"Forgive them, Lord, for they know not what they do" Luke 23 v34 At this time of each year (the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month), we remember once again those who died in conflict, whether it be in the World Wars, Northern Ireland, The Falklands or more recently in Iraq and Afghanistan. These are just the British involvements; there will be many families world-wide who are remembering their loved ones with pride and giving thanks for what they did. We think of those men and women, some barely out of their teens, who paid the ultimate price. They died that we might live; not just to live, but to live in peace, in a better environment, in a better world. We also think of those who carry physical scars, for those for whom life won't be as straight-forward again. That is what Jesus did for each and every one of us. He died in conflict between good and evil that we might live. He came that we could have life in all its fullness, and suffered and died that we might live, live for eternity with Him. Also at this time, I think of those who, although they didn't give their all, their lives were changed forever by some of the sights they saw and are continuing to see. I had a happy childhood to a certain extent but my Dad was always quite a hard person, not always able to show his emotions. He showed his love for us as a family by the way he provided for Mum, my sister and brother and me. He always had one or two jobs to enable him to do this. He really did do his best for us in the only way he knew how. He was the eldest child in a family of one son and five daughters, and, as he grew older, was expected to help provide for the family. When the time came, he went off to war to fight for King and Country and to make a better place for his family to live in. Dad, along with many others, saw many things most of us can only imagine - and even then with difficulty. He relayed some stories of his time in the army. He told us of the time when he was a guard at a prisoner-of-war camp and how the German prisoners metered out their own punishment on those of their number who had been members of the SS. What I didn't know was that in the D-Day Landings the tanks simply ploughed over the foot soldiers who got in the way, and Dad was there to witness it. He was also amongst the first to go into the concentration camps after liberation. The sights he saw, the things he experienced, he didn't, couldn't, speak of at the time. It was too soon after the war, too raw. I have only learned of these things in recent times. Dad had mellowed with the years and had shared some of his experiences with my sister. For nearly 50 years, Dad had kept it all inside him. It wasn't the done thing in his day to speak to a counsellor and work through emotions. If I had known, maybe I might have understood but I was too young to comprehend such things. As time went on I simply concluded that, although Dad loved us, he was hard. I realise now that the way Dad acted was due in part to his strict upbringing and the things he experienced during the war. When we were on holiday abroad I happened to drop on the 'God Channel'. It was in 'American' English with foreign sub-titles. The words which caught my attention were 'a mountain-range of forgiveness'. It seemed a very strange expression until I looked out of the window and saw the mountain ranges stretching away in the distance, forever. Then I realised that is what God's forgiveness is for us, a mountain range, stretching into the distance, forever - no strings attached. If he was here now, I would say, "Dad, I understand and I forgive you". What I wish I could have said is, "Dad, I don't understand but I forgive you". So at this time, when we remember those who have given their lives for us, may we also remember those who are carrying the mental scars. Dorothy R

In November Chris and I joined a package holiday to Israel and Palestine organised by Riding Lights. They are a professional Christian theatre company, based in York, who use drama and comedy to tell people about Jesus, touring to schools and prisons as well as theatres. Riding Lights were invited by the Christian community in Palestine to pray for them and to tell the world about their plight. The result was Bridget Foreman's brilliant play, Salaam Bethlehem, which toured the UK in 2007; plans are afoot for a second tour. There was a third element to the invitation: to visit them, out of which our trip arose. We spent the first 3 nights at the wonderful Pilgerhaus on the shore of Lake Galilee (near the Church of the· Multiplication commemorating Jesus feeding the 5,000). From there we visited sites associated with Jesus and His teaching: Nazareth, Cana, Mount Tabor (believed to be the site of Jesus' Transfiguration), and the Mount of the Beatitudes. In most cases churches have been built at places significant to His ministry, thus changing the scene since then. Franciscan or Benedictine Orders tend to run the sites; they allow tourist groups to hold small acts of worship, either in the church, or at seating provided in the grounds. Our group leader was an Anglican vicar with long experience in leading pilgrimages, and readings, hymns, prayers or drama relevant to each location had been prepared. Holy Communion on Mount Tabor, at the Ecco Homo Church in Jerusalem, and at Emmaus, where Jesus appeared after his resurrection, were particularly memorable. So, too, were the numerous drama sketches provided by our five R.Lights actors. Day two started before breakfast with the scent of woodsmoke: our actors had a fire burning on the beach where they re-enacted the resurrected Jesus greeting his disciples after an unsuccessful night's fishing. Jesus asks Peter three times if he really loves Him and commissions him to "Feed my sheep". This event is commemorated by a wonderful statue a few hundred metres along the shore at the Church of Peter's Primacy. Later we had a trip on Lake Galilee in a replica 1st-century fishing boat, on which our actors performed a sketch based on the miraculous catch of fish described in John ch.21. Repeated dramas brought home to me the importance of Mary's willingness to say "yes" to God, and her faith which enabled her to face the subsequent responsibilities and anguish. In the synagogue in Capernaum the actors "interviewed" the Centurion whose servant had been healed (John ch.7). Standing in the synagogue ruins, only a few feet above the spot where Jesus would have taught, was sufficient to give me goose-bumps.

Revelation 21 v5 It's almost impossible to make things new; we can make things almost 'as new' but to make things 'as new' would mean going right back to the beginning and starting afresh. I grew up in the years immediately following the second World War when money wasn't plentiful and my parents made every effort to economise. I had two pairs of shoes a year - sandals for the summer and lace-ups for the winter. The sandals were bought for Whitsun and would have to last over the summer until it was time for sturdier shoes for the winter. Winter always seemed to last longer then; hence shoes had to last longer - but no-one had told the soles! There would always come a time just before Easter when holes started to appear. This was when Dad retired to the garden shed (everyone should have a shed!) where he kept the necessary tools to repair the shoes. He would appear some time later with them looking like new; not completely new but certainly having new life in them. Dad was a cabinet-maker and worked at the local furniture factory. He would often come home with damaged doors or oddments of wood and proceed to make them into something beautiful; not new but as new. This is what God in Jesus does for us. He takes our tattered lives with all our faults and breathes new life into them. He makes something beautiful. The difference between my Dad and my Heavenly Father is that God is able to start from afresh with what we are and make us into something completely new. Through His Spirit living in us He is able to make a new life out of the remnants of the old. Not a life 'as new' but completely 'new'. He is able to wipe away our mistakes of the past and create in us a new soul. When God makes all things new, He makes us spiritually and morally new. We are entering a New Year; a new beginning, untouched, and untarnished. I always feel that with New Year's Eve there comes an invisible line when we can finally put behind us the things of the previous year and start afresh. Some things we like to remember such as new births, celebrations, the happy times. There are things, though, which we would prefer to forget; the times we have hurt those close to us with cruel words; the times we have hardened our hearts against those in need; the times we have hurt God. God forgives and forgets all those things. When we know Jesus, every day is New Year's Day! This special day gives us the opportunity to remember with praise and thanksgiving the things with which God has blessed us, and to reflect on the way we have known His presence through all our experiences during the past year. It is also a time to look forward with God over the coming year, trusting Him for guidance in our plans and the things we would like to accomplish. In all of this we must remember that this new year, 2008, is in God's hands. We may be disappointed when plans have to be changed but, if we believe that God is in control, then we will know it is for the best, and that what God has in mind will be even better. We will praise Him for all that is past, and trust Him for all that is to come. Dorothy R

At one time, my husband, Pete, flew model gliders. When the weather permitted, he would go into Knutsford's Tatton Park to fly his aeroplane, joined by several other enthusiasts. They would have a good time together discussing the various planes and just how well they flew (except when disaster struck and the plane crashed to the ground at the first flight!). Pete enjoyed it particularly when he 'found' a thermal and the plane just seem to float on the air. Have you ever noticed the birds high in the sky when they have found a thermal? I love watching them, especially the buzzards, as they float on the warm air without, seemingly, a care in the world. They have complete confidence in the air beneath them; they cannot see it but they can feel it. When we visited the Grand Canyon a few years ago, we stood on the rim marvelling at the view before us. As we looked down we could see, hundreds of feet below, what seemed to be long black objects on the rocks. We then realised that they were large vultures, resting on the rocks with their wings outstretched. They didn't have any worries; they were just content to rest and bask in the sun. Recently I received a letter from a friend in response to a card I had sent her. This friend is quite lonely and in her letter she told me of the dove and how, when it has thrown its young out of the nest to make them fly, she catches them under her wings and brings them safely back. Then she said that is what her Lord does for her. He sends someone to remind her that He will bear her up on eagles' wings. To me it was just a card but to her, in her loneliness, it was God saying that He still loves her. So often, in the Bible, the analogy of birds is used. We are told in Luke, chapter 13, that, as Jesus wept over Jerusalem, He told her how often He had longed to gather her children together as a mother hen shelters her chicks under her wings. Jesus reminds us that we have no need to worry. Again in Luke's Gospel, He reminds us that life is more than food and clothes. Think about the ravens; they don't sow or reap, yet God cares for them. He cares about the sparrows, and if He does that, then just how much more will He care for us. As we know though, things don't always go right, and we are often buffeted by life's winds but the beautiful verse in Isaiah 40 promises that God will lift us up on eagle's wings. Psalm 91 v4 tells us that God will cover us with His feathers and under His wings we will find refuge. And, in Deuteronomy we have that wonderful verse that underlines it all: 'The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms'. So the next time you see the birds floating in the air, imagine, if you can, the arms of our loving God beneath them - and beneath you. Dorothy R

I'm sure like many of you, my thoughts are turning towards Spring. The nights are getting lighter and bulbs are appearing in the garden. The snowdrop being the first flower to appear. A time of fresh hope and new beginnings. Nature and creation have always had a healing and restoring effect on me. It was about this time 15 years ago the Lord spoke to me so clearly through the snowdrops. At the time I was visiting a lady on a weekly basis who had a small orchard next to the house. Upon one of my visits this lady told me to go and look through the window. The sight that was before me was of a carpet of beautiful snowdrops, and was truly a breath taking sight. One I could have spent the rest of the day feasting my eyes on. That picture of beauty had a deep effect on me and stayed with me through the following week, and I pondered on it a great deal. What struck me was the pure whiteness, it was dazzling and how vulnerable they were… open to the harsh cold elements, and how fragile they looked in the winter sunshine. I couldn't wait for my next visit. This was fast becoming a weekly fix. But I was not prepared for the sight that was before me. All the snowdrops had been flattened by a hard frost and looked wiped out and dead. I was devastated and felt a deep sense of loss. Again, a sight that stayed with me through the following week. It was around this time I became aware the Lord was trying to get a message through to me. He seemed to be saying the pure whiteness represented purity. He wanted me as a pure clean vessel for Him to work through. The beauty of the snowdrops was how the Lord looked at me. I was beautiful in His sight. A thought that took a while to sink in. That I too was fragile and vulnerable, open to the buffetings of life that can knock the stuffing out of you, feeling knocked down and wondering if you will ever get back up again. I was amazed at the sight that faced me on my next visit. These vulnerable, fragile little flowers that were all flattened and looked dead the week before were now up again and swaying in the gentle breeze. Who would have believed that such tiny little flowers could ever have recovered after the harsh frost. Instead they looked like tiny little soldiers standing straight and tall with one noticeable difference. Those in the shade had their heads down. Whilst those in the sunshine had their heads turned up towards the sun, almost as if they were smiling. It seemed the Lord was saying to stand in the sunshine of His Love and I would find strength - healing and wholeness. I did share with a friend at the time that I felt the Lord was preparing me for whatever lay ahead. Which proved to be right and was a very painful time physically, mentally and emotionally. I could look back and remember His message, from which I did draw strength and renewed hope... and still do to this day. The Lord has spoken to me many times since, but this was an occasion where it went very deep and was very special, and will always remain so, because it speaks of God's love, care and compassion. It also gave me the strength to pick myself up and dust myself down and keep on going. It's wonderful how the Lord can reveal Himself when we just take the time to stop - stand, stare and ponder...

Some tips for reading bible passages in public

[Content: Copyright Peter P. Kenny, 1999-2003].

When most readers begin, they read as if they have been asked by a teacher in a lower school to fulfill a lesson: they read too quickly, without emphasis or phrasing, and without eye contact. They are often not loud enough.
Whenever we read in public, we are communicating a message with our presence, mostly in our voicing the words, but also in our body language which also should be given some attention.