Vicar’s October letter

Dear friends,

I’m not sure if my Mum thinks I have a good sense of humour or if she just thinks I’m a bit annoying. If she asks me a question, I have a habit of answering rather literally whilst ignoring the real (and obvious) question she is asking. For example, I can remember some years ago after a holiday or a day out or something, she asked me if the sun had been shining. My answer was that the sun is always shining, it’s just that you can’t always see it because the clouds can get in the way. I guess I think that’s mildly amusing, but in reality its probably just irritating.

As well as being slightly annoying, I think that particular example has something of a message for us. The thing is that the sun is always shining, its just that we can’t always see it. That is true literally and I think for Christians it is always true for us metaphorically too. Because of our relationship with God, bought by Jesus on the cross, things for us are always good even if it doesn’t always feel like it. Paul writes (in his letter to the Church in Rome) ‘We know that all things work together for good for those who love God.’ He is not saying that everything is great all the time and that we should live in a state of permanent happiness, but he is saying that our faith should affect our attitude when times are hard. Writing to the Church in Thessalonica about what had happened to loved ones who had died, Paul says that we grieve, but not as those who have no hope.

Paul is saying that out hope, our faith, should make a difference to us. To apply a popular saying, Paul might argue that Christians should always be ‘glass half full’ people, seeing the best in every situation and the best in every person. (Perhaps he would say we should be ‘chalice half full’ people!) Not that we should be unaware or uncaring about problems around us, but that we should always be positive knowing that God is with us, caring for us, supporting and strengthening us, that we are not alone, and not without hope in whatever situation we face.

So, does think this makes sense, and, if so, do you see this in the lives of people in the Church? Are we ‘glass half full’ people who always see the positives? We can choose to be and perhaps we should choose to be!

As always, I would love to hear your thoughts on this, especially if you disagree with me!

God Bless,

Mike