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Easter 2015

April 5, 2015 by LCPF

Happy Easter

This year, like previous years we share the Bishop of London’s Easter Message….

BishopLondonEaster2015We have huge opportunities to use our gifts for the common good and who knows how long the opportunities will last. Why should we continue to enjoy our rich heritage unless we are fruitful?

Last week was full of notable events for the Christian Church. Tuesday – Rome. Thursday – Canterbury. Wednesday – St Cuthbert’s Philbeach Gardens – Earl’s Court. A new Pope or a new Archbishop can set a tone and influence the atmosphere in which we work but, as Jesus said, the battle will be lost and won at home in Galilee: in our local Christian community. I can not think of a better place to be than working in the Diocese of London, or of better company in which to learn to be a better friend and servant of Jesus Christ.

It was in one of the parishes of the Diocese that our new Archbishop heard the call to serve as a priest. He presented himself to the then Bishop of Kensington who declared that he had interviewed hundreds of prospective ordinands and that Justin did not qualify for the top 1,000. I can only think that the quality of the other 999 must have been exceptional.

Just a little adding-up reveals the vigour and health of Christ’s body in London. It is estimated that our church volunteers in London help as many as 734,500 people in need each year and contribute to many more organisations themselves working amongst the capital’s communities. Together we are well on the way to making cynicism unfashionable; building a Church for London that is confident, compassionate and creative. Those three words inform Capital Vision 2020, the Diocese of London’s blueprint for the next seven years, which will be launched in St Paul’s Cathedral on June 6th.

The world is changing profoundly and it is in this context that our three main themes have emerged. The unchallengeable Western hegemony of the past 250 years is giving way to a more multipolar world. China with its fast-growing Christian community is regaining the economic and political place it held until the eighteenth century. At the same time, scientists are beginning to articulate the fear that climate change will exceed the two degree increase in average global temperatures with a consequent impact on some of the most vulnerable communities in the world. An increase in average temperatures, probably means for us colder and wetter as the ocean currents are shifted. At present we occupy first class cabins in the global ark but we shall not for long be insulated from the effects of distress in steerage.

In the difficult times which lie ahead, strong churches will be beacons and anchor-holds in a frightening world; a world in which financial stringency and lack of employment for young people will demand a more united response from the church in every part of London. This is why we intend by 2020 to commission 100,000 Christians in London committed to being kingdom-makers and using their gifts for the common good.

I do not think that as a church we have begun to appreciate the impact of social media. Facebook has been the most successful missionary movement of the past few years and the capacity of the new media to challenge and sometimes dissolve corporations and long established institutions is huge. In this new world the guidance of those like myself who have only just discovered steel nibs is of limited usefulness. We must open the doors to the young and be prepared for the changes that will ensue. We are determined to double the number young people actively involved in church life by 2020. We are looking to build on some of the work already being done in sports based ministry and in the creative arts.

We have huge opportunities to use our gifts for the common good and who knows how long the opportunities will last. Why should we continue to enjoy our rich heritage unless we are fruitful?

We are being given a little more time to develop a transforming confidence not in ourselves but in the love of God; to deepen a healing compassion and to bear fruit in the creativity with which we use our gifts for the common good. This Easter, I am convinced that there is nothing that is impossible for a Church that is confident, compassionate and creative in the power of the Spirit and in union with Jesus Christ our Lord Amen.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Easter, Easter 2015, Easter Sunday, London

April 2, 2015 by Karen Newbould

PC Karen Mills on Easter

When Chris asked me to write a few words about Easter I thought, oh gosh, why me??!  Then I thought about it and I said to myself “what an Honor!” I should be happy and excited about sharing what Easter means to me.

Does Easter mean Chocolates? No.
Does Easter mean presents? No.
Does Easter mean bunnies? No.

Easter is a time to remember the huge sacrifice Jesus made in order to re-unite us with our Heavenly Father… Amazing that through our faith in Him, we are forgiven our sins of yesterday, today and tomorrow- as long as we repent and ask for forgiveness- the price has been paid by Jesus’ blood.  I used to watch the film “The Passion of Christ” every year to remind myself how much Christ suffered for me and you!  I cry every time I watch it…. Last year I couldn’t watch it anymore… Not because I’m tired of watching it, but because I can’t bear to see the suffering one more time… It brings it to life.. The price He paid.

It is such a blessing to have a constant friend whom I can turn to daily… Not just to ask for help or strength to get through the day, but whom I can say thanks to for all the amazing blessings God showers upon me all the time… Someone who can share my happy heart with… Someone who knows my every thought and every feeling…

Last year I did 40acts… Instead of giving anything up, it was a challenge to do something for others every day.. I sent one lady a text with scripture every day; I bought a number of Costa gift vouchers that I gave away… To random strangers, friends, and colleagues whom I struggled to get along with; I bought gifts for my pastor, my doctor, the youth group at church; I sent words of encouragement in cards to people I knew were struggling; I sent an anonymous card to the community run library to say thank you… And lots more… It was a real blessing.  This year I have given up chocolate, and I am doing 40acts again… Although I have to admit it is harder this year! (Not that one doesn’t feel blessed doing things for others, just that some challenges are not possible or impractical, because of my job!)

Sadly this year my job means I am working Easter weekend, although God willing I will be at a 3hr meditation service on Good Friday, and hopefully I will get to church before work on Easter Sunday.

Please take a moment to reflect on how good God is to you and thank Him for the amazing gift of eternal life!

…”it is true! The Lord has risen indeed” Luke 24:34

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Easter, Easter 2015, London

March 24, 2015 by Bethany Watts

Pc Beth Watts (KF) on Easter

Pc Beth Watts is based on Newham Borough, a few weeks ago LCPF asked her how Lent and Easter was important to her. This is her reply:

For Lent I’ve not given anything up this year; instead I’ve been memorising Bible verses, inspired by Terry Waite and Dr John Wycliffe Coleman, who were both held captive for several years, and relied on their recall of Bible verses and the Book of Common Prayer during their long periods of solitary confinement. I suspect that committing the verses to memory will be of benefit in a state of freedom too!
I usually spend Good Friday watching the Passion play in Exeter, Devon. There’s something quite striking about walking around the city, witnessing the dramatic events leading up to Jesus’ death on the cross with people of different backgrounds; certainly a mixture of people who believe that Christ is the Messiah, and many who don’t – much like the crowd who witnessed His death at Calvary. Despite the gritty portrayal of Jesus’ suffering and death, the Passion play doesn’t show what is really the culmination and climax of the story; Jesus’ resurrection. On the third day after His broken, lifeless body had been taken off the cross and prepared for burial, Jesus’ previously sealed tomb was empty, and He was talking to women in a garden, living and breathing, as much alive as you are now.
As claims by religions go, this one is pretty wild. For Christians, Jesus’ resurrection means that sin and death have been utterly defeated, and that we too will one day be resurrected, because the immense debt of our sin has been paid for by the one person in history who was utterly sinless, and He has conquered death. The significance of this cannot be overstated; Christians believe that after our earthly deaths, we will live forever, with Christ. “Death has been swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?…Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55 and 57) A future without death is one full of hope, purpose, and exponential potential. I find that exciting, and challenging too…

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Easter, Easter 2015, Lent, London

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