This week I have been reading: “Faithful to the Truth - How to be an orthodox gay Catholic” by Stephen Lovatt (I say reading but in fact I bought it and it is sat on my desk making me feel guilty for not having opened it yet)
Whilst writing this I am listening to: Amazing Grace by the amazing St James singers and musicians (Click here: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18w6VAMPnY/ )
Fun Fact of the week: My grandad left the 1966 World Cup Final after 88 minutes with the score 2-1 to England because he wanted to avoid the crowds and traffic. As a consequence he missed the most famous extra time in English football history!
Tomorrow I am preaching on the Kingdom of God and I have been thinking about what to say for a few days now. Unfortunately I am still thinking about it and I need to put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard) soon. In my mind I have been contrasting the Kingdom of God with the United Kingdom and other countries that many of us are familiar with. What struck me yesterday as the St James singers and musicians practised for Sunday was the word ‘Grace’. If you’ve clicked on the facebook link you’ll understand why I was so taken with grace. God invites us to be a part of the Kingdom of Grace - a place where we discover compassion and companionship with one another; a place of abundance and sharing; and a place where we know the value of everyone and the price of nothing. Grace is discovered throughout our world and yet it is easy to lose sight of God’s grace towards us and bury it under our fears and frustrations.
In the news at the moment we see many examples of this. We see communities that divide one another into Us and Them, closing their eyes to the suffering of others and seeking strength by excluding those who are different and those on the margins. We see examples of people seeking to hoard so-called ‘scarce’ resources, raising the drawbridge and refusing generosity towards newcomers and those with less. We see a country where we have forgotten to value one another as unique and loved individuals, created by God. By contrast, Jesus encourages us to receive Grace freely and to give it freely. I thank God that when I think back on my week in Barton and Tredworth I can only remember examples of God’s grace shining through. I hope that has been your own experience but I am aware that for many in our church family the ‘dis-grace-ful’ scenes on our news feeds will have created feelings of fear and uncertainty. Let us encourage one another in prayer and action, refusing to abandon the grace we have received and the grace we are commanded to share with others. Let us make sure that the church is a beacon of Grace for all.
The Football World Cup likes to think of itself as a Kingdom of Grace - bringing the people of the world together in a celebration of connection, abundance, and wholeness. We can only hope and pray that it will be! My prayer is that everyone watching football over the next 6 weeks will discover God leading them towards a grace and generosity of spirit that extends towards people of all nations, at home and abroad.
As always, if you would like me to pray for, or have a conversation about anything then do get in touch. I am available to listen and share in whatever might be arising for you at this time.
"Nothing can separate us from the love of God revealed to us in Christ Jesus" Rom 8:38-39
With peace and blessings,
Rev Steve
07503164309
My day of rest this week is Monday.