The Eutychus Effect (Ros' Blog)

The Eutychus Effect (Ros' Blog)

We had a TV for only a year when I was a child, before it died and wasn’t replaced until many years later when I was 16. But the programme I most remember from that one year was the one my mother never missed, All Gas and Gaiters. I remember in one episode the chaplain played by Derek Nimmo is having a word with the Bishop...

“I’m rather worried about the Archdeacon, my Lord.”
“Oh really? Why? What’s the matter with him?”
“Well he fell asleep during the sermon on Sunday, my Lord.”
“Oh, that’s not serious. Who was preaching?”
“He was, my Lord!”

I always think of this episode whenever I read the story of Eutychus in Acts chapter 20:

“On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third storey and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. ‘Don’t be alarmed,’ he said. ‘He’s alive!’ Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.”

This story can be a good analogy for what happens when illness or accident suddenly leaves a person with a disability they didn’t previously have. While you’re getting on with life and not really bothering much about anything – nodding off and dozing, if you like – your life suddenly falls out of the window and comes crashing down on the pavement below. It looks like the end of everything. All your hopes and dreams lie shattered on that pavement. Nothing you planned is now going to come to pass. You might as well consign the life you dreamed of to the grave, bury your visions of what your life was going to be.

But this is also the story of the God for whom nothing is impossible. It’s a story of resurrection. Out of the wreckage of everything you were looking forward to comes a new life full of unimaginable vitality. It might not be the life you previously planned. It might be one spent in a wheelchair, or in bed, or without sight or hearing. But it’s also a life in which you becoming a living, breathing testimony to the power of God, and of His wisdom in choosing you as a demonstration of His kingdom, of the fact that all of us have a part to play, that each one of us is valued and loved and needed if His house is to be full.

Who could be “greatly comforted” by your story today? Who could look at your life with all its limitations and be encouraged that God never gives up on anyone, and still has a role for each of us to play in fulfilling His purposes? Is there someone you could share your testimony with today?

Churches Inc in Kenya 2018: 3 & 4

Kerry and Trevor from the UK, plus Pastor Shadrack from Tanzania and Pastor Davis - the host and teacher - are hard at work in Elburgon, Kenya for Churches Inc from the 7th to the 17th February. They'll be sending back updates and stories from the trip as often as time and internet connections allow. This is their third update, covering days 3 and 4 of work - you can find the second one here.

12th Feb / Workshops

We held our first workshop for parents and their children, as well as adults with disabilities. In the workshop, we have tried to make things much more practical and interactive.

Our translator, Margaret, is a fully trained specialist in education for children with disabilities. So she actually went beyond translating to helping with the teaching itself.

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Churches Inc in Kenya 2018: 2

Kerry and Trevor from the UK, plus Pastor Shadrack from Tanzania and Pastor Davis - the host and teacher - are hard at work in Elburgon, Kenya for Churches Inc from the 7th to the 17th February. They'll be sending back updates and stories from the trip as often as time and internet connections allow. This is their second update - you can find the first one here.

10\02\18

Today we travelled 12km from Elburgon to the town of Molo. Since we were leaving early to travel, we did not have time to pick up Smati, but she was so upset by this that we agreed she could come by public transport to meet us part-way. Smati is so passionate about what we are doing, she wants to be always with us. She is 22 yrs old and knows her own mind. It is not easy for Smati to get around, so her mother and a lady called Margaret carried her and supported her all day even though this means they lose a day’s income. People here rely on day-to-day cash in hand work to survive so it is a sacrifice for these ladies to come with us.

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Churches Inc in Kenya 2018: 1

Kerry and Trevor from the UK, plus Pastor Shadrack from Tanzania and Pastor Davis - the host and teacher - are hard at work in Elburgon, Kenya for Churches Inc from the 7th to the 17th February. They'll be sending back updates and stories from the trip as often as time and internet connections allow. Here's their first post, covering the first few days of the trip....

We thank God for our safe arrival in Elburgon. At every stage of the journey, the team prayed and thanked God for protection. This is not a small issue as we were later told that road accidents are one of the biggest causes of physical disability in Kenya. We were privileged on the journey to get to know Pastor Davis, our host. There is a verse that ‘out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks’. The overflow of Pastor Davis’ heart are such things as abiding in Christ, listening to his voice constantly, serving God and not men, and looking for what God is doing in every situation. The other subject that is constantly coming out of Pastor Davis is how best to serve people with disabilities in Kenya.
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Roofbreakers Assemble! Spring 2018 Area Networks

Our Roofbreakers share a common heart to enrich the church through being a ‘bridge’ – enabling disabled people to belong and contribute to church, and help church fully involve disabled people. As part of their mission, we encourage Roofbreakers to get together in local networks to share ideas and support each other. These Area Networks are a safe space for people with a common heart to share experience and progress, learn new ideas, update, encourage and pray for each other. We've got two coming up who'd be very happy to hear from anyone local who's interested in attending...

Shrewsbury Roofbreaker Network

17th February at St Peter’s Church, Monkmoor Road, SY2 5BL
For more info or to register, please contact Phil Ramsbotham on pramsbotham.t21@btinternet.com or 01743 240465

Bristol and Bath Network

The Bristol and Bath Network are also meeting on the 17th February at Saltford community Church, 30a Norman Rd, Saltford, Bristol, BS31 3BH
11.00 am-12:30pm
Contact: Abi – Abi.prior@hotmail.co.uk

Lancashire Roofbreakers

24th February at St Andrew's Church, Leyland, PR25 3EL
Lorraine Innerdale from the Good News Group will focus on the Deaf church and teaching a few BSL signs. For more info or to register, please contact Lynn at includedbygrace@talktalk.net

Edinburgh Network

Tuesday 6th March. Contact Claire on the@wislons.fastmail.co.uk for more details. 

Leicestershire Network

Also meeting on Tuesday 6th March. Contact Mike at miketownsend@talk21.com to find out more.

Remember Me (Ros' Blog)

Our pastor was recently speaking on what it means for us to remember Jesus. He pointed out that to re-member is to piece back together what is dis-membered, and he suggested that every time we come together as the Body of Christ, we are re-membering Him in our very act of meeting in fellowship.

I looked up the origins of the word remember. Some sources suggest that it comes from the Latin memorari, to be mindful. However, I like my pastor’s suggestion that it might come from membrum, the Latin for a limb or bodily member.

I like it because it suggests that when we remember, we are somehow reintegrating something that has become disintegrated. We lose sight of what Jesus is like in the daily business of our lives, when so many distractions call our attention in other directions. But when we come together to remember Jesus, our image of Him is pieced back together again as we each share with one another the part of Him that we see most clearly.

I like it because it suggests that when we remember one another in prayer, we are bringing someone’s fragmented life to the Lord for Him to put it back together and make it whole again. What a privilege to be able to do that for someone else. What a relief to think others are doing that for me.

And I like it because I recall the dying thief who asked Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom”, and Jesus’ reply, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” It conjures up for me the picture of a man whose life had been broken by sin and failure, whom Jesus was willing to take up and piece back together not temporarily but eternally.

And for us, whose lives are fractured by pain or weakness or impairment or disability, we have this great, everlasting hope that Jesus’ mission to bring healing and wholeness will culminate in us being not merely pieced back together but made completely new, with resurrection bodies which may, like His, still bear the scars of our lives on earth, but will be limitless in their ability, unimpaired and completely free to fulfil, unrestricted, the eternal plans that God has for our unending future.

Who could you remember in prayer today? Who could you get together with (if not physically then perhaps by phone or social media) to remember Jesus? And what difference does it make to your life today knowing that one day, in your new resurrection body, there will be no limits to your ability to explore and fulfil God’s plans for you?

Give Freedom this Lent!

kimilili-wheelchair-recipient

Save £1 a day during Lent, (including Sundays, not usually in the 40 days!) and you could raise £46 to change the life of a disabled person in a low-income country, by giving the gift of freedom through a refurbished wheelchair. In many of the countries we work in, being disabled is considered a curse, but when our teams give someone a wheelchair, the curse is cancelled and they are blessed... opening the door for us to share how Jesus has changed our curse for a blessing. Please sponsor a wheelchair for £46 by following this link to our Justgiving website.

Alternatively, please send us a cheque (not coins!) along with a sponsor form - the form can be downloaded and printed by following this link or by contacting...

Love in a Glove (Ros' Blog)

I was told something rather lovely yesterday morning when I went to pick my daughter up from her residential care home to take her to church. Apparently the home recently had a knock at the door. It was a lady whom they recognised as a neighbour. She said, “I live nearby, and I see your residents going up and down outside, and I've counted and there are six of them so - here - I've knitted six pairs of gloves.”

The six of them were allowed to choose their own gloves from the six pairs and my daughter chose a bright blue pair with a pale green pattern. She wore them very proudly when we went out in the car, and was happy to put them on again at the end of the day. Aren’t people kind? I’m going to help her write a thank you note.

Such a small incident, a little act of kindness but it set me thinking. To look at the news, or social media, you could be forgiven for thinking the world is going to hell in a handcart. And some things are bad, it’s true. The welfare of disabled people is all but disregarded by officialdom, and disability hate crime has risen exponentially in recent years. And yet at the heart of our communities are generous people who notice others, who know they can’t change the world but don’t let that put them off making a difference in whatever way they can.

As Mother Theresa once said, the important thing is not to do great things, but to do small things with great love. For those who live with disability it can be hard to dismiss the harsh realities of life – the battle for disability benefits, the removal of the Independent Living Fund with its devastating consequences for so many, the loss of essentials like Motability cars. And yet this small incident of kindness has reminded me of some words of the apostle Paul.

He, too, lived in a time of hardship. The church faced persecution and even death on every hand. Paul described his own experiences very vividly in his second letter to the Corinthians: “Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have laboured and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?”

And yet even in the middle of all this, he could also write, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”

Paul had learned, even in the throes of terrible things happening, to seek out and focus on the good. He was filling his mind with things that were uplifting, not with the pains and privations of his daily life. In doing so he found the ability to be a wonderful role model for others, and learned to function from a deep well of peace within. What a great way to live. I know that adopting this mindset doesn’t alter my circumstances but I have seen it radically alter how I cope with them. How could this work for you?

BSL Summer School

'Signs of God' are running a Summer School from the 13th – 19th August at the Innovation Centre, Telford. It's open to people with BSL Level 1 or above and offers 6 days of teaching on BSL, Deaf culture, presentation/interpreting skills, theology, biblical contexts.

The course costs £695 (There's a small bursary fund – closing date 28th Feb 2018 - contact Signs of God to find out more).
For further information, and to book in, visit www.signsofgod.org.uk, or telephone 07985 170845.

A Roofbreaker Guide to Disability Benefits Applications and Appeals

A Roofbreaker Guide to Disability benefits applications and appealsWe feel it would be a great asset to churches if they had someone who could steer disabled people through the minefield that is the benefits claim. So we have put together some helpful information about claiming benefits, and about how the system works, to equip you to help in this area. And because we are not ourselves a financially regulated organisation and so legally cannot give financial advice, we have included information to point you to other organisations who can give you more detailed advice, information and training if this would be useful to you. Please download a copy, and let us know how you end up using it. It's a PDF file - please let us know if you'd prefer a different format.