Dear Friends,
I believe that Lent is a time for some serious thought about our Christian Faith. We may choose to observe it in various ways – by giving something up like sweets, chocolates or cakes and by giving the money saved to a Charity. It is actually good to do this from a health point of view. It gives our bodies a rest.
This enables us to learn not to have dependence upon certain kinds of food. It is also strengthening spiritually to follow some discipline. It may not be the sweets or chocolates that matter in themselves, but it is the restraint that is important.
I believe that Lent is a time for some serious thought about our Christian Faith. We may choose to observe it in various ways – by giving something up like sweets, chocolates or cakes and by giving the money saved to a Charity. It is actually good to do this from a health point of view. It gives our bodies a rest.
This enables us to learn not to have dependence upon certain kinds of food. It is also strengthening spiritually to follow some discipline. It may not be the sweets or chocolates that matter in themselves, but it is the restraint that is important.
You may like to use the Lent Boxes for the Church Missionary Society which are available at the back of Church (or which can be obtained from the Vicar). You may like to take on something extra, like going to church midweek, doing some extra Bible Study or trying a new kind of prayer or meditation. There are lots of ideas about. One idea is to sit in front of a cross or a lighted candle and use that as a focus for your thoughts. There is no need to “think” about anything in particular; in fact to do so is not necessarily a good idea. Just learn to be still and quiet and empty your thoughts, experiencing being in the present moment. That may take some practicing.But you can spend time thinking about your faith. After all, Jesus spent the Forty Days in the Wilderness, working out his priorities and thinking about his Ministry. That would be a good model to imitate.
Whatever you decide to do, and there is no right way, remember the words of Isaiah, who when speaking about fasting said,
“This is the kind of fasting I have chosen:
Loosen the chains of wickedness,
untie the straps of the yoke,
let the oppressed go free,
and break every yoke.
Share your food with the hungry,
take the poor and homeless into your house,
and cover them with clothes when you see them naked”.
Loosen the chains of wickedness,
untie the straps of the yoke,
let the oppressed go free,
and break every yoke.
Share your food with the hungry,
take the poor and homeless into your house,
and cover them with clothes when you see them naked”.
What is important is the kind of life we lead and what Lent does for us in fostering that kind of life.
With all good wishes for Lent and for the Easter season,
Yours sincerely,
Geoffrey
From the Parish Registers
Funerals
Betty Nickolls at Cookley – 7th Feb
Ron Rice at Wyre Forest – 17th Feb
Gerald Heseltine at Cookley – 17th Feb
Derek Whitmore at Stourbridge – 21st Feb
Irene Young at Kidderminster Cemetery – 22nd Feb
