Letter for Village and Parish Magazines October 2024 ‘Good, for nothing’ was the tongue in cheek description applied to Readers in the Church of England at Tina Henderson’s licensing service in Lichfield Cathedral a few years ago. In her sermon, the preacher declared Readers to be ‘good’ in that they are faithful people, called and equipped by God, who give themselves ‘for nothing’ to the service of the church. The five parishes and six churches that make up the Staffordshire Borders Group of Parishes are blessed to be served by not only Tina Henderson but also John Underhill, who give freely of themselves in the ministry of Reader. It’s not only Readers, though, who are ‘Good, for nothing’. Many people offer to undertake a wide range of tasks and activities in our churches – leading services, running Messy Church, taking Holy Communion to those who can no longer get to church, delivering food donations to the House of Bread, organising fund-raising activities, looking after churchyards, serving refreshments. The list goes on. Some people we know of, because their names are in the public domain on rotas and lists. Others we are unaware of. We can guarantee, though, that certain jobs will always get done, but by people who choose to do them quietly and unnoticed. The word volunteer is perhaps a better term to use than ‘Good, for nothing’. Volunteers are a vitally important category of people. Without them much in our society could not be sustained. Volunteering is praiseworthy because it is not undertaken out of a desire for any reward. Volunteers are rewarded by the knowledge that they are making a difference, are ‘doing their bit to help’. Volunteers are like glue. They hold together the life of our churches, whether Anglican, Methodist Catholic or any other denomination. At every point, from local through to national, committed people give generously of their energy, time and wisdom to supporting churches in a variety of ways. Many do so in addition to paid jobs that make heavy demands on their time and abilities. Volunteers help to hold together not only church communities but also society as a whole. Without volunteers, so much that we take for granted in our society would simply come to a halt. Young people’s organisations like Scouts and Girl guides are reliant on volunteers, so too are many charities. In our schools, parents and others take on the demands of being school governors as volunteers. In the police and fire service part-time volunteers are recruited to perform a wide range of duties. Community responders and Samaritans are volunteers who play a vital role in emergency situations. These are challenging times for all involved in the life of our churches, most of whom are volunteers. At the start of September Revd Alison Hudson left the Benefice to take up a new opportunity in Scotland. She has now begun her ministry as Priest-in-Charge of Greyfriars, Kirkcudbright and St Mary’s, Gatehouse of Fleet. At this time of vacancy, the work of volunteers is more important than ever, as the Benefice seeks to serve the communities of Gnosall, Moreton, High Offley, Knightley, Norbury and Adbaston through the coming months and beyond. As a part-time ‘retired’ priest in the Benefice, I thank God for all those people who are partners in this great work. My prayer is that we will be faithful in nurturing one another and all in our communities, as we look forward to the future to which God is calling. I pray too that our churches and our communities will flourish as more people take up opportunities for volunteering and discover the fulfilment and rewards that come from being ‘Good, for nothing’. Revd Cathy Dakin Associate Minister
Philippians 1: 3-5 3 I thank my God every time I remember you, 4 constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, 5 because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. September is a time of endings as well as new beginnings. Our schools return after the long summer holidays, with some starting a new school in a new place, while others return to what is more familiar. For our farmers the summer fruits have been picked and sold and now the crops are starting to be collected in, and harvest is on its way. For me September brings a house and job move as I transfer my ministry from the Staffordshire Border Group of Churches to Greyfriars, Kirkcudbright and St Mary’s Gatehouse of Fleet on the south-west coast of Scotland. My time here has been fulfilling and rewarding as I’ve journeyed with you through the high and low points of life, as well as all that comes in between. And while it has been a relatively short period of time, I feel that much has been shared in that time. Each encounter and memory is precious, each time of ministry a privilege and each answered prayer a source of joy and encouragement. We have a God who travels with us, through the beginnings and the endings, the goodbyes to a season just ending and the welcomes into a new season. Paul’s prayer for the Philippians was one of confidence in God’s promises to fulfil his plans in and through each one of us. And that is my prayer for you, for each of the churches in this Benefice, for our lovely church schools in Gnosall and Woodseaves, and for each one of your lives. It has been a privilege to live and minister among you, may God continue to bless your journeys, hear your prayers and fulfil your hopes and dreams. Philippians 1: 9-11 9 And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight 10 to help you to determine what is best, so that on the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, 11 having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.
Dear Congregation of St Lawrence Church,Thank you for your fantastic Harvest Festival donations to the House of Bread. It is donations like these which will help to ensure that we continue to support the homeless and most vulnerable in our local area. I am enclosing a certificate of appreciation which you might like to display on your noticeboard.From the House of Bread Team.
“Earth is crammed with heaven. And every common Bush fire with God, But only he who sees takes off his shoes.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Aurora Leigh. It is easy to feel that everything is out of control, or maybe worse we feel that everything should be under our control but it isn’t. We have the technology, don’t we? Surely, we can regulate everything. Nature and life, however, have other thoughts. The cool breeze this June has kyboshed best laid plans for our vegetable patch. The runner beans have been bashed by the wind (my dad always says we put them in too early) and the courgettes are looking very peaky. It is certain, we can’t make the weather get better, we can’t turn up the temperature of the sun, nor can we tell the wind to stop blowing. It feels hard, living at the mercy of what comes our way. Life does what life does. There is some truth in the cliché “Always look on the bright side of life”. Looking at the bright side gives us something to do, we are taking positive action. It doesn’t take away the “dark side”, the trials and tribulation, but at least we have a better view as we battle on through. I love the images of weeds which against all odds push through the cracks in the pavement. They may be weeds, but somehow there is hope in their resilience, “Earth is crammed with heaven”. The author of Ecclesiastes (Bible, The Message) was fed up. He had tried everything, he found no satisfaction anywhere, he concluded in chapter 3 verses 1-14 that, “God made everything beautiful in itself and in its time … I’ve decided that there’s nothing better to do than go ahead and have a good time and get the most we can out of life... It’s God’s gift”. In times of trial and tribulation this is very difficult. But I wonder if Elizabeth Barrett Browning was right. Perhaps we should give ourselves permission to take the time and the space to take off our shoes and see the goodness of God in the things around us, that action in itself might bring us hope and peace. Sarah Smith
