Letter from the Vicar:
Rev. Ian Butterworth
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From the Vicar
From the Vicar
A little boy was asked by his Sunday School teacher ‘What is Lent?’ He thought for a moment then said ‘It’s the time of year when people give up chocolates and take up being snappy to one another!’
Whenever Lent comes around and I hear people talking of what they are giving up I think of that little boy. Too often giving up sweets or alcohol or cakes with an afternoon cuppa becomes a huge burden. I’ve had people ask me if Lent ends on Palm Sunday or if it’s true that you’re allowed a break on Sundays from giving up because someone has said they are feast days not days of fast. I’ve heard so many people talk of how irritable they feel and how they are counting the days to Easter. Clearly these people are not giving something up willingly; somewhere deep down, I suspect, they have a picture of God in which he gives out credits, celestial brownie points, for giving things up in Lent, and the worse they feel the better he likes it.
That is most emphatically not what God is like. He does not ask us to jump through hoops, to make life unpleasant and difficult for ourselves in order to gain his favour and rewards – here on earth or in heaven. He gave us this world and this life and he calls us to enjoy it and to live it to the full. He never insists that we do something which causes us discomfort or pain. Where we do make sacrifices for him these are made freely and willingly because his love has kindled in us a desire to be better people, and we’ve realised that we need to prune our lives in some areas so that this can come about.
All of us need love and most of us are fortunate enough to find someone who loves us just as we are, weaknesses and all. When we find that person and recognise in ourselves some of the things which jar with them we want to try to change them, especially if we come to see that these things are getting in the way of our love. It might be the way we dress, it might be more personal habits we’ve developed, but whatever it is we want to change, to give up, we do it in response to the love we’ve found. So it is with God – if we have a good relationship with him we’ll want to change the parts of our lives which we become a bit ashamed of because his love has shown us how selfish they are. And when we love somebody so much that we want to tidy our lives up this will not be a burden or a penance but a privilege and a pleasure; when we know God and love him enough to want to change some parts of our lives we’ll work at the changes willingly and as a way of saying thank you for being loved.
My advice to anyone in Lent is ‘Don’t give anything up unless you really truly want to.’ If giving up chocolate means you are going to be irritable and snap at family and friends then don’t give it up. You’ll not be doing it freely and willingly. The same goes for giving up the social drink which gives you pleasure or watching football on TV or anything else which you enjoy – give it up only if you realise it is coming between you and God, and if it is then give it up full stop, not just in Lent.
Every blessing
Pebble Pool
As you may remember in last month’s magazine I wrote an article about placing a Pebble Pool in church as a different means of praying. This I was privileged to do, and I am delighted to say that it has been very well received with many positive comments. Some members of the congregation have said how good it is to see and be able to do something visible and that the sound of the living water is both calming and soothing and a focus for meditation. It has also been important to people that the pebbles have been blessed as part of the intercessions at the Sunday morning service as we can all then hold these prayers up to our Father in heaven At the moment 15 to 20 people a week are using it as a way of praying and I think that that is tremendous as it was a very new idea to bring into church. I am aware that some people find change difficult, and I am one of them, but when prayer is one of the essential parts of our lives we need to be open to God’s call in trying new ways of praying and the Pebble Pool has now become an integral part of our worship and prayer life here at St Martin’s.
I should like to end by reminding us of the prayer which is said over the pebbles each Sunday morning.
Loving Father, in whose hands we place ourselves day by day; we bring to you all the prayers that these pebbles represent, their needs or their remembrance, committing all things to your love. We know that we are all important to you and so we pray also for your grace and blessing on those who placed these pebbles in the pool, in love and concern for others.
This we ask in the name of your son our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen
The Revd Carol Gully - Honorary Assistant Curate
The Parish of St Martin Castleton Moor
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