Reflection on 2 Corinthians 8.7-15If the willingness is there the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.Our desire is not for others to be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there should be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need.In the decades after the resurrection of Jesus there was a devastating famine, causing terrible suffering, particularly in Jerusalem. Paul is writing to the various churches to ask for their support for their starving fellow Christians.Whereas the Corinthians were slow to respond, when the much poorer Christians in Macedonia heard what was happening in Jerusalem they gave all they could, actually contributing more than the relatively wealthy Corinthians.It is a fact that people who have very little themselves are often the most generous givers. We cannot claim to be ignorant of the many desperately needy in our own society and elsewhere. As Paul says, we are not called to impoverish ourselves through our giving, but we are called to give what we can to help those less fortunate than ourselves. The fact that we cannot answer every call for help is not a reason to do nothing.‘Freely you have received, freely give’ ( Matt.10.8)Revd Rosemary
Scripture & Reflection: Sunday 23rd June and for the week ahead:ScriptureOn that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ 36 And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. 37 A great gale arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ 39 He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. 40 He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’ 41 And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’ (Mark 4 35-41)ReflectionEach of us face different storms in our lives. Some of us, like Mark’s original audience, might face persecution for our faith; for others, it’s a storm of illness, of loss, of trauma, of seperation or of loneliness. No-one is immune to these storms and, just like the disciples, we find ourselves floundering and crying out for help. Just like the disciples, we fear the storm and want it to be calmed - but help is there in the form of God’s saving love.To accept that help we first need to get into the boat with Jesus, we then need faith in God to calm the storm. But more than that, we need to trust that God will do the right thing - trusting Him to be the anchor in the storm, trusting Him to still the waters in our stormy life.Trust is faith in action - we cannot change the course of the storms of life, but what we can do is trust in the Lord to be there alongside us and to show His love for us by guiding us through the choppy seas.Lyn Hayes ALM
ScriptureSo now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord your God and all his decrees that I am commanding you today, for your own well-being. (Deuteronomy 10.12 - 13)Reflection‘Well being’ is a buzz word today - there are well-being hubs in schools; we are told that exercise is good for our physical well being; that mindfulness is good for our mental well-being. Well-being simply means an ‘ultimately good quality of life’.So by taking a walk in the country or practising clearing our mind of distractions with meditation and stillness we can obtain an ultimately good quality of life? Our bible reading today tells us that there is another dimension involved - a spiritual dimension.We are born with inherent spirituality. It is up to us to tap into it. Here is a modern translation of the verse above - 1. Have a healthy respect for a higher power than yourself2. Cultivate an attitude of love, forgiveness and acceptance of all that is.3. Go out of your way to help other people, even if it involves sacrifice.Do all this ‘ for your own well-being’. In tapping into the innate spiritual relationship between us and God, and being a blessing to others, we invoke an ‘ultimately good quality of life’ for ourselves!Vicki Young
