What’s in your mix?

 

This Sunday is a day to “Stir Up” our faith. At the end of the Church’s year, what have we achieved in loving, praising and serving God in the last twelve months? Did we expect to make progress or have we become complacent in recent years? It has been an extraordinarily challenging time, but through all life’s changes and uncertainties we are called to follow the pilgrim way.

The Gospel reading of the sheep and the goats presents us with a way to follow. The ultimate question is whether we notice the needs of others. Neither side was aware of Jesus in their fellow people’s needs but their response to the sufferings and difficulties of those around them was completely different. The “who cares” way of living is roundly condemned: living with the love of Jesus in our lives is what we are truly called to.

Stirring up good works is vital for the Christian life – it is a crucial expression of the faith within. When we place our faith in Jesus and follow his way, like him we cannot ignore the needs of our sisters and brothers. Love God and love your neighbour as yourself is central to our faith, Jesus says it is the summation of what God asks of us.

Our own mix of faith may feel like our own, but it is influenced by many things – all that we have understood and experienced. Our upbringing, our education, our relationships; the varied people who have been examples of faith and life to us. Much of this will be good, but there can be shortcomings, imperfections and misperceptions. Our personal journey, our mix of faith and action must be uniquely our own. And as we all grow older, the mix can grow richer. Mmmmm.

Our Bishops (in their jolly chefs’ hats and aprons rather than their mitres and robes) have offered us the opportunity to spend a time of reflection on the fruits of the Spirit, beginning this Sunday afternoon but mainly on Monday, with thoughts about each holy gift on the hour. Visit https://www.stalbans.anglican.org/ and go to the You Tube channel and access “videos”. Each hour a new video will become available, each one giving us assistance and encouragement in thinking and praying about/for the fruit of the Spirit.

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” Galatians 5.22-23.   Just as a tree needs to grow to produce fruit, we need to allow this process of sanctification to work in our lives. Are we beginning, growing, maturing? Are there areas we need to pray about?  Does your mix need a fresh stirring?

Stir up, O Lord, the wills of your faithful people;

that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may by you be plenteously rewarded;

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen