All Shall Be Well ...

The words of Julian of Norwich (as shown in the adjacent image) have echoed down to us across the centuries. They remain one of the most enduring and reassuring expressions of Christian optimism ever written.

Julian was a medieval English Catholic mystic, who lived in the 14th Century. Her writings, now known as Revelations of Divine Love, are the earliest surviving English-language works ever attributed to a woman. 

Her birth name isn't known. Her recorded name is taken from St. Julian's Church in Norwich where she lived as an anchoress for most of her life (a woman who locks herself away to be closer to God). 

Christian optimism, as Julian expressed it, is the conviction that divine love has the final word. Do you believe that?

Finding Joy

Going Backwards

Staying Positive

Philippians 4:8 (NIV)
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

I'm finding it incredibly difficult to stay positive at the moment. Staying focused is taking all my energy - it's hard when there are so many around you who are throwing problems at you and expecting you to perform well, when you know in your heart of hearts that you are not working at 100% capacity.

I need to focus in on God today.

The main thing, is that the main thing should be the main thing.

Good News vs Bad News

This blog post was inspired by a particular incident that occurred over the last 24 hours. Somebody close to me told me a piece of bad news that was a little distressing. As I pondered this information overnight, my mind raced as I thought through all that this news could mean to me, to my family and friends.

However, on reading the information myself this morning I discovered there was a piece of good news in the very same email. This pretty much negated the previous bad news. Overlooked.

How rubbish are we sometimes at seeing the good in any situation? It's awful. We seem to leap on bad reports with a particular fervour; criticise others with glee. If a particular situation is going well we seem to want to jinx it by saying "it's all going too well... bound to go wrong soon!"

The press fill our newspaper headlines with gloom and disaster. "Good news doesn't sell newspapers", they claim.

I want to do something about this. And I suppose,therefore, it needs to start with me.

Perhaps I need to open my eyes to see the good in any particular situation. Although I appreciate that in some cases I will need to look pretty hard...

Psalm 34:8 (The Message)
"Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see - how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him."

In All Honesty: A Story About The Weather

"It's not going to rain tomorrow!"
"Yes it is, the weather forecast said so..."
"No, it's not..."
"Er... but it is..."
"No - it's - not!"
"???????"

This was the essence of a conversation I overheard a few months ago. The exchange of dialogue has stayed with me, a good introduction to a topic I'd like to explore this week: that of having an honest attitude to life.

In the exchange above, we have someone's heartfelt but unspoken prayer that the rain would stay away, as it would spoil this well-planned open-air church event. And we also have another one who delivered a piece of authoritative information from the weatherman.

There's two schools of thought, aren't there, as to who had the right attitude here. Wishful thinking, coming right up against supposed facts. Hope against stark reality. Which way is better?

Is the attitude of the first speaker, understandably keen to have things go ahead without a hitch and therefore 'thinking positively' about the day, the way we should follow? Or should we be like the second speaker, who had been told a 'fact' and in all honesty was simply passing it on?

I'd be interested for your feedback. I'm mulling over the whole idea of stepping out in faith. Is that naive? Because I feel that blindly following the facts can also be wrong! (Particularly the weather forecast!) There needs to be a balance.

And, incidentally, on the day in question it didn't rain after all!

Through A Glass, Darkly

"Through a Glass Darkly" (Såsom i en spegel) is a Swedish film, written and directed in 1961 by Ingmar Bergman. The title comes from scripture, from 1 Corinthians 13:12, which refers to our efforts to understand or comprehend God. You see, any picture that we may get of the Almighty is just a glimpse, like the image in a poor mirror. The view will only be crystal clear when we meet Him face to face. The film's original title means 'As in a Mirror', taken from a 1917 Swedish translation of the Bible. The English title is the King James Version equivalent; "For now we see through a glass, darkly."

I prefer to use modern English translations when studying scripture but there's something about this phrase from the KJV that speaks to me today. Perhaps it's discovering that this was quoted by Jean-Luc Picard in one of the Star Trek films (a fact I only realised yesterday); perhaps it was the article on depression that I just read that also quoted it that has kept this in the front of my mind.

Today has been quite a dark day for me. I am longing for the day when I can see the light. I eagerly wait for it.

1 Corinthians 13:12 (New International Version)
For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

Onward and Upward!

"Onward and Upward! To Narnia and the North!" — C.S. Lewis (quotation from 'The Horse and His Boy')

"I try to avoid looking forward or backward, and try to keep looking upward." - Charlotte Bronte

Slowly sinks the reign of darkness,

Yielding to the Saviour’s day,

When the slaves of sinful bondage

Cast their evil chains away.
Upward, Christward, homeward, Godward!
Millions who are now afar
Shall be brought into the Kingdom,
Where the Father’s children are.
SASB 776, v2 (Albert Orsborn)

Nothing's Gonna Bring Me Down

"I'm out and about, so I'm in with a shout

I got a fair bit of chat but better than that

Food in my belly and a licence for my telly

And nothing's going to bring me down..."

(lyrics from Pencil Full Of Lead, written by Paolo Nutini and Paolo Giovanni)

It's been a mixed weekend, lots of ups and downs ever since Thursday night and there's a fairly high probability that we may be entering a prolonged period of chaos over the next few weeks as September has always been fraught with challenges. Since Thursday night I've personally seen and experienced the following:

On the minus side: multiple bouts of sickness, aches and pains, a series of disappointments and discouragements; accusations and arguments; even a death (the children's hamster died this morning). 

On the plus side there has been encouraging signs from earlier requests for new workers at the corps; long-standing prayers that are being answered; plans which now appear to have started to show fruit; great results from Saturday's standing day despite several setbacks; awesome possibilities for future service. There's even been a chance to take part in a penalty shootout with a giant football in a car park (!)...  

The lyrics of the song mentioned above are particularly apt (the song was playing in the car today) - despite all the negatives, I need to remember that I need to regularly count my blessings, as I know that if I don't there is a good chance that the negatives in my life may try and overwhelm the positive.

God is good. All the time.

:)

      

Still On The Throne

God is still on the throne,
And He will remember His own;
Though trials may press us and burdens distress us,
He never will leave us alone;
God is still on the throne,
And He will remember His own;
His promise is true, He will not forget you,
God is still on the throne.
Chorus 122, SASB (based on words by Kittie L Suffield)

Accentuate the positive

"You've got to accentuate the positive,
Eliminate the negative,
And latch on to the affirmative,
Don't mess with Mister In-Between..."
(Johnny Mercer)

It's been one of those days today. One where I've really struggled to keep positive... I've put on a brave face but it's wearing a bit thin tonight. You know, sometimes folk don't realise how a throwaway comment can really hit a raw nerve; how it can really hurt someone deep down. I could have expected such a low point I suppose, after such a high at the weekend.

Perhaps tomorrow will see a turning point. I'm praying very hard for such a change. Or at least the strength to stay positive. God is good.

Half empty or half full?

I've been thinking lately (always a bad move) - is the glass half empty or half full? The idiom recognises that perception is unique to every individual. You see, for most of my life I've been a glass half full person, always playing the optimist. Perhaps unrealistically so. However, looking back on some of my recent blog entries, I think I've noticed a trend - am I turning into a 'glass half empty' person?

Hmmm - perhaps I've got to work on my attitudes a bit... or am I just turning into a grumpy old man?

Good things, good times

"You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between"
(Johnny Mercer/ Harold Arlen)

I have achieved a remarkable first today. It was the first time that I ever completed three Sudoku puzzles in a row in the 40-minutes or so that it takes me to get to work in the morning. One easy;one moderate; one challenging. All in the free Metro newspaper. That might not mean much to you,but it's a memorable thing for me. A milestone achieved!

If I have learnt anything this year, it's that I can be my own worst critic. It is often true to say that 'self praise is no recommendation', but I find it too easy to find fault in my own work - and there's plenty around who are ready to help. I am encouraged enough by what I have learnt in the past year that God's got something special for me to do. I'm keen to embrace it!

2009 is just around the corner, and I'm already aiming high. Good times are ahead!

Here's to 2009!

I've finally chilled out after another particularly hectic day, where tempers have been fraught, bad decisions have been made, circumstances have conspired against me. I've tried my best but it's not been good enough. I've upset friends and comrades, failed to complete what I set out to do.

It's now 9.30pm. I've finally unwound, having soaked in the tub for half a hour, and am sitting down with the family at last.

I've decided that looking back on today - or indeed this year - will do me no good; it's best to start looking forward. Really looking forward now to the New Year, a real new start!

The past is history, but tomorrow's a mystery. Here's to 2009!

Looking back

As the year draws to a close, many of us take the opportunity to review the year that has gone. Well, it stands to reason - the TV, Radio and press are full of reviews of the year; we grab our diaries to write letters to our friends bringing them a potted history of the year to slip into the Christmas cards. I've done the same in previous years, but find that I can't help but take a sharp intake of breath this year when looking at 2008. What a stormy year!

I've already drafted out my blog entry for the end of the year, but am finding difficulty in finding many 'upbeat' things to say. My good friend Anna is always telling me to concentrate on the positive. Perhaps I'm a bit blind to it at the moment, but I find there's little to smile about nowadays.

I'm working on it though. The verse that comes to mind is one we have used before in Sunday School:

With Christ in the vessel
You can smile at the storm
Smile at the storm
Smile at the storm
With Christ in the vessel
You can smile at the storm
As we go sailing home

Sailing, sailing home.
Sailing, sailing home.
With Christ in the vessel
You can smile at the storm
As we go sailing home.

It's still stormy but I'm putting my trust in God to see me through.

Rose-Coloured Glasses - the sequel

I've been reading up on this subject this week. I've rediscovered Voltaire's Candide (which I haven't studied since I left school); I've read some quite heavy theology from a Catholic website and I've taken stock of my own life in context of it all.

Some Quotations on Optimism:
Charlotte Bronte: "I try to avoid looking forward or backward, and try to keep looking upward."
Sydney Harris: "When I hear somebody sigh, "Life is hard," I am always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?"

Some Quotations on Pessimism:
Helen Keller: "No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new heaven to the human spirit."
Oscar Wilde: "A Pessimist is one who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses both."
Clare Boothe Luce: "No good deed goes unpunished." (one of my favourite quotations, although I don't think it pessimistic)

I think the best example I've found from the world at large is Abraham Lincoln. Despite some periods of depression, he was an optimist. He taught himself to read, had numerous failures but succeeded in becoming US President in 1860.

And of course we have an excellent example in Job. He lost it all - his children, his health, his finances, the encouragement of his wife. His friends even gave him bad advice (... familiar...) Finally we read in Job 13:15 - "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him."

Rose-Coloured Glasses

A good friend sent me on a different train of thought today, on the subject of looking through life with Rose-Coloured Glasses. I have within my own circle of friends a determined pessimist, dead certain that everything will go wrong for him in all aspects of his life; and a dyed-in-the-wool optimist, looking through life with rose-coloured glasses at everything she sees. And here's me, in the middle, dearly in love with them both and trying to make some sense out of both of their lives to one extent or another.

I think I'll be reading up about optimism and pessimism this week. I've just done a quick search on the net and have just come up with a quotation from a fellow Christian Al Mohler who once said that "optimism is naive, but pessimism is atheistic."