Don't Forget

I must admit that I struggle with this particular time of the year.  I am really more of a pacifist and try to avoid confrontation of any sort if I can.  So I find the reminder of war and military conflict difficult.  I know and understand the arguments in favour of such action but can't help thinking that if those in power who lead their country to war were themselves to be affected by it in the same way that service people are, then there would be much more time spent in trying to avoid war in the first place.  It's fairly easy to say that there is no other way when you are not going to be killed or maimed yourself.  I must admit that I tend to dream with John Lennon's song that says ... 'Imagine there's no countries, it isn't hard to do, nothing to live or die for and no religion too.  Imagine all the people living life in peace.'  Everybody caught up in war loses something so there are no real outright winners.  My uncle who was held prisoner by the Japanese on the infamous Siam railway used to say, 'War makes people on both sides do some terrible things.'  It would seem that the only ones who come out of it all happier are those who invent and trade in the arms industry and as long as there are wars and conflicts they are laughing all the way to the bank!

The problem is that although you might kill the ones who are considered to be the instigators and leaders of 'the enemy', you can't kill an idea so easily.  Hitler was killed but today neo-naziism, fascism and ultra-racist nationalism exist all around the world in the guise of a pseudo 'patriotism' and 'looking after your own'.  Osama Bin Laden may be dead but his ideas live on.  So, does war actually achieve anything?  In Europe we are straining under the crisis of displaced people and those fleeing war situations.  It seems a bit hypocritical to bomb places where people are living and then try to avoid helping them when they flee for their lives and no longer have a home to live in as a result.  Sometimes I wonder.  Is it just a sort of macho power thing among world leaders, a case of not losing face, more about one-upmanship?  It certainly seems to be more of a case of who has the biggest weapons and best strategies rather than who is actually right, a bit more of a power thing than a better way of living.  It reminds me of the school bully or children fighting over a toy each claiming 'it's mine ... ... no, it's mine'.  Wars are usually caused by disputes over power, who is 'right' or possession of land.  And so some people prefer to wear a white poppy to signify the desire for peace to safeguard any tendency to glorify war and conflict.  I think we need to accept both the red and white and understand the stance of the other instead of judging them as lacking patriotism. 

Prince William painting a wall.

I was very moved the other week watching DIY SOS, the Big Build.  They took on a whole street and converted some of the houses especially for veterans.  If you didn't see it you can watch it on BBC iPlayer, DIY SOS, Homes for Veterans.  It makes you wonder if being killed is maybe an easier if not better option than surviving but being disabled.  The programme showed veterans who suffered mentally, emotionally and physically as a result of their severe injuries.  The saddest thing is that so many of these veterans return as heroes but are soon left on their own.  They can no longer serve in the military, so they find themselves unemployed and unable to do the job they have been trained for.  Many have severe bouts of depression and trauma and any sudden noise triggers off terrible memories.  Some struggle to cope.  And it also affects their families.  One veteran cried at the thought that now he had a house with a lift so he could get upstairs to put his children to bed.  He had felt that he was no longer able to be the father he wanted to be.  And so there are so many tragic stories.

Prince Harry supporting disabled veterans in their fund-raising

In one of the episodes, the tradesmen were joined by Princes William and Harry as they showed their support for the project and actually did some work and talked with the workers and the veterans.  Whatever your opinion of the royal family is in general, I must admit that I do admire Harry for the way that he supports in active ways those who have been affected by their faithful military service, walking with them on long treks and adventures to raise funds for charities that help the wounded and highlighting the problems and bringing them to public awareness.  He was so right when he made the comment that we send our young men and women into war situations and when they come back injured and in need of specialist help, what sort of country are we if we don't rally round and help?  Yet these people who were willing to put their lives on the line for the country (unlike many politicians and those in seats of power), slip through the net and have to depend on charities to help them.  Some end up living on the streets.  Is that how we treat heroes?  

The original poem about the poppies in Flanders Field remembered those who had died.  It was not a racist idea - us vs them (whoever 'them' may be).  It was not about national pride.  It was not about British values (it was actually written by a Canadian)  It was not about jingoism.  It was not about glorifying war.  It was actually the opposite of all that.  It was about remembering the senseless shedding of blood and waste of lives and the national sentiment at the time was 'never again'.  Today, sadly for many it seems to be more about judging people on the sort of poppy they're wearing - or not and judging their patriotism accordingly.  It is often thought about as being 'proud to be British'  when that was not the original idea of the poppy at all.  So this Remembrance Day, don't forget the real reason for the day and the original thought behind the poppy and not confuse it with a sort of 'call to arms' or a 'we'll show 'em' kind of gung-ho attitude.  Remember those who have given their all for their country (whichever that may be).  Don't forget those who survived but for whom life has changed forever.  Don't forget those left behind who have to pick up the pieces and carry on.  Don't forget those whose homeland has been destroyed to such an extent that they can no longer live there and raise their families.  They need help.  It might seem that killing will solve the problem.  The truth is though that ideas live on and the aftermath of war and its consequences bring many more problems that need to be addressed.  Don't forget all those affected by war, wherever they are or in whatever way they are affected.  Throw your memory net wide to include all who need help as a result of war.  Don't forget the real significance of the poppy.

Seasonal Adaptations

The other day I was catching up with some of the programmes I had recorded as I was unable to watch them at the time they went out on air.  One of the programmes was Winterwatch.  The Springwatch team who do the programmes was in the highlands of Scotland for their transmissions where they had experienced bad weather just the week before.  It was a real winterland, lovely for postcards, everything covered in snow.  They were particularly looking to see how different species of creatures adapted to cope with the cold weather - snow and temperatures well below freezing for most of the time.

The common shrew

Of course we all know that nature changes and adapts in order to cope with the colder weather.  Many trees lose their leaves and plants 'die' only to be revived when the fine weather returns.  Some creatures hibernate during the winter months and arouse from their deep sleep when the weather gets warmer.  Those who don't hibernate adopt various strategies in order to cope.  The mountain hare changes the colour of its fur from brown to white so that it is better camouflaged in order evade the exceptional vision of the golden eagle looking for prey.  The ptarmigan not only changes its feathers to white but also buries itself with snow just under the surface where the temperature is actually a little warmer.  But what really called my attention was when the presenter (Chris Packham) explained about the common shrew.  It actually shrinks in size.  It deliberately shrinks its skeleton, heart, liver, skull and even its brain in order to require less energy and therefore not needing as much food thus giving it a better chance of survival at a time when food is scarce.  How amazing is that!?  I found this so hard to believe that I checked it out for myself online - and it is true.

We often talk about seasons of life and in spiritual terms seasons of the soul.  Sadly we don't always learn the lessons of nature.  When things change, they adapt and change to accommodate and cope with the different circumstances and surroundings.  Yet how often when it comes to our expression of faith do we just keep plodding on doing the same things as before?  Our excuse is that we've always done things that way.  If creatures in the wild kept on doing things always the same way, they would be in real trouble.  So they adapt.  We might decide to do things slightly differently.  We change the order of service, we sing a few new(er) songs, we begin some project or new programme.  There is often great need to change inside, the whole structure of how we live and do things, the very way we express our faith.  Sometimes we need to rest, do nothing, just be.  But sometimes it's necessary to actually get rid of things, strip back things that have become burdensome and are draining our resources.  Sometimes it's necessary that we become less - less important, less busy, less involved, less sure of ourselves, less ready to always have an answer.  Sometimes less is more. It isn't always about doing things differently, it's about being different deep inside.  Very often the change we need to make is not about what we do or where we go but about what we are.  The shrew has a great lesson that we do well to take notice of.  Maybe it's us that needs to change.  

Autumn days and ways

Even on wet miserable days like we've had this week it's hard not to be amazed, yet again at the wonderful colours of autumn.  It's nature's way of course, of preparing for winter.  It discards all the unnecessary parts, all the extra commitment of feeding the leaves.  I remember a few years ago when I was fully committed to life within the organised church and working 3 days a week as assistant manager at the charity shop connected to the local church, I had this strange sense that I shouldn't be taking on any more commitments.  In fact, I was feeling that I should be relinquishing some of the things that I had been doing until then.  I didn't understand it but felt that God was leading me in a different direction and he wanted me to be free of commitments, free and ready to go or do whatever he wanted.  Eventually I laid everything down and felt quite naked spiritually.  All my life I had been involved in church activities and projects and yet now, here I was without anything, just me and God, no frills or attachments.  And that's the way I am now but what an enriching time I'm having.  

From autumn I learnt that even though the leaves fall,
the tree remains standing.

The other day I shared a status on Facebook that said (in Spanish)  'From autumn I learnt that even though the leaves fall the tree remains standing.'  Sometimes it's necessary to shed commitments to some things but that doesn't mean that the tree is dead.  The commitments must go but the tree remains standing firm and upright and regains strength for a new spring.  Nature evolves through the seasons and we need to evolve also.  Personally I struggle when Christians don't believe in evolution.  Looking around at creation, it all speaks of evolution.  Everything evolves all the time, changing, adapting and moving on to new phases in their lives.  For me in recent years this evolution has been to shed religiosity, busyness and commitments,  change the way I feed my soul so I can stand before God stripped of all superficial appearances and doing stuff and just be.


The other great lesson of autumn is the harvest.  Those who are gardeners (or farmers working the land) will be coming to the end of a very busy time of harvesting.  It seems that in our garden every year at this time I rethink and plan what I want to do next year.  I clear out the old and harvested and decide whether I'll do the same again next year or change things a bit.  Sometimes when things haven't turned out as I thought or expected, then I change things.  I don't do the same thing again.  It would seem a bit foolish.  If it hasn't worked then why waste time doing it again.  As Albert Einstein said, you can't go on doing the same thing again and again and expect a different result.  What a waste of time and effort.  And yet on a spiritual level we so often do just that.  We do not always have the deep satisfaction we hope to find, there is always something missing.  We go week after week, still searching and hoping.  So often we come away thinking, 'that was good but ... ...'   


As young people we were full of enthusiasm - we were going to change the world.  Yet we haven't changed our own town never mind the world.  In the big picture, nothing seems to have changed.  If a business doesn't get the result it's looking for then it changes how it does things.  Yet in 2000 years Christianity has failed to bring the world to God.  Maybe we are doing it all wrong.  Maybe we should change the way we do things or maybe look at the seed we're sowing.  After all you reap what you sow.  Maybe we should take notes from creation and shed whatever might hinder us.  We need to change, evolve and adapt.  

New Wings

I have recently purchased a Kindle Fire HD.  The reasoning behind it is that when I go away anywhere I can carry it with me .  That way I won't need to carry the weight of books while at the same time I can still connect with friends on Facebook and blogs and check my emails.  It cannot do everything my home computer can but it is enough for what I want while not at home.  I have never had a laptop so I'm just now learning to use my index finger instead of a mouse to control what I want to do and see.  I feel a bit like ET or that strange animal called the Aye Aye with a long pointy finger!  

The thing is that I'm not one for hankering after the latest gadget or 'in' thing.  Actually things as such don't really impress me. But sometimes I have to admit that I can't do what I would like to with an older piece of equipment and so I invest in something new that will deliver.  I am not going to do away with something just because it's old.  If it still works then why not go on using it?  But there are times that a new way or a new direction is needed.  The old isn't enough any more.  Sometimes we need to get something different that is more adequate for our present needs.

On a completely different note, one of my favourite wildlife specialists is Simon King.  I follow him on Facebook and YouTube.  He lives in Somerset and has quite a few acres of land with his home called Wild Meadows where he studies, cares for and photographs the local wildlife.  He has, over the past few weeks, had various cameras in a number of different nests.  The wren chicks were the first to fledge and then the blue tits.  The kestrel is still brooding her three eggs that are about to hatch any day now.  This week all interest was on the jackdaw nest.  There were two chicks that were fast outgrowing the space that the parents had made for them.  The day they finally fledged (Thursday) they kept going near to the entrance of the nest box and chirping, then going back and settling down again.  You could hear the parents calling from outside the nest and occasionally they entered the nest and chirped.  You could almost hear them telling their children to get up and go outside.  They ventured out a little way and then back to the nest.  They did this a few times and then finally left for good.

Their lives will never be the same again.  They no longer have that comfort zone where they can go to and just settle down and wait to be handed their food and be kept warm and out of danger of enemies that would attack them.  They now have to use their wings, something they haven't really done before.  Their wings would no longer be just to snuggle down in the nest but for flying freely over the countryside.  Eventually they will need to learn to get their own food - no more ready meals regurgitated  from parents.  They will have to learn to trust their own instinct and decisions.  It reminded me of Paul (in the Bible) when he complained that some followers of Jesus were just like small children and not willing to grow up.  We are part of God's creation and that is how He has ordained creation to be.  In our Christian lives we need to fledge the nest, trust our own decisions and the spirit that God has placed in each of us, use our wings to fly by ourselves and look for food and not keep going back to the comfort of dependent spiritual living, waiting for others to feed us and keep us out of danger.  When our needs are no longer met by the old system, then we need to look at doing things in a new way, start using our wings and fly freely.  Like the rest of creation, you don't know what you're missing til you try it.  

Refocusing

It was an easy job so I thought I would just go ahead and do it myself instead of bothering my son, asking him to do it.  All I had to do was to screw a couple of hooks behind the door to hang things on.  Simple!  I had the necessary electric tool ready and charged.  I marked the spot where I had to put the screw and made a small hole to make sure it didn't slip.  As I started screwing I discovered it wouldn't go in properly.  'I don't believe this!' I murmured under my breath.  I thought it was going to be so easy.  In the end I had to go and seek the help of my son.  He took one look and said 'You've got it on the wrong setting.  You've set it for drilling not for screwing.  No wonder it won't go in.'  Two minutes later it was done - by my son.  Please don't laugh, after all I am a woman and getting on in years.  Anyway, how was I to know that the thing had different settings?  I learnt something new that day!

Last week I had my yearly check-up at the optician's.  I knew my eyesight had deteriorated somewhat.  The clue was in the fact that I struggle to read the subtitles when the news is on the television and when I need to wait for the bus to be quite close before I can see which number it is and where it's going.  So the result was no surprise.  The young man was very kind and tried various lenses until I could read the letters on the screen clearly.  He was very helpful and explained the problem - the cataracts are obviously gradually getting worse but as yet it is possible to get lenses that will help.  So later today I go back to collect my new glasses.  What joy it will be to be able to make things out more clearly and at a greater distance once again, for a while at least. 
   
Another encounter I had was with someone who had visited a dietitian to get some help with losing a bit of excess weight.  She had always considered herself to be pretty healthy and always ate what she thought was a very healthy diet.  That is until the dietitian began explaining just where she had been going wrong and how the body reacts to different types of food.  She left the appointment quite humbled and said that after all these years of doing things a certain way she was now going to have to rethink and refocus her attention on other elements of her diet that until now she had considered ok.

All in all, it has been a week of refocusing and rethinking, learning and readjusting.  Things change and we have to change with the situation at hand.  We cannot always go on doing things in the same old way just because 'we've always done it that way' as I was once informed as a questioning child.  It has been said that the Nautilus begins life in a small shell but as it grows it doesn't have enough room and so it builds another bit of shell, another new compartment and moves out of the old, once comfortable place into the new part until it becomes too big for that part.  And so it goes on until it becomes quite large.  The different segments can be clearly seen around the shell of the Nautilus.  What a lesson - we need to keep learning and growing but also often this entails moving on from where we were.  We can't always remain static or we either stunt our growth or die.  We need regular check-ups and then refocus and move on, adjusting to the new situation in hand. 

I am not in the same place spiritually as I was a few years ago.  I have learnt more and moved on.  It's not about turning our backs on the past.  The nautilus carries its past around with it.  Our past is a reminder of where we've come from and what has made us the people we now are.  We look at our past but shouldn't live in it.  It was right for us at that time and in that situation so we need to be thankful for the past and how it has led us to the point where we are today.  It should be a progression on to something new and better.  In our spiritual lives, if we find ourselves in a situation where nothing has changed, then maybe we need to ask ourselves if we need a check-up, learn something new, refocus or do things differently.  If not, then there could be a danger that we might be just going through the motions while we are actually dying on the inside.  We are never too old to learn something new, no matter how long we may have been a Christian.  It is good to re-examine what we do - maybe what we thought was ok, no longer serves us well.   God is much bigger than any human understanding and the nature of his creation is to keep evolving and moving.

Stormy Journey

In the UK we have experienced terrible storms that continue to batter the country.  The news has been full every day just about since Christmas, one storm after another and of the devastation they have caused in many places, particularly the damage that has been done in the southwest of the country.  Many have been flooded out of their homes and businesses have suffered, some losing everything.  Farmers have had to get rid of their livestock as there is no grazing land where they can put them safely.  Crops have been destroyed, trees have been uprooted ... ...  and the list of damage goes on.  Some of the most dramatic pictures that I have seen came from Dawlish on the west coast where the relentless storms and enormous high waves have corroded the cliff edge causing part of the cliff to collapse into the sea and leaving the coastal railway damaged and suspended in the air.  People living in nearby houses have had to be evacuated and put up elsewhere as their road has also been eroded by the force of nature.


The railway line is the main connection between the rest of the country and the furthest southwest tip of the country in Cornwall.  Travelling this route has now become a journey to nowhere.  Those wishing to continue their journey south have to get off the train further up the line and take a bus or some other mode of transport to continue travelling.  There are meetings being held to discuss whether it is feasible to repair the sea wall and road or whether it would make more sense to re-route the railway altogether.  This of course would bring added expense.  Those living in the houses affected by the erosion of the foundations are also contemplating whether they will be able to return to their homes or relocate while their homes are demolished.  Such tragic situations!  Drying out and a lick of paint will not be enough to save them when the foundations have proved to be inadequate.  On the east coast,  the continuous rain has caused landslides and homes have collapsed down the moving earth like a house of cards.  The term 'safe as houses' no longer can be applied to a building as being safe.  Torrential rain and fierce winds seem to make light of humanity's attempts at providing security.


On the Christian journey I have found that foundations that have served me well for many years have become inadequate.  New worship songs or some innovative activity will not solve the problem.  So I have moved out of the place I called my (spiritual) home and found new ways or expressing my faith.  When the journey I am on no longer gets me to where I want to be, then I need to change direction and take another route.  Millions of Christians worldwide have in recent years found the same to be true when the winds of the Spirit began shaking their world.  They have moved out of what had become traditional and organised religion - the 'safe' house.  The goal of oneness with God has not changed. The final destination remains the same but the journey is now taking a different route.

The Centre of All Things

I enjoy reading the blogs of other people and regularly catch up with quite a number.  Some leave me pondering throughout the day and others seem to confirm something that I have been thinking for some time.  This week I read such a one by Martin Scott.  (You can see his 12 min videocast here under Pentecost as paradigm #3).  The whole idea that God works outside of the established church is not a new thought.  Although we like to think that God chooses to work through Christians, the fact remains that many times we see what seems to be God at work in a situation where there is no church.


I was thinking about Galileo who dared to suggest that not everything revolves around the earth.  We are not the centre of the universe.  He was persecuted for that thinking and was forced to recant by the Inquisition but time proved that he was indeed right.  Nowadays we know of course that the earth and all the other planets in our universe revolve around the sun and not as was thought previously that everything revolved around the earth.  It seems to me that we are living in a time when a great number of Christians who have moved outside of the established church are saying a similar thing.  Not everything revolves around us, the Church, Christians.  God does work through these means but He also works outside of us and often without us.  This is difficult and almost heretical for some Christians to accept.  If we insist that God is confined to work through Christians, then we are limiting God to our ideas and thinking.  God is bigger than anything we could imagine so surely it is possible for Him to work in some way outside of our understanding and without our help.

As Martin Scott mentions, this thinking is very biblical.  Peter was made to realise this truth when he had the dream and told to eat, re-enforcing that truth that nothing that God has created is unclean.  Later when Peter visited Cornelius, he came to the realisation that Cornelius was searching for God and truth and that God was indeed working in his life.  Cornelius was not a Christian, hadn't heard the disciples' message about Jesus and wasn't even an adherent of the Jewish faith.  He was a Roman centurion but he was a good man and searching for God.  Peter had to undergo a complete change of mindset to go into the house of a Gentile and accept that God could reach those who were not of the Jewish faith and did not need to become part of the Jewish community.  While Peter was telling them about Jesus, Cornelius and his family were all baptised in the Holy Spirit.  In the end Peter had to accept that God was at work in ways and places that the disciples knew nothing about.  Throughout the centuries God has continued to work in unexplained ways and places and in people beyond our Christian input or evangelism. 

Simon the Cyrene, a foreign visitor to Jerusalem was made to carry the cross for Jesus.  This must have had an impact on him as his sons Alexander and Rufus (mentioned in Matthew's gospel) were later mentioned among the early church followers.  We also see Philip transported to meet the Ethiopian eunuch and baptise him.  A eunuch was a man who was recognised for his sexuality - today we would call him gay.  On both occasions God meets with those on the margins of society before they have contact with (and so have no input from) those who follow Jesus.  We sing 'Jesus, be the centre'.  These are not just words that make us feel a bit emotional.  It is a truth that we need to embrace fully.  The body of Christ does not revolve around us, it revolves around the Son and the Godhead can work with or without us as He chooses among Christians or people of other or no faith.  We have to stop limiting God to our concept of Him - He is much bigger than that and works among ALL who seek Him, whoever, whatever and wherever they are, with or without our help or input. 

Adapt to survive

Talk about being adaptable!  My son has recently started a job which began with working a few hours a week - not enough to sign off from receiving Job Seekers' Allowance.  You need to work for over 16 hours a week to do that.  He enjoys the job and has been wanting to increase his hours.  His manager has also been doing his best to find him more hours as he wants to keep him in the job and not lose him if he finds something else with more hours.  Last weekend he started work at 4 am.  On Monday he was asked to go in for 5 am but on Saturday was asked to change that to 11 am.  One day he had to be there for 1 pm and another for 10 am.  This weekend his starting time is 10 am til late.  At the moment he is covering for others who are on holiday or off sick.  Hopefully it won't be too long before his working week will be sorted and take on a more settled routine so we will not be wondering what each day will bring.  So this week our sleeping and mealtime habits have certainly NOT been habitual.


Looking in the garden this week, especially after the big storm we had the other night, it is apparent that things are really changing.  For one thing part of our fence blew down!  That is going to be repaired soon (I hope).  What has changed and I can't do anything about is the lack of leaves now on the trees.  Autumn is a time when nature adapts ready for the winter.  Some things need to go in order to conserve energy for what is to come.  Trees shed their leaves and plants seem to die but all the time they are building up their reserves ready to burst out again in the Spring. 

A bearded tit

This week we have also been able to watch Autumnwatch - a favourite programme in our house.  Their theme has been migration and has followed many birds as they prepare to move further south for the winter, some having already gone.  Young birds, born only this Spring are flying, some non-stop, for thousands of miles.  After having spent most of their lives to date in the nest, life is really changing for them.  They also tagged and followed a number of foxes.  Some of their habitats have been taken over by humans and so they are having to adapt to urban living.  Other birds like the bearded tit have to adapt their eating habits as their diet changes from insects and worms to seeds and berries.  They eat small pieces of grit to help in this.


It is the very nature of creation to change and adapt according to the circumstances. My life now is not the same as my life was 10 years ago, or even 5 years ago.  But God is still relevant to my situation, now.  Life happens!  Life makes us make changes - this is how God has ordained things.  We need to adapt to changes in our lives to cope with new technology and ways of doing things.  It just seems a shame that people don't follow the natural laws of creation into their spiritual lives.  I remember when quite young and asking why things in our denomination were done in a certain way and the answer was 'We've always done it that way!'  Maybe that's a good reason to change!  When a movement fails to adapt and change then it is no longer moving. It has becomes an institution.  People who don't profess any religion, often get the impression that God is not relevant to 21st century living.  And sadly the Church as a whole has contributed in giving this impression.  Some Christian groups are proactive in changing but others are not.  Some fear that change will mean a watered down gospel or that their particular group will cease to exist and so they don't want to change.  This is unnatural in God's creation and in our daily lives.  Creation adapts in order to survive.  Nature shows us that adapting and changing may mean no longer doing things we used to do but it does mean doing things effectively for what is to be in the future.  It may seem to be a sort of dying as we let go of the old but it is a doorway to something new and better.  If God is relevant today then we need to express Him in 21st century ways and not keep Him enclosed in an old, out-of-date box.