Masks – the New Norm       Word on the Week                 28^th November 2020.

To mask one’s feelings usually meant to hide what one really felt.   Now with mask wearing compulsory for the foreseeable future we have an added barrier to expressing our feelings.   Add in social distancing, working in pods, absence of sports and the nagging fear that you might have the virus, it’s no wonder mental health becomes an issue.

We have been created as relational beings imaging our triune God in that respect (Genesis Chapter 1 Verse 26).   The curtailment of meeting and mixing with others sucks the enjoyment out of life.   We are in a period of semi-isolation with only our own thoughts and they are not much of a comfort tending as they do toward the dark side of life.

When the Psalmist was depressed his cry for help was answered immediately – but that did not prevent the depression from recurring (Psalm 42 verses 5, 11 & 43 verse 5).    Winston Churchill got used to this recurring feature in his life and referred to it as his black dog!   

One remedy is to sing.   This song was sung last Sunday at our on-line service at Grace.ie   It was also the one we chose for our farewell from Inverness in 1977.   It was written by Bill and Gloria Gaither and has stood the test of time.  

God sent His son, they called Him Jesus, He came to love, heal and forgive He lived and died to buy my pardon, An empty grave is there to prove my saviour lives.

How sweet to hold a newborn baby, and feel the pride and joy He gives       But greater still the calm assurance, this child can face uncertain days, because He lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow, Because He lives, all fear is gone, Because I know He holds the future And life is worth the living, just because He lives.

And then one day, I’ll cross the river, I’ll fight life’s final war with pain           And then, as death gives way to victory, I’ll see the lights of glory and I’ll know He reigns.

The first verse gives the grounds for faith in Jesus.   The three other verses take you from the cradle to the grave – and beyond!    For the one who calls out to Jesus from a state of helplessness and despair there is the invitation first given to the people in the Laodicea church to have a living relationship with Jesus (Revelation Chapter 3 Verse 20).

Jon and Sandra Blackwell         Word on the Week         21^st November 2020.

This Sunday will ‘officially’ mark the end of Jon and Sandra’s ministries at Grace.   It is fittingly being marked by a special service.  A generation in Biblical terms is 40 years and Jon and Sandra, like king David served his day and generation well in many ministries both in and out from Grace Church (Acts Chapter 13 verse 36).

If Jon was the leader Sandra was always the power behind the throne.   Not only did she support Jon in Ireland but travelled with him in his missionary work abroad.   Her God-given ability to adapt to changing tasks was amazing.

At home she learned sign language in order to communicate with the deaf.  She was a Foster Mother to over 40 children ending with a Nigerian family whom we got to know and love at Grace.   But it was in the exemplary care of her aging Mother that Sandra left us a wonderful example to follow.

When Jon realised that, since he had branched out on his own, his work had largely taken over his life leaving little time for family and Christian witness.     A radical solution was required!   It came in the form of re-locating Sandra and their five children to Yaoundé, Cameroon, where they re-orientated and Jon drove the school bus for the Wycliffe kids!

Training in Bible translation work had taken place in the UK but no amount of preparation could have equipped them for the field.   After much prayer the Lord led them to N-W Cameroon where they settled in Bamunka. 

In a previous existence Jon had advised on planning issues in Latvia and overseen low cost housing in Papua New Guinea – acquiring skills which may have been some value in kitting out housing in Cameroon!   A partially completed house was rented quite near Pastor Edward’s Church and duly equipped with solar power and some rudimentary plumbing with the help of the older children.  With the family safely boarded in school accommodation in Yaoundé the work of writing down, for the first time, the local language started.

What has enabled the work of translation of the New Testament and also the literacy work of teaching the language has been the strong relationships Jon and Sandra have built with the local church leaders.    This has contributed to the success of Water for Cameroon, an ancillary work which is improving people’s health by providing clean water.

These are now indigenous ministries which are continuing in the midst of serious civil disturbance and with virtually daily internet input from Dublin.   This has permitted Jon to be used in, among other things, securing our new premises.

The church has been privileged to pray and support these ministries which, by God’s grace will continue when we all have left this scene of time.               

Soli Deo Gloria. 

Clootie Wells                   Word on the Week                    14^th November 2020.

The old Celtic practice of tying a piece of cloth to a tree appears to be alive and well according to a recent press article.   Indeed, accompanying the 6.00 pm angelus, we often see a soulful looking woman tying a votive cloth to a tree in an act of worship.

The tree used was mainly hawthorn and was located beside a ‘holy’ well.   The spirits were said to inhabit such places and if the cloth was dipped in the well then applied to an injury healing was reckoned to have a better chance of taking place.   The cloth was then tied to a branch of the tree and left to rot.

Various other emblems of a religious nature were also tied to the tree perhaps in memory of the dead.   It had the effect of disfiguring nature with emblems of personal grief.   These places are usually to be found wherever there are the remains of the ‘Celtic church’ and probably predate it.

The well at Munlochy on the Black Isle drew a crowd on the festival of Beltane which was held on the Sunday nearest the 1^st May.   A group of us travelled the few miles from the Baptist Church in Inverness and gathered for an act of worship close to the well.   What was rather bizarre was the pedal organ which we carried onto the site to assist with the singing!

We had song sheets prepared for the occasion and included as many onlookers as we could in the service.  We saw it in simple terms of engaging with the enemy and overcoming by means of the Word preached and prayers offered (Revelation Chapter 12 verse 11).

Needless to say we did not take up a collection!   The bottom of the well was covered with coins but as far as I recall they were of low value!   I expect the ‘spirit’ of the well removed them at the end of the summer.  

Scripture does not give any credence to those who worship the creation and ignore the Creator.   There is one God whom we are to worship (Deuteronomy chapter 8 verse 3).   And when Jesus was tempted by satan he replied in a similar vein (St Matthew Chapter 4 verse 10).

Scripture does however instruct us in how to deal with spirits to see whether they are of God.   If the spirit acknowledges Christ’s two natures namely that he is wholly man and that he is also wholly God, then the spirit is of God (1 John Chapter 4 verses 2 /3).    If that does not happen then the Apostle John states unequivocally that it comes from the antichrist.

Instead of dabbling in Clootie Wells St James states the contrast: – “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” (Chapter 1 verse 27).

Twitter                              Word on the Week                     7^th November 2020.

Now that the raucous sound of the twits emanating from the White House in Washington has become more muted we have been able to better appreciate our Autumn twitters.   They have their more vocal moments during feeding, usually when enjoying an extended breakfast.

So what’s on the menu?    The main item has been the bumper crop of Hawthorn berries.   These are bright red and show up well after the strong winds have removed most of the leaves from the trees.   

Unlike humans who go for the low hanging fruit first (because it’s easy to harvest) they start at the top of the trees and work their way down.   There was one of the three hawthorn trees, the smallest one, that by common consent has been kept till last.   Even today it has not lost its red gloss.

The noisiest bird to turn up for breakfast is the Redwing.   They make a sound like a rod and line fisherman’s reel when it is switched on to ratchet.   It is still quite a bit softer than the magpie staccato call which rings out at intervals proclaiming its successful nesting in our Scots Pine earlier this year.

Mistle Thrush and Fieldfare add their not too dissimilar sounds to those of the common or garden Blackbirds and Starlings.   The latter tend to show up in numbers and soon will be cavorting in the evening sky with their famous murmuration.

The garden birds are beginning to appear for their breakfast of oats.   One bird table is going to be placed between the cedar and the maple tree.   The birds like to roost in these and will feel more secure.   The other feeder will be nearer the kitchen window giving us endless pleasure through the winter.

Our regulars are the Blue Tit and Great Tit.   No Coal Tit yet but we have seen a Long-tailed Tit at the berries.   There are the usual House Sparrow and Hedge Sparrow or Dunnock, Wren and Robin Redbreast.

There is a legend regarding the latter.   It is said that the Robin recognised Christ as his creator (St John Chapter 1 verse 3).   On the cross the Robin tried to remove the crown of thorns and in the process was pierced and its breast stained with blood.    

The stain became part of the bird’s characteristics and acts as a reminder of Christ’s bearing the sin of the world in procuring our salvation.  The Apostle John writes in 1 John Chapter 2 verse 2 “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world”.   May the Robin be a reminder not only of the cost of our redemption but its availability for those who turn and trust Jesus.

United States Election               Word on the Week          31^st October 2020

Viewed from this side of the pond next week’s American elections are largely a spectator sport.   And like all sports the media has its expert commentators.   This week the press has ensured that their views are known!

As we enter a new era it’s good to look back to the old time democracy. The thought that sustained it was that the government could not do too much damage (good was never credited to them) before they would be thrown out at the next election!    Cynical perhaps but with more than a grain of truth to it.

America has shown us that democracies can quickly become autocracies granting to their leader almost absolute power.    What we now have is an absence of debate on many issues of the day instead we have a massive personality promoting himself brilliantly.   Any challenger has to cope not only with the advantage the sitting president has but also to endure the confidence sapping demeaning references to him that play to the popular vote.

We have seen the bold presidential signature on 193 Executive Orders over the last four years.   These fast-track legislation without it having to be passed by the two houses of government.   It is a great device when the laws passed are to the peoples liking but what if you dislike them?   Without the scrutiny that democratic government affords what happens to those who dissent?   Well it seems they are sacked.   Not an unusual fate for politicians although the frequency over the last four years has been a bit disconcerting!

In the early days of the Bible narrative theocracy was the way.  God ruled through his Prophets.   This continued even after the people wanted a King ‘to be like other Nations’ (1 Samuel chapter 8 verse 19).   It was always the Prophet who was the power behind the throne.   That’s why so many of them were killed when they were faithful to the truth!

The prophet Samuel was tasked with appointing a successor to Saul.   His instructions were not to look on the outward appearance ‘but the Lord looks at the heart’ (1 Samuel Chapter 16 verse 7).   His advice was often spurned as the Israelites went after strong men.  In the Old Testament there were five ‘good’ kings that ruled well in the sight of the Lord but even their sons went astray.   There were thirty-three others of whom it was said ‘He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, following the detestable practices of the nations’ (2 Kings Chapter 21 verse 2).

When King Jesus came he showed the kingdom is based on love (St Matthew Chapter 22 verse 37).   His advice to his followers was to seek first this kingdom which it was the Father’s good pleasure to grant (St Luke Chapter 12 verses 30 to 32).   But Jesus doesn’t do the seeking for us!

The stakes are high dear Americans choose well next week!

Loneliness Looms           Word on the Week                     24^th October 2020.

“It is not good for man to be alone” (Genesis Chapter 2 verse 18) is the first hint God gives of something unsatisfactory in an otherwise perfect universe.   Our triune God is relational therefore man made to accurately reflect his image would require also to be relational.

‘God gave us our friends but the devil our relations’ is an oft repeated jest but it is simply not true!   It is, of course, a play on the word relation. We are relational beings.   We have been created this way.   This is why, no matter how much people may rant against it we have been made male and female (Genesis Chapter 1 verse 27).   And it is as men and women that we are to fulfil God’s command to be fruitful and multiply.

But having children was not the first reason for marriage.   The prior reason is to create a bulwark against loneliness.   That is why it is sometimes called a covenant of companionship.   It is a lifelong arrangement which continues long after childbearing years have passed and helps to sustain each other in old age.

For the single person who is following the Lord they may well have the gift of singleness (1 Corinthians Chapter 7 verse 7).   St Paul’s wish was for all to have that gift which freed him from family responsibilities to focus on Gospel work.  His close fellowship with Christ is an example for believers to follow bearing in mind that we are, through faith, permanently linked to Christ (1 Corinthians Chapter 6 verses 15 to 20).

It is this relationship with Christ that will support us in lockdown.  It continues undisturbed by pandemics.   It enables us to see who we are truly living for; who we have time for when the work scene reduces and the social environment disappears.   Lockdown gives us more fully the opportunity to see ourselves as God sees us and our place in his Kingdom.   Let St Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians (Chapter 3 verses 14 to 21) lead you: –                            For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  

Cheerful in the Pandemic          Word on the Week          17^th October 2020.

The daily paper ran 75 contributions showing how people managed to be cheerful in the Covid crisis when the disease was escalating.   It assumed cheerfulness was in short supply!    It tapped into our basic optimistic, “keep the rules” and “stay safe and wear the mask” have become the mantra.

Amongst the replies most found music lifted the spirit.   Enjoying nature, a close second.  The latter usually involving some gentle exercise.   Viewing sport on TV, reading books that have lain in the house, unread, for ages and watching children’s antics helped many.  A number were into DIY and more claimed baking and/or eating cheered them up!

It was hard to find anything out of the ordinary.   Perhaps it is to the ordinary things of life that we resort when the extraordinary is closing in.    Sadly, there was no spiritual element, no anchor to hold onto, nothing solid.  

This week there was a budget of €18bn passed in the Dáil – the biggest ever.   Money did not feature among the replies.   The Brexit deal seemed further away than ever so that brought little cheer.   The conspiracy theory, promoted by the anti-mask crowd, sees the world slipping into the hands of a despot.   This only increases the anxiety levels.   

Our predicament is small by comparison to that of the nation Israel in exile but the instruction from God through the prophet Jeremiah does have some bearing on our position.   From the outset it was made clear that it was the Lord who brought them to Babylon and the exile was going to last some time.  There was a warning not to listen to other prophets and diviners who are prophesying lies.   This was followed by the glorious promise “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” Chapter 29 verses 4 to 14.

In New Testament times the disciple Philip asked Jesus that question, “Lord show us the Father” (St John Chapter 14 verse 8).   “I am in the Father and the Father is in me” was the reassuring reply.   In fact, the only time the Father was not in Jesus was when he was on the Cross.   There Jesus was made sin for us and in the darkness of the cross paid the penalty for our sin (Isaiah 53 verse 4).

What does this mean for us in these Covid times?   It means that the offer of pardon for our sins and a forgiveness that wipes the slate clean is there for all who turn and trust in Jesus.   It means a peace that transcends the peace of this world is available because it is the peace of Jesus and comes from him not us.   He is the foundation to build our lives on giving us stability in crisis. All this can come to us through his grace (St Matthew Chapter 7 verses 24/5 & 2 Corinthians chapter 13 verse 14).

Biblical Gardens              Word on the Week                     10^th October 2020.

This week the garden signed off in a blaze of colour as the Virginia Creeper, which clothes the gable end of the house, dropped its leaves.   These tumbled in profusion in a plethora of colours brightening up the garden in a last extravaganza before the Autumn gales take over and put the place to bed for the Winter.

As a result of travel restrictions imposed by Government in order to curtail the spread of the Covid virus people have been encouraged to stay at home.   This has meant much more time spent in the garden.   There has also been increased interest in the Gardening Programmes on TV with would be Monty Don’s pricking out cuttings for next year’s planting!

The fruit and vegetables have not done too badly.   The tomato crop has lasted well but now has come to an end.   The apples are ripening well and will keep us busy for some time to come.

Some say it was the apple that was Adam’s downfall!    Whatever the fruit was it conferred on the eater the knowledge of good and evil.   This was probably all knowledge from good to evil, the two extremities of knowing which could be summed up as total knowledge – something we could not handle.

What compounded the problem was the tree of life.   It was within reach of the disobedient pair.   Immediate action was taken and they were cast out of the garden (Genesis Chapter 3 verses 22 to 24).

With sin a present reality mankind now is no use for the primary purpose for which he was made i.e. to love God and his fellow man with all his heart and soul.    The garden of Eden had become the garden of grief.

The garden of Gethsemane was to be the place where the cup of God’s wrath against sin was to be drunk.   Christ’s battle, fought in prayer, alone, was won in the climax, ‘nevertheless not my will but thine’ as he yielded himself totally to do his Father’s will.  

What that would mean, the full ransom price, the curse, the thunder and lightning, forsaken by God who was to condemn the world’s sin in his body (1Peter Chapter 2 verse 24).   Why couldn’t it have remained in Gethsemane? Why did he need to go to Calvary?   Why the cross, the blood, the shame, and death.   The garden is so nice and Golgotha so utterly evil.

But justice had to be done.   Sin had to be expiated.  Atonement could not be made by repenting in our place – only by dying in our place.   Jesus did it all for you and me.   How then should we respond (St John Chapter 20 verse 28).    

Doxologies             Word on the Week          3^rd October 2020.

A doxology is singing which bursts full of praise to our triune God.   It is capable of lifting the spirit into the heavenly places.    It goes to the bone and marrow of Christian identity.   It seizes the golden chain which links earth to heaven above and the singer is momentarily caught up in the bliss it creates.

Once upon a time we marked the year end by meeting at Grace to recount God’s goodness to us as a congregation of his people.    At midnight the ships in the Liffey sounded their sirens and as the sound faded we sang the doxology: –

May his name endure forever;
    may it continue as long as the sun.

Then all nations will be blessed through him,
    and they will call him blessed.

Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,
    who alone does marvellous deeds.
Praise be to his glorious name forever;
    may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.                                              Psalm 72 verses 17 – 19.

Because of the great work that God has done in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ the writer to the Hebrew’s doxology asks for the saints to be equipped, both inside and out, to be able to do his work in a way that pleases him: –

Hebrews Chapter 13 verses 20/21.

‘Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.’

Jude

Jude opens his letter by quoting the three tenses of salvation in verse one.   Believer, you are called in times past, are now loved by God the Father and kept (preserved) by Jesus Christ.   He encourages the faithful to contend for the faith and warns against godless people who have been around from earliest times.

He concludes by mentioning three categories of sinner, requesting his readers to show mercy to the doubters, to snatch others from the fire and save them, and others save, hating even the garment polluted by their sensuality.                                        

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Covid Continues              Word on the Week          26^th September 2020.

We never supposed it would be like this!   The virus seemed to depart from our shores for warmer climes only to come roaring back just when things were returning to normal.   It’s becoming wearing on our emotional intelligence!

Our ordinary intelligence hasn’t got us very far.   We are not quite sure how the virus started, or why the whole world is affected.    We don’t know how to get rid of it. It appears to be designed to break up close relationships and is highly successful at playing havoc with work and the sports scene.

The virus has a particular attachment to the infirm or elderly.   It is selective in choosing who will get a bad dose and its fatalities seem to be picked at random.

How can we figure out these things and get accustomed to talking to each other over the internet?   How can we share feelings when it gets harder to work out what each is experiencing?  Try empathising via zoom!

The ancients did much better with their emotions.   The Psalmist was able to write, when depressed with others mocking his faith, that his tears sustained him when memories couldn’t.   But he knew he was saved! (Psalm 42 verses 3 to 5).

Jeremiah, known as the weeping prophet, mourns over the plight of his people.  Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears!
I would weep day and night for the slain of my people.   Oh, that I had in the desert a lodging place for travellers, so that I might leave my people and go away from them;
for they are all adulterers, a crowd of unfaithful people. Jeremiah Chapter 9 verses 1 – 2.

Jeremiah let it all out!    His desire was to bring his sin-sick people to the ‘Balm of Gilead’. Their sickness (adultery and faithlessness) required His attention.   On their own they were lost (Chapter 8 verses 20 – 22).

The last time Jesus visited Jerusalem prior to the crucifixion was an emotive time.   From his vantage point on the Mount of Olives he saw, not just the current rejection of his mission, but that he stood in line with the prophets back through the avenues of time.   All had suffered the same fate in the long run.

Then comes his lament – ‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem’ and the illustration of the mother hen with its great care of its chicks.  Jesus sees himself as a broody hen such is his unquenchable love for his rebellious people and his longing to gather them to himself for safety, security and salvation (St Matthew chapter 23 verse 37).

In a pandemic there is no better place to be for us rebels.   Let the word of God prevail on your emotional intelligence to commit your life to Jesus (St John Chapter 1 verse 12).