'One man's rubbish'

With our impending move to Leicester drawing ever closer, the pressure to get everything sorted out in preparation is growing.  We seem to have been packing boxes for months, but there still appears to be a lot of unpacked items to deal with.  We also have to complete the process of sorting through our furniture to decide which bits will fit into the new house and which will have to be disposed of.

A couple of days ago I decided to have a go at clearing out the garage.  It's probably been some years since the garage had a good clear-out, and I wasn't particularly looking forward to the task.  I decided that the best method of approach was to take just about everything out of the garage, and then go through it systematically.  It was a rather dirty job, although it was worth the effort in the end: the garage is now looking considerably cleaner and tidier. 

A few items were put aside for the charity shop; some others we decided to keep, but quite a lot of what we discovered in the garage was put on a pile to go to the tip.  It was no longer of any practical use or value to us. 

Just as we had almost finished the job, a van came round the corner and pulled up opposite our gates.  The two occupants were on the lookout for waste metal, and they had seen that we had a few items which might add to their collection!  They eagerly took what we offered them.  I suppose I could have asked them whether they were prepared to pay for what they took, but as I was intending taking it to the tip anyway, I didn't bother.  I was happy that they had saved me the trouble of taking the items to the tip, and they were happy to have received the items.  One of the men in the van even came back to say thank-you!

That little incident proved the old saying, "one man's rubbish is another man's treasure."  What we were discarding as worthless, the two men in the van saw as something of worth.  I thought of the gospel story which I had spoken about in church last Sunday: the story of Jesus calling Matthew, the tax-collector, to become his disciple; and the stir which was caused amongst the religious leaders when Jesus then went to shared a mean with Matthew and his friends (see Matthew 9:9-12).

To the religious leaders, Matthew, his tax collector friends, and the other so-called "sinners" who were sharing a meal with Jesus, were rubbish, of no value.  Yet to Jesus they were precious; indeed, they were the very sort of people for whom Jesus came.  He came to show that EVERY human life is precious in God's sight; there are no "rubbish" people in the eyes of God.

What Jesus really meant

I have been reminded recently how sometimes God speaks through life events in a way which gives a clearer insight into passages from the Bible.  In this case, he spoke to me through events surrounding the birth of my second grandchild (first granddaughter) Beth.

Beth was born two weeks ago today.  I was hoping that she would be born in May, like her granddad.  She left it rather late, arriving at around 10.30pm on 31 May, but she and I now share our birth month!  We received a text message from our daughter, Steph, early in the morning to say that things were happening.  It seemed like a very long day indeed before we eventually received the news that we had a granddaughter.  Tears of joy flowed!

Beth was born at home, but because Steph was not too well afterwards, it was decided to take her and Beth into hospital to keep an eye on them overnight.  Matt, Steph's husband, was planning to go in with them.  Unfortunately their front door key became stuck in the door, and they weren't able to lock the door.  Sue and I jumped in the car and went round to their house.  Sue stayed to look after the house while I took Matt in the car to the hospital.  

By the time we arrived at the hospital it was the early hours of the morning.  We managed to get into the hospital, and Matt spoke to the receptionist, explaining that his wife and baby had recently been admitted.  The receptionist then looked at me and asked Matt, "and who is this gentleman with you?"  I told her that I was Steph's dad.  She responded by saying that it was OK for Matt to go up to the ward, but I was not allowed to go with him.  Dads were allowed, but not granddads.  The reality suddenly hit me that Steph's parents (Sue and me) were no longer number one in her life!  (We eventually did see Beth later in the day, and she was certainly worth waiting for).

As I have been pondering on that experience, into my mind came some words of Jesus which, on the face of it, seem to be very hard to understand.  In Luke 14:25, Jesus says,  ‘If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters – yes, even their own life – such a person cannot be my disciple.'  Is Jesus really saying that we are to hate our families?  Obviously not, as on several occasions he calls his disciples to 'love one another' , an instruction which is repeated in the rest of the New Testament.

My experience as Beth's granddad has, I think, led me to a greater understanding of what Jesus really meant.  Now that Steph is a wife and a mother, her first priority, and strongest love, is to her husband and daughter.  That doesn't mean that she loves her parents or siblings any less, it simply means that her priorities have changed.  I believe that Jesus was saying that if we are to be his disciples, than he must become our first priority, the one we love the most.

It doesn't mean that we love our human family and friends less; in fact, as we allow God's love to fill us more and more, we will find an even greater love for others flowing from our hearts.  To be truly a disciple of Jesus, he must be first in our lives.

 

Beth and Max teach granddad about God

As I was preaching last night, I received a revelation about the nature of God's love, and it was thanks to my two wonderful grandchildren, Beth and Max.

Max was born in January.   He is wide-eyed and appears to be absorbed in the world around him.  It seems that almost from the beginning, his eyes roam the scenes around him, trying to take in all sights around, fixing his attention on the people he sees.  I have never known a baby quite like Max in this respect.

Max was our first grandchild, and he is very special.  But just to show that babies can be a bit like buses, last week along came Beth, our second grandchild!  Although she is still just a few days old, already her nature and character is beginning to be revealed.  She is a very placid young lady, and seems to spend a lot of her time asleep!  We haven't heard her cry yet, though I'm told that she doesn't like bath time very much!

Quite a few people told me before either Max or Beth were born how wonderful it is being a grandparent.  Now I know for myself - it's one of the most brilliant experiences of my life! 

So to get back to where I began...  During a sermon I was talking about how so many people have a wrong understanding of the nature and character of God.  God can sometimes be viewed as a kind of tyrant, who sets out a series of rules and regulations, then stands over us with a big stick waiting to beat us up if we step out of line.  Many people seem to struggle to understand how God can love them; there is the feeling that we have to somehow strive to earn God's love. I believe that a misguided view of God can prevent people from fully receiving his love.  What God wants more than anything is for us to receive and embrace his love, and enter into a loving relationship with him.

As I was preaching, I began to talk about new-born Beth.  Though she has never spoken to me, never made me a cup of tea, never given me a kiss or done anything to earn my love, I love her with all my heart and would willingly lay down my life for her (and I could say the very same thing of Max).  As the words came out of my mouth I felt great emotional welling up inside; not only because of the acknowledgement of my own feelings as a granddad, but also the realisation that in some was I was talking about the love of God for every human being.

We can't do or say anything to earn God's love.  As someone once said, nothing we can do or say can make God love us any more or any less.  God's love for you and me isn't dependent on our behaviour, our lifestyle, our background, or physical looks, or anything like that.  God loves us because he IS love, it is in his nature to love (just as it is in my nature to love my grandchildren).  My prayer is that both Max and Beth will one day come to experience the riches of God's love for themselves.  Thanks to you both for reminding granddad what God's love is like!

Recognising what we have

If you read my previous blog entry, you may remember that it featured a plant with bright yellow flowers.  At the time I wrote the blog entry, I didn't know the name of the plant, but consulting with a friend who is knowledgeable in these things has led me to the discovery that it is the broom.  It was while we were holidaying in Scotland that we came to an area with a number of broom plants.  In the sunshine, the yellow flowers seemed to shine particularly brightly.

Of course, holidays eventually come to an end, and we headed for home.  We perhaps could have done with a slightly longer holiday, but the time we spent away did us good and we were able to recharge the batteries somewhat.  The weather while we'd been away had been better than forecast, though not brilliant for late May.  As is often the case, it improved considerably once I got back to work!  

At the end of our first week back, our son and his wife and young son came to stay overnight.  Our daughter and her husband, who live locally, also came round, and as the sun was shining we decided to have our first barbecue of the year.  It was a good job that my son-in-law was with us, because I've never been very good with barbecues!

We were sitting in the garden waiting for the food to cook when I noticed (how had I missed it?) that we have a large broom plant in our own garden!  I must have seen it lots of times, but for some reason it had never clicked that this was the same plant which we had so admired on our Scottish holiday!

I got to thinking about how there may be times when we don't appreciate what we have as much as we should; maybe we taken these things for granted.  Whereas I had been really attracted by the yellow broom plant in Scotland, I had hardly noticed the one which was just as beautiful in my own back garden. The old saying about the grass always appearing greener in the other field has a ring of truth about it; for some reason we can so easily be attracted by what we don't have, and ignore what we do have.  It's certainly reminded me of the importance of valuing what I already have, and trying not to take these things (or people) for granted!

Where's your focus?

Sue and I recently enjoyed a lovely break in beautiful Scotland.  The weather proved to be better than forecast, which meant that we were able to get out and about and explore the amazing Scottish scenery.  On several occasions we stopped the car and stepped out to enjoy the stunning views.  I had my camera at the ready, and managed to shoot quite a few images, though I feel that a camera image can rarely, if ever, capture the full impact of the ‘live’ view.

In one of the places we stopped, there was a proliferation of a bright yellow flower (no idea of the name of the plant, the gardeners among you might recognise the flower from the images).  As I drew close to one of the plants, I noticed that a bee had settled on a flower.  I decided to try and take a photo of the bee.  I have an ordinary compact camera, with an auto-focus facility.  I used the zoom lens to try and get a good image, and took a two or three shots.  One of the problems I faced was that the wind was gently moving the branches of the plant, so I wasn’t sure how effectively the auto-focus would work.

In the old days, of course, I would have had to wait a week or two for the film to be sent off and developed.  With the advent of digital cameras, the results can be viewed almost instantly.  I later downloaded the images onto my laptop. When I viewed the images I was interested to see how the auto-focus had operated.  One image had the bee very out of focus, another had the bee in much better focus.  As I compared the two images, I noticed that the image with the bee out of focus nevertheless had the flowers in the background in almost perfect focus; on the other hand, the image which brought the bee into much clearer focus left the background flowers out of focus.

 

It got me to thinking about the things people focus on in life.  For example, when two people have a falling out, it may be because they have focussed on a relatively minor issue about which they disagree, and taken their focus off the wider picture.  I am taking a Thanksgiving Service later today of a lovely old lady who died recently.  In the past few years she has had her fair share of troubles, from a burglary and a major water leak at her home, to issues around her deteriorating health.  Yet she was able to say to me before she died, “I’ve had a wonderful life”.  Her focus was on the big picture, and the blessings of her life.  When troubles come into our life, where is our focus?  I spoke to someone yesterday who had recently been told that they have cancer.  In situations like that, where would our focus be?  I was reminded recently of the quote, “Don’t tell God how big your problems are, tell your problems how big your God is!”  It’s all about focus.

Run the Race

A note dropped though our letter box a few days ago (unfortunately not of the pounds sterling variety!)  It was a typed letter; there was no return address (which always makes me a little suspicious).  Its purpose was to inform us of a 10K run taking place in Doncaster this coming Sunday.  We had received the notification because the roads around us are to be closed from around 7am on Sunday morning, until approx 1pm.  Rather inconvenient for getting to church!

The note gave a website address for further information (it is increasingly the case that people without internet access are at a distinct disadvantage these days).  There was on the website a list of roads to be closed, and as I read through the list it soon became apparent that many of the town centre roads will be closed for the morning.  One of my churches, Priory, is right in the middle of town, and the road closures will prevent people getting to the church car park.

It is obvious that the road closures will have a major impact on the numbers of people attending church on Sunday morning.  It is a shame that neither the organisers nor the local council thought to inform the church of what is happening on Sunday.  It is only because I happen to live on a road which is being closed that I discovered how the 10K run will affect the town centre.

We did think about whether we should still go ahead with our normal morning service; in the end we decided to do so, even if the congregation is somewhat lower than normal this Sunday.  I have decided to use as the theme for the service "Run the Race".  It is interesting that several times in the letters of St Paul in the New Testament we find the image of the athlete.  I will be referring to some of them during the service.  To quote just one, from Acts 20:24, ‘I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me - the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.’

One of the most iconic and memorable images from recent Olympic Games came in the final of the 400m in Barcelona, in 1992.  British Runner, Derek Redmond, had come back from a battle against injury to reach the final, and was hoping to win a medal to round off his career.  Half way down the back straight he pulled up with a serious hamstring injury; it was a devastating blow.  Amazingly, he picked himself up and began to hobble round the track to the finishing line.  He was soon joined by his father, who had been watching from the stands.  Together, father and son crossed the line, to the cheers of the crowd.  Redmond was determined to finish, come what may (to watch the race, click here).

The apostle Paul faced tremendous opposition from those who opposed his preaching of the gospel.  He was beaten, arrested, and imprisoned, reviled.  Yet he would not give in - he, too, was determined 'to finish the race and complete the task.'  All of us who set out to follow Jesus will face hard times, when we feel like giving in.  In Jesus' strength we need to keep going, to press on, remembering that Jesus himself said, 'he who perseveres to the end will be saved' (Matthew 24:13).  I came across the following quotation recently, which seems appropriate: "God-given struggles don't come to stay, they come to pass. Just be patient. Wait while God works for you."

 

Next week, babe

Before I start this week's blog, for the benefit of those who read my last blog and want to know what happened: the great news is that the key has been found (great rejoicing!)

Sue is currently away visiting her mum (who is in hospital), so I am having to fend for myself.  Although I have become a dab hand at beans on toast over the years (and even egg on toast on occasions!), I thought that today I would be a bit more adventurous and splash out on a Tesco prawn salad!!  However, I arrived home to discover that we were running low on salad potatoes.  So down to the local shop I trotted.

The person in front of me in the queue at the till had bought a couple of lottery type tickets, and had asked the cashier to check if they were winning tickets.  Not altogether surprisingly, the cashier returned with bad news; however, she did try to cheer up the disappointed customer with the words, "next week, babe!"  Not sure her words were altogether appropriate, as the customer was probably of pensionable age, but no doubt she spoke with affection and good humour.

One of the sad realities of the National Lottery is the evidence that many people who buy tickets regularly are in a low income bracket; in other words, poorer people who buy lottery tickets spend a greater proportion of their income on doing so.  I've never bought a lottery ticket myself, but I can understand the attraction in doing so (I would love to win multi-millions, because I can imagine what a tremendous amount of good could be done with the money).  

Even though the odds are stacked against someone buying a lottery ticket (apparently the chances of winning the jackpot are 1 in 14million), everyone who buys a ticket hopes against hope that their 'luck' will be in. The cashier in the shop was simply putting that thought into words with her expression, "next week, babe!"  The hope is that next week will be the jackpot week.  Of course, even if you have entered the National Lottery every week since is started in 1994, the chances of winning the jackpot this week are still 1 in 14million.  No wonder that the symbol of the National Lottery is crossed fingers!

Some people would say that life is rather like a lottery, that's it all a matter of luck or chance, and that life can offer no certainties ('Que Sera, Sera - Whatever Will Be, Will Be').  The big problem with that view is that it gives little reason for hope, and no assurance for the future.  

One of my favourite hymns is "Blessed Assurance", written by blind poet Fanny Crosby.  It speaks of the assurance we can have in Jesus Christ.  If our faith is in him, and our life committed into his hands, we don't have to trust to luck or cross our fingers.  Jesus doesn't promise that life will always be easy or smooth, but he does promise that whatever happens he will be with us, and that nothing will ever be able to separate us from his love.  The person whose trust is in Jesus is already rich beyond measure!

.