Same but Different

I have recently been watching the television series called 'Living with the Amish' where six English teenagers spent a few weeks living with various families of the Amish tradition.  For the last week of their stay, they spent time with a family who had been 'shunned' by their 'church'.  When church leaders decide that you have disobeyed any of their strict rules then you are shunned and excluded from having conversations with other members (including your own family!) or mixing and participating in any church activities.

The six English teenagers

The great misdemeanor that these particular brothers had committed was to use a machine that, although did not use electricity (the use of which is forbidden), had a part in it that the leaders considered should be removed.  The brothers disagreed and so were now shunned.  They would be allowed back into the fold when they repented and admitted that they were wrong and had sinned.  When one of English teenagers questioned one brother about if he was going to repent, he said 'No' and the reason he gave was that he felt that what they had asked him to do by adapting the machine to the leaders' specifications was not biblical but was based on man-made rules.  The future meant therefore that eventually he and his family would be excommunicated.

I remember many years ago when I first went to live in South America, I was surprised how some things that I had always considered 'not right' seemed quite acceptable and this drove me back to the Bible.  As I searched for truth, I found (to my surprise) that many things that I had accepted as right or wrong was not really based on the Bible but partly on my upbringing in the particular church group to which I belonged and partly due to English customs and culture.  I began to learn that often people are neither better nor worse but simply different.  They see things differently and their point of view is as valid as mine.

The thing that impressed me most about the Amish group was that even though they had been shunned, they still wanted to live an Amish lifestyle.  They didn’t want to turn their backs on all things Amish and certainly didn’t want to embrace modern American living as a whole, although they found the telephone very useful!  They simply wanted to live Bible-based lives.  Today, many Christians of many other denominations are also doing the same.  Some feel quite isolated as they no longer ‘belong’ as before and certainly misunderstood or just not understood at all.  Asking questions and seeking the truth tends to lead to more searching of the Scriptures and not less. 

It is easy to criticize the Amish, saying they are narrow-minded and intolerant of any who do not conform, but I need to remember that narrow-mindedness and intolerance rear their ugly heads among people of many communities and religious persuasions.   



That's ours!

It was reported on the late news last night that fighting broke out in Bethlehem in the Christan church there as they prepared for the festival to celebrate the birth of Jesus. But it wasn't Christans defending their building against other opposing religions. It was amongst the clerics of the different factions within the Christian faith - Christian cleric against Christian cleric, fighting with the brooms they had been using to clean and prepare the church! They each had their own small patch of the church building that they were preparing and apparently one section inadvertently strayed into someone else's patch. Eventually the local police were brought in to break up the fighting and calm the situation.

We may smile but even in this country, how often have we heard a denomination referred to as 'my/our church' and I have known some who would not dream of entering into the building of another denomination that they considered somehow not as good, holy or right in their ways or beliefs, they interpret Scripture differently or they emphasise something others consider not quite as important.

But I am reminded of David who wrote a song 'The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.' (Psalm 24:1)

Many years later Jesus, talking to the woman at the well said, 'Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. ... ... Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth.'

It seems to me that when a particular place, whether building or location, becomes more important than the worship itself, then in defending the plot, humanity has actually lost the plot. Christians believe that God is everywhere and yet we seem to regard some places as more holy than others even within the same building. I'm sure it must sadden God when He looks and knows that after over 2000 years of Jesus uttering those words, his creation still struggles to grasp the truth of them.

Faith is ... ... 4

Faith is ... ...  the dependence of a new born.

He did it for us and as His followers He wants us to do the same.  That's hard!

Faith is ... ... 3

Faith is ... ... the conviction of realities I cannot see or feel.

The wise men of the East were not put off searching further when they didn't find the New Born immediately.  They just knew He was close and their convictions of what was real kept them going until they found the One they were looking for.

Feliz Navidad

Queridos amigos y familia

Ya es la epoca cuando miramos por atras y recordamos de todo que ha pasado durante los meses pasados.

Empezo con  celebracion – en enero cumpli 70! Mis dos hijos tomaron cargo de organisar (y pagar) que varios amigos se junten conmigo para disfrutar una tarde muy linda.

En junio Diego y yo disfrutamos de vacaciones de crucero por el Mediterraneo que habiamos reservado desde el verano pasado.  Habia mucho para ver y disfrutar y tiempo hermoso y caluroso.

Al fin de mayo Diego vino a ser uno de los estadisticas de los desempleados.  En Julio empezo una serie de cursos para mejorarse.  Por el momento ha conseguido  trabajo hasta enero de dos mananas por semana en un supermercado local.  El espera que esto conduzca a mas trabajo y una oportunidad para el futuro.

Por el verano y otono tuvimos visitas de familiares y amigos, disfrutando de los asados (estilo ingles!) y pasando tiempo juntos.  Es una gran bendicion poder compartir estos tiempos con seres queridos.

Martin y Diego caminando por el parque en Yeovil

En septiembre yo fui a Latvia para visitar nuevos amigos Ian y Joanna Storie, una pareja inglesa.  Pase una semana muy linda con ellos, conociendo otra forma de vivir y hacer las cosas y encontrando con muchos de sus amigos, todo dandome la bienvenida.

Joanna, yo e Ian

Durante los ultimos dos meses, he tenido unos problemitas de salud resultando en una consulta con el especialista del hospital.  Despues de varios chequeos se descubrio que habia tenido un problema con la fluidez de la sangre por los arterios del cerebro.  Pero con atencion medica excelente estoy muy bien cuidado con remedios y atencion.

Miro hacia atras por un tiempo variado y doy gracias a Dios por su amor, cuidado y proteccion a traves de todo lo bueno y lo malo.

Esperamos a Navidad cuando Martin vendra a pasar unos dias con Diego y yo y a disfrutar una comida navidena en la casa de mi hermana Marilyn.

Los deseamos a todos

una Navidad muy feliz y

el Futuro lleno de las bendiciones del Senor.

Con mucho carino de Mavis, Martin y Diego.

Happy Christmas

Dear family and friends

It’s that time of year again when we look back and remind ourselves of what has happened over the past year.

It began with celebration – in January I reached the grand old age of 70!  My two sons kindly took charge of organising (and paying for) a number of friends to join me for a very enjoyable afternoon and evening of eating and sharing.

In June, Diego and I enjoyed our holiday cruise on the Med. which had been booked since last year.  There was much to see and enjoy and great weather.

At the end of May, Diego became one of the unemployment statistics. In July, he began a series of Open Learning studies to better himself.  He currently has a part time, temporary job in a local supermarket for two mornings a week.  He’s hoping it will lead to more work and an opening for the future.

Throughout the summer and autumn, we had visits from family and friends, enjoying barbeques and spending time together.  It’s a great blessing being able to share such times with loved ones.

Martin and Diego walking in Yeovil Country Park

In September, I went to Latvia, to visit new-found friends – an English couple Ian and Joanna Storie.  I had a great week with them, getting an insight into a different way of life and meeting many of their friends, all very welcoming.

Joanna, me and Ian

 Over the past couple of months I have had a few health problems resulting in consultations at them hospital.  After various tests and scans it was discovered that I have had a few TIAs (mini strokes).  But with the excellence of the medical professionals, I am well looked after with medication and on-going monitoring and feeling well.

I look back over quite a varied year and thank God for his loving care and protection through all the ups and downs.

We look forward to Christmas when Martin will be joining Diego and I for a few days and a family Christmas dinner at the house of my sister Marilyn.

We wish you all a very

Happy Christmas and a Blessed New Year.

Love Mavis, Martin and Diego

Faith is ... ... 2

Faith is ... ... living with the unexplained.

God breaks into history at the most unexpected times and in ways we often don't understand.  But the shepherds accepted what they were told and experienced God in a way hitherto unknown.  A great lesson indeed.

Faith is

I have a small booklet of inspirational quotes about Faith is ... ... by Pamela Reeve.  I found some that seem quite poignant at this time of Advent.  I will post a few of them over the next few days.


Faith is: Remembering that in the Kingdom of God everything is based on promise not on feeling.


We hear much of the mixed feelings about the whole situation of both Mary and Joseph - being misunderstood, doubt, being talked about, no where to stay - many forms of exclusion.  God's promises given to the prophets and how angelic visitations had told them that they were to be a part of the fulfilment of those promises must have seemed impossible and totally incomprehensible to them at such a time.

Boxed in

It is difficult at the moment to listen to the news without some comment on unions, strikes, pensions or public sector.  I listen with interest at the various reports and am amazed by some of the figures that are bandied about.  The amount paid into the pension scheme was mentioned as being 3.5% to 6%.  The focus seemed mainly to be on those paying 3.5% and noting that in the end they would receive a great deal less money.  Before retiring, I worked for over 26 years for the local Government, part of the recognised public sector.  In all my years there, I paid 5% at the beginning but rising to 6%, which I paid until I retired.  I don't know where reporters get the final amount of pension from but my total works pension after paying for a quarter of a century is about half of the amount of loss talked about.  Thinking of this incredible amount of loss, I wonder what their actual pension will be and just who has this sort of pension deal?

Photo taken on the day of the strike this week

It is not my intention to debate the rights or wrongs of the situation or play the blame game but it irritates me when all public sector workers are lumped together as being the same, when I know that home helps, dinner ladies, refuse collectors, sheltered housing workers, cleaners and many more get no way near the figures that are mentioned in the news items.  Many are on very low rates of pay.


Sadly we seem to hear a word or phrase and have a preconceived idea of those we connect with such words.  We talk about bankers in derogatory terms but not everyone who works in the banking system is in receipt of huge wage increases or bonuses.  Those working in High Street branches don't actually receive an increase in pay or a bonus if their targets have not been met.  Those are set of course by others at higher management level.  We need to recognise that the part of banking that led to the current financial situation has more to do with investment banking and private equity firms (those faceless, untouchable, unreachable people in the upper echelons of the financial world) and not those in the local High Street branch.

We have a similar reaction to investigative journalism.  Sadly those connected to a few newspapers have tainted our perception of all investigative journalists.  But many important discoveries of malpractice or bad laws have only been uncovered because of those who have spent time looking into things like sex trafficking, bad treatment of the elderly or vulnerable, unscrupulous moneylenders, cruelty to children or animals ... ... and so we could go on.

Not all unemployed people are lazy and not all those receiving benefits are scroungers ... ... and we could go on ... ...  So why is it that we want to categorise people - everyone must be put in a box - public servant, banker, journalist etc?  


This ranting post is really to say - let's stop prejudging with uninformed, preconceived criticism and recognise that you cannot tar everyone with the same brush.  Usually those reported on are only a few and the rest of said group are largely innocent of the complaints made against them. In the end, modern living in the 21st century would be very difficult, even impossible, without those working in public services, the High Street Bank or media reporting.  Whilst we need to address wrong situations and practices that arise and recognise the guilty ones, not all working in these fields are bad so don't let's put them all together in a big box labelled 'unsavoury characters'  We need maturity in distinguishing one from the other.


Rant over!!!