Thought for the day – Monday 23rd March 2020
Bible Reading 1 Corinthians 11: 23-29
I ventured into the supermarket yesterday, one of the first times this week that I have mixed with other people, because I am one of those classed as being “vulnerable” and I was shocked “I’ll grab some milk” said I turning into the aisle only to see a solitary two pint bottle gently dripping it’s contents onto the floor below, obviously punctured. Don’t worry, we have a bottle in the fridge, so won’t be going without, but it was a stark reminder of the greed of panic buying that has swept this nation over the last couple of weeks, it also struck me how much we take things for granted, we turn up at supermarkets on a regular basis and simply assume that the items we need will simply be there sitting on the shelf waiting to be picked up by us.
As I read this passage of scripture form the words of St Paul, I suddenly realise that it might well be weeks before I share Bread and wine with congregations again and the fact is that the moment that we are bereft on the things that really matter to us we feel ill at ease. The last week has been a very strange experience, because all the familiar landmarks in our lives seem to have disappeared in one fell swoop, be it empty shelves in the supermarket, going out for a meal to celebrate Mothering Sunday or even visiting our mums on this special day. The landscape has changed dramatically in the space of one week and so many of the things we take for granted have simply been taken away from us.
Today has been the first Sunday in a long time when I have not been to Church. I am one of those people who will even attend worship when I am on holiday and it felt very strange spending time at home this morning. I made good use of some of the excellent resources available to us and watched the televised morning service on BBC 1, although I must confess to feeling slightly robbed because the service only lasted half an hour, I think that the BBC could have stretched to an hour, if they had really tried. I can’t imagine Sunday without public worship in the long term and the thought of not sharing in communion with others feels to be unthinkable. There is no reason why we can’t break bread and drink some red juice at home and remember the sacrifice Christ made for us and maybe as we suffer because of the pandemic, we remember that this is nothing compared to the suffering of Christ.
I am going to try and commit myself to writing a daily message to be posted on our new website. I am of a mind that we can use the Covid 19 virus to positive effect and maybe with this Circuit having five Circuit Ministers, eleven Supernumerary, Ministers, forty Local Preachers and twenty Worship Leaders, we could perhaps sustain a “thought for the day” even beyond the current situation. My prayer for us as a family in our local Churches and in the wider Circuit is that we not only survive this pandemic, but that we emerge as a stronger community at the other side of all of this.
Best Wishes
Derek Grimshaw