Dave spoke this morning from Luke 17:11-19, a story where Jesus healed ten lepers… but only one returned to give Him thanks.

Lepers were at this time outcasts, for the disease was incurable and all who had leprosy were isolated, unable to live within the normal society. They were effectively ‘living dead’, without hope, so even to cry out to Jesus for mercy was a bold move. Jesus told them to go to the priest – to act as if they were cleansed, and it was only as they went that they did receive cleansing and healing.

In effect, this physical healing was what they had wanted and the majority were satisfied with this. One, a Samaritan, realised that Jesus had done more than offer physical healing, however. He saw that this cleansing paved the way to salvation, to a wholeness that encompassed more than the body. The majority were happy to be ‘normal’ again, to be able to dwell in society and take part in normal activities, but this one man was ‘more than normal’. He came back to Jesus because he realised that He could do more than heal.

Jesus gave His life to save us and offers us both cleansing and healing. We too can be grateful and thankful because He offers us the miracle of eternal life, a life that is supernatural, a life that is more than normal.

The process by which a caterpillar changes into a butterfly is known as metamorphosis. There are four stages in the life cycle of a butterfly: eggs are laid on leaves (where they almost ‘stick’ to the leaf) and hatch into larvae or caterpillars.

The caterpillar’s aim is to eat, shedding its skin as it grows; each caterpillar has 5 stages called instars, with each stage separated by a moulting. A caterpillar’s weight will increase by 100 times in 3-4 weeks – no wonder Eric Carle wrote about ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’!

Once the caterpillar has grown sufficiently, it forms itself into a pupa (chyrsalis). It may look as though nothing is happening at this stage, but the caterpillar is rapidly changing inside this ‘sac’; within the chrysalis the old body parts of the caterpillar are undergoing a remarkable transformation (‘metamorphosis’), with the tissue, limbs and organs all changing. The final stage is when the butterfly emerges from the chrysalis, looking completely different!

In preparation for the Family Fun Day on 20th February when we will be looking at the life cycle of butterflies and the theme of new life and transformation, we spent some time yesterday at the Butterfly House in Sheffield, where many different kinds of butterflies could be seen.

There are even sculptures of butterflies to admire!

Come along to the fun day between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Wednesday 20th February to find out more about caterpillars, butterflies and transformation… and how God can bring this same transformation into our lives as we are born again, transformed from sinners who cannot be in the presence of a holy God to children of God who are welcomed into His presence and in whom His Spirit lives!

The phrase ‘to invest in one’s own future’ means to do things which are ultimately beneficial to oneself, even if there is a financial cost. This would seem so obvious a to need no further instruction, but in actual fact most of us are so immersed in the now that we rarely have time to ponder the future, let alone invest in it.

This living-in-the-now is not the same as trusting God and savouring the present. This kind of careless living is focussed on short-term pleasures and selfish gain, failing to take a ‘long view’ regarding goals and plans. It’s actually an inevitable way to invest in failure; the saying goes that those who fail to plan actually plan to fail…

The Bible urges us to ‘give careful thought to your ways’ (Haggai 1:5, 7, 15, 18). Prov 4:26 says ‘Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.’ We need to invest in our spiritual future, not simply feathering our own nestss but seeking first God’s kingdom and His righteousness (Matt 6:33-34). We need to make strategic plans for our own spiritual growth, investing time, energy and money into our relationship with God, and seeking innovative ways of serving others. There’s nothing wrong with planning and investment per se, but the key is where the heart is.

We’ll be looking at how to build well in the church at a special meeting on Saturday 2nd March at 4 p.m. and hope that many of you will join us for this important chance to talk, pray, plan and look at how we can best serve God in our community.

The Dearne Community Arts’ Festival will be back later in the year! This local festival aims to champion creativity and celebrate community and is back for its third year. This year, the festival will be on Saturday 28th September from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. and will again be at our local secondary school, Dearne ALC. This large building has oodles of room to showcase local talent, and as usual, the festival will give opportunities for exhibitions, performances and workshops and demonstrations.

Come and browse…

Local people will be exhibiting all kinds of creativity in many different guises. Artwork, photographs, crafts, sewing, knitting, woodwork, writing and much more will all be available to admire, and in many cases, there will be the opportunity to buy goods. Many of those who took part in last year’s festival will be back, showing off their creative talents. It’s an ideal opportunity to buy Christmas presents early and to see what local community groups get up to throughout the year!

Come and watch…

Creativity is about more than painting and drawing. We’ll also have the opportunity to watch the performing arts in the fantastic main hall. Our local ukulele class will be performing, along with other musicians, a local dance class and (hopefully) a circus act! There’s so much local talent that it’s great to enjoy these performances, entirely free of charge. Local author John Irving Clarke will be doing a book reading and talking about his works, so there’s something for everyone.

Come and do…

We want to encourage people to have a go at different things and so will be running demonstrations and workshops where you can learn a new skill! So far, we have hot wax painting, henna patterns, creative flower making from plastics, willow weaving and country crafts, card making, origami books and sand art booked in and we’re sure there’ll be lots more! Children’s author Jeannette Ayton will be running story-telling sessions and John Irving Clarke will also be talking about the writing process. So if you fancy trying something new (including having a go at circus skills, we hope!), come along and have fun – you never know what may inspire you in future!

Love has to be the identifying mark of every Christian, because love is the identifying mark of God (1 John 4:8, John 13:35, 1 Cor 13:1-8). John reminds us that love is the thing that marks God’s people out as children of God and children of obedience. He says, ‘We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death.’ (1 John 3:14) He tells us that love is involved in practical action, helping those in need (1 John 3:16-18). Love is action, not just feelings!

God’s love is focussed on others – therefore ours should be too. Paul tells us how Christ demonstrated His love: ‘just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.’ (Eph 5:2) God’s love is so much more than a feeling; it compelled Christ to leave His heavenly home and take on human flesh. There was a practical and outward focus to God’s love. Instead of being content with the love between the persons of the Godhead, God’s love looked at humanity and wanted to bring reconciliation. ‘God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them.’ (2 Cor 5:19) He was doing something practical about the problem and now He has entrusted that message of reconciliation to us. Paul says, ‘Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. ¹⁵ And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.’ (2 Cor 5:14-15)

God’s love is not cautious and careful, but extravagant and lavish. It is a holy love, not ignoring sin, but it is also a positive force which is manifested in action. The message of the Gospel is one of God’s reckless love for His people. We have to understand His fierce, jealous, all-consuming love, the love that made Hosea persevere with Gomer, even after she left him and was unfaithful to him, the love that bought her back after adultery and nurtured her. (Hosea 1-3) We have to dip into the passion of the Song of Songs and not flinch from its endearments and fervour. We have to put aside our reticence and our cynicism and our disillusionment and disappointments and come back to the start of it all, back to our first love, back to that place where the love of God melted us. Only then can we hope to follow God’s example of love and live a life of love which people will recognise as not natural but supernatural.