Colours of Day

Dear friends,

It’s called simultaneous contrast.

Concentrate on a bright patch of colour. Then close your eyes. Chances are you will “see” the opposite of the colour you’ve been staring at. If you’ve been looking at red, you will see green. If you look at yellow, you will see purple. If the colour is orange, you will see blue. Apparently the brain is trying to “balance out” the colour you are looking at with its “opposite.” Simultaneous contrast: you learn something new from the Christian Aid One World Calendar every month. The picture for May is from Mongolia – a house whose opposite walls are also opposite colours: red/green, blue/orange: “providing a harmonious sense of order as well as being visually captivating.” It makes a nice change from magnolia, I suppose.

A harmonious sense of order, based on natural contrasts. Not a bad idea for a healthy, happy life. Not a bad idea for a church either, whatever our taste in interior decoration. It’s the month of May, and if the weather is good you want to get out and enjoy the riot of natural colour in our gardens and along our field footpaths. You will find “simultaneous contrasts.” there too.

So the month gets off to a bracing start with our Garstang to Forton May Day canal ramble. Always a happy day, enjoyed by adults, children and dogs alike. Do join us if you can!

Then Christian Aid Week is 10 - 16 May. This year’s focus is the Congo. The theme is Keeping Hope Alive. The poster shows a delightful Congolese girl, Nadia, busy at her sewing machine. Our own delightful Pauline has kindly offered to co-ordinate the collection - for this year only - and will be asking for volunteer collectors for our allocated roads. What better way of enjoying the charms of Garstang on a Spring evening and “keeping hope alive” for Nadia, the Congo, and the rest of the developing world, in the process?

But the healthy Christian life keeps a balance, between prayer and action, care for the world and  care for the church. Outreach and maintenance, saving and spending. “Moderation in all things!” says Paul. May for Garstang is also Make a Pledge month. Members of Garstang should have received their pledge packs and be thinking and praying about their response. Please make a date with Pledge Day on Saturday 23 May.

...to say nothing of  the Elders Away Day on 16 May, when elders of our two churches will be joining with elders of Bethel, Preesall for a day of fellowship, fun  and reflection at Pilling Methodist Church. 

May ends with Pentecost. Those apostles certainly  knew how to keep a balance in their busy lives: a holy huddle altogether in one place in that rather over-crowded upper room, then tumbling out onto the streets, on fire with the spirit, to become very extravert – and highly effective – outdoor evangelists. Enjoying food and fellowship in their own homes, but not forgetting the poor Greek widows. At home and far away from home, “keeping hope alive” as they showed and spread the extremely hopeful good news of the risen Jesus.

And in the process making the world a more harmonious and captivating place. Simultaneous contrast. Wherever you are, indoors, outdoors, home or away, enjoy this very busy and very merry month of May.

With every blessing,

David