitably bring consequences.  To make the most of the time we are given on planet earth, God’s way is always best!

Walk in the light

If you use Facebook you will know that every so often Facebook reminds you of an anniversary of a post or image which you uploaded onto Facebook.  Two or three weeks ago, I was reminded by Facebook of an image from our first winter in Leicester (2012).  It was an image of Sue’s car, which was parked on the street outside our house.  I took the photo because the car and the street were covered in several inches of snow.  It was interesting to be reminded of that time, especially as I can’t remember many similar periods whilst we have lived in Leicester.  I quite enjoy snow, although I appreciate that it can cause problems for some.

The 2019/20 winter has been fairly mild as winters go (global warming?)  Having said that, we have had a few cold snaps when the night temperatures have dropped below freezing.  A couple of weekends ago was one time when we awoke to a layer of frost outside.  As I made my way gingerly down to church for the Saturday coffee and prayer time, I lost my footing several times on the icy pavements, and had to very quickly regain my balance to avoid ignominiously ending up in a heap on the ground!

Later in the day I was out walking again, and noticed an interesting, though not surprising, phenomenon.  Temperatures had remained at about freezing, and some of the pavements were still treacherously icy.  Those pavements which had received the sun’s warming rays, however, were free of ice.  As I walked down the road on which I live, I noticed a marked difference between the pavement on one side which remained icy and the pavement on the other side which was dry and free from ice because the sun had shone on it.  What a difference the light of the sun had made!

I was reminded of the words of Jesus when he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life’ (John 8.12).  In other words, to put our trust in and follow Jesus is to walk in the light of his presence; our hearts are warmed and melted to become hearts of love and compassion, and we experience an increasing desire to walk in his way. 

The apostle Paul wrote, ‘For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light’ (Ephesians 5.8).  Paul reminds us that to walk in the warm light of Jesus and to follow him is to be transformed; it should be evident in our lives.  The apostle John gives an example of how this works out in practice:

‘Anyone who claims to live in God’s light and hates a brother or sister is still in the dark. It’s the person who loves brother and sister who dwells in God’s light and doesn’t block the light from others. But whoever hates is still in the dark, stumbles around in the dark, doesn’t know which end is up, blinded by the darkness’ (1 John 2.9-11).

As the light of God’s love penetrates our lives, so we should be becoming more like Jesus himself.  That’s some challenge!