23rd August 2020

Final Edition of Daily Devotions through Lockdown

This is going to be quite a tough edition to write as I know many of you have truly appreciated the Daily Devotions that you have been receiving. Thank you so very much for the regular emails of encouragement that I have received through this season of ministry for me.

After having completed 150 daily devotions in sequence I have felt that I need to take some time out to simply be! Gay and I hope to visit some of our precious friends who we have not seen for the duration of lockdown and I hope to take some time out on retreat in the near future. Both of these activities will take us out of normal Wi-Fi reception.

During this break I hope to consider how I might continue writing in one form or another and I can’t really get my head around that process while I am committed to the preparation of the Daily Devotions.

Even this change, I pray, is an indication that God is drawing us out of this pandemic. I know that numbers are high but recoveries are looking good and the numbers of folk dying of through the pandemic looks like it is dropping.

I really do need to thank each one of you for the privilege it has been to have you “on my radar screen” every day. I will continue to pray with many of you who have asked for prayer.

If the Lord leads me to put out a new form of devotions in the future I will notify those on my email address of my intentions and you may then “re-subscribe” if you feel the new format will meet your particular needs.

I close with the beautiful benediction from Jude 24 & 25

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling

and to present you blameless

before the presence of his glory with great joy,

to the only God, our Saviour,

through Jesus Christ our Lord,

be glory, majesty, dominion,

and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

r.penrith52@gmail.com

0832709942

23rd August 2020

Day 150 of Lockdown – Who would have thought?

Happy quotes for Lockdown:-

“You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think, and loved more than you’ll ever know.” — A.A. Milne author of Winnie-the-Poo! (That has got to help get you going today!)

And another….

“Try to be like the turtle – at ease in your own shell.” — Bill Copeland, Poet

I loved this quote and couldn’t help putting up a picture of my grand-daughter, suitably mask-ready, in the Addo Elephant Park, naming a tortoise and filming the process. Sheldon was the name Amelia chose for it – I am sure that is one of many names families have given to this tortoise who is resident at Jack’s Place in the Addo Park. Amelia and I decided that dear Sheldon had very few things to worry about under the protection of his/her shell. You could see how content Sheldon was to be tickled and rubbed on the shell while continuing to enjoy the delectable grasses and ground cover provided by the Creator. Sheldon even seemed like he/she exemplified A.A. Milnes quote above. Amelia certainly expressed her love for the creature.

Nearly 2000 years ago Paul the Apostle grasped the truth contained within A A Milne’s quote above. You get the sense in reading Philippians 4:1-13 that Paul understood how resilient and strong and loved a believer can feel when he/she understands that we are able, as Paul puts it, “to do all things through Him who strengthens me!” (v 13) “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” (v 19).  That feels to me, like a protective shell must feel to a tortoise – safe and secure and ‘more loved that I can ever imagine’ (Milne)

Before you set off this morning why not consecrate your life to God by listening to the song from Hillsong, “Lord, I come to you”, and begin to flow with the words and the music into the protective and all-embracing arms of Jesus. I can assure you that that will feel so much like a protective shell from the trials and tribulations of Covid and the stresses and strains of life around you.

Teach me, my Father, to look to Jesus each moment of the day for my strength, and not to rely on my own imperfect, human abilities and intelligence, for without You I can do nothing. But thanks be to God that as I rest in Christ Jesus, He will empower me through the indwelling Holy Spirit to carry out Your will for my life.

Father, I confess that without You I can do nothing – but thanks be to God that I can do all things through Christ, Who strengthens me, through the power of the Holy Spirit – to You be praise and glory forever, AMEN.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

r.penrith52@gmail.com

0832709942

22nd August 2020

Obey and Abide

In his book, The True Vine, Andrew Murray has a chapter entitled ‘Obey and Abide’. I have been a fan of Andrew Murray’s writings and especially enjoy his reflections on John 15 relating to the discourse of Jesus on the Vine and the invitation to abide in him as a branch abides in a vine.   He wrote a separate book entitled ‘Abide in me’ on a similar theme. Andrew Murray’s stated vision was that all Christians would come to know the Lord as the true Vine.

Andrew Murray (1828-1917) was a prolific author. His father, Andrew Murray Sr. (1794–1866), was a Dutch Reformed Missionary sent from Scotland to South Africa as a missionary. Andrew (junior) lived and ministered as both a pastor and a writer here in South Africa and lived and worked in many of our country towns. He was born in Graaff-Reinet and died in Wellington, Cape. He pastored churches in Bloemfontein, Worcester, Cape Town, and Wellington. Murray considered missions to be “the chief end of the church”.

We still have much to learn from these early pioneers of mission in Southern Africa as their writings are rich and contextual. If you can get hold of any of Murray’s books you will discover that they are rich and rewarding to read and leave you with thoughts and challenges that will be fresh food for your soul.

We only have space, this morning, to be challenged by a couple of pages in the section which I referred to in my opening paragraph.

The chapter is based on John 15:10, ‘If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.’  He reflects on this verse by considering the words surrender and consecration.

I truly cherish the concept of abiding in Christ! Jesus’ love and protection and warmth just make that such a comforting place to be – secure and embraced! Separate from the hustle and bustle of worldly life and chaos – resting in the arms of Jesus!

That is exactly what Murray meant by surrender or consecration. He puts it this way, “The soul realizes that it cannot claim the keeping of this wonderful love unless it yields itself to a life of entire obedience.”

Do you love Jesus that much that you are convicted that your only response can be to abide (fully) in Christ through consecrating yourself to Him? Paul puts it this way in Romans 12:1, ‘And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.’(NLT) or put in a slightly different way by Eugene Peterson, ‘So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.’(The Message)

That is what it means to surrender all or consecrate yourself fully to God through Jesus Christ. When you are able to make this move you are living in the Vine and Christ makes His home with you. It is that simple!!

Jesus said: “If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love” (John 15:10:NIV)

A beautiful hymn set to the words of John 15:1-11 is by John Michael Talbot and is called “I am the Vine”. Listen to this beautiful rendition. Please take note of the incredibly picture of a vine on the screen as the song begins

Now as you go into the day ahead – walk with Jesus, consecrated to Him alone and follow the path that Christ has set for you – fully surrendered and trusting in Him.

Andrew Murray finishes this chapter with this prayer: –

Gracious Lord, teach me this lesson,

that it is only by knowing Your will that one can know your heart.

Only through doing that will – can one abide in your love.

Lord, teach me that as worthless as is the doing in my own strength,

So essential and absolutely indispensable is the doing of faith in your strength,

If I want to abide in your love. I do, Lord! I do! (my words added here)

Amen

21^st August 2020

How can I resist evil?

As a result of a conversation I had with someone recently and after watching too much news on the box over Lockdown, I have realized that folk are fighting an insidious attack from the evil one over this period of Lockdown. For some, Lockdown has left a huge gap in their lives into which they have allowed the temptations of the evil one to fill. On a community scale, it seems that we have never encountered as much corruption and lawlessness than ever before. On a smaller scale, households are being severely affected by addictions and abuse, petty thieving and worse. We are frightened! Lord protect us from evil!

I was reminded of a quote that I copied down from an Alpha teaching on this very subject. The quote is from a William Peter Blatty, who was an American writer and filmmaker best known for his 1971 novel The Exorcist – so he was well acquainted with the demonic. He presented this quote alongside an advertisement for his film series, the Exorcist:  ‘As far as God goes, I am a non-believer…but when it comes to the devil –well that’s something else …the devil keeps advertising….the devil does lots of advertising’. Many succumb to the devils seemingly-attractive advertising.

In these days of Lockdown, I propose that there is a very pertinent phrase that should mobilize us into caution – ‘The devil makes work for idle hands’  – a phrase that expresses the idea that trouble, or evil, arises from not keeping busy.

Chaucer’s Melibeus, circa 1405: ( I can just hear you saying ‘so who is Chaucer?’ – well, you can see from his sentence here that he was some old dude who definitely couldn’t spell!). He wrote: ‘Dooth somme goode dedes, that the deuel, which is oure enemy, ne fynde yow nat vnocupied.’ For those who just can’t read Chaucer, the translation is simply: ‘Do some good deeds, so that the Devil, which is our enemy, won’t find you unoccupied.’

It is so interesting that this is not a new problem experienced over the centuries during periods of pandemic. I discovered the following titbit of information while scrolling through various pandemics over the ages which confirms that Lockdowns certainly have a dark underbelly. I quote from ‘The Insider of 1848’ which, reflecting on the Cholera Pandemic of that time in England and Wales, published this warning, “The boys are not permitted to idle away their time in the streets,… for the inhabitants firmly believe that ‘the devil finds work for idle hands to do” (Wikipedia on Pandemics).

I am fully aware that none of you who read this devotion have any trouble with temptations by way of thoughts, words or deeds, action or reactions, and so I want to assure you that I am giving you this so that you can pass it on to someone else who is clearly up to mischief (Ja, sure!!! It might be good to read: ‘… every inclination of our hearts are evil from childbirth’ (Genesis 8:21), and ‘All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God’ (Romans 3:23)

In any event, I do need to stress that what I am speaking about is real! If it wasn’t so, the Bible would be silent on it. Yet, the Word of God is quite clear that the reality of the evil-one moving among us, looking for soft targets, is genuine and needs a defensive plan for the believer.

Let’s begin by naming the reality that we are facing by referring to Ephesians 6:12, where Paul tells us, ‘For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.’

My own reading around the work of the Celtic Saints of the 4-9^th Centuries is that Christendom has always been very aware of the need to be vigilant against the prowling devil in our midst: ‘……. They saw Christ’s mission not in terms of confronting an intrinsically corrupt world but rather of liberating an essentially good world from its bondage to evil forces. They saw Christ Jesus as the great liberator and emancipator, the one who draws us into the glorious liberty of the children of God. (Romans 8;20) They saw him as the Christus Victor, triumphant on the cross having done battle with the devil and won.’ (The Celtic Way by Ian Bradley)

So, let us stand up against the powers and principalities of this world and consciously seek the Lord day by day. Intercede fervently and ask the Lord to protect you, and your loved ones, from evil and use every gift and fruit of the Holy Spirit to encourage others to walk in the light of the Lord. Let’s call on our great liberator and emancipator, Jesus, and submit to his love and grace so that we may be drawn into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

This song might just help you put into words the prayer on your heart. ‘Guide me, O, Thou great Jehovah’ is a hymn-prayer asking God to lead us through these troubled times with our eyes firmly fixed upon Jesus. Here it is sung by the young people of Fountainview Academy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2QvFKKCzzs. (As you know I really feel ministered to when I am under the ministry of young people!)

In closing, I find that the last three verses of the wonderful hymn, Abide with me, form a powerful prayer against the attack of the evil one and gives one a glorious acclamation of victory on which to close your prayer:-

Lord Jesus, I need thy presence every passing hour.
What but thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who like thyself my guide and strength can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me’

I fear no foe with thee at hand to bless,
ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.
Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if thou abide with me.
Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes.
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.
Heaven’s morning breaks and earth’s vain shadows flee;
in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me. Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

​r.penrith52@gmail.com​

0832709942

20th August 2020

Eternity in our hearts

One of South Africa’s notoriously funny comedians made this comment at a political rally a number of years ago. I won’t mention his name – but I do need to say that he is not a comedian in the sense that we understand the craft of regular comedians to be. This man is just funny because of the bizarre things that he comes up with. He is reported to have said:- “When you vote for the – – -, you are also choosing to go to heaven. When you don’t vote for the – – – you should know that you are choosing that man who carries a fork … who cooks people,”

Now, you do understand that politicians go to great lengths to catch their prey – but this was just going a mile too far.  I guess that one could categorize our comics comments as simply inappropriate hyperbole? (I wonder?)

The Bible uses hyperbole on many occasions as well, as it is an acceptable literary tool in the hands of the storyteller and even the Biblical authors. My family and I are always joking about exaggeration for effect – hyperbole it is called. Bullinger defines hyperbole as: “when more is said than is literally meant” (Billinger, 1968)

To illustrate further, consider Mark 1:4-5: “John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins” Taken literally, these verses would mean that John baptized every single person (man, woman, and child) in all of Judea and Jerusalem. But these verses are not to be taken literally. They are utilizing hyperbole, in which intentional “exaggeration” is employed to explain that John’s baptism was extremely popular.

Exaggeration for effect! Hyperbole.

We all “major on the minors” (ooops, another hyperbole!). We get stuck on the issues of this life and forget that this life is merely a time of preparation for the life that is to come.

How ready are you for the life that is promised through John 6:47 ‘If you believe you have eternal Life.’ How deeply do you long for the promises of John 14:2f: ‘My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?’ Have you given thought to how precious that is going to be? Many are scared to think about heaven, and I fear that this means that they hang on to the things of this life – and my heart breaks for them. We may well be blessed in this life but the promises of the Father and of the Son through Holy Scripture means that we can justifiably look with expectation and longing for the time when we will be before the Father in heaven – together with the multitude of those who have gone before us in the faith.

I love this prayer from Sir Francis Drake – I believe that I might have shared it before. Nevertheless, it is worth revisiting in light of my thoughts today.

Sir Francis Drake’s Prayer

Disturb us, LORD, when we are too pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little;  when we arrive safely because we sailed too close to the shore.
Disturb us Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; when having fallen in love with life we have ceased to dream of eternity, and in our efforts to build a new earth we have allowed our vision of the New Heaven to dim.
Disturb us Lord, to dare boldly to venture onto wilder seas where storms will show Your mastery; where losing sight of land we shall find the stars.
We ask you, LORD, to push back the horizons of our hopes and to push back the future in strength, hope, courage and love. This we ask in the Name of our Captain, who is Jesus Christ. Amen.

Here is an ancient hymn – thought to date back to AD 275 – which speaks to me of the quiet anticipatory hope that one needs to hold for the promised glory of heaven. It is the hymn ‘Let all mortal flesh keep silence’, and it comes from the group ‘A Band called Kin’. I chose it because it is such a refreshing sound from young people singing an ancient hymn. That does my heart good!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWTdLD5w92c

Think on these things without fear of losing anything – but in the light of gaining the full gift of God!

In closing, I invite you to pray this prayer from the writings of David Adam.

God of the deep

Pour your eternity into our hearts

For we hunger and thirst for you

Lord, we seek to live in you

And to know you live in us

Drive away doubt and darkness

That in your Presence we may rejoice

Drive away all fear and anxiety

That in your love we may have hope

amid the storm and tempest

And in your deep peace we may rest.

(Island of Light; David Adam)

 Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

​r.penrith52@gmail.com​

0832709942

19^th August 2020

The Power of the Wind

Port Elizabeth has long been held as the Friendly City. Although Port Elizabethans are loathed to admit to this, we are also disparagingly referred to as the Windy City. ‘Tis not true!!

I have to confess, though, that we certainly lived up to that slanderous description in the middle of the night last night. There were gusts of wind that ripped through our garden and knocked over garden furniture and water containers left out in the rain. It felt as if the whole house was shaking and that the roof would blow right off!! I had joked, in a recent Zoom meeting with folk in Cape Town, that we get nothing like the power of the notorious wind described as the Cape Doctor which blows through Cape Town. Understandably, there were some cynical looks that were observable on the little Cape Town screens on our Zoom board!!

This thought pattern got me thinking of the work of God, the Holy Spirit.

Do you remember that reading in Acts 2 on that pivotal moment in God’s salvation history when the disciples were gathered in Jerusalem (where Jesus had instructed them to wait just before he ascended into heaven)? 1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit… (Acts 2:1-4

That must, initially, have been a terrifying experience, I imagine. And yet, it was the theophany of the Almighty revealed through the promised coming of the Holy Spirit. This was the promise of the Father that Jesus promised in Acts 1:4-5, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the Promise of the Father, which you have heard Me speak about. For John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now”

The Holy Spirit is metaphorically described as a dove (or a wild goose in Celtic writings) or as a mighty wind in Scriptures. This picture of the Holy Spirit breathing life into creation (Genesis 1) and breathing new life into believers is a common picture in our understanding of the work of the Spirit.

Do you feel as if you need a new anointing of the spiritual equivalent of the Cape Doctor? If you feel like your life is a bit of a mess, or in a bit of a rut, or even in the midst of chaos remember that it was the Holy Spirit, the wind of the Spirit, the breath of God that breathed life into creation in Genesis 1. Pray that God will breathe new life into your life today. Why not get down on your knees and invite the wind of the Holy Spirit to blow the chaff out of your spiritual lives. The wind of the Spirit to blow into your sails and give you a new perspective and a new horizon to aim for now that Lockdown has opened up.

In one of the versions of Evening Prayer that I use is this helpful prayer:-

Risen Christ,

you burst from the grave;

help us to burst into life.

You breathed on your disciples;

breathe your life into us.

Lockdown has given us this once in a lifetime opportunity to draw apart and restructure our lives in so many ways. It is a moment that we should savour rather than despise. How much more precious won’t our memories be if we can reflect in the future back to a time when the Holy Spirit blew new life into our faith journey. How much more exciting will it be if we can look back and say that during these times the wind of the Spirit entered our sails and blew us into new experiences of God’s gracious provision, protection, and a new vision for our relationship with the Lord.

Let’s open ourselves to the wind of the Spirit and rest secure as we are led in new directions in all aspects of our lives. Listen to this anthem written by Margaret Rizza entitled “A prayer for peace”. While it is a prayer for peace it is one that asks the Lord to begin that journey of peace by changing the things that bind us by blowing them away:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=typDExcuW78

Ray Simpson, the founding Guardian of the Community of Aidan and Hilda offers us this prayer taken from Margaret Rizza’s anthem of the same name:

Lead me from that which binds to that which frees,

Lead me from that which cramps to that which creates,

Lead me from that which lies to that which speaks truth,

Lead me from that which blights to that which ennobles,

Lead me from that which hides to that which celebrates,

Lead me from that which fades to that which endures. Amen

(Exploring Celtic Spirituality by Ray Simpson)

Be blessed this day, cobwebs blown away and new sights set on where the wind of the Spirit will take you tomorrow.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

r.penrith52@gmail.com

0832709942

18^th August 2020

Celtic Promptings

Over the last 20 odd years, I have had the privilege to grow in my appreciation of the spirituality of the ancient Celts who moved across the outer lands of the United Kingdom bringing refreshing and revitalizing faith and focus to the peoples of those lands. Aside from being passionate evangelists the early Celtic saints brought a new movement of prayer and contemplation that has become the cornerstone activity in many of our lives.

Bishop Eric Pike (retired – ja sure!) is our founding elder and mentor of a group of dispersed Celtic Christians spread across Southern Africa. We have appropriated the title of the “Mzantsi Celtic Community of Southern Africa” (Mzantsi being a Xhosa word for “southern”).

I was browsing through some of the teachings and retreats that Bishop Eric has blessed us with over the years as August is the time of year when we would, ordinarily, gather at the beautiful retreat centre and guesthouse or Carmel, outside George in the Western Cape. That won’t happen this year and so I have been feeling nostalgic!

My eyes fell on a teaching that I would like to encourage you to take cognizance of in your quiet times and growth times with the Lord during lockdown. What better way to grow positively during Covid than using the space you have to draw nearer to God. Here is a pattern that I used based on Bishop Eric’s encouragement.

I am sure that, both in the morning and in the afternoon, there will be space for a period of about twenty minute’s quiet reflection. Below is a pattern you may like to follow in that period of twenty minutes.

As you start, make a conscious decision that your intention is to be deeply available to God – that is available at the depths of your being, deeper than words, memories, emotions and sensations. You are simply being encouraged to attend, to give yourself completely into that deeper mysterious presence.

Secondly, as you very well know, you can sit down with every intention of being totally available to God but thirty seconds later your mind is far away thinking of that job that you’ve left unfinished or the weather or a family problem…….whatever! What you then do is this. If you catch yourself thinking, you let the thought go. Promptly, quietly, without self-recrimination, you simply release the thought and start over.

 Cynthia Bourgeault writes; ‘Centering prayer is indeed a pathway of return, almost entirely so. The effectiveness of this method is not measured by your ability to maintain your mind in a steady state of clarity, openness, or stillness. It is measured by your willingness, when you find yourself ‘caught out’ by a thought to return again and again – ten thousand times if necessary – to that state of receptivity.’ (The Wisdom Jesus by Cynthia Bourgeault)

Thirdly, There’s one final refinement to help you ‘oil the wheels’ of this ‘letting go’ motion. Choose a ‘sacred word’ from a passage of Scripture to focus on and use it to help you to release the interfering thought promptly and to return to your state of open receptivity.

There are some real little gems of encouragement in those three paragraphs and I hope they add to the joy of being in the presence of the living God day by day. Thank you, Bishop Eric.

If you need some help kicking off on a new track, then I would suggest a great scripture source for contemplation could be John’s Gospel. I am a little biased here as I love the depth of John’s writings. Why not start in John 15: 1-17 and ask yourselves questions like: “What kind of a branch am I? Do I really draw life-giving food from the Vine?” (That should occupy your free space for a lot longer than 20 minutes if you dig deeply into the depths of the text).

Bearing in mind that often each of the Gospels have been given the descriptive comparison to an animal to describe their content and sources and that John’s Gospel is generally compared to the Eagle – then these words from John Scotus Eriugena give a sense of the depth and mystery of the Gospel of John. Eriugena writes in his Homily on the Prologue to the Gospel of John:  “The voice of the spiritual Eagle strikes in the hearing of the church. May our outer senses grasp its transient sounds and our inner spirit penetrate its enduring meaning…”

If you need some calming music to get your mind into the space of being aware of the presence of God then I can recommend a piece of instrumental music that simply transports me into the presence of the eternal father. It is ‘Lux Aeterna’ by Edward Elgar and sung here by Voces8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwdeqVmXlHk

“Light eternal shine of us”!

May your day be blessed today. Here is a prayer to pray as you go to bed this evening: –

We lie down this night with the Father,

and the Father will lie down with us;

We lie down this night with Christ Jesus,

and Christ Jesus will lie down with us;

We lie down this night with the Holy Spirit,

and the Holy Spirit will lie down with us;

Father, Son and Holy Spirit abide with us this night,

That we may know your peace, your presence, your protection

and your rest. Amen

(Ray Simpson; Complete Celtic Prayers)

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

r.penrith52@gmail.com

0832709942

17^th August 2020

Protective covering

The great thing about lockdown is that we have plenty of time to read, prepare and anticipate what God is wanting to say and do through us. I am going to miss that privilege when life gets back to being hectic and full!

While it is still very early in the week, I am able to begin preparation for a Celtic evening prayer Zoom service that I lead on a Thursday evening each week. I cannot remember ever having such a privilege of time in my years of ministry. Often, I would still be tweaking my sermons late on a Saturday evening.

Well, my focus for the service on Thursday night is going to be ‘God’s protection’.

I was marvelling at the way in which God protects us and remembered this wonderful photograph of one gull flying over the other giving the perspective of the one gull covering the other from the sun with its outstretched wing. Of course, that photograph captures just a split second in time whereas God’s protection over us is eternal.

(Picture by David, my son-in-law, taken off Port Elizabeth beachfront)

In the story of Daniel, we are reminded that there were two occasions in which God sent an angel to protect Daniel. The first was when he, together with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, were thrust into the burning fire for not worshipping Nebuchadnezzar or the idols that had been put up. One who looked like ‘a son of the gods’ was in the fire with them! (Who was that – a messenger – an angel – Jesus?!)

In his book, Seasoned by Seasons, Michael Mitton reminds us through another story in Daniel of how God’s love covered Daniel with protection through the presence of an angel.  In his chapter on ‘Crisis: The Discovery of Presence’ Michael Mitton refers to the Lion’s Den, when the protecting angel stood between Daniel and the lions with ‘a power stronger than any beast. Every time one of the lions comes close to Daniel, he sees its head drawn away by an unseen force.’ Mitton pictures a scene where Daniel ‘kneels in thanksgiving, and then settles down for a good night’s sleep – him, the lions and the angel, all resting in peace.’ That’s what we need – a good night’s sleep!

I sometimes feel that we are in the lion’s den with all that is happening around us in these days. It seems that the lawless one, the devil, is roaring around like a lion and out to devour us. It is during times like these that the powerful stories of the Scriptures need to come to mind to remind us that the love of the Father for creation – and particularly for you and me – is so strong that he will send all the forces of the heavenly realms to protect us and be with us in times like these. We simply need to be willing and faith-filled enough to see the presence of his ministering angels around us. The one thing that we can be absolutely certain of is that – even unto eternity – God’s presence and his protection will see us through to safety and glory.

Michael Mitton says, ‘maybe this is the gift of a crisis: it is an opportunity to discover we are not alone. Sometimes we are so focussed on the crisis, we fail to notice there are angels all over the place that are heavenly bearers of grace.’

So, if you are going through serious trials and need the Lord at this moment – here is your answer – Jesus, the light that overwhelms the darkness, he stands in the fire beside me. Listen to this song composed and sung by Chris Tomlin…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEbQswNB6Wc

‘Lord, when I find myself in the dark den of fear,

Give me the gift of discerning the presence of your angel messengers of grace’

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

r.penrith52@gmail.com

0832709942

15^th August 2020

The Lord’s Day

When I was a student at St Paul’s Theological College in Grahamstown (now the College of the Transfiguration) I had the privilege of studying under some superb lecturers and spiritual leaders. My fellow students at the time will well remember Revd Bob Clarke, who taught us Church History and reminded us how important it is to be aware of how traditions developed out of history to be where they are today.

Included in my fairly extensive library was a two-volume work, The story of Christianity, by Justo González, a Cuban American Methodist historian. I referred to this book quite often, although I am not sure it was specifically prescribed at the time. González has subsequently written a short book titled A Brief History of Sunday: From the New Testament to the New Creation.

As today is Sunday, I thought you might be interested as to how this particular day evolved into the sacred day of special worship for most of Christendom today.

The early church, and Holy Scripture, spoke of the first day of the week, or the first day from the Sabbath. The Sabbath was held by Israel on what we would call Saturday, today. But one needs to remember that Jews marked time “from sunset to sunset.” Therefore, while we might assume that churches meeting on the Lord’s Day met on Sunday morning, Acts 20:7 indicates that Christ’s disciples met at night “on the first day of the week”—remember poor Eutychus falling asleep late at night and falling out the window! Under the Jewish calendar, churches gathered on Saturday night, not necessarily on Sunday morning.

Nevertheless, it wouldn’t be long before the church met on Sunday mornings, but it’s worth remembering how easily we can superimpose our church traditions on Scripture. We do well to learn what the early church actually practised. In the earliest days, worship consisted of Sabbath-keeping and resurrection-celebrating on two different days. In time, the former decreased and the latter persisted.

González lists three theological factors defining worship on Sunday. First, it was the day Christ rose from the grave. This is what makes Sunday the Lord’s Day and why the New Testament church gathered on this day. Second, it was the first day of a new creation. As 2 Corinthians 5:17 identifies believers as new creations in Christ, so the first day after the Sabbath would, according to Genesis, have been a day of (new) creation. Third, Sunday was also the eighth day, a day that both related to circumcision and also “the final day of eternal rest and joy” (As implied in Revelation 1:10 when John was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day – the day the Old Testament prophets referred to as the coming Day of the Lord!)

Altogether, the early church saw Sunday as a day full of symbolism. This led it to a day of physical rest and particular focus. Christians experienced, and appreciated, the nearer presence of God through worship on the Day of the Lord (formalised as such by Emperor Constantine in AD 321. And so, it was that resurrection and new creation provided the typological substance to our Sunday as we know it today.

So, don’t be too critical of the debate that wages over Saturday or Sunday being the Sabbath. The arguments are language-based and historically rooted. I am perfectly happy to worship God on every day of the week and quite comfortable that my worship begins on a Saturday evening by calming my spirit and preparing in my heart to worship together with my brothers and sisters in Christ on Sunday. In fact, Gay and I woke up yesterday and reminded each other that we need to get ready for “church” tomorrow. Well, that is to wholly and inadequate YouTube and Zoom versions of that, anyway! I cannot wait to get physically back together with the family of God for warmth and fellowship and “the breaking of bread together” and sitting in the presence of the preaching of the Word of God.

Here is one of the hymns that I look forward to singing with the saints when we meet together in praise and adoration on a Sunday: –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv2BqFgm6_M

It is the hymn ‘O worship the King all glorious above’ to the tune “Hanover”. It was written by Robert Grant in 1833. This hymn has rightly been called a model hymn for worship. Each of the stanzas is applied to God (King, Shield, Defender, Ancient of Days, Maker, Redeemer, Friend), as well as the vivid imagery (such as His chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form and the references to His attributes, power, might, grace, bountiful care, love)—all combine to describe with eloquence and spiritual warmth the majesty and praiseworthiness of our God. I could not source where this was sung. Does anyone recognize the Church sanctuary?

O measureless Might, unchangeable Love,
whom angels delight to worship above!
Your ransomed creation, with glory ablaze,
in true adoration shall sing to your praise! Amen

Rob

15^th August 2020

Worry is a bully!!

After a couple of quite heavy devotions over the last couple of days, I thought that you might appreciate some solid down to earth advice on the huge topic around ‘Worrying’!

Let me first tell what prompted my concern about worry. I woke up this morning and decided to bypass News24 and Dad’s Jokes on Facebook and go straight to the Worldometer web site and there it was as of 07h30 this morning. Coronavirus cases worldwide 21,108,478!! But the really worrying news is that South Africa is fifth on the ratings of case numbers at 572,865! That is really of great concern! When it comes to total deaths, we stand at 11,270 and are rated 13 out of 215 countries. That is worrying!

Do you know what is equally worrying – load shedding is getting back into full swing? All of a sudden, I have to plan my Zoom services really carefully to try to ensure that as many folk as possible can actually be there at the stipulated time.

And I haven’t’ even started on corruption, GBV, the USA elections and so many others. ‘How do we get through all of this?’ I muttered to Gay. Her response was that I need to stop worrying because worrying makes me grumpy. Well, that didn’t help! Afterall she also says that I am a grey-haired old man! The only part she gets right in that evaluation is that I am male! So, her credibility is rather low!

While I was still mulling over these thoughts, this quote landing up in my in-tray and it was just what I needed to hear:-

Worry is a bully. It takes everything out of you and gives you nothing in return.

“According to the Bible, there is nothing wrong with realistically acknowledging and trying to deal with the identifiable problems of life. To ignore danger is fooling and wrong. But it is also wrong, as well as unhealthy, to be immobilized by excessive worry. Such worry must be committed to prayer to God, who can release us from paralyzing fear or anxiety, and free us to deal realistically with the needs and welfare both of others and of ourselves.”

(Dr. Gary R. Collins, Christian Counselling, p. 66.)

There are so many Scriptures which encourage us to cast off the burden of worry and anxiety. Let me share some of them with you briefly: –

In Matthew 11:18 Jesus says ‘Come to me and I will give you rest. Lay your burdens before me.’ He had earlier said, ‘Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.’ (Matthew 6:34). In the Old Testament, the Psalmist acknowledges that turning to God helped him with all his fears, ‘I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears’ (Psalm 34:4). It was Paul who gave us these helpful words, ‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus’ (Philippians 4:6-7).

Dr Gary Collins also gives us a list of things that one should draw into your life which will take nothing from you (in the way worry does) but, these activities will give much refreshment and peace back into your life. Sleep, being more realistic, listening to relaxing music, talking to friends who build you up and do not tear you down, exercise and then if necessary, seek spiritual counselling and professional assistance in dealing with the debilitating stress and anxiety that results from Worry!

Worry is a bully. It takes everything out of you and gives you nothing in return. Deal with it now!!

Just as an aside. Dr Colin’s was so right. All of the above came to me as I was walking over Lovemore Heights past the reservoir with the whole of Port Elizabeth in front of me. Exercise and fun change one’s perspective dramatically, don’t they! A most beautiful walk it was but I think that I have discovered what is actually far worse than the common housefly that I documented a few weeks ago. Did you know that when you are out there walking there are small miggies that fly around your nose and your mouth and nothing you can do gets rid of them? You cannot kill them – they are too fast! I tried running down the hill and when I got to the bottom, I discovered within seconds that ‘there it was!’. “Hello, miss me did you?” it said! Praise God for lockdown as I had a cloth bandana which I could pull over my face and up under my sunglasses and then I could pull my cap down further as a shield. I think the stupid miggie noticed a cyclist coming up the hill and popped over there to find a more welcoming person to irritate!!’ I have to say, though, that after that beautiful walk I was no longer bothered by the Worldometers!

The other tool Dr Collins suggested to take your mind off worry is to listen to quiet soothing music. Here is a piece that I have on my most relaxing classical music bookmark in Google:- It is Faure’s Cantique de Jean Racine Opus 11 from the Album “Classical Music everyone should know” It was first performed in August 1866 (I think you need earphones to appreciate this piece fully)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzUMfVpugq4

“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself,

and our God and Father,

who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace,

comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work”

(2 Thessalonians 2:16-17).

Rob

14^th August 2020

Theology and the Pandemic

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had more than a couple of folk raise the question during conversation as to whether the Coronavirus is an act of God or a result of our sin as a world and a nation. I came across a very helpful little book published by my favourite theologian N T Wright entitled ‘God and the Pandemic: A Christian Reflection on the Coronavirus and its aftermath.’ I got very interested in this and listened to a couple of interviews that various news channels had with N T Wright in regard to his book. I would like to share some of his thoughts with you today.

You will understand that in the short paragraphs that I have available here, I will only be able to give you a very incomplete paraphrase of N T Wright’s theological response to Covid-19.

He says that:- “In times of disaster or crisis, Christians have been notoriously prone to jumping to conclusions about the nature and character of God, what he might be doing or saying in all this, and who is at fault for these great and terrible events.”

Wright pleads with us to “keep our reactions within a biblical limit” and by that to talk about God, how we are to live in the present pandemic, how we recover from it, and what is the church’s calling in the midst of it all.

I am going to refer you to a podcast on Sound Cloud which was hosted by Josh Mulder in which he interviews N T Wright on the publication of the book.

You can find the podcast here https://soundcloud.com/8ltxez6g7yqq/special-series-theology-the-5

With regards to the question – who do we blame for the Coronavirus? Did God send it to herald in the end times? Did the devil develop it to destroy the world? Has it been sent because of the sin – the corruption, the brutality, the abuse and hatred that exists in the world – God knows we deserve judgment in this regard!! These questions are not helpful or pertinent to our current dilemma. The Biblical response to these things was probably best displayed in Martin Luther’s response to the Black Plague. He determined that he would seek to help wherever he could while also being conscious that he was at risk in that endeavour and he should therefore be careful to abide by good sense and the guidance of the authorities, That is being realistic. Just get on with the work of being a Christian neighbour to those around you who are lamenting their situation. Lament with them is the responsibility of the Christian.

It is true that many places in Scripture, and particularly Amos suggest that we are suffering because we sinned and yet other places like Psalm 44 say that our suffering is not because we have sinned and we don’t actually know why these things are happening to us. But, importantly, we then need to cross into the New Testament for John 9 when Jesus is questioned about a blind man and asked: “Why was this man born blind? Was it because he sinned? Or because his parents sinned?”. Jesus says, “No! it wasn’t anything like that – it was so that the works of God could be revealed in him!” Wright says. “In other words, don’t go back looking for causes, but rather search to see what new thing God is going to do in and through this situation now.”

See also Acts 11 when the disciples hear that there is going to be a great famine. We don’t hear the disciples questioning where this famine was originating from, or who caused it! Rather, they simply get on with taking a collection for those who would be most at risk – in this case the Jerusalem Church – and they sent Paul, Barnabus and Titus to Jerusalem to help carry the burden in the Church of Jerusalem.

Wright says that the need to lay blame for the origin of the pandemic is a typically pagan endeavour while the believer in our Mighty God simply gets on with the business of helping and praying and lamenting together with those who are hurting. That is all that Jesus did alongside the Grave of his friend Lazarus. That is all that Jesus did over Jerusalem itself. He wept with those who were weeping.

That has been the response of Archbishop Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, who lives in Lambeth Palace in London which is just around the corner from St Thomas’s Hospital. He has very quietly donned PPE’s and gone into the wards on a voluntary basis to pray with those suffering or dying from the virus. He has prayed with doctors and nurses and just been available to help where he could. He hasn’t led Zoom meetings to find out if this was God’s fault or ours or the devils. He has simply gone ahead and done what Jesus would have done when confronted with a community in despair.

This is a very inadequate paraphrase of Wright’s work, but I hope that it has helped the inquirer to ask the more helpful questions. Not so much who? Or why? But rather what should we do now? And …. How can we pray and care? This is the right Christian-servant response which is perfectly portrayed in the Servant Song – ‘Brother sister let me serve you’. Here is a different rendition of this song to the one I shared with you a month ago. This one entitled ‘Will you let me be your servant.’ This one is presented by David Haas of the Diocese of St Benedict, USA.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYpH3y4608E

I have appreciated the following prayer in these times:- (From Xavier University)

We pray for your love and compassion to abound
as we walk through his challenging season.

We ask for wisdom for those who bear the load
of making decisions with widespread consequences.

We pray for those who are suffering with sickness
and all who are caring for them.

We ask for protection for the elderly and vulnerable
to not succumb to the risks of the virus.

We pray for misinformation to be curbed
that fear may take no hold in hearts and minds.

As we exercise the good sense that you in your mercy provide,
may we also approach each day in faith and peace,
trusting in the truth of your goodness towards us.

In Jesus name, we pray. Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

13^th August 2020

Umbhedesho

Church in South Africa is such a wonderful cauldron of theologies, cultures, flavours, traditions and variations of every description. Being an Anglican Priest for most of my adult life has meant that I have been privileged to be exposed to the “good, the bad and the ugly”. I use the word “privileged” deliberately because it has granted me the gift and the opportunity to be exposed to the many flavours of our beautiful country, and its peoples, which I have been able to view through the eyes of faith. Mainline churches are often criticized for being staid and traditional – but to be honest, I have no idea why people should say that.

My experience within the churches and school that I have been privileged to serve in was that I was free and able to enjoy every different style of worship from Gregorian Chant to Hillsong United Worship. I was able to test and explore every level of theological viewpoint on subjects ranging from the atonement to various eschatological theologies. I was privileged to serve with colleagues from most of the groupings in South Africa plus those from continents stretching from the West to the Middle East and to the Far East. I have explored spiritualities from the desert fathers, to the reformers, to the evangelicals and the Anglo-Catholics. I have found riches and awakenings in all the above and it has made my faith walk rich and precious.

I praise God for placing us where we were put! Yet another deliberate statement – I shared all that with an equal minded and spirited wife, Gay! I praise the Lord that we have moved in circles that have challenged us and encouraged us and lifted us into the glorious presence of the living God.

Perhaps the crucible where a lot of this came together happened during our five years at DSG School. A place where I discovered all the flavours of society in one mixing bowl. Theologies from staunch atheism to born again believers in Christ. The challenges were legion – but this was real South Africa – and it was exceptionally good!!

Lockdown is getting to the place where people are starting to get a little irritated with each other. We are irritated with the service providers, with the lockdown rules. We are irritated with the churches that have gone back to worship (in spite of being advised not to) and the churches that are seemingly not doing enough to meet the huge needs out there. We are irritated with the government and irritated with the opposition, with those who go to the beach and with those that don’t wear their masks properly. Everything is becoming a big deal. As a country, we need to bind together in acceptance of one another. No-one is going away just because we don’t like them so why not recognize the good points in one another. At least that will improve our attitudes and diminish our irritations.

The church has taught me that it is far better to love than to criticize. Hatred and anger and reaction do nothing for ‘the other’ but those attitudes will surely destroy us, ourselves.

Paul says: Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God (Romans 15:7). Peter gives us this advice for driving in our cities, for instance, do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. (1 Peter 3:9)

Back to recent school days … we had a lively SCA group which met on Monday nights. Their music was sourced largely from Hillsong and Bethel and Franklin Kirk amongst others, but they raised the roof when they sang this psalm-hymn together with Joyous Celebration called Umbhedesho (subtitled: We praise your name, O God)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT1Y7DjbxhY

May the God of hope fill you

with all joy and peace as you trust in him,

so that you may overflow with hope

by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

12^th August 2020

Follow the recipe!

Today was designated “Rob has to make curry-day!” Don’t feel too sorry for me – it doesn’t come round that often. In fact, I could not remember how I would normally prepare the whole thing.

But I am not dumb! So, I thought ‘How difficult can it be?’ Peeled some tomatoes, threw the peels away (see, I told you – not so dumb!) boiled them in water till they were soft – okay left them in for a bit too long and they were mushy. I think I used too much water! Anyway, threw in a half a cup of salt and a half a cup of sugar and added the meat and stuck it on low heat (because I remembered that, you see). Anyway, Gay freaked and threw the mess away and gave me the pre-bought curry ingredients all snug in their own little sachets. Apparently, I had to start with the onions and then sear the meat. Whatever!?

Please note that the preceding story bears no relationship to the truth – it is a concocted story designed to be used illustratively. (WARNING: Do not try that at home – wives get really cheesed!)

What a stupid recipe – doomed for disaster!

The Bible (and I) get really cheesed at the way humankind believes that it is just fine to create ourselves according to our own plan and in the vain expectation that it is going to create us into the coolest, best looking, most intelligent, super-rich and hugely popular oke!

You have got to listen to this song which I believe encouraged this nonsense and has left our world with some sad attempts at gaining such reward. The song is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w019MzRosmk. Here is a clue, the singer announces that he would sing the national anthem, but nobody needs to stand – because it is the story of the humankind’s vain attempt at self-creation.

I want to tell you that most times that ends up like my soggy potato and raw meat mixture that Gay had to throw away.

I have a page and a half of A4 size paper available for this devotion and so I cannot even begin to give you God’s recipe for your life today. All that I am able to say is that God’s recipe is not written just in the pages of the Bible but also comes with a requirement that the believer walks in the presence of the Lord each and every day of this life. That the believer recognizes that God leads when we open ourselves up to the Lord’s leadership under the direction of the Holy Spirit and according to the example and teachings of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. It is a ‘big picture’ kind of recipe that involves repentance and cleansing, faith and trust, expectation and anticipation, acceptance and submission, unconditional love for the Lord and a desire to serve with a heart of compassion.

To that recipe, you are invited to add the following ingredients for flavour…. Please read Colossians 3:1-17 and make some notes indicating how it is going according to God’s recipe!

While you are preparing your new life in Christ using his recipe, it would be good to move along singing these words: ‘Teach me to dance to the beat of your heart’ a great song by Graham Kendrick and sung here by Ingrid DuMosch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1LaArPzHyk

Loving Father,

help me to understand the precious relationship I have with Christ

and what it means to be in Christ

and to be seated with Him in heavenly places.

Help me to set my heart on the wonderful things

that You have prepared for those that love You,

and more and more may I reflect Christ to all those I meet today,

in His name, pray

AMEN.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

11^th August 2020

Filing!

So, yesterday was a Public Holiday.

In the normal/real world a public holiday would be a blessing as it would give you time to do some much-needed administration and filing. Catching up with the letters one should have done/or sent and never got round to! Filing the tons of work that is lying on your desk. Tidying up the clutter in your inbox on the computer. And in my case cataloguing my devotions and listing the topics and songs so that I don’t send you the same hymn three times in one week. (I need to say that this is a temptation as I have, as I have said, some firm favourites that I could listen to every day for a boost in faith and love for the Lord!).

I want to commend this process to you – as tiring as it can be – as it really does clear your mind and unclutter your thoughts in a way that can only be of benefit to you. In fact, theologically, one can only truly make sense of the world around if we remember that God is truly a God of order and not of chaos. That is clear from the very first verses of Scripture as the Spirit of God hovered over the chaos of space before creation. And God spoke – and it was done! (I need to concede that my filing process wasn’t quite as neat and defined as God’s clearly is!) Paul tells us that ‘God is not a God of confusion but of peace.’ (1 Cor 14:33) and then, just a few verses later, Paul says, ’All things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.’ (1 Cor 14:40)

Proverbs 30:25 really got me thinking when I called up “order” in my Scripture Index and found this verse: ‘The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer.’ (KJV) or as the Message stretches the verse to verse 28 gives us, ‘There are four small creatures, wisest of the wise they are – ants – frail as they are, get plenty of food in for the winter; marmots – vulnerable as they are, manage to arrange for rock-solid homes; locusts – leaderless insects, yet they strip the field like an army regiment; lizards – easy enough to catch, but they sneak past vigilant palace guards.!’ Order is at the root DNA of creation.

Then I came across this quote from one of the greatest violinists and conductors. He was American but lived in Britain. (You might be interested that he played a Soil Stradivarius which is valued at $15,821,285 – not bad for a box with a couple of strings!?)  Here is his quote:

God is a God of peace and yet our world, today can rightly be defined by the adjectives in Menuhim’s description of a world without music. Our world, our lives, our thoughts and even our beliefs are so often best described as being in a state of divergence, disjointed and incongruous.

Our prayer for our world needs to be that God will once again hover over the chaos and bring the unanimity, continuity and harmony reflected in Menuhim’s reflection on music.

Our worship of God and the music we use and the prayers we offer must, therefore, be rooted in the knowledge that God hears our prayers and will bring peace out of the chaos around us – if we will work alongside the Lord in doing our part. So, get filing – if not in your filing cabinet then at least in your mind and heart. Get things right and start doing things God’s way!

So, in the spreadsheet of my newly catalogued Devotions, I am able to see that I have shared this song once before. I do so, once again, unashamedly, as it speaks right into this reflection today. It is just the first verse of the song ‘Come and find the quiet centre, in the crowded lives we live.’ Last time I offered you a rendition by a children’s choir and this time I offer you the song sung by the Heritage Concert Choir of the Pacific Lutheran University. Listen to it in the light of Menuhim’s comments above and in the light of Paul’s words to us in 1 Corinthians 13:33 and 40.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jukLcHj3BA

If your life needs de-cluttering today then pray this prayer and get filing!!

Loving God,

please grant me peace of mind and calm my troubled heart.

My soul is like a turbulent sea.

I can’t seem to find my balance,

so I stumble and worry constantly.

Give me the strength and clarity of mind

to find my purpose and walk the path you’ve laid out for me.

Through Jesus Christ and in the power of the Spirit.

Amen.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

10^th August 2020

Women’s Day Holiday

Yesterday South Africa acknowledged the role of woman in our society and families and communities. We are all given a holiday today, Monday, although surely it should rightly be a holiday for women only! In the Anglican Church August been held as the “Month of Compassion”.   I think that a suitable expression of compassion from the men of our community could begin with a commitment to love and cherish and honour the women of our homes. Indeed, if that could happen every day of the year, we could eradicate so much of the abuse that is so prevalent in our society and such a blight against our integrity as a civilized society.

Women’s Day commemorates the 1956 march of approximately 20,000 women to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to petition against the country’s pass laws that required South Africans defined as “black” to carry an internal passport, known as a dompas, that served to maintain population segregation, control urbanisation, and manage migrant labour during the apartheid era. Up to that date, it was compulsory for men to carry such an identity pass but the proposal on the table was that women should now be required to do likewise.

In the world into which Jesus was born, there was no real place of stature for women. A famous phrase from that time is the prayer of a rabbi each morning who would pray “Lord thank you that you didn’t make me a gentile, or a woman or a dog (a slave)!” It is thought that the phrase was first coined by Socrates about 3 centuries before Christ. It was a so-called cultural blessing.

Jesus came to bring in a counterculture on all sorts of levels. One of which was to reform a mindset towards women in society and within the Kingdom of God. As we remember the women of the Gospels, we discover a new relationship with Jesus that showed them to often be the more faithful, the more loving, the more sensible of all the disciples. From New Testament times women would fund the ministry of Jesus and Paul and many of the apostles through their generous provision of love in kind and in moral support.

Ask yourself the question ‘Who was left at the cross but the beloved disciple, John, and the rest were the faithful women: Mary (mother of Jesus), Mary’s sister (Salome), Mary (wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene?’ That just happened to be the most dangerous place to be in the whole of the Roman Empire on that Good Friday. But there they were.

It was Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, who poured perfume on Christ’s feet. An anointing. You can imagine how that irritated the men – as expressed by Judas Iscariot’s outburst on that occasion. (Read John 12:1-8). Did you know that the first Christian prophet was Anna? The first evangelist was probably the Samaritan woman who converted her whole village and the first and only female to be called a disciple in the New Testament and, in fact, the first to be raised from the dead by an Apostle was Dorcas, sometimes known as Tabitha. Read how Peter ministered to Dorcas in Acts 9:36-42.

Well, you haven’t got time for me to go through the ministry of women in the Church over the centuries and why should I have to anyway? For as Paul states categorically, there is no difference between male and female before God (Galatians 3:28). But that is clear from Genesis 1:26 ‘God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.’

Why don’t we start living this out in our day to day lives, my brothers in Christ?

Listen here to an extract from a movie on the life of Jesus from the moment of the prophecy of his birth by the Archangel Gabriel to the moment she visited Elizabeth and the baby within her leapt for joy. Mary responded with the wonderful song known as The Magnificat – Mary’s song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvRcGnMX3jU

Creator God:

You made us all in your image, male and female.

Let us remember to celebrate each other’s unique gifts.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord

Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

 9^th August 2020

Sunday Homework

The Nicene Creed finds its fundamental roots in the work of the first Council of Nicea which met in AD 325. It is a universally accepted statement of faith that is Trinitarian in construction – an acknowledgement that there is but one God revealed as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This Creed was formulated as a statement on the belief system of the worldwide Christian Church. In other words, if you want to know what the core beliefs of the Christian world are – then here they are recorded in this Creed!

I remember singing some of the huge doxologies of great hymns of the Church from an early age and just loved repeating the verses like this one which is the last verse of “Christ is made the sure foundation”:-

Laud and honor to the Father,
laud and honor to the Son,
laud and honor to the Spirit,
ever Three, and ever One,
consubstantial, co-eternal,
while unending ages run.

I enjoyed belting out the last verse with the alliteration of the second last line – even though, at the time, I didn’t quite get what it was all about until much later when I learned that these two words are used most often to refer to the Holy Trinity; consubstantial, being that They are of the same substance, and co-eternal, being that They are equally or jointly eternal. Understanding this in the light of our Redemption and Salvation is beautiful indeed.

Here are the words of the Nicene Creed from the Anglican Prayer Book. Homework for Sunday is to read through it a couple of times to recommit it to memory.

Nicene Creed

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father, God from God,

Light from Light, true God from true God,

begotten, not made, of one being with the Father.

Through him all things were made.

For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven.

by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary,

and was made man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate.

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again in accordance with the scriptures.

he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit,

the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son.

With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified.

He has spoken through the Prophets.

We believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen.

I leave you with a modern rendition of a Credal Statement sung by Hillsong Worship entitled ‘I believe in God the Father.’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuDI-sk2nJU

Then, because it is Sunday, I am offering you a hymn … for you to sing. Someone remarked on how good it was a while back when I gave accompaniment to a hymn and simply invited you to sing along with the tune to the words I provided. Here is the hymn “Christ is made the sure foundation” which I referred to in my opening paragraphs above. Turn up the volume and invite your family to put on ear muffs (if they consider it necessary)  and sing this as if you are in Canterbury Cathedral – raise the roof in praise and honour to our Great God – Ever Three and ever One, Consubstantial, co-eternal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hx8QDRwr1Vg

And now from (2 Corinthians 13:11-14) – a Trinitarian Blessing:-

‘May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,

and the love of God,

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen’

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

8^th August 2020

Ngilondoloze (Guard me)

A few weeks ago, I introduced you to The Blessing – a song that has swept across the world – a song of God’s blessing upon us in these troubled days.

There is now a dance doing the rounds which has hit 54,000,000 views since it was released last year. (Just to put that into context I get 6 views when I put my sermons up on a Sunday morning!)

The world has erupted in dance to South Africa’s hit song ‘Jerusalema’. The song has reached Italy, Switzerland, Romania, Germany. All of Africa and France among others. The brains behind the hit, Kgaogelo Moagi – more popularly known as Master KG – and Nomcebo Zikode, received the international stamp of approval for the song after dance challenges went viral on social media of people around the world dancing to the hit under the hashtag ‘Jerusalema Dance Challenge’. (Check it out on YouTube). Twenty-four-year-old, Master KG says the song asks for God’s guidance. The song speaks of the fact that Jerusalem is our home and God will be guiding us to that place prepared for us, guiding us through these tough times and being with us.

Here is a clip of a team of doctors, nurses and administrators at Dora Nginza Hospital, Port Elizabeth, doing the dance outside the entrance to the hospital. It turns out that earlier this week, the Eastern Cape premier, Lubabalo Oscar Mabuyane, asked Dora Nginza hospital’s obstetrics & gynaecology department if they’ve done the #JerusalemaDance Challenge – and this weekend they responded.

https://www.facebook.com/HeraldLIVE/videos/778443236234516

Why am I sharing this with you today?

The staff team of the gynaecological and obstetrics departments of the Dora Nginza Hospital are front line stars in the care and delivery of babies into this world. They face enormous odds and huge shortages. Please take a look at the people in the dance. They resemble you and me!  Theft and corruption have decimated their resources and Covid-19 has threatened their lives and the lives of their families and yet they are there every day facing abuse and anger from a community that demands better from them. Conditions in our local hospitals are so bad that they were flighted on Sky News and CNN. Yet the staff are there day in and day out! Do look at them again, they are lovely, committed health care workers!

The Gospel message contained within the words of this song, together with the gift of dance, has brought them out and gave them a few minutes of joy and fun at the entrance to the hospital. I am reminded of Psalm 149:3-4 3 Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with timbral and harp. 4 For the LORD takes delight in his people. To see this public expression of faith and hope in the midst of the most trying and demanding circumstances must surely give you and me courage in the trials and tribulations that we face in these days of the pandemic.

God guard us and guide us. You have so more to give us in this life and the next. Jerusalem is my home – are the words of this song.

I am sharing this with you today – together with a plea that sometime through the day you pause and spare a thought for the frontline health care workers across all stations of that profession – hospital, home care, frail care, general practitioners in the various disciplines of medicine, pharmacists, therapists. They offer themselves sacrificially (literally sometimes) for you and me and all whom we love and cherish. Their service deserves our prayers and our understanding.

I offer you a hymn of the love of the Father which is the source of that love which health care workers share with the world around them.

The hymn is Love Divine, all Loves Excelling and it is sung here to the beautiful hymn tune ‘Blaenwern’. The words are by Charles Wesley. Draw on the love of God as you listen to these words and then give thanks to God for those who love as God loved – through Jesus – sacrificially and abundantly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwHxRxER650

Here is a prayer (taken from a hymn sung to the tune ‘O God of Bethel by whose hand’) for the front line workers and ourselves:-

“We come to you for healing Lord, of body mind, and soul,

And pray that by your Spirit’s touch we may again be whole.

As once you walked through ancient streets and reached toward those in pain,

Come, risen Christ, among us still with pow’r to heal again.

You touched us through physicians’ skills, through nurses’ gifts of care,

And through the love of faithful friends who lift our lives in prayer.

When nights are long with wakefulness, through days when strength runs low,

Grant us your gift of patience, Lord, your calming peace to know.

We come to you, O loving Lord, in our distress and pain,

In trust that through our nights and days your grace will heal, sustain.” Amen

 Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

7th August 2020

Why so much suffering?

If God is love – then what are we to make of the devastating explosion in Beirut? They were already under enormous suffering because of Covid-19 and decades of relentless physical and emotional attack from their surrounding nations and internal conflicts that the rest of the world seems helpless to stop? Why this now? Then there is the Cape Flats – and Bethelsdorp here in Port Elizabeth. (Reported yesterday by SAPS that it is the most dangerous neighbourhood in South Africa) Many of us have friends and colleagues that live and work there. Why do they have to suffer so much? What about the state of our hospitals – is that fair, Lord? Where is God?

Well, I was struck this morning by the fact that World Vision and many Christian Aid organizations are already in Beirut to alleviate suffering while parishes across our city are doing likewise here in Bethelsdorp. Working alongside the community to bring compassion and kindness and love – together with practical and financial help as and when they can. I guess the question is – where were you Rob (or you could put your own name in italics here) or do you just sit back asking why these things happen?

Do you not remember that Jesus actually addressed this very question of “why suffering?” in John 9:1ff. Read here: – ₁As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. ₂ His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” ₃ “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. ₄ As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me.”

I listened to a really helpful online Bible Study last night. The presenter was Craig Dadoo who reminded me of an encounter between Jesus and his disciples. It was an important teaching moment when Jesus was able to say a lot about suffering in just 4 verses. Perhaps the most important crucial message coming out of Jesus’ healing of the man born blind is that God comforts us in our afflictions so that we may comfort others in their afflictions. To be real, we need to acknowledge that suffering in this broken world in which we live is a given. Yet every individual responds slightly differently to any particular affliction. But because we have experienced suffering and being comforted through the Holy Spirit, we are able to be Christ to others. As Jesus said: “As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me.” (ibid)

There is just so much to share on the question of suffering, but one needs to do a full and extensive study on it in order to understand and be understood. A blog of this nature is simply able to drop some thoughts into your minds as we all go through a season of suffering of one kind or another over this current pandemic.

So, aside from our suffering equipping us to serve others – the other important factor revealed in the four short verses above is that in a strange twist, suffering and how we get through it in faith, glorifies God. Jesus said: “this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” (ibid)

Here is the Bibles affirmation of what I have been saying above:- 2 Corinthians 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ₄ who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” Paul goes on to talk of the enormous suffering he needed to endure but adds – ₈.” We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. ₉ Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.”

Therein lies the second point to our suffering. Suffering compels the believer to turn to the Word of God for comfort and when we do that, we are led to rely not on ourselves but on God to get us through. In this, we are never ever disappointed. Turn to the Lord and things will change in your experience, in your considerations, in your questions and in your peace.

So, allow your suffering to help others as you show them that to rely on God is the only way to receive peace and comfort amid afflictions. God’s sovereign power is at work where God’s people use their experiences and wisdom to glorify the Lord.  You see, God is love and merciful and full of compassion and he has put those inflections into you and me as children of God so that we can be the hands and feet and lips of a compassionate God. Can you see that philosophising about the fact of suffering in the world is going to do no good to those suffering? But to reach out to them will glorify God in, and through, us.

A family member, or a neighbour, or a spouse or sibling suffering in these Covid-19 days might ask the question “Why is this happening to me.” My advice is not to even pull out this devotion for them to read but to remember what I have said in it and to pull out a cool wet towel for their fever – or prepare a plate of soup to sustain them – or kneel down in soaking prayer alongside them. Do something and God will be glorified and suffering alleviated, through your hands and heart, as best you are able to.

So, listen to Cantus singing the hymn “Be still my soul, the Lord is on thy side.” Sung to the tune Finlandia by the Boys Choir – Libera. It was written by Jean Sibelius and is in the public domain. The full version is sung here which reflects on some of the awful sufferings endured in the world. The song looks forward to a time when we shall understand fully in the living and real presence of eternity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwkPsKe-39Y

Holy God, you call us to throw off whatever clouds your will.

We will struggle with Christ against wrong.

We will share with Christ his trials.

We will embrace with him the suffering of the world.

take from us cynicism, domination and idle chatter.

Give us wholeheartedness, patience and love.

Help us to see where we are wrong

and not to judge others.

For you are The Greatest through all the ages. Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

O God,

take from us cynicism, domination and idle chatter.

Give us wholeheartedness, patience and love.

Help us to see where we are wrong

and not to judge others.

For you are The Greatest through all the ages.

Echoes a prayer of St Ephrem the Syrian

Holy God, you call us to throw off whatever

clouds your will.

We will struggle with Christ against wrong.

We will share with Christ his trials.

We will embrace with him the suffering of the

world.

6^th August 2020

Pray for Lebanon

We woke up this morning to the dreadful pictures of a massive explosion in the Port of Beirut. The death toll is rising all the time and the estimate of those injured is rocketing beyond 4000. It would appear as if the source of the devastation was a stockpile of Ammonium Nitrate. What is Ammonium Nitrate or saltpetre as it is commonly known?

I am not sure if many know this, but I worked as an industrial chemist before entering the full-time ministry and so things-chemical are very interesting to me. The Chemical formula for this compound is NH₄NO_3. It actually exists naturally as a white crystalline solid and is mined in South America. It is usually quite stable but if a set of circumstances come together it can quickly become a weapon of mass destruction – or in this case the source of untold pain and death. Please pray for the people of Beirut, Lebanon. They have been in the midst of strife and danger and killings for decades and now this, on top of a rampant Covid-19. Some of us have friends living in Lebanon and I ask you to join me in covering them in the love of God through the precious blood of Jesus.

I couldn’t help seeing the relationship between this simple, yet devastating, chemical reaction and the effects of sin on our own lives.

Bad habits, addictions, adultery, criminality – all blow up in our faces unless we have the proper controls over our lives and our faith. Beirut could so easily have been spared this disaster if the correct protocols had been in place to prevent this explosion. Can you see that this is true for our lives as well? We will be protected from the effects of sin and depravity if we know what to look out for and if we know how to be protected from it.

Jim Lewis of Pure Life Ministries writes this helpful item for your spiritual toolbox: –

Those who become bound up in habitual sin are actually addicted to a complex chain of actions. It all begins with temptation, moves into a person’s particular routine, peaks in the actual act itself and ends with the lingering, inevitable consequences. Compelling the person through this entire sequence of events are temptations like greed, power, lust – among many others. Thus, the individual is not merely hooked on the act itself but on the whole unfolding drama. The book of James reveals this process from a spiritual perspective:

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.” James 1:13-16.

The distinct stages of sin referred to by James are then: Desire, Deception, Disobedience and Death. A shocking, and deadly, reaction.

NH₄NO₃ follows its own chemical reaction! It needs warmth – or a spark, followed by internal combustion, it produces oxygen (which fuels the process), and once the gasses are broken down, they explode with the kind of destruction we witnessed this morning.

Don’t allow your life to be vulnerable to point where the circumstances around you can be a breeding ground for sin and quickly explode through the stages of Desire, Deception, Disobedience and Death.

Google will tell you that Ammonium nitrate has a critical relative humidity of 59.4%, above which it will absorb moisture from the atmosphere. Therefore, it is important to store ammonium nitrate in a tightly sealed container. Otherwise, it can coalesce into a large, solid mass. Ammonium nitrate can absorb enough moisture to liquefy. (Wikipedia).

The Bible gives us the perfect PPE against sin and the devil. It is clearly laid out for us in Ephesians 6:10-18:-

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. ¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert

So, be wise and be alert and put your armour on – Here is a hymn to help you do that. Soldiers of Christ, arise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zkFDS_bEeo

Offered here by Easy Worship Resources.

Almighty God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, Holy Trinity, I humbly pray for your strength and mighty power, your full armour, so that I may be able to stand against the deceits of the devil; for our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in high places. Amen

Rob

5th August 2020

The flight of the common house fly!

I woke up this morning to beautiful warm sunlight streaming in through the window and highlighting even the tiny little dust particle suspended in the still room. It was like stars in the dark sky! But shooting from one point to another was a common house fly and I spent ages just following its path. Zigzag across the room – yet circling around the centre under the light fitting. I remarked on it to Gay and her comment was “I read somewhere that those in solitary confinement often befriend the local common fly and study them in the way I was doing.” So, I figured I was being hauled into some sort of ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ by the fly.

So – I asked Siri!!

It appears that the flight of the house fly is actually well documented. Siri took me to this article:- ‘The analysis of the organization of the flight motor from the kinematic data leads to the following conclusions: the sideways movements can, at least qualitatively, be explained by taking into account the sideways forces resulting from rolling the body about the long axis and the influence of inertia. Thus, the force vector generated by the flight motor is most probably located in the fly’s midsagittal plane. The direction of this vector can be varied by the fly in a restricted range only.’

I just knew you would be fascinated by this!

Anyway, what all this really revealed to me is that Lockdown presents us with an unbridled opportunity to explore things that we might never ever have time for (under normal hectic life contexts). But Covid -19 gives us the chance to do a whole lot of things that may well have passed us by under normal (what’s that?) situations.

Dean Mark Derry, Rector of St John’s, Walmer, sent through an invite from the Church Times to attend a full-day seminar entitled “Festival of Pilgrimage’ to be presented by the Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford. Goodreads newsletter put out an advert for a very interesting sounding book on Systematic Theology. Facebook continually (I mean continually…) has adverts encouraging us to do free online courses in all sorts of things from Pastoral Care to in-depth studies of the Book of Revelation. Okay, some of them may well have what the App Store refers to as ‘In App Purchases may be required’)

My point is – why not get out there and do some learning within the Word – or search out some really good webinars or online courses that will build you up in your faith and trust in God over this period.

Isn’t it amazing where a fly doing the square dance in my bedroom can lead us?

Imagine where the Holy Spirit can take us if we submit ourselves to the guidance and encouragement of the Spirit. The early Celts referred to the Holy Spirit as the Wild Goose – because the Holy Spirit knows where we need to go (unlike the common fly!). Michael Mitton in his book “Restoring the Woven Cord’ describes how the Holy Spirit directed Brendan the navigator. Here is an extract: “Brendan ….. did not want to stop at an island. He wanted to adventure further, to discover islands beyond the horizon. He sensed the unfurling wings of the Wild goose, the Celtic symbol of the Holy Spirit, who was urging him to spread his own wings and travel”. (pg 57)

So, instead of allowing the common fly in your bedroom to take you on a square dance through Covid-19, why not call on the Holy Spirit, ‘The Wild Goose’ to encourage you to spread your wings and to experience what Brendan hoped for: ‘a mystical quest to seek glimpses of paradise’ (ibid).

Here is a teaser for you. I am going to give you a theologically sound hymn to listen to and I want to suggest that you explore why it is considered sound. What did the writer want to communicate through it and what is it that you have found to be powerfully moving in the words? This might just be your first ‘mystical quest in seeking glimpses of paradise.’

The hymn was written by Charles Wesley and is sung here by the youth choir and orchestra of the Eastbourne Mission. (A Seventh Day Adventist College)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8JPS3aKq-k

That was better than watching a fly doing a square dance – surely??

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’ eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own. Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

4^th August 2020

Ruth – A Woman of Integrity and unfailing Devotion

 One of the lessons that I loved sharing, during my time as Chaplain to the Diocesan School for Girls in Grahamstown, was the story of Ruth. It is appropriate that I share a snippet or two from that story today as we move deeper into Woman’s Month here in South Africa.

Ruth was one of the amazing women of Scripture and showed herself to be a woman of incredible substance: faithful, full of integrity and love, unfailing devotion, respect, grace, honesty, generosity, and abundant kindness.

I remember reading an article recently on the prevalence of violence and lawlessness that is rearing it’s ugly head during these times of Lockdown. Some of the violence was described as ‘ruthless’. A woman journalist describing the definition of the word “ruthless” defined it as “behaviour with the absence of the qualities of Ruth.” That really got me thinking about aspects of my own life that could be described as    Ruth-less!

The book of Ruth shares a story of a widow who compassionately follows her mother-in-law, Naomi, to her late husband’s home country of Judah. Though Naomi tells Ruth to go back to her parents’ house, Ruth has come to appreciate and love Naomi as well as Naomi’s faith in the God of Israel, and this is so meaningful to her that she refuses to leave her. The beautiful verse that catches our attention is in the first chapter 1:16 But Ruth said to Naomi, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God”.

Ruth’s story has significantly challenged me over the years I taught at DSG. Her bravery, faith, and obedience have encouraged me to be a better follower of Christ.

If you read the book again, and I hope you do, you’ll be able to see the fingerprints of God all over her life. You won’t see God’s voice thunder down like in other stories – or see miraculous happenings that change everything. What you do see in her life is that of one being gradually led God and at the end of the story, you can look back and see how her life was orchestrated to the praise and glory of God through a wonderful set of circumstances and a beautiful faith.

What about you? God can use the unnatural circumstances in these days of Covid-19 to do great things in and through us as well. In much the same way as Ruth was able to be faithful and serenely loving and supportive to Naomi – so can you and I be guided by the hand of the Lord to make a huge difference in the lives of family and friends who surround us. Faithfully loving your loved one’s is the greatest gift that you can ever give to them. As these times become more and more stressful families are going to need “Ruths” in their presence to maintain a perspective of calming love and compassion.

We don’t need to shout it from the rooftops or look for accolades for our benevolence and care. We just need to be ‘love with skin on it’ to those closest to us. (Do you know the little story of the small child having nightmares each night. Without fail, when the child cried out, dad would go through and say “There, there – go back to sleep and remember God loves you.” After a week of this the child responded to dad and said “You always tell me that God loves me and then you go back to sleep. I know God loves me but sometimes I just need some love with skin on it.”) Everyone around you at the moment needs love with skin on it!!. People are frightened and worried and confused and in great need. I am not talking about the people out there in the world. The Lord knows they have great need!! But I am talking about the loved ones right next to you in Lockdown.

Let’s learn from Ruth and Mary and Mary Magdalene and many other women of the Bible and simply share God’s love that is in our hearts these days. Love like Christ loved – love like Ruth loved! Make a difference in your home today!! Like Ruth learn to value obedience to the will of God and that no matter how bad life may turn out, your love for others will transform their moments and comfort them.

Here is the Song of Ruth Composed by Gregory Norbet, OSB Performed by Bubbles Bandojo from the album, Sing of Him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDe6GNMcIPE

Lord God, help us to find the humility and courage,
the boldness and grace,
that in our loving and being loved,
we may somehow ignite our families and our world  with a compassion so fierce
that violence and abuse,
rejection and condemnation,
neglect and greed
become unthinkable.

Amen.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

3^rd August 2020

The Power of the Cross

We stand forgiven at the Cross!

I am preparing this devotion on the Lord’s Day, Sunday, in order to have it ready for you to open at 06h00 in the morning. (You didn’t really think that I got up every morning at 03h30 to post it at 06h00, did you??)

Today, I listened to a wonderful sermon by my favourite Baptist pastor, my son Mark, who preached on Psalm 116. I am not going to let you into all he had to say except to give you the title of his sermon which was: ‘A message of hope in the midst of suffering.’ I also want to acknowledge today that his sermon has given me hours of thankfulness and gratitude for all that Jesus did on the Cross of Calvary. Not just historically – but contextually in my heart and for the world today.

In the process of contemplation on that sermon I was led to unbundle a bit of my own need for the Lord in these days of turmoil and concern. I was also led to consider my gratitude that, in spite of who I am – or have been – or will be – Christ died for my sins and took them to the cross.

I then pasted the picture that I have inserted above right into centre stage in my mind and spent time thinking about that day as Christ was led to Calvary. Who could have guessed how ‘pregnant’ that moment was as Jesus gave ‘birth to the promise of new life eternally to those who believe’? I couch this in the language of new birth conscious that the birthing process is excruciating for most mothers and yet the joy of the birth is instantly one of the most precious moments for most mothers (and shattered dads) ever encounter. Certainly, from my perspective, the birth of our two children gave me a huge appreciation for the fact that I had been born a man. I could not have withstood the pain that I saw in Gay on those occasions and yet, the moments after the birth – and every subsequent day for the last 44 years have been joy abundant.

So it was (magnified by infinity) – the pain and the joy of that weekend on Calvary and the empty tomb. The pain for Jesus, physical and emotional, was surely incalculable. But conversely the joy of the resurrection – bringing with it the promise of life eternal for the believer – is equally incalculable! Do we truly grasp the enormity of Christ’s death and resurrection given … and sacrificed … and won for us nearly 2000 years ago?

Do we fully grasp that, as sinners separated from God by the evil of our ways, we deserve nothing more than pity as a penalty for our sin? Yet, through the Cross, those sins are washed away, and we are forgiven and made whole – eternally!! Do you get it – Jesus saved me from death and has led me on a new road of righteousness.

Yesterday, in my devotions, I reflected on the promise of that salvation. A reflection that took us, you may remember, into the throne room of heaven (Revelation Chapter 4). In this amazing book, Chapters 4 and 5 speak about worship in heaven. It is a scene that will only be appropriated by those who are redeemed and saved from the second death. Revelation speaks about this second death as having no hold on the believer as we have been saved from it through the Cross and our faith in Jesus for redemption and new life. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years (Revelation 20:6.)

That is the POWER OF THE CROSS!!

Listen to this truth expressed in this wonderful song by that title composed and presented here by Stuart Townend. Note the words for you this morning. Allow the music to lift you to your feet in praise and worship.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPFv-ywTY-c

Lord, in these days of mercy, make us quiet and prayerful;

in these days of challenge, make us stronger in you;

in these days of emptiness, take possession of us;

in these days of waiting, open our hearts to the mystery of your cross. Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

 2^nd August 2020

This is the day which the Lord hath made

V: This is the day which the Lord hath made

R: We will rejoice and be glad in it

(From Psalm 118)

A vivid memory from my childhood as a chorister is of this little snippet of liturgy giving me an instant ‘I am feeling better now!’ feeling in worship! A feeling akin to ‘Yes Lord! This is what it is all about!!’

Liturgy is sometimes a tradition that is scoffed at by those outside of my particular stream of experience. I must say that my answer to them is “You totally don’t know what you are missing out on!” My perception is that the naysayers against liturgical practice have been largely influenced by their particular traditions who have rejected liturgy because of the concept of repetition by rote. They have possibly observed that some go through a service of liturgy without really participating – except that their lips are moving! That is certainly a reality in some places of worship. But that is not what liturgy is. Liturgy needs to be alive and sincere and fully participatory.

Have you ever been to a sporting event where the crowd was dead quiet? The silence is almost unbearable. Surely, the best part of a sporting event is cheering for the home team. The most enthusiastic fans repeat those great moments (songs, chants, cries) to one another over and over again! Likewise, we will find energy coursing through our spiritual lives when we repeat — over and over — the mighty acts of God in history and his acts in our own personal lives. It is good to celebrate the joy and wonder of our relationship with the Lord.²

Just you wait until you stand before the throne of God and then, you will experience real liturgy. Listen here: Revelation 4:8-10 “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” That is Throne Room Liturgy!

The word “liturgy” comes from the Greek word λειτουργία), leitourgia, which literally means “The (spiritual) work of the people”.

Liturgy – and the repetition of Scripture and prayers – is a tradition handed down to the church through the ages from Old Testament times. The Psalms were the distinctive form of liturgical participation. The Psalms of Ascent (120-134), for instance, would be sung and repeated as the people of Israel walked towards Jerusalem to attend the pilgrim festivals and feasts.

The signs, symbols and sacred actions which form public prayer and worship spring from the language and events of God’s own self-revelation to us throughout the ages. Anglicans’ liturgical celebrations arise directly out of the mystery of salvation in Jesus Christ and are part of the very means by which we enter into that mystery.¹

V: This is the day which the Lord hath made

R: We will rejoice and be glad in it

What do you have to give thanks and praise for today?

Pause for a moment. Look around you! Go outside and lift your hands to the heavens and praise the Lord for the blessings that are yours today!!

Praise not only completes our joy in fellowship with the Lord, but it also gives us a foretaste of heaven. Worship through praise is the chief activity of eternity. Paul admonishes us, “Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:1–2).²

We learn something of what Paul means by this from the Book of Revelation. Though many people have pigeonholed Revelation as a book solely about prophecy, this book is one of the most profound worship manuals in the Bible. While the Psalms are our biblical hymnbook, the book of Revelation reveals heavenly scenes of worship.²

Here is a bit of liturgy sung by a Cathedral choir in a very formal setting. In my book everyone of those little choristers are being given a lifelong lesson in Holy Scripture and the corporate worship of the fellowship of believers – (don’t knock it – it worked for me!)

Listen now to: –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SHDNs7Dt5M

The Hymn “Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!” Sung by the Plymouth Choir and Congregation of First-Plymouth Church, Lincoln Nebraska in 2015 accompanied by the Plymouth Brass and Organist Christopher Marks.

Only thou art Holy

There is none beside thee.

Perfect in power,

in love and purity. Amen

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

Sources:

¹ International Anglican Liturgical Consultation (Revd Keith Griffiths – Chair – I just mention this because he is a buddy of mine!! Hello Keith!)

² https://www.thenivbible.com/blog/finding-joy-through-praise-worship/ (I mention this because it is my favourite book!)

 1^st August 2020

Time Flies! What happened to March to July?

I love walking as it gives me time to do absolutely nothing at all! Not so this morning! As it turns out my head was full of thoughts and reflections and the drawing back of memories. In fact, I walked past the Parish of All Saints, Kabega Park, where I served as Rector way back in the middle 1980s. It was great to see it well cared for and looking inviting and ready for the day when Church buildings will, once again, be able to host the body of believers who worship in that community.

Then my thoughts wandered around and began thinking of the past 128 days of Lockdown. In many respects, it feels as if the fateful call by the State President which put us into lockdown happened just yesterday – but it has been four months in isolation and separation from our “normal”.

What has God been doing for you in these times?

Have you grabbed hold of the different season that we are in and have you managed to use it to the glory of God and the edification of yourself and your household or are you just sitting there – impatiently waiting for it all to be over and done with?

The Word of God tells us that every season offered to us is of value and of huge potential if we grab hold of it.

Remember the verses from Ecclesiastes that have, so often, been used in songs and at weddings or funerals, as a reflection on what faces couples in their marriages or what people have done in their lives. The writer of Ecclesiastes tells us that “there is a time for every activity under heaven”. He then suggests that irrespective of the times, God is desirous and willing to make every one of them beautiful in its time. So, anything you do in these times which brings glory to God and brings edification for others will be with God’s blessing – and it will endure forever.

My point is that every little bit of love and encouragement, joy and enrichment that you can offer to others in these days will have the blessing of God’s anointing upon it. Ecclesiastes 3 promises that we can be partners in God’s plan and purpose in the lives of others by simply being the hands and feet and lips and heart of the Lord extended out into the community about us.

Time is flying and God has given us these days – this season – to ‘do right for others’. Don’t let these times go to waste!

Eccl 3:1-14 (Selected phrases)

1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that we will revere him.

I have a hymn to share with you about the times that God has given us. This hymn from 100 Hymns for Today acknowledges that God is the author and provider of the times of our day. The hymn offers us the opportunity, in song, to ask the Lord to bless every activity “under heaven” that we have as a gift from God. The hymn is, ‘Lord of all hopefulness, Lord of all joy’ and it is sung here by the Choir of St. Alban’s Cathedral and is arranged and conducted by Barry Rose.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8mti7VL3gg

This beautiful hymn was written by Jan Struther, whose given name was Joyce Torrens-Graham. Jan Struther was her pen name and under this name, she wrote many poems and essays. Perhaps her most remembered story was entitled ‘Mrs Miniver’ which won six Academy Awards, including best picture. She also wrote a number of hymns – of which this one is my favourite and, in my opinion, her magnum opus!

Notice how every stanza opens with a season – a time – in our day and appeals to the Lord of joy, faith, grace and calm to enrich our moments with bliss, strength, love and peace respectively, in our everyday moments.

Use the times that God has given you to be Christ to others! After all, we are called to be servants to one another.

May I adapt the opening verse of the ‘The Servant Song’ to be our prayer for the times of our day today?

Brother, sister let me serve you

Let me be as Christ to you.

Pray that I may have the grace to

Let you be my servant too.

May God joy, faithfulness, grace and peace be yours today.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

31^st July 2020

Peregrinari Pro Christo

Lockdown has had a whole bunch of really positive upshots and we have reflected on some of these in previous devotions. For some of us, it has meant that we have had a chance to reassess all sorts of negative aspects of life and the promise to do things better when level 0 is declared (??!).

Well, not all of us … I was walking along the beach with my granddaughter yesterday. Just to give you some background, she is in Grade 5 and has not yet been back to school since mid-March. As a result, she has seldom got out of the house over the past 5 months except for exercise and to spend time with her grandparents in their homes. She announced to me yesterday that the first thing she was going to do when lockdown ended was to spend the day browsing through the shops! Don’t worry, I have warned her parents to take out a second bond!

Another let-down of Lockdown has been the fact that it has been really, really difficult to fulfil Christ’s instruction to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15). Praise the Lord that churches across the world have become really tech-smart and have been presenting the Gospel and proclaiming the Kingdom in all sorts of innovative ways.  Pray for your clergy and parish administrators as this is a whole new world for some of them.

The Celtic Saints of the 5^th century and following were referred to as ‘Peregrinari Pro Christo’ or, in English, ‘Pilgrims for Christ’. They saw their calling as being free agents in the hands of God to be sent and directed by the Spirit to move through the lands touching people’s lives and proclaiming the presence of the Kingdom of God and the power of God to bring life and wholeness. They cared for all whom they encountered. For some of them, this was a whole new world as well! But we praise God for their faithfulness and ministry because, to this day, the spirituality of many parts of fringes of the UK are rich with the faithfulness and vigour of those saints.

How much of a ‘Peregrinari Pro Christo’ have you been able to be over this season or are you taking a sabbatical from being Christ in the world. 1 Peter 2:9 says this of us, believers: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

You have got so much at your fingertips to be a modern-day ‘Peregrinari Pro Christo’ in this, the 21^st Century. You have the internet with all it’s platforms, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp. You don’t have to preach a sermon but you can ensure that every time you go onto the net you ensure that what you say comes from a heart that is Christ centred and Gospel directed. My precious mentor and friend, Eric Pike, begins every letter – whether it be a formal letter or a three-line catch-up message with a simple portion of scripture – a blessing to the reader. To dear Rob, “May mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance” (That comes from Jude 1:2). I try to end all my letters and notes with a similar sentiment. Just a minuscule way of being a ‘pilgrim of Christ’. I do not have space to give you ideas about how to use this time for Jesus as it is not for me but the Holy Spirit to do, to direct you in how you should be a light to the world and the salt of the earth.

Remember our Lord’s words in Matthew 5:13-15 You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.

I have, just this minute, received a wonderful call from John who lives in Summerstrand, to encourage me in these devotions. He felt that lockdown was so terrible because we are no longer able to get out there and tell people about Jesus. Little did he realize that he was being just that to me – right now – he was being a Pilgrim of Christ to me!!

You and I have some work to do this lockdown.

Here is a hymn to help you along the pilgrimage journey. ‘I, the Lord of sea and sky’ presented through the amazing voice of John Michael Talbot under the Orchard Music label. (John Michael Talbot (born May 8, 1954) is a musician, author, television presenter and founder of a monastic community known as the Brothers and Sisters of Charity).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcxOkht8w7c

Here I am, Lord. Send me! Amen.

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

30^th July 2020

Beauty for Brokenness

Good friends of ours came round to drop off beanies for ‘Beanies for Africa’, an organization set up to provide comfort and warmth for children in Addo. Gay and Pam, our visitor, are part of an army of knitters and those who sew, that are frantically producing beanies and masks for those who have no way of sourcing such warmth, or PPE’s during Covid. (Feel free to contact Gay on 0832471877 if you would like to assist in this project.)

Aside from advertising this project, I also wanted to share with you the words of a song/prayer that Pam reminded me of during that visit. Pam and I have led worship together over many years and this song is one that I absolutely cherished from the moment I first heard it.

It is written by one of the great hymn writers of the modern era, Graham Kendrick, whose name will go down in history with other great hymn-writers like Charles Wesley, Fanny Crosby, Isaac Watts and Frances Havergal.

The song that I am offering for your meditation today is ‘Beauty for brokenness, hope for despair’.

Listen to this hymn sung by Graham Kendrick himself: –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MO1G-o7Yj-c&list=RDMO1G-o7Yj-c&start_radio=1

Here are the words for your quiet time and reflection this morning,

God of The Poor (Beauty for brokenness) by Graham Kendrick

Do you see that these words are just so pertinent to our present times and you would do well to spend some time on the verses, above, and sing along with the YouTube clip above.

While going through the verses I suggest that you have a piece of paper and a pen alongside you to write down the contextual issues in our time that come to mind as you are reading the verses. Things like the injustice in lands across the world towards minorities, farm murders here in SA, the plight of those in hospital in these horrible times, the poor who are becoming poorer through Covid-19, those who have lost their livelihoods and even their homes, those suffering gender-based violence through lockdown, violence and lawlessness. I love the fourth verse reminding us that in the midst of all this there is a real sense that creation is resting from the affliction of our carelessness and greed – that these are times in which we, too, can change our habits for the better.

And then end with joy as you pray the last verse out loud for yourself – for me and for the children of God around us:-

Lighten our darkness.
Breathe on this flame
Until your justice
Burns brightly again
Until the nations
Learn of your ways
Seek your salvation
And bring you their praise. Amen

Rob

29^th July 2020

Home alone? Not us!!

Max Lucado is a great author and storyteller in the modern Christian tradition and I have always trawled through his illustrations to use in sermons because he uses the things that we know and deal with on a daily basis to help us to explore the deep mysteries of Holy Scripture. That is the art of parables. Jesus taught us the value of the parable as a tool in teaching.

Max Lucado has just brought out another book which I am looking forward to trawling for new illustrations and analogies. The title he has chosen is ‘You are Never Alone”.

In his presentation of the book, he speaks to those of us who are feeling alone and frightened in these times of Covid-19. Many of you may be thinking that this Lockdown has now lost its sense of ‘honeymoon’. Maybe you are feeling that it is all wearing a little bit thin now and perhaps you are even starting to feel a little lonely and bereft of your friends and loved ones. Maybe you feel that everyone has given up on you or that no-one cares! Perhaps you are one of those who have tragically lost loved ones and you were not able to be alongside them when they died and – perhaps – nobody was able to be alongside you in your grief!

I wonder how many of us are starting to fear that our faith is wearing a little thin because it seems so lonely and so silent out here?

I want to join Max Lucado in assuring you that you have more strength and faith than even you know about ….  if you are prepared to take the promises of Holy Scripture at face value and believe that they are true and pertinent to you in your situation today. The apostle John certainly made it clear that the Word of God is given that you may have faith and trust in God who will never ever leave you. John 20:31 “These things are written that you may believe ….”

Max Lucado says: “Your faith is stronger than you think, because God is nearer than you know! God’s presence and power is closer to us than we can ever imagine”. The Celts of old taught me a lot about what it means to practice the reality of the presence of God. Their lorica prayers and their caim prayers are examples of the unshakeable trust and fervent belief that we are never, ever alone. God is with us to protect us and enfold us.

St Paul certainly had absolutely no doubt that we are not “Home alone” during this Lockdown – or ever. He wrote, ‘“What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?  No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8: 35, 37-39.

This confirms God’s promise to Israel in Exodus 33:14, ‘My Presence will go with you.’

In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, 300 people from 15 different countries came together to participate in a virtual rendition of the beautiful song “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Carousel. Harrison Shecklar directed this performance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gpoJNv5dlQ

Of course, if you are like me then the best way to know the presence of God is to turn on a piece of beautiful classical music and ask the Lord to become incarnate once again to me – here in my home – alongside me on the chair – in my fears and pains and joys and anticipation. I have never been disappointed or ever felt alone – because God is here! Right here!

Here is one of my favourites.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-CpJpWm9Vs GEORGE FREDERIC HANDEL – LARGO arranged and performed by Georg Masanz on the organ of St Peter and Paul Church in Kirchdorf, Switzerland. He is accompanied on the trumpet by Timothy Moke. It is of interest that this piece of music was written in 1738 and is part of the opening aria from the opera, Xerxes.

You are never alone! Pray St Patrick’s prayer right now: –

Christ be with me, Christ within me,

Christ behind me, Christ before me,

Christ beside me, Christ to win me,

Christ to comfort and restore me,

Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,

Christ in hearts of all that love me,

Christ in mouth of friend and stranger. Amen.

St Patrick’s Breastplate; C.F. Alexander’s translation

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

28^th July 2020

Think of one another!

This morning I want to speak above the needs of others and suggest how we need to be the hands and feet of Jesus extended out there into their lives. Especially to the lives of those who are in danger of falling out of the Holy Fire and warmth of the Body of Christ.

Many of you would have heard the really challenging but useful illustration of why it is important to fellowship together as Christians. The illustration that I am speaking about is the one of a fire just about ready for the chops and wors! Can you imagine the bricketts all glowing a bright red? Have you ever taken one of those coals out of the centre of the fire and placed it on the stones alongside the braai. Within a minute or two that luminous and bright glow will have disappeared, and the piece of coal would have turned to a dirty grey/black lump of charcoal. Within a few more minutes the heat will have disappeared, and you would be able to pick it up with your bare fingers. All that time all the other bricketts would have held their heat together to produce a supper that my mouth is drooling over – just at the thought of the braai.

This analogy is very helpful in preaching on an important subject. We should be meeting together as Church in order to build each other up and keep one another from straying into the dark cold reality of life without Christ and the bond of fellowship that we share as believers within the Body of Christ, the Church.

Hebrews 10:24-25  And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Do you get the problem here? We are currently not able to do this!! Covid-19 has closed the doors of the church and the cell group meetings and the support mechanism that we need in order to stay “hot” in the faith. Do you realize that the longer we are kept apart by Covid the easier it is for us, or for friends and family who are believers, to simply fall out of the protective warmth and fellowship of believers without being noticed?

Well, that means that we are simply going to have to go to extraordinary lengths to make sure that we are working together to keep the fellowship of believers comforted and encouraged and equipped and anointed. Every one of us who know and love the Lord needs to be part of the shepherding team of the local church and every one of us needs to be looking out for those whose faith may be waning. Paul exhorts us often to have concern for one another (see 1 Corinthians 12:25)

These devotions are created to hold you, my brother and sister, in the arms of the living God while we are separated from those who we would ordinarily gain our encouragement and our “togetherness”. What can you do to look after others who are not in a place to be held close to the heart of the church community or small group community through which they gain the fellowship, teaching, encouragement that they need to never fall out of the fire mentioned above?

My encouragement for us all today is to create a plan and a habit of connecting with members of your parish that you know and love. Phone them just to say hi and to encourage them in whatever way you can. Help them to be reminded that they belong to a fellowship of fellow believers. Keep them in the fire!!

Here is a gentle song written by Dave Billbrough under Thankyou Music which speaks of this body of ‘children of promise’ needing ‘to flow together as one’.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1WkgfhRdI4

May the Lord help us all to find the humility and courage,
the boldness and grace,
that in our loving and being loved,
we may somehow ignite our world with a compassion so fierce

That, even in these times of separation and loneliness during Covid-19,

others may know that they, too, are loved and held in the arms of Jesus.

And now, go into the world,
inspired by the extravagant love of God.
Live generously, with open hands,
loving one another as if your lives depended on it.
Be good stewards of the gifts you have received,
so that God may be glorified in all that you say and do.

And may the abundant love of God surround you,
may the extravagant grace of Jesus Christ sustain you,
and may the constant presence of the Holy Spirit
inspire and encourage you in every good deed and word. Amen

Rob

Revd Rob Penrith

0832709942

27^th July 2020

The Lord, our Teacher

We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you (2 Chronicles 20:12)

Incontext International has been an organization close to my heart and ministry over the years. Mike Burnard and his team work tirelessly in support, and ministry to Christians in persecuted countries throughout the world. May I commend them to your prayers.

In their March newsletter, Gustav Krös, had this to say after the opening photo focus:-

‘The Lord has, in a very unique way, pushed the pause button on the world, and our biggest mistake would be not to make use of it, by sitting at His feet and listening to what He wants to teach us during this time.

I am a firm believer that as long as we live in this world one can never stop growing in your spiritual life. Even if you have enjoyed a personal relationship with Christ since early childhood and you grow spiritually for a hundred years, you would still not reach a point of fully understanding the ways of the Lord. It doesn’t matter whether you have a doctorate in Theology, or whether you have read the Bible a hundred times from cover-to-cover, there is always room for spiritual growth as long as we dwell on this earth.’ (Gustav Krös, INcontext International)

It is said by educationalists and psychologists that it takes around 21 days to firm and establish a change of habit. Well, we have had a little more time than that to establish Bible-habits over Lockdown. I pray that you have used this time, productively, to follow Paul’s urgent advice in Romans 12:2, ‘Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.’ (The Msg)

I would love to hear about some of the habits that you have managed to turn on their heads (providing they are not too personal). If you have time please drop me an email. I have provided the address at the bottom of the page.

I have managed to work on a few of my bad habits. The need for change has been obvious to me as I have begun to quieten my spirit and take time to look around me. I realized that a really bad habit I had was presuming that, because Gay had cooked us a wonderful meal, she needed to finish it off by cleaning up after her and doing the dishes. How selfish is that!!? I have now taken responsibility for everything that happens in the kitchen after the food has been served on the table. Please don’t congratulate me – it was disgusting that it took Lockdown to turn me from my self-centred habit.

All habits are a bit like that, you know. They are all grossly self-serving! So, don’t expect to be congratulated if you break a bad habit. You should never have appropriated it in the beginning.

I suspect that we have more than 21 days left of our current lockdown restrictions and so you have more than enough time to get rid of a couple more bad habits. Here is the strength and the motivation to do just that: – I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

Here is a lovely version of words from Psalm 51:10 ff, sung by Keith Green. “Create in me a clean heart, O God”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFe4r3qe1x0

Go out, and be doers of the Word.
Cleanse your hearts of all pollution,
be quick to listen and learn,
welcome the Word that God implants in you,
and bring it to birth in acts of righteousness and compassion.
And may God pour grace upon you and bless you forever;
May Christ Jesus reveal to you the truth of God’s ways;
and may the Holy Spirit fill your life with passion and love. Amen

Rob

Robert Penrith

r.penrith52@gmail.com

0832709942

26^th July 2020

Quiet my mind Lord!

There is a beautiful song that I have often used at the beginning of a time of prayer or meditation. It is a simple tune and it has simple words that one can draw into your heart and mind to be still before the Lord. The song is Quiet my mind, Lord!

I wish that I could take you all in a coach into one of the most magnificent parts of our country – the Karoo. Those who know that region will know that it has a stillness and peace about it that makes it feel as if this is where the Spirit dwells and where God’s love and joy and peace are abundantly present. The Celts would call such a place a ‘thin place’. But – whereas I cannot take you into the Karoo, I can bring a little bit of the Karoo to you this morning.

My son-in-law is a wonderful photographer and he sent through some photo’s this week that I would like to offer for your edification.

I simply ask you to look long and deeply into these two photos for a while.

As you gaze into the mountainside, I ask you to imagine that you are truly present in that place. Maximize your screen and get as close to it as you can and let the quietness and the peace of the Karoo enfold you as you listen to the song. ‘Quiet my mind, Lord!’ is sung here by Mary Barrett on her album ‘In the Language’. Along with the words of the song I invite you to let God speak to you through the language of this picture. What is God saying to you now as the Lord hears your prayer for a ‘quiet mind’.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSvfAOB0DOI

For the next picture, I ask you to, once again, look deep into this scene which is very close to Graaff Reinet. The Karoo mountains have a million different hews of purple and grey in the evenings and the early mornings. The waters of the lake are still, and the Lord invites you into that space this morning to look upon the beauty of creation and to think upon the still waters. Think on this verse for a moment – Psalm 23:2 The Good Shepherd makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters.

While you rest in the quietness of your home – your private place – listen to this offering from the Taize Community – Nada te turbe (which, when translated, exhorts us to trust God in these times. The words include the sense that in God’s presence nothing should disturb you and nothing should frighten you).

Let the words – and this picture wash over you this morning.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go1-BoDD7CI

May the love of the Father,
the tenderness of the Son,
and the presence of the Spirit,
gladden your heart
and bring peace to your soul,
this day and all days, Amen.

Rob

25th July 2020

 Desiderata

I have been sitting here this morning reflecting on some of the responses that I have received from folk to past postings of these devotions and realizing that many of us are really beginning to feel the stress and anxiety of Covid-19 in a way that actually causes us to feel quite fatigued with anxiety and an underlying fear and concern.

As someone put it: This COVID-19 pandemic has managed to alter our realities so much that it feels like we were living in a science fiction novel. One must be constantly aware to take suitable precautions to avoid contracting – or transmitting the virus. Hence, the experts are saying that ‘caution fatigue’ is quite natural under such circumstances. After all, you have to wear a mask, wash your hands, disinfect everything from door handles to your toilets, maintain a good distance from people, leave home only when you absolutely have to and worry about your own health as well as your loved ones’ constantly. These everyday precautions you are expected to take, and the stresses that you now have, can feel like a huge burden sometimes.

Gay and I experienced this today as we had decided to heed advice and get an anti-flu injection. This meant going into a doctor’s rooms and sitting with others who might have the virus!! Our sense was that if the virus is lying around waiting for us – what better place than the rooms where viruses go to be treated. Low grade, but real stress, tension, anxiety, and even fear! Of course, we didn’t need to worry at all because the whole process was very carefully planned to minimize chances of being contaminated with the virus. Nevertheless, those are tensions that tire us and stress us.

Fear, confusion, anger, sadness or even panic can overwhelm us to the extent that we may not hear what we ought to hear. However, every one of these emotions is natural to being human. When they overwhelm us, when they block all else out, we acknowledge them and ask God for relief.

A dear friend of ours chatted to her daughter about these feelings of fatigue (as her career is in counseling). Apparently, the underlying anxiety which is there whenever we leave our homes is the cause. Our bodies cannot really interpret the danger we feel at being exposed to the virus, to one we would feel if we were to meet an elephant!!!! So, we are constantly on the alert. Our friend’s response was “No wonder that leads to fatigue and no wonder we would all rather be at home!!!”

To minister into the above my mind went to a poem that I remember from my younger days. ‘Desiderata’ is an early 1920s prose poem by the American writer Max Ehrmann. A poem of wise sayings and gentle advice. I thought you might like to read through it again.  While it is not specifically Christian it holds the tenets of our lifestyle as believers within its message.

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labours and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann, 1948

Listen to it read here in the Desiderata Song presented by Kamahl.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X8YnCq6UME

Now, may the God of peace himself cause you to be completely dedicated to him; and may your spirit, soul, and body be kept intact and blameless at our Lord Jesus Christ’s coming. The one who is calling you is faithful and will do this.  Amen (1 Thess 5:23-24).

Rob

Robert Penrith

083270942

24th July 2020

Hey! We could be getting happier!

You know what? I am going to share a snippet of good news with you this morning. We all need a little bit of that, don’t we? Unfortunately, I realize that the study I share with you could quite easily be rebuffed by a more pessimistic research scientist. My suggestion, though, is that we grab the good news while we can. So, read on.

In my afternoon trawl through sources of interest for these blogs, I came across an article by Melanie Verwoerd, a South African political analyst and former ambassador to Ireland – where she also directed UNICEF. So, she has good credentials I feel.

She writes:- I would have thought that people would be taking more and more strain as the lockdown progresses and thus become more unhappy – not happier – so I phoned a friend of mine who has a very busy psychology practice. I wanted to check if he agreed with Greyling’s findings. My friend’s practice seemed to confirm the Gross National Happiness study. According to him, about 80% of his patients are now more content to be at home than a few months ago and are firm in their commitment to making big changes to their lives – particularly to slow down. This makes sense to me.

As Carl Honore, the author of “In Praise of Slow” points out, modern society values speed. We speed read, speed walk, speed date and speed dial. Apparently, there is even such a thing as speed yoga. Seriously?

I have been known to call our society the ‘instant coffee’ society. Everything has to be done now with absolutely no effort or it is not worth doing.

Honore says: “It often takes a wake-up call such as an illness to alert us to the fact that we are hurrying through our lives instead of actually living them. Creating illness on a global scale, Covid-19 has been the ultimate wake-up call.”

It seems that this pandemic has helped people to look critically at the ever-accelerating treadmill of life. More and more research is showing that, after the initial shock, people are appreciating the slower pace of life imposed by lockdown. They are re-evaluating what it means to live an authentic life and want to reconnect with that which is important to them. In addition, people are increasingly questioning the never-ending race for more possessions, which underpins our economic framework.

Even as I report on these findings, I know that the Lord is smiling at me with the kind of smile represented by this emoticon …

….. and the Lord is saying: “But that is exactly what I was telling you in the Scriptures!”

Jesus said it to us in John 14: 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. And again, in Proverbs 12:20 Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil, but those who promote peace have joy.

You will not find peace and joy by pursuing the ways of the world. But in Christ and in peace is there authentic life and happiness. Amen!

So, let’s end on a huge happy note. I have chosen one of the choruses from George Frederick Handel’s wonderful oratorio, The Messiah. This chorus is ‘And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed.’ (Words coming from Isaiah 40:5 And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=handel%27s+Messiah+choruses

The Lord bless you
and keep you;
the Lord make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you
and give you peace.
(Numbers 6:24-26)

Rob

Just as a bit of a bonus here is a song by the acapella group Voces8 with guest, Sibéal, singing in Gaelic and English. It is the traditional Irish folk song, Carrickfergus. It is one of my favourite pieces but would not automatically accompany any thoughts in my regular devotions. So here it is (if you have time)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Cz8nQAi2A4

Robert Penrith

0832709942

23rd July 2020

Shutdown Maintenance!

I was so blessed as a young person to have a supportive and encouraging family. For instance, and for the purposes of this devotion, I was encouraged to make the most of our 6 week holiday period at the end of the school year by engaging in something constructive – rather than just sitting around and irritating my parents. You see – in those days there were no Games, or Facebook, or Lego or shopping malls.

So, what should I do? A good friend of mine suggested that we sign up as labourers at a local motor manufacturing plant that traditionally shutdown for Christmas. They then needed ‘apprentices’ to assist the maintenance crews who were responsible for ‘shut-down maintenance’. It was fascinating stuff! I got to assist an electrician on the rewiring of the massive presses that were used to punch out body parts for the new lines. There were other tradesmen who would put on a new coat of paint, others who would lubricate moving parts – and ultimately this huge bit of equipment looked like new, sounded like new, and moved like new!

Covid-19 is a ‘shutdown’ period. What do we do?

Spiritual Maintenance is something that all of us need to put our minds to. In days gone by the Desert Fathers of North Africa and the folk who looked to join monasteries all over the world saw the dire need for spiritual maintenance and rebuilding. For some, that was a life-long commitment but for others, they were able to take time out to be in solitude and community. Solitude from the hustle and bustle of normal life and in community with God and their spiritual directors or soul friends.

Why not take an intentional period of ‘spiritual maintenance’ in the weeks to come to rest in intentional solitude? I say – intentional – because that is different from simply being alone. (That can lead to loneliness which is counter-productive for any of us). Rather seek a solitude that is in community with the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Do that all under the guidance of a soul friend or spiritual director (or perhaps a close, trusted believer and friend – maybe your rector or zone leader or pastoral assistant at church).

It sounds simplistic but being intentional is a great way to spend time in consistent quiet time with God. Intentional, by definition, means to “be deliberate, to do on purpose.” God honors anything we do with a purpose in mind. When we set aside time to meet with him, he will be faithful to meet with us too.

I read this in an article in News24 and I thought you might like it as you enter into a period of intentional solitude: –

‘John Donne, poet and Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral around 1621, was struck down by the Great Plague and sudden infection and was deserted by all and sundry. He wrote that the instinctive response of the healthy to the afflicted did nothing except increase his suffering: “When I am but sick, and might infect, they have no remedy but their absence and my solitude.” But he found solace in a very special conception of God. He saw the supreme being as being fundamentally social:  

There is a plurality of persons in God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), though there be but one God; and all his external actions testify a love of society and communion. In heaven there are orders of angels, and armies of martyrs, and in that house many mansions; in earth, families, cities, churches, colleges, all plural things.’ (Donne’s Meditation Five)

While Donne was in solitude he was at the same time in communion with God and all the hosts of heaven and earth – and not lonely!

Solitude is one of the most important disciplines for the spiritual life, especially for those who need help unhooking from the chaos and the clutter and stress to experience God restoring their souls. There are many Bible verses on solitude to guide us in this practice. In this time, do a study through your Bible to find the encouragements and the benefits of silence, solitude and resting in the presence of God. You have the incredible luxury of a Covid-lockdown in which to do this maintenance – don’t waste this opportunity! The motor companies were clever enough to use such times – why don’t you??

Here is a re-run of the beautiful new hymn “Come and find the quiet centre in the crowded life we live.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ih4QmFVOQoc. This is an incredible version performed by the Meadowdale High School choir and orchestra located in Lynnwood, Washington. (Go to their website for more beautiful music and give them a ‘like’ – they deserve at least that!)

May your shutdown maintenance draw you nearer to God.

Rob

22^nd July 2020

I’m sinking!

You have surely heard the saying, ‘Submarines don’t sink because of the water around them; Submarines sink because of the water that gets into them. Don’t let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.’ (Author unknown). Or, to put it another way, ‘The negativity of the world can’t put you down unless you allow it to get inside you.’

The best bit of Lockdown advice I could ever give you!!

Last week Gay and I needed to escape cabin-fever and we took ourselves down to Schoenmakerskop just outside of Port Elizabeth. It was an absolutely stunning day and many folk had the same idea. Schoenmakerskop. This sleepy little Hamlet is well known for all sorts of reasons. It was home to the late playwright, Athol Fugard. It is home to the fabulous Sacramento Tea Room. It is home to at least four special friends of mine who live out there. It is highlighted by three massive ­Norfolk pines that are oblivious to the sea breezes.   It is the resting place of a national monument – THE SACRAMENTO CANNON

Sometimes called the ‘miracle cannon’ because of the mint condition in which it was found, the cannon salvaged from the wreck of the Sacramento, a Portuguese man o’ war that sunk just outside Port Elizabeth in June 1647 on her maiden voyage, rests at the top of the cliffs at Schoenmakerskop just above where she was wrecked. The Sacramento wasn’t sunk because of the water of the Indian Ocean around Port Elizabeth but because of the water that got into the ship as it was battered by a massive storm.

You get the message, don’t you? But you might be feeling utterly overwhelmed by some of what is happening around you and within you. Well, I believe that Bible tells us (very nicely, of course) to get up and do something about it!

Why not begin by assessing the actual waters that you are navigating these days? What stormy or piercing rocks are causing you to take on water and giving you that sinking feeling? The best way to counter this disastrous picture is to figure how best to bail out any excess water from your hold – your mind and your being. While you are doing that you need to plot a course towards calmer, more protected seas. Without pushing the analogy too far you might also have to consciously throw ballast and other burdensome, “heavy cannons”, overboard into the depths of the sea to lighten your load and rid you of trouble. Get rid of excess baggage!

The best you can in all of this is to remember to “Take it to the Lord in prayer!” Jesus called us to do that didn’t He? “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11: 28-30)

Now, to block up the holes that are letting water into your hold you need to spend time quietly and openly with the healer and repairer of brokenness, Jesus.

A very calming way to prepare yourself to do this work is to focus on the following beautiful song sung by Hillsong United called Oceans ( I call you out upon the waters). Words and Music by Matt Crocker, Joel Houston & Salomon Ligthelm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m_sWJQm2fs (Hillsong Acoustic group)

You can find the words to this song under the YouTube clip.

May you be led into calm waters where all tumult ceases!

Alone with none but thee my God I journey on my way,

What need I fear when thou art near,

oh King of night and day.

More safe am I within thy hand

than if a host did round me stand.

(Attributed to Columba of Iona)

Rob

Revd Robert Penrith

0832709942

21^st July 2020

I have written on this before – seems no-one listened!

There is a lovely story of a new Rector to a church preaching his first sermon on Love. He repeated the same sermon for four weeks in a row until his Wardens questioned this. His answer was that he would continue preaching that sermon until the congregation began showing the love of God in their lives, in their speech and in their relationships.

Well, I feel a bit like that preacher today because here I am again harping on the use of our tongues (or Twitter, or comments on social media, or general conversation)

Proverbs 10:12, Hatred starts fights, but love pulls a quilt over the bickering. (The Msg)

Apropos of the above text from Proverbs, I would like to comment on the need for believers to be so careful of what they have to say. Our parents probably taught all of us to watch our language and to be careful about what came out of our mouths. We learned to be courteous and respectful of others. This is because words are powerful, and they can have a great impact either for good or evil. Being careful about what we say can affect others’ lives as well as our own, not just in the physical world, but also in the spiritual realm.

The following quote has stuck in my mind as a caution against every word that I speak, pen, or even think!

“Be careful how you live or speak. You may be the only Bible some person ever reads.” William J Toms.

The comments we leave on social media platforms are an example of where friends of mine – and believers at that – are less than careful about their brief thoughts left for everyone to see and interpret. It seems like many of us put down the shortest sentence possible to save data (or something!) and that leaves a phrase that is sometimes ambiguous and open to interpretation. It might seem funny and sassy to us at the time but if read from a perspective other than our own it could be deeply hurtful or even blasphemous to others. (Read: How could a believer write stuff like that?). People can either push each other away with a sharp tongue, or build bridges and bring others closer together with their words

James, the author of the Letters of James, certainly had some strong concerns about the things the new Christians were saying out there in the market-place. He had this to say about the way we use our words – or what issues forth from our tongues:- Read James Chapter 3. Selected verses from 2-10 here…

None of us is perfectly qualified. We get it wrong nearly every time we open our mouths. If you could find someone whose speech was perfectly true, you’d have a perfect person, in perfect control of life. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything – or destroy it! A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer. With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth! (The Msg)

Paul issues a strong warning to each of us in his letter to the Ephesians in a section where he begins dealing with the need for the believer to walk a life that is worthy of God’s calling. Ephesians 4:29, Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. (The Msg)

I often feel that children minister most powerfully to me and so I include today a simple children’s song which we would do well to appropriate as our rule for speaking. It comes from Out of the Ark music and the words and music are by Mark and Helen Johnson from “Songs for EVERYbody”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZqDXLzXdV4

O Lord open thou our lips.

And our mouths shall show forth thy praise. Amen

Rob

20^th July 2020

Is He Worthy?

I am preparing this for you on the Lord’s Day after having the privilege of listening to an amazing online service and going on a beautiful walk. Now I have sat down to connect with all of you.

My thoughts today were set in motion by a WhatsApp message from Jonathan – out there in the Karoo – who meets together with a community of believers in Bible Study and they are wanting to grapple with the Book of Revelation, which is truly one of the pinnacles of the Word of God. A fitting book with which to close the Canon of Scripture! To Jonathan and the people of the Karoo, we pray that your study of this amazing book will reveal the deep truths of God’s plan for our lives. We pray, too, that you will have the incredible assurance of his love and grace which God poured out upon us through the blood of Jesus – defeating the evil one and opening the way to the Father for those who believe in the Son.

While praying for you God led me to one of the central verses in this book – to be honest, every second verse that I come across in the Book seems to me to be the central theme – but this one is just a little ahead of the rest in my estimation. It comes in Chapter 5 which is the chapter focusing on worship in heaven and we read: Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” JESUS alone is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll!! The ‘scroll’ symbolizing the story of humankind from Adam to the final judgment. JESUS stands in the centre of that story and brings to the story the promise that there is a plan – God’s plan – and Christ’s death and resurrection is the seal that assures us of that plan.

Thus, the writer to the Hebrews was able to acclaim these words in Hebrews 4:14-16, Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

That has a lot to say to us in these days of COVID, days of need for us. We are in the middle of God’s plan and the Book of Revelation unfolds with the promise affirmed by Paul in Romans 8:1 and verses 16-17, 1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus and verses 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

JESUS is worthy of praise and honour, glory and majesty. JESUS, the Lion of Judah, who conquered the grave, David’s root and the Lamb who died to ransom you and me – Jesus is worthy!

This incredibly beautiful song, Is He Worthy? was authored by Andrew Patterson and Ben Shive and sung here by ‘Shane’ The words are taken from Revelation 5:9-10:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fs7Kah6wnY8

Quite incredible music! (I hope you had your earphones on and the volume ramped up!!?).

Staying with Revelation let me end with this blessing from Revelation 1:3 –

“Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy,

and blessed are those who hear it

and take to heart what is written in it,

because the time is near”

Rob Penrith

19th July 2020

I am the Lord of the Dance, said He!

My theme for today’s devotion began to germinate with an article on the anniversary of the death of South Legend singer, Johnny Clegg, who died a year ago. In an article in the Daily Maverick they posted the following quote from Tony Jackman:

“He danced the way you dance

when you know you will never dance again.

He talked, and told, and shared like you do

when you know your voice will soon be stilled.”

That reminded me that Johnny Clegg was a character who was larger than life and quite obviously expressed that on stage when he was before an audience as you see in this clip below:- (singing Asimbonanga with a guest appearance of Nelson Mandela dancing on entry to the stage)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGS7SpI7obY

My mind soon went away from this small germinating seed and I realized where the Lord was taking me …. to the Scriptures where I discovered, again, that there are many references to joyful, celebratory dancing.

The text that caught my eye was Matthew 11:17 “We played the flute, but you would not dance! We sang a funeral song, but you would not mourn!” Jesus brings (pipes in) joy and hope, grace and salvation, peace, and presence and yet many do not dance to these pipes (these welcoming and encouraging melodies from the Lord.) Jesus showed through every event in His life that his purpose was purely focussed upon our salvation and the free gift of eternal life. And yet the world forsakes Him as if he is a weak musician with no message.

I ask you at this point to listen to this amazing song which came out through the little hymn book A Hundred Hymns for Today. The message is clear from the title “I am the Lord of the dance, said He!”. The author was Sydney Carter who writes: ‘I see Christ as the incarnation of the piper who is calling us. He dances that shape and pattern which is at the heart of our reality.…. I sing of the dancing pattern in the life and words of Jesus.”

I share this song with you to bring joy to your heart and a skip in your step. The Irish melody tends to do that automatically but with Jesus, as the subject, I pray that you may sense some joy this morning and an assurance that Jesus did it all for you!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1yzqsWxcBY

So,

They cut me down and I leapt up high;
I am the life that’ll never, never die.
I’ll live in you if you’ll live in me:
I am the Lord of the dance, said he.

Dance, then, wherever you may be,
I am the Lord of the Dance, said he,
And I’ll lead you all, wherever you may be,
And I’ll lead you all in the Dance, said he

Why not continue singing this song all day long to glorify God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Rob

18^th July 2020

Mandela Day.

The Ndlovu Youth Choir will be presenting a concert to commemorate “Mandela Day” a little later tonight. This is one of their songs from their performance on the show “America Has Talent”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEOmg45zsbU  “My African Dream”

I just love the vibrant presence and action that this youth choir exhibits. I would love to be at one of their concerts.

18 July, which is Nelson Mandela’s birthday, was declared by the United Nations General Assembly as Nelson Mandela International Day in 2010.  The celebration of this day recognizes and gives credence to the former President’s commitment to human rights, conflict resolution, and reconciliation. The Mandela Day Campaign message encourages people to use 67 minutes of their time to support a chosen charity or serve in their local community. The 67 minutes symbolically represent the number of years the former President fought for human rights and the abolition of apartheid. Mandela Day is a call for action for individuals – for people everywhere – to take responsibility for changing the world into a better place, one small step at a time.

Micah 6:8    The Lord has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.

That, in essence, is God’s call upon our lives, the children of God, to exercise the gift of servanthood, love, and respect. Lockdown has given all of us time to reflect on how blessed we are in life. It has also made bare the stark contrasts between our comfortable and happy lives and the sheer tragedy of the rampant poverty and injustices around us.

I would hope that Micah 6:8, in parallel with Mandela Day, will motivate you to think of ways in which you can reach out to those who are suffering as a result of Covid-19. One simply needs to follow Facebook and News24 to realize that the needs out there are enormous. Contact your local church and I am sure they will be able to assist you in making donations of cash or kind that could be distributed on your behalf if you are fearful of going out while under isolation, or even quarantine. I have been looking around and I am absolutely thrilled at the enormous caring programs many of our churches have active at the moment.

As we consider our service to others I invite you to reflect on this amazing hymn from our hymn books. Ancient and Modern number 361 will open up at the hymn “Take my life and let it be” which was written by Francis Havergal towards the beginning of the 19^th century. The tune was composed by her father, Revd W.H.Havergal. There is a little story attached to this hymn. Francis was visiting her family and she recalls: – “There were ten persons in the house; some were unconverted and long prayed for, some converted but not rejoicing Christians. [God] gave me the prayer, ‘Lord, give me all in this house.’ And He just did. Before I left the house, everyone had got a blessing. The last night of my visit I was too happy to sleep and passed most of the night in renewal of my consecration, and those little couplets formed themselves and chimed in my heart one after another till they finished with “ever only, ALL FOR THEE!”

I leave you with two separate versions of this hymn sung to a modern tune by the Norton Hall Band of the Southern Seminary in the USA. I feel that this modern version gives a richness and depth to the traditional hymn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2zt7PzHPqk

The second rendition of this tune is sung by a group of largely younger people in worship.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5nPdad2EEY

Today, in service and hope for our land, and yours we pray….

Take my love; my Lord, I pour

At thy feet its treasure store.

Take myself, and I will be

Ever, only all for thee.

17^th July 2020

Laudate Dominum

The Psalms have always been revered as the source of comfort, teaching and solemn liturgy. Psalm 117 is the shortest of the 150 Psalms in the collection. It has just two verses (29 words on my count). It is small but it packs an enormous punch. It is recorded that King David wrote this Psalm. Do you know that it also sits right in the center of the books of the Bible.? (Depending which translation of the Bible you use there is a bit of controversy over whether the central chapter is Psalm 117 or 118.)

Praise the LORD, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD.

Much music has been composed around these two short verses because, I believe, the second verse speaks of the fulness of God’s grace and love towards us in the shortest of sentences. If you like, this summarizes the message of the two Testaments of the Bible. On each side of that verse is the exhortation to praise the Lord for the grace expressed in love and faithfulness.

A lot happened to David in his life. He went from being a shepherd to God’s anointed king (1 Samuel 16:11-13). He loved God and wrote some of the deepest Psalms we cherish today, but he struggled with sins that devastated his family and his entire kingdom. He was adored by his people, yet his own son undermined him and ultimately took control of his kingdom.

David experienced dimensions of joy and grief that may never touch our lives, but somehow his praise to God is still relatable. The same feelings of being overwhelmed, surrounded, and at the mercy of our enemies — even when our “enemies” come in the form of bill collectors, poor health, and in-laws — exist today. That’s why David’s example is so powerful: Whether he was at a high or low point in his life, he stopped to praise God and give thanks.

Here, in the middle of Lockdown, I would like to commend that you give yourself some space to praise God for the blessings that are poured out upon you. Start with the promise of your salvation and the assurance that if you believe you have eternal life. Then pause a bit longer and look at your lives, picking out points that you are grateful for.

Paul helps us a bit in this process in Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Once you have completed that reflection, offered by Paul, you will have a whole list of things to praise God for.

Today I would like to offer you two of my favourite pieces of praise music. The first is “Laudate Dominum” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Performed by the Bel Canto Choir in Vilnius, Lithuania. featuring soloist Lina Dambrauskaite and Raminta Gocentiene on the piano.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLdQvMDnL0o&list=PLfTeLOyAoJWD0ywG7GEl7B_rjnvxjHPt-&index=35&t=0s

The second piece of music is sung by the Notre Dame Folk Choir at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Notre Dame, Indiana, USA.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Of8OrIIprwU

Both of these pieces of music are full of praise and adoration for our God who gives us every good thing.

Rejoice always, pray continually,

give thanks in all circumstances.

for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

(1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

Amen

Rob

16^th July 2020

The power of light

Woke up this morning and, with just the bare essential opening of one eye, I calculated that I could simply lie there very still for quite a long time before Gay would have to nudge me to get up and make the coffee. Sometimes it means that Gay can’t wait any longer for me to wake up and she gets up and makes the coffee (1^st prize!).  This strategy usually works for me, but today I actually needed to go out as soon as possible to replenish our gas for the heater. By the time Gay got up and opened the curtains, and the light of a beautiful day burst into the room, I knew that I had overstayed my sojourn in bed and I shouldn’t have trusted just a peek in order to tell the time. Well, that made us a little late in getting going today. The Biblical truth came home to me that when you actually let a little bit of light into a context the darkness just hasn’t got a chance any longer. I should have opened both eyes to let the light in, shouldn’t I have?

Gay and I were reading through 1 John 1 this morning and this reality really hit me. John says in verse 5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. I was reminded of another of John’s words in his prologue to the Gospel of John. Again, it is verse John 1:5 he says, The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. I don’t want to grovel too much but this last quote sounds a little bit like me in the mornings: John 3:19 “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.” (sorry, Gay)

This is all pretty serious stuff, though, isn’t it? The concept of light overcoming the darkness, and fact that darkness can never overshadow light, has implications for how we should live out our lives (in the light) and how all our darkest deeds will be revealed once light comes to bear on them. We cannot hide anything from the light – who is Christ Jesus our Lord. Truth will prevail!

What John is saying to us, in his writings, was that the Just Judge of all the universe will come someday, perhaps soon, and judge those who loved the darkness because the darkness cloaked their sin just as it did mine. A really good exercise during lockdown would be to do an audit on the things we are hiding – from ourselves, our loved ones, our society – but, more importantly, the things we think we are hiding from the Lord. Bring them out into the light that Jesus may forgive and enable us, through His grace, to move out of darkness into His glorious light.

Don’t you love this verse which affirms our dire need to come out of darkness. Peter says: For you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

I share with you this version of the song Siyahamba ekukhanyeni kwenkos (We are marching in the light of God). I love it because it flies in the face of the oft-repeated phrase that “White folk can’t dance!” In fact, it seems that if you give us the right music, we are not that bad after all! The song is sung here by the Angel City Chorale and the Amy Foundation Choir.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGOiANtGmhE

Shine on us, Lord like the sun that lights up day
Chase away the dark and all shadow of sin.
May we wake eager to hear your Word;
As day follows night may we be bathed in your glory. Amen

Rob

15^th July 2020

Freezing Cold!!

I have a precious son-in-law, David, who was out surfing this morning in temperatures of 6-7 degrees centigrade. There was a strong wind blowing which would have pulled the perceived temperature down much lower than that!! I cannot imagine why anyone would do that? I have suggested therapy  but David is quite sure that it is a good thing to do for his body and his spirit.

Do you know that David’s discipline is not weird or out of this world!?

I shared previously of Cuthbert who would enter the North Sea off Lindisfarne and the Outer Farne Islands and stand chest-deep in prayer for the whole night. This was the kind of asceticism that the monasteries encouraged their members to utilize in order to stay focused on the Lord and prayer.

We have not got space to tease this out this morning but here are the thoughts on the relationship between asceticism+ and monasticism of Trevor Miller writing for the New Dictionary of Theology.

“Asceticism and monasticism are almost synonymous terms as the origins of the ascetical life are the origins of monasticism. Asceticism (from Greek: askesis – practice, training or exercise) describes a system of spiritual practices designed to encourage interior vigilance so as to combat vices and develop virtues by means of self-discipline and self-knowledge in the context of seeking God. Its chief preoccupation is the desire to master the lower nature and gain freedom from the disordered passions through renunciation of the world and the flesh as part of the great struggle against the devil. The religious practice of renouncing worldly pursuits in order to fully devote one’s life to spiritual work also describes monasticism (from Greek: monachos — solitary, alone.)”

Now, standing chest deep in the North Sea – or surfing at temperatures close to zero might not be the order of the day for all of us. But … the desire to be able to rest in the Lord and grow in the Lord without the distractions of the world and the ill-discipline of the flesh should be our goal and desire so that we may effectively stand firm against the devil and draw closer and closer to God. Whereas some may need to draw their focus down to the ascetic lifestyle – all of us need to be desirous of deeper moments in the presence of God.

I would like to suggest that the place for us to start is by taking time to work on a “Way of Life” that grants us space to be with the Lord and a focus that mitigates against the influence of any distractions from this world, or the flesh, or the devil.

Some of you are Explorers and Voyagers of the Community of Aidan and Hilda and you have affirmed your commitment to the three life-giving principles of the Community, namely Simplicity, Purity and Obedience. One might call this a commitment to a New Monasticism of focus and self-discipline. I can recommend the reader explores those three disciplines as tools to refocus your walk with the Lord – your spiritual pilgrimage!

Paul offers this advice to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 9:25-27 (NLT)

All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.  So, I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.  I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should.

There is just too much to distract us and this requires preventive intervention into lives that are too easily led astray by the evil one. Spiritual disciplines are essential for the one who desires to grow in his/her faith. I commend to you the writings of Richard Foster, Richard Rohr, Michael Mitten, Esther de Waal, David Cole, Ray Simpson and others who offer help as you embark on the journey of discipline.

Once again, I bring you Don Moen to sing that old spiritual song “When I walk with the Lord.” The lyrics were written by John Sammis way back in the early 1900s and the music by Daniel Towner.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dh02OnJpIE

Remember, when Peter took his eyes off Jesus he began to sink in the storm. Keep your eyes fixed firmly on Jesus and these things that distract us will simply fade away. (Hebrews 12:1-5)

Be Blessed

Rob

14^th July 2020

Nkosi Sikelel iAfrica (God bless Africa)

1 Timothy 2:1-2

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

Last night the State President addressed South Africa on the gravity of the threat by Covid-19 on our lives and the lives of all on this continent of Africa that we love so much and, indeed, upon the inhabitants of the whole world. This threat is drawing closer to ‘town’ every day as we get news of more and more family and friends being stricken by the disease. I have received news today of three people whose names I know and who are connected to my world who have died over these last 24 hours. It is getting closer – or as President Ramaphosa expressed it – “The storm has arrived”.

It is at times like this that a nation must set aside those things that divide us and turn to those things which unite us as humanity under threat. These are not the moments to focus on why the taxi’s can carry 100% occupancy while I am not able to sit down with my grand-children to help them with their homework (I confess to the Lord that this was my conversation earlier, sorry Lord!)

I would like to ask you to join me in the growing call for the people of Africa to unite in prayer together for the annihilation of this virus. Let this be “A lament for our beloved country”. On Good Friday of this year President Ramaphosa shared a service of prayer and contemplation with the Archbishop of Cape Town, Archbishop Thoba Makgoba and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Archbishop Justin Welby, over Zoom. Technology let them down a little, but the thrust of the historical service came from the words of Ramaphosa who said: “The coronavirus pandemic is a heavy cross being carried on the shoulders of all of humankind. Rich and poor, young and old, black and white, men and women suffer under its weight. But, the message of Easter is one of hope, of recovery, of triumph, and of rebirth.”

Would you pray this prayer with me this morning?-

A Prayer to Combat the Coronavirus Pandemic

Most Merciful and Triune God,
We come to You in our weakness.
We come to You in our fear.
We come to You with trust.
For You alone are our hope.

We place before You the disease present in our world.
We turn to You in our time of need.

Bring wisdom to doctors.
Give understanding to scientists.
Endow caregivers with compassion and generosity.
Bring healing to those who are ill.
Protect those who are most at risk.
Give comfort to those who have lost a loved one.
Welcome those who have died into Your Eternal Home.

Stabilize our communities.
Unite us in our compassion.
Remove all fear from our hearts.
Fill us with confidence in Your care.

(mention your particular concerns and prayers now)

Jesus, I trust in You.
Jesus, I trust in You.
Jesus, I trust in You.

Amen.

(©In the Public Domain)

I invite you now to listen to The Stellenbosch University Choir, South Africa, conducted by André van der Merwe singing improvised music by students to the words of Nkosi Sikelel iAfrica (God Bless Africa). Note: This is not the South African National Anthem but a different song using some of the words of the National Anthem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M8426dDv6A&list=RD5M8426dDv6A&start_radio=1&t=57

Let me close with those words from Scripture that I am sure you know well. They have been used by us (The Christians of South Africa) throughout our history during some really tough times – and God graciously delivered us from the troubles of those days.

2 Chronicles 7:14

If my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Rob

13^th July 2020

Gratitude

I decided to start my Devotions early in the day just so that I can get a head start on President Ramaphosa’s speech which he is scheduled to give tonight. I really have no idea which way he is going to go tonight because the buzz out there is very confusing to me. Everyone has an opinion and, while some of those opinions are really worthwhile, the majority emanate from speakers who only have a tunnel vision idea of the whole picture.

We need to be so careful not to be influenced by narrow, uninformed opinions in these times. So, please stop looking to conversations around the braai or comments following an item on Facebook or conspiracy theorists for your information and formation. Looking to such sources is explained in psychology as being an attempt to be one-up on confusing issues in front of one’s peers. (Quoting the Association for Psychological Science article on The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories).

If you are confused and fearful in these times, there are so many other avenues to explore in order to find peace and security. Over the months I have tried to lead you to many of those tools in your Covid-care-toolbox.

The next tool that I want to leave with you is the counterbalance of gratitude. When you suffer anxiety, it can be difficult to find things to feel grateful for. But practicing daily gratitude can contribute to significant shifts in your mental and physical health – we are told. While it won’t make anxiety disappear overnight, gratitude can gradually build a new mindset that helps to reduce anxiety over time.

Gratitude is the attitude of being thankful. It involves feeling and expressing appreciation and joy for aspects of your life, big or small. When we suffer anxiety, we often get trapped in our thoughts and therefore our heads. With gratitude, you are switching your focus from your head to your heart.

For the believer, we have so much to be grateful for. God, who created us, has given us every blessing in the heavenly realms. The apostle Paul exhorts us in Scripture to give thanks for all things, in all circumstances (Eph 5:20; 1 Thess 5:18), even in suffering (Rom 5:3-5; James 1:1-4), and to do everything in the name of Jesus out of a spirit of gratitude (Col 3:17). On the other hand, a lack of gratitude marks the actions of ego-centric, godless and wicked people. (Rom 1:18-21).

I was listening to a beautiful Bible preacher this morning by the name of Tsepho Pitso of the Crystal Park Baptist Church who helped me to remember that the Son of God will return and that we will be taken up, with him, to the throne room of Grace. We have eternal life promised through the Word of God. Believers who know that truth can be grateful in all circumstances as Paul exhorted us to be. Many of the hymns and songs that make up our worship repertoire express that attitude of gratitude.

Perhaps the most well-known hymn expressing gratitude is Praise my Soul the King of Heaven. “Praise, My Soul” is a great example of the appreciation for God’s sovereignty commonly found in Christian songs and gospel. Inspired by Psalm 103, this joyous hymn praises the glory of God, “King of Heaven.” We are encouraged to give our lives to God, and will be “ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven.”

Here the hymn is sung at Evening Prayer in the Martinikerk, Doesburg, Germany by the Kampen Boys Choir.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17T1nBIqFao

As a second offering here is Don Moen singing one of Henry Smith’s compositions, “Give thanks with a grateful heart!”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blbslHDgceY

I loved one of the comments under this song. David Rasmussen wrote this comment: Listening during quarantine… I am not feeling good about the whole situation, but this brings something good to me. Thank you! God is good and has all power. Hallelujah!

The Benediction from Colossians 5:15-17

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Amen.

 Rob

12^th July 2020

Will you come and follow me?

I am presuming that most of you will be signing into your local parishes, churches and places of worship this Sunday morning for devotional input. I want to encourage you all to maintain the discipline of meeting together with your local Christian Community – even if it feels so ‘un-normal’. Remember the words of Hebrews 10:24-25, ‘let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another.’

I had said that I wouldn’t be putting out a Daily Devotion on a Sunday but when “the push comes to the shove” I just feel that it’s Lockdown – what else am I going to do with my time on a Saturday if I don’t communicate with you – as is my habit. Nevertheless, to make my input a little different on a Sunday I will endeavour to bring something fresh each Sunday.

To open on a note of high praise I offer this rendition of GLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO by Antonio Vivaldi and Directed by Antonio Fauró. It is performed here by musicians and singers from the best orchestras and choirs in Spain united to support humanitarian projects of Solidarity Concerts. The Concerts were held under the banner Voices for Peace – Changing the World. This puts God on centre stage!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhhYIZJj6rk&list=PLBt3OcGr_8OOcCdbLBN0FeDlcPnFTFDbo&index=1

This is followed by a bit of fun that one doesn’t often see coming from a concert hall. You will know the song – ‘I will follow him’. It is unclear whether this song was originally written with Jesus in mind or not. Nevertheless, if the singer substitutes the name of Christ in place of “him” in the text then the words are certainly appropriate as a hymn of a true disciple along the way. The young folk at the end certainly interpreted it that way! Here is the song ‘I WILL FOLLOW HIM’ composed by Pourcell and Mauriat Vilarroig and Directed here by Félix Redondo. Once again this piece is sung by Voices for Peace at a Solidarity Concert

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRipTuasXU0

The term Christian simply refers to a person who believes in Jesus Christ and desires to follows Him. Jesus is always calling us to “come” and to follow Him. In Matthew 4:19 Jesus calls His disciples with this simple invitation “Come, follow me.” In Revelation 22:17 the Spirit and the Bride says to the multitude of believers “Come!”. This next song is a personal invitation to you, the listener, to come to the Living God through Jesus Christ our Lord and then to live out that calling through every part of your life. The song is composed by John Bell and sung by the “Songs of Praise” worshippers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zk6IUalJ3sk&list=RDzk6IUalJ3sk&start_radio=1&t=27&t=28

Lord, Your summons echoes true

When You but call my name.

Let me turn and follow You

And never be the same.

In Your company I’ll go

Where Your love and footsteps show.

Thus, I’ll move and live and grow

In You and You in me.

Bless you all,

Rob

11^th July 2020

So how are you feeling?

So how are you feeling? The answer to that question is utterly different for every single individual. Each person reading this post is at a different place in their lives and at a different stage of “Covid grief”. A sense of grief experienced because of the space and the context that you are in at this particular point in history! It might be that you have Covid-19, but you might be coping pretty well with that. On the other hand, you might be fit and well but battling with cabin fever.

So, how do these two photographs describe you.

The pic on the left is of a tree that I can see from my bedroom window in the mornings. It is on the neighbor’s property. I woke up to that this morning and thought to myself. “That is exactly how I feel right now.” (For the worry-pots out there – I am perfectly well and fit but just feeling a bit dry and grumpy. No reason! I am told it is to be expected as a symptom of the wider Covid-syndrome!)

The scene on the right is also from our garden and when I looked at that this afternoon I thought, “That’s how I want to be – alive and excited.”

Now if you are already feeling like the tree on the right then you can take a break from reading through this post. Except, tomorrow might find you grumpy like me. So, let’s figure out how to fix both of us by enabling us to move from left to the right in the pictures. We have been led to so many snippets of wisdom and guidance in the Scriptures over these days. I hope you have kept them for exercises such as this. (You can always check back copies on rpenrithblog.wordpress.com)

So, what do I give you – and me – today to get us out of feeling a bit grumpy? During my preparation time this morning the Lord began to give me some of the tools I need to pass on to you.

Do you know what did it for me? Children! Happy children!

Here are two verses of Scripture that I need you to embrace before listening to the YouTube clip….

Jesus said 2 very important things about children, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned and revealed them to little children. (Matt 11:25) and then the one we know so well, Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:3)

So, to get rid of grumpiness – put on your dancing shoes and let loose. Here is the song, Every move I make, with motions and lyrics by Hillsong Kids and brought to you by CJ and Friends. Listen (and perhaps, dance) to this: –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPvnZILn6EY

Children have a natural way of bringing us down from our perches and putting joy back into our lives. I went on from the above song presented by Hillsong Kids to the song Jesus you’re my super-hero by Kirk Franklin. And the children are great!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6GTqe4qAGo

I hope no-one felt that I was trivialising your (and my) symptoms of the real danger of what is becoming known as the Covid-syndrome. It was Jesus who brought children into the conversation he had with his disciples and he seemed to indicate that we need to recognize that the inborn protection mechanisms God gives to children are generally faith, trust, uncomplicated joy and freedom in the Spirit. The National Association of School Psychologists indicate that faith and joyful imagination are two powerful coping skills that children have to ward off stress. We should take some guidelines from children then, shouldn’t we?

Be blessed today as you and your family and friends build each other up in the Lord. (Take special note of the children if you have the opportunity! I believe God speaks to us through them)

Rob

10^th July 2020

Fear Not!

There are two kinds of fake news: Stories that simply aren’t true and then stories that have some truth but aren’t 100 percent accurate.

For example, a journalist quotes only part of what a politician says, giving a false impression of their meaning. Again, this can be deliberate, to convince readers of a certain viewpoint, or it can be the result of an innocent mistake. Either way, it quickly attracts an audience and can become entrenched as an “urban myth.”

For instance, I got all rattled when I heard reports over the radio from an MEC of Health – no lowly spokesperson here but the head himself – saying that Gauteng had prepared 1 million graves for Covid patients. Shocker!! Next day I stumbled across the following retraction: “The province does not have over a million already open dug graves, the over a million graves refers to the collective capacity municipalities can take,” the statement read.

Who do we trust these days??

Life is so uncertain anyway and neuroscientists have said that uncertainty is an even more stressful state to be in than actually knowing something bad will happen. “Your brain isn’t wired to tolerate uncertainty, but it is wired to be alert to a threat. It always assumes the worst, over personalizes threats and jumps to conclusions. Your brain will do almost anything for the sake of certainty – all in the name of survival.” (Lindsay de Freitas)

These things of which I have written are real and will always be around us through the media, social media and mischievous troublemakers. How do you and I balance that through our faith?

I want to share one of God’s precious portions of Good News – absolutely ‘non-fake news’. This is the stuff you need to concentrate on in these days, as it is truth and a light for our path through Covid-19. Read it slowly and meditate on each line.

I am going to take selected verses from Isaiah 43

This is what the LORD says: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. Do not be afraid, for I am with you – all who are called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made. You are my witnesses, I have chosen you, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am the Lord your God.”

I chose these verses because they make up the words of one of the beautiful songs in our worship repertoire: “Fear not for I have redeemed you!” No fake news here – Gospel truth!

Here is an original recording sung by Jodi Page Clark who composed the music to this comforting and powerful portion of Scripture. The words were written by the Lord God and passed down to us through the prophet Isaiah. The depiction of a Lion throughout this video is a reference to Jesus, our Saviour and Redeemer, who is represented by this symbol in the Book of Revelation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pA7Cq2lfe

Receive this promise from Psalm 121:7–8 as you go into today: –

The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.

Rob

9^th July 2020

Car Wash Day

Being able to pop “round the corner” to visit Addo Park is a wonderful privilege – but – it comes with a price. You return home with a truck-load of fine sand spread across every nook and cranny of your car. I have a white car which is transformed into a light beige car with just one gentle drive along the Addo dirt roads.

So, today was Car Wash Day. The appointment that you put off for as long as possible. It is a huge exercise and takes careful planning and priming of the brain to cope with it all. The process is akin to spending three hours in front of a punch bag with boxing gloves and a lot of anger and frustrations that need to be cathartically expressed through said gloves! You come out of a car wash sweating and stiff and unable to stand up straight. But … it is white again!

Theodore Roosevelt is reputed to have said, “Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty…”

Well, the Bible gives us plenty of encouragement to do things well and to do them properly.

There is a sense in which we face an enormous challenge just getting through Covid-19 with all the news and fake news, all the shocking statistics and frightening predictions, all the kick back from communities that feel that they are not been equally treated or cared for in these days. We face sad stories of families split apart by Covid and loved one’s separated in the process of suffering and grief. The list goes on.

You and I, my brothers and sisters of faith, need to get through this in the power of the Holy Spirit and under the sustenance and encouragement of the Word to persevere and to persevere well! These days require a liberal dose of faith and determination to fight against all the influences that would separate us from God’s grace and God’s encouragement to keep our eyes firmly fixed on the Father.

For it is written, ‘Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you.  Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.  Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil. (Proverbs 4:25-27). Can you see how much that sounds like:- Keep your eye on the Ball, plan your strategy, be careful when you mix with others, be diligent in sanitizing, keep away from dangerous areas where the evil of Covid could lurk and pounce! Don’t you think that it is a great verse for Covid-times? You should cut it out and put it on your fridge alongside your other Covid guidelines.

We can do this – if we do it properly! It will take effort and self-control, determination, and perseverance – God will get us all through these dark days.

Again, it is written, ‘Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.’ (Hebrews 12:1b-3). That verse is related to our ultimate salvation to eternal life but it could well be appropriated for our race against this virus.

This fight against the reality of Covid could be termed “a fight of faith”; a fight where it is relatively easy to be overcome with fear and worry and the “what ifs” of the pandemic. So, this process of perseverance and focus on Jesus is going to take a lot from you and from me. But keep your eye on the ball – keep your eye on the day when God will take us through this test and trail. Coming out the other side stronger in our faith will be worth all the effort.

Now take comfort from Paul’s words, ‘3 We also have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. 4 And patience produces character, and character produces hope. 5 And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. He gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us. (Romans 5:3-5)

We can beat it if we keep the eye on the ball. This Hymn should keep us focussed: It is the hymn ‘Fight the Good fight with all thy might’. This will make a nice change and challenge for you. I will provide just the organ background and you get to be the choir. This hymn was written by John Monsell and it is sung here by …………… (Put in your name!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCqgq86JS0s

I end with my Covid benediction,

Go forth into the world in peace.
Be of good courage.
Hold fast that which is good.
Render to no one evil for evil.
Strengthen the fainthearted.
Support the weak.
Help the afflicted.
Show love to everyone.
Love and serve the Lord,
rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit;
and the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

Rob

8^th July 2020

Painting them all with the same brush

We all seem to have a love/hate relationship with social media and Facebook from time to time. But there are some really good things that come out of the social media platform. I guess that broad comment, in itself, is a pretty good illustration with which to start my devotions this morning.

Gay pointed out a really helpful Ted talk that she picked up on her Facebook page and many of you might also have seen it. It is presented by CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE and is entitled THE DANGER OF A SINGLE STORY. I commend it to you as it is extremely well presented –https://www.facebook.com/watch/?ref=search&v=1899790663633739&external_log_id=0e0bd567-0238-46e6-b2c4-2512b4937631&q=the%20danger%20of%20one%20sided%20story

Listening to it raised an issue that we humans fall down on all the time. That is, we have a tendency to paint everyone with the same brush. Whereas Ms Adichie is speaking into racial profiling, I want to narrow my comment down even further to say that ‘we Christians’ are equally guilty of demeaning God’s Church by only “hearing a single story” or “painting groups of Christians with the same brush!” Idioms are really helpful at getting to the root of societal failings.

Within the context of these idioms – and the TED talk by Ms Adichie – I began to reflect, once again, on the times when I have been saddened by those say that they will not listen to a word someone has said (or written) because…..

…..  they belong to the ………. denomination, you know!

Or, that church is evil because its pastor was caught ——–.

Or, he/she is a heretic because they are —– ——–‘s.

I want to put onto the table an idiom that I have decided to live by with regards to the Church – which Christ established through Peter in – and that is the phrase is “there is much more that unites us than that which divides us”. That which unites us is Jesus!!

I am going to include this quote (which I have used before) as it speaks into the principle of drawing out the best in each stream of our faith – whether it be Anglican or Baptist or Charismatic or committed to social justice. It is a quote from Canon Michael Mitton from his book “Restoring the Woven Cord: Strands of Celtic Christianity for the Church Today”. As a description of the book Amazon paraphrases in this way: –

When they discover Celtic spirituality, many Christians feel that in some sense they have come home. As they begin to explore the people and places significant in the early centuries of Christianity in the British Isles, they find an expression of faith that weaves together strands of being and belonging, worship and witness in a unique and powerful way. The Celts had a theology that was broad and not blinkered.

I am telling you all about this book because I want to repeat a quote that I have given you before which comes out of this important book in the study of the ancient (and modern) Celts. Michael writes: –

‘As I explored the Celtic faith of this ancient mission centre I discovered something that I had been searching for during the last twenty years. I had been searching for an expression of faith in which I could own the various strands that have become important for me. I discovered a burning and evangelical love for the Bible; I discovered a depth of spiritual life and stillness that I had encountered in Catholic and Anglo-Catholic spirituality; I discovered a radical commitment to the poor and to God’s creation; and I discovered the most attractive expression of charismatic life that I had yet encountered. Not only this, but I felt connected to my roots for the first time.’

That simply means that in these days we would do well to hold the various streams of God’s Church in high regard and not paint them all with the same brush (which is usually a different brush to that which we would paint “our perfect denomination”!)

I want to leave you with John 17:20b-22 I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one.

Here follows a beautiful rendition of the great hymn of ‘oneness’ – Thy Hand, O God, has guided thy church from age to age. (Does anyone recognize the Church in which it is sung as there are no details on the Youtube channel. The Hymn was written by E H Plumtre and the tune is Thornbury.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esJ7WWqG-dI

Dear Lord, may we be one as our God is one.

May we never paint everyone according to the one story

and may we never use a different brush to paint those who are different to us.

Rob

7^th July 2020

Not a care in the world.

Gay and I are incredibly blessed to live just 60 Kms away from an incredibly stunning Game Park – The Addo Elephant Park. The National Parks opened up about 3 weeks ago and we have already managed to get there twice. This time we really took our time and simply sat and watched the animals as they simply sat and totally ignored us. Rude hey?! We were blessed that there were very few cars on the particular road that we were on and so we could sit there and enjoy our packed lunch while listening to the sounds of nature all around us. Remember the little song “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of the world will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace!”

Well, I want to tell you that the Celtic Christians really got this right. When they needed to withdraw from the clutter and the chaos, they chose to look full into the eyes of Jesus.

They also discovered that they could also find peace and solace in the wild lands around them where they would simply sit and wonder at the creation all around them. Then, too, the things of the world would grow strangely dim in the light of God’s glorious creation around them – and us.

I labelled this Devotion “Not a care in the world” and posted a picture of a very, very contented Kudu Bull – just sitting there!

It is good and right to withdraw from the things of this world at times to be relieved from the stresses and fears and realities that surround us all the time in these days of       Covid-19.

Gay and I couldn’t stay there all day and we had to start the engine of the car and head back to the reality of lockdown and pandemic. But in coming back down to reality we came down with renewed peace and strength and focus on our great and majestic God – awesome in splendor and love.

Psalm 91:1-2 “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”

In response to this reading may I ask you to worship the Lord through the words of this song which is sung and produced by pupils of the Fountainview Academy – the song ‘This is my Father’s World’ and it is written by Maltbie Babcock who took frequent walks around Lake Ontario telling his wife Katherine he was “going out to see the Father’s world”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3ZVLOLMRMw

Now read Colossian 1:15-20

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross.

This is my father’s world

Why should my heart be sad?

The Lord is king,

let the heavens ring God reigns,

let the earth be glad. Amen

Rob

6^th July 2020

Ein Feste Burg ist unser Gott

Did you know that Martin Luther, who nailed his revolutionary ‘95 Thesis’ to the Chapel door of the Wittenberg Castle in 1517, thus opening the door for the Reformation, lived during the time of the Bubonic Plague? It is estimated that the plague struck Europe in the late 14^th Century and killed an estimated 60% of the population. That plague was transmitted through fleas. It carried the name of the “Black Death” and spread across Europe over a period of 300 years.

Luther experienced the reality of the plague as all around him were afflicted.  Two of his brothers died in the pandemic and even while his wife was pregnant Luther determined to stay on in the city turning his home into a hospital to care for the sick and dying.

One of Luther’s telling bits of advice during that pandemic was that he ‘urged people to take medicine, to disinfect their homes, and to avoid people and places so as not to spread the disease (He added – the admonition to avoid people and places applied only if assistance was not needed). (Article in ‘The Hill’ 20^th March 2020) He also spoke of the need to isolate yourself from others if you really loved your neighbour. For Luther, it was of enormous urgency that Christians cared for, and loved, those affected by the plague. You would do well to read his own words in his paper entitled “Should a Christian flee the plague?”.

You can find this article here: https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/may-web-only/martin-luther-plague-pandemic-coronavirus-covid-flee-letter.html

Luther battled all his life with depression and knew that he needed more than his own strength to survive the lockdown of the day and it was in those days that he wrote an incredibly powerful hymn which is still sung today around the world: ‘A mighty fortress is our God a bulwark never failing.’ Or ‘Ein feste burg ist unser Gott.”

When you look at the words you will see many references to the pandemic and words that equally apply to the situation that we are in today during Covid-19. For example: “Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; the body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still: his kingdom is forever.”

One commentator, Ray Howell writes: ‘As we find ourselves struggling with a flood of mortal ills known as COVID-19, let us find courage and resolve in the words of the great Reformer: “And though this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God hath willed his truth to triumph through us.” It is Christ who will win this battle.’ (The-Dispatch.com 15^th May 2020)

Here is Luther’s hymn sung by Matt Boswell who also composed the extra words and music interspersing the ancient words of Luther and thereby transforming an ancient hymn into a contemporary worship song. What a great mix!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNeP7bGagqg

It seems to me that an appropriate end to our contemplations and worship today would be to simply agree with Luther that ‘God’s Kingdom is forever.’

What better prayer than the very prayer Jesus taught us –

Our Father in heaven

Hallowed be your name

Your kingdom come

Your will be done

On earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins

as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial

And deliver us from evil

For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours

Now and forever.   Amen

May today be filled with faith and trust in God,

Rob