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Dear All,
Perhaps it is just me, but I do hate it when the hero in a book that I am reading or a film I am watching is about to do something stupid. You can see it coming, but he or she charges headlong into disaster. Of course, in the books that I read or the films I watch it all turns out right in the end. But identifying as I do with the hero, I want to shout stop!
When reading the Easter story, I tend to identify with the disciples rather than Jesus. What Jesus suffered and went through is a horror story that I fear to dwell on too much. But the disciples are different. However, have you observed how spectacularly they fail?
- They didn't understand that Jesus must suffer and die despite Jesus repeatedly telling them so.
- They tried to gain status when Jesus was trying to teach them service.
- They went to sleep when Jesus asked them to watch with him.
- They ran away when Jesus was arrested in spite of their promises to stay and die with him.
- They denied Jesus when they promised not to.
- They were slow to believe when Jesus was raised from the dead.
But the disciples did get one thing right. With the exception of Judas Iscariot, they stuck together. They supported each other through their trauma and loss. I would suggest that we have a lot to learn here. We tend to think that only perfection is good enough for a perfect God. I believe God expects us to make mistakes, to fail and generally bungle things up. What we are required to do is just to try and to stick together.
This applies to many areas of life. As we approach Mothering Sunday, we are reminded that parenting is something that we cannot "get right" – we are just called to do our best and stick together. As we think about tasks in the church, from refreshments, prayers, readings, whatever, we just need to be prepared to try, to do our best and to support each other.
May God bless you all this Easter. Philip Brooks
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