Carol Purves

Although we were not all from one family, nor had we any special American connection, we all had a Thanksgiving celebration together. Eleven of us contributed towards the meal, which we concluded by having communion. At one point we all said what we were particularly thankful for. All contributions included thanks to God.

A few people gave thanks for health and one person was thankful for sight as his friend was going blind. One lady who had been very ill gave thanks for her husband, who was also with us. Thanks were given for security. As a church we work with people who do not have security of home, money or family.

We had so much to be thankful for that it was difficult to single out just one or two items.

Carol

Children love the story of how young David was able to kill Goliath with one small stone flung from a sling. Goliath never envisaged he could be killed by a small shepherd lad. But as is so well recorded David went forward with words ‘ I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty  The power was the Lord’s, the stones the instrument of death.

David was no soldier or skilled fighter, but God had been preparing him for this day for years. His sling practise against the wild animals had been his school of learning.

Likewise God does not  suddenly use us to defeat the devil. It takes years of preparation in reading the Bible, learning passages, praying and pursuing Christian fellowship. We will then be ready when the day comes to fight our Goliaths on His behalf.

Carol

Nearly there. The Israelites had been wondering in the desert for years after leaving Egypt and for many of those Moses had led them. Now it was the turn of Joshua.

The river had to be crossed and through God’s miracle the waters parted. The priests went on the dry river bed first as they carried the ark. The rest of the Israelites followed.

Joshua wanted the miracle to always be remembered, so ordered the priests to collect twelve large stones from the dry river bed and erect them near the camp site. These were to be a memorial so they could tell their children and children’s children of what the Lord had done.

We too have memorial stones in our lives; times, places or events that God wants us to remember, or it may be a text, saying or memory. It can be a reminder of what God has done for us.

Carol

I realise that being a freelance writer fills up quite a portion of my life and gets me to places I wouldn’t otherwise go. This time it was a conference at Stirling with a two night stop at Penicuik. It was a time of networking, renewing acquaintances and honing our skills.

The main talk was on ‘Impostureship.’  (a new one on me, look it up on Google as I couldn’t accurately describe it to you) The concept got us all talking and I’m still thinking about it.

Two quotes I must share with you, although they are not original. ‘You are not the mistakes you have made, you are the lessons you have learned.’  Also ‘Ask God if He can do it, not if we can do it.’

Carol

They would have been lying all around on the ground. It would have been so easy to pick up a stone, maybe not a large one and throw it at someone you disagreed with. Then when it was seen that you had hit the mark someone else would pick up a larger one and hurl that. Then the whole action would gather momentum. More and more stones would have been thrown.

It is unlikely that the original idea was to kill Stephen but crowds easily get out of hand and common sense goes out of the window. It could have been in this way that Stephen became the first martyr. He had to be stopped from continuing what he was saying. So died Stephen, the first martyr but definitely not the last.

Carol

The November day had been particular cold with little spatters of rain. I looked out of my kitchen window just before darkness fell. The picture was monochrome. The houses and cars were all tones of grey. The sky appeared stormy and forbidding. It looked like a scene before colour photography was discovered. The scene was as cold and dreary as the day had been.

Then I noticed a sliver of crimson in the sky, no thicker than a brush stroke. As I watched it widened, then narrowed and disappeared. The sinking sun which had been non-existent during the day had found a minute patch of sky where it could shine. A tiny miracle.

Carol

Alright, I know it’s not over the border like some of you manage all round the world, but I did have my last visit into Scotland for this year.

The decorations were lovely and the German market was in full swing. I managed to get some lovely Christmas presents, but I can’t tell you about them in case you are one of the recipients.

Last Saturday and Sunday all the churches worked together in Carlisle to put on Christmas in the City. We had about 3,500 people on each day and we gave away free 4,000 cakes (to different people of course) and a free booklet about famous Christians. This was all done to a back drop of the manager under the Christmas tree. Great.

Carol

They were just ordinary tablets of stone, until God wrote on them. They were probably rough, unhewn and useless. Because God touched them and wrote on them, they became special and precious. God used them to write what we now call The Ten Commandments and from these were based His command to us which amalgamated all ten.

‘Love God with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength and love your neighbour as yourself’   Matthew 12:33

Before we have the touch of God we are rough, unhewn and useless. Once God has lovingly touched us, we are useful and precious.

Carol

As our membership now ranges far from Carlisle, I thought a new name was appropriate. (People come from as far afield as Lancaster, Canonbie and St. Bees)

Our topic this meeting was ‘Stones’ and three members actually brought special stones with them.(We mustn’t have ‘elephants’ as our homework subject!!)

One wrote a poem  in tribute to her friend who never managed to visit some special stones with her. In actual fact most of the contributions were poems, although we are not specially a poetry group.

One person wrote about the stones which Jacob used to lay his head before he saw angels ascending and descending. Another remembered Christ is the Cornerstone and our stones are refined by God.

Carol

Leaving his father’s house and family behind, Jacob set out on his uncertain journey until the setting of the sun forced him to stop.

Lonely and uncertain of the future, sleep was not going to come easily but nevertheless he found some smooth stones on which he could rest his head. In  seemed no sooner than he settled down that he was asleep and dreaming. He saw a ladder up to heaven with angels descending and ascending. He knew he was in a holy place. He then received that promise from God that He would be with him and Jacob promised back to God that from that day he would return to God a tenth of all that he owned.  Genesis 28:10-22

It is in our time of greatest weakness that God meets us. He knows our need and gently He ministers to our want.

Jacob received a good night’s sleep, a promise for the future and a personal encounter with God.  No wonder those stones then became his Bethel, House of God.

Carol