In touch | Check-in | Intercessions
In touch
Up-to-the-minute jumping-off points for sermons, linking the reading to the latest news and global issues
Travelling together
Our journey is enriched by those we meet on the road (Acts 8:26-40)
Context
Ideas for sermons or interactive talks
- Stop the Boats! The government’s slogan has become a regular part of our national life now. Regardless of your thoughts on immigration, the political focus on keeping people out of the country is clear. (The recent increase in legal migration gets much less airtime.) The slogan works on the assumption that Britain is full and that anyone in one of these boats is coming to freeload off the rest of us. The Ethiopian eunuch might have had a similar initial response to the odd Jewish man running alongside his chariot: ‘What do you want? No, I don’t have any change!’. The eunuch was a man of serious political clout and importance in his home country but he listens politely to Philip’s question, ‘Do you know what you are reading?’ and invites Philip to enlighten him. If every human being is made in the image of God, then every person has something to share with us about who God is and how God is at work in their lives – even if they don’t realise it. By preventing people coming close to us, we miss out on learning more about the God who made us and them – and it is our loss.
- The idea of running a marathon might grow on you if someone promised you a glass of wine every mile! Tom Gibley did this at the London Marathon to raise money for an Oxfordshire hospice and thousands of other people ran in fancy dress (Big Ben and a dinosaur both completed the 26 miles). Friends who have completed the marathon have spoken about the camaraderie among those doing this challenge. A colleague of mine is still in contact with three other runners who got chatting during last year’s race and supported each other through the difficult sections. Whatever journey you are on, the way of Christian faith has never been recommended as a solo hike. We learn from others; we gain wisdom from their experience; and we feel useful and positive about ourselves when we realise that our own insights are useful to others. The image of the marathon is helpful as our Christian journey is clearly not a sprint race. We have sections where we struggle, perhaps where we worry if we will finish the race or not, as well as places where everything feels downhill and easy. Where are you in the race today? Wherever you are, who is around you that is encouraging you and who you can encourage?
- One-man-gang or crew member? Willow Bland completed a round-the-world sailing trip this week and spoke about the elation and the challenges of the journey. Sailing around the globe was her personal dream but she was never going to be able to complete it alone. Lots of advertising is aimed at convincing us that we can buy our way to happiness inside our own homes but the truth is that we are communal animals. We can achieve so much more when we are working as part of a group, adding our skills and strengths to those of others who can do things we find difficult. Some teams we apply to join, other relationships are more transitory but make a difference in the moment. The key question is whether we are open to sharing our lives with others and working with them to enhance all our journeys?
Questions for discussion
- Who has been significant in your own journey of faith? In what way did they help you?
- Who do you regularly talk to about your life and your faith?
- How often do you speak to strangers? In what situations is it more likely?
- Can you think of something you learned from someone else when you weren’t expecting to?
Revd Steve Taylor is joint-vicar of St James Alperton near Wembley, London. He shares the job with his wife, Ali, and shares his house with their two children, two cats and numerous fish.
Check-in
Connecting faith with everyday, real-life issues for young people
I was amused by the headline on the BBC news website:
‘Northampton man breaks London Marathon Rubik’s Cube record’
George Scholey smashed the record by completing 520 of the puzzles during the run. He was raising money for St John Ambulance and celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the Cube.
How do you occupy yourself when you are travelling from one place to another? It is possible that you too complete (or try to complete) puzzles. Perhaps you play games or maybe you read.
On the road to Gaza, Philip met an Ethiopian who was filling his time by reading. For him it seems that the words of the Prophet Isaiah were as challenging as solving even one Rubik’s Cube might be for many of us. Help was at hand. Philip was able to explain the passage and relate it to the world in which he and the Ethiopian lived. Philip baptised the man and, as a result, the Ethiopian continued his journey rejoicing.
Can you relate to any of these people? Maybe you are facing or seeking a challenge. How will God equip you to face it? Or are you struggling with a Scripture and how it relates to your life? Who can you ask for help? Perhaps there is someone you can help by explaining what difference the good news of Jesus can mean to them.
I don’t suppose you will hit the headlines, but I am sure the Holy Spirit is active in your life and that God will know your personal headline.
Rev Stuart Wild neither runs marathons nor solves Rubik’s cubes but he does read the Scriptures and is a Methodist Minister in Lancashire.
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