Faith in a Changed World - August 2020 edition

Antony Mugford

August 2020

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Faith in a Changed World

The Lord will keep you from all harm he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121

© Antony Mugford First edition compiled and edited by David White Published by BrancoPrint © Majors Antony & Fiona Mugford The Salvation Army Westgate Guisborough TS14 6AW https://www.salvationarmy.org.uk/guisborough-citadel

01 September 2020

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My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

I lift up my eyes to the hills where does my help come from?

Prologue In 2020 the whole world was struck with Coronavirus pandemic that originated in Wuhan, China.

Countries were a ected in every way of life as lockdowns were advised and imposed, meaning that normal life could not continue. Business, travel, and family life were severely curtailed with impact on so many activities that were just taken for granted.

All expressions of Faith ceased in the traditional rituals and formats; impacting greatly on shared fellowship. Fortunately technolo y was available, and expanded, that allowed some virtual contact during social distancing. New expressions of Faith service blossomed not only to the individual, regional, national and, indeed, international congregations but, perhaps more importantly, also to the many new contacts within the wider communities.

The world-wide Salvation Army took virtual reality to its heart. Majors Antony and Fiona Mugford, the Commanding O cers of Guisborough Citadel, UK grasped this opportunity with daily ministry to both the Corps Fellowship and a much wider community via Facebook and YouTube; reaching many hundreds of people. Each Sunday, and other special Christian occasions, online services were also produced.

This booklet is a collection of those daily “letters" shared to an audience that remarkably grew exponentially; thus contacting, and helping, many hundreds of people during the Coronavirus lockdown. What an opportunity of witness these ‘letters’ proved to be! We can only hope and pray that the short-term bene t will lead to a longer-term commitment and blessing.

David White

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Sunday services

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ach Sunday, rather than having another reading, Majors Antony and Fiona lead online worship, Together

in Worship.

These services including Good Friday were added to the Guisborough Salvation Army Church Youtube channel and are all still available; the links being: Sunday 29 March 2020

https://youtu.be/odOTyJm9Zdk

Sunday 05 April 2020

https://youtu.be/NPog17ifg1Q

Friday 10 April 2020

https://youtu.be/Iw5RMOH31wY

Sunday 12 April 2020

https://youtu.be/rT_hDb0hVrU

Sunday 19 April 2020

https://youtu.be/i1xPyZaCaP4

Sunday 26 April 2020

https://youtu.be/LSTWnPwR0rI

Sunday 03 May 2020

https://youtu.be/Wq7HW__ODDI

Sunday 10 May 2020

https://youtu.be/kLCOtac ypo

Sunday 17 May 2020

https://youtu.be/5st0tT1mTKU

Sunday 24 May 2020

https://youtu.be/UkONp8OL0io

Sunday 31 May 2020

https://youtu.be/t8kzJcsoNOw

Sunday 07 June 2020

https://youtu.be/bUkmshG9ktQ

Sunday 14 June 2020

https://youtu.be/2U5BemQMD9s

Sunday 21 June 2020

https://youtu.be/r2bUU8JZ_gA

Sunday 28 June 2020

https://youtu.be/wDH2cTBnTX0

Sunday 05 July 2020

https://youtu.be/zTgUJCQ1Zmg

Sunday 12 July 2020

https://youtu.be/P66ecteLpR4

Sunday 19 July 2020

https://youtu.be/kkiDXn2gZ0w

Sunday 26 July 2020

https://youtu.be/FXoJcnctB4k

Sunday 02 August 2020

https://youtu.be/VOyQAKXTKBQ

Sunday 30 August 2020

https://youtu.be/Ub3aB5zm79g




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1 August 2020

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appy Yorkshire Day everyone from Antony from Blackpool and Fiona from Bristol đ&#x;˜

What a lovely part of the world in which to live. Two minutes in all directions and we've got forests, hills, moors, green ields and country lanes. If a Lancashire lad can't quite get himself to say this is God's own country he's perfectly prepared to say that God's a frequent visitor đ&#x;˜‰ I was watching a recording of Bake Off the Professionals last night where the contestants had to make a city skyline out of food(!) They set to work: Sydney Opera House with the Bridge, the London Eye with landmark buildings, iconic Amsterdam, and lastly... a Cornish tin mine.

It was hardly a grand scheme; a tin mine?

But it's what it represented to the two chefs that was important; they were Cornish, and they were proud of their humble beginnings and wanted people to share their pride in their origins.

We can all be proud of where we come from, even if it's a small setting rather than somewhere influential or famous. It was asked, probably in a sneering manner, when someone was invited to meet Jesus, 'Can anything good come out of Nazareth!?' Jesus wasn't just born in Bethlehem, a tiny place, he was brought up in Nazareth which has been described as an insigni icant agricultural village with a reputation for being rather ungodly.

The Messiah comes from there?

Well I imagine that Jesus loved it because his Mum and family were still there; it was familiar. It was home. But Jesus had a message of a greater home to which we are called to belong to now: the Kingdom of Heaven. It's not a place as such, it's more a 'belonging', it's an allegiance to God that gives us a place of hope and peace in the world. You could say that a believer in Jesus has dual nationality - we love the world we live in, the world God created, but we also live in a Kingdom where God reigns in our hearts, a Kingdom of love and joy and peace.

I do love to live in North Yorkshire (whether it's God's country or not I can't say), but I'm glad that by grace I'm also part of God's Kingdom above all that.

Father, creator and sustainer of all things, you have brought into being a world of wonder and beauty. Creation itself seems to sing of your glory.

You have given us another Kingdom to belong to, the Kingdom of your Son Jesus, a Kingdom that spreads around the world and will last for eternity.

I'm excited because you have called me to be part of that, to believe and then belong to a family of faith; to know you as my Lord and to know your love, joy and peace because of my faith in you.

How blessed I am to be part of the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen.

Have a good day today, and we'll see you tomorrow from 10am for Together

in Worship.

God bless you all đ&#x;™?

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3 August 2020

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ood morning everyone from Major Antony & Major Fiona...

Is it still morning?

Apologies to you who, being up at the crack of dawn, usually read these daily thoughts at around 7 or 7.30 not long after I myself have written them, sitting here with a mug of early morning co ee.

Well, this morning I got up an hour later than usual; and for me that means my whole routine is out the window. It's 8.30 now and my mind is telling me 'But it's really only 7.30 because you've only been up an hour!' I will nd it di cult to sort my morning out because the routine established over weeks and weeks has gone.

Do you nd that? You oversleep, you miss a bus, you forget to be somewhere; you double-book something or there's an unforeseen visitor, and all of a sudden your planned day is out of sync.

There were a lot of jokes in March about people wanting their money back on the calendars and diaries they had bought that were all now totally useless. We have calendars but we just turn them over every month if only for the nice pictures on each page Routine is good. Habits, in the best sense of the word, are good. We like to have a routine that structures our day.

I was interested to read that Jesus himself had habits and routines.

The Bible says in Luke 4 v 16 that Jesus went to the weekly synagogue service in Nazareth 'as was his custom'. He was a 'regular church goer'. When he started his ministry that wasn't a habit he always maintained, but a chapter later on, in 5 v 16, we read that Jesus 'often withdrew to lonely places and prayed'. He started a new routine, set himself a new schedule.

Many of us can't go to church either, but we can create a new routine of prayer - out walking, working round the house, or nding a time when it's convenient to focus on God for a short time.

I hope you have a good day today - even if the routine is not as planned. Maybe today you can schedule a time to speak to God, listen to him and then plan to meet him again: same place, same time.

Here's a very old song (and you can tell). I've never used it as far as I can remember but it has some good 'old-fashioned' advice: Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord; Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word.

Make friends of God's children, help those who are weak, Forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek.

Take time to be holy, let Him be thy Guide; And run not before Him, whatever betide.

In joy or in sorrow, still follow the Lord, And, looking to Jesus, still trust in His Word.

Take time to be holy, the world rushes on; Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone.

By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be; Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see.

Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul, Each thought and each motive beneath His control.

Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love, Thou soon shalt be itted for service above.

https://youtu.be/g4GAdx8NJoE God bless everyone. I hope to be back at the normal time tomorrow morning

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4 August 2020

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ood morning all :) Major Fiona and Major Antony here again

I was sent this yesterday and I was impressed by it because unlike so many of the pithy sayings and good advice we often see on Facebook, it actually says something quite profound and important.

Some lovely words are posted on the internet and they can be very helpful; but what I don't think are particularly useful are the 'Don't worry, be happy' type of thoughts. Even less helpful are the 'Believe in yourself' words of advice. The thought strikes me that if it were that easy not to worry by just being happy, or if I could overcome all my dif iculties by just believing in myself, I would have done it years ago!

Well meaning bits of wisdom they might be, but as people of faith we would want to look for something a little more reassuring - and that's where this truth is indeed helpful: 'Worry is a conversation you have with yourself about things you cannot change, Prayer is a conversation you have with God about things he can change.'

It's simple really, here we're talking about having someone there, not just trying to ind an inward strength that may or not let us down. The ability to talk with God is very often all the strength that we need.

I remember talking to an elderly retired Salvation Army of icer. It was his last stay in hospital before he was promoted to Glory (the Salvation Army term for passing away). This was 25 years ago but I can see him now and hear him say, quite simply, 'I just talk to the Lord about it,' You might have thought he was conversing with God about the garden or the weather or a lost item; but no; in the face of his inal illness he was at peace enough and settled enough in his faith in Jesus, simply to be able to talk to him about it. I have remembered Brigadier Tom Brookes' words of profound faith ever since.

Yes, we can worry - and I confess I often do - but how much better to learn the kind of faith that simply says, 'I'll talk to God about about it,' Should we worry about things? It's often hard not to; but is this not what our faith is for? The trouble is that this kind of faith is learned not just given; it's the kind of faith that comes through experience and maybe Brigadier Brookes had been tested in his long years as an of icer.

Well, whatever tests he'd been put through, in this inal test he had passed with flying colours. He didn't worry, he didn't talk to himself about his hardships; he prayed and simply talked to the Lord.

Oh that I might attain to that kind of faith. The irst step of course is to want it. Secondly it's to use it.

Oh what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear; All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Father today I want to consider how close you are to me. You know all things - my background, personality and circumstances. You more than anyone know my heart.

In my worries and fears, teach me to 'have a little talk with Jesus' and to 'tell Him all about my troubles', because I know that you will 'hear our faintest cry and he will answer by and by'.

Each day remind me that Jesus walks with me and all I have to do is talk to him as a friend speaks with a friend.

May that knowledge alone be the strength I need to face each day.

Bless my loved ones, be in my circumstances and fears, and today may your grace match my needs and may my time with you in prayer be a blessing.

In Jesus' name. Amen.

May God bless you all today.

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ood morning everyone! We hope it's going to be a good one for you all!

Like many of you I enjoy crosswords. Fiona can do Sudoku but I have total brain-block with numbers so they're a no-no with me. But give me a quick crossword and I'm happy.

When I was ill for a week a couple of years ago crosswords kept me sane, and I still try to do at least one every day - sometimes more. There are times I can complete a crossword all at once; other times there may be half a dozen clues I simply cannot get, so I leave it for a few hours and it's been odd that I pick it up again and immediately I can see the answers. It must be the case that when you stare at something for too long you just can't think objectively - coming back to those 2 letters and 5 spaces suddenly reveals the answer!

But I have a confession to make to you all - please don't judge me: There are times when I don't leave the puzzle and come back to it later; oh no. There are times when I simply turn to the back and cheat. Maybe I'll ind the longest word and see if getting the answer will help me think of the ones intersecting it. I have to further confess that there are times I simply copy the missing answers... I feel better for telling you!

It's often the case that I will say, 'Oh of course it is! Why didn't I see that?' And then I feel stupid for not getting it. But I've started a new book and the clues are more dif icult and I've gone to the back for an answer and still been none the wiser: there are words I've simply never heard of! I would not have got the answer in a million years of thinking! But as with all crosswords, the easy clues, the clues I should have got, and the obscure all go towards the inished puzzle.

When the news of last night's explosions in Beirut came onto social media I read someone's comment: "Just when you thought 2020 couldn't get any worse!� Indeed.

Why? How? What? These are questions people are all asking about this year. They are, of course, questions we've always asked about our world, our lives, and the events and circumstances we face; it's as if the world is a huge crossword puzzle and we're all involved in adding answers and completing words. Some answers are easy to ill in. Some questions of life we puzzle over until someone gives us a clue - an extra letter or even a sneak peek and we say, 'Oh of course! I understand now!'. Some answers, I'm afraid we will never get this side of heaven when we will see the solution in all its fullness.

Elvis sang a Gospel song in the '50s - 'We'll understand it better by and by.' Well yes, we will. The niggling questions we have, together with the huge questions of life will all be answered. There are some things in this life - like those really dif icult crossword clues and the answers we've never heard of - that we will never come to terms with here, but let us be assured of one thing: He knows.

Jesus is the Word, he started it all, he will complete it all. It's not wrong to question; it's not a failure that we don't know the answer; he simply asks us to believe that there is an answer; there are reasons. There will one day be a completed puzzle. Faith means trusting that He does know the answers, and that even though we don't understand, or sometimes even agree because of our limited viewpoint, his truth will make the puzzle complete.

Lord, life does seem like a puzzle to me at times. I love it when the answers are all falling into place and things just seem to it; but how I'm confused when I just don't have the answer, or the 'word' I think should it, doesn't.

On those days when I see the news, or think about my personal experience, and wonder what the answer is, help me to trust you, the One who knows the end from the beginning.

Help me to remember that in all things you are the Way, and the Truth, and the Life.

And let me in some small way also be the one to help someone else to make sense of their puzzle; let me be an answer, an encouragement, a guide for someone else.

Thank you for your word, the Bible and the assurance it gives that all things are in your hands. Amen.

Have a lovely day today everyone. God bless you

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5 August 2020

6 August 2020

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orning all! Greetings from our house to yours đ&#x;™‚

When these daily thoughts and prayers started on 24th March I had no idea that here I would be on 6th August writing the latest one.

Looking at the prospects for our country and our world it seems likely these thoughts will continue for a long time to come. Thanks for your support and encouragement; I'm glad they help.

One thing that amazes me is the numbers I see who read these posts. Some days it's 200+, others it can be 400+. Yes, really! It's amazing. But recently, with an average say of 350 - 400 the most looked at post reached 844 people. It was the post about worry and talking to Jesus about it.

It seems to me from that alone, that it struck a chord, it resonated with many. We live in worrying times. So I'm revisiting that thought. As we saw, worry is a conversation we have with ourselves about things we can't change, whereas prayer is a conversation with God about the things he can change. A verse that has often been useful is this: 'Cast all your cares on him, for he cares for you.'

It's a play on words really. My 'cares' are the burdens I shoulder, the things that wake me up early, the things we might shed a tear over. His 'care' is me.

He cares for me in the way that I care for my wife, my boys, my closest loved ones; it's as if I ill his 'waking thoughts', his attention is on me. The wonderful thing is that's how he sees all of us: we are his care.

The Bible says 'he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.' (Psalm 95 v 7) The answer to our worries, our cares then is not simply a prayer that we offer up, the answer lies in a relationship with him.

Remember the Brigadier who talked with Jesus? Because he knew God cared for him and because he loved him in return there was a relationship of love and trust; and in that relationship worries and cares became simply the topic of conversation between friends.

Lord Jesus, what a wonderful thing it is to know that I can cast my cares onto you because of your care for me, your watchful love.

Just knowing that you know me and love me helps me to be at peace.

So Lord, I want to put my faith in you, to trust you, to follow you - to love you.

And then, knowing you like that I can speak with you as a friend speaks with a friend.

I know this life, wonderful as it can be, will always have burdens and worries, but knowing you can share them, bear their weight and give me peace is a real blessing to me.

So Lord today, as I learn to trust you, draw near and walk with me today.

Thank you Lord, Amen.

God bless you today whatever you are doing.

Until tomorrow......đ&#x;™?

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7 August 2020 Hello everyone from Major Antony and Major Fiona. How are you today?

I came downstairs this morning and opened the blinds in our front room to a blinding sunrise. The sun was directly opposite our house like a huge spotlight promising a bright and warm day. Anyone would think I'd never seen the sun before! Well, after a week of cloud it does make a change.

What does a new day mean for you on this August Friday?

Another day at work?

A day with children round you?

A day of concern and care?

Maybe today will be another day when you don't see many people.

Perhaps you're not feeling well and you hope that today will be a bit better than yesterday.

Maybe it will be a day for a walk, a run, a visit.

The same sun shines on us all.

It rises without fail, it doesn't depend on us.

I recently saw a ilm that was set in ancient times and in it a man prayed to the god of the sun before dawn begging for the sunrise. I guess he believed that if he failed in his daily early morning rituals the sun wouldn't appear! What a burden of fear, and how unnecessary. Yet he dared not stop because he believed his prayers actually persuaded the sun god to return.

I think lots of old religious ideas have that sense of persuading God, of trying to earn a blessing or convince him we deserve his love.

It's as futile as praying for the sunrise of course because God is faithful and gracious and his love is assured. He loves us because he wants to, not because we pray hard enough to earn it.

The old hymn says New every morning is the love our wakening and uprising prove; through sleep and darkness safely brought, restored to life and power and thought.

Old friends, old scenes will lovelier be As more of Heaven in each we see; Some softening gleam of love and prayer Shall dawn on every cross and care.

The trivial round, the common task, will furnish all we need to ask, room to deny ourselves, a road to bring us daily nearer God.

So, be assured today that as certainly as the sun rises, God's love surrounds you whatever you do. His mercies are new each morning, great is his faithfulness.

God bless you đ&#x;™?

 

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8 August 2020

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ood morning! And welcome to a sunny Saturday!

Whatever you have got planned today I hope you will follow the rules...if you can remember what they are of course!

From today there are tighter rules on wearing face coverings - including if there's a church service you want to attend tomorrow. And if you're in one of the towns or cities with a local lockdown, the rules about not going into someone's house have been reintroduced and there's the prospect of further rules.

Some people are genuinely mysti ied about the rules and guidelines and requirements, not least because they change and might on irst glance appear inconsistent. People look at a broad guidelines - an aspect of social distancing or covering the face, and they ask, 'So, what about in this place, or in that circumstance?'

The underlying principle, of course, is keeping each other safe so, from my point of view it's better safe than sorry; which is why when all the guidelines for places of worship are seen as a whole - social distancing, no singing, protecting the 70+ age group and no interaction between households - we are not planning on holding worship meetings at the Citadel for a while yet, very sadly.

I see the need for the rules, even when a little confusing, as being an outworking of an unchanging and unchangeable law - a commandment even. When Jesus was asked which was the greatest commandment he replied there are two: love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and love your neighbour as yourself.

I think those are quite clear. Sticking to the guidelines is one way to love our neighbour.

It's worth noting that God's commandments are rooted and grounded in love.

And as the Bible says, we love him because he irst loved us.

Dear Father of us all, you created us in love. We are made for love - giving and receiving.

We thank you for the love of parents and children, spouses, friends and neighbours. Lord, you are in and through it all.

When we look at our community and world it is love that ills us with sympathy and compassion for those in need, those who suffer. Love is at the heart of our actions and our prayers.

We pray for those we know who are unwell, those who care for them. For those who suffer inancially at this time.

In love for others we pray for the thousands who suffer following the explosion in Beirut and millions who live in poverty around the world.

And, just where we are, help us to follow the law of love - to love you and to love our neighbour as we love ourselves.

For the sake of Christ, Amen.

Enjoy your Saturday everyone!

Remember to join us for Together August 30th

in Worship from 10am tomorrow, which will be the last one until

God bless you all đ&#x;™?

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10 August 2020

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wonder if you’ve ever been in a room with people who illed you with a certain amount of awe or made you feel a little inadequate. I remember when I irst went into a ym full of muscular people I felt quite out of place. Or as a preacher, the one thing that would ill me with horror would be the prospect of preaching in a church full of other preachers. And I guess we would all feel very out of place in a room that was full of saints!

Imagine meeting St Francis, St Theresa, St Paul, and all the famous Christian ‘saints’ – Wesley, Booth, Billy Graham. I guess that if there was such a meeting there would be a lot of saints sitting at one end of the room while us ordinary mortals gathered at the other end feeling a little intimidated.

A saint is someone ‘special’; someone really ‘holy’ or even perfect; a saint is different to other Christians, or at least that’s what we feel. And yet St Paul seems to want to share his saintly status with the rest of us. “To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints�, he wrote in a letter. I am hopeful that he would also write to the saints of Guisbororough (or wherever you live) as well.

How could I ever claim that I am a saint in the mould of St Francis? It’s unthinkable. We can’t volunteer to be one, we can’t provide a CV that shows our quali ications for the task; how holy do you have to be? But we cannot get away from the fact that God’s word tells us that we are called to be the sort of people we ourselves have looked up to: We are called to be saints.

Well, should we give up this impossible task now? Perhaps we could remember that the de inition of a saint is not how perfect they are but how different they try to be. That’s actually what saints are: people who live their lives with a faith in Jesus that somehow makes them different.

Not better than others, not more special – just becoming different to what they were – more loving, more patient, more kind and gentle.

Father, just where I am help me to be a saint. Of course I wouldn’t claim that title for myself Lord, it’s way beyond me, and people around me know me too well; but I do want to be different.

I thank you that you can forgive my wrongdoings and then help me to be a better ‘me’; and if that’s what becoming a saint is, Lord, count me in.

So today, help me to show love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness, goodness and self-control and try to have a bit more faith in you. Amen.

Enjoy your day everyone – you’re all saints! God bless you đ&#x;™?

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11 August 2020

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uring these last months of lockdown our ways of communicating have become very precious to us. In days gone by we relied on letters and postcards, the telephone was transformed into a mobile and we were able to phone when out of the house and send texts. Now we can FaceTime and Zoom on our phone (if you don’t know, ask someone).

If you’re over 50 you can remember when the old-fashioned ways were all there was; I think a teenager today would think the world had ended if there wasn’t a mobile attached to their hand 18 hours a day!

But think how cut off we would have been over these last months without communication. We’ve realised just how important it is.

There was once a sister in a large hospital who answered the phone on her desk. The caller on the other end of the phone said, ‘Please could you tell me how Bert Higgins on ward 3 is getting on?’ ‘Bert Higgins? Let me look’, said the sister, checking her notes. ‘Did you say Bert Higgins?’ ‘Yes,’ said the caller. ‘Oh yes, he’s had his operation yesterday, it was a complete success and he can go home in 2 days. Who’s calling?’ ‘It’s Bert Higgins, they tell you nothing here?’ (I hope these kinds of stories are true! đ&#x;˜Š ) Now, I’m not one for writing letters. I don’t write many at all. But I like to receive them. I know some of you receive letters and some of you write letters.

Letter writing, so I believe, is not the popular pastime it once was.

You hear of people who have kept all their letters from a loved one for years, perhaps in a box or tied with ribbon; and these letters are symbols of love, reminders of days gone by.

And they’ll be read again, and then read again. Maybe a relative will ind them years later and read them.

It’s as if the other person has put their heart on paper.

Someone said that once about God; that in the Bible, he has put his heart on paper. These words all speak of his love for mankind, his search for us as we went astray, and the sacri ice he made that we would love him too. This is how God often communicates and speaks to us. And if we can, we should read the Bible and let him speak to us of his love through it.

Father, I want to thank you for this new day – I love how sometimes I feel you speaking through the sunshine, the rain, the hills, and flowers. I look at the stars, or I see a smile on a child’s face; and I think what love and beauty there is in our world.

I thank you too that your love is written in the pages of your word to us, the Bible. So many verses that tell us how much you love me; how could I doubt it’s true. You really have put your heart on paper.

Help me to know again today that I am truly loved by you. In return help me to love you and love others too.

In Jesus’ name. Amen.

It’s going to be a good day! Be blessed đ&#x;˜Š

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12 August 2020

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orning everyone. We hope you slept well.

What did you dream about? Money, flying, chocolate!

Some people have dreamed of fantastic things and when people have laughed at them, they still dreamed and sometimes those amazing dreams became a reality: The men who dreamed of cars, aeroplanes, space rockets, computers.

Men who dreamed of running faster than ever before, of climbing mountains, of discovering new countries.

It must be wonderful to have a dream that one day comes true.

Now then the poets among you: Can you complete this phrase written by Alfred Lord Tennyson?

“More things are wrought by prayer… * (answer below) Or how about these words from the musical South Paci ic “You gotta have a dream, if you don't have a dream, how you gonna have a dream come true?”

Of course, people with faith in God are not just dreamers – whether in the creative sense or in the romantic sense – we are people who are invited to dream dreams of possibility, of seeing visions of what God can do.

It’s when we look with the eyes of faith, as it were, that we might begin to see that God can do much more than we can imagine.

Sometimes our prayers may do things we might not even think of.

Not because our prayers are powerful or even because we have a strong faith - sometimes our prayers are answered even if we have very little faith simply because of the love and the faithfulness of the one we’re praying to.

Our prayers are always brought to a loving Father God who cares and guides and who knows the best for us.

And I believe he dares us to ask him for things that we might have only dreamed of. Here’s the promise of God’s word: Jesus is the one ‘who can do in initely more than all we can ask or imagine.”

Now here’s a challenge for your prayers: Come, my soul, thy suit prepare, Jesus loves to answer prayer.

He Himself has bid thee pray, Therefore will not say thee nay.

Thou art coming to a King, large petitions with thee bring, for his grace and power are such, none can ever ask too much.

We hope your day is a good one. God bless you all.

*

Answer: “…than this world dreams of.”

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13 August 2020

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ood morning to you all – to you and your household!

Does your household include a pet? Is he around? Can you see him or her? Go and check‌OK? Good.

We often see on Guisborough News and Views an appeal about a lost dog or cat – or even a rabbit or parrot. We have a cat who went missing for three days but sent a substitute in her place. Seriously! But that’s a story for another day‌ Anyway, a man once heard a cat meowing at his front door. When he opened it a big grey longhaired cat walked in, sniffed round the furniture, started to purr and then jumped on a chair as if he owned the place. The family couldn’t believe their eyes.

Then somebody went to fetch a photo album and they compared this fat cat to some pictures they had of a cat and they realised that they were one and the same. This cat was their long lost pet. Clem the cat had come home after 8 years of being who knows where.

What a wonderful thing the homing instinct in an animal is.

We have a homing instinct (that may or may not be in evidence whilst driving).

There is something inside every human being that is attracted by what we might call ‘the spiritual’. Very often we crowd out this little voice or gentle feeling, with a busy life or a noisy world. But it’s there. It’s a little voice that calls us to God; that makes us think of heaven; that reminds us that there is more to this life than the things we see.

CS Lewis, the writer of the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, said that there was something in him that made him homesick – homesick for heaven. It was almost as if he belonged there and not here. He wrote: “ "If I ind in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world."

The Bible tells us that God has placed a bit of eternity in our hearts.

It makes us restless for something more, something better.

We believe that ‘something better’ is found when we believe in Jesus Christ and invite him into our life.

Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling, Calling for you and for me!

Patiently Jesus is waiting and watching, Watching for you and for me!

Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading, Pleading for you and for me?

Why should we linger and heed not His mercies, Mercies for you and for me?

Chorus: Come Home, come Home!

Ye who are weary, come Home!

Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling, Calling, O sinner, come Home!

O for the wonderful love He has promised, Promised for you and for me!

Though we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon, Pardon for you and for me!

God bless you today. đ&#x;™?

 

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t’s time for holidays – though this year the holidays are all slightly different of course. Maybe this year we will spend a little more time in a UK holiday setting and spend some time looking at the photos from last year’s holiday to reminisce about the sun and the sea and the sand. (There’s always Blackpool of course đ&#x;˜‰ ) One of our irst ‘foreign’ holidays as a family was when our middle son had just been born and we went to Cork in the Republic of Ireland, way down in the South.

And there, on visiting Blarney Castle both Fiona and I kissed the Blarney Stone. High in the turrets you lean backwards, with an attendant holding your legs as you kiss a bit of the wall. I cannot remember why!

Apparently kissing the Blarney Stone gives you the gift of the gab: the ability to talk and talk; the gift to use our words cleverly to persuade or influence someone.

So that’s where the saying comes from. Gab is from a Celtic word ‘gabbe’ meaning idle chatter.

It reminds me of our slang word now – gob! As in gobstopper and the very impolite – “Shut your Gob�.

I wonder how many words we speak in a day – some of us don’t speak very much and some never stop talking – there are those of us who have the gift of the gab!

I wonder whether we think of the power of our words and the effect they have on other people. A word can sometimes bring hurt. A word can sometimes bring embarrassment - you might not think before you speak and then you wish the ground would swallow you up.

Of course we all know the person who seems to always have the right thing to say; they are encouraging, helpful, comforting and cheering. We like the people with that gift with words.

One person we know really had a gift of speaking just the right words – Jesus himself. St Peter once said to him, ‘You have the words of eternal life.’ And Jesus himself said, “The words I have spoken to you bring God’s life-giving Spirit.�

People today will know, almost without thinking about it, some of the words of Jesus: - The Lord’s Prayer - Blessed are the peacemakers and other beatitudes - The parables of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son - Words of comfort like I am the resurrection and the Life.

- Words of salvation like For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. Sing them over again to me, wonderful words of life, Let me more of their beauty see, wonderful words of life; Sweetly echo the Saviour’s call, wonderful words of life; Words of life and beauty teach me faith and duty.

Offer pardon and peace to all, wonderful words of life; Jesus, only Saviour, saves and keeps forever.

Christ, the blessed One, gives to all wonderful words of life; Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of Sinner, list to the loving call, wonderful words of life; life; All so freely given, wooing us to heaven.

Have a great day everyone. God bless you. đ&#x;™?

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14 August 2020

15 August 2020

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ello everyone. Hope you're all well :)

Yesterday I remembered the time Fiona and I went to the very south of Ireland. On the way there we travelled through Dublin, staying with some friends.

When I go on holiday, I love to visit old buildings. Sometimes it’s a castle or a big house, sometimes it’s one of our lovely English Cathedrals.

Now Dublin, though mainly Roman Catholic, has an Anglican Cathedral and it’s famous for 2 things.

Apparently, Handel’s Messiah was irst performed in a nearby theatre using boys from the Cathedral Choir, and inside the Cathedral there is a very old Medieval door inside the cathedral which has a hole in it.

Now you might not think that’s very interesting, but there’s a story to this door. And it’s the source of the saying, ‘He chanced his arm.’

The story is that hundreds of years ago 2 families were having a feud. They had been ighting for generations until one day one member of one of the families decided to put an end to the ighting and he arranged to meet one of the enemy. They met at this door, one was inside, the other was outside. The would-be peacemaker made a hole in the door with his sword, put the sword down and put his arm through the hole to shake hands with the enemy inside.

He literally chanced his arm – the other man could easily have cut his arm off! But he didn’t, he shook hands and the families were reconciled. And that’s where the saying comes from.

We chance our arm – we take a risk to get something done; especially when it’s an act of bravery or courage.

A bit like mountain rescuers who take a risk to bring someone down from the mountainside; or iremen who go into a burning building, or lifeboatmen who go out into stormy seas to rescue sailors.

Some have said that when God sent Jesus to the world he was ‘chancing his arm’.

God knew he was taking a risk – he knew what people would do, but he was still prepared to take that irst step of offering friendship and peace. A bit like the man who chanced his arm through the hole in the door.

I suppose you could say that on the cross Jesus extended both arms in love as he died for the sins of the world.

It’s up to us now to reach out in faith and accept the love and forgiveness that Jesus offers us. You won’t be taking a chance; it’s a certainty.

Thank You God, for sending Jesus; thank You Jesus, that You came; Holy Spirit, won’t You teach us more about His wondrous name?

Oh Lord, you gave up everything to make peace with us through the cross.

You did it though you knew many would never accept it and reject your offer of life and love.

But Lord, I want to accept your love and trust you to save me.

I want to be reconciled to you and be at peace.

Thank you Lord that you have given everything for me, and now Lord, I want to live for you.

Bless me today as I put my faith and my trust in you.

You have promised to hear my prayer, which I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Have a good day everyone. God bless you.

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17 August 2020

H

i everyone. Happy Monday!

One of the most often-watched programmes in our house is The Yorkshire Vet. Have you seen it? It’s about an agricultural vet based in Thirsk and they go round all the farms taking care of anything from lambs to llamas.

It’s interesting to see what’s done – even if you’re a bit squeamish, like me. You can tell how caring the farmers and shepherds are when it comes to their sheep and other animals.

You’ll all know of course that it was Jesus who said, “I am the Good Shepherd.” I think that phrase has meant more to Christians than almost any other over the last 2,000 years. People like the idea that God is like a shepherd who cares and guides and leads and protects his people.

I read that the very earliest paintings or drawings of Jesus are found in Rome, in the catacombs, those tunnels under the city where persecuted Christians hid. And there on the walls are pictures of Jesus. Not on a cross, not as a baby in manger, but as a shepherd carrying a lamb on his shoulders, just like in the parable of the lost sheep. These pictures were drawn by people who were afraid.

It was a time of great persecution and these early Christians looked to Jesus as a shepherd who would care for them. They could have pictured Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords but they didn’t: they felt they needed the care of a shepherd.

I read somewhere that sheep in Bible times were looked after for many years by the same shepherd. They got to know one another – the shepherd grew to be fond of his sheep and they in turn trusted the shepherd. And that’s why Jesus said, “I know my sheep and my sheep know me.”

Did you ever watch One Man and his Dog a number of years ago?

You have a ield with a group of sheep in it and the shepherd stands at the side whistling away to make his dog round up the sheep and chase them into the pen.

The shepherds Jesus knew were so different. He didn’t drive them or chase them with dogs; he walked with them, leading them along the paths and into pastures that he knew well.

Psalm 23 says: The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me…

You can almost see the shepherd there can’t you, guiding his flock through green ields and rocky places.

And Jesus says to his followers – and it includes us – I am the Good Shepherd. I will lead you, I will protect you, I will even put my life at risk to protect you. And that is what he did. He laid down his life to save us. So you can see why those earliest pictures of Jesus showed him as the shepherd. What more precious picture can we have?

Lord, we live in precarious times. Everything is so different now and it worries us – it worries me. When will it end?

Lord we need you to guide us and protect us; to lead us and comfort us. But we realise we have to follow you and trust you. Help me to do just that today.

In doing so I know that I will have your gift of peace. Amen.

We hope you have a peaceful day today. God bless you.

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18 August 2020

M

orning all! Antony and Fiona here.

Some of you will know that I am forever losing my keys. I carry them with me, I put them down, I go somewhere else and it might be hours later when I realise I’ve lost my keys. Fiona teases me a lot about my keys!

Keys play a very important part in life don’t they, house keys, car keys, of ice keys, padlock keys, safe keys… the list could go on and on.

Sometimes we talk symbolically about keys. An important person could get the keys of the city. It’s a mark of respect and honour for someone the city wants to express their gratitude to. When someone is 21 or 18 we talk about getting the key of the door – a symbol of independence and adulthood.

Have you ever heard of getting the keys to the street? It’s the opposite of getting the key of the door – apparently to be given ‘the key of the street’ means you’re locked out of doors, turned out of your home and evicted!

Most keys are good to have – a key to a nice home or a car. But some keys are for unpleasant purposes – a key to a jail or a prison cell, for example. It must be awful to be put in a cell – perhaps with someone else – and be locked in for hours at a time with the door locked and the key on a prison of icer’s belt outside. You can imagine a young man, in trouble for the irst time, being put in the cell on his irst day and hearing the key turn and locking him in…

Some people are imprisoned for no reason at all. You might remember Terry Waite who was kidnapped by terrorists – and for years he was under lock and key – in fact it was over 4 years - 1763 days! And he was there simply because he wanted to use his faith to help people.

That’s a little bit like Paul and Silas in the Bible. They were in prison accused of causing an uproar in the city when all they had done was tell about Jesus to a slave girl who was being used by men to make money for them.

They rescued her and they were put under lock and key for their trouble.

But Paul and Silas didn’t allow this situation to take away their faith in Jesus. They sat in the prison singing and praising God and miraculously they were freed – no keys were necessary for that – and, through this miracle, other people came to know the power of God and came to know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. Paul and Silas were locked in. Sometimes people are locked out. It might seem strange to say, but God is often locked out of our lives.

I wonder if you know this picture entitled The Light of the World. The original is in St Paul’s Cathedral and shows Jesus standing, knocking at an overgrown door. The door is the door to a person’s soul and Jesus, the bringer of light is locked out. There is no handle on the outside of the door. It can only be unlocked and opened from the inside. The picture depicts something very important. The Lord Jesus stands outside our lives and knocks – he wants to come in and share his love with us, but so many people keep him there, outside, unwelcome, unwanted. And yet he still knocks.

Have you any room for Jesus, He who bore your load of sin?

Refrain: As He knocks and asks admission, Room for Jesus, King of Glory!

Sinner, will you let Him in?

Hasten now His Word obey; Swing the heart’s door widely open, Room for pleasure, room for business, Bid Him enter while you may.

But for Christ the Cruci ied, Not a place that He can enter, In the heart for which He died?

May God bless you today.

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ood morning to you all. We hope you are all well.

This might get me into trouble!

I read somewhere that scientists have discovered that women can’t read maps. It’s true – so they say! There’s something in a woman’s brain that makes it dif icult for her to read the directions. Now before you get all upset, the same scientists have discovered something about men too, and that’s that they don’t listen to what their wives tell them! (Or so Fiona told me‌but I didn’t catch it all đ&#x;˜‰ ) Anyway; back to the map. What would travellers do without them? And what foolish traveller would set off on a journey without a map or something on their phone to tell them where to go? Of course, what you could do would be to ask directions; the problem is that men, apparently, don’t like to ask for directions. They’d rather get lost irst!

Suppose you are in a strange town and you ask someone where to go. Suppose he says to you, “Take the irst on the right, the second left, cross the square, pass the church, take the third on the left and the road you want is the fourth on the right after you crossed the road and passed the chip shop on the left.� The chances are you’d be lost before you were halfway there! The best thing to happen when you’re lost is not to have a map, not to have someone tell you where to go, but for someone who knows the way to travel with you.

And on the most important journey of all, that must surely be the best way. Life’s journey is too important for us to get lost on the way. It’s too important for us just to follow directions or take advice, we need someone to lead us and to guide us. On the journey of life, who better to take with us than Jesus Christ, who says he is the way, the truth and the life. When you look again at the 23rd Psalm, what are the most comforting words? ‘He leadeth me’.

Sometimes that road will go through quiet pastures and still waters, sometimes it will lead through the shadows. Jesus never promised a life that would be free from burdens or cares. But he did promise his presence.

There’s a lovely hymn that says, Wherever he may guide me, No want shall turn me back; My shepherd is beside me, And nothing can I lack.

His wisdom ever waketh, His sight is never dim, He knows the way he taketh, And I will walk with him.

If we walk with Christ then our journey will be a con ident one and our destination at the gates of heaven will be certain.

Wherever you go today, may you know God’s leading and his blessing.

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19 August 2020

H

ello everyone. Another new day. May it be illed with smiles and music.

The radio stations we often listen to are Smooth FM or an 80s music station. There’s something about these ‘smoother’ sounds that makes a difference to the day. I heard a song that I’d never heard before.

Perhaps you recognise the words: There's a hole in the world tonight There's a cloud of fear and sorrow There's a hole in the world tonight Don't let there be a hole in the world tomorrow.

It’s by the Eagles and was apparently written after the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre. I don’t think it was a Christian song, but it is certainly expressing a Christian sentiment – that our world, beautifully made and created by a loving God, somehow is missing something – it has to be. When we look at what man has done, what sel ishness has done - and continues to do - we could say “There IS a hole in the world.”

The song continues: Oh they tell me there's a place over yonder Cool water running through the burning sand Until we learn to love one Another we never reach the promise land Well, there’s certainly some Biblical imagery there.

Some people despair, others work very hard to bring peace and justice to where they live. But I think that our world, created by a loving God needs that loving God himself to bring healing to our world. In Jesus that healing started. He offers himself as the Good Shepherd and the Prince of Peace – and in many places that offer is taken up and people have found peace.

But still the world has great problems and there is hurt everywhere. But we must still have hope.

The Bible speaks symbolically about the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

It’s picture language for the time when Jesus will come again, and the world will be at peace and the hurts and the despair of the years will be put right once again. It’s a beautiful picture and it inds an echo in our hearts that one day this world will ind healing and that in Christ all things will be made one.

One of my favourite hymns has these words: This is my Father’s world; O let me ne’er forget That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.

This is my Father’s world; The battle is not done; Jesus who died shall be satis ied, And earth and Heaven be one.

Yes, one day all will be one. That’s a thought to hold onto. God bless you today.

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20 August 2020

21 August 2020

M

orning everyone đ&#x;˜Š

It’s strange what we remember as children. You might have memories of certain people. I remember, when I was a child, that my father always wore a black suit because he was a managing director. I remember he played golf and he was good at gardening. You will have a completely different memory, of course, if you do have a memory of your father; I knew a lady, who whenever she talked of her father, spoke of a tall handsome policeman. So, what do remember of your father‌? All our fathers were different, and our experiences vary – some have good experiences, some of us don’t and we live with that‌ To us the word ‘Dad’ conjures up all sorts of memories that no one else has. And yet I call my Dad the same thing as you called yours. The word ‘Dad’ doesn’t really describe what he was like does it? It could have both positive and negative connotations.

It’s a bit like that with God. We all call God ‘God’. It sounds simple, but what do we mean? What is God like?

Some people see God like children see him, as an old man with a white beard. Some people see God as someone who is stern and angry. Other people see him as just a power force we can’t know anything about.

More see him as a loving creator who wants to be our Father. How do you see God? How do you think of him?

Some say of course that whatever you call him, God isn’t there but the experience of countless millions of course is very much, ‘Yes, he’s there!’. People know, even feel his presence.

That was certainly true for Daniel. I think most of us know the story of the lion’ den but there is more to his story than that. Daniel and his people were captives in a strange and foreign land. They were taken away from the homes they loved. They even thought they had left God behind. They really thought that God lived in the temple and had stayed behind. How were they going to worship God when he was so far away? What a joy it was for them to discover that God was with them even in that foreign land.

If you’re like me, there may be times when you feel that God isn’t with you. Are there times when you feel you’ve left him behind? Ill health can make us feel that God has moved away. Not being able to attend church can sometimes make us feel that we have moved away from where God can bless us.

If we remember what God is like we need not feel that he is far away. He is the one who loves us and will never leave us or allow us to be alone. He is the God who is present with us. Wherever we are, there also is God. That’s a wonderful reassurance to us. May we be aware of him and may he help us to have faith in him today.

Psalm 139.

1 You have searched me, LORD, and you know me.

2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely.

5 You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

May God be with and bless you today.

 

 

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22 August 2020

H

ello everyone, welcome to the weekend. We hope you’ve a had a good week.

Let’s go back to childhood again.

Imagine the scene. Perhaps it happened to you once: A little child is playing in the street, she’s jumping, she’s running, she’s dancing; when suddenly she trips and falls and there’s a moment of stillness and then, the little girl starts to cry. Her knee hurts, the sight of blood makes her afraid and she runs indoors. She’s met by her mother who speaks over her cries with a soft and con ident voice, ‘Come here. Let me make it better.’ The girl climbs into her mother’s arms, and feels the warmth of those arms around her and soon the crying stops. Isn’t the power of a mother’s love wonderful?

Mothers know just where it hurts.

And Dads are good too because they know everything. A Dad is perceived to be the best. How many boys have boasted in the playground, ‘My Dad’s bigger than your Dad’?

When we are little we think our mothers and fathers are so powerful – they are almost superhuman. They can do anything. One day though, children reach a stage when they realise that parents are not like God. They have limitations and weaknesses – and we accept that; and we who are parents looking back on the mistakes we ourselves made as Mums and Dads are grateful that our children turned out so wonderfully well despite our mistakes!

When we think of God however, we realise that he is the one who really does have power. And there are times when believing in that power will help us through dif icult situations.

It’s a fascinating story, the story of the three young men in the iery furnace. You can read it in Daniel chapter 3. It’s intrigued me since I was a small boy – how they could walk through the flames without being burned.

We know of course that an angel walked with them – we believe it was God himself who was there.

The story tells me 1) God is all-powerful. 2) we should make God the most important thing in life. 3) we should still love him even if we ‘walk through the ire’, as it were. Christians will often testify to walking a dif icult road, and while the dif iculty doesn’t always decrease, God’s presence is always felt somehow. These are the times when God walks with us through the dif icult times rather than rescues us. This is what the men said in the story: Even if he doesn’t save us, he is still God and we still love and worship him.

That’s faith. May we too have faith. Faith to believe in the power of God to help us and save us, and also faith to trust him in the midst of dif iculties. Sometimes the greater faith, the most valuable faith, is seen when we trust God to do what is best for us when the way ahead is unclear.

When you feel weakest, dangers surround, Subtle temptations, troubles abound, Nothing seems hopeful, nothing seems glad, All is despairing, everything sad:

If all were easy, if all were bright, Where would the cross be, and where the ight?

But in the hardness, God gives to you Chances of proving that you are true.

Refrain: Keep on believing, Jesus is near; Keep on believing, there’s nothing to fear; Keep on believing, this is the way; Faith in the night as well as the day.

God is your wisdom, God is your might, God’s ever near you, guiding aright; He understands you, knows all you need; Trusting in him you’ll surely succeed.

God bless you everyone. Have a good day in his presence.

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H

ello everyone from Majors Antony & Fiona.

After a couple of weeks holiday with either family visiting us, or us visiting them, we're back.

It’s always strange returning to an empty house, driving onto the front and saying, 'Well it's still here!' (As if there was any possibility it wouldn't be!) The kettle goes on and then you go round the house opening the doors to various rooms which had been closed for a few days. The house had been still and settled, no movement, no breeze; and so windows are opened: 'Let's just get some fresh air in here.' And immediately there's a waft of air, a blind sways, and the room seems to open up and feel 'lived in' again.

We'd been visiting our mothers near Blackpool which is often called 'Breezy Blackpool' or, as the famous poem Albert and the Lion puts it, '...noted for fresh air and fun.' Well Guisborough could similarly be nominated for such a reputation, the wind is hardly ever still here! Sometimes we might wish for a less breezy day, but what a stuffy place it would be without the fresh air.

It must have been a breezy evening when a local religious teacher asked to see Jesus and ask a few questions because as the conversation went on, as they were talking about religious experience, Jesus commented on the wind that was blowing and used it to try to explain that the Spirit of God can't be contained or restricted, that the Spirit 'blows wherever it pleases.' There's a sound - and no doubt the evidence of feeling and seeing its effects - but he, the Spirit, moves in his own ways.

I've heard spiritual experience described as a person allowing the Spirit to come into the heart, as a breeze comes in through a newly-opened window. When God's Spirit comes he brings a freshness, a sense of new life, a 'reawakening'. Sometimes life becomes stale or stuffy but the Spirit of God brings joy and; sometimes life is frantic but the Spirit brings a sense of calm - perhaps like a cool breeze.

The hymn-writer prays: Breathe through the heats of our desire thy coolness and thy balm...

That's something of the gracious work of God the Holy Spirit: in response to faith and prayer, to bring a renewal of our own spirit, a reviving, a refreshing.

Open the window today and allow his Spirit to gently move in your heart.

Dear Father God, Another week begins and I look at what might lie ahead - I have plans but I know there will be the unexpected things.

I have hopes but sometimes there are fears too.

Help me this week to know something of the moving of your Spirit in my heart, bringing your life into mine, your power into my weakness, your joy into everything I do and experience.

Above all, may your Spirit bring me closer to Jesus, whom to know is life eternal. Amen.

God bless you all, We're always here if you need us.

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24 August 2020

25 August 2020

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ood morning everyone. We hope you are well :)

'Home is where the heart is'; that's what they say anyway.

Home could be where you actually live, it could be your childhood home, the place your family comes from. Home is wherever you feel safe, surrounded by familiar people, things, sights and sounds.

Whenever we travel 'home' to where our mothers live there are two signs that we are nearly there and our boys have looked for them ever since they were small: irstly a thatched cottage with a thatched 'witch' sitting on the roof, and then not too long after that, the sight of Blackpool Tower in the distance across the ields and trees. When we lived in Newcastle it was the sight of the Angel of the North coming into view that told us we were nearly home. And now, living in Guisborough, it's the sight of Roseberry Topping, a very distinctively-shaped hill that can be seen far in the distance and which signals that there are just a few miles to go before we arrive.

I suppose you could say that home is not the house you live in, it's everything associated with it. It's the people above all else. Our home, family and friends, is our safety, our security - our refuge indeed.

The Bible talks about a refuge - that place of safety and security; and when I was looking for an image to illustrate the verse 'God is our refuge and strength' there were pictures of mountains and castles and lighthouses which just didn't convey to me the feeling of 'home'. Then I saw the picture of a sofa with the verse above it. Even the word 'sofa' conjures up images of rest, of relaxing with a coffee, of coming 'home' and being safe. That's the image!

But notice that the verse doesn't speak of a place. It's not a castle nor even a house with a sofa that is our refuge, it's a person: God himself is our refuge and strength. More speci ically, to literally put a face on him: Jesus is our refuge.

It's when we 'come home' to him that we ind 'our place', our safety from the world's burdens. Another lovely verse says, 'You are my hiding place...' (Psalm 37) What a lovely thought: that in the midst of the life we lead with countless joys and very often, great dif iculties and crises - we can run to the refuge, the hiding place, that is Jesus himself.

God indeed IS our refuge and strength - a very present help in times of trouble. Come home to him; come out of the storms and ind in him your hiding place.

Lord Jesus, there is no better feeling than to be welcome at home, to feel secure and loved, surrounded by people who know me and love me. I thank you for my home - not just this house where I live, but my community of friends, the familiarity of my town.

Lord, I know that you offer this in a more profound way for you are my 'home', my hiding place. You yourself are all I need to know peace and a place to be.

Today Lord I want to feel at home in you, to know your love and to feel your presence surrounding me.

I know that nothing can separate me from your love, I know that I can never escape from your presence, and so I accept your invitation, your call, to be at home in you.

Here I ind my refuge, here I ind I belong.

Thank you Lord. Amen.

Wherever you are today, we pray you feel 'at home' and blessed. God bless you.

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26 August 2020

A

midweek greeting to you all from Majors Antony & Fiona :)

Well, what a kerfuffle there's been this week! Over the months we've had protests and demonstrations, riots and toppledstatues but this week the voice of the British people has been heard over the issue of a song!

Should the BBC include Rule Britannia in future editions of The Last Night of the Proms? There have been influential voices that have said No, it should not be included because, they think, it has racist and colonial overtones. In response to that the British people have voiced their displeasure at any thought of a ban; it's our song, we love our country, we are patriots. And now it seems the song has been saved and will one day be sung with even more gusto as British people voice their sense of national pride once more.

How interesting it all has been. I never actually watch The Last Night of the Proms, but events like that where people gather together show how powerful a shared song can be. I guess it's the same at a football match where the Liverpool supporters will sing You'll Never Walk Alone, or when Salvation Army people from around the 132 countries where we preach the Gospel will sing our Founder's song: O Boundless salvation, deep ocean of love, O fulness of mercy Christ brought from above; The whole world redeeming, so rich and so free, Now flowing for all men, come, roll over me!

(If I were to be mischievous I might comment that if anyone were to suggest banning THAT song because it referred to 'men' and not 'people' you'd get a similar reaction from Salvationists that the BBC has received!)

The truth is there is great power in song. Songs will unite, they will inspire and encourage. They can soothe and express our deepest feelings; they can communicate love and even protest. You cannot stop a song that powerfully speaks to a community; and that's why songs of praise and worship are even more powerful. They don't just express the beliefs and prayers of Christian people, they actually have a spiritual power, an ability to be a means of grace, a way for God himself to influence the human heart and mind.

Of course, for other reasons - good reasons - we are not now allowed to sing, and that's one of the causes of us not meeting together at the moment; but as the hymn says, 'the voice of praise is never silent' because Christians everywhere recognise that 'The Lord inhabits the praises of his people.' (Psalm 22 v 3).

God is still being praised! Our songs are never silent and can never be silenced! Even in countries where for ideological reasons Christians are banned from worshipping Jesus, songs still rise from the hearts of the faithful. We too have the freedom to lift our hearts in songs of praise and prayer. Nothing can stop those melodies reaching the heart of God and so today, wherever you sing 'psalms, hymns and spiritual songs', even if it's just in your heart, may Jesus Christ be praised and your soul encouraged.

Wonderful, wonderful Jesus, In the heart He implanteth a song: A song of deliverance, of courage, of strength, In the heart He implanteth a song.

God bless you today, and keep singing! We're here if you need us.

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27 August 2020

H

ello everybody, we hope you are well.

Today I thought I'd continue the musical theme remember yesterday we thought about making music in our hearts to the Lord.

I listen to quite a lot of music on Youtube. I have to confess that it's mostly familiar music, music I've liked over the years, whether it be Salvation Army music, pop music from the 70s and 80s, or some of the classical pieces that I really like. It's not often, I have to confess, that I listen to new music.

There are people on Youtube who make what is called 'Reaction Videos'. Simply, they play a song they've never heard before and as it plays in one corner of the screen they react to it and critique it. Quite often someone has written-in and suggested a song and the critic will say, 'I've never heard this song before, it's a new one on me.'

Apart from the enjoyment of the song they are reacting too, I like to watch these videos because not only is it interesting to hear someone's irst-time assessment of music I like, it's quite amusing sometimes to watch their amazement. I was watching a young man of 22 yesterday reacting to a song by Queen. He thought it was brilliant; he loved the harmonies, the voice, the ener y of the song and then said, 'It sounds so modern, it could have been released recently but it's 45 years old!'

Well that made me laugh because it made me feel old! I was listening to that song 45 years ago!! And here was a young man, younger than my youngest son, discovering a song, enjoying a song that is to this generation positively ancient! To him it was a new song and it excited him.

The Psalm writer encourages us to 'sing a new song' and some take that literally to mean that we should just sing new hymns and songs in church, but it actually reflects more of the experience of the Youtube critic.

However old or new a song is, enjoy it, experience it, discover something new even in the old ways of faith.

There was something about that young man listening to an old rock song that reminded me of a new convert to the faith; he was excited by something that he had never known before, even though others had known it for years.

Christian worship is the same; you might know a hymn, a prayer or a Bible passage from days gone by, but suddenly it seems new. It becomes fresh and your mind and your heart is excited by this new experience.

Today, may there be a 'new song' - a renewal of joy and wonder in the things around you that bring you nearer to God. Here's an old Charles Wesley hymn that speaks of a new experience: Let earth and heaven agree, No other name is given Angels and men be joined, by which we can salvation have; To celebrate with me But Jesus came the world to save. the Saviour of mankind: To adore the all-atoning Lamb, His name the sinner hears, And bless the sound of Jesus' name.

And is from sin set free; 'Tis music in his ears, Jesus, transporting sound, 'Tis life and victory!

The joy of earth and Heaven; New songs do now his lips employ, No other help is found, And dances his glad heart with joy.

We pray that you have a lovely day today, God bless you.

 

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28 August 2020

H

ello everyone :) Hope you're having a good day.

I think that many of you will know that Joan Welburn, our well-loved and respected piano player went to Heaven this week. Her Christian faith was immensely strong and I believe enhanced her musical talent in worship. We will miss her for the music, of course, but more than that we will miss her just for being Joan.

A number of months ago now Joan came up with a phrase to describe our church - a God-Place. I put those words into a 'word cloud' with other descriptive words to show visually what we are in Guisborough Salvation Army - a place where God is at the centre of everything, and can be experienced.

On Sunday we will consider how 'every place is hallowed ground'. So here's a question: where is your 'God-Place'?

Where is that go-to space or time when you ind him?

It doesn't have to be a physical place of course, just a moment in time where you commune with him.

Here's a lovely song that you can use as a helpful prayer enabling you to ind that quiet space, a 'God-Place'.

'Mid all the traf ic of the ways,

A little place of mystic grace,

Turmoils without, within,

Of self and sin swept bare,

Make in my heart a quiet place

Where I may look into Thy face

And come and dwell therein:

And talk with Thee in prayer.

A little shrine of quietness

Come, occupy my silent place,

All sacred to Thyself,

And make Thy dwelling there!

Where Thou shalt all my soul possess

More grace is wrought in quietness

And I may ind myself:

Than any is aware.

God bless you all.

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M

orning all! Welcome to the weekend :)

A very unusual thing happened to us the other week: we were given the opportunity of a free gift. Now most of us are just given a gift; even when it's expected, we just receive it. This was different, we had to agree; and we could have turned it down.

Fiona and I got new phones. We weren't bothered about better, more expensive (why anyway?) or flashy; we just wanted a phone. The young woman in the phone shop looked at ones within our range and said, 'Oh here's one that comes with a free gift.' Oh that's nice, I thought, perhaps a phone case or something. Then she pointed at the notice on the wall - the free gift was either a laptop or a 43" telly!!

I was actually speechless for a few seconds. And I almost felt cheeky or a bit greedy when I eventually said yes I'd have the telly. What a truly unexpected thing to happen. 'Ah, but Major', you might say, 'I bet there's a catch. The phone is more expensive, the cost is greater.' Well you might think that, but when it was all worked out and she applied two discounts, not only have we got a 43" HD Smart TV, our phones are cheaper than ever!

Now, I'm not boasting, because this was a gift not something I've achieved, but it only happened because I said yes. I could have chosen another phone and rejected the free gift - and to be honest, that thought did cross my mind. I nearly missed out, and I wondered how many others have missed out because they said no.

I wonder that about the Gospel too. We talk about faith and love here and now, but what of eternal things, of Heaven? The Bible tells us that eternal life is the gift of God. It's far more than we could expect or deserve, and we are actually earning our way to the opposite for 'the wages of sin is death' (Romans 6 v 23), but God says I can give you a gift instead: eternal life in Jesus. That means 'life in all its fulness' here today ( John 10 v 10) and then life with Christ forevermore. Why would you choose not to?

Jesus offers love and joy and peace that are far more than we could ever create or ind for ourselves; he loves us with an 'everlasting love' that can only come from him. The Bible is clear about this gift - there are no hidden extras, no small print; accepting the gift is our choice and all we need to do is believe in him, trust him, turn away from our previous 'contract' as it were, our old life, and accept the gift that Jesus died to provide.

The gift of a telly is trivial, inconsequential - but I'm pleased I said yes. The gift of eternal life in Jesus is the best gift I ever accepted - and millions would say the same. It's his gift of grace; will you accept it today?

Many are the things I cannot understand,

When I came to Jesus with my sin and shame

All above me mystery I see;

and to him confessed my deepest need,

But the gift most wonderful from God's own hand

When by faith I trusted fully in his name,

surely is his gift of grace to me!

God's rich grace was granted me indeed.

Refrain: Higher than the stars that reach eternity,

Passing understanding is his boundless love,

Broader than the boundaries of endless space,

More than I can ever comprehend,

Is the boundless love of God that pardoned me;

Jesus, in his mercy, left his throne above,

O the wonder of his grace!

All to be my Saviour and my friend.

Have a great weekend everyone, and we'll see you tomorrow for Together you.

in Worship. God bless

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29 August 2020

G

ood morning!

Well there's a rst: a sunny Bank Holiday - we hope you have a good last day of August.

This is a week of rsts.

Tomorrow is the rst of September and this week sees the children and teenagers back in school. Some children will go for the rst time, some will 'go up' to the senior school.

But how di erent it's all going to be for them! Masks in some circumstances, distancing, smaller groups, staggered playtimes and a real rst that I read yesterday: no gossiping at the school gates (not my words, that's what I read!).

I used to love the rst September week back at school. I remember having a new blazer (mine was exactly the same green as Laurence Jackson here in Guisborough) and it always had sleeves that were too long! There was a new class room to explore, new exercise books and pencil case full of new pens, pencils and those plastic set squares that you never used except to draw a straight line!

We pray for our young people this week in a very strange world; they are often more resilient than we imagine and they will adapt but these last few months need to be left behind and progress made in their education.

Yesterday I created a new window display for the hall that features Bible verses about children and childhood. The Bible speaks of childhood as being an example to follow when thinking of faith; we are to become like them if we want to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. In other words have open minds and hearts, be willing to explore and be 'excited' by new experiences. We are to be trusting and teachable, humble and blameless.

I sometimes think of childhood and the simple, innocent pleasures, the interests we had in collecting, exploring, sharing and discovering - simpler days for us all. Of course that's impossible and we thank God for the experiences, freedoms and joys of being adults. But is there not a sense, sometimes, that we might like to somehow go back and have those fresh childlike qualities? There are things we accumulate regrets and mistakes, traits of behaviour and attitudes that we wish we could leave behind? Paul tells us that for those who are believers in Christ, it's a like being 'a new creature', like we've started again. That sounds good.

God said to the people of Israel - and of course he says it to us 'I am doing a new thing.' Think to yourself, what new thing could God do for me this week, even today?

Father, I thank you for this new day, this new week. I am thankful for the many blessings of the past week but help me now to look forward to all this week o ers.

We pray today for the children and teenagers who will be preparing to return to school. In this di cult time may they still ourish and grow. We pray too for the teachers and teachers’ assistants as they lead and guide and educate our children.

Lord, you promise to do a new thing in our lives. I would claim that for myself too; help me to let go of past hurts and regrets, of things that keep me looking back, and help me look forward with a child’s excitement, a sense of faith and an eagerness to look at the new things that you provide. Let this new life, this gift from you, bring me close to you.

Thank you Lord for every opportunity and the grace that you give to enjoy life in all its fulness.

I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen Enjoy this lovely day everyone, God bless you.

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31 August 2020

Biography

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riginally from Blackpool and Bristol, Majors Antony and Fiona Mugford, with 32 years experience as Salvation Army O cers, have served mainly as Corps O cers (church leaders), but also have experience of working in homeless services and in elderly care. Fiona is also a quali ed sta nurse working in hospice care in Newcastle and Stockton, and last year Antony completed a Masters Degree in Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies.

They have three adult sons and have been Corps O cers here in Guisborough since July 2014.

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