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1 Peter 3:15
“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,”

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Blackdown Benefice

Thinking Aloud - March 2010

Written by Sue Green

Saturday, 20 February 2010 20:39

Mothering

Just in case you need reminding, Mothers' Day (originally Mothering Sunday) falls this month on March 14th. On it, we will treat our mothers well - as if one day in the year was enough! - and provide special treats and, more importantly, say 'Thank you' for all that mothers provide for us, so often taken for granted.

To be honest, I have always preferred the day to be called 'Mothering Sunday' - possibly because I have no children myself. 'Mothering Sunday' seems to me to cover that much wider range of 'mothering' that all of us - men and women can give to one another.

The true nature of mothering is to be self-giving and to put the other first. The true nature of mothering is to receive thanks gladly, but expect to be taken for granted most o the time. Mothering may need sometimes to be tough, but only out of love. Mothering is not given only to children, but also from adult to adult as we care for one another in our bad times, giving practical help, emotional comfort and the rock-like certainty that there is someone there for us.

We are so used to thinking of God as 'Father' that many still fling up their hands in horror when it's suggested that God should also be addressed as 'Mother' and see it as some recent form of extreme feminism. But in fact, God is considered as a mother from at least 3000 years ago. In Psalm 131 we read, 'I still my soul and make it quiet: like a child upon its mother's breast, my soul is quieted within me'. And is Hosea 5 it says, 'Yet it was I who taught (you) to walk, I took them up in my arms. I led them with cords of human kindness, with bands of love. I was to them like those who lift infants to their cheeks'.

So, this Mothering Sunday, be glad that God cares for us with the tenderness of a mother, and be ready to receive that love, and to give it to others.

January Messy Church

Written by Cheryl Govier

Tuesday, 02 February 2010 21:09

Storytelling at January Messy Church Our theme for January was "Creation," for the first 15 minutes we made the most of boosting our energy levels eating the food which was kindly prepared for us and played games. We then chose various craft activities to do including "Earth Balloons" where we looked at the fragility of the earth and our care for it, "Amazing Beans" where we planted Broad Beans to look at the miracle of growth and "Pipe Cleaner Bugs" where we looked at the variety of creation. We also had the opportunity to contribute to a creation scene where we wrote prayers thanking God for different parts of His creation. After all this activity we learnt a new song "Have we Made Our God Too Small?" and Sue told us a story all about how God created the world. We finished our evening off by going outside and sending a Chinese Lantern off into the sky to represent sending our prayers to God. It was great fun and thank you to everyone who came and to all those who helped make it a great success.

Hope to see you all on the 24th February when we will be looking at the story of Noah! Don't forget to bring your friends!

New!

Written by Dave Bleloch

Thursday, 03 December 2009 18:16

We are pleased to announce a new area on the website. It is called Knotty Problems and can be reached via the 'Writings' menu. Each of the Knotty Problems will have first appeared in The Net and readers of that magazine and this website are invited to share their thoughts and comments on the issues discussed. Each article will either have a link to the comments already entered or will have an "Add your comment" link, which will take you to a form where you can add your own comment.

We hope you enjoy the articles and we especially look forward to sharing your comments with our other readers

The Blackdown Benefice is made up of six churches serving the five parishes of Buckland St Mary, Churchstanton, Corfe, Otterford and Pitminster, in the boundaries of the Blackdown Hills AONB.

You can find your way around our website using the menu at the top or you can go straight to the individual parish pages by clicking on the parish name below.

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