Friends

2 Corinthians: 4 – 16 – Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

Are you a glass half-empty or a glass half-full sort of person? Do you read this and think “Every day I become a day older” or do you think, “Every day, I become a day wiser”? There is of course a third option: you could ask for a smaller glass, tip the contents into it and claim your glass is full to the brim. Many of us will remember singing the children’s chorus:

Running over, running over

My cup’s full and running over

Since the Lord saved me,

I’m as happy as can be,

My cup’s full and running over.

I am going to be away on leave from this Sunday until the 26th of August and, having had no leave yet this year, I am looking forward to it very much. For some of us, this summer will bring holiday and rest, and for others a slow return to work or normal life, and still others some fear still that the virus is out there, and life is not easy or normal and may not be so again, at least for a very long time.

Paul, in his writing to the early Christians at Corinth, recognises many of these issues. Life in every time and place has its own challenges, and for some those are very difficult indeed. Yet he writes with hope, and more with faith, of the inward renewal by the Holy Spirit, through our relationship with Christ. So let us this summer seek renewal and refreshment in our outward lives as we perhaps enjoy meeting with friends, or the beauty of parks and gardens, and our inward lives as we pray and read our Bibles and meditate on the word of God. Perhaps also, we might wonder whether part of what the last 18 months have given us is an understanding that a smaller glass can be full all the way to the top and that simply wanting less can allow our needs to be filled fully.

Inwardly, we are being renewed day by day. What a hope, what a faith to draw on.

God bless,

Vicci