TIME FOR THOUGHT, OR THOUGHTS ON TIME – Part 2 Having read the article, with the same title as above, in last month’s magazine, have you decided to become a nun, a monk or a priest? No? Well, never mind, there is still plenty of scope for willing helpers in Christ’s Church. Of course, quite a number of people already contribute in active ways to the life and work of All Saints’ parish. But all too often we see “the same faces” popping up in so many different areas. There are around 350 names at present on our Electoral Roll and, if more people would get involved in the various activities which are necessary for a thriving church community, not only would that provide additional expertise but it would also lighten the load for others. Members of the congregation already perform many tasks which might either not be immediately noticed or are simply taken for granted – things that just seem to happen! There are those who regularly clean the church building, those who prepare the wonderful displays of flowers, those who maintain the churchyard ….. members of the Social Committee, providing refreshments at functions ….. the choir ….. bellringers ….. parish magazine collators and distributors ….. and so on and so on. It’s not as if the church of All Saints lies dormant for six days and wakes up on Sundays! People are needed to keep the church alive, healthy and active seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year. In the second chapter of the Letter of James, the writer makes several references to the fact that following our Lord is not just about faith but has to involve actions. In verse 14 we read, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you have faith but do not have works?” Continuing that theme, we come to the assertion in verse 17, “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” And the chapter ends (verse 26) with the words, “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.” No-nonsense stuff! And surely food for thought? Some people might be concerned that, because of professional or family commitments, for example, they cannot “sign up” to regular duties. But every little helps. Occasionally a car driver is required, perhaps to take an elderly person to and from a hospital appointment. Various handyman jobs, well within the scope of even the most modest DIY practitioner, crop
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