Curate’s Corner: November 2009 – January 2010
As I write my wee piece for the Bulletin the sun is shining, the sky is blue and it is a beautiful day. I have the day off work as I am about to go to the Diocesan Synod in Ballybofey. It will be a long day! Out the window the trees have lost almost all their leaves and I can see the neighbour’s house again. The trees look totally different without their leaves. Just long thin branches providing no shelter or cover. Nothing is hidden anymore, and any birds in the trees can be seen. I must admit I much prefer a lovely leaf-covered tree with lots of colour and life, rather than a shell of branches and little else. I wonder what we would be like if every year we lost our covering and people could see what we are really like. I don’t mean our clothes by the way. I mean the facade we all wear which hides our true feelings, our thoughts and our wishes. If people could see the real me, what would they think? I am pretty sure that you would not like the real me. I think all sorts of things, I get annoyed (inwardly) over unimportant issues and I worry about problems that don’t even exist. I am human!! But God sees the real me. God knows exactly what I am like. He knows my innermost thoughts and he has known me even before I was born. The psalmist tells us that our God created us and that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Imagine. We are fearfully and wonderfully made – and God loves us. So although I do all sorts of things wrong and don’t do many things I should, God loves me as I am. He also loves you. Again as I look out the window I see birds flying about the sky, the few leaves left are blowing gently in the breeze and it is beautiful. We live in a lovely world, created by God and given to us to look after. May we continue to appreciate all that we have, and give thanks to God for our world, our neighbours, our family and friends and for ourselves. We are important to God and therefore we should be important to each other. God bless....
Read MoreCurate’s Corner: September 2009 – October 2009
Do you ever wish you were God? Imagine being able to control the weather, ensuring lovely sunshine every day. Imagine taking away all the sickness and keeping everybody healthy. Imagine ending all the wars and natural disasters and keeping everyone happy and contented. Imagine life in the garden of Eden before Adam and Eve messed things up! But imagine a world with no sickness or death, no disasters or wars, no worries about the weather! And now imagine where we would all live, how we could produce enough food for a population growing rapidly all the time, getting the balance right between sun and rain to satisfy everybody. Imagine the problems with a lack of space and getting worse all the time. Do you really wish you were God? The more I think about it the more convinced I become that God really is all-powerful, all-knowing and all-present. The world is so complex yet every detail works. The seasons bring rain and sunshine, heat and cold, everything we need to supply our needs. We live for a short time here on earth before going ‘home’ to spend eternity in heaven which has limitless room and we won’t need food! God really does know best and yet how often do we think that we know best. As summer draws to a close and the autumn season brings new beginnings, may we learn to appreciate the beauty of our world and the God who made it. Enjoy the seasons whatever they bring and seek to radiate the love of Christ to a world crying out for certainty. I am certain that God knows best and so I will gladly rely on him. “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” God bless...
Read MoreCurate’s Corner: July 2009 – August 2009
A lot has happened since I last sat down to write my wee piece for the Bulletin. Sarah has been well now for a whole month and just back from a rock festival! Nott’s Forest were not relegated as I thought they would be and the domestic football season is over. Ireland are doing well at the cricket and Murray mania is spreading in the tennis. On a sad note, my mum passed away (peacefully) in April after a short illness. She really was a wonderful mum and role model and my brothers and sister have a lot to be thankful for. I suppose we often don’t fully appreciate what we have until we lose it. Saturday’s are now different without that journey to Lisburn. Marlyn and I are determined to use the time wisely to help us enrich our marriage and our time together, just as mum so enriched our lives. I hope we succeed. In the church, Diane and Mark are settling in well and we are really blessed to have them. Just don’t tell them I said so! Well actually, do tell them. Be like Timothy in the bible and be an encourager. It is so easy to knock people down, but much more rewarding to build them up. We are the body of Christ and if one part suffers we all suffer to some extent. As one body we all have different roles and gifts to use within the Church and the community. Diane is the rector and her task as team leader is to guide, lead, encourage, and delegate. We need to support and help her as team players, and use our gifts to spread the love of Christ into our Church family and the wider community. In our Diocese we have the aim of Transforming our Communities and Radiating Christ. A wonderful goal that needs all of us. May we use our gifts, our time, and our possessions wisely. Have a good holiday!!! God bless....
Read MoreCurate’s Corner: March 2009 – April 2009
As many of you have already realised, time seem to go quicker as we get older. Hence I have suddenly realised my contribution to the Bulletin is overdue already. This has made me think about time, and what it means. To God of course, time is eternal, and scripture tells us that with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. To us however, time is precious and once gone cannot be replaced. Many a time I would have liked to wind time back and remove my foot from my mouth, but this is not possible. I am sure you have experienced the same problem! What I do know however is that the time we spend here on earth is finite and will end. Therefore it is precious and should be used wisely. I am also convinced that the best use we can make of our time is to follow the example of Jesus and use our time to help others, to spread the good news of the Gospel, and to help advance the kingdom of God here on earth. One advantage of time never stopping but continually moving is that problems of today become past history and future events quickly come to pass. So at this time of year we look forward to the Spring and especially to the Lenten period and Easter. This Ash Wednesday we have the opportunity of beginning lent by setting aside time to be alone with God. May we make time to give to our creator and our Saviour. Time is precious, and surely therefore we should invest some of it with the one who knows us best and desires only what is best for us. May we invest our time wisely. God bless...
Read MoreCurate’s Corner: December 2008 – February 2009
Three months ago as I sat down to write my wee bit for the Bulletin, I was looking forward to the end of September and the arrival of Diane and Mark. I am sure you agree with me that we have not been disappointed. The only (very minor) problem I have with Diane is she has encouraged Sarah (my daughter) to colour her hair and experiment, but even that is not a problem. Because maybe Diane is right! As I write this article, Sarah is in the Causeway hospital suffering from pains in her kidney. The doctors cannot find anything wrong but Sarah is in pain. It is a worrying time for Marlyn and me, and I am sure many of you understand having been in similar type situations yourselves. But all is not despair. In times of trouble I know that the God of creation, my God and your God, has a plan for each one of us and he reaches out to us and strengthens us when we need help. The psalmist went though many times of trial and some of the psalms reflect his crying out to God for help in his distress. (See psalm 102 for example.) But the psalmist also knew he worshipped the God who made the earth, the air, the sky and the seas. Our God hears our prayers and responds to them, but not always in the way we expect. But he always responds in a way that ultimately is best. So, when things are tough, God is here. When things are easy, God is here. When all else fails, God is here with us. As the psalmist said, “The Lord is gracious; his steadfast love is everlasting, and his faithfulness endures from generation to generation.” (End of psalm 100.) God bless...
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