The Third Sunday after Epiphany
24 January 2021
The seventh Sunday after Trinity
26 July 2020
Which choice should we make?
Our decision to try to find somewhere to live in Kent led us to Charing, not so many miles from places where we had lived some years ago. What we did not know was how amazingly varied the walks are here. The lockdown with its permitted daily exercise provided such an opportunity to explore.
With our trusty Ordnance survey map we have been able to explore the local footpaths, going a little further each week. Which way shall we go today, we would ask ourselves. We have climbed up to the top of the North Downs along the path through the barley crop and found our way back down either via the Chalk Pits or by the Windmill. We have walked along the Pilgrim’s Way to Westwell and up around the Gliding Field and back down through the ancient wooded track near the quarry. We have walked to Warren Street of an evening and on one occasion seen an owl flit silently under the trees before returning to Charing along the Pilgrim’s Way. We have even walked to Stalisfield Green and to Stalisfield church. Over these months we have walked through the woods, through carpets of, firstly, wood anemones, then bluebells and now bracken and brambles as we wait to find out where the best blackberries are to be found.
It may be that, by the time you read this, lockdown will have been eased further. Most of us will be faced with an ever-widening array of choices, although some of us may still be unable to venture far. Our choices may relate to work, to the worrying situation of whether our job will still be there after furloughing ceases, and whether we can afford to continue to live in the same place as before. The choice may relate to health, to family, to travel or to when it is possible to get together again for whatever reason. Which choice should we make?
The closure of our churches has been a great sadness for many of us. Wondering whether to watch a service of worship on the television, on Youtube, locally through Zoom or simply reading our bible alone has been a dilemma.
Jesus says, “Follow me!”. But which way? How do we know if it is God’s way or our own way? A challenge for our prayers is to have an honest conversation with God to explore our own deepest longings and needs and to discover God’s desires for us as well. A little while ago, I found a wonderful book by John Ortberg, entitled “All the places to go; how will you know?” He describes how God frequently opens doors and invites us to walk through into the unknown. We may hesitate, we may make excuses but so often we find that, even over a long period of waiting, we still sense an overwhelming urge to follow the way that God is calling us. Few people have ever regretted going through a door which God has opened for them.
Revd. Marian Bond
The Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity
20 September 2020
Readings for July Sundays
5th July Trinity 4
Genesis 24. 34 – 38, 42 – 49, 58 - end Romans 7. 15 – 25a Matt. 11. 16 – 19, 25 - end
12th July Trinity 5
Genesis 25. 19 – end Romans 8. 1 - 11 Matt. 13. 1 – 9, 18 - 23
19th July Trinity 6
Genesis 28. 10 – 19a Romans 8. 12 - 25 Matt. 13. 24 – 30, 36 - 43
26th July Trinity 7
Genesis 29. 15 - 28 Romans 8. 26 – end Matt. 13. 31 – 33, 44 - 52
'Loving God, Serving Christ,
Growing the Church'
Archive of Services
Psalm 143
Refrain: Show me, O Lord, the way that I should walk in.
1 Hear my prayer, O Lord,
and in your faithfulness give ear to my supplications; ♦
answer me in your righteousness.
2 Enter not into judgement with your servant, ♦
for in your sight shall no one living be justified.
3 For the enemy has pursued me,
crushing my life to the ground, ♦
making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4 My spirit faints within me; ♦
my heart within me is desolate. [R]
5 I remember the time past; I muse upon all your deeds; ♦
I consider the works of your hands.
6 I stretch out my hands to you; ♦
my soul gasps for you like a thirsty land.
7 O Lord, make haste to answer me; my spirit fails me; ♦
hide not your face from me
lest I be like those who go down to the Pit.
8 Let me hear of your loving-kindness in the morning,
for in you I put my trust; ♦
show me the way I should walk in,
for I lift up my soul to you. [R]
9 Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies, ♦
for I flee to you for refuge.
10 Teach me to do what pleases you, for you are my God; ♦
let your kindly spirit lead me on a level path.
11 Revive me, O Lord, for your name’s sake; ♦
for your righteousness’ sake, bring me out of trouble.
12 In your faithfulness, slay my enemies,
and destroy all the adversaries of my soul, ♦
for truly I am your servant.
Refrain: Show me, O Lord, the way that I should walk in.
Jesus, our companion, when we are driven to despair, help us, through the friends and strangers we encounter on our path, to know you as our refuge, our way, our truth and our life.
Commentary
Psalms are loved and revered by Christians as much as by the Jewish people whose ancestors wrote them well over 2000 years ago. This one addresses God with an honesty that we might find troubling. The Psalmist remembers great deeds of the past where God was in charge. Not now? He or she is distressed, fearing complicity in the woes of the world. Judgement looms. There is an acknowledgement that we have no power of our own to overcome the awful state of affairs that leads ultimately to death. Only Divine righteousness can turn the tables. There is desperate pleading to be protected and shown the way forward.
Remembering those who died in the service of our Nation we can empathise with these sentiments. The sacrifices were huge and painful. We have been the beneficiaries in many ways. But the world continues with its injustices, dishonouring the illustrious names we recall today. Now we are judged, both individually and as the soul of the Nation. Remembrance is inextricably linked to renewal, commitment and action. The Psalm captures it for us. Show me, O Lord, the way that I should walk in, for truly I am your servant.
Mark Taylor, Reader in the Benefice of Calehill and Westwell