Faith: Love, What is Love?

Shakespeare said “To Love is to err”.

“The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved, loved for ourselves or rather, loved in spite of ourselves” (Victor Hugo)

To be in love and to be loved is great but being in love and loving someone can be a risk.  Maybe the greatest risk we can ever take because although love can be a powerful thing, love can also be dangerous.  There is the risk of rejection, the risk our hearts will be torn in two, risk of being misunderstood and the risk of losing that love.  I am sure there are other risks but I cannot think of more at the moment.

I have loved and I have lost in the romantic sense, but I am still glad that I got the chance to love the person I loved. 

I have loved friends and then lost that friendship due to various reasons, but am still glad I got the chance to be their friends because I learnt things about myself in the friendships.  However, for the friendships I have lost, I have also gained friends whom I do love still.  I have friends across the world whom I do not see but I still love and will always love them.  I have friends in the same town whom I see quite regularly and I love them for being in my life, for sticking by me and for the things they have taught me.

I love my family. We may not always get on, but I love them. 

Loving others can be good, but loving others does involve risk. There is only one love in which there is no risk, and that is loving God. There is no risk to loving God because he took all the risk upon himself by dying on the cross for us.

We are called by God to love others that does not just mean loving those who love you, it also means loving our enemies as well.  As it says in Matthew 5 v 44 “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”.

Loving people can be hard. But we are commanded to love others, but it does involve pain, it can involve rejection, it involves hurt, it can involve broken trust and it does involve death.  The more we love someone, the more pain we feel when something bad happens and the more we love someone the more pain we feel when our loved one dies. 

How do we deal with the pain that love can cause? Well we need to take it to God and ask him to help us deal with what we are going through individually and help the other person involved as well.

It is a fact that we are called to love others, so even if you really do not like your friend / husband / wife / mum / dad / sister etc you must still love them, as we are commanded to love not like, we are commanded to love as God loves us.

But love doesn't always need to involve risk, pain, hurt etc. Love also involves joy, happiness, laughter, smiles and much more.  We need to hold onto the happy memories and treasure these memories as these can get us by during the bad times. 

Literature: The English Language

Faith: God’s Loving Pursuit

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life” - Psalm 23 v 6

Dare we envision a God who follows us? Who pursues us? Who chases us? Who tracks us down and wins us over?  Who follows us with ‘goodness and mercy’ all the days of our lives?

Isn’t this the kind of God described in the Bible? A God who follows us?  Moses can tell you about it.  He was forty years in the desert when he looked over his shoulder and saw a bush blazing.  God had followed him into the wilderness. 

Jonah can tell you about it.  He was a fugitive on a boat when he looked over his shoulder and saw clouds brewing.  God had followed him onto the ocean.

The disciples of Jesus knew the feeling of being followed by God.  They were rain soaked and shivering when they looked over their shoulders and saw Jesus walking toward them.  God had followed them into the storm.

John the Apostle was banished on Patmos when he looked over his shoulder and saw the skies begin to open.  God had followed him into exile.

Lazarus was three days dead in a sealed tomb when he heard a voice, lifted his head and looked over his shoulder and saw Jesus standing.  God had followed him into the death.

Peter had denied his Lord and gone back to fishing when he heard his name and looked over his shoulder and saw Jesus cooking breakfast.  God had followed him in spite of his failures.

God is the God who follows, I wonder – have you sensed him following you? We often miss him.

Through the kindness of a stranger.  The majesty of a sunset.  The mystery of romance.  Through the question of a child or the commitment of a spouse.  Through a word well-spoken or a touch well time, have you sensed his presence?

His goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives.

While reading this excerpt from ‘Travelling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never intended to Bear” by Max Lucado it made me realise that:

• God is with us always
• God never leaves us
• God is with us in the storm
• God is with us in our loneliness
• God is with us in spite of our failures
• God carries us 

Faith: The Question of Healing

A couple of weeks ago I was reading a book which had a story in it about people asking to be healed from illnesses but weren't and they were told they were not healed because their faith in God was weak.

This got me thinking, is healing down to our faith and how strong it is?  Our God is a God of miracles and this includes healing people – think of the stories in the Bible of people being healed from Leprosy, the blind being able to see again and even Lazarus being raised from the dead.  Were they all healed because of their faith in God?

We may ask for healing, but God does not always respond to our desires, and he frequently allows circumstances in our lives that we wish he would not.  However, through these hard times, and times when we are in despair that our prayers aren't answered, we need to remember:

• God is a sovereign God
• He is in control
• All things are under his rule
• Nothing happens without His direction or permission
• God works all things according to his counsel

The sovereignty of God is not merely that God has the power and right to govern all things, but that He does so, always and without exception. In other words, God is not merely sovereign de jure (in principle), but sovereign de facto (in practice)

God has the power and responsibility to exercise his right over creation according to his will. As it says in Psalm 50 v 1 “The Mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to where it sets”

We may wish to have a great job, to be married, to be healed but sometimes God does not answer us the way we want him to. Don’t get me wrong, God always answers our prayers, but maybe not with the Yes we want. God has three answers to prayer:

• Yes
• No
• Wait

Our requests, prayers, desires will not always coincide with God’s responses or God’s purpose for our lives. But we should never give up hope or give up on God as it says in 1 Peter 4 v 19 “ So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good".

If our prayers are not answered, if we ask for healing but are not healed, we have a tendency to doubt God and his Sovereignty but we shouldn’t, we should have faith in God and that he knows what is best for us.  As Hebrews 11 v 1 says “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see"

God asks us to trust Him in the power of the cross, and that is what we should do. So if your dream job does not come then don’t doubt God, trust in Him and that he has a better job out there for you. If you are not healed then don’t doubt God or doubt your own faith, trust in God and don’t say “Why me?” but instead ask “What do you want me to learn through this God?”

We must embrace the sufficiency of God’s Grace in all circumstances.  It is imperative that the God of the mountain top also be the God of the valley.  If we despair that our prayers are not answered, we should remember Paul.  Paul requested three times to be healed from the ‘thorn in his flesh’ but God did not answer the prayer the way Paul wanted instead he answered “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (1 Corinthians 12 v 9)

Despite the ‘thorn in his flesh’ Paul carried on walking in faith with God and spreading God’s love and message to the unbelievers and many came to Christ through Him.  So throughout weaknesses we can see that Jesus can work through us – we may not see the fruits of this work but don’t give up heart – your actions and words can help people in ways you may never do.  For example the other day someone told me I was an encouragement to them but I never feel like I am, but I was encouraged by this anyway.

And when we suffer we must remember that we can endure suffering just as Jesus endured the cross, and in our suffering we are not alone as God is always with us.

Our affliction is purposeful and passing and although we may not be able to understand why we are going through periods of sadness, distress and illness, we must cling to God’s goodness and follow the pattern or His Son.

Many time we are left with more questions rather than answers, we don’t know why God allows one person to be healed and others not, but it’s not out place to question God’s and His sovereignty, it is our place to have faith and trust in Him.

Literature: The Words Shakespeare Wrote

Today is Wordless Wednesday which means most people on social networks are putting up pictures with no words to explain as sometimes pictures don’t need words.  However, I am going to go for a Words Wednesday – specifically the words we use that where created by the master of words himself William Shakespeare.

Yesterday on Chris Evan’s Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2, Chris was discussing words which were made up by Shakespeare in his plays, words and phrases we use regularly today e.g. gossip, the be all and end all.

This got me thinking what other words did Shakespeare invent, and after some research apparently he coined over 1700 words. And he did this by changing nouns into verbs, verbs into adjectives, connecting words never used together before, adding prefixes and suffixes and devising words that were completely original.  

I know even today there are new words being created and added into the Oxford English Dictionary e.g. Twerk which was invited by Miley Cyrus and is a dance which she created!

Below are some of my favourite words which were Shakespeare created and the plays they were originally found in:

WORD	PLAY
Barefaced	Hamlet
Buzzer	Hamlet
Cold-blooded	King John
Dauntless	King Henry VI, Part III
Dwindle	King Henry IV Part I
Frugal	The Merry Wives of Windsor
Green-Eyed	The Merchant of Venice
Gloomy	King Henry VI, Part III
Gust	Titus Andronicus
Jaded	King Henry VI Part II
Lacklustre	As you like it
Madcap	Love’s Labour’s Lost
Majestic	Julius Caesar
Obsequiously	Richard III
Skim Milk	King Henry IV Part 1
Scuffle	Anthony and Cleopatra
Zany	Love’s Labour’s Lost

I must admit that out of all those plays listed above the only one I have read is Hamlet  - I have read others but not those one. My favourite Shakespeare plays are: A Winter’s Tale (Exit: Pursued by a bear!!) and Much Ado about Nothing especially the character of Benedict (As merry as the day is long!)

Apparently he created the word Eyeball, which makes me wonder, what did people call that bit of their eye before he coined that phrase?

And here are some of the phrases created by Shakespeare which I love:

PHRASE	PLAY
As merry as the day is lone	Much Ado About Nothing / King John
Bated Breath	The Merchant of Venice
Be-all and the end-all	Macbeth
Brevity is the soul of wit	Hamlet
Dead as a doornail	Henry VI Part II
Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war	Julius Caesar
Faint hearted	Henry VI Part I
Eaten me out of house and home	Henry IV Part II
Forgone conclusion	Othello
Good riddance	Troilus and Cressida
Heart of gold	Henry V
ill wind which blows no good	Henry IV Part II
In my heart of hearts	Hamlet
In my mind’s eyes	Hamlet
Kill with Kindness	The Taming of the Shrew
Laughing Stock	The Merry Wives of Windsor
Love is Blind	The Merchant of Venice
One fell swoop	Macbeth
Set my teeth on edge	Henry IV Part I
Wear my heart upon my sleeve	Othello
Wild-goose chase	Romeo and Juliet

I must admit that I don’t use a lot of them in my everyday language, but have used most of them on occasions, except ‘Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war’ has never uttered my lips. What a strange phrase.

And I never know that Shakespeare was the creator of Knock Knock Jokes as in Macbeth the phrase ‘Knock Knock! Who’s there?’ is uttered

One of the phrases above is often used in conversations with me or about me as people often say that I ‘wear my heart upon my sleeve’. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

TV Review: The Real Marigold Hotel

My exposure to India continues.  I recently heard Miriam Margoyles on Chris Evan’s Breakfast Show on Radio 2 talking about the ‘Real Marigold Hotel’ which is a new Programme on BBC 2.

I love Miriam Margoyles, she is just so full of life and funny and the programme sounded good so I decided to watch it.  It is technically a ‘reality TV show’ featuring eight celebrities who go to India to live in a hotel together and experience life in India, just like the Marigold Hotel movies featuring Judi Dench.

It is the authentic experience of eight famous senior citizens as they try out an experimental adventure test to see if they could set up a better more rewarding retirement in India compared to what they have in the United Kingdom.

The eight celebrities are:

• ·         Miriam Margoyles (actress)
• ·         Wayne Sleep (Dancer)
• ·         Rosemary Shaegar (Cook)
• ·         Roy Walker (TV Presenter)
• ·         Bobby George (Darts Player)
• ·         Jan Leaming (Newsreader)
• ·         Sylvester McCoy (Actor)
• ·         Patti Boulaye (Singer)

An odd bunch and I hadn’t even heard of them all.

In the first episode they all meet people who are from the Meena Caste.  This caste was designated a criminal tribe during the British Colonial rule.  Though this was apparently repealed in 1952, however the caste system is still in existence even if it’s not too prevalent, but people are still discriminated against.

The Meena tribe do not get many jobs and the tour guide who shows the celebrities around, who is part of the tribe only earns £20 a week which is awful.

The people of the tribe are still seen as criminals, a backward caste, who don’t know anything or how to behave with people.  They are seen as distrustful people.

Unlike the Dalits (the untouchables) the Meenas have better rights for women, well compared to other castes anyway, but it’s still not great.

I found this programme so interesting, it’s informative and funny due to the personalities of the people taking part.  Though some personalities come out more than others.  I am looking forward to the next episode. 

The programme shows India in such a good light and my urge to go there is getting stronger. 

Writing: Alphabetical Advice

One of the writing prompts recently was to make a list of alphabetical advice, so here is my go:

Accept differences

Before you leap, look

Consider others

Drive safe

Enjoy life

Fight the injustice

Giggle all the time

Help others

Ignore the criticism

Just take one day at a time

Learn something new everyday

Manage your finances well

Not everything works out

Open your mind

People have feelings

Quit putting yourself down

Respect your elders

Stand up for what you believe in

Think before your speak

Understanding goes a long way

Value time with loved ones

Worrying causes stress

X doesn’t always mark the spot

You only live once

Zero in on your thoughts

Life: Bucket List Revisited

In 2014 after I was diagnosed with MS, I decided to write a bucket list of all the things I wanted to achieve in case this illness stops me from doing them in the future.  Now a two years on I decided to revisit that bucket list and see what I have achieved.

I am ashamed to say that I have only achieved one thing and that was to have a fish called Fred. I did and four weeks after I got him, he died!!

However, this month I am due to achieve another one - to visit Prague, which I am really looking forward to.

Think might have to either do some serious travelling or get a new bucket list especially since apparently I cannot fulfil one of them.  I wanted to watch the Mighty Ducks Hockey team play but apparently there are no longer in action!!

Here is my bucket list:

1. Visit New Zealand
2. Watch Ireland play Rugby
3. Write a book
4. Get book published
5. Jump out of a plane
6. Find a cure for MS
7. Swim with Dolphins
8. Go fishing
9. Learn to weld
10. Run a Marathon
11. Visit Brazil
12. See the Iquazu Falls  in Argentina
13. Climb Slemish
14. Hold a Toucan
15. Go to Wimbledon
16. Meet Bono
17. Stand underneath a waterfall
18. Learn to dance
19. Learn Pottery
20. Do a somersault in the air
21. Learn Makaton
22. Achieve my ideal weight
23. Fly first class
24. Go whale watching
25. Jet Ski
26. Gallop a horse along a beach
27. Drink Champagne and Eat Strawberries in bed
28. Go Surfing
29. Get Married
30. Go Paint-balling
31. Milk a cow
32. Visit Auschwitz
33. Go to Israel
34. Swim in the dead sea
35. Own a Border Collie dog
36. See the Northern Lights 

Fulfilled:

Own a fish called Fred

About to fulfil:

Visit Prague

Unable to fulfil:

Watch Mighty Ducks play hockey

Ongoing fulfilment:

Helping others the way they helped me