Dear friends,

‘Alleluia! The Lord is risen!’

Such wonderful words to hear again as we celebrate Easter this month.

A question I have been asked a few times about the resurrection of Jesus is, ‘How do you know it’s true?’

It is a good question to ask!

I believe it’s true for several reasons. First of all, because his tomb was empty on Easter Sunday morning. That is fact. Neither his followers, nor his opponents, knew where his body was. If either group had moved his dead body, you’d have thought that the truth would have come out sooner or later! Matthew’s Gospel [27: 62-66] actually considers this thought. We know that the tomb was sealed, and there were guards posted to keep watch. It didn’t make any difference. The stone was rolled away. The Lord arose.

Next, we have the evidence of appearances of the risen Jesus. He appeared to the Marys who ran to tell his disciples. His disciples also saw Jesus alive. Sometimes the appearance involved one or two of them, sometimes it was a larger group. Note that the first few appearances happened independently of each other. Even with all the evidence available, some of the disciples doubted. Luke [24:36-39] tells us, ‘Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you’. They were startled and frightened, thinking they had seen a ghost. I can understand that! But Jesus continued, ‘Why are you troubled and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself. touch me! A ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see I have!’

Finally, we have The Church. The global Church of Christ. Even though its leader, Jesus, was executed, it was not the end! The Church did not die. The Church has not died. The Church is not dying but rising! In our time, we are seeing a quiet revival in church attendance according to a Bible Society report. People, especially younger folks, are searching for meaning, focus, life satisfaction, community and something more in their lives. We have grown too, but we still have plenty of room!

Jesus arose from the grave to lead his people and He still does! Alleluia!

Elsewhere in the Focus, you will find listed all our seasonal service dates and times. You are most welcome to join us at any or all of them.

Wishing you all a very blessed Holy Week and Easter.

God Bless
Keith

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Dear friends,

We are now well into the season of Lent…. how’s it going?  If you gave something up have you managed to still resist temptation?  What about if you took something up: how are the motivation levels currently?

Last month, I suggested that we see Lent as an invitation to slow down, to pause, to listen and to let God shape us more into the likeness of Christ. Lent is a good time to reflect on the health or otherwise of our faith. We recall the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness, and we are invited to consider our own response to temptation in turn.

Lent reminds us of Jesus’ steadfast commitment to the way of the cross and asks us if we are willing to resist the temptations of this world and to bear the cost of discipleship.

What sustained Jesus during those forty days and forty nights of testing?  It was prayer and devotion.

We live such busy lives, and sometimes it feels like we are running on ‘auto-pilot’ and so we forget that we have given up chocolate, alcohol or whatever. Or, we climb into bed at the end of yet another busy and full day and only then recall,  ‘Oh! I haven’t done that thing I was supposed to be doing during Lent… Oh well it’s too late now!!’

It’s just as well that we have a loving God that sees us in our weakness and in our struggling and wrestling with the demands and temptations of life today. Still God urges us, just like Jesus did, to make time and space for prayer and devotion in our own lives.

At the end of the month, we will celebrate Palm Sunday and journey on into Holy Week. There are services every day during Holy Week, an opportunity for us to hit the pause button, take time out, and make time for prayer and devotion. Do come and join us any or every day! You will be most welcome..

God Bless
Keith

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Dear friends,

I hope you all had a really good Christmas and New Year. We were delighted to welcome so many new faces to our services and events over the season, it was lovely to see you, and there is always a welcome for you here.

This month on Sunday 1st, we celebrate the ‘Presentation of Christ in the Temple’, or Candlemas. Our Christmas trees, cribs and decorations will then be put away for another year, well not quite, but you know what I mean! And before you know it, we are looking towards Ash Wednesday and the start of Lent!

Lent invites us to pause, to take stock of our lives, our hearts, and our priorities, and to make space for God’s gentle voice amid the noise of daily life.

For some, this season is marked by giving something, or several things up — a small sacrifice to remind us of Christ’s great sacrifice for us.

For others, it’s about taking something on — a new habit of prayer, a daily act of kindness, or taking time out each day to read and reflect on Scripture.

However we choose to journey through these forty days, the aim is the same: to draw closer to the One who walked the road to the cross out of total love for us.

This year, let us see Lent as an invitation. An invitation to slow down, to pause, to listen, and to let God shape us more into the likeness of Christ. Whether in the stillness of prayer, or worshiping together, or in the service of others, may we find ourselves renewed in faith and hope as we journey onwards together towards Holy Week and the triumph of Easter Day.

God Bless
Keith

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Dear friends,

As I sat down to write the letter for this month, the words of the last verse of the Christmas Carol, ‘O little town of Bethlehem’, came to mind!

‘O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us we pray;
cast out our sin and enter in: be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels, the great glad tidings tell:
‘O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel’.

And what wonderful words they are for us. The Lord coming to be with us and to change us too!

I don’t know about you, maybe it’s a vicar thing, but for me the month of December passes by very quickly. With the Christmas preparations, services, carols, plans, presents, decorations, get-togethers, socials, and whatever else comes along, the month is really full and can easily carry us along without our feet touching the ground! And then it’s January. New year. New start. New plans. New year’s resolutions… perhaps?

Advent – Christmas – Epiphany. The three church seasons we’ll journey through in December and January, bring with them opportunities to pause, to reflect, and to renew our thinking. But you know, we are so busy and sometimes miss the opportunity to take that time out to really reflect on what these seasons are all about.

Advent – the season of expectant waiting.

Christmas – the season to celebrate God’s saving work in the world, in the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Epiphany – the season of newness, of encounter.

For some, these seasons bring stress, worry, debt, the nightmare of choosing the right gifts, hoping for everything to be just perfect, perhaps missing a loved one, for the first time or the twenty-first time.

In all of this, we need to remember why we are celebrating and who we are celebrating!

Jesus is the ‘Reason for the Season’ after all.

At the centre of these three festivals is a little baby, placed in a borrowed manger, in a borrowed stable. There wasn’t even a cradle to rest the baby Jesus. It wasn’t grand. It wasn’t fancy… but it was amazing! This true story is amazing. Perhaps such an idea might release us from some of the pressures, financial and otherwise that this time of year brings.

Elsewhere, in the Focus, is a list of all our services and events throughout the festive season. You will be most welcome at any or all of them!

‘O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel’.

May God bless you this Advent, Christmas and Epiphany.
Keith

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