Here is our thought of the week page. Take a moment to ready and reflect.

Weekly reflection:
Between the river and the lake, with water on both sides and a few overarching
trees, there is a path. Along this path, in spiky brown clusters on either side, there
are hundreds of teasels reaching up towards the sky and gently nodding in the
wind. On the coldest days you can sometimes see a delicate fretwork of intricate
spiders’ webs outlined in frost; on wet days the raindrops linger on the spikes for
brief gravity - defying moments before falling to the ground beneath. If you are
fortunate enough to be walking along this path at just the right moment ( when
there is not an enthusiastic dog bounding ahead of you) you can glimpse a flash of
yellow or red and you might hear some lively liquid twittering and trilling- it’s the
goldfinches! Did you know that the collective noun for a group of goldfinches is a
‘charm’? I now know ( thank you, Winterwatch!) that this charm of goldfinches is
likely to be made up of males, as their beaks are exactly the right size and length
to be able to get into the teasels and extract the virtually inaccessible seeds.
Earlier this week I was walking along this path as the rain was lashing down and
the wind was blowing strongly. All was grey and miserable and very wet, until I
looked up and saw flashes of yellow and red, all the more beautiful against the
surrounding landscape, and noticed a charm of about 10 goldfinches merrily
chattering away to each other and ( I imagined) excitedly telling each other where
the best seeds were to be found.

‘A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.’ (
Proverbs17:22).

As Christians we are not exempt from suffering and we are certainly not called to
pretend everything is fine when it isn’t, or to ignore the suffering that happens all
around us. When we are struggling in any way – mentally, physically or spiritually -
it is very difficult not to become weighed down by what we are experiencing; our
spirits feel crushed and our strength is gone. Yet this proverb rings as true today in
our scientific world as it did in Solomon’s day. Research shows that our attitude
affects both our outlook on life and even our health, and we know that our
attitudes affect those we come into contact with.

As I was walking by the river in the rain it was natural to look down, hunch up
against the wind and rain, and focus on battling the elements! It was only when I
looked up and paid attention that my outlook and attitude changed. The Bible
encourages us to lift our eyes to God, to find joy in him and in all that he has
made, choosing carefully where we focus our attention and our thoughts. “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.” ( Philippians 4:8)

Sue Williams