Sermons

Sunday 10^th November 2024 – Remembrance Sunday

Isaiah 2: 1-4, Luke 21: 5-11, Mark 1: 14-20

 

May I speak in the name of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

 

 

So what has happened? The phrase which I hear over and over again is  Not in this day and age….

This year has seen war far too close at hand and we have felt at several times that it could get even closer. Whatever has happened… Not in this day and age.

 

But first to reflect, Armistice Day, the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. The battlefields of the First World War 1913-1918 were silenced, the atrocities and enormous loss of life in the worst of circumstances came to an end. Soldiers and all involved in the war eventually came home.

The cruellest of wars which lasted from 1914 – 1918. A war fought in the most abysmal of conditions and with such an enormous waste of life

My grandfather was an ambulance driver somewhere in France with the Royal Norfolk Regiment. He went out with the horses that his family had bred for Hackney horses. I find it hard to think of the sights that he must have seen. This happy, cheerful, and caring man that I knew for the first 5 years of my life.

And then, the Second World War from 1939 – 1945, involving the majority of the world’s nations ,became the deadliest conflict in history. The style of war and fighting had changed dramatically, and great swathes of towns and civilizations were bombed and destroyed.

. My father was in the army and reached the rank of Acting Lance Corporal before contracting TB, which affected him badly for the rest of his life.

But we were lucky or blessed compared with many.

.

The cold facts, are important, they help us to remember, they help those of us who have not seen war at close quarters to reflect and try to understand.

That’s probably why we say Not in this day and age

 I certainly never expected to feel the sights and threat of war so close in my lifetime.

The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

The armistice was signed between the Allies and Germany at Rethondes in France

But today is about remembering….

Jonathan Sacks, the past Chief Rabbi once said

Evil will not succeed If it is not remembered and it will happen again,

So for the sake of all those, whose names are on the War Memorial outside and for all those who have died in wars and were injured, we need to remember, …

we need to say thank you…….

And we need to make sure that the next generations may also be fortunate in not experiencing war.

We have seen many wars since the Second World War and I name Vietnam, the Balkans, Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan. Gaza and Ukraine.

I am not a military person, I have no real connections with the forces, but I stand as proud as the next person in knowing that people have signed up to serve and keep the peace and protect us. We have had the military in our towns helping the country to combat Covid 19 in all sorts of ways. Again, people at the front line of meeting the virus and keeping us safe. And at times that means that their lives are in danger.

We have the RAF on our doorstep, we hear the F35 jets, high up in the sky and sometimes we see the helicopters really low. Maybe like me you grumble about them sometimes? They have been increasingly busy over our heads in recent months and weeks.

The war in Ukraine continues with its horror of attacking civilians. The war in Israel is expanding and seems no nearer a cease fire and release of the hostages of over a year.

We need our defence forces as much now as in the time of the two world wars. I was watching a programme on Warship which is about a huge aircraft carrier called Queen Elizabeth, It is truly amazing and faces meetings with other air forces who sometimes refuse to move away. What must it be like for a young person to be in a Lightning aircraft at that type of contact?

Not in this day and age!

As I was standing in silence with you outside lots of thoughts came flooding in……. but especially on the importance of silence. And much of the western world is stopped at the same time.

I was reflecting on what that may seem like for God in heaven, maybe He looks down on the world and hears a constant noise, a rumble, a sound like a never stopping motorway, like the flack in the wartime skies….And then silence.

A time when He can really find us, help his message to get through and to be with us in our sadness and memories.

My thoughts were in small pieces, we call them sound bites today! And they went something like this

A visit to the trenches with school children, the tiny distances that were fought over, yet the huge space of the battles in Northern France.

The Canadian War Memorial in Arras, so many name and all those graves.

The medals that were won, the pride, the courage and the hope.

The Second World War and the places like Dresden, destroyed, our own cities too, the whole concept of a concentration camp, people I know who escaped over here and sought refuge.

The army, the RAF and the navy, everyone doing their bit, the land army too.

People of Ukraine who now live their lives in different countries, some in Norfolk, children who are separated from the fathers.

It isn’t always in the huge things that are done but so often in the small things done with great heart.

We can all give a little, We can all say a prayer

And at the end of the 2 minute silence …….. hope, there is always hope.

Hope for a good time ahead, hope for our families to live in peace and hope that all nations can live peacefully together.

We are living proof that the hope and sacrifice of so many has worked. We have a country in which we can be free, free to speak our minds, free to live without fear, and free for our families to love and thrive.

And that is why we have to remember,

 that is why we must not forget and give thanks to both the fallen and the injured in wars both in the past and more recently.

And that is why we must try so hard for to make sure it never happens again.

Not in this day and age

Amen

 

Sermon for the 20^th Sunday after Trinity

 Sunday13^th October Group Harvest Festival St Botolph’s Grimston

Readings

Amos5: 6-10,14-15

Hebrews 4:12- end

Mark 10:17-31

 

May I speak in the name of God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies

Did you manage to get out late at night on Thursday and see the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights? I went to a hill in Gayton at 10:00 at night. I had a message to say the Northern Lights were likely to be scene so I went. There I stood on the top of the hill in complete darkness against first of all at the sky, absolutely packed with stars. It was really dark the moon was bright red but was nearly gone down. For the first 10 minutes I was on my own what a wonderful time that was. Then i was joined by about three other families. What were we looking at we were gazing up into the north-eastern sky and could see pale patches of pink or pale patches of green wandering across the sky and to my absolute amazement I could take a photograph of them with my iPhone and so brilliant lights how wonderful was that! The beauty  of the skies.

In our reading from Amos we have the passage about Playa dies and a Ryan and about how God has made all of these wonderful things I wonder what it would have been like to have seen the Northern Lights at that time. But our readings are about maybe some different things don’t ever think about what Jesus was doing

it starts off with Jesus was on his way… before this passage Jesus had been talking about rules and commandments the last one was about divorce and adultery and Jesus had been answering in a way like a rule maker so let’s just remember what he said before

Let him who is without sin cast out the first stone.

The disciples and the followers had probably been thinking well that’s OK then because I’m alright because I haven’t done those things. And in this passage Jesus talks just picks out five commandments Jesus shows these he didn’t choose the ones that he mentioned later on but the two most important ones which are about love.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart soul and mind and love your neighbour as yourself all the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments. That’s why I thought it would be interesting to read the commandments today So what is Jesus trying to do well he’s trying as always to make us to make us think and we can be with the disciples we can be with those that say oh I’m alright I haven’t done any of those things but we would be deceiving ourselves the important thing really is around love.

 

I love the part in mark when Jesus says but it’s it would be harder for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it would be for a rich man to get into heaven. This was a tough one the Jews worked very much on becoming rich and wealthy on the basis that they were they were serving God in that way. The camel and an eye of a needle are interesting the because it stems back from when all the traders would be going through Jerusalem and Bethlehem. We were in Bethlehem and  went into the Church of the Nativity  through a very little narrow door. It was there so that the camels weren’t allowed to come in because the priest did not want all the camels and the traders in the church so they made the doors very small.

Peter speaks up and says we have left everything to follow you. In other words what more can you expect us to do?

The first will be last and the last will be first, what’s happening here well this is Jesus turning everything upside down again This is why for me it links with the wonders of the sky that we’ve seen in the last few nights we know so little and there is so much that we don’t know

The wonders of this world are amazing they’re awesome, the beauty of the skies.

OK so I looked up some facts is it to do with numbers and maths which is not my strong point but here we go.

Pleiades  and Orion are 420 light years away.

In the sky visible to see was the Milky Way well that is huge but is something like 26,000 light years away one light year equals 6 trillion miles. As some of you know I’m not terribly good at large amounts of notes in figures but I just think this is amazing makes us feel very small and the universe is very big and how can we ever know and understand its workings that surely is for God to decide

but a bit closer to home we have the sun are in solar night and still burning away at 153,miles away, I could also see Jupiter just 440 million miles away and I could see the moon which is 238, 000 miles away.

So getting a bit closer to home when we see the Northern Lights which are the result of a solar disturbance which has been passed down to the earth and meet up with various chemicals what we’re looking at is 60 miles away the outer edge of our atmosphere which is something like 26 miles away. Truly amazing truly or inspiring and truly full of wonder.

So when Jesus talks about the rules he is doing that to be able to explain to people but he ends up not being able to explain the whole wonder of the universe and how things work at all. Said what can we do well we’re given a chance here we can do good we can love God we can love each other and we can make this world a better place and we can live the life that God has given us and which we have all been blessed with Amen

Sermon for the 11^th Sunday after Trinity

 Sunday 11^th August 2024  St Andrew’s Congham and St Nicholas Gayton

 

1 Kings 19:4-8  Ephesians 4: 25-end   Gospel  John 6:35,41-51

May I speak in the name of God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

‘I am the bread of life’ ‘whoever comes to me will never go hungry and whoever believes in me will never go thirsty’

The bread of life

Bread is like the basis of the food that we need, it is a staple ingredient to keep ourselves healthy. It is like a mainstay to making sure that the morning starts well or at some time in the day we are provided for. Think of all the times you eat bread….

As you know I have just come back from 2 weeks holiday with my family in Croatia. My main job was to buy the bread and croissants for breakfast. It was not a hard job!! Before anyone else was up I cycled about a mile  into the nearest village along the sea inlets, with beautiful views of the bluest of seas and the sparkliest of waters in the sun. some attempts of Croatian by me and fluent English from the shop assistant and about 12 croissants and a crusty loaf of bread were bought. A cycle ride back followed by a swim…. Ok I won’t say anymore!

I am the bread of life

The passage comes shortly after Jesus has turned the 5 loaves and 2 fishes into a feast for many, many people. Bread, Jesus a sustainer of life.

I was very surprised on holiday, that my daughter was going to make some focaccia bread! She had brought the 3lb bag of strong flour in her luggage, no wonder it was really heavy!

But she had been on a course and thought this would be nice. And it was, a while day of kneading and rising in the sun and warmth, produced a wonderful loaf of bread, made with local olive oil and rosemary herb on top.

We sat down for a late lunch 3.00pm and the bread was shared, sharing together, It was delicious and sustained us, gave us joy, filled us with hope and delight.

But the interesting aspect for me as I cycled backwards and forwards on the shoreline, thinking, reflecting…. Was that it was also filled with holes.

In Jesus time the bread would have been unleavened, so I am extrapolating here so bear with me!!

 Life is like a loaf of bread and full of holes! Holes which are bound together and still feed us.

The holes are like the Holy Spirit, they are the energy that we are given, they are also the holes of life which we experience. Holes of loss and sadness. There is an amazing children’s book called The Hare Shaped Hole! Its about 2 friends a hare and a tortoise, they have different skills and likes and yet they are the best of friends. Then one day Hare dies, and Tortoise is left with a hare shaped hole.

Jesus says I am the bread of life, the bread that came down from heaven, the giver of eternal life, even with our ups and down,  our own walks along the shores, our own holes of life, our own defence, support and energy from the Holy Spirit.

Even Elijah, that great prophet was struggling, there by his head was some bread and a jar of water. Bread of life and living water. So he got up and ate and drank and strengthened he travelled on.

Even those great Olympian athletes whose aim is for perfection world records and medals, need sustaining and hope for the future.

‘I am the bread of life’ ‘whoever comes to me will never go hungry and whoever believes in me will never go thirsty. Amen

Sea Sunday & Papua New Guinea

6^th Sunday after Trinity Sea Sunday 10^th July 2024 St Nicholas Chapel King’s Lynn

 

 

Proverbs 8: 12-31, Psalm 107: 23-32, Acts 27: 27-28:10

Mark 6: 7-13

May I Speak in the name of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

Sea Sunday, shorelines and setting out for a journey

I am delighted to be with you all today at St Nicholas Chapel on Sea Sunday. In discussion with Mark, we had thought it would be a good time for me to talk with you about both the sea, fishing, fisherfolk and Papua New Guinea. Let’s bring it all together and see just how right across the world we all celebrate the word of Jesus and the stories set in and around the Sea of Galilee over 2000 years ago.

Before we set out on a journey of days and many thousands of miles let’s think about our own seas, our own fisher folk here in North Lynn.

We still have a successful fishing industry, we have a fishing fleet, where we will all walk to at the end of the service, We have fish in the North Sea, we have shellfish, like cockles, mussels and shrimps on the edge of the North Sea on the sandbanks and in the mud flats, like Dogger Bank and ……..

Everyday fishing folk go out to sea in the boats and come back to the docks here. They travel to the deeper waters of the North Sea. The cockling boats leave as the tide goes out and get to the sand banks, when the tide recedes the boat is stranded and the men go off to search for cockles, returning when the tide turns, and the boat refloats.

These are daily tasks for people and have been so for years.

There are many references to the sea and fish in the Bible and Jesus spent much of his time in preaching on the edge of the Sea of Galilee. He knew of the dangers and perils of being out at sea. In our psalm 107, we hear that God can raise up a mighty storm and can also make the waves still. Jesus too knew how to tame the storms.

In our passage from Acts we have Paul on his journeys to set out to spread the word, he was on the Adriatic, and they were drifting, finding themselves in shallow water. They were frightened that they would run aground, which they did, and had to find their way to the shores in a strange land.

In the gospel reading from Mark we are with Jeus as he tells his disciples that they need to head off to far distant places,to take nothing for the journey, and if they were not welcomed, they would shake the dust from their shoes on the doorsteps. I have to admit we did take a lot of things for the journey, including insect repellent, lots of containers for water, cool clothes to wear.

To set off to embark on a journey. What do you normally take in your suitcase? I am a keen traveller and especially to far off places. I always try not to take too much but not very successfully. But Jesus is trying to say to his disciples and us as well, we do not need all that stuff, all we need is to have Jesus with us, to walk in his ways, to set out for the journey.

When I was starting out on my journey to ordination I found this poem in Arta

Set out! You were born for the road Set out! You have a meeting to keep. Where? With whom? You don’t yet know Perhaps with yourself?

Set out! Your steps will be your words the road your song the weariness your prayer. And at the end your silence will speak to you.

Set out! Alone or with others; but get out of yourself. You have created rivals you will find companions.

You envisaged enemies You will find brothers and sisters.

From Eglesia Paroquial Arta, Mallorca

This is what Jesus was saying to his disciples over 2000 years ago and it is still as true today. If people don’t like what you say or who you are, shake the dust from your feet and move on.

So, let’s move on at this point and think of going into a strange land… Papua New Guinea is certainly a strange land, called the Land of the Unexpected

Papua New Guinea is 0.6 degrees south of the equator. it is an Oceanic country  With offshore islands in Melanesia in the South West Pacific Ocean.

It is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world with 848 languages. It’s 7 million people live in mainly rural populations and in the few towns and cities.

The country is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire and there are earthquakes and active volcanoes. It is surrounded by coral reefs and in the highlands there are dense rainforest and a rugged terrain across the mountains, the highest of which is Mt Willhelm at 4,509 metres.

In 2015 I joined a group of pilgrims from the Norwich Diocese and a diocese from Australia and New Zealand. This was a pilgrimage, not a mission. I also was part of the group who went to New Britain Island, along with Bishop Jonathan, Rev Sally Theakston and eight other people. On the edge of the South Pacific, with warm waters and tropical fish. Another place where fishing and the sea are important both economically and as a vital part of the way of life for the people there.

When we first arrived in Papua New Guinea, we were welcomed in. A welcome of people in tribal dress, and the first thing they do which is tradition is to come forward rather alarmingly and ask 2 questions;

Who are you?

What are you doing here?

The Anglican diocese in Papua New Guinea has five bishops and dioceses and an archbishop. The Christian faith came to PNG through Lutheran’s and Catholics initially in and around…. This was a time when cannibalism was still practised but it is not now! But it is still a wild country, there are tribes in the highlands who do not see other people, the communication is still hard, few roads and travel is mainly either by foot, plane or by boat.

But… 90% of the people are Christian and nearly all of those attend church every week. Their faith is a fundamental part of their life and we learnt a lot about community, living together in peace and in love with all, understanding about their love of Jesus and their knowledge of the Bible.

My group travelled by plane to West New Britain, which is an island off the mainland, isolated with only a couple of larger towns. Our welcome into West New Britain is one which I shall always remember. As we made our way through the airport, a large shed, waiting for us were about 20 young men and women in traditional dress and headgear and welcomed us into their land. They danced us in. It was amazing and took about 20 minutes to walk slowly behind them across to the waiting vehicles.

Whilst we were there, I will tell you about two interesting events, one was at a service in the jungle, in the open air with prayers, songs and food. We all had to do something special, and Bishop Jonathan had asked us to prepare something.

Being an ex-primary school teacher, I decided to teach them Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes. They emerged form the jungle singing and dancing towards us and came close to us in the dim light of the electricity from the generator.

Second event was swimming in the South Pacific amongst the Manta rays and the turtles.

We still support PNG as diocese and every other year we organise the Lent Appeal for a project, this year was to raise money for the supply of clean water tanks at Newton Theological College.

PNG has a large fishing industry, they fish mainly for tuna, slightly different to the North Sea but still the same perils, dangers as any fishing in our seas.

When Jesus asked the disciples to set out, when Paul started his ministry on distant shores…. Did they know how far they would get. PNG is about as far away as you can imagine and it is a country which is still in its infancy but we can learn a lot from it.

As we set out on our walk to the fishing fleet this morning, let us think about setting out… on a journey, in our lives and in what we are about to do today. All important and with Jesus with us we can walk into adventures, new places and meet with those who are new or familiar to each of us.

A prayer…

O Lord of the unexpected, we ask for help when things get tough, in our journeys and our travelling to near and far places.

May we persevere even when we stumble. even when we fall, may we not be afraid to get up and start again. Be with us this day and always.

Amen

Sermon for 7^th Sunday of Easter 12 May 2024

St Andrew’s Congham and St Nicholas Gayton

Acts 1: 1-11,1 John 59-13,John  7 : 6-19

May I Speak in the name of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

Gazing into heaven

I’m going to recall Ascension Day, as it holds so much importance. But before I do… Our readings take us back to before Easter when Jesus talks to his disciples. The chapters from 14-17 are so important. Jesus’ tells his disciples what they must do, the essence of theirs and our belief and how he will always be with them.

Some of the sentences…

Do not let your hearts be troubled

I am going away and I am coming to you

I am the true vine and my Father is the Vine Grower

This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

I have said these things to keep you from stumbling

I came from the Father and am going to the Father

The Advocate will  come, whom I will send to you from the Father…

How are we doing so far?

The disciples can be excused for being a little numb, this was all before the crucifixion, Jesus rising from the dead at Easter and to the time that he spent with the disciples before Ascension.

Next week we have Pentecost and the week after Trinity Sunday… Wow! Overload of special times.

So its good to go over some of what has happened from the last 7 weeks. Because these are the things that Jesus left the disciples and us too, all his people, with.

When we live in a world in utter confusion, it is good to return to some of the essence of what Jesus asked not just his disciples but us also to do!

Do not worry, I am the Son of God, Love ourselves and one another, I will be with you always.

And so back to Ascension…

‘A cloud took him out of their sight’

‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand there gazing into the sky?’ said the angels. Well you would wouldn’t you? Friday night many people were gazing into the sky to see the Northern Lights, visible even in Gayton!

A cloud took him out of their sight…

This is where the distance between heaven and earth comes close. It is hard to visualise and explain this concept, it can be described as like cutting through paper with a knife and finding yourself in another place, at certain points in our world we can feel closer to God and heaven. Thin places, Second book in the series of The Dark Materials, The Subtle Knife…

Places where heaven and earth become close…We hope that many of our churches are in such places, but it can also be a place in the countryside or a spot in a town, somewhere where you do feel closer to God.

Ascension Day is when Jesus is taken up into heaven his leaving the earth until his coming again, when we shall all feel the closeness of heaven and earth.

In a way it is a goodbye, but more like a farewell, and until we meet again…

There are many ways of saying goodbye, did the disciples say goodbye? Or were they speechless?,

Ascension Day was Jesus’ big ‘goodbye’ moment – at least to being on earth in one place, at one time and with one group of people at a time.

Some ways of saying goodbye…

 Goodbye, farewell, cheerio, see you soon, bye bye, adios, arrivederci, auf wiedersehen, au revoir, adieu, hasta luego….. Often meaning     until we meet again

(The disciples just stood staring into the sky, well I think I would have done that too and it was only when the angels said, ‘Why do you stand looking up to heaven?’ that they finally leave that place and go back to Jerusalem.

A cloud took him out of their sight…)

We know that the story continues and that in a few days we arrive at Pentecost when they receive the Holy Spirit and the tongues of fire.

But on the ascension they are left

The friends of Jesus were ‘left behind’ and now had to wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit.

Let’s explore being left, it is a difficult feeling and one which means that we have to go out with whatever resources we have, people who have left have moved on to somewhere else.

Jesus said I will be with you always.

Please put your left hand behind your back – let’s pray for all those who feel left behind because they have no job, no home, and no hope.

• And Jesus promises use you right hand and five fingers ‘‘I am always with you’.

Put your left hand to your side – let’s pray for all those who feel left out because they are sick or afraid.

• And Jesus promises): ‘‘I am always with you’.

Invite everyone to put their left hand palm-down flat in front of them – let’s pray for all those who feel left alone because they have no friends or are sad.

• To all of us, Jesus promises ‘I am always with you’.

And that is the message Jesus promises to always be with us, just because we can’t see him does not mean that he isn’t there, there is a cloud before us, and sometimes a cloud of unknowing, a cloud before our eyes.

A cloud took him out of their sight… not gone really just out of sight

You know the uplifting feeling when the clouds in the sky break and we can see the blue sky again. This is what it is like to know that Jesus is there and with us all today, tomorrow and forever.

Amen

 

 

Fifth Sunday in Easter 2024

Sermon for 5^th Sunday of Easter 28 April 2024

St Mary’s East Walton and St Nicholas Gayton

Acts 8: 26-end, 1 John 4:7-end, John  15: 1-8

The Vine and the Branches

May I Speak in the name of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. I am the vine and you are the branches.

Something has happened to the garden this year. It was looking for fine last year and then the flooding, the winds, the cold and probably the muntjac have left a disaster! Old favourite bushes and plants have died, they have all gone now, bare soil, which looks decidedly cold and lumpy is left!

But with some help I am replanting, making changes to plans I had  before and looking ahead with some optimism and hope.

I have been pruning too! I love that word, although I am not sure whether I am horticulturally correct with the pruning shears I do take some enjoyment in cutting out shoots on roses that are just too scratchy or those which appear to be going in the wrong direction. I have some fruit trees, fan arrangement and one day I will ask an expert to help me in pruning them too.

So far, I do my best and only those with shoots which are going sideways will survive, those who reach over into the neighbour’s garden are far too high and are cut away. To be honest I need a new wire and train more branches along it, but that requires more expertise in the wire attaching process, than I have.

Apparently like vines the fruit trees are searching for the light and like the clematis they can get in a real tangle unless they have some help in direction.

Jesus says I am the vine, and you are the branches. He was talking to his disciples and then indirectly to each of us. God the father is the gardener, and he prunes branches that do not bear much fruit.

We are the branches along with the disciples. WE can bear fruit whilst we remain in Jesus. It is impossible by ourselves. We cannot go it alone. That is good news!

It is good news to me, because I have probably wandered off in strange directions at various times. Like those branches that on the fruit trees peer over the neighbour’s fence to see what is on the other side. Tempting isn’t it!

But God has always brought me back. God brings us all back to him, if we let him.

Sometimes it can be quite painful to be turned back, to be pruned, from the direction in which we were heading. But we are always directed by the Father and the Son.

How do we know then when we are going along the wrong direction? We need to stay in touch with God, we need to pray and listen to his response, we don’t always get the answer we were hoping for though but overtime it does work out and we can bear fruit. And bring God’s word and loving arms to those we meet.

Before the passage in the gospel, Jesus had been talking to the disciples about leaving and going away. However, were they to understand this. The events of Easter could never have been imagined.

Jesus says to them.

‘I am going away and I’m coming back to you… and all that will happen will show the world I love the Father and am doing this to do what the Father has asked me to do.’

And then ‘Get up. Let’s get going’. I love that part. Something very direct about it. He knew what he had said was not understandable and not what the disciples wanted to hear. No one wants to hear that someone they love is going away.

They wandered off from the upstairs room to the Garden of Gethsemane and it was along the way, that Jesus told them about the vine and the branches. Walking and talking…

Let’s have a think about the vine. I haven’t been to many vineyards, but I have seen fields of grapes grown in vineyard styles in Mallorca. Often, I would go in March and see the stocky main branches and the lines of wire for the branches to be trailed along. Remaining dormant over winter.

But later in April/ May the branches would be shooting out; the vineyard owner would be training them and by August September huge bunches of grapes would be b earing much fruit. Our own vineyard at Congham shows just how this works and the harvest in September bears fruit only after careful tendering by Helen and John

Jesus refers to himself as the vine as in Jewish tradition the vine was a picture of Israel, God brought a vine out of Egypt and planted it in the promised land of Israel ( Psalm 80:8-18)It had turned wild and needed protecting and re-establishing.

Following this passage Jesus talks about love and remaining in his love… but that’s for next time. Two chapters in John which are incredibly important to the core of our believe and the words of Jesus.

And for now… I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.

 I am the vine and you are the branches

And in my garden, I do see some signs of growth and hope ahead. It may not be like it has been before, but it will emerge with abundance, love and fruit.

Rev’d Sue Martin

 

Sermon for the 3^rd Sunday in Lent

 Sunday 3rd  March 2024

Readings

Exodus 20: 1-17

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

Gospel  John 2:13-22

May I speak in the name of God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

We  are in the 3^rd Sunday in Lent, halfway through Lent and getting towards Holy Week  very quickly now. This year also that means getting to the end of the lockdown

Have you ever felt so annoyed with a situation that you take the matter into your own hands and just sort it out?

Well, this is just what Jesus did  at the temple! Tables turned over, money scattered to the far corners of the temple grounds and people sent definitely on their way. Priests standing around in amazement, whoever is this man and what on earth is he doing?

What was Jesus doing? Here is this peaceful and calm person who was the man fast asleep in the boat whilst the storm raged and the disciples were tossed about, the man who calmed the storm and calmed the disciples too. I am sure his disciples were not used to Jesus behaving in this way, clearing the stalls, and sweeping things aside.

But it is fascinating to look at the story and other passages in the Bible that are linked to it. I am beginning to think if I did ever find myself on a Desert Island as in Desert island Discs it would at least give me enough time to see how the Bible passages are so often linked together.

We have the reading in John’s gospel today, which  is at the beginning of John’s gospel whereas in Mark and Matthew it is nearer to the  end, and it is the arrival into Jerusalem before the Passover.  The temple was the central place for the Jews, it was the hub of life. Jesus overturned the tables and scattered the money  of the money changers in the temple grounds, where there were a lot of people, Gentiles and Jews. They would not all have been allowed inside  the temple, but in the temple grounds.

Jesus had a good crowd with him, along with his disciples, he had many followers, he had ridden in triumph into Jerusalem, people wanted to hear what he would say, they wanted to see him perform miracles, they wanted to be with him.

Imagine the uproar when Jesus did this. Imagine the faces of the priests and Pharisees.

The temple was the central point for the people. It was the focal point of the nation. The Romans were in charge everywhere else.

And Jesus turned the whole thing upside down. Upside down! Isn’t that what Jesus did and still does. He turns things around so we can see where God is and what he wants us to do.

Sometimes it takes a whole lot of effort to make changes. I wonder if that sounds familiar to today. We are about to see major changes in our lives and all sorts of things, so get ready. We cannot always be comfortable for ever. We also need to make changes and if you like metaphorically , have our own tables turned upside down!

Jesus said,  “Is it not written,’ My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations?’ But you have made it a ‘Den of Robbers’” Matthew 21:12

When Jesus says this these are direct quotes from firstly Isaiah 56:7 which says ‘For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.’ That is all people!

And in Jeremiah Ch 7  11 ‘Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers?’

The priests and Pharisees were appalled, they had been called to account on how they ran the temple, they now saw Jesus as a real problem, Timing was not good as the Feast of the Passover was soon to happen. The Romans needed to see that this place was in good order. Jesus was threatening the Jewish  priesthood with disorder. They could not tolerate this any longer, they started to plot against Jesus.

It is interesting that the first of our readings today from Genesis is the commandments, and links well with the need to follow the order that God has set before us.

In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, ch 1:20, ‘where is the one who is wise… Has God not made foolish the wisdom of the world?’

Tables and lives turned upside down! Jesus came to save us and to make changes. He has turned more than just the tables upside down

Now the scribes ask Jesus for a sign for doing this. But they do not understand what he says. He says that if the temple was destroyed, that he could build it up in three days!

The temple was taking years to rebuild and the Pharisees did not understand.

What Jesus was meaning was that his resurrection after death would be in three days and he would rebuild the nations for all God’s people.

In many ways we are fortunate to live now, even with Covid19, we know the signs and can interpret them if we try very hard.

As we continue in Lent and move towards Holy Week let us know that Jesus came to earth for all people. He came to save us. He may well turn over the tables and turn things upside down. All we need to do is to trust in Him and his love for us.   Amen

Pentecost Sunday  

St Nicholas Church, Gayton 

1 Corinthians 12:3-13

Acts 2: 1- 21

John   20:19-23

May I speak in the name of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Ghost

Pentecost or Whit Sunday

The Spirit of Truth, the Advocate, the Holy Spirit… when the advocate comes…

When He comes indeed, and Pentecost is a wonderful entrance of the Holy Spirit.

Tongues of fire and speaking in different languages! .

Let’s think about this spirit.

Have you ever found a time when you thought the Holy Spirit was with you? Have you ever been in a place where something feels so right about the place and the moment that you are filled with something… maybe an overwhelming feeling of calm, a feeling that makes you believe that you can do so much, or a feeling that all will be well.

The trouble with living in a secular world at the moment is that expressing any of that leads us into looks of disbelief, or thoughts of … “Oh dear, she is going off on one again!” Ever sensed that?

I was listening to an old You Tube clip of Lord Jonathan Sacks, a previous Chief Rabbi and a man with wonderful insight.

He was asking what is it that people worship, what is it that makes them feel this sense of wonder? He concluded that in years to come, people will see that the new belief is in the selfie, the amazing me, the I. But we need to live and to be with others.

Well, since Covid so many of us have learnt how to Zoom and that is wonderful, but we need to be ’with’ others. We need to be like we are today, with each other and to share and to know and to feel. That is what makes us human and will take us away from so much of the ‘selfie’.

We have and still do live in hope, and we live in the hope of the Holy Spirit as God in our world, to intervene for us, to guide us and to be with us. As Paul says,

For in this hope, we are saved.’

In Acts we hear that the disciples had returned to Jerusalem. there were a group of about 200 followers, the disciples, and Mary, mother of Jesus and his brothers. A sound from Heaven, like a strong wind appeared and tongues like fire rested on them.

Peter, standing with the other 11 disciples, addressed the crowd. He interpreted the tongues as the fulfilment of God’s promise, described in Joel,

“I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh and your sons and daughters will prophecy”.

Peter went on to baptise about 3000 people that day. They were from countries far and wide; they had the potential to cross cultural boundaries. They had the power and the spirit to take the word of God across the world.

The church and Christianity starts here!

We are celebrating today that we can start again in this church, we have an interregnum approaching. We have the chance to start over, we have the chance to be set alight with the Spirit who will help us in different directions.

After all, the disciples didn’t realise that they would ever be travelling across the world to spread the gospel.

It’s all about making bringing the word of God to people. To share and to shine.

One of the joys of our world today is the ever-changing world of IT, being connected, and it set me thinking about what that could have been like at Pentecost.This was before the world of emails, texts, before the printed paper and letter press, before air flight and long-distance travel was popular.

Let’s imagine for a moment…

 Email from office@heaven.central.

      To Peter and all disciples, Please all meet together on Sunday in     Jerusalem at the Feast of Weeks. There will be people from many different countries speaking in many languages. More information to follow.

Email from peter@fishermen.galilee

Many thanks but can you give more info please about where, when and what. We have been in upstairs rooms for quite a while now.

Email from office@heaven.central

All will be revealed when you get there. No need for further info, or if you really feel in need then visit

www.howtomakecontactwiththeHolySpirit,com

Email from peter@fishermen.galilee

Can’t get a signal or WiFi at the moment. Help!

Email from office@heaven.central

 Hi Peter, Don’t worry, the signal will be loud and clear, expect to be truly amazed. You are about to start something really big.

Email from peter@fishermen.galilee

More info needed asap. Tried the website www.howtomakecontactwiththeholyspirit.com but couldn’t access the right pages. Please send password straight away. I have my iPad ready.

Email from office@heaven.central  Hi Peter, new password sent over, only active for 20 mins, need to change asap. But too late now as the Holy Spirit is on his way. Check out stuff for 3000 baptisms, you may need it.

As to the emails from heaven… not going to happen is it! Thank goodness, and we like Peter have to rely on what God has already given to us. We have all that we need.

And what is the Holy Spirit? It is something so intangible it is hard to explain, there is nothing physical about it, but yet we feel and know when it is here and with us.

It is much more than just spirituality, the Holy Spirit is part of God, the three in one. When Jesus left the world, he left us with the Holy Spirit.

From the word spirit we have much that gives us hope and joy and a chance to look beyond where we are.  We have the word inspired, being given the means to feel passionate about something, a sense that we can do more. It is much more than just a mechanical way to solve a problem.

Our church spires, also reflect the word spirit and point to the heavens. Looking for inspiration and searching for the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes we can feel the Holy Spirit within us or around us, but we have to be ready to feel it, it is not going to happen if we spend all our time busying around or indeed writing too many emails!

We are given all that we need. If we truly listen, we hear from the Holy Spirit

The Church and Christianity started here, so let us make sure we carry it on

Amen  Rev’d Sue Martin

 

Palm Sunday April 2nd 2023

Luke 19:28-40

What a delight to follow behind the young donkeys on our way into church.

Donkeys – what do they mean to us? Calm, loving, spirited, friendly. They were used for beach donkey rides and I think still are used with racehorses to calm then down.

They were chosen by Jesus, this was no accident. The donkeys were mentioned in Zechariah ch 9 ‘ Lo, your king comes to you triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’

In fact the story is full of coincidences, the Mount of Olives, mentioned in Zechariah ch 14 The crowd stripped off their coats and cast them down before Jesus as in 2 Kings ch 9 and as they tore down branches from the tree there is a connection with Maccabees ch 13.

Much, much more than just coincidences, this was planned and determined long, long ago and Jesus knew that he had to play this part. it must have been very hard for him, knowing what was about to happen, losing his friends and knowing how hard the disciples would find carrying on without him.

But it still had to be done.

He had travelled a long way to get to Jerusalem and the road from Jericho, which is the lowest point on the earth, was long, dusty and always hot. Half way up you reach sea level and when you get to the top of the Mount of Olives, the sense of relief and excitement is intense. The dusty desert changes to green, lush growth and there before you lays Jerusalem, the holy city.

The end of the journey, the pilgrimage to end all pilgrimages

And so Jesus enters Jerusalem on the young donkey, just like our two here. As they all go down the steep path to the Kidron valley the disciples start the laying their cloaks down in front of Jesus and the crowds follow on.

With all the followers that Jesus had developed in the last few months, there was much excitement, people were starting to believe in this new Messiah. He was doing great things, he had cured many people and performed many miracles. He was indeed very popular with the people.

But the Pharisees were not so sure, to them he was a rebel, a dangerous man who took no note of their rules and laws, and even worse breaking the rules in the name of God.

And even more dangerous he had the people behind him.

For them this was the start of something very serious, Jesus riding into Jerusalem at the feast of the Passover, the busiest time. The Jews were in hand with the Romans but if they felt there was going to be a big demonstration this would be a problem.

But of course this was the reason why God had chosen this special time.

Turmoil, trouble and triumph……

So are we like the crowds, let us arrive at Jerusalem with them. Are we going along for the trip in the hope that Jesus will help us with some of our own troubles and turmoil. Are we ready to sing a song of praise, but only as long as Jesus seems to be doing what we want?

The long and dusty pilgrim way of our lives gives us plenty of time to sort out why we are following him.

But let’s do more than spread our cloaks before him and shout praise.

In the days that followed Jesus entry into Jerusalem there were problems and things started to get difficult, the story was not going to end in the way the disciples and the crowds had hoped.  And he will be there with us for always, riding the donkey, bringing calm and peace to all.

Let’s follow him into trouble, let’s follow him into turmoil, let’s go the right way with him not just for what we get from it but because it is the right thing to do. Let us follow Him to triumph

 

Amen

 

Sermon for the 5th Sunday in Lent 26.3.23 St Mary’s East Walton and St Nicholas Gayton

Readings Ezekial 37:4-11

Romans 8:6-11

John 11:1-45

 

May I speak in the name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit Amen

Phrases for arriving somewhere.

Nice and early, Always on time, Just in time and Running late!

The Gospel reading today from John’s gospel could be seen in the context of being timely or not!

Jesus is being pressed by his disciples and also pressed by Martha to visit them and make things right with Lazarus. But Jesus is not pressed. In fact time is not the issue here. Everyone else thinks it is. But Jesus knows what he can do.

This is a long passage and a substantial story. Two weeks ago, we had the woman at the well.

As we continue into Lent and near Holy Week, we are getting closer to the final days and the real answer that we are all looking for. So, what has time got to do with anything?

Which of the categories above do you fit into?

Nice and early, Always on time, Just in time and Running late!

Nice and early. I have to admit to hardly ever fitting into the first one, nice and early. As much as I would love to be that organised I never really am.

Always on time is not for me either, hand on heart. I am now better but I have to really work at it!

Just in time fits me nicely. Gathering things together, having a last cup of tea and then getting to the right place.

Running late – can still be said of me occasionally now. I don’t like it as it means that you may be letting people down, so I do try hard!

And so Mary and Martha were distraught, Lazarus, their brother had died, They had sent word to Jesus who was only two days away, so why didn’t he come then?

After the two days he said to the disciples that they were to return to Judea. The disciples didn’t think this was a good idea as the Jews were gathering against him, because of his miracles and because so many people were following him. They had the Feast of the Passover to get through, they had the Romans ready to punish for any wrong doings.

But anyway, eventually they all went, two days travelling. As they arrived Martha met them and told them that Lazarus had died and asked Jesus why head not he been there as could have saved him.

And Mary Martha’s sister said the same.

We have such a clear difference here between the divine side of Jesus and the human. In Jesus divinity, he knew that he could raise Lazarus, and all would be well. But his human side felt the grief of Mary and Martha and anguish for his good friend Lazarus.

When Jesus asks for the stone to be rolled away from the tomb, Martha is horrified, she knew it was not going to be pleasant and surely, they had suffered enough, there were so many people around. But they did roll the stone away.

Jesus called to God the Father and then simply asked Lazarus to come out of the tomb and he did!!

Was that surely leaving the best of the miracles to last.

Jesus was none of the time restrictions that we feel. He was not late or even just in time,

With Jesus all is possible, there is nothing that is impossible. And Lazarus became alive again.

Jesus had been talking to Mary and Martha about the resurrection, the risen life. We are told so many times that the resurrection is for us all.

What Jesus did was a preview of what was to come.

However, it did mean that the Jews were gathering even more in their plot to kill him.

We move on now towards Palm Sunday next week.

Lent starts us gently and we think and reflect on our own time, By the time we get to next Sunday, we enter Jerusalem with Jesus in glory and riding on the donkey.

Amen

 

 

Amen.

Sermon for the 3^rd Sunday in Lent 12.3.23

All Saint’s Ashwicken and St Nicholas Gayton

 

Readings Exodus 1:1-17

Romans 5:1-11

John 4:5-30

May I speak in the name of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit Amen

Water from the Well and the Rock

I came back from a wonderful week in the island of Madeira, which is 500 miles to the west of Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean on latitude approx. 30. It was a lovely week, restful and chance for a breather. The island is volcanic and reaches over 6000 ft in the north and centre, but I was near Funchal and by the sea/ocean. I had a wonderful view of the Atlantic and my highlight was seeing some pilot whales as they travelled from Mexico  eastwards. I was told that the Gulf Stream flowed straight across too and gave warm water.

My first morning I walked to the church on the very steep hill, catholic and all in Portuguese but still a real joy.

One of the things that Madeira has a lot of is water. That is in contrast with our readings which all took place in areas of semi arid countryside/desert in Judea or nearby.

Water ! The essence of life on this planet., Life giving, pure, healing, enriching…. We simply cannot manage without it.

In Madeira they have channels called levadas, which were made going round the mountains more or less on the contour lines which bring water from the mountains to the areas where it is needed. There it enriches a very fertile soil and agriculture, bananas, potatoes, lots of fruit and for people too.

Our first reading is set in the Sinai desert , Moses and Aaron had taken the Israelites from Egypt across the Red Sea and to Canaan. But the people were thirsty and hungry and they were angry with Moses for bringing them into this barren land. They were suffering.

And so Moses spoke to the Lord and he told Moses to take his staff and go to the rock at Horeb, where when he struck the rock water would appear. He did this and the people were thirsty no more.

A test for the Lord, which Moses knew was not the right thing.

For a minute let look at the second reading…

Paul talks about our suffering, God’s love poured into us through the Holy Spirit, Suffering produces  perseverance, character and hope.

Lent is in some ways a chance for us to suffer or give up something or make some commitments or just simply to have a chance to stop and take a breath and allow that life giving spirit of holy water to fill us. We have water added to the wine, Jesus turned water to wine. There are over 700 references to water in the Bible. It is important.

And so Jesus was in Samaria which is north of Jerusalem, on his own and by the well. A deep well of water!

The Samaritan woman came, and Jesus asked her if he could have a drink. But the woman challenged him, asked him why he a Jew was asking her a Samaritan. Jesus was being challenged, just like Moses really.

Jesus answers her saying that is she knew who he was he could have given her living water. But not to be outdone the woman continues… You have nothing to draw water with and this well is deep.

Actually this is quite thought provoking…. ‘nothing to draw water with. And this well is deep.

In other words no ordinary person can talk about ‘living water’ and she needed proof that Jesus was greater than her ancestors Jacob.

Jesus answers,

‘ Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

Isn’t this a question for us all, is this not what we ask and crave for at all times?

Eventually the woman how is not daunted in anyway by speaking to Jesus, says that he is a prophet and Jesus replies …

I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

I think the woman is speechless!!

 

And she returns to her home and friends and tells just what has happened to her.

How amazing is that!

The water, the well, the everlasting sense of love, spirit and God through the Messiah, Jesus.

Water ! The essence of life on this planet., Life giving, pure, healing, enriching…. We simply cannot manage without it.

Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God the Father, the bedrock for life our love and for all that we are!

Amen.

 

Sermon for the 3^rd Sunday Before Lent 12.2.23 Ashwicken and St Nicholas Gayton

Readings Genesis 1: 26-end  

Romans 8: 18-25

Matthew 6; 25-end

 

 

 

 

 

 

May I speak in the name of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit Amen

In the beginning…

This is the start of Genesis… in the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth. I have shortened the first reading today as it was all of Genesis chapter 1. Definitely worth reading but maybe you could do read it at home.

If we move to the start  of John in the new Testament, how does it start… In the beginning was the Word and the word was with God and the Word was God…..

In the beginning…

I love stories and books and the old fashioned way that children’s stories used to start was… Once Upon a Time. Quite similar to In the beginning…

We all have to start somewhere. We all have to journey along the way. We all get to, well where do we all get to?

The Bible has over 7000,000 words so we are not at the end yet. In fact for us there is no end, we step out of this life into a life beyond.

But that’s not where I wanted to get to!!

God had to start somewhere and the important word is ‘created’. Creation is the most wonderful thing. Every day we wake up to a brand-new day we see the blue sky, the world around us. Sometimes if we are on a journey, we can see from a plane the edge of our world and the slight curvature on the earth.

At nights recently we can see the stars and some planets, Venus and Jupiter, we can see constellations like Orion and the Plough. We can stand back in awe and wonder to realise that we play a small part in this universe.

But yet that small part is so important.

So let’s take a tiny thing… the snowdrop… Lots now flowering in our churchyards, a flower of winter, and a herald of Spring. How uplifting it is to see their beautiful and tiny white flowers appear through the ground and make carpets of flower in January and February. The beginning of our year.

In the beginning…

I was recently shown the book called A Gospel of Wild Flowers by Anthoy Foottit, who was a previous Bishop of Lynn and a very keen botanist.

What he says is… snowdrops are a first sign, a promise that spring is on its way, and sometimes called Candlemass Bells, they are often here at Candlemass, when Jesus is taken to the temple with an offering of two doves. There Mary and Joseph are met by two older people Anna and Simeon.  These older people have been looking after the temple as older people do today in our churches. Keeping them alive as a beacon of hope in all our communities.

Jesus shows that God gave the world a fresh start. The snowdrops show that we have a fresh start at the beginning of our calendar year. They represent purity. Light and peace.

We all live in this world of God’s creation. He created, he made the world, and he made us. I have no qualms about how He did this and there is much understanding that the first chapter of Genesis is written from a different style, we should not always interpret it as accuracy in the days and weeks. Who had created a calendar at that time?

God’s world. Creation…

And then on the sixth day God created humans. And here we are. Not only did God create us as a different species, but he created us in His own image and so that we should become stewards of the world. That we should look after and maintain all that is in the world. We have been given this as a task.

We live in a part of the world and a part of our country which is rooted in countryside, creation is all around us, aren’t we lucky?

If we can do anything we can pass on that love of all that is in creation to the next generation and those who do not understand the ways of the wild, the ways of other things apart from human living. Because we are very close as a global community to creating our very own end time!

In Romans, ch 8, Paul talks about hope. We all have a hope for our own lives and for our families and we also hope that for all in our world there is hope for a future.

‘ so do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.’ Matthew 25: 34

To spend our time worrying detracts from all the good things that we can do. But of course, we all have worries and fears. Jesus asks us not to worry and likens us to  the lilies of the fields and the birds in the air. God will hold our worries and keep us safe.

In the beginning… when we all start our journeys with hope, free from fear and ready to walk forward with God in this world full of his creation.

On your way home today, just glance or take a longer look at the snowdrops. The beginning of our year, wonderful signs of light, purity and peace.

.   Amen.