Five of us from All Saints were recently privileged to attend an interesting conference on the above subject at Lee Abbey,
where the speakers were Bishop George Cassidy and Glynn Harrison, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at Bristol University.
Both spoke from positions of considerable experience and authority, both biblically and practically.

Good pastoring starts from the pulpit, Bishop George told us, as preachers tell us about the love and care of our heavenly Father and of Jesus' exhortation to his followers to love one another.
We are all responsible for this and it should flow out across the pews on a Sunday, over coffee, in our Connect groups and whenever we meet one another. 
As we root ourselves in “the big story” of salvation, the “me” in us becomes less dominant and the hurts and frustrations of life less self-absorbing (Matt 6.33).
The pastor's role in this is to equip the saints for ministry and maturity in the faith. (Eph 4. 11-16).
The more secure we are in our relationship with our heavenly Father the more secure we will be in our relationship with ourselves and those around us. 
Look after your heart with all vigilance, urges King Solomon, for from it flow the springs of life (Prov 4.23).

Professor Harrison showed us how we are all victims of the drive for self esteem.
Like it or not, today's culture points us towards the delusion that a perfect life is attainable and when, inevitably, we fail to reach such a state, we can sink into disappointment, despair and ultimately into depression.
Low self esteem is one of the root causes of many of the social and mental health issues in today's world and, sadly, many Christians fall prey to it as the Christian life is counter-cultural to today's values.
Just read Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt Ch. 5 -7) if you want proof of this!

Only by the grace of God are we made worthy to inherit the kingdom of heaven  (Eph 2. 8) and we do so as unfinished and unrefined disciples, with a lot left for the Holy Spirit to sanctify. 
Since the church is composed of such unlikely material, by the world's standards, there is much for all of us to do in caring for, encouraging and building one another up with much patience and love.

Antonia Easley
Annie Hance
Sarah Jones
John and Sally Phillips

This week (13-19 June) has been designated as National Carers Week to draw attention to the vital contribution made by carers to their families and communities in providing unpaid care for someone who is ill, frail or disabled. It is estimated that carers are saving the economy an incredible £87billion by providing such unpaid care. Despite this, there is little support and scant recognition of the difficulties they face.

It is estimated that three in five people will be carers at some point in their lives and with  increasing cutbacks in welfare services, their burden is not going to become any easier.  A survey done last year found that one third of all carers in Britain are so depressed that they don't want to wake up in the morning. Caring for an elderly parent or spouse who is showing signs of dementia and knowing that the authorities will do nothing to help until a crisis occurs, or having a child with a serious illness and having to cope with frequent trips to a distant hospital whilst trying to meet the needs of other family members at the same is incredibly stressful.

As Christians we are not exempt from any of these pressures, indeed sometimes more so, as we have Jesus' teaching about caring for one another and we feel that we ought to be doing it better than anyone else - and then feeling guilty when we can't cope.

At All Saints, Lyn Hoyles and Lu Seymour offer pastoral support for anyone who is a carer in  our church. They can provide a listening ear, prayer and encouragement as well as organising regular gatherings where carers meet together in a relaxed atmosphere and support one another.

For carers there are no easy answers, no days off and taking it easy is not an option.  We take comfort from the truth that God knows our situation, understands, cares and is always there for us, sometimes encouraging us through the scriptures and sometimes through the love and support of the church family. 

If you are one of the carers we don't know about then please do make yourself known to Lyn or Lu.

Annie Hance