September ServicesPlease click link for poster of September 2024 services(filename Church_Services_September_2024)Click here to view - Old Hills Malvern Diary for a calendar of services looking further ahead.
Vicar’s Pastoral Letter - August 2024 As I write this, the Olympic Games (and afterwards, the Paralympics) will start in Paris. For a change, we are in the same time zone, so no need to set any alarm clocks or stay up too late to watch the sprinting, cycling, swimming or whatever you like to watch and be part of. There will be much to watch and enjoy, even if you are not into sports - or very good at them. Seeing the athletes limbering up for the race of their life can be truly inspirational, even to the couch potato (or couch to 5K wannabe). The abilities of the athletes, their dedication, and their perseverance is always something that I have greatly admired. In many Olympic sports, winning can often come down to one moment. It just takes a single misstep, a single fall, a single miscalculation of judgement and all can be lost. In the diving competition, one bad dive means everything. All that training for four years, all that anticipation, rests on a knife-edge. To give your life to a sport where the difference between success and failure is so slight must require huge amounts of endurance, strength and resilience, as well as an awful lot of mental fitness and an ability to stay focused. This is why I am in awe of all those competing at the Olympics and will be watching, when I can, from my sofa. While the winner of the gold gets all the glory, it is important to remember that the vast majority come away without a medal of any colour. But that does not mean they have lost at all. Getting to the Olympics itself is a huge achievement. When I'm watching the Olympics, I like to see the faces of those runners and sportsmen and women who finish towards the end of the race - quite often they come across the line with a smile on their face, knowing that they have done the best that they can and have competed in something really special. From a church perspective, are we running a Marathon or a Sprint? Are we pole vaulting to oblivion or long jumping into quicksand? Is your Vicar more of a Decathlon person or a Synchronised Swimmer? What sport best describes your church at the moment? I think we are a great relay team. We are still in the race and, so far, we haven't dropped the baton. Maybe the national Church has lost its way around the Marathon course, or cross -country mountain biking, but despite how difficult the race is, our own churches are still in the race. I believe that, and I hope you do so, too. Sure, we could all do with more in the team, and perhaps we could do with pulling together more but we are getting good results: Two weddings at Guarlford in the space of a month Over a dozen baptisms this year alone, including one electing for an in-service baptism A regular pattern of worship - mixing the traditional with the informal A good team of lay ministers and some wise experienced retired clergy to support us And the myriad of volunteers that help set up or close down our churches, make refreshments for fellowship, decorate the churches, ring our bells et etc In mid-July, a gallant band of Powick parishioners took the Church to the Community Fete in Powick. In the rain, they engaged with people - young and old alike. This is the first time in a long time that we have done this - and it mustn't be the last. Our faith and our church need to be visible beacons in our villages, not a museum to the past that opens its doors every so and often. We are also engaging with the Heritage Open Days in September and marking Guarlford Church's 180 years with a number of open events for the village, Once the ramp has been done at Callow End, we will do similar there too. In the Book of Hebrews, it tells us to 'run with perseverance the race that is set before us'(Heb 12:1). As a group of churches, we sure do have our own trials and tribulations to go through in the race that has been set for us. We might not have received a Ministry Support Grant, our finances might be tight, but we have a heart for the communities we serve and I pray (confidently) that our communities will be there for us in our time of need. They reach out to us already for occasional offices (births/deaths and marriages) and through our schools' work, it is time for the community to be with the church as it runs the race of its life. But is there anything else we can do other than to offer ourselves and our best? How can be spiritual and faithful athletes? In the Bible, St. Paul often evokes the image of the athlete in his description of the spiritual life. In his First Letter to the Corinthians, he writes 'Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.' (1 Cor 9:25) For Paul, the training and dedication that athletes required to win their wreath (not a medal!) was what people needed in their spiritual lives - a desire to dedicate their time to God, to practicing their faith, and to trying to become better people every day. Practice, they say, makes perfect; and in our spiritual lives we need to practice too, by praying, by talking with others, and by reading the Bible. That way, we too, will receive our own medals. Just as we can admire and be inspired by those who compete in the Olympics, we can be inspired by other Christians too, emulating those who have taught us and gone before us. Then, when our race comes to an end, we will be greeted by God and will receive our prize - a place in God's everlasting Kingdom.Every blessing - Rev Gary
June 2024 Pastoral Letter Dear Friends, Towards the end of John’s gospel there is a long section known as Jesus’ ‘final discourse’. It is a deep section of text with Jesus explaining what life is going to be like in the future without his actual bodily presence. You might have heard it read and preached at Pentecost last month. There will be times of deep sadness which will be overtaken by feelings of deep joy. At the time though, it must have seemed almost impossible that the disciples could feel joyful in the difficult circumstances of the present, and in the future when they were warned of difficulties and persecution. This joy came from the transforming power of the gift of the Spirit that gave the disciples a joy that could not be suppressed. The present times we live in may not seem so joyful or certain, perhaps. Or do we face a God given opportunity? How can we each possibly deal with the calamity of global warming, how will our vote in General election (remember to register for a postal vote of you are going to be away on the 4th July 2024) make a difference to those in need, and what about the clarion call for peace in our world? If we let all of these issues get to us, we may feel a sense of despondency if we are not careful. How do you respond? How would you define or describe your own spiritual lives in Christ? I tried discussing that with the children at Callow End last month. It is a challenging topic but does boil down to some basic ways of living, loving in faith and hope. Jesus invites us to participate with him in doing his work until we are called into eternity with him. That participation is to be undertaken in good times or bad just like the first disciples and is intended to be an experience of joy no matter what the circumstances. This is of course a lot easier said than done, but joy is a gift of the Holy Spirit. That joy can grow and flourish when we attach ourselves to Jesus as part of the vine that he spoke of in John’s gospel (John 15.5), and our joy, he promises, will ultimately be complete in him (John 15.11). How can this be that Jesus gives us a joy that cannot be taken away? We often confuse happiness with joy. Our joy may come when we complete a seemingly endless task with which we have had to persevere and struggle, or when someone does something that makes us feel special. That joy is heightened when we know something good has been given to us by the God of the universe and the whole of creation. Somehow, we are known so personally. I am blessed to feel that way by ministering in these five villages, four churches, three schools, two care homes as one benefice of faith hope and loved. I see acts of loving kindness - do you? We do have some good things to look out for over the summer. We have weddings (including two at Guarlford) and more baptisms, visiting history groups interested in our church history - a visit from Historic England at Powick. We also will gather to commemorate the D-Day landings 80 years on with a service at the war memorial at Callow End. If this letter gets to you on time, go join in and support the Madresfield Village fete at Madresfield Court – and support the church stall too. Later this month, we will be looking at our churches’ environmental footprint, burden and legacy. We might feel that it has nothing to do with us, but we all have a place in God’s creation for a purpose and we must all strive to do our best to honour, respect and protect it. And in our prayer life, too, we join in Christ’s intercession for the world, praying for others that their joy may be complete whatever struggles they face now. Jesus promised his disciples his joy would be in them and would be complete. So too, the Old Testament prophet Nehemiah said, ‘it is the joy of the Lord who is our strength.’ (Nehemiah 8.10) . Every blessing ……Rev Gary
Vicar’s Pastoral Letter - May 2024 Racing across the World … Benefice… Churches Dear Friends, Summer is almost upon us again – but perhaps the weather is not helping us get into the mood. At the end of this month, my family and I will go to Pembrokeshire to a spot that is indeed very special to us. The phone/Gmail will be turned off. I hope that you are able to think about the refreshment that comes from holidays at some point this year. Many of you of a certain vintage like holidays a lot - perhaps that’s why I haven’t seen you in church for a while! Maybe you worshipped in a church whilst you were away? What did you learn from their welcome, ministry and worship? Can we learn a few lessons from your travels? Are you watching Race Across the World on TV at the moment? I think it’s an interesting idea of travelling without flying, within a limited budget and no internet or mobile phone. Just a map, opportunity to travel with a companion and may be work with them and a wallet of local currency. I wonder if the producers got their inspiration from The Acts of The Apostles? As you journey through Eastertide, our Biblical journey is a cruise through the various exploits and challenges faced by the developing church. And it most certainly was a Race Across the World. Seen through the lens of some of the earliest travel writers (the apostles and deacons), we learn such a lot about being prepared and ready, being resilient and up for a challenge. Peter was a great traveller and he most certainly clocked up the miles considering the numerous journeys he took to spread the gospel. Most of his journeys were far from comfortable. He even got ship-wrecked in Malta. Indeed, I think he endured three ship wrecks on his travels. The reception he got at many of the places where he visited could hardly be described as an ‘all-inclusive leisure holiday.’ He was beaten, stoned and got imprisoned at some of them. None of these stopped him. He persevered with his mission. He tried to finish the race. He knew whom he believed in and was convinced that He is able to guard what he had entrusted to him until the end. The task God has given to each and every one of us can hardly be described as an ‘All-inclusive holiday’ at times. There are days we will feel tired, despondent and even sorry for ourselves because we think the load of life, or even within our churches, is becoming too heavy. Our Annual Meetings will be taking place this month. How many will stand up to take on the roles we need covering to carry our churches forward on their journey? How many old stalwarts on our church committees will call it a day and stand down for very good reasons? Are we seeing anyone new coming to the fore, or are we in recycling mode? There is a phrase called multitasking in Management but perhaps the church takes this to the extreme. With some many challenges out there, not least safeguarding and domestic abuse training and the imminent need to register our PCCs with the Charity Commission, it is mightily easy to all want to give it a break and take a holiday instead. Jesus says, ‘His yoke is easy and the load He will put on us is light.’ (Mathew 11:30). Our load only becomes heavy when we stop looking at the divine power of Jesus and focus on our physical strength. What’s more, He has left us with a Helper, the Holy Spirit, to guide and guard us - and we celebrate that fact this month too - first through the Ascension and then Pentecost. Do not grow weary running the race. Stay in the race if you can but if you have to pull up, don’t feel ashamed. Call on Him daily to grant you the strength and wisdom to keep up His good work, may be in surprising or just other ways. ‘He will sustain you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (1Corinthians18) God bless - Rev Gary
