Dear All,
This week saw two exciting deliveries to the vicarage; the first one was a skip and the second was a new wheelie bin! I know you are probably thinking that they do not sound overly exciting but, in our current homeschooling-groundhog-day, these deliveries have been a highlight. The skip is to get rid of stuff that we moved with but do not need, and some of the stuff left behind from the builders. The wheelie bin is an extra recycling bin because the seven of us seem to be filling the first one too quickly.
These two deliveries represent a constant struggle in our house; getting rid of what we don’t need but trying not to fill up land-fill, not wasting things and trying to do our part in protecting the environment. (The skip was a last resort and is going to a recycling plant when it is collected). We live on this awesome planet and I believe it is important to look after it. Whenever I think about this topic, my mind is always taken to thinking about the big questions of life; what is it all about? How did it all come about? Is there a God? Are we just insignificant particles spinning around on an insignificant planet?
This week’s reading, Colossians 1:15-20, points to a God who created the world and all that is in it. A design not brought about by chance, but planned and set in motion by God. The reading also points to Jesus being central to creation and then coming to earth as a human being in order to save us and the whole of creation.
"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
If, like me, you find yourselves asking big questions and pondering the very existence of everything, I think that this passage gives us an answer, pointing to Jesus. In Him and through Him all things were created and by Him all things were reconciled to Him.
So, if you ever get a skip or wheelie bin delivered, be aware that you may get side-tracked into contemplating huge topics. And even if you are not planning any strange deliveries, we can all look at these verses of scripture and marvel at the awesomeness of creation and the Creator!
God bless.
Gareth
Almighty God,
you have created the heavens and the earth
and made us in your own image:
teach us to discern your hand in all your works
and your likeness in all your children;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who with you and the Holy Spirit reigns supreme over all things,
now and for ever. Amen