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Hopes and aspirations
February 1, 2007
Dear Friends,
Although it is only half way through January when I am
writing, it now seems a long time since we were greeting
people with good wishes for Christmas and New Year. We
sometimes speak of the New Year as a clean page in the book
of our lives, full of many opportunities and hopes and yet
we can easily let these aspirations drift from us…
2007 is a year of some significant anniversaries. Two that
we will, no doubt, look at are:
• The 200th Anniversary of the passing of the Abolition of
Slavery Act, which William Wilberforce was so influential
in bringing about
• The 300th Anniversary of the birth of the Hymn Writer,
Charles Wesley, whose hymns fed the spiritual lives of many
affected by the Christian revival in his day which then
impacted the social conditions of the nation
What these two men had in common was:
• An understanding of God’s involvement and relevance to
the lives of those in their own day
• The belief that through Jesus, God wanted people’s lives
to be changed for good at every possible level, physical,
mental and spiritual
• The were willing to play their part in making that
happen, as they were obedient to the Holy Spirit’s
prompting.
They were people of real vision who were willing to roll up
their sleeves so that God could use them to reach others
and that is what we seek to be when we sing those lovely
words of St Francis:
“Make me a channel of Your peace, Where there is hatred let
me bring Your love; where there is injury, Your pardon,
Lord; and where there's doubt, true faith in You.”
So as 2007 progresses let us keep our hopes and aspirations
and let us work them out in the “nitty-gritty” of life
knowing that, as with Wilberforce and Wesley, God is both
interested in the detail of life and also eager to use us,
(even us), to serve others, if we are willing.
With warmest Christian Greetings
Kath Pawlett
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