Jenny’s letter 21st July
Dear Friends,
Some good things have happened this week. First, I notice that since our ‘emergency’ prayer meeting we have had children in church every Sunday. Just one or two but it’s a start. I also feel that I have been working under a powerful sense of God’s protection around us.
Another good thing that has happened recently, is that we have a full team of Churchwardens who have complementary skills. They have taken from me so much of the work to do with finance (alongside Julie our treasurer), the maintenance of church and churchyard, organising the sheds behind the centre, the feeding families project and the growth and development of the centre in conjunction with Sue Jones and a wider centre team. We have many others who are responsible for different elements of the life and work of our church.
Most of the people in that team now have stbarnabasbromborough.org email addresses which you can find on this website.
Some of you may wonder what I am doing. I am still the leader and present in as many of those things as require my support, direction and attention. However, I believe God is calling me to do more as teacher and pastor. That is the main spiritual role of the priest though these days, running a parish is about much more than that. I am now leading a home group at my house on a Wednesday afternoon. I will also be picking up the home group which was at Malcolm and Denise’s house. Preaching is mostly mine to prepare for on Wednesday and Sunday and it’s time to fit in some more visits to people in hospital and at home. It would be good to run another Bible Course too – it is excellent material, and those of you who have yet to do it will find it interesting.
Regarding Bible study, I want to reinforce the fact that you are not expected to be good at reading. I don’t force anyone to read or pray aloud and most of The Bible Course is done using a TV and through discussion.
Finally, the PCC agreed to the terms offered by the Diocesan Board of Education (DBE) for a new lease on School House, the Village School and the land behind. Some of you will recall that these buildings had a 20-year lease and that it lapsed more than eight years ago.
Since then, there has been a continual headache, in terms of how we might enter into an affordable new lease. The proposal offered, and accepted, is that our payments will be linked to the rentable value of the property, currently set at £18,000. That figure is NOT the purchase price but the valuation for rent.
The proportion we pay will rise incrementally each year, for a period of six years, by which time the church will be paying 70 percent of the rentable value. This equates to £12,600. At that point the amount payable will be reviewed in the light of inflation. The PCC believes this is a good offer and, while it’s sympathetic to our situation, it sets us a challenge, too. With a newly signed lease we will now be free to apply for grants to support work in the school and house. Without a lease, we have been unable to do this.
I marvel at the way that God works. We see this when we are listening, being faithful and are willing to do as he asks. Sometimes working out what that is can be hard. Often, it can feel counter intuitive and certainly in opposition to the values of the world.
Luke 12.31 reminds us to Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. The point to note there, is the word need which is different to want (NLT). Sometimes we must adjust our thinking away from want and that is not always easy.
I am aware that some of you may read this and be suffering from ill health or supporting another who is sick in mind, body or spirit; you need to be well or need them to be well. Why does God not answer your prayers? Sometimes he does but the reality is that we still live in an imperfect world.
However, this life is the short bit. Eternity, promised to those who love God, is permanent and without any of the pain and struggling we know now. Therefore, for now, we must in the words of the hymn, ‘Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.’
I pray that you will have a good week ahead and know Jesus in your daily life.
