On being a kept woman!

I asked Jesus to come into my heart and life when I was 5 years old. I had been and have been in the church all my life. I’m now in my 5o’s (not too far in yet) and have recently had what I can only describe as “a crisis of faith”. Robert and I recently left the church that I had attended all my life and have started going to another great church where we seem to be putting roots down again. But in the few weeks after leaving the church that had been such a big part of my life and for so long, I began to question what my faith had been in. Was it really in the God whom I had known all my life since 5 years of age, or was it in the church and all that is involved in it? The people, the services, the worship, the programmes, like Alpha etc. that we were involved in.

I am an addict

The first time I ever saw a drug addict was at a Rolling Stones concert in Hyde Park – a long time ago. There were actually two of them, and I remember how awful they looked, but I also remember thinking “Nutters!” As years passed, I saw many more and I have to admit that I felt total disdain for them – they were nothings, and were not to be trusted as they would rob and steal. Time went by, though, and I started to see them in the chemists waiting disconsolately for their methadone. My heart started to change.

What brought me here

There is a belief or custom in many societies that age brings wisdom. This gave rise to the role of Elder, where the older members of the family or society are in a position of leadership, and this has been incorporated into church life, though here spiritual maturity is normally the qualifying factor rather than physical age. Note that I have said the age brings wisdom, not intelligence or knowledge. I am sure that we have all met someone who is incredibly clever, but who shouldn’t really be allowed out on their own!

Buried treasure

Do you like a bargain? Do you feel really good when you find one? Earlier this year, Libby and I were in Lytham. We passed a very up-market shop which sells women’s, or perhaps I should say ladies, clothes. It is a very expensive shop, and normally we always pass it, but this time I noticed that a sale had just started about an hour earlier. Libby decided it might be worth a look, so we went in. Libby found a tee shirt was reduced to a slightly less than extortionate price, but then I noticed a coat. It was a very special, very different raincoat, and it really was reduced – 80% off. Libby looked great in it, so we bought it. It was so different and such a bargain that Libby tells everyone about it.

Piggy in the middle

I have heard some daft ideas in my time, but there was one which I came across years and years ago which has stuck in my mind ever since I first heard it. It wasn’t so much an idea, as a theory of life and I think it is also used to show the importance of logic in an argument.

The theory states that I am the only person in the world. No one else exists, just me. That is when the argument starts, because you chip in with the comment that you are there too, so I am wrong. Ah, but you are only there as part of my imagination. I am making you say that you are there.

To be or not to be

They say that what you are is what you eat. I have never really understood that. OK, I can see that if you do not eat meat you can be called a vegetarian or a vegan, but that is really as far as it goes – it puts you into a category, but that is only part of what you are, part of what you do.

So, what else can define what you are? Your fashion or your taste in music can suggest what age group you fall into. Your accent can suggest where you come from. The car you drive, or your lack of a car, can point to your income group, but not necessarily. The way your children behave can possibly show how good a parent you are. How you behave might point to what you have been through earlier in life. But all these things only show a bit of you – they are not what you are, who you are. Like nationality or political affiliation, they might classify part of you, but they don’t define you.

Identify yourself

We read a lot these days about identity theft. In the last year it cost £1.9bn in the UK, affecting an estimated 1.8 million people.

Wikipedia states that “the victim of identity theft (here meaning the person whose identity has been assumed by the identity thief) can suffer adverse consequences if he or she is held accountable for the perpetrator’s actions. Organizations and individuals who are duped or defrauded by the identity thief can also suffer adverse consequences and losses, and to that extent are also victims.”

That sinking feeling

What puts fear in you?

For me, it is things or situations that I am not in control of. Computers? Not a problem, I can strip them down, repair them or rebuild them. Cars? Ooohh, fear, doom, calamity – all because I am not in control of the mechanics, because I don’t know how to fix them.

Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.”
29 “Yes, come,” Jesus said.
So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted.
31 Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?”

Shut that door!

It’s nice to get home, isn’t it? It’s good to get the shirt and tie, the suit and the shiny shoes off, and just get into some sloppy gear that you can relax in. It’s good to switch off all the thoughts about work, the people who have crossed your path, made or spoiled your…

Who you?

I don’t have a very good memory. That can be useful or helpful at times, but it can also be anything but useful or helpful! I would love to give you some examples of both sets of circumstances, but I just can’t think of any at the moment!
My not-very-good-memory means that I find it almost impossible to remember passages of the Bible. I know some people can remember whole chapters and others whole books. Many people have a whole bank of verses which they can draw from at a moment’s notice. I salute them all!
I, on the other hand, can draw on very little, and even then I can only recall part of the verse.

Coming up next

Maybe I am a real softie, but I really cannot imagine that I am any different to the next guy. As I watch each of the Chilean miners being rescued, I get a huge lump in my throat, and it is really hard not to let the tears fall! It is wonderful viewing. It is a very rare kind of news – it is GOOD NEWS! Normally, the only type of news which gets such huge coverage is of disasters, but this story has captured the world. Many words have been used in the story, but today I heard many references to “coming out of hell”.
I love good news, and as I watch this story and see the joy on the faces of the relatives as they see their loved ones coming to the surface, I cannot do anything but draw a comparison to the real Good News – the Gospel.

All in all

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.The world and all its people belong to him. (Psalm 24:1, NLT)
All its people! All the earth’s people belong to the Lord. Not just some of them; not just the nice ones – all of them belong to him. Even the terrorists, the dictators, the murderers, paedophiles, addicts, thieves, men, women, everyone I don’t like. All of them.