letter for May 2013

Dear friends

 Last week was our Annual Parochial Church meeting which is the time when we elect new wardens, new PCC members and other officers. First of all can I ask you to pray for them? St. Luke’s is not a club- it is the body of Christ, a worshiping community focused on loving God and loving others, a community seeking to reach out to the wider community to experience Christ and his love. Those appointed to serve are working for our Lord and that’s why I ask you to pray for them that they may know God’s presence and strength to perform the ministry to which he has now called them. Secondly at the meeting it gave us an opportunity to say a big thank you to all who contribute to the life of St. Luke’s. Some positions are more high profile than others but all contribute to make St. Luke’s what it is. So many give of their time and their talents and so then and now here it gives me an opportunity to say a heartfelt thank you.

I am the most high profile person at St. Luke’s for obvious reasons but I am only one of many who make St. Luke’s what it is today. I am loathe to make mention of individuals because so many contribute so much but I must say that since I came here over nine years ago now I have been blessed with a succession of superb Wardens. I am so thankful for their amazing commitment of time and skills and so a huge thank you from me to Alan Rickards, Mike Street, Graham Ratcliffe, Lew Riches along with our present Wardens Steve Smith and Tim Fryer. Along with our Wardens I have also been blessed by two excellent Readers. Diane was a great support and now Anne has more than filled her shoes. She has been a great help to me personally and I know her ministry - especially her wonderful preaching is – is a blessing to so many.

As we looked back at the meeting over the events of the past year we did so with a real sense of thanks to God for His faithfulness to us. There has been another occasion when we as a country looked back. I refer to the death of Margaret Thatcher which brought to mind so many memories. The memories certainly polarised the nation into those who thought much of her and those who were not as keen! This is no place for stating my political views but it brought a thought to mind. How will you, how will I be remembered? Quite challenging isn’t it? What would you like to be remembered for? Do you think you will? The challenge of course is of course how are we living our lives?

Jesus said that we should be known for our love. Are we? Am I? It is never too late for us to amend our lives in the light of Christ – to bring to others the love, the support and the compassion of our Lord. Will people say of us ‘How he/she loved’?

Yours in the love of Christ

 Paul

Rev. Paul Mason