Posted by: subo | May 14, 2008

My mother in Law

Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “Why, God bless that man! God hasn’t quite walked out on us after all! He still loves us, in bad times as well as good!”

I just wanted to share with you the tender story of Ruth, a tale where tragedy, mystery and down-to-earth love meet.

you can find this story on: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=8&chapter=2&version=65

it’s a great tale, but I just love the way one persons simple commitment to doing something good snowballed, even Jesus is descended from Ruth.

I wish I could believe Ruth’s faithfulness would still work in our world, where many other qualities are celebrated above her’s, and indeed Ruth might find herself criticised in our culture for her willingness to put herself in difficult situations.

does anyone have any experiences of bringing love and hope to situations in this way? - I’d love to hear how you’ve coped in difficult times.

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Responses

I read a really inspiring article in the Big Issue the other day about a world musician whose name I can’t remember now. He told a story of moving in to a block of flats with his girlfriend who is black. One of the young men who lived there routinely hurled racist comments at her. “We did not respond to him in an aggressive way. Instead, we began to help his Mama, who was very fat, to carry her shopping up to the top floor. Before long he became our friend. ”
I was so inspired by this simple tale of how a broken situation can be redeemed with love. A small thing, but one which must have taken tremendous self control and patience. It is so much easier not to engage or to engage aggressively… even more so when one is tired or run down.

By: Clare on May 15, 2008
at 11:14 pm

oh, Clare - that story is so beautiful. I wish I had half the courage of that musician and his girlfriend. I do really struggle with feeling maligned at times.

By: subo on May 15, 2008
at 11:53 pm

from “PEACE OF HEART IN ALL THINGS” by Brother Roger of Taize

“Christ Jesus, you never lead us into discouragements that knock us off balance, where all we are left with is moroseness and sadness. On the contrary, you enable us to achieve a communion and even an intimacy with you. And though there may be trials in store for each person, there is above all a love which comes from you. It brings us back to life.”

this prayer of Br. Rogers seemed to speak directly into my struggle for connectedness and communion - though, re-reading it it feel like wishful thinking, I have to be honest - I do feel overwhelmed with discouragements that have knocked me off balance. - though I’m not prepared to stop praying yet.

does anyone have any experiences of prayer really changing a situation, or is the best we can expect just to cope?

By: subo on May 16, 2008
at 8:08 am

yup clare… that’s musicians for you… patient to the nth degree. :-)

By: jonbirch on May 16, 2008
at 10:49 am

‘does anyone have any experiences of prayer really changing a situation, or is the best we can expect just to cope?’
Such a good question Su. Can we ever really know if our prayers are answered? Last year was a terrible one for us financially. Every time another month came around I didn’t know how we would pay the mortgage. Somehow we always did - people gave us money, we got a refund on an insurance policy we had been overpaying and forgotten about… weird unexpected things happened to provide for us. were these answers to prayer or just timely good luck? I don’t know. I know it still wasn’t easy - but we did cope. Maybe sometimes that is the best we can expect.

By: clare on May 16, 2008
at 3:29 pm

Subo, you always do such challenging posts. I don’t always respond, though I want to. But sometimes you just leave me challenged and I keep coming back and thinking about it.

Lovely story - when I was about 6, we did this as a little play - it must have been an assembly or something. I was Naomi. Just thought I’d drop that in, in the absence of anything really worthwhile to add!

Taking a tenuous link from your post, a few years back, I managed, with a little help from my friends, to resurrect my faith. I was an Alpha success story and great fuss was made of Alpha graduates in the local churches. Being of rather low self esteem, I hadn’t realised that this was a cyclic thing, ie, you were the dog’s bo***cks for a season, and then someone else was the star of the show. A lady by the name of Mo came along in the next Alpha wave and not only did she come to faith in a dramatic way,

By: Carole on May 16, 2008
at 6:08 pm

Sorry, inadvertently clicked submit. She not only came to faith quite dramatically, she also had wonderful artistic gifts to offer the church. She was the talk of the church, everyone was amazed by the wonderful things that she created. She got on my nerves. What it all boiled down to was that most awful and in my opinion damaging of human emotions, envy. I couldn’t bear the fact I was today’s chip wrappers. What was worse is the fact that she was invited to join the housegroup that I had joined. I didn’t want to feel that way - envy really eats you up. I prayed for a long time. In the end, I asked her to paint me a picture. We spent a long time talking about it and the result was a beautiful picture of a potter’s wheel, the strong potter’s hands delicately moulding the clay. As the painting progressed, the envy disappeared. I love her like a sister now and our relationship has real depth. Each has something to offer the other, I think. I believe this was an answer to prayer.

By: Carole on May 16, 2008
at 6:20 pm

Hi Carol - i didn’t realise i was being challenging! the thing is life is just horrible challenging for me at the moment, so have got kaleidoscope lenses to try to figure the world through

glad to hear your experience of church friendships has deepened so much, thats amazing, i don’t think its easy for us relate to each other like that.

i very much drift within no mans land, edgy with the tension of longing to be known and afraid of letting anyone near, i’d love to feel empowered to move beyond this, and guess thats a part of the appeal of blogging, showing a little of one’s inner world, but not tooooo much. however, the warmth and fun of this blog is just great

thanks for your encouragement Clare - ‘weird unexpected things happened to provide for us’, i feel as though i catch a glimpse of God’s love, only to stop and wonder if it’s intended for me!

- yep, it’s been one of those weeks

By: subo on May 16, 2008
at 11:32 pm

Su, I really appreciate your honesty and openess. I felt challenged last night, we had good friends over, who we have not seen for a year. They appear to have the kind of faith where they know God will provide everything that they need, they wait to hear where God is leading them next, knowing that they will hear him/ her. I don’t have that sense at all, I see glimpses of God, sometimes, but I don’t have that overwhelming knowledge/ faith. What I love about the Naomi and Ruth story is the kindness and grace that is shown in the story, and also that they weren’t “waiting for God’ to tell them what to do, but were being compassionate and kind as they knew that was right.

By: soniamain on May 17, 2008
at 9:57 am

Su, it’s good to challenge - you often seem to see things from a different slant and with a depth that always makes me stop and think. So thanks! x

By: Carole on May 17, 2008
at 3:50 pm

i know i sound skeptical sonia… but if you’re talking about who i think you are, are they not just doing what they want to do and doing it where they want to do it? i’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that, in fact i think it’s good… i know where they are presents its challenges but they are totally up for it. so what’s the difference between what you do and what they do, bar the evangelical language and a few trimmings. they act from their hearts just like you do.
evangelicals are often happy with words like ‘called’ and ‘led’, but struggle with words like ‘chose’ and ‘desired’. the former words seem to have approval amongst their peers… to be ‘called by god’ to do something sounds a bit more special than ‘to choose’ to do something ‘good’. it is also the tried and tested method of getting the support you need from other people. fair enough, but i would prefer a world without all the clap trap personally. ’spiritual’ language just gets in the way of real communication from what i’ve experienced… and someone else always ends up thinking less of themselves when in the presence of their ‘more spiritual’ brethren and sisterns.
know what i mean?

su… i love your brain! :-)

By: jonbirch on May 18, 2008
at 4:16 pm

‘i feel as though i catch a glimpse of God’s love, only to stop and wonder if it’s intended for me!’
Su, I think this sums up beautifully where I am at - can’t imagine a world without God but really struggle to understand what my relationship with him is. I really think that is why we have each other, you know - so I can look at you and say ‘God loves you, you’re amazing’ even when I can’t manage the same thing for myself! Because I can see your faithfulness, and your honesty, and your openness to God, far better than I can see my own God-given good qualities.
I don’t read the Bible very often but I was reading the psalm ‘The Lord is my shepherd’ the other day and I realised that I have begun to understand for the first time what the ‘valley of the shadow of death’ is. Before, I would sort of picture a bit of slightly rocky yorkshire dales type terrain, a bit hard going but with nice scenery in the background (!!!! yes, really!). Now, when I read those lines I think of the way darkness can descend like a blanket on one’s whole life, sucking the joy out of everything - and I see that the psalmist is affirming that God is present at the very times when we doubt and deny his existence - the times when it is impossible for us to see him or feel his presence in any tangible way. So from that I draw hope. We are not the first to walk this way.

By: Clare on May 18, 2008
at 10:27 pm

Sonia, I understand why you found this challenging - the phrase which stood out for me in your post was ‘they wait to hear where God is leading them next, knowing that they will hear him/ her’. But maybe Jon is right, perhaps this is just a way of framing their decision making process. I’m not saying that God doesn’t speak to them - I’m sure he does! but I think he speaks to you too, you just wouldn’t express it that way. He certainly speaks through your sense of justice and your passion for caring for people - doesn’t the Bible say that every good thing is given by God? Your guiding principles when you make decisions are strongly underpinned by your faith - is that really so different from ‘waiting to hear where God is leading you’?

By: Clare on May 18, 2008
at 10:35 pm

Jon, I don’t know about the other women on the blog, but I’m not sure I want to be referred to as a ’sistern’ !!!!!! Sounds like part of a toilet!!!!! ;-)

By: Clare on May 18, 2008
at 10:36 pm

Rather a sistern than a u-bend! :)

It’s really odd, for all the questioning, for all the confusion, for all the uncertainty that you all express, I am more inspired by you people than any churchgoing Christians I know. I think when you open your mind to the questions and the possibilities of paradox, it can be an uncomfortable walk. Far safer to bury your head in the sand of certainty. That is, if you have no desire to grow…

Suppose it’s like being unplugged from the matrix.

By: Carole on May 18, 2008
at 10:55 pm

blue or red pill anyone? here’s to following the white rabbit! :-)

By: jonbirch on May 19, 2008
at 2:32 am

red or blue, so long as it’s not a super gelicaing pill - ‘gelicals are often happy with words like ‘called’ and ‘led’, but struggle with words like ‘chose’ and ‘desired’. what more endearing gelicalisms? - it’s a good point Jon

I am more inspired by you people than any churchgoing Christians I know. - Thankyou Carol, thats a massive compliment, maybe too big, I’m sure we will manage to blow it for soon you

By: subo on May 19, 2008
at 6:12 pm

“the way darkness can descend like a blanket on one’s whole life, sucking the joy out of everything”, look after yourself Clare, I read a really good tip about making a snug place for yourself to go to at times when your low on energy. and yes, God is very close to us in these places, even though we might not feel him

By: subo on May 19, 2008
at 6:16 pm

Su - if you do blow it, I won’t love you any less! You’ve got your place in my affections, now, so you’ve earned the right to be human. :)

By: Carole on May 19, 2008
at 6:21 pm

I like that idea about being unplugged from the matrix Carole! I loved that film, I thought it was really profound. I like to think of the kingdom of God as a kind of alternative matrix, a reality which exists side by side with ours if we could only find the ways in. Probably not very theologically sound! But a better vision of the new creation than angels sitting on clouds playing harps!!!!

By: Clare on May 19, 2008
at 10:00 pm

It’s interesting to think about the subtle differences in the use of language. Maybe your right Jon, maybe the words called/ led are the same as chose/ desire. I do believe that God has given us a brain to use and make decisions rather than stopping every 5 minutes and saying ” should I do this or that God”- sometimes I wonder if God just wants to shout- DO WHATEVER YOU WANT- STOP ASKING ME!” - or maybe that says more about how I would respond!!

By: soniamain on May 20, 2008
at 7:17 am

i do suspect sometimes, that God wants to chat things through, and bring my views into play, - like “how would you feel if you went”, though i struggle to get away from seeing God as a force to be submitted to.

the sacred space prayers often ask ‘how are you feeling about stuff?’

By: subo on May 20, 2008
at 2:07 pm

I know what you mean Sonia. I really like the way Paul describes himself both as a co-worker with God and a servant of God - almost in the same breath. That sums it up well I think - we are called by God to participate in what he is doing - which involves being proactive, thinking and using our brains and working things out - but I guess in order to know what God is doing in the first place sometimes we need to stop, reflect, re-assess, and listen. An evangelical might stress the listening part whereas others might stress the doing - both are important. Also I think we all have different ways of tuning in to what God is doing - I know some friends really do actually hear God speak to them in terms of a voice in their head which they ascribe to him - whereas I would call my inner voice ‘common sense’ or something pragmatic like that! Doesn’t mean it isn’t God given.

By: Clare on May 20, 2008
at 8:10 pm

Going back to the earlier subject of whether prayers are answered - I asked Sanctuary folk to pray for Dad yesterday and today we found out what is wrong with him - an infection which (we hope) can easily be treated. So I am counting that as an answer!

By: Clare on May 20, 2008
at 8:12 pm

hope and pray he recovers quickly Clare

By: soniamain on May 21, 2008
at 7:30 am

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