I remember learning about the heart for ‘O’ Level biology. I spent hours reproducing the drawing from the text book.

Its four chambers, the valves stopping a backflow of blood, the aorta carrying oxygenated blood from the heart, the whichever artery carrying de-oxygenated blood to the heart.

The heart is a physical organ getting on with its job. But the heart has become something more.

It is the symbol of love; I Y you. It’s the centre of discussion; ‘right at the heart of the matter’. It’s where our beliefs lie; ‘if you believe with all your heart’.

Paul says: ‘… it is with your heart that you believe…’

This is beyond simply knowing the facts.

It even goes beyond just believing. I believe that there was a person named Julius Caesar. That fact doesn’t really make any difference to the way in which I live my life.

James wrote, ‘You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder’.

It is believing in. In my heart, with all my heart. That small word ‘in’ conveys words like trust, hope, refuge, strength. I believe in God the Father. He is my hope, my strength, my refuge, the One in whom I trust.

I believe in Jesus Christ. He is my hope, my strength, my refuge, the One in whom I trust.

I believe in the Holy Spirit. He is my hope, my strength, my refuge, the One in whom I trust.

What is in our heart, what is at the very core of our being, is shown in how we speak to one another, how we relate to one another, within the church family and with our neighbours in Bromyard and Stoke Lacy.

During this time of Lent, let us ask for forgiveness for just believing, and take up the joy, the challenge, of believing in God, who is our hope, our strength, our refuge, the One in whom we trust.

You ask me how I know He lives; He lives within my heart!

Rev Phil

We seem to like to leave permanent markers of our presence. Go to the top of a mountain and there you’ll find a cairn.

At either end of a long-distance walk there’ll be a pile of stones.

Sometimes we mark significant, holy places – an emergent natural spring; burials in the form of long barrows; sites of martyrdom; holy appearances, such as at Walsingham.

Permanent structures, shrines to a past event.

On the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter wanted to put up ‘shelters’ for Moses, Elijah and Jesus. Permanent markers, shrines to a holy appearance. It’s as if he wanted to freeze that moment in time.

But before he could go any further with his plan, Moses and Elijah have left, leaving Jesus. Jesus cannot be constrained, we cannot tie Him down.

Jethro Tull, a ‘70’s folk rock band, sang:

‘People, what have you done locked Him in His golden cage. Made Him bend to your religion Him resurrected from the grave.’

Are we in danger of trying to constrain Jesus, to freeze Him in time and place, to bind Him into our own particular church or world view? Or are we prepared to allow Him to move freely in the world, in our communities, in our churches, in our lives.

But we make His love too narrow by false limits of our own;

and we magnify His strictness with a zeal He will not own.

If our love were but more simple, we should take Him at His word; and our lives would be all gladness in the joy of Christ our Lord .

Rev Phil

The sea of Galilee is noted for its changeable weather – one minute serene and calm, the next squalling winds and rain.

Peter, James and John would have been only too aware of the lake’s temperamental nature and how to see out one of it’s vengeful squalls.

So when Jesus suggests crossing the lake by boat, they would have set out with confidence. But even with their confidence, when a squall does rise up, the disciples are afraid. This must have been worse that they’d previously experienced.

They turn to the sleeping Jesus for help. ‘Master, Master, we’re going to drown!’

Getting to His feet, He told the wind, “Silence!” and the waves, “Quiet down!” They did it. The lake became smooth as glass (Luke 8:24, MSG)

After calming the storm, Jesus rebukes the disciples, ‘Where is your faith?’

And they are amazed, and a little frightened, wondering, ‘Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him.’

The episode teaches us two things.

Firstly, that Jesus, as the Son of God, has real power, such that even the winds and waves obey Him. And also, that with Jesus in our lives, we can trust Him to see us through the storms of life.

There is the children’s chorus:

With Christ in the vessel we can smile at the storm as we go sailing home.

I’m not sure that ‘smile at the storm’ is quite the phrase I’d use but you get the point!

We can smile at the storm, we can trust Him because of who He is, the Son of God; Son of the immortal, invisible, God only wise.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

when sorrows like sea billows roll;

whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul.

Rev Phil

Rivers.

From a tiny source to a wide estuary; from burbling brook to a stately flow.

Constantly flowing, constantly trying to find the smoothest route to the open sea.

Along its banks plants grow, drawing on the water and nutrients. Insects live out their life cycles in and around the water. Fish, birds, and animals call rivers ‘home’.

Rivers are life-giving and energising. Jeremiah says that:

the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him … will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream (Jeremiah 17: 7-8)

The Psalmist echoes this though, saying that those whose:

… delight is in the law of the Lord … is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither (Psalm 1: 2)

We are like trees planted beside God’s life-giving, energising waters.

We are fed and nourished, and are fruitful, when we trust in God, when we put our confidence in Him, when we delight in His law.

But a tree also gives nourishment to others; birds and animals feed on the fruits and berries. A tree gives shelter; all manner of insects hide in the bark or just under the bark; birds roost and make their nests in the branches.

In the same way, as we are fed and nourished by God, we feed and nourish those around us. Not just as individuals, but as parishes and as a Benefice.

How am I, how are you, how are we, feeding and nourishing our family, friends, neighbours, communities?

Longing for food, many are hungry. Longing for water, many still thirst. Make us Your bread, broken for others, shared until all are fed.

Rev Phil

As you’ll be aware, I’m an angler. I’ve been fishing since my mid teens.

Over the years I’ve learned to ‘read the water’, to be able to tell see where fish might be hiding, look for signs of feeding activity, to assess what might be the right approach.

Generally there are two techniques that I use to catch fish. One is the trusted float, hook, piece of sweetcorn, the other is a swimfeeder with a hair-rig. Most of the time, these two simple techniques are all that I need to catch fish.

There are days when I seem to daw a blank, with nothing apparently taking the bait. At these times I have to think differently, try a different technique, a different part of the lake or river, a different rod, a change of reel.

Peter was an experienced fisherman. He’d followed in his Dad’s footsteps, watching and learning as he grew up. He knew how to catch fish, where to catch them, and the best time of day or night to catch them.

He and his friends had been fishing all night to no avail when Jesus comes along and says, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’

With, I think, immense self-control Peter replies:

‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything.’

But then he adds:

‘But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’

The result is a miraculous catch so large that he has to get help to bring in the net.

There are times when we think that we’ve got this church thing sussed. We use this or that particular liturgy, these set of hymns or songs, meet in this sort of building.

And then Jesus says:

‘Put out into deep water, and let down your nets’.

Maybe there are times when Jesus is calling us to do it differently; a different liturgy; a change of hymns or songs; to try

silence; change our building; a new location. Have we the faith, the courage, to follow Peter’s example and say, ‘Because You say so, we will’?

Maybe there’s a miraculous catch waiting for us …

Rev Phil

Mission is God’s invitation to everyone to join in the Divine Dance.

2025 is the Diocesan Year of Engagement, when we are challenged as churches and individuals to engage with our communities. It is only through building relationships with people that we are able to engage in mission.

How do we do this practically?

My shelves have books entitled ‘Everyday Evangelism’, ‘Developing Healthy Churches’, ‘Online Mission and Ministry’, ‘Creating Missional Worship’, all of which should be a guide to mission, that act of inviting people to join in the Divine Dance.

The best advice I’ve found comes from ‘Chav Christianity’, which has a section entitled ‘Get off your backside and tell your friends about Jesus’. And it simply says to tell your story, share your faith, and share your hope.

Peter tells us to:

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15)

We don’t/shouldn’t need to initiate conversations about faith. If we are living Christ-like lives, people will be wanting to know what it is that makes us different. The way in which we live, think, act, talk, should attract people. A chorus I learned in my teens says:

They are watching you, marking all you do, hearing the things you say.

Let them see the Saviour as He shines in you, let His power control you every day.

When we are in the shops in Bromyard, when we’re waiting for the bus to Hereford or Worcester, when we’re at a show or concert at the Conquest, when we’re exercising in the Halo gym, when we’re walking the dog, when we’re at Stoke Lacy coffee morning.

If you want to engage with the community, don’t use the self-service checkouts in the Co-op, do always say ‘Hello’ to a

passing stranger, end every conversation with a simple ‘God bless’. It may take a little time, but doors will begin to open! A thought ascribed to St Francis of Assisi:

‘Preach the gospel, use words if necessary’

Rev Phil

If a hedgehog learned about the Green Cross Code and found it to be the safest way to cross the road, then surely it would want to share that learning with family, friends, neighbours, to ensure their safety when they crossed the road.

We have good news; not just any old good news, the Good News! It’s far better than the Green Cross Code. It is the Good News that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; it is the Good News that everyone is invited by God to join in the Divine Dance.

It’s Good News that is exciting. And that’s why people have shared it. On finding the tomb empty, the women

‘… hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.’ Matt 28:8 (ANIV)

After Jesus was recognised in the breaking of bread at Emmaus, the two disciples explained,

“Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” Luke 24:32 (ANIV)

They were excited! For a sense of that excitement just read 1 Peter 1: 3-9.

People have also shared the Good News out of thanksgiving. When Jesus healed two blind men, and after specifically telling them not to say anything, they

… went out and spread the news about Him all over that region. Matt 9:31 (ANIV)

Again, after healing a deaf and mute man:

Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more He did so, the more they kept talking about it. Mark 7:36 (ANIV)

Their thankfulness led them to tell others about Jesus.

Excitement and thankfulness encourage us to go out and share God’s invitation. The excitement of knowing that we are loved unconditionally; being thankful for all that God has done for us and in us.

Count your blessings, name them one by one; Count your blessing, see what God has done. Count your blessing, name then one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done!

Rev Phil

Mission is nothing less than God’s invitation to all peoples to join in the Divine Dance. So if mission is God’s invitation, what’s our part?

In Matthew’s gospel we read:

When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field.”

He called His twelve disciples to Him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These twelve Jesus sent out …                                                                               Matthew 9: 36 – 10: 1,5

Our first part in mission is to recognise that there is a need; a need for people to know the love of God for themselves. Jesus saw the crowds and had compassion on them.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that during COVID many people turned to prayer, praying to an ‘Otherness’, a ‘Universal

Spirit’. We have the privilege of knowing this ‘Otherness’, this ‘Universal Spirit’ as the God who loves us because He loves us because He loves us.

Next, we are to pray. The Message version of the Bible has Jesus saying, ‘On your knees and pray for harvest hands!’ This suggests two possible meanings to ‘hands’. It could mean ‘hands’ as in hired hands, hired workers, which would be lovely as it leaves mission to someone else. Or it could mean that we must be prepared to get our hands dirty and participate in the harvest.

We pray that God would send people out to share His love. But notice that having told the disciples to pray, Jesus sends them out. We have to be ready to be the answer to our prayers! When we pray, God often says, ‘Yes, I hear you. What are you going to do?’ As Jesus said at the feeding of the five thousand, ‘You give them something to eat.’

As we pray, God sends us out.

‘… go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them …, and teaching them…’  Matthew 28:19-20

We are sent out to be witnesses (Acts 1:7), ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20), with beautiful feet (Isaiah 52:7). Teresa of Avila wrote:

Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes with which Christ looks out His compassion to the world. Yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good.

Yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now.

Rev Phil