Message from our Minister
Revd. Jane Barron
Dear FriendsThe book of Proverbs in the Bible contains some very wise
sayings. In chapter seventeen and verse twenty two, we
read, ‘A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast
spirit dries up the bones.’
At my friend’s 60th birthday party recently, I met one of her neighbours for the first time, a woman who declared herself to be very old but to
my reckoning was probably only in her late sixties, which I do not consider to be old!! This woman was like a breath of fresh air. From the moment the party started to the moment she declared she had to go as she was going to see Rod Stewart in concert in Manchester, she raised the spirit of everyone present with her lively personality, her open honesty, her humour and fun.
I asked some of the other guests, who knew her, if she was always like this and they said she was. I also discovered that she had had some very difficult and painful times in her life but she always managed to rise above them and be cheerful as she reached out to the needs of those around
her. She was a Christian from the local C of E and she described herself as the ‘meeter and greeter’ on a Sunday. I can easily imagine that anyone coming into that church would immediately feel blessed by her cheerful welcome.
She was certainly good medicine and I went away from that
party greatly uplifted and thankful for the privilege of
having met such a special lady.
However hard things are, a cheerful heart, our own or
another’s, certainly is good medicine, and we can soon feel
much brighter. If we are too long in the company of
someone who is negative and pessimistic and if we are
constantly dwelling on negative thoughts ourselves, it may
well feel as though our bones are drying up!!
Chris Taylor, from our Marple Church, writes in this
magazine about his granddaughter Laura’s progress
following her surgery for a brain tumour, and he says that
even in the darkest of days, six year old Laura could
manage a great big smile. I know that Laura has been and
continues to be an inspiration to those around her, and
Chris says in his letter, ‘perhaps we can all learn an
important lesson from this.’
We all know that there are times when life can be very tough and there are things that come our way that can badly shake us, but God is with us
and we can draw on His strength and resources to see us through, and even if we can’t always have a cheerful heart, God will ensure there are those around to encourage and inspire us and to be the good medicine that we need.
I give thanks to God for all of you who are my source of
good medicine each new day.
With my love
Jane Barron
