Cauliflowers fluffy and cabbages green, strawberries are sweeter than any I've seen Beetroots purple and onions white All grow steadily day and night The apples are ripe and the plums are red The broad beans are sleeping in their blankety bed. (words taken from UK hymn Book Come and praise published by the BBC). October always reminds me of my children’s school assembly at harvest time. The sample of the hymn printed above is one of the songs that was sung every year until they went to senior school, when sadly school assemblies stopped. How many of you can sing the other verses? October is also a time of change, the weather gets colder, and the nights draw in. it is time to put our gardens to bed for the winter and drag out our woollies and waterproofs. I love the dark winter nights with the fire cracking in the wood burner and the twinkling of the lights as I sit and knit reflecting on all that is good in my life. It is also an opportunity for me to remember those less fortunate than myself. Those who do not have a place to shelter, warm clothes to wear and food to eat. I am also reminded of the farming community who work tirelessly to provide us with the food that we eat, the milk that we drink and the wool to make clothes. Whilst we have lived in virtual isolation for the past 18 months, some farmers live in virtual isolation for most of the year. For some farmers their nearest neighbour can be 5 miles away and they unlike us may not get the opportunity to chat on a regular basis. Of course, there is zoom and facetime, but only if you have a good internet connection and unfortunately in rural places this is sometimes a downfall. Farmers rely on the weather and with the climate changing their role is becoming more difficult as they struggle to produce enough food not just for us but for their cattle as well. We can do our bit to help our farmers by shopping locally when possible, using farm shops or one of the many local fresh produce delivery companies; these are usually set up by the farmers themselves as a way of earning extra income. When we shop, we can also buy extra food for those who use the food banks and for the YMCA who feed many homeless people throughout the year. Many of us are going to be struggling this year to feed ourselves and heat our homes, but even the poorest amongst us can offer something to help others. In mark we find the widow who is poor giving all that she had to help others. Jesus recognizes that her gift is greater than that of the rich people who gave generously but who still had plenty left for themselves. God sees the little things that we do and is not always impressed by our grand gestures. The widow of Zarephath is also an example of someone in need herself and yet she gave her last meal to Elijah. (1 Kings:17: 7 – 16). So as we all wrap up warm and settle ourselves down for the winter months, let us be generous with our own giving and as I sit and knit I will be praying for God to help us provide for all those in need this harvest time, I hope you will join in my prayers. Curate Ashley.
Hi everyone, I’m Ashley. Some of you will have met me, others have not yet had the pleasure. I am the curate for Alrewas, Fradley and Wychnor. Those of you who have met me will know that I live my life in perpetual confusion and total surprise that I am called to any form of ministry! So, with this in mind you may have some idea of what life for me as been like during this pandemic. When we first went into lock down, I was a busy hospital Chaplain, trying to hold together the many tensions that were happening at the time, not just amongst the staff, but with relatives and patients. There were many heart-breaking moments, but also times of great joy.I left my role in chaplaincy to begin my time with all of you in July 2020. Just after I started, we went into another lock down! This was the first time that I had experienced lock down and I must admit I felt a little like the people referred to in Psalm 107. This extract is taken from the Jubilee Bible: <strong><em>They wandered lost in the wilderness, alone out of the way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. They cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distress.</em></strong> Many of us have spent the last year feeling lost and alone, separated from family and friends with time to reflect on our lives and maybe who we feel we no longer have room for in our lives. Those people that drain us and this can be family as well as friends. We had no church building to go to as many were closed to the public. This left some people feeling separated from God and yet it was a stark reminder that God is everywhere and with technology being something we all had to endure, services went online.With the advent of on-line services and no communion we felt that we were no longer being fed in the traditional way and for some the spiritual communion that was offered did nothing for them. We prayed to the Lord to uphold us and to see us through this plight and he has done this.Some of us lost loved ones and we were unable to mourn them in the usual way, and weddings could no longer be the big events that they once were. For some this was a relief, and these liminal moments became moments of intimacy, and some felt that the resulting services were more personnel and meaningful. Restrictions are being loosened and we are beginning to get back to a sense of what once was normal, and yet not quite the same. We are a bit like the disciples who had been locked away in the upper room emerging at `Pentecost into a new way of living and being. The basic message is the same, but things will be done slightly differently now Christ had ascended. This is the same for the church. We have many questions to answer. How long do we continue to provide online worship? Will this be the new norm for those who are not quite ready to return to their church communities? And what does the future of the church look like?We the collective church, have been given the opportunity to think about how we move forward and how we truly preach a gospel of love to all people not just the regular attenders of Church, who have shown great resilience during these tough times. It is time to have respectful conversations with our colleagues, not just in our three churches but in the wider deanery. To begin to think about the church of the future and what we want it to look like. This pandemic has shown us that we cannot stand still or else we will become irrelevant, and Christ’s message will be lost. He deserves more than this.There is a thirst out there for something spiritual and nourishing, people want to be fed with, but they are not sure how or what with. There is the opportunity to reach out and feed God’s people with his message, so let’s make Pentecost the rebirth for the church for all and not just those already committed to Christ. I, like you want to be part of a growing church, a church where all are welcome, and no one is turned away. A church where all receive sacramental ministry without judgement, a church that gives the message of LOVE AND ACCEPTANCE to all, a church that is worthy of calling itself part of the kingdom of God on earth.As we all step back out into a new normal, let us do so with a spring in our step, keeping safety at the heart of our mission and preaching a gospel of love just as the disciples did all those years ago. Ashley
