Part 3: NURC Blog for Sunday 21st June 2020

“‘Lifestyle choices’. What kind of consequences do the choices have – good or not so good? Do you stick with some choices even though there are not so good, or even bad, consequences? Advertising for lifestyle choices certainly tells you about the good things – does it ever tell about the not so good?”

So now let’s talk about the Huguenots who lived in Spitalfields, they were not there out of choice, most were driven there because they were excluded from worshiping in the way they deemed correct, some came for economic reasons but the vast early majority came to escape from faith tyranny They believed that God would watch over their lives, that God would keep them safe, they were on the whole very different from the London norm of the time, they grew plants in there cramped houses, they loved the sound of captive song birds, mimicking the clatter of the looms. Some kept to their faith, some drifted out of faith but for the majority their faith kept them grounded it was a relatively short period in history, but just as we reflect on the time of Jesus and are sometimes perplexed having more questions than answers, so might we be as we look at the History of the Huguenots across Europe.

“To be a follower of Jesus is a lifestyle choice. Jesus spelt out the challenging realities of being his disciple with both good and not so good news. The good news is that we are hugely valued by God, and God knows every detail of our lives. So, never be afraid, Jesus says – God loves you. On the other hand, the not so good news, he says, is that it is not easy to be a disciple. What do you think some of the risks and dangers are?”

But when we reflect on History and that will include the current pandemic, do we have the thought at the forefront of our mind that Jesus keeps us safe, do we question our faith, I think we all need someone to help us get up and over the obstacles that are put in our way just as the picture in part 1 identifies.

“Jesus’ advert is realistic: he doesn’t offer a life without problems. Rather he promises to help us through the difficulties we will meet. We are not immune from the problems everyone has to face (for example, health issues and death/loss). And there are additional challenges created by living out our faith. Jesus encourages us to recognise them – to be forewarned – and to face them with a resilience that comes from an assurance of our value in God’s sight.”​

So maybe we are a little like pencils, maybe we need to reflect on that and how we write our own pencil story, we are living in very difficult times but we have to keep our Faith, the lead in our pencil should be for writing good, for being understanding and for forgiving, one final referral to my Huguenot ancestors, weaving went through highs and lows ( some Golden periods) but at the end the 19th Century nearly everything was gone, most descended into poverty in both wealth and faith terms, we have to endure to keep our faith and climb those obstacles.

May you have discernment to see whom to serve.
May you have wisdom to know how to serve.
May you have strength to serve as a faithful disciple of the Lord
Jesus Christ. Amen.




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