The Link

The magazine of St Thomas' Church Community

December 2008

Vicar: John Hallows 613206

Wardens: Elizabeth Johnston

  & Barbara Rawstron

 

 

 

Christmas Tree

Festival

13^th -14^th December

  

 

God bless you with a peaceful and joyful Christmas

and a New Year full of hope and contentment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The Vicar writes….

 

Dear Friends,

 

At his inauguration as

President of the United States of America in 1961, John F. Kennedy said, ‘And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.’

It’s a good quote, because it takes us away from thinking about what we can get from others, and encourages us to be givers, and movers. Certainly our churches would come to a standstill if it were not for the people who offered themselves for ministry. I don’t just mean those who are called and ordained or licensed in our churches. But also those who minister in children’s work or youth work, visiting the sick and praying with them. As the Body of Christ, we are Christ’s hands feet and eyes as his love is spread within the chruch and beyond.

At the same time, President Kennedy’s words don’t work when we turn to God. Whatever we do for God is insignificant when it comes to his love for us. You could almost paraphrase the quote, ‘Ask not what you can do for God, but what God has done for you.’

That’s the incredible thing about being a Christian. We begin not from any sense of obeying God out of duty or ethical obligaton. God’s love for us is assured, and his desire for us to share his life, free from sin and destruction, is the bottom line. What we do for him is a response of people who know what it is to be loved totally and unconditionally.

And what exactly has God done for us?

The Bible story is a love story of sorts. God created us out of love to share his friendship. Human beings have a built-in tendency to know better, to take things for granted, and to make only as much effort as is necessary. So human history is a catalogue of things going wrong – wrong choices, wrong actions, and attempts to limit the damage often with further disastrous consequences. The intervention in Iraq, climate change, economic downturn, global terrorism – take your pick.

But God doesn’t leave us to our own devices.

First he leaves us with our free will and capacity to love, because God really believes in us and wants to give us the chance to get things right without coercion.

And the second thing he does is to get alongside us to give us a hand.

We use theological words like ‘incarnation’ and Jesus, the Word of God, and Son of God, to express a deep truth. God is uniquely and intimately tied into the person of Jesus so that he knows human life from the inside. As God-with-us, Jesus restores our human life to what God intended. So in spite of human weakness, and failure and death, we can aspire to generosity, sacrifice, and eternal life, and act accordingly.

How do we know this? The events of Jesus life are the guarantee. Jesus, born in Bethlehem, who died on the cross, and who was raised to new and glorious life on Easter Day, is the one who leads us from death to life, from the moment we place our faith in him.

So this Christmas, take time to immerse yourself in worship and prayer, and remember what God has done for you.

There is truth in the saying that Christmas is for children, but not as we might usually mean it. All of us who have received Jesus and believe in him have been born again as children of God our Father.

 

So God bless you this Christmastime and fill your hearts with gratitude and joy at what God has for you.

John