Dear Friends,

This week my home has been filled with the joy and energy of grandchildren in their twenties. The piano which sadly does not get used regularly without John’s use carried the sounds of duets and laughter. Our oldest grandson accompanied me to visit his grandfather where we also sang a hymn which they jointly accompanied for our youngest grandson’s Baptism 15 years ago. This grandson like all the grandchildren bring out the best in John and the two had a wonderful conversation starting with the comment that both his grandparents were wearing jumpers with horizontal stripes. John replied that from where he was looking they seemed vertical, upright, just as he longed to be upright! John may no longer be able to stand ‘upright’ physically but his sense of uprightness in his demeanour grows daily as he leans into his love and trust in Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

This same demeanour can be found in the Saints we ponder as we celebrate ‘All Saints’ on Sunday. As we travel around our cities we will have discovered that our Churches, like us at St. Nicolas, are dedicated to a Saint and we have found ourselves googling to find out their story. Many may call to mind a Saint who has encouraged their journey of faith or read or heard a story of a life that has been a real expression of faith.

This same demeanour can be found in those we remember at the ‘All Soul’s’ service on Sunday afternoon when we remember and give thanks for those who have given life to us either physically or through relationships as relatives and friends.

The theme of remembrance continues in November as we remember on the 11th those who have given their lives for our freedoms through their service in the 19-14 and 1939-45 World Wars and all Wars subsequently.

To remember is a great gift and one we are appreciating more and more as we age. Not least for those who live in the fog of the various forms of dementia. What we must all do as we remember is to remember the importance of continuing to make memories. So my heart is filled with the thanksgiving of the memories made this week with our grandchildren.

In Christ, Daphne

Daphne Cook, LLM

Dear friends,
People often say nice things after my sermons, but I was particularly surprised last week after I spoke about St Luke (whose day it was) at the number of comments I received.

In my sermon I gave an overview of Luke’s Gospel (and his Acts of the Apostles), pulling out some distinctive threads under the motto ‘What did Luke ever do for us?’.

One of the specifically Lukan threads I mentioned was Luke’s peculiar habit of creating male-female pairings. The writer seems to have gone out of his way to follow stories about males with parallel stories about women. Mary’s Magnificat, for example, is the companion piece to Zechariah’s Benedictus. And the pairing extends to Luke’s parables. I also mentioned how rarely we tell the female versions perhaps, in part, because they are very short.

Several people told me afterwards how new and interesting this was to them. On the back of that, I decided on Wednesday’s mid-week communion to retell one of these female parables using the Godly Play story-telling technique:

“The kingdom of God is like leaven that a woman took and mixed with three measures of flour, until the whole batch was leavened” (Luke 13:20-21).

This is Luke’s companion-piece to the Parable of the Mustard Seed (Luke 13:18-19) and we’re perhaps encouraged to notice the similarities and contrast. Obviously, both stories are about how something small leads to something large. Both involve items that Jews were a bit suspicious of: mustard plants were considered weeds, and leaven (dough containing yeast) was one of the things that made a kitchen ritually unclean (hence it was removed from the house each year at Passover when unleavened bread was consumed instead).

If these two parables are about God and God’s kingdom we might notice that the Parable of the Leaven adds a new perspective: the male sower doesn’t have to do much other than planting the seed, whereas the woman would have to labour with heavy sticky dough for some time – does this indicate God’s effort? The mustard seed tree gives rest to the birds, whereas the enormous risen loaf is (presumably) baked and used to feed a large group of people – is this a hint at God’s kingdom being like a banquet? And the mustard seed story is set outdoors and is public; whereas the leaven story is indoors and private – does this hint at God’s secret actions?

If you have been intrigued by Luke’s peculiar habit, you too might like to check out some of his gender-pairs and notice what the female version brings to the message…

Rev Dr Mark Laynesmith

Dear friends,

Celebrating Tina and Ella’s special day last Sunday led me to reflect on my faith journey. I attended Aldrynton. Whilst not a church school we did have morning assembly and sang hymns. My family, at that point, were not church goers and yet singing ‘Jesus wants me for a sunbeam’ was a joy filled experience in my childhood and ended up feeling deeply personal. Something had been planted.

In secondary school Yr7 pupils were given a Gideons Bible. Out went late night Radio Luxemburg and in came reading the tiny, thin paged book packed with story, meaning, purpose and love. I needed to find my tribe I realised! I went looking for a building that looked like the churches on our Christmas cards and found St Peters. I recognised the stories from those thin pages painted onto the walls, carved into the stone and shining in the stained-glass windows. I wanted to know more but didn’t know who to ask. My journey to confirmation and beyond had started.

I have been endeavouring, in my own way, to shine for Jesus ever since I think. Choosing to chase sunbeams rather than shadows.
Doomscrolling means a certain type of algorithm feeds more darkness than is healthy, but my experience locally is different.
Children looking out for and supporting their peers in class. The children’s work offerings in Assembly. Generosity and care from Church people in a myriad of different ways both large and small. Using what has been given to help, support or enrich the lives of others. The kindness of strangers. These are the sunbeams I am chasing and want more of.

So dear reader, being sent out like the 72 in the Gospel is not difficult or complicated. You don’t have to have a degree or hold a title in the church or have a huge tool kit. Sunbeams germinate seeds and ripen fruit.
So go, just shine, like the sunbeam you are.

Love Julia

Julia Jones

Dear friends,

This week I came across a book which I hadn’t seen for a while. It’s a book of Celtic prayers from Iona* and was given to me when I was confirmed, here at St Nicolas, by Bishop Dominic in November 2002. We didn’t go to church when I was a child, and only really became involved with St Nicolas because Alex (my eldest) wanted to come to the family service after meeting our then vicar Dan Tyndall at the St Nicolas Toddler Group run by one Julia Jones. Blame any/all of them for me being here!

All of us have our own journey of faith. It might be a straight road, a winding lane, or sometimes feel like a labyrinth. There are hills and valleys, bright sunshine and shadow. Green pastures with quiet waters and rock strewn paths. But as the psalmist reminds us, we have a guide to protect us, nourish us and whose goodness and love will follow us all the days of our life.

Last week, baby Luca, supported by his family and friends, was baptised and began his journey. This week the lovely Ella and
Tina will be baptised at St Nicolas and confirmed by Bishop Mary at St Peter’s. Our love and prayers go to them and I’d like to pass on a Celtic prayer for their journey, from the book given to me at my confirmation:

Bless to me, O God, the earth beneath my feet.
Bless to me, O God, the path on which I go.
Bless to me, O God, the people whom I meet.
O God of all gods, bless to me my life.

Yours, as we journey together,
Wendy

* “Each Day and Each Night” by J. Philip Newell

Hi everyone,

I hope you’re well

In this week’s Gospel reading from Matthew 21:33–46, which I’m sure John will tell us all about, Jesus shares a parable about a landowner who builds a vineyard, only for the tenants to reject his servants and, ultimately, kill his son in an attempt to seize the inheritance.

Jesus uses this parable in a confrontation with religious leaders, and at the of it is a quote from Psalm 118: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone….”
Jesus was pointing to Himself. He is the cornerstone, the foundation upon which the entire Kingdom of God rests.

A few of our extended family are struggling with serious illness and we are struggling to find a way forward for and with them. Though we felt guilty about it, we took a much needed few days away this weekend and I found myself wondering… what can we do? and more importantly… what is my cornerstone?

It is easy to build our lives on temporary foundations; careers, financial security, reputations, or our skills. But when the storms of life arrive, these sort of foundations shake and quickly crumble. I mean what does a career matter when a loved one is declining?

But this parable is a reminder that Jesus invites us to build our lives on Him, the cornerstone, the only sure foundation that never shakes or breaks. And so I prayed, handing to God all the stress I’ve been holding onto too tightly. I prayed for our loved ones, I prayed for us, I prayed for the ability to release stress and rest.

As we look ahead to this Sunday, I encourage you to reflect on where you are placing your faith. Are there areas of your life where you are acting like the tenants, trying to run things on your own terms? Or are you allowing Jesus to be the cornerstone of your decisions, your family, and your future?

Prayers with you all
Emma

Emma Major, LLM

Dear Friends,

Last Saturday Julia and I hosted a Confirmation preparation day for Tina and Ella whose baptism and confirmation will be taking place soon, on Sunday 11th October.
For the part of the day focused on Jesus’ teachings, I retold the Parable of the Mustard Seed in Godly Play style, with a golden box, a yellow-seed like piece of material, a cut-out tree shape and a picture of a man:
“The kingdom of God is like a man who took a mustard seed and planted it in a field; it grew and became a great tree, and the birds of the air came and made their nests in it.”
That’s it! So simple! But what does it mean? Godly Play invites us to ‘wonder’ about the possible answers. A few days ago I retold the parable with the Wednesday morning Communion congregation in place of a sermon. What did we make of it?
Some of us thought the ‘man’ was Jesus planting the ‘seed’ of faith in our lives, and the ‘birds’ were those we cared for. Others wondered if we were the ‘man’ planting the ‘seed’ of good works in the world, which grow up and help others to feel at home. I wondered if the ‘seed’ might be the original congregation of St Nic’s, and the ‘tree’ the church that has grown since, and the ‘birds’ those who currently nest here as they pass through life…
Who knows? The point of the parables is to invite listeners to think for themselves. Jesus’ attitude to preaching allowed great freedom in his listeners, and it also showed great confidence in their capacity to respond.
What might the parable of the mustard seed tell you about what ‘the Kingdom of God’ might be like, where it might be, and what your place might be in it?

Revd Dr Mark Laynesmith

Dear Friends,

We have all done it, we have all been there. We know how righteous indignation makes us seethe and boil. I was recently been affected by the reports of angry men in balaclavas blocking coaches to take migrants picked up by RNLI lifeboats in Portsmouth to Dover. My indignation heightened when it was disclosed that RNLI volunteers had faced unacceptable abuse.

Then, I was aware that when the ‘Assisted Dying Bill’ was rejected in parliament that there were many who would have experienced boiling point in their indignation and frustration.

It takes us a long time to realise that those who have a different point of view, or who are different in their way of thinking or different in their needs are all God’s people and are loved and cared for by him. God does not fix boundaries or limits which labels some as deserving while others are decidedly not.

Jesus reached out to the tax collector and sat at table with prostitutes showing in practice the way God loved. All this was to the disgust of the religious leaders who thought they knew better how a prophet ought to behave and with whom he should spend time.

As we hear the news or read reports of the news, may we all seek to endeavour to grasp the wider and more far reaching picture of the nature of God’s loving towards all his people.

Help us to work for a better world,
Where all people are given a chance
To live healthy and worthwhile lives
Where the dream of justice for all can come true,
And where God’s compassion is shown to be real.
Amen

In Christ,
Daphne

Daphne Cook, LLM

Dear Friends,

I don’t know about you but I really noticed the change in the season this week. Not just the rain but a cooling down. Socks were back on this week too, sad face moment.

At work (REinspired) The new term has started, planning has been completed, REi sessions, craft cafe, quiz nights, volunteer training events. Some volunteers are stepping back for a while others step forward. As always, it feels like a season of change, ebb and flow. Challenge and adjustment. Taking stock and reimagining what we can do with what we have, whist dreaming of what could be and how we might achieve it. So much of this dance starts with prayer and leaning into Gods grace, having confidence in his provision and the way he works through people and situations. Looking for openings that we can lean into.

You will know by now that I am a glass half full kinda person and for me challenges are an opportunity with a different hat on. I am always amazed at what God can do in our every day and sometimes you can miss his response if you are not keeping your eyes/heart open. Other times his response or answer is so obvious, it takes your breath away.

So dear reader, what have my musings highlighted for me this week.
Ebb and flow, challenge and adjustment is normal and as natural as the changing seasons. When we are anxious lean into prayer and keep your eyes open for his reply… be prepared also, to be the answer for someone else’s need or prayer too. He really does ‘work in mysterious ways his wonder to perform’. This line, I realise (curtsey of Mr Google pants) is by the English poet William Cowper, from his hymn ‘Light shining out of darkness’. It’s words landed rather meaningfully with me this week. If you get chance, check it out and tell me what few lines landed for you.

Love Julia

Dear Friends,

I know some of you weren’t thrilled with the rain falling this bank holiday, but what a refreshment it was after the long, hot, parched summer months. I laid awake one night listening to the wind and rain and gave thanks to God for the blessings of water falling from the sky. The farmers are beyond desperate for it, our gardens are revived by it, the depleted reservoirs can start to slowly refill and the natural world in all is forms will breathe a sigh of relief.

As the seasons change we, along with churches all around the country, are entering the Season of Creation, from September 1st through October 4th. This year’s theme is, appropriately, “Living Water,” inspired by Ezekiel 47. I will share more about these verses on Sunday, but in summary they remind us of God’s promise to heal, renew, and bring life to even the most barren places.

Over the next four weeks, we will join together in worship, prayer, reflection and action as we celebrate the beauty of God’s earth and reflect on our shared responsibility to care for it.

On Sunday members of JPEG (Justice, Peace and Environment Group) will lead us as we begin a journey of renewal together, opening our hearts to the flowing stream of God’s grace as we commit to nurturing the world around us.

We will also introduce the brand new annual lifestyle survey which Joanna has written about here:

Lifestyle Survey
As part of our journey to becoming a Gold EcoChurch we’re inviting everyone in the congregation to get involved in thinking about how our lifestyles reflect our concern for Creation. After the service this Sunday, we would be hugely grateful if you could take the time to fill out a lifestyle survey for us – something we hope to do every year in Creation Season so that we can measure how things change. It’s easiest for us if you can fill it out online at https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/eWxZrCCQf1  but paper versions will be provided too.
It’s completely anonymous and you’ve got until 27 September to fill them in. If you have any questions, please ask Wendy or Emma.

Emma Major, LLM

Dear Friends,

Once again I’m away from home writing this email (“She’s not on her travels AGAIN!”, I hear you say). An invitation from a friend to visit her in Canada was not to be missed. Canada is a big country, and we are only seeing a tiny bit. I have been in awe of the forests, the lakes, the animals (I saw a beaver!) and the especially the clouds, they seem somehow more defined.

As we approach the season of Creation, it’s a good time to remember that one of the ways we can experience God’s love for us is through nature. First Nations people in Canada have long realised that if we care for creation, it will in turn sustain us.

We can experience God’s love in many other ways: in scripture – I’m sure we all have Bible verses we turn to (e.g. 1 John 4:16) Some of us may even have had personal experiences where we have felt enfolded in God’s love. We can also experience the love of God though the kindness of others – and on this trip we have definitely been greeted with warmth and kindness as the Canadian people live up to their reputation of being super friendly.

However we experience the love of God, the more we want to love him and the more that love can then shine out of us to those we meet.

It’s about being open, eh?
Wendy

Wendy Neale