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Interact January 2021
by Lifewords
WELCOME
How has 2021 begun for you, for your church and community? For many of us, Christmas and New Year were tinged with sadness and uncertainty: yes, there was hope for the future, and longing for God’s purposes and presence; but the sense of haunting was palpable. The world simply hasn’t behaved as it “normally” does – in 2020 so many things collided; shaking, breaking and re-making the world in the process.
However, as we look towards the “True Light”, the complexities of this troubled world are met with three words that Jesus spoke, lived and entrusted to those that would follow him: “Love one another”.
The name Lifewords embodies our desire to follow Jesus; our passion for the Bible; our desire to serve the church and reach the world; and our heart to invite people to experience the love of Jesus. There is much to learn, and unlearn, through this time. But our experience of sharing life words is that it is not primarily our theology, our programmes, our preaching or teaching that make a difference on their own.
All these things are important, but the real difference is how we demonstrate those three words: love one another.
From Lincoln to Nairobi, Jakarta to Luton, and around the globe, this issue of Interact reflects how we have adapted in a time of Covid-19, how we have reached vulnerable children online, supplied life words with health supplies, helped people relate the Bible to their experience, and much more. But most of all, we have tried to show love. A booklet or a programme or project is nothing without that. As the apostle Paul puts it, without love it is just a “clanging cymbal”.
So, let’s be kind to others and to ourselves; let’s reach out with love, and let’s rejoice in following the example of Jesus, even in these most challenging days.
