Annual Address 2008
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The year has passed very quickly, or so it seems to me. It is only a short
while ago that I sat and wrote my message for 2007 and here I am doing
the same for 2008. 2007 has indeed flown, but I am grateful to our
loving God for all that He has done for us in our Church this past year.
We have seen an increase in membership, our attendance is quite high,
we have appointed new deacons and I, as your Minister, have been
included on the role of Ministers within the Congregational Federation and
taken up the position of President of the Free Church Council of Wales.
We have also joined with our sister Churches to form the Whitland
Christian Circle, an organisation that will help us to reach out to the wider
community and have one voice in our locality. No wonder 2007 has flown
with so much happening.
In the summer, I attended the World Scout Jamboree, which was held to celebrate 100 years of Scouting. I was the team leader for pastoral care and recruited Scout Leaders of many faiths from around the world to be part of the team. It was amazing to see and learn how other faiths approach God and it taught me that God loves all His children, whether they are Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist or Christian and that all the great religions in the world follow the same basic principles of showing love to one’s neighbour and to be good servants of God.In Britain today, we see the authorities becoming increasingly secular to the extent that the Christian voice is not welcomed to be heard anymore. All this seems to be because no one wants to put any one faith in front of the other and is meant to promote community cohesion. I actually think it serves the opposite and drives communities apart because people of faith are afraid to voice their views. The Scout Jamboree was an example of how different faiths can work together to achieve God’s purpose for all of us. It was also an example that to speak of, demonstrate or explain one’s faith is not a bad thing that should be discouraged. I think our community leaders can learn a lot from this. Maybe 2008 should be the year where we once again are heard and not accused of being racist or fundamentalist or that we upset other faiths by worshipping in our own way as children of God.
Psalm 31:23 says, “Love the LORD, all his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful”. It is interesting to note that four of the great religions that I listed above use the Psalms in their scripture. They may call them something different, but the message is the same. Regardless of the way God has chosen for us to follow Him, we are to love Him, which means we will be rewarded. And the same will be of those others who follow a different path to God.
Let us be certain that our path, the way we have been shown, is through Jesus Christ – Lord and Saviour. We must never be afraid of declaring that and sharing it with those that Christ leads us to.
In 2008, I wish you and those you love every Blessing and pray that your faith in Jesus Christ will increase.
Reverend Martin Spain BA Ed (Hons) |
