How many times?

Good evening, everyone. I come to you this evening from the front room with the window open because Autumn has not listened to Instagram and its posts about log fires and pumpkin-spiced lattes and has decided not to go for it quite yet, as you can see above. 

I hope that you are well. We are fine, if a little tired. I don't know why. Just getting older, I suppose. We did the House-group on Wednesday. I'm not used to going out again mid-week to be spiritual and sharp of thought. That probably explains feeling a little bit jaded. The people whose house we go to have two rescue cats - big as baby tigers, both of them. As I think I have mentioned before, HOH has a pretty lively allergy to cats, so it came as a surprise to see him dragging a cat toy across the floor and encouraging the cats to dive on it and then giving me that look because he's beginning to get a prickly nose. Really? You do surprise me. Are all men like this, do you think?

The house group leader was explaining to us that he would be going away for the church's annual mission to Romania and wouldn't be there for the next meeting in a couple of weeks. He said that he would be laying some paving stones and the ladies would be washing the children, among other things.  At least I think that's what he said, but it can't be right, can it? The Romania Team only go once a year. Is he saying that the children only get washed then? I don't know. Anyway, He has asked HOH and me to take the next meeting, which is a bit weird because we have only been twice. I'm assuming everyone else turned him down. It's not the most onerous task in the world - there's mainly a lot of chatting first, and then someone drags out a Proverb or something, and then we pray and then eat biscuits. I don't suppose it's much like the original house groups when people were hiding from being thrown to the lions or fighting gladiators, but it's the best that we can do. 

Also, this morning in church - good news. A family who have been refugees from Ethiopia have just had their asylum request accepted. Now I know that this is a controversial subject at the moment, and I understand any country's reluctance to take Albanian gang members who want to move to a country because it is geographically easier to give someone a good kicking. However, as is normal in most things, the nearer you get to something, the more you learn about it.  This family were literally running for their lives. They have been waiting for twelve months for their case to come through. During that time, they have been volunteering consistently for the most menial jobs in the church, and nothing has been too much trouble. (She is working on a PHD. He is a Senior Minister in the Ethiopian church.) Their sons have been relentlessly bullied at school, and it has been a really tough time. This morning, there wasn't a dry eye in the house when it was announced that they could stay. 

In other news, we have heard that our flammable cladding is about to be replaced. Hurrah! Unfortunately, it will take about 60 weeks. Booo! This will be behind scaffolding. Booo! I'm sure all will be well, but I would have a bit more confidence if the building managers had managed to stop the fire alarms going off randomly - including at 3am - do you know how much of a shock to the system that is? That could have killed me at my age. There's never a fire by the way - it's just the temperature for the alarm to go off has been set incorrectly. The lady from the penthouse on the top floor has stopped responding, which is quite understandable as we are told not to use the lift and the eight floors by the stairs at her time of life (or mine, come to think of it) is not to be advised. Still, I can't help thinking that this might be a recipe for disaster, so it's best we get the cladding changed. 

Anyway, just as an aside. During a random conversation this morning, a very nice person mentioned a time when someone had hurt someone I love. (I'm sorry, I don't mean to be all mysterious, but it is not my story to tell.) Anyway, they played down the event and said it was water under the bridge, etc., etc. But I realised that, for me, I thought I had forgiven them, but I realised that this conversation had stirred everything up again, and forgiveness was not the emotion that I was feeling. (Are you keeping up at the back?) 

I was looking at the scripture where the disciples ask Jesus how many times they should forgive someone who wrongs them. 

At this point, Peter got up the nerve to ask, "Master, how many times do I have to forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?"

Jesus replied, "Seven. Hardly. Try Seventy times Seven."

Initially, I thought, well, this person is not a Christian brother or sister, so they can sling their hooks, but I think there is a possibility that God would like a bit more from me. I think that I have always thought of this as being about someone who continues to hurt someone again and again. However, looking at it, I wonder if it could also be about forgiveness, which is needed after someone hurts you once, and sometimes you think that you are over it and you have it beaten, but it all rears up again. You have to keep forgiving again and again - as if it has to be worked at - and sometimes it's hard work, even taking seventy times seven times. Do you get it? Do you ever think that God overestimates your abilities in being a decent Christian department? Either way, it seems like flipping hard work, but in the words of Patti LaBelle and Michael MacDonald in their popular music hit "No One Said It Was Easy." Have a good week