Dear all,<div>Today I am writing this Stuff as a genuine 4D, present time, multisensory experience. I have a cup of honey and ginger tea in my 'Tea's a Saviour' mug, which also has a 3D image of Jesus on it. Jesus actually looks as if he might have been from Palestine rather than the blue-eyed, Aryan versions popular in 20th century Hollywood films. He is a touch orange, however, but as far as I know hasn't been asked to go on Strictly Come Dancing.</div><div>I am also listening to the first of 3 Bob Dylan CDs that my oldest brother kindly sent me a few months ago. I was asking him about Bob's 'Christian Phase' and if there was anything appropriate for me to play in church services. I have been trying to introduce some different styles of music to broaden what we listen to in church and discourage people from singing. Those who were at Christchurch, Tean on 27th December for the annual Uttoxeter Area tradition of a finding an excuse to miss church, were treated to Bob's version of 'O Little Town of Bethlehem', which is the only listenable track on his otherwise appalling 2009 'Christmas in the Heart' album.</div><div>The first song on Bob's 'Shot of Love' 1981 album is ..... 'Shot of Love', and starts with the lines,</div><div><div>Don't need a shot of heroin</div><div>To kill my disease</div><div>Don't need a shot of turpentine</div><div>Only bring me to my knees</div><div>Don't need a shot of codeine</div><div>To help me to repent</div><div>Don't need a shot of whiskey</div><div>Help me be president </div><div></div><div>How I integrate that with 'Shine Jesus Shine' might be a bit of a problem for me. However, as my oldest brother also told me once (with tone and style at its wryest), "there is no such thing as a problem, only a solution opportunity".</div><div></div><div>As I write I'm really rather enjoying Bob's album. It's a mix of folk, gospel and bluegrass, and I can actually hear his lyrics, which is a plus, as on the two occasions that I have seen Bob live it has just been an electric mash of incoherent noise. Another couple of lines I have heard are,</div><div></div><div><div>'Never robbed any churches nor cut off any babies' heads,</div><div>He just took the folks in high places and he shined a light in their face.' </div><div></div><div>which I'm guessing partly refers to Herod's slaughter of the under two's in Bethlehem after Joseph and his family and fled to Egypt.</div><div></div><div>I've enjoyed listening to other types of Christian music over the last few months. It's been one of the pluses of COVID restrictions. I have a bluegrass gospel collection to catch up with, which I was hoping to use at church this week but that will now have to wait. I think that the problem with some church music is that a) it's a bit cheesy, and b) it's a bit formulaic. There are many exceptions of course and much great church music. There is also background to some of the hymns we play that we are unaware of, such 'It is well with my soul', where both the writer of the music and the words met with great tragedy, and Horatio's Spafford's experiences are reflected in the lyrics.</div><div></div><div>That is why I am keen to listen to music by Christians which is not necessarily standard church music. Bob Dylan's songs no doubt reflect his experiences of fame, fortune, sadness and social dissent, as well as his faith experience. Some of the images used might challenge our starched expectations from the hymnal, but they also reflect what seemed to be deeply felt experiences,</div><div></div><div><div>'you were closer to me than my next of kin</div><div>When they didn't want to know or see'</div></div><div></div><div>and dramatic changes in approach. Compare Bob's 1960s protest songs to this lyric from 'Trouble',</div><div></div><div>'Revolution even ain't no solution for trouble.' </div><div></div><div>Strangely enough, the song from 'Shot of Love' that immediately struck me as the most likely one to acceptably play in church is probably the cheesiest, but most beautiful. 'Every Grain of Sand' is a gentle song that talks of Bob at his lowest but also where God was close to him. Here is the final verse,</div><div></div><div><div>I hear the ancient footsteps like the motion of the sea</div><div>Sometimes I turn, there's someone there, other times it's only me.</div><div>I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man</div><div>Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand. </div><div></div><div>Pure gospel. Faith, doubt, hope.</div><div></div><div>Peace and prayers, Joe</div></div></div></div>
Area letter from one of our readers, Maggie Hatchard; November 2020Why worry??This year has been a strange one - we are certainly living through a time that will go down in history. Children in the future will be learning about this time in their history lessons. I wonder what they will call it. We have all had time on our hands and perhaps we have managed to use it well by clearing out cupboards, sorting through things that we have not bothered with before, doing lots of gardening, taking walks and rediscovering the place where we live.But I’m sure that there have been times when we have worried about the future – what is our world going to be like? What might happen to me if I catch this virus? What must I do to make sure I don’t catch the virus? Is it safe to go out? Is it safe to go to church? Is it safe to meet friends, to go shopping? So many things plague our minds when the world becomes a place that we don’t recognise.In Luke’s Gospel 12:22-26, Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?”Jesus is telling us that if God provides for even the birds of the air then he will provide for us, as we are so much more valuable than the birds. Worrying won’t add time to our lives - so what is the point of worrying! But this doesn’t stop us worrying does it? What I think we have to do is to take each day as it comes and make the most of each day that we have. To see the joy as our seasons change, as nature takes its inevitable course. We’ve seen the growth in our gardens and the fields that surround us and the crops that we and the farmers have produced. The joy in the singing of the birds and humming of the bees, the colour in our gardens. The conversations we have had with our neighbours and other people we have met on our walks. The phone calls we have held. There has been and still will be joy to be found in our lives.I believe that God is with us always and when we hold a conversation with Him and recognise Him working in our lives through Creation and through the people we meet, we are blessed. And of course, He will work through us as we hold conversations with people and in whatever work we do to help one another, whoever they are.Maggie
1 NovemberFather, we pray for all the parishes in the Uttoxeter Area of Parishes, from Tean to Marchington and Stramshall to Gratwich. We ask for wisdom, guidance, patience, insight, good humour, courage and a willingness to work together. Amen.8th NovemberWe give thanks for Annette Jinks and Noel Green, and Gill and Alan, who have contributed so much to our understanding of Tean in the two World Wars. Help us to learn to lessons from these and other wars, so we can resolve conflicts peacefully in our own lives and to campaign for peace wherever we can.15th NovemberFather, we give thanks for all the shops that make up our community, be it Tean Chippy and the Ru Yi takeaways, the Co-op, the hairdressers, the sandwich shop, the Post Office pharmacy, the bathroom emporium and whoever else. We give for the life and service they give to the village of Tean.22nd NovemberWe pray for the running of the church at Tean. We ask that you give a couple or three people a nudge to be Churchwarden's or Treasurer so that we can do the job well in your name. We give thanks for the team work at Tean over the years, which keeps it going and keeps the church alive in this place.29 NovemberWe pray for everyone in the community. For people who are isolated or isolating, for families struggling to keep going, for those who encourage people through phone calls and socially-distanced visits. Help us to serve the community of Tean better, and help all those in the Uttoxeter Area of Parishes to be true people of God in the months to come. Amen.
Easter DayEach day we will take a look at a sentence from the Lord’s Prayer.For thine is the kingdom the power and the glory forever and ever. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and for ever. ‘Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are you looking? Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her ‘Mary!’ John 20:16The egg, rabbit and branch are all symbols of Easter Day. The rabbit is based on the hare, which was a symbol of new life; a budding branch, a sign of spring after winter and the chocolate egg reminds us of the stone that rolled away.The women and disciples who went that day were amazed, frightened, confused. But very soon they were transformed by hope as they realised that Jesus was not dead but alive!Urgently called by Mary, Peter and a second disciple rush to the tomb. Something about the grave clothes makes them pause. John says the beloved disciple “saw and believed”, but immediately makes it clear that he didn't understand what he believed in because he hadn't yet learnt about the resurrection. Knowing in their hearts the presence of God's hand, they went home. “But Mary stood weeping...” Like Jesus' tears at the tomb of Lazarus, her tears gather up all the grief the world has ever known and all the sadness any of us feel. Angels, then Jesus, ask her, “Woman, why are you weeping, who are you seeking?”. It's obvious why someone would be weeping at a tomb, and doubly so when the tomb had been disturbed. So the question is a challenge rather than an enquiry. Who does Mary think Jesus is? Who did she ever think Jesus was? If he was a mere human being, she would be right to weep at his demise. Is this who she's looking for – a good man who ran out of options? Or does she seek the Son of God?Mary answers on the surface, but Jesus' question has begun to open her spirit. When he calls her by name, there is instant recognition. “Mary” “Teacher!” He has just taught her all over again. The message of Easter is like the rising of dawn in our hearts. Of course our world and our lives are still full of tears. At this very strange time for our world, country and us as families and individuals many are tearful and fearful. Some of us are struggling in our work situations; others are struggling at home or in our families; some have companions in the struggle, others bear the burden alone, and for others still it takes all their energy just to survive. Yet the resurrection of Jesus heralds the first day of a new creation and so it urges us to look beyond our struggles; to look with faith and to name them as temporary. To do this doesn't make our struggles any less: Jesus came to us because without him our struggles will never be diminished. Yet the reality of our struggles shows even more brightly the power of this new dawn which is displacing them. Have you seen a chrysalis? It looks and feels hard like a stone, dead even. But inside it is something amazing: from it will come a butterfly, flying to freedom.We look into the empty tomb and find that the terrible events of Good Friday have changed – it’s Good News. It’s the greatest mystery, the greatest miracle and the greatest Good News ever heard. As we hunt for and eat our eggs, see the signs of spring and watch butterflies emerge, let’s rejoice. This Easter, let's actively rejoice in the resurrection of Jesus. Our world needs to hear this Good News afresh this Easter 2020. And it is God, his Son, his power and his salvation we are seeking. A projectCelebrate – if you have given something up for Lent enjoy taking it up again – if that is possible in your current circumstances. Enjoy some chocolate eggs or a boiled egg to be reminded of the stone being rolled away. Look at a branch with new buds on to remind you of new life. Take a piece of a branch with buds on and place it with the Palm Cross, photo/names, battery, keys, bread, candle and glass of water to remind you of the new life you have in the risen Christ.Take some time over this next week of Easter to revisit the items collected and continue to use them if they are helpful in your prayers.PrayHalleluiah! Christ is Risen. He is Risen indeed. Halleluiah! Thank you God for your creation and for each new day. Show me how I can help someone today.
