| The Encourager - October 2002 | ||||
| Taking things for granted? |
Nigel Write about...Taking Things for
Granted?
On a visit to the Eden Project this summer it wasn't possible to miss the following information displayed in the main entrance area:- If you could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following: There would be: 57 Asians 21 Europeans 14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south 8 Africans
52 would be female
48 would be male
70 would be non white
30 would be white
70 would be non Christian
30 would be Christian
6 people would possess 59%
of the entire world's wealth and all 6 would be from the United States
of America
80 would live in substandard housing 70 would be unable to read 50 would suffer from malnutrition 1 would be near death 1 would be near birth 1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education 1 would own a computer
This made me realise how
much I can take for granted as normal. What is normal and natural for
me would be out of this world for the majority of the world's
population. Am I in danger of taking things for granted? You bet I am.
I expect food to be in the cupboard. I expect the central heating to
be available when I am a bit chilly. I expect the electricity to be
available 24 hours a day.
Do I have certain expectations of God as well? You bet I do. I expect him to be there when I want him (like the fifth emergency service after the Police, Ambulance, Fire Brigade and AA/RAC). I expect him to answer my prayers. I expect him to grant me a good, healthy, stress free and peaceful life. It is human nature to think that the world should revolve around us, or even better, me. But it is not God's way. He invites us to take ourselves from the centre of life (and our lives) and to put him at the centre. He invites us to see the world, ourselves and Him not from our own perspective, but from his. Psalm 8 helps us to do this: O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honour. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! Why should he bother with us? Because of his love for each and every person on the planet - who ever they are and wherever they might be.
The September meeting was on home ground
at St Johns. The principle item was a presentation by Maureen
Browell, the Diocesan Social Responsibility Officer, on her work in
the Diocese with a brief discussion on what we felt to be the main
Social issues in our area and ideas on how the Church can respond.
Maureen then discussed the work of Leeds Family Welfare (LFW) which is sponsored by the Diocese and Leeds City Council, and is an independent social work agency originally set up to help meet the needs of young pregnant women and lone parents throughout Leeds. It has subsequently evolved to include support for families with young children, but only in Leeds 10 ( Middleton, Belle Isle & Hunslet). The agency currently employs 3 part time social workers and a part time secretary. Areas of work include :- * Intensive support and preventive work with lone parents and families where there are childcare concerns but no statutory involvement. * Work with parents and children where there is statutory involvement, although LFW will have no key child protection role. * Counselling, support and limited material aid for families/lone parents. * Development work
Practical examples of these include
support in dealing with other agencies such as housing, schools etc,
holiday activities with children, advice on benefits, debt
counselling etc.
The majority of referrals are from Health Visitors, and Social Workers but can include referrals from others such as the Education Authority, GP's etc. The referrals will generally be in respect of cases not yet serious enough to justify remedial local authority involvement but where preventative involvement is felt likely to have a positive outcome. As such, LFW performs a valued and successful role. Indeed this is recognised to such an extent that it receives partial Local Authority funding. Sadly, it was reported that due to the financial difficulties, the Diocese gave 2 years notice that it will cease funding after December 2002. LFW subsequently established itself as a Charity to facilitate applications for Grant Aid but out of 75 applications has only received £5,000 against a projected £47,000 shortfall, with a consequent threat to staffing and the good work of the organisation. We frequently complain about the Parish Share payments to the Diocese and the need for the Diocese to trim its costs. It seems that here is a consequence of the cost cutting and efficiencies we have been demanding!
Roger Henderson
Pastoral
Care Team |
WHO IS THE GROUP FOR?
The group is for anyone who would like to learn more about the Christian faith. You may like to join us if: ¨ you have big questions about life and God, or about the relevance of the Christian faith today. ¨ you have recently started coming to church and would like to go deeper. ¨ you have been a Christian for some years but you would value a refresher in the Christian faith. ¨ you have recently become a Christian and you would like to become established in the basics of the faith. ¨ you have joined St Barnabas from another church and would like to explore the different ways of ‘being church’ WHAT WILL HAPPEN? The Christians for Life course aims to give basic teaching on what Christians believe, on how Christians grow and on practical Christian living today. There will be some teaching input each week, with time for discussion and a chance to ask questions. WHEN AND WHERE? The group will be meeting on Monday evenings, beginning on Monday 29th October. The group will be led by Nigel Beer, Derek and Jenny Thomas. We will meet for fifteen sessions in all. All of the meetings will be at 2 Quarry Gardens at 8.00pm For more information email or speak to Nigel Beer.
On a wet and murky night shadowy figures
could be seen furtively making their way toward the church hall. The DCC
was meeting again.
In view of the deficit between our giving and the budget the DCC had previously invited Paul Winstanley, the Diocesan Stewardship Advisor, to come and speak about Stewardship at the first meeting following the summer break. Before Paul spoke Len gave an update of the situation. Our giving is currently 5.3% down on last year and we are 11% below our revised budget. Fifteen out of 66 planned givers have increased their giving Paul gave us a background of his role in the diocese and how he carries it out. His views on stewardship are that it involves receiving from God as well as giving to God. We should have the “right attitude to gratitude”, that time and talents are also important as well as money. He then went on to outline the various forms that stewardship campaigns can take and what we need to do should we wish to undertake one. The DCC then discussed the need for a campaign and agreed that the planning for one should be undertaken within the life of the current DCC. The vicar and churchwardens have very recently received copies of the quinquennial report on the church buildings and this will be discussed further at a future meeting. A proposal for a Harvest Lunch to follow Harvest Festival on 6 October organised by the Wednesday House Group was accepted. Planning is well advanced for the Nia concert and the Light Party and the Outreach Group have plans for several other events, watch the notice boards. Nigel asked that Sue Scaife be included on the list of people licensed to give communion. This was agreed and the meeting then ended in prayer
Grahame Barker
Coffee Morning in Aid of "The House of Hope" in Bethlehem
International Christian artist Nia, returns
to Moortown for the last concert in her multimedia WWJD British tour
supported by United Christian Broadcasters. Nia then goes to the US for
her Fall Tour, returning to the UK for her Christmas Tour.
ABC School was such a great venue last year, Nia wanted her 2002 Leeds concert here again. We are thrilled she's coming back. If you haven't already seen her, don't miss this time. You will be impressed! Nia's from Wales; home is in south Leeds but she spends most of the year travelling in concert or on mission trips around the world. Since the age of 16 and for the last 15 years she has been actively following Jesus and says, 'God has been so faithful in enabling us to handle more than would ever seem possible looking at tasks on a human level. In miraculous ways the impossible seems to become the norm and we marvel at what God is doing through the ministry'. The concert includes video footage of recent mission work in Armenia, Romania, Haiti and Honduras and challenges our response to the question, 'What would Jesus do?' Two new CDs are released in conjunction with the tour. Nia has a wide range of music styles and there is something for everyone, young and old. All proceeds from CDs, tapes and other items on sale at the concerts go to support Nia's mission work, such as in Romania where the Housing and Feeding Project supplies 125 families every month. Nia, as Vice President of the organisation that heads Operation Christmas Child's Shoebox Gift Collection also visits schools. Tickets are £3 available by phoning the Nia national hotline on 2165796 or emailing us directly.
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