Hunny! 40 Days in the 100 Aker Wood

Day 3 – Friday after Ash Wednesday

To Read:

Winnie-the-Pooh hadn’t thought about this.  If he let go of the string, he would fall – bump – and he didn’t like the idea of that.  So he thought for a long time, and then he said:

(Winnie the Pooh – Chapter 1 )

From the Scriptures:

So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.  

(Colossians 3v12-14 – The Message)

Make love your aim…                                                             (1 Corinthians 14v1 – RSV)

To Reflect:

Christopher Robin, pop gun at the ready is apparently not the world’s best sharpshooter.  Just as well for Pooh as being hit by anything other than a cork would have required much honey to help him recuperate!

It is a sadness in our common life as a community of faith that occasionally we will be hurt by a sister in Christ or ourselves bruise a fellow brother.  In almost all cases this is never intentional, and in many cases it is because others do not know all of our story nor do we know all of theirs.

Let me give you an example.  Recently I did a stupid ‘Cut and Paste’ error and used a precious friend’s previous name in some meeting Minutes.  Tears came to them and to me, apologies were offered and forgiveness given and I hope I have learnt, with Christopher Robin, to take better and more careful aim when I sit at the keyboard.

At other times, and I know I’m not innocent of this either, Christians can come to a meeting or to worship ‘Loaded for bear^[i]’.  They seem intent to get their point across in such a way that, even though decisions are made and ‘progress’ achieved, the damage that their blunderbuss approach causes rends the fabric of the community.  When this happens the only ‘winner’ is the devil and we are complicit in this work.

Of course this does not mean that the ‘hunter’ in these situations is not haunted by something deep and personal themselves.  If we are not careful we can become judge ourselves and turn those who complain into pariahs and not listen to the heart beating for God behind their unhelpful ways of dealing with things.  The story of Francis and the Wolf of Gubbio is a helpful reminder that those who hurt also need healing and help.

If we are to Make love our aim’ then perhaps we should put away our swords and learn to speak less quickly and listen more readily?

Like Christopher Robin and Pooh, we should learn to be slow to complain – “You didn’t exactly miss,” – and quick to apologise – “I’m so sorry,”.  Having done this and ensured harmony in the Body of Christ, we can take aim again and have another go at the real problem instead of beating up each other.

P.S. Of your kindness please pray for the forthcoming meeting of the General Synod of the Church of England (23 to 27 February).  Especially that we would leave our ‘weapons’ at home.

To Do: 

1. The next time you are in a meeting, unless asked directly, decline the opportunity of being the first to speak.
2. If you have been wounded by a fellow Christian hand the wounds over to Jesus who heals all our wounds.

Please Note:  These reflections are also published on my blog: suffolkvicarhomes.com on Twitter as @SuffolkVicar, and on my public Facebook page Rev Andrew Dotchin

If you would like them as a daily email please send a request to vicar@felixparish.com

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^[i] See: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/loaded–for–bear#