The Cranmer Group Podcast

Annie,  with the help of Psalm 103:1-12 and Matthew 6:25-34, encourages us to turn and give thanks for all God's blessings to us in 2023; and to look forward to the New Year, paying attention to the ways in which God wants to bless us in 2024, and to how He encourages us to give any challenges we may face to Him. She reminds us of God's amazing, unreasonable love for each one of us, and that we are safe in His hands.

Reflecting on Mary's response to the angel Gabriel in Luke chapter 1 (verses 26-38), Tim asks what might it look like for each one of us to say to God, like Mary, “May your word to me be fulfilled”.  How might you and I - declaring ourselves to be, in Mary’s words, “the Lord’s servant” -  be used for God's incredible purposes, beyond all our human possibilities?

Annie accompanies us on our Advent journey into the light of Christ, challenging us as to how we make space and time for Jesus in the busy-ness of our preparations for Christmas, looking at John's Gospel, chapter 1, verses 6-8 and 19-28. She especially recommends using the fantastic Lectio 365 daily devotionals, which you can find at https://www.24-7prayer.com/resource/lectio-365/ , and the app for which you can download onto your phone or tablet, to help you in this.

As we continue to prepare ourselves for the coming of Jesus, looking at Mark, chapter 1, verses 1-8,  Bronwen asks us, not, "Are you ready for Christmas?" - as we all seem to say! - but the far more profound question, "Are you ready for God?"

From Jesus' message to us to be watchful, from Mark 13:24-37, Tim encourages us to be expectant in prayer; confident in the Gospel we share; and courageous in our witness to the Good News of the love of Jesus Christ for all.

Rev. Jonathan Mole, Vicar of All Hallows, Lady Bay, shares with us about Jesus's Lordship, referring to both Ephesians 1:15-23 and John 13:31-35. You have to imagine the ball of string flying into the chancel, and a small length of string at the end representing our life on earth!

Tim explores another of the "hard sayings" of Jesus, the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), thinking about how we respond to the extraordinary spiritual gifts that God has given to each one of us, in the abundance of His love. Do we truly use them to build God's Kingdom here amongst us, with boldness, creativity and courage, or do we live out of fear, and keep what He has given us to ourselves?

With context from his Grandfather's diary, written in the trenches of Flanders in World War One, Tim shares with us what the scriptures tell us about war and above all about God's peace.  Reflecting on the imagery of "swords into ploughshares" from Micah 4:1-5, and Jesus's declaration that "blessed are the peacemakers" from Matthew 5:1-12, we see how the transformative power of God - above all in the person of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, crucified and resurrected - can change evil into good, and death into life.

Reflecting on the Biblical witness of James 2:1-13, and Mark 12:28-34, Tim encourages us to be welcoming to those who come through the doors of our churches, or whom we may have the opportunity to welcome at other points in our Benefice life, like the Food Hub or our Cranmer Plus youth group. Like Abraham in Genesis 18, we may never know when we might be entertaining angels!

Tim considers what is unique about a specifically Christian perspective on joy, and how we can bring that joy into our Benefice life, and share it with others. He especially looks at what the apostle, James, says about being joyful (James 1:1-12) and how being rooted in the love and the Word of God, by streams of living water - like the image of the tree in Psalm 1 - is the path to true joy in God, whatever the external circumstances of our lives.