Sunday services E

from Together in Worship May 2023

Prologue

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

These services are all added to the Guisborough Salvation Army Church Youtube channel and are all still available on: https://youtube.com/channel/UCvu76j4HqGWe9B2cDXK6tvA

Good morning everyone!

Welcome to May, and to what started out this morning as a beautiful sunny Bank Holiday morning! When I got up, made a coﬀee and tried to persuade the cat to go out into the garden, the sun was bright, the skies were clear, and I thought, "today is going to be a lovely day. I opened the blinds in the living room, and the Eastern sunrise just ﬁlled the room. I felt like the woman I read about once, who went into her garden, sat down on her seat, and noticing the huge morning sun shining right above her (how could she not notice?), said, "I have the whole sun all to myself!"

Now there's an interesting concept! To feel that the sun is shining just for you! There it is, in full view. It's bright, it's warm, there's nobody else there with you, and it really does feel like you're the only one. You couldn't possibly receive any more light or heat than you have, and were 10 other people to stand with you, that heat and light would not be lessened by being 'shared out'. For each of us there is full sunshineit's as if we're the only one for whom the sun is shining.

I've written a lot about being part of a fellowship, enjoying being together, being in a family. There's nothing like a church fellowship. Over this weekend we celebrated a wonderful anniversary weekend with Majors David and Katerina Lennox. Memories were indeed shared, quite rightly, especially personal memories; but the weekend wasn't one of glorifying the past, wallowing in days gone by. There were no rose-tinted spectacles and no harking back to the glory days. Saints and forbears, old friends and muchmissed comrades were included in conversation, but the weekend was very much about today's fellowship and the prospect of tomorrow. It was about what we're experiencing now, worship, witness and service. It made you glad to be part of something welcoming, aﬃrming and growing.

But there were times when we all felt individually that the sun was shining 'just for me'. There were moments of reﬂection as music or song became very personal. Into minds and hearts the Holy Spirit came personally and personal responses were made.

Oh, fellowship is wonderful. The church is family, 'the believers are together', but faith isn't just joining in with what everyone else is doing, faith is deeply personal without ever being private. God comes to us directly to the heart, not as an echo from someone else.

And here's a lovely thing: St Augustine wrote a prayer saying "God, you care for every one of us as if you cared for him only, and so for all as if they were but one!"

How marvellous is that, that God cares for each of us like that: that really is like having the sun to ourselves!

David, as a young man, wrote, 'The Lord is my light and my salvation.' (Psalm 27 v 1)

That's faith, that's personal experience; it's a conﬁdence in God that comes from standing in that place, even when alone, and realising that we have all of God when God has all of us.

Have a lovely day everyone, God bless you �

Hello everybody from Major Antony and Major Fiona. There are phenomena today, familiar practices that a few years ago we had never heard of; here's one: 'binge-watching'.

Have you heard of it? Have you done it? It's the practice, made possible by Netﬂix and Amazon Prime, of watching a TV serial in one marathon session. We 'oldies' will remember the old way of watching where we'd settle down for half an hour or an hour and watch the latest episode of a favourite drama or comedy. We'd be disappointed when it ended, or excited by a clifanger, and we'd discuss it with family, or chat about it at work the next day: "Did you watch XYZ last night? I can't wait for next Tuesday to see what happens..."

Well now you don't have to. You can watch 8 hour long episodes in one day if you want, and if you have time!

Some things are still released weekly. I've watched a recent Star Trek spin-oﬀ, and waited every Friday for the latest episode; but when I wanted to discuss it with one of my sons, the response was, "Don't tell me! I'm waiting until I can watch the whole series all at once!"

Binge-watching. Not wanting to wait for the weekly update, but wanting to see the whole thing in one go. I confess to you now that I have done it. It's thrilling, exciting. It's addictive; once you start you can't stop! You have to complete the story. You have to know the end.

A man was reading the Bible. An ordinary bloke, no great education behind him, but he loved to read that Bible. He was a caretaker in a Bible college, and on this day a student saw him reading the Book of Revelation as he sat on a bench. "Do you understand that?" "Yes, I do," said the caretaker. Knowing, as we all do, that Revelation is a very diﬃcult and controversial book, the Bible student challenged him: "Ok, what does it mean?"

The caretaker looked the student in the eye and replied "It means God's going to win in the end!"

Great answer!

The caretaker had 'binge read' the Bible. It's 66 books by different human writers using different styles; each book is like a different episode with different and sometimes seemingly unrelated content. But there's one author, and one overarching story, and if you know that story as the caretaker did, you know that God wins!

Nothing is a surprise to God, nothing is a clifanger for the Christian who knows his or her Bible.

God says, "I declare the end from the beginning, and ancient times from what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and all My good pleasure I will accomplish." (Isaiah 46 v 10)

We don't need to wait until the next chapter is revealed, wondering if God will 'do something.' He's already doing it, and the final chapter, the last episode is there on Heaven's Netflix! Oh yes, he's in control. We're on that winning side. Look at the overall picture, the season finale is all there in script form. God's got it all ready. Enjoy the whole series now!

God bless you �

Good morning everybody �

Welcome to a bright new - and sunny - day!

Are you bright and bushy tailed? Did you jump out of bed, ready to face the world? Or did you stumble into the kitchen, eyes half closed, searching for the coﬀee in the hope it'll wake you up? Some of us sleep well and wake refreshed, others ﬁnd sleep elusive and it makes the morning hard to face.

I had already settled on the theme for this morning when I noticed a Facebook friend post that he was wide awake at 1am. Others had replied: "Awake at 3, reading at 4, etc..."

No, we don't all sleep. What's the cause? Well, knowing some people, it can't be a bad conscience! Maybe just a busy mind, perhaps a touch of anxiety, something medical. It could be that the room is too warm, the bed's a bit uncomfortable. There might be no detectable reason at all. Sleep just evades us. It's frustrating.

What do you do? Toss and turn? Get up and go downstairs to make a drink? Read?

I remember a few years ago I had a period of sleepless nights, I binge watched a series of Game of Thrones! Hardly conducive to going back to sleep!

Oh how we long for a good night's sleep.

The Bible is full of sleep - and no, that has nothing to do with the length of the sermon! Sleep is linked to rest, peace, safety and fearlessness.

Psalm 127 v 2 tells us that God "gives to his beloved sleep." Yes, we can rest in the knowledge that God loves us.

There's something spiritual about sleep that comes to the trusting heart. It always amuses me when I read about the disciples in the little ﬁshing boat in the storm on the Sea of Galilee. They are frantically struggling with the sail, bailing out the boat, straining on the rudder, but Jesus is fast asleep on a cushion! The sleep of a man who knows the danger is not, shall we say, 'terminal'.

Speaking of which, reassuringly the Bible uses the word 'sleep' when it refers to death. I know that's not a popular subject, but there are many verses that speak about God's people 'falling asleep'. There's a real conﬁrmation of 'resting' in that phrase; might I even suggest 'waiting'.

The resurrection of Jesus is described as the ﬁrst of 'those who have fallen asleep.' The resurrection day to come will be a morning when we will arise, awaken to new life given by Christ. And then that wonderful expectation, that great hope of his coming again when on that day, writes Paul:

"Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed." (1 Corinthians 15 v 51)

Yes, there will be a generation soon where, mysteriously they will not die, not sleep, but like all those who have fallen asleep, they will be changed at the resurrection.

Natural sleep is a wonderful thing. For some it comes easy; for others it's ﬁtful or short. But for us all, the morning comes, a new day dawns. It's similar in life and death. Sleep will come, restful sleep 'in the arms of Jesus'. Oh but how we look beyond that to when we awake on that new Day, when 'the morning breaks, eternal, bright and fair...'!

God bless you �

Morning all!

We wake up to a momentous day; a day of decision, of choosing. Yes, it's local election day. Many of us will go to our local school, community centre, church hall and place a cross next to the candidate of our choice.

It's an important decision to make, there are local issues at stake, things that money should be spent on, projects to be started, improvements made. Local elections will decide local priorities. Our chosen councillors will be responsible for all manner of issues that matter to us. Our choice decides in some measure how local resources are used.

If we don't like the previous councillors we can vote in new ones. If we are satisﬁed with the decisions they've made, we vote to retain them. The good thing about democracy is that we all have a choice, the right to exercise that choice, and at a later date modify that choice.

What's important to you? That might inﬂuence the choice. You start with an issue, a concern, and you choose the person who promises a result that accords with your wants.

Or it may be that your choice is inﬂuenced by your liking for the candidate: a good man, a hard-working woman, a local person who knows the area well. Alternatively, you might simply vote for a particular party, whatever the issue, whoever the candidate, because that's 'your' party; you've always voted that way.

I think for most of us, our vote will always be cast in the hope that the person voted-in will do something, achieve something; that your choice will 'bear fruit.'

It's easy to vote for someone else to do the work; but what happens when the table is turned? We sometimes say, in the realms of faith, that we have chosen God, that we have made him our choice. In actual fact, Jesus says, "You did not choose me but I chose you." (John 15 v 16)

Well, ﬁrst of all, what an honour! That he would want to choose me, regardless of what I think or have as an ability. God sees in us all something that makes us worth choosing! We've all got qualities.

Secondly, what a challenge! If he's chosen us, it's because he wants us to do something, be something, contribute something. In fact, his next statement is "...and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last."

That's why he chose us; he wants us to go and make a diﬀerence, to be loving, to be compassionate, to be welcoming, to speak about him. Bearing fruit implies growth, increase: a harvest indeed. Through us in the church reaching out to others, he wants to be able to choose other people to be his followers. Literally, he wants to put a cross - THE cross - next to their name too.

When you cast your vote today, it'll be for the person you think is worthy. When Jesus chose you, cast his vote for you, he saw worth, potential, value in you. We hope that our newly elected councillors will bear fruit in our communities, so pray for them. In the same way, pray that you can bear fruit just where you are, and honour God's choice of you.

God bless you �

Hello everyone!

Friday once more. We really hope you've had a great week, and you'll have a wonderful weekend! � ⛪ ⚜ �

Have you got all you need? No doubt the high street or the supermarket, or even the out-of-town retail park has been able to provide what you want for the weekend. If one shop didn't have it, maybe it was available somewhere else.

The other day, I needed cash. Remember that? It folds and goes in a wallet, rather than being a beep when you press a card on a little screen. Well, as many of us know, banks are getting fewer, and with the closure of a branch comes the removal of a cash machine. In Guisborough there's one bank on the high street, so off I went. "We are unable to dispense cash at this time" it said on the screen. Oh well, it's off to the Post Office; it's across the road, and further down. No electronic message this time. Instead there was a bit of cardboard sellotaped across the screen, proclaiming, "Out of Order!"

No need to shout, I thought. It's a good job Morrisons has one of those little cash machines in the corner. Let's hope it hasn't run out of money, seeing that it's doing the work of three! Yes, I got my money...

And then, having done all that walking it suddenly dawned on me: the bank where ﬁrst I went, ﬁnding the machine not working, also had an inside machine. Why didn't I go in? Why didn't I simply step across the threshold and get what cash I wanted from within the bank? The money was there, available, but I never thought.

I had an advantage over a workman who also was unable to get money from the post oﬃce; he was a visitor. He maybe didn't know he could go to Morrisons. But perhaps he asked! If he was sensible enough, he might have. Where at ﬁrst there was a 'No', in actual fact, there was a 'Yes'. If he had asked, he would have received the answer: go to Morrisons.

If I had gone through the door of the bank (no knocking required) I'd have found a cash machine without having to wander the high street for ten minutes. As it was, having done my seeking, and going to Morrisons, thankfully I found the machine to give me what I needed.

Sometimes we know what we need but we don't think - as I didn't think. Do we pray first, or do we rely on intuition first and set off in a wrong direction? Maybe that visiting workman didn't ask, and so gave up on finding a cash machine that worked, and it might be in prayer that we try once, don't receive an answer from God, and so stop praying.

Blessings, answers, await those who take Jesus' advice:

"Ask and it will be given to you; Seek and you will ﬁnd; Knock and the door will be opened to you." (Matthew 7 v 7)

God's answers to prayer, his provision, grace and blessing are all there. He is 'able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,' (Ephesians 3 v 20) but the truth is that we have to look in the right place, be in the right place, ask persistently and humbly, even make some eﬀort of faith before that answer can be given.

He is willing to give what he knows is good, but our faith, obedience and openness to him must come ﬁrst. Then, it will be given, we will receive and that door will be opened.

God bless you �

Good morning, and welcome to Song Saturday on this most auspicious and historic day.

It’s the day of the Coronation of their Majesties, King Charles III and Queen Camilla. I really didn’t have to think too hard before I decided what hymn we would use tomorrow, both in the Together in Worship video, and in the gathered worship in the Citadel here in Guisborough. What else could I choose except Crown Him with Many Crowns?

King Charles is a devout man, a Christian man who knows the Lord. He is ‘higher’ than most of us, as far as his Churchmanship is concerned: he adores the liturgy and ritual of the Church. He’s most deﬁnitely an Anglican but he appreciates the traditions of other churches, including Catholicism and the Orthodox Church. It is ﬁtting then that our hymn today was written by an Anglican together with a Catholic who had converted from the Church of England. It’s an ecumenical project! And here we are in The Salvation Army singing this hymn.

The inspiration for the ﬁrst line is directly from Scripture: the description of the returning Christ, coming again to our world. Matthew Bridges wrote the Latin title of his hymn, ‘In Capite Ejus, Diademata Multa’ which comes from the Book of Revelation, ‘On his head were many crowns.’ (Revelation 19 v 12)

What are these many crowns that Jesus wears? It’s all highly symbolic, and I believe that when Jesus returns, visibly, personally and in glory, his reign will be over all the earth, his many crowns representing all the nations, all the peoples who will bow before his majesty in worship.

What a day that will be, when the world is put right by its true King, when peace ﬁnally comes, when justice and salvation become the characteristic of every nation. As another song says, ‘All will be well in his Kingdom of peace.'

In the meantime, we wait. The Kingdom is within us, he reigns in our heart and life, but what a wonderful day it will be when we see him come again as King. Even so, come Lord Jesus!

Crown him with many crowns, The Lamb upon his throne; Hark! how the heavenly anthem drowns

All music but its own; Awake, my soul, and sing

Of him who died for thee, And hail him as thy matchless King Through all eternity.

2. Crown him the Lord of life, Who triumphed o'er the grave, And rose victorious in the strife

For those he came to save; His glories now we sing Who died, and rose on high, Who died eternal life to bring, And lives, that death may die.

God bless you �

3. Crown him the Lord of peace, Whose power a sceptre sways

From pole to pole, that wars may cease And all be prayer and praise; His reign shall know no end, And round his pierced feet Fair ﬂowers of Paradise extend Their fragrance ever sweet.

4. Crown him the Lord of love; Behold his hands and side.

Those wounds, yet visible above, In beauty gloriﬁed;

All hail, redeemer, hail!

For thou hast died for me; Thy praise and glory shall not fail Throughout eternity.

Good morning everyone!

We start a new week after a spectacular coronation weekend; wasn't it amazing? I'm sure we could discuss for hours the diﬀerent elements of the day, from marching soldiers, to glittering crowns, from celebrities and aristocrats to mischievous Prince Louis, from cheering crowds to stunning music.

The King and Queen deserve today as a day of rest. I hope they get it.

Much has been said about the ceremony itself, especially the words of the liturgy - the prayers, promises and declarations, but one phrase has been commented on time and time again. At the beginning of the service a choirboy welcomed the King 'in the name of the King of kings" to the Abbey, and the King replied, "In his name, and after his example, I come not to be served, but to serve."

It's that latter phrase, originally spoken by Jesus, that has really been highlighted by everyone. Service. I don't know how other countries 'do things' but service at local level in the form of charities, community groups, churches and schools is the backbone, the heart of our society and way of life. The King has spent his life as Prince of Wales, and now as Monarch, focusing on service and encouraging others to do the same.

Today is dubbed The Big Help Out. "In tribute to His Majesty The King's public service, this day is about encouraging people to try volunteering for themselves and join the work being undertaken to support their local areas." I'm sure it will be a big success, not because it's new, but because it's familiar. People will join in with so much that already happens.

I look at the hours of service and volunteering that happens at The Salvation Army in Guisborough. We simply would not exist without volunteers, we would not function without those whose commitment to Christ is expressed in many ways. We are so grateful for the selﬂess service of so many.

On Sundays we have musicians and singers who give their time and talents in worship. We have volunteer teachers for the children, tea-makers and welcomers. Through the week there are volunteers who keep our shop going - sorting clothes and serving customers. Our shop not only brings income, but also serves the community with low-cost clothing. We have a small food bank, and it's not unusual to arrive at the hall to ﬁnd a volunteer sorting food, or for another to arrive having collected bags from the supermarket. Back to tea-makers: there are those who give their time serving tea at Golden Years and at the toddler groups. This is all valuable service, time given freely and very often seen as service to God as well as serving others.

Why not come and join in?

At the heart of our Royal Family is a desire to serve, and encourage others to do the same.

Christian commitment - for it was Jesus who inspired this with his words, "For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10 v 45) - calls us to give freely of ourselves.

Back in action tomorrow, we also try to serve in his name, and pray that God will bless all the groups and individuals who will be inspired and encouraged by the words of the King, and the King of kings.

God bless you �

Awelcome to you all!

Well, last evening felt a little like the end of Christmas, because we took our bunting down. Yes, we had put some union jack bunting down our driveway and in our living room window, and it did feel like the end of something special.

I saw a YouTube video last night as well, seemingly placed to remind us forever, as the weekend celebrations came to an end, of those little ﬂags that celebrated our country and our King. Someone had walked around our high street and photographed shops and cafes with bunting stretched across the window images of the King superimposed on the red, white and blue crosses of our ﬂag.

To me, these little tokens of national pride are cheerful little celebrations, ﬂuttering and swaying, sometimes twisting, occasionally falling to one side; never a forceful statement of nationalism or a provocation to others, but always strings of plastic 'hoorays' expressing our enjoyment of a great occasion.

We put our bunting up for so many reasons - a bike race, a spring sale in a shop, a market. There's something so cheerful about it all. I have noted some comments made where bunting has not been put up, perhaps by a council or local authority. I had to chuckle to myself when I read about people not being allowed to put it up by certain official rules demanding applications in triplicate made weeks in advance. What, for 8 feet of triangle plastic flags? I was stunned to read a notification that said that if you put bunting out, the bin lorry wouldn't come down your street to empty the bins!

Of course, most streets, most houses indeed, were not festooned with bunting - though I did hear that the Yorkshire Trading Company and the Post Oﬃce ran out of it! I guess those who did put some up are beginning to take it down, although the bloke across the street hasn't yet... We just wanted to join in, to see something cheerful and enjoy the brief colourful moment on a dull weekend that needed some brightness, and in a world that seems to have lost all its joy! Those little ﬂags represented our delight in a right royal occasion. We Brits do like a Monarch to reign over us!

You might remember the old Sunday School chorus. There is (or 'joy is') a ﬂag ﬂying high from the castle of my heart, When the King is in residence there.

Yes, his banner is flying; as the Bible says, "His banner over me is love." (Song of Solomon 2 v 4) We cheerfully celebrate his love, we put the flags out, 'let them fly in the sky', we want the neighbours, the street, the whole world to know that Jesus is our King.

There's the joy, there's the determination to be part of the celebration, perhaps even a bit of deﬁance! I'm going to put my bunting out even if nobody else does! � � � � � � � � � � � �

Faith should be a joyful celebration, a happy joining-in with others. It should make others smile, lift the spirits and appreciate that we have a heavenly King who is worthy of our praise. Let the ﬂag ﬂy in your heart, even on a rainy day!

God bless you �

Amid-week welcome to all, and what a beautiful morning!

That's what I thought yesterday too. I went to Gracelands Care Home to conduct a monthly service, and although it's a 15 minute walk away from home I decided that I needed the exercise, and it was a beautiful morning, so oﬀ I trotted. It was so beautiful that I had to take oﬀ my jacket and walk in shirt sleeves, and even then as I walked uphill, I was getting hotter. Should I have put on some sunscreen?

Well, the service done, and a visit to a lady confined to bed finished, I went to leave but was confronted with a downpour! Where did that come from? It was bouncing off the pavement. No way could I walk in that!

So there was nothing for it but to sit and wait.

It rained on Coronation Day, and I believe the King referred to the rain as 'a blessing.' Hmmm, I wonder what the many hundreds of military personnel thought, standing outside... Mind you, many of them have encountered far worse than a fall of rain.

A blessing?

Well, yes I suppose it was because the delay it caused for me meant that I met and chatted with someone who recognised me from years ago. What were the odds on that? He doesn't even live here but was visiting with work. As I sat in the home we spoke together, possibly never meeting again. My delay also meant that when I visited someone later than expected, another person was there too, and we were able to meet and talk.

So yes, indirectly the rain (and my determination to not get wet) opened up opportunities that would not have happened. Amazing really.

A Jewish prayer asks that that God will “give dew and rain for a blessing on the face of the earth." That of course is an important prayer in dry parts of the world! In Britain it's not one of our most urgent and needed prayers! But there's still a blessing attached!

God says, "I will send down showers in season, there will be showers of blessings." (Ezekiel 34 v 26) And now you are all going to start singing, 'Showers of blessing, Showers of blessing we need, Mercy drops round us are falling, But for the showers we plead'!

It's true, those promised showers, originally a blessing on the land of Israel, are for us all, whether literal water from the sky or metaphorical blessings of provision, opportunity, success and growth. What blessings will God 'shower' on you, your family, our church? His promise is for abundance, an overﬂow of blessing. Let's claim it, stand in it! Walk in it!

Let's ask for an outpouring today in our life and in our world. May God bless us as we honour him.

God bless you �

Good morning everyone, welcome to this daily thought.

It's my way of communicating to a wider audience than attends worship; these are thoughts that come to me and I share them in the hope they are helpful and encouraging. I want you to know my words.

Of course there are other words, thoughts and opinions that are not useful here, perhaps not relevant, or are shared with only certain people. You're the same; you wouldn't want personal thoughts or private conversations aired with everyone.

I am quite worried about a certain practice that doesn't honour people's privacy, and we saw it on at least two occasions at the King's Coronation. It's the practice of bringing in lip readers to scan and home in on private conversations, and then to reveal to the world what they think the famous person said. They supposedly saw what the Duke of Sussex said in a quiet conversation, and they also saw, apparently, what the King said to the Queen whilst they were delayed from leaving the coach outside the Abbey.

Oh it might be interesting to those who want to tittle-tattle, but what if the lip reader got it wrong? Of course, we don't know if the lip reader has made a mistake. But it concerns me that in reporting a phrase or two out of context, they not only reveal private thoughts but could also get people into trouble or cause embarrassment. Maybe even a security breach.

I can only imagine from now on that famous people, even gathering for a family event, are going to be extremely conscious that lip readers may report every private word spoken, perhaps even choosing only to report certain things they consider to be newsworthy.

Would we be happy with that? Would we want a suspicious, satirical press to report our private thoughts? No, simply because a reporter isn't a friend, a relative, someone who knows or cares for us. There's a lovely Psalm that is popular simply because it reveals to us a God who cares for us deeply, wants to guide and protect us, loves us profoundly. He can do more than lip read, he knows our thoughts, our feelings, our nature character and personality. He knows us to the very core of our being. "...you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely." (Psalms 139 v 4)

How lovely and reassuring it is to know that God is intimately acquainted with us, each one. Another part of the Psalm says, "How precious to me are your thoughts, God!" These are the thoughts God has about us: his cares, concerns, plans. He knows us, understands us, and loves us deeply.

Yes, he doesn't need a lip reader, and he certainly doesn't broadcast what you may or may not have said! But he understands, he feels what we feel, and isn't far oﬀ, watching; he's right with us, loving us and oﬀering his blessing.

That's worth talking about!

God bless you �

Welcome to Fog gy Friday! Every day is diﬀerent isn't it!

If you don't live in Guisborough I can tell you that we have an old historic high street called Westgate. At one end is the parish church, then comes the market cross, then the main high street with shops, leading to a residential area, which leads eventually out towards Middlesbrough. Not so unusual really. The Salvation Army hall is the last place of worship as you leave town; or it's the ﬁrst as you arrive. In the middle, you'll ﬁnd a United Reformed Church, and further down and opposite, a Methodist Church. At the far end, up a hill and next to the ruins of what was once a Westminster Abbey-sized Medieval Priory is the Church of England. There's also a Christian Fellowship in a college, an evangelical church behind a shop front on another street, and a lovely modern Catholic Church on the edge of town. Guisborough, we've got you covered! Numerous places where Christians meet, worship, and welcome people.

I was walking down Westgate yesterday, and there I met Alan, our War Cry seller. People were virtually queuing up to buy a paper. He's a Christian presence in the town every Thursday. I walked past the Methodist Church and it was open for coﬀee, and they had their food bank. Very often I'll hear the bells of the parish church, chiming the quarter hours and the hours, tolling for a funeral, pealing for a wedding. I passed the URC and noticed their door was open with an invitation to come in and say a prayer. The market cross, an old meeting place, is the place where our band plays on occasion, inviting people to sing and pray. And then, of course our own hall, often ﬁlled with the sounds of children playing, and our own joyful singing and music on Sundays. People know we're all there. People come in. They rely on us, they appreciate us. And the thought occurred to me, what would people do if every Church closed the door, if every Christian who played their part in all the activities of the Church decided not to do it?

Here in Guisborough there's a fair bit of talk about shops that have closed down. One shop has been empty since I arrived! A pub has closed down. People complain, but they can go elsewhere. If every Church were to close, I think there would be a real sense of loss. There's a Church 'flavour' in our town. Sadly, our congregations are not as big as we'd like, but still a good number come, and new people are joining us! Weekday activities are well appreciated too. I think the churches are like salt in the community. Not there for themselves but part of the whole. We are different to any other organisation. We don't duplicate other groups, we have a distinct message, a spiritual experience to offer that is found literally nowhere else. Indeed, it's that spiritual emphasis that motivates what we do, inspires what we offer.

Yes, saltiness is a good way of describing us. Without that spiritual 'salt' the life of the town would be bland, less satisfying. In our town, country, and even the world, the witness of the church seeks to enhance, to preserve. Perhaps even, like salt, to create thirst. Did you know that pubs like to sell salted nuts and crisps so the customers will get thirsty and buy more beer! That's a motivation for the Church - be more 'salty' so people will get spiritually thirsty and come for refreshment. That reminds me of a song:

Revive thy work, O Lord, create soul-thirst for thee; and hungering for the Bread of Life

O may our spirits be.

Yes, Jesus said "You are the salt of the earth." (Matthew 5 v 13). If we can be that ﬂavouring in our world, if we can inﬂuence our community, if we can make people thirsty, as it were, for God, then we will indeed be 'the salt of the earth.' God bless you �

Welcome to Song Saturday!

If you’re new here, every Saturday I take a hymn or a song that will be featured in tomorrow’s Together in Worship video on YouTube – and at the Citadel – and focus on it brieﬂy. Today, a simple chorus that I can remember singing when I was 10 or 11! It’s the very popular ‘Silently now I wait for thee’ written by a lady called Clara Scott.

Do you know, it’s amazing how many of the songs in the Salvation Army song book are American! However, when you consider that William Booth was heavily inﬂuenced, not by English Methodism but by the American revivalists of his day, it’s quite understandable: People like Moody and Sankey, Finney and others came over to Britain in the nineteenth century, bringing their message of evangelical revivalism and their songs with them, and they transformed the Victorian church services in much the same way that contemporary worship has done since the 1970s.

Clara Scott lived in Chicago in the 1850s, graduated from the Musical Institute there, eventually becoming a composer of instrumental music, a hymnwriter, and publisher. She was the ﬁrst woman to publish a volume of anthems, ‘The Royal Anthem Book’ in 1882. In 1897 she was tragically killed in a carriage accident, and her funeral was well-attended by music writers, teachers, professors, publishers. She wrote music for her hymns, including this one we’re featuring today. It’s based on Psalm 119 v 18:

“Open my eyes that I may see wondrous things from your law.”

For Clara, music was useful in spreading the Gospel, in bringing people closer to Jesus. She wanted this song to encourage people to slow down, to take time, to read the Bible and to listen to God’s voice. It was good advice that has been taken by generations of people, and this song is still popular in the USA even today.

Oddly, in our Salvation Army circles we only have the refrain, which we will use tomorrow,: but Clara wrote four verses which I reprint here with the suggestion that they be used as a prayer for today. We sit quietly, we read the Scripture carefully, and in prayer God does indeed illumine our hearts and minds with his truth, those wondrous things from his law.

Open my eyes, that I may see Glimpses of truth Thou hast for me; Place in my hands the wonderful key That shall unclasp and set me free.

Chorus:

Silently now I wait for Thee, Ready my God, Thy will to see, Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine!

We’ll see you tomorrow for Together in Worship God bless you �

2 Open my ears, that I may hear Voices of truth Thou sendest clear; And while the wave notes fall on my ear, Everything false will disappear.

3 Open my mind, that I may read More of Thy love in word and deed; What shall I fear while yet Thou dost lead? Only for light from Thee I plead.

4 Open my mouth, and let me bear, Gladly the warm truth everywhere; Open my heart and let me prepare Love with Thy children thus to share.

Good morning everybody, welcome to the start of a new week.

It's going to be a good week!

I have joined a new church. I've been going for a few weeks now and I was a bit nervous at ﬁrst, walking through the door in my own, but the leader beckoned me in and came to say hello. The other people there were friendly and I felt welcome. The following week I wasn't nervous at all. I joined in with what they were doing, I spoke to the people nearest to me, I even sat in a diﬀerent chair and didn't upset anyone because I'd sat in their chair!

I've been going a few weeks now and I feel the beneﬁt, and I've decided I'm committing myself to it for the future. I feel encouraged by people with the same aim. There are posters with encouraging sayings written on them, and when the leader speaks to the group it's helpful and, there's that word again: encouraging.

I called it a church, because that word - church - simply means a gathering. It's actually a slimming club! When you get weighed, the response is always encouraging - 2 pounds off ? Great! 1 pound off ? Well done! A pound on? Don't worry, next week can be different, don't give up!

I think there's power in an encouraging word because we need it! Have you been encouraged recently? I'm encouraged when I meet at The Salvation Army for worship or the numerous activities. There are those who speak to me about their experience of God, others ask me how I am or tell me how someone else has helped them.

I'm encouraged when people ask a question about the faith we profess or tell me about a prayer or an answer to prayer. I'm encouraged when people are excited about God or just pleased to be at the Army. It's so important that we encourage one another in the little steps of faith that we take, that we rejoice in our successes and empathise about diﬃculties - we've all been there. We encourage one another by understanding our diﬀerences, being patient with failure, inspired by the success.

We encourage each other by praying for one another.

St Paul wrote, 'Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.' (1 Thessalonians 5 v 11).

Even that instruction was an encouraging word, he knew they were already encouraging each other. A slimming club is one thing, but a fellowship of the followers of Jesus is so much more! We ﬁnd faith, fellowship and a family to belong to - the family of God. I can think of nothing else that could be more encouraging.

God bless you �

Hello everyone, a new day dawns.

I woke up early this morning - too early - with the same thoughts racing around my mind that prevented me from going to sleep quickly last night.

We can stop our physical movements at will: standing still, sitting down, lying down whenever we choose. Oh, that we could just put our mind out of action at will in a similar way!

Well, I'm up, so it's time to think, time to share. But do you know, I don't want to. My mind is so busy that actually I would rather just let it all subside and go away! Do you do that? You just want to sit with your coﬀee, listen to the clock ticking, stare at the tree over the road, and the cloudless sky above, and think of nothing. Or at least try to! It's diﬃcult isn't it? Thoughts gatecrash your silence, interrupt the calm, come in uninvited to that moment that you were enjoying...

I once read about an older couple who sat in silence every evening. He sat in his chair, she sat in hers. Nothing much was said, and an observer might suggest that they'd stopped communicating, stopped relating. But the truth was that it was simply their contentment, their comfortable sense of 'being together.' Sometimes words are unnecessary, thoughts are unnecessary perhaps, and there is something totally reassuring and lovely in moments of just being.

Goodness knows a day can be hectic enough, and even inactivity can still mean a busy mind! Oh to just 'be'.

"Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46 v 10).

Yes, I realise that this is a 'go to' verse when we talk about prayer or worship. We hear God softly speaking. It's actually God's command to a noisy world that won't be quiet, won't listen to him, won't even recognise his existence let alone his blessings.

Be quiet, let go, be still, and simply be aware, feel, know that I am God.

And sometimes there's more healing, more peace in a moment with nothing said than in our eﬀorts to formulate words, ﬁll our minds with thoughts - even prayerful thoughts.

Jesus spoke about those who thought their prayers would be heard simply because they used many words. There's a time for prayers that are worded, that are spoken; even prayers that are carefully composed and written. We should do more of it! But shouldn't there be times when nothing is said?

A priest walked through his church and noticed a man sitting staring at a cruciﬁx.

Nothing unusual, he thought.

He returned a short time later, the man was still there. And again, a while after, the priest noticed the man was still there. He went and sat with him, and asked if he was OK, and was he saying his prayers?

The man nodded towards the cruciﬁx. He said "I just look at him, and he looks at me." That silence, that being still and knowing, was all he needed. Sometimes that's all we need too.

May we also know that he is God in those quiet moments. God bless you �

Good morning everyone, welcome to Wednesday.

How's your week going?

We live in a lovely part of the country. Our town is surrounded by lovely countryside, the coast isn't far away. Our town has much to commend it, but there's some unrest at the moment, we have to be honest. The last few days have seen some late night vandalism and burglaries and understandably the shop and small business owners are angry and fearful.

I was talking to a shop owner yesterday who had been a victim of vandalism and theft and already she was stressed and worried about what might happen again. People are expressing their feelings on social media and there's a real 'something must be done' attitude. It's understandable, and we feel with them the sense of frustration. We, as God's people, will pray for them of course because we believe that is eﬀective.

This week in Guisborough is a tiny example of a nationwide situation. People are very concerned at rising crime and so many other problems. What a changed world we live in! It's never been perfect, there have always been issues. Has Covid, the war in Ukraine, and many other factors created this very confused and confusing world? It's certainly changed a lot.

I have to say that part of the problem - a big part - is spiritual. It cannot be a coincidence that the diﬃculties in our country have arisen, been magniﬁed, at a time when there is a serious decline of faith. There are many complicated reasons for crime increasing and morality changing. It's too simplistic to point to one cause or another, but surely at the heart of it all is the evident decline in Christian faith. The Bible says that 'Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.' (Proverbs 14 v 34) We cannot say that only Christians are righteous - we would never claim that; indeed, we can't! But the principle is there, that faith, holiness, changes lives and behaviour. I read about a revival in the late 1870s in Gateshead involving the beginnings of The Salvation Army there, where so many men were converted the head of the police commented that the cells were unoccupied and the charge sheet empty!

Today might be the day to start praying for a Christian revival in our town and country. It's surely beyond the normal work and programme of even the most eﬀective church; revival isn't manufactured or created by special events. It's the work of God. It's been described as 'A community saturated with God'. But it starts with us, with God's people.

He says,

If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

(2 Chronicles 7 v 14)

If the church is changed, the nation will change too, by the grace and power of God. Perhaps now, as people begin to question, to wonder, even to despair at the way things are, if God's people are praying, if they - you and me - are truly living and demonstrating 'Faith in a Changed World', then that world, our country, our town - even our high street! - will change.

Today, pray for the place where you live, pray for the church, and pray that God will renew us and heal our land.

God bless you �

Good morning to you all, welcome to a very special Thursday!

What's special about it? Well here in the UK it passes by with hardly any attention paid to it at all. It's a shame because if we were in parts of Europe we'd be having a holiday today! Just think, another Bank Holiday - yay! In some countries there are parades, sporting events, cultural activities, lots of food, and no work. The churches have special services. I've never understood why we don't have it here.

What is this neglected day of fun and feasting? It's Ascension Day.

I can only think we neglect it here because it's always a Thursday - and that's a diﬃcult day to stop working. Monday is easier, Thursday, a bit tricky. Nevertheless, "Happy Ascension Day."

I can guarantee that if I took a clipboard onto the High Street today to ask Joe Public what they thought about Ascension Day I'd be met with some blank looks. We know of course that it's 40 days from Easter Sunday, and we commemorate the ascension of Jesus to Heaven. It's the day he was taken from the sight of the amazed disciples, promising he would one day return. In the meantime, we are to be his witnesses.

What does it mean? It means, very simply, that Jesus is for everyone.

In our ﬁrst Salvation Army appointment there was a lovely lady called Anna. She had joined the Army in later life after her husband died. She told me that together they used to walk past The Salvation Army hall, seeing the lights on, hearing the music and the singing, but always thinking it was for members only and that they could not go in. How sad! And then one day she was invited in. What joy! She went eagerly, and soon was a committed member.

When Jesus was here, the disciples were privileged men. Jesus was with them; he taught them, he showed his miracles. Even the crowds were able to see him, and children were brought for him to bless them.

I wish that His hands had been placed on my head, That His arm had been thrown around me; And that I might have seen His kind look when He said, "Let the little ones come unto Me."

Ascension Day has changed everything. Because Jesus is both risen and ascended, he isn't just a ﬁgure in history for the chosen few behind locked doors or 'bound to distant years in Palestine'. He's not for members only. Because he is ascended to the Father, from there he comes to us all. To all who believe, to us, to the whoever.

Remember these words that we often say so easily:

"God loved the world this way: He gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life." (Jesus, in John 3 v 16)

That's true for us, not just because Jesus came to Israel, but because he has returned to the Father so he can come to the heart of all who believe. He said, "Lo, I am with you always." That's the ascended Jesus present with us forever.

Never feel Jesus is far away. He's with you.

On this Ascension Day remember: The Lord is near, have no anxiety. God bless you today �

Hello everyone, welcome to Friday.

The weekend is nearly upon us! How's your week been? Eventful? Quiet? Do you feel loved? Do you know you're loved? "That's an odd question Major." Well yes, but I ask it for a reason.

When Fiona and I were on the management team of the homeless centre in Sunderland, she dealt mainly with the elderly residents, caring for their needs; and I was often the duty oﬃcer, interviewing new people applying to stay, or with those who lived there. It could be challenging, rewarding, frustrating, and often sad. Some had made a wreck of their lives, others were victims of things out of their control. And I would sometimes look at them, think of my own boys in our ﬂat upstairs, aged roughly 4, 8 and 10 and think that these troubled men, homeless with addictions, mental health issues, family breakdown, poverty, criminality or just sad events, were once little boys like them. How it had all gone wrong.

Yesterday I saw a video of a drug addict on the streets of Philadelphia. He was what, 30? He was writhing around, trying to sit up let alone stand. He couldn't control his actions. It was pitiful. Do you know what impressed me? People were commenting, and many many of them expressed great sympathy, compassion and concern. He was someone's baby, wrote a woman. He's someone's son. God love him. We will never know where it all went wrong, but I wondered whether there was anyone who loved him 'back home '; as mother, a brother, even an old school friend.

I don't think he's alone, and neither do I think 'his type' is the only kind of person in need of love. The rich, the successful also need to know they are loved for themselves.

A rich young man came to Jesus. Look at the painting. It's the artist's imagination of course, but there's an arrogance in his face. He was looking for something else, peace that money, learning and reputation can't buy. I wonder if he knew he was loved. The hard thing about the story is that his wealth prevented him from giving love to others. But look at the reaction of Jesus. There was no condemnation of the rich youth:

'Jesus looked at him and loved him.' (Mark 10 v 21)

I wonder whether people today - from the bottom rungs of society, right through to the top, whether criminal or law-abiding, victims or successful - know they are loved. Would it make a diﬀerence, would it have changed the direction of their life had they known from an early age that they were deeply loved by God? I'm sure of it.

And for us too, there are times when we need to stop, pause and realise again: Jesus loves me. Knowing that can make a world of diﬀerence to our feelings, our decisions, indeed even our future.

Today, know that you are loved. May God bless you �

It’s Song Saturday!

Welcome to another brief look at a hymn or song that will be featured both here at the Citadel in Guisborough (all welcome!) or online in Together in Worship. We learn so much from what we sing – especially the older songs that seem to cram so much, dare I say it: 'theology?’ into the verses. This week a great old hymn with a majestic tune by Handel. We’re going to enjoy Rejoice, the Lord is King, Your Lord and King Adore.

The words were written by our old favourite Charles Wesley in the days when it was diﬃcult to be a Methodist! Yes, there was a time when they were persecuted, attacked, abused, and generally ill-treated. Wesley wrote this hymn to encourage those beleaguered Methodists to be joyful, hopeful people, and to sing well. Get good words and a great tune, and that’s it, you’ll get people humming, whistling, and singing all day in ﬁelds, factories and at the sink! Wesley got people singing not just about Jesus but singing some really deep truths: theology indeed!

Just look at these words; they focus on what Jesus has done. This is no simple message about love or faith, this is focusing on all Jesus has done with sin, with death, with our foes – whatever they might be –and of course, our sins. The hymn reminds us that Jesus is victorious over it all; indeed, he reigns over it all. And one day he will return to take us up. This is our hope that Jesus is coming for the church, for his people on that wonderful day.

There was a pop song, oh so many years ago: do you remember it? Reasons to Be Cheerful by Ian Drury and the Blockheads? I was 16! My goodness, that’s a long time ago. Can you think of reasons to be cheerful, to rejoice? Well, knowing Jesus is the best reason: then followed by all the beneﬁts of knowing him as Saviour and Lord. St Paul wrote to a small church suﬀering in the Roman persecutions.

“Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again, rejoice!” (Philippians 4 v 4)

Wesley wrote his song to Methodists in hardship. Lift up your heart, lift up your voice, Rejoice! Find something to be joyful about today; praise the Lord whatever happens! God bless you, �

Rejoice, the Lord is King! Your Lord and King adore; Soldiers, give thanks, and sing and triumph evermore:

Lift up your heart, lift up your voice; Rejoice; again I say, rejoice.

2. Jesus the Saviour reigns, The God of truth and love; When he had purged our stains, He took his seat above:

3. His Kingdom cannot fail, He rules o'er earth and Heaven; The keys of death and Hell are to our Jesus given:

4. He sits at God's right hand, Till all his foes submit, And bow to his command and fall beneath his feet:

5. He all his foes shall quell, Shall all our sins destroy, And every bosom swell with pure seraphic joy:

6. Rejoice in glorious hope; Jesus the judge shall come, And take his servants up to their eternal Home:

We soon shall hear the archangel's voice; The trump of God shall sound, rejoice!

Monday morning greeting to you all.

I'm going to be full-on English now and comment on the weather. I've tried to resist, I thought, No! I'm not going to mention the sunshine, the light breeze, the rising temperature after the cool of the morning. No! I'm not going to go down that route. It's too obvious, too predictable, too English; and so, for the beneﬁt of our overseas readers - hello to you all � - I was determined not to talk about weather. Until just now. How can I resist?

Yesterday was glorious, today started with the promise of a beautiful day. If you live in a climate that hardly changes from day to day, you won't understand the British obsession with weather. We pass strangers on the street and the comment is, "Morning, lovely day!" "Yes, it's beautiful..." We'll never see that person again, but we've bonded over the common appreciation of 'a nice day.'

So no, I wasn't going to mention the weather. But now I have. Actually, is it just a British thing? The Bible is FULL of weather!

Noah's ark - a fair bit of weather there. The plagues of Egypt - a hailstorm!

Jonah was in a storm at sea: too much weather there. Same with Jesus and the disciples on the boat. Jesus tells us the obvious truth that "God causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5 v 44)

I always think it funny when people look up at a cloudless sky and misquote Jesus, and say, "What a lovely day; well the sun shines on the righteous." Wouldn't that be fun! To see the holy people walking about in full sunshine whilst the rest of us have our own personal raincloud...

The British are indeed obsessed with the weather, and it's simply because it's so unpredictable, and because it aﬀects our lives so much. From what coat to wear, to whether an activity can proceed, even sometimes to whether you're allowed to water your garden, we are aﬀected. Whether the sun shines, the rain falls or the wind blows, we are helpless, unable to control the weather.

It's a linguistic oddity that the original languages of the Bible use the same word for wind and spirit. A windy day and the Holy Spirit is the same word. I've always thought that was strange! Of course, you can usually tell which meaning to use. But maybe there's a sign there. Just as wind - the weather indeedis everywhere, just as the wind 'brings' the rain or blows the clouds away to reveal the sun so things grow, can't we say that God's Spirit, creating, giving life, is also everywhere, unpredictable, uncontrollable? Unlike moving air, of course, the Holy Spirit is personal, intelligent. He is wise, he speaks. He is , as the creed says, 'The Lord, the Giver of Life.'

When the Spirit of God 'moves', influences our own lives, he is like the breath of God within us - lifegiving, purifying, calming; but he does it his way, in his time. Jesus used the weather-related play on words to say that "The wind blows wherever it pleases." (John 3 v 8) He's referring to the Holy Spirit who comes to us in many ways. He can come gently, he can influence us powerfully, but when he influences our life it's always to change us in his way.

Just as we can't control the wind or direct the weather, God's 'breath of life' is not at our command, but when he comes we shouldn't avoid him, but open our lives to his inﬂuence. That's how life comes to us, whether as the breath of God or the mighty rushing wind. Welcome him today. God bless you �

Hello everyone, we hope your week started well.

Three years ago we were all getting fed up, anxious, stressed and confused after nearly two months of lockdown. It's all we thought about, talked about. Our behaviour changed of course, and I've written many times of my mornings where I would sit in the stillness with a coﬀee and just think and then write. Nowadays, these are the moments before the traﬃc starts, before people start walking around; before, as the saying goes, 'the streets get aired.' Mind you, in those days, it was quiet all day!

Anyway, it's from the lockdown-era that I really noticed the birdsong. Yes, I've always heard it, as we all have, but I ﬁnd that I now listen to it. I sometimes go into the garden and try to see the bird that's singing. In recent days the loudest song has been a single chaﬃnch. My goodness he's loud! And he's only small. He's obviously got something to sing about. Today he's gone somewhere else.

Call this a coincidence if you like, but I'd already decided that this morning I would write about doves. Why? Because we're leading up to Pentecost (Whitsun) and a symbol of the Holy Spirit is a dove. You probably recall the account of the baptism of Jesus where '...the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove.' (Luke 3 v 22) I got up this morning and all I could hear was a dove. Speciﬁcally, according to the app on my phone, it's the collared dove. Not the white variety, but a lovely pinkish grey bird with a black half collar. It calls out "goo-GOO-goo". And that's what it was doing this morning; conﬁrmation that I should mention a dove today.

We don't confuse the dove that alighted on Jesus with the dove that Noah sent, which returned with the olive branch. It's not the dove of peace we're thinking about.

Why did the Spirit appear upon Jesus as a dove? Perhaps Jesus' own words explain it. He was sending his disciples out to minister to the towns and villages, talking about Jesus. He told them, "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." (Matthew 10 v 16) That's a lot of animal metaphors; David Attenborough would be pleased! Innocence is the word; it means purity, unmixed motives, simplicity, blamelessness. The Spirit came to Jesus when he was made Christ at his baptism to reveal Jesus as the pure, sinless one. We also read in the Bible that doves were used as sacriﬁces too. So the Holy Spirit was signifying that Jesus was the sacriﬁce acceptable to God.

In the church we often pray that the Spirit would come to us to make us like Jesus - pure, blameless, simple in faith. We want to present ourselves as a sacriﬁce to God in response to the sacriﬁce of Jesus on the cross. The dove is the image that we hold in our minds, the symbol of how we become like Jesus.

A prayer we may sing says I am praying, blessèd Saviour, To be more and more like thee; I am praying that thy Spirit like a dove may rest on me.

I am praying to be humbled by the power of grace divine; To be clothed upon with meekness and to have no will but thine.

Refrain:

Thou who knowest all my weakness, Thou who knowest all my care, While I plead each precious promise, Hear, O hear, and answer prayer!

Well, the collared dove has gone silent now; maybe he's moved on to sing to someone else. The Spirit remains, gently, simply pointing to Jesus. God bless you �

What a beautiful morning!

Hello everybody, we hope you are well, and that you enjoy whatever you do today. Wherever you go, whoever you're with, whatever you wear, whenever you say anything, I hope it's private, personal, not published; after all, who would want that?

Aren't you glad you're not a celebrity? Oh, some people dream of being rich and famous, rich and powerful, rich and...well, rich mainly. But what a burden, a nuisance it must be to have everything about you photographed, written about, spoken about. I don't think I'd stand it. Every day there are photos of the royal family, actors, singers, politicians, with comments about what they are wearing, what they're doing and saying. Can you imagine going on a night out and the next day your photo is in the news with some journalist informing everyone that you wore that frock at a diﬀerent restaurant last month? Or you get annoyed at something and there it is in the Daily Mail, a frowny picture of you glaring at your Mrs? That's what people have to endure.

We've been hearing a lot about TV presenters, royals and others where instead of reporting simple facts, they write paragraphs ﬁlled with opinion, speculation, rumour and conjecture. "A source has revealed..." (They are never named) "A friend has intimated..." (Some friend!) "It seems that..." (It's just speculation) Where do they get these 'facts' from? What they want, of course, is a reaction. Some people respond by not responding; it's the 'never complain, never explain' strategy employed by the majority of the Royal Family for example: don't add fuel, don't give them ammunition. Many a reputation has been sullied by reports from people 'in the know' - gossip, slander, unfair criticism. And that's the point really, sometimes what we read is written so we think we know who this pop star, footballer, actor, politician is really like; but why do we want to know? Why does the media want to judge a man's character?

Motive is everything. When King David wrote his deeply personal prayer in Psalm 139, he wasn't worried that God saw everything, knew everything. There was nothing he wanted to keep private from the Divine all-seeing Eye. He starts with, "O Lord, You have searched me and known me!" This is not just that God knows about David, he knows him personally, lovingly, supportively. The whole Psalm is a recognition that the Creator God is personal. He understands, he's there in darkness as well as light. He knows intimate thoughts as well as long journeys. He was there holding us at the moment of conception and will be there through every day that is yet to be fashioned. Are we frightened, disturbed, intimidated by this God who follows our every move, listens to our every word? No, never.

Because unlike the investigative journalist, gossip columnist or biased reporter, God our Father, Jesus our friend and brother, and the Spirit our Counsellor and Comforter actually love us, and regard us with total understanding. Albert Orsborn, our poet General from generations ago, wrote All is known to thee, my Master, All is known, and that is why I can work and wait the verdict of thy kind but searching eye. Isn't that a reassuring thought? That God, in his fullness of love and mercy, knows us, values us as his precious creation - his child indeed - in such a way that his knowledge of us is intended to be an encouragement, an expression of profound love.

The proof of David's assurance of this is that as he starts the Psalm by acknowledging God has already searched him, he ends with a prayer that we can all pray today:

"Search me, O God, and know my heart, try me and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (v 23, 24) God bless you �

Hello everybody, a new day has dawned, light has replaced the darkness. It's going to be a good day! �

My neighbour started it! It was he who began to festoon his garage wall with a string of lights that glow every evening! They glow brightly as the sun goes down, and they shine until the energy they 'soaked up' during the day has been expended: they are solar powered. I liked that idea, and at the moment I have half a dozen globes on sticks lined up down our fence. They collect energy all day, and shine in the darkness. I also have lights that are on a timer. They are battery operated and come on and go oﬀ 6 hours later. They don't care about the sun, they glow artiﬁcially with battery power that I have to put in.

I also have a delightful little fountain that ﬂoats in the water in our birdbath. I was watching it yesterday, spraying a lovely display of water over a foot high. It too is solar powered, but there's a diﬀerence: it only works when the sunlight shines directly into the fountain itself. It doesn't store the energy, it merely uses it whilst it's there. It's almost sad to watch it in the shade trying it's best to spray the water but failing. The water hardly moves. But when there's full sun, the water cascades exuberantly upwards with such vigour that it even splashes over the side of the birdbath. Then, as the sun goes down, the strength of the jets decreases and all is still once more.

When the Bible tells us that we should walk in the light, it does so because it knows - God knows - that we are not like a string of lights that store up the sun's rays and emit light until we're exhausted. It knows that we're not like lights with a timer and batteries that come on automatically using manufactured energy.

It knows we're like a fountain that works beautifully as the sun shines, and only as the sun shines. When we walk in the light that's when we become active in our faith, we become 'alive' as it were.

Of course, the fountain I have can't 'walk' in the light; it can't follow the sun around the garden - though if I could be bothered I'd move it around! But if I could ﬁnd a place in my garden that got full sun from dawn to dusk, that fountain would never stop!

But unlike that fountain we can indeed follow the light. Through our closeness to Christ the light of the world, by living in his presence through prayer and Bible reading, through an openness and awareness of the Holy Spirit within, we place ourselves in his brightness; and we are alive!

Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life." (John 8 v 12)

Don't try to rely on energy from a previous time, a previous faith experience. Neither rely on the energy supplied by someone else or copied from another Christian. Instead place yourself in that divine light that is Jesus himself. Let his light, the power of the Spirit, give you the energy to shine for him, to be active for him.

Be alive in Christ as he shines directly upon you.

'Arise, shine, for your light has come.' (Isaiah 60 v 1)

God bless you �

Hello everybody, welcome to Friday!

For some it's been a long week, and the soon-to-arrive weekend is exactly what you need. Talking about what you need, isn't it wonderful that almost anything you need, want or desire is available at a few taps on a screen? Amazon, eBay, supermarket deliveries, Just Eat for your Chinese and Indian takeaway; literally everything you want can be delivered next day. It's a real help sometimes, though many of us still like the satisfaction of browsing in a shop and coming home with our exciting purchases! Scrolling through internet pages isn't as much fun, and you can't see or touch ﬁrst. Sometimes a delivery might come and it's not exactly what you thought. Ah well...

There's also a side eﬀect of browsing. Have you had this? You type in something - say 'shirt', and for days afterwards you get adverts for shirts. I could understand if your original search was on Amazon and it was Amazon that kept reminding you, but it's everywhere you visit! I've been to the opticians recently, looked online once for frames, and now I keep getting adverts! Everywhere! It's the same with holidays and with, well anything you've looked up.

And then there's stuﬀ you haven't asked for, but somehow your proﬁle gets linked to products 'they' think you'd want, like or need. I hesitate to write this, but when I turned 60, my age must have clicked somewhere automatically, and for a while I was being shown adverts for Tena for Men!! (And the answer is no, if you're asking!)

But here's the scary thing: Fiona visited someone the other day and returned home with a tomato seedling � in a small pot. I mentioned it to my neighbour, asking him how to care for it, and the very next day an article appeared, unbidden: 'How to water your tomato plant.' Was someone listening? Is my garden bugged? How did 'they' know I needed advice? Or maybe it's just a coincidence.

It's interesting to think that our wants are known and recorded and used for marketing purposes. I don't imagine for a second a real person is watching and listening; and we certainly don't believe anything sinister is going on. But we do believe that there is one who does know what we need. If God our Father has searched us and known us, if he loves us, has a plan and a purpose for us, isn't it easy to believe he knows our needs? Jesus was telling his disciples not to use many words in their prayers - maybe he was saying "Stop trying to persuade God with detailed requests, long-winded prayers that just turn into shopping lists." Instead, says Jesus, "Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him." (Matthew 6 v 8)

Yes, 'Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God,' (Philippians 4 v 6) but do this in the knowledge that he already knows. Pray in faith, pray with expectation; above all pray knowing that the Father has answers already planned. He knows our needs.

The song says, in its old-fashioned language: 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.

Is that not an assuring invitation to pray? He's not collecting data for marketing purposes, he wants to supply all your needs according to his riches in glory (Philippians 4 v 19). He gives out of a loving heart. Ask him, tell him your request and see what he provides. God bless you �

Good morning everyone, welcome to Pentecost weekend, and welcome to this week’s Song Saturday! If you’re new here, each week we consider a song or a hymn from tomorrow’s meeting here at the Citadel, or in the online version in Together in Worship. Well, it is indeed Pentecost and so I’ve chosen a testimony song that speaks about the amazing experience of the Holy Spirit that is oﬀered to all. In fact, there’s not one experience because we all respond diﬀerently to the power of God in our lives; the important thing is that we expect, that we ask, and that we receive the blessing, that ‘baptism’ in the Spirit that is promised to us all.

The song is an American Gospel song written in 1961 with the chorus that sums it all up beautifully: ‘Heaven came down, and glory ﬁlled my soul.’ The lyricist and composer of the song, John Peterson, was an experienced song writer, with 1000 gospel songs under his belt, and 300 cantatas that sold 10 million copies! In 1961 he was leading the singing at a Bible Conference, and he encouraged people to stand and give words of testimony. Well, an elderly gentleman stood up and, with his face glowing, related how he had given his life to Christ. It was as if, he said, “Heaven came down and glory ﬁlled my soul.” What an amazing description of his experience. Peterson wrote it down and a week later used that phrase on which to build a new song, the one we are using tomorrow.

So many people testify to a similar experience; when they meet Jesus for the ﬁrst time, or when they allow the Holy Spirit to ﬁll them, there’s often an overwhelming sense of joy. Indeed, why shouldn’t there be? The promise of the Spirit isn’t for a certain church, a particular type of Christian; his power and the experience of Heaven coming down is for everyone who seeks it. Why would God withhold a blessing?

‘For it is God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shine in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.’ (2 Corinthians 4 v 6)

May we all experience that light, that glory; may we feel Heaven in our hearts! God bless you. �

O what a wonderful, wonderful day, Day I will never forget;

After I'd wandered in darkness away, Jesus my Saviour I met.

O what a tender, compassionate friend, He met the need of my heart; Shadows dispelling, with joy I am telling, He made all the darkness depart!

Heaven came down and glory ﬁlled my soul, When at the cross my Saviour made me whole; My sins were washed away and my night was turned to day,

Heaven came down and glory ﬁlled my soul.

Born of the Spirit with life from above into God's family divine; Justified fully through Calvary's love O what a standing is mine! And the transaction so quickly was made when as a sinner I came, Took of the offer of grace he did proffer he saved me, O praise his dear name.

Now I've a hope that will surely endure after the passing of time; I have a future in heaven for sure, There in those mansions sublime. And it's because of that wonderful day when at the cross I believed;

Riches eternal and blessings supernal From his precious hand I received.

John W Peterson

Good morning everybody, another new day, a new week.

Time is ﬂying!

The other day I discovered a picture of myself that I didn't know existed. I remember the occasion quite well, even though it was 35 years ago. We were cadets at our training college and our cadets' band and singing group were playing in an open garden space, with the training principal, Colonel John Larsson conducting. And someone took photos, and there was me, and there was Fiona, smiling and enjoying the moment.

It was strange. Of course, we've all got photos of ourselves haven't we: from babyhood, the school photo, holiday snaps as kids, wedding photos, nights out, family photos, and nowadays probably too many photos! But seeing this 'new' photo of myself and Fiona was quite a shock!

We all see ourselves gradually changing over the years, and we look back and see that we once had cheekbones! We had diﬀerent-coloured hair, or even just hair! We see someone with a slimmer ﬁgure, a smoother face. You look back and see the fashions of the day, or interesting hairstyles. My, how they looked good then but now we wonder what we were thinking!

It's a common thing to say, that sometimes we look in the mirror now and wonder who that older person is who's staring back at us! We don't fool ourselves, we are perfectly aware of the passing of time and the, shall we say, 'maturing process', but maybe we do retain something of an imagined outward image, a mental picture of ourselves that is slightly younger-looking than reality. Or is that just me? � �

I read a very weird story of a man who is receiving blood from his son because he's trying to stay young. I know; it's quite a shocking thought. It's beyond words really. We might say, Oh I wish it was 1988 again, or I wish I was 23. But really, can't we value what we are now? Is our appearance now, the result of years of experience and growth and change, worth so little that we would want to erase it, hide it? Those laughter lines, those grey hairs, those few extra pounds; are they not put there by life that's been lived?

Ah, but there's something about us that never ages. It may get wiser, it will be cleaner, it will become more sensitive. It's the soul. There are no wrinkles on even an old soul; why? Simply because of this: "He ﬁlls my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle's!" (Psalm 103:5)

Oh yes, a life ﬁlled with the love of God, redeemed by Jesus, given love and joy through the Holy Spirit is always young. Words the Bible uses are 'refreshing', 'renewing', 'restoring', 'reviving'. How wonderful is that! You might see some of those words on the overpriced grease that they tell you will reduce the appearance of aging, but nothing will restore youth and beauty to your soul like the grace of God.

Look also at what our renewed youth is compared to: the eagle! Who of us would not want to be always strong, always alert, always able? The eagle is a symbol of those things, and inwardly, the Psalm says, our soul is given a new strength from God himself. We can endure with hope, we can be content to soar gracefully whilst others ﬂap around! A great verse to claim today, whatever age you've reached, however old you feel today, knowing that you are so beautiful or ruggedly handsome in the eyes of God, is, “they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40 v 31)

Have a great day!

God bless you �

Hello everyone, we hope the week has got oﬀ to a good start.

We've just had our third bank holiday in a month, so for the workers amongst us, unless you were actually working, yesterday was hopefully a relaxing day. It's good to have a pause every now and again - perhaps we should have more bank holidays! If yesterday gave you a much-needed break, I hope today you feel relaxed, ﬁt and well.

I'm not an unhealthy person - well, until now. Recently I've had reason to visit the doctor's surgery for two separate issues, neither is serious and only one needs medication. However, for the ﬁrst time in my life I've joined the repeat prescription brigade! It's all downhill from now on! I've got tablets for one thing and a leaﬂet with gentle exercises to do for the other thing. And I needed my eyes testing because my vision has changed. The optician said the change is "because of your age." Cheek!

I stood in the chemist the other day waiting for them to ﬁnd my medication...And as I waited, I watched the three or four pharmacists and assistants who spend all day with boxes, jars, packets and bottles of pills, capsules creams, liquids, and whatever else gets dispensed. What a sick bunch we all are! But how fortunate, compared to previous generations, that there's so much provision for relief, remedies and restoration of health. Whether it's a temporary need for a painkiller, a course of medication for a longer term condition, or something that will make us more comfortable as we face a serious health issue, we are grateful indeed for everything that can be given to us.

They do say that prevention is better than cure. It's a bit simplistic; oh if everything we 'caught' was easily prevented! But there is some truth in it. Sometimes a healthy mind and attitude can be health-giving. I like this verse from Proverbs - which is a good read; have a ﬂick through the pages for some good wisdom. Anyway, here's the verse:

‘A merry heart does good like medicine.' (Proverbs 17 v 22)

'Merry'. Oh dear, I've met some dear old Salvationist comrades who assumed that merry always equates to 'tipsy' You shouldn't say 'Merry Christmas,' they'd claim, Scrooge-like, 'because we shouldn't encourage people to drink!' What? I think we all know what merry really means, literally glad and cheerful. We don't assume happiness that responds simply to outward circumstances: laughing at a joke, enjoying the sunshine, dancing to music; it's being merry in the heart that's healthy. It's where the joy we feel aﬀects the way we approach life. Be merry and see things diﬀerently. As I have written this, a chorus has come to mind:

I am a new creation

No more in condemnation, Here in the grace of God I stand.

My heart is overﬂowing, My love just keeps on growing, Here in the grace of God I stand.

And I will praise You Lord, Yes, I will praise You Lord, And I will sing of all that You have done.

A joy that knows no limit, A lightness in my spirit, Here in the grace of God I stand.

'A lightness in my spirit'. Yes, that's a merry heart. If we can know that sense of joy, that's the best repeat prescription there is. To quote an old hymn referring to the name of Jesus, it's 'life and health and peace.' May he give you a merry heart today!

God bless you �

Hello everybody, welcome to the last day of May! Seriously?

I'm sitting here with a jacket on because I refuse to turn on the heating; it's cold! It seems to me that the seasons have changed: have we known such a dull, cloudy and wet two months as we've just had? Something has changed alright!

I was chatting yesterday to a Christian friend from another church fellowship, and we were talking about sharing what we believe, explaining the message of the church with everyone. It seems something has changed. It's not so easy anymore (not that talking about faith is always easy); but what has happened is that instead of conversing about beliefs, Bible stories, etc that many people are familiar with, we're ﬁnding that people are not as familiar with Christian beliefs as perhaps they were in previous generations when more children went to Sunday School, or there were more school assemblies with worship in them. The world of Christian culture has changed. Maybe people would know the nativity story, but perhaps they haven't really heard much other than that?

We reflected on how the world itself has changed too. We all know what a huge change Covid brought. Looking back, those months of lockdown when the world went quiet, the months of uncertainty, the impatience, the longing for normality; it changed something that will be analysed and written about potentially for decades. And now we've come out the other side, we've got war in Ukraine, we've got financial problems, moral changes, constant protests and disruption. There's a confusion on every level. When we first went into lockdown and I started writing these daily thoughts to try and encourage others, I really did not anticipate them carrying on so long! We called the monthly compilation 'Faith in a Changed World' because that's what it was: one big change - at the time! Well here we are with so many changes people don't know what's happening to life! Oh, don't we wish things could go back to normal, bearing in mind that the world has always had problems?

Faith in a Changed World'. That implies that we hold onto our faith in God even as the world has changed; but there's another way of looking at it: we have faith in a world that is to come, a world that will be diﬀerent, a world redeemed, set free, healed. Saved! For the Christian that world has already stirred in our heart, we are citizens of the coming kingdom, and John the Apostle was given a glimpse of what was to come:

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth." (Revelation 21 v 1)

Oh, what a prospect! We're not going to speculate on what it looks like, how it will be nor when it will come; but we long for that which is 'new' and we yearn for the day when with our own eyes we will see our living Redeemer (Job 19 v 25-27). The Christian's hope, encouragement and peace today comes from the assured certainty that there's a new world coming. It's in the light of that kingdom that we seek to bring hope today. We do not despair as some might do, we do not grieve as those who have no hope. We don't wonder what this world is coming to, because we have faith in the One who is coming to the world! Our message in this world is that God in Christ is the sure foundation. In a world of confusion, knowing Jesus is the only way to peace.

Let nothing disturb thee, Nothing aﬀright thee; All things are passing, God never changeth!

Patient endurance attaineth to all things; Who God possesseth in nothing is wanting; Alone God suﬃceth. (St Teresa of Avila)

Be assured, there's a changed world coming! In Christ that's a certainty! God bless you �

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Prologue

Good morning everybody �

Morning all!

Why not come and join in?

Awelcome to you all!

A blessing?

It's going to be a good week!

How's your week going?

What does it mean? It means, very simply, that Jesus is for everyone.

It’s Song Saturday!

More articles from this publication:

Prologue

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Prologue

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Together in Worship May 2023