"Come unto me, all you who are tired from
carrying heavy loads..."
 This
invitation, quoted from the words of Jesus in St Matthew's Gospel,
appears on the publicity for the quarterly Healing and Wholeness
services offered by the Shefford churches - you may have spotted
it, together with the delightful line drawing of a person allowing
their enormous burden to be taken (or at least shared) by the open
outstretched hand of an unseen friend. The message is that, whatever
our burden might be - physical, mental, emotional, spiritual - there
is Someone who understands and is always ready to help us.
At a recent service, Steve Summerfield showed us that there are
no barriers to Jesus' invitation; it is for everyone regardless
of status, background or situation. And everyone can come in their
own way; some come openly, asking for specific prayer and the laying
on of hands (which is a sign of the touch of Christ). Others come
secretly in their hearts, or perhaps through a symbolic action such
as placing a stone (their burden) onto a cairn (God's faithfulness).
Still others are brought to Jesus through the prayers and concern
of someone close to them. What we do know for sure is that, however
we come, Jesus will never turn us away.
True wholeness is about letting Jesus be real in our lives through
the power of the Holy Spirit - and we in Shefford churches are finding
that the power of the Spirit is strongest when we unite together
as one body in Christ.
So if you are tired from carrying a heavy load, or know someone
who is - why not come along to the next Healing and Wholeness service
on Tuesday 18th January 2005, 7.30pm at Shefford Baptist Church,
and see what God can do?
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