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PIC Life Turning to God in our hour of need By Moira Billinge It had been a hectic, upside-down week; the house looked like a refuse centre and although it was very late in the evening, I decided that I would bring the vacuum cleaner out of its hibernation. Despite the challenge, the machine laboured its way noisily through the detritus of my post-Christmas neglect of all things to do with housework. Alone in the darkened house , except for the company of the vacuum cleaner, to my horror the door of one of the unlit bedrooms slowly started to close. Paralysed with fear, I watched as,
silently, the door shut with no hand visible to turn the handle, and no sign of human intervention. Heroic deeds will not rank high in my obituary, but, with one hand still firmly glued to the machine, I tried to push the door open. However, an unseen and seemingly determined counter- force pushed against me, and during that time the worst moments of every ghost story and murder mystery which I had ever read or seen replayed their gruesome scenarios in my mind. I feared the worst, not knowing what ‘the worst’ might be. According to the experts, fear triggers a surge of adrenalin through the blood stream, its purpose being, supposedly,
to prepare us for ‘fight or flight’. It did neither for me; glued to the spot and scared witless, not knowing who or what was in there, the words ‘Jesus, help me’ repeated themselves again and again in my brain. How many terrified seconds passed? They seemed like an eternity. For some reason, I looked down and saw the looped coils of flex jammed between the carpet and the door frame. In reality, as I had pulled the vacuum cleaner along the floor, its cable had quietly and invisibly been the villain that closed the door. My own hard work had, as it turned out, been the sole cause of the evening’s scary events. Plucking up courage, I switched on the light and flung open the door with such force (the adrenalin must have kicked in at last) that it is actually a good thing that there was nothing behind it, human, or otherwise! Being a Christian does not exclude us from fear, or necessarily lessen the gut-wrenching terror which can unexpectedly confront us. It does not create an automatic immunity from the very real worries about pain, illness, family and financial problems, or concerns relating to global conflict or environmental disasters. Being a Christian, however, does provide us with a loving God to call upon in the depths of that distress and ‘connects’ us to the One whom we believe will rescue us, and will be there for us no matter how seemingly hopeless or desperate the situation. Or as St Peter asked: ‘Lord, to whom would we go?’
Worth a visit - Stoke-on-Trent Witness spring unfold with a trip to Stoke-on-Trent, where nature’s beauty and humankind’s fine works can be found side by side, writes Lucy Oliver. The gardens and ancient woodlands of Trentham Estate on Stoke’s southern fringes lure walkers to appreciate rare species of flora and fauna on nature trails. There are more orderly treats too, such as the landscaped gardens and a circular, Capability Browndesigned lake. Just a 15-minute drive away is Middleport Pottery where you can learn about the traditional pottery-making methods that were pivotal to the city’s great industrial heritage. Originally named after the partners Burgess and Leigh, who took over the running of an earthenware business in Burslem in 1851, the business later became known as Burleigh and is renowned for retaining unique methods in shaping pottery. Today, its visitor centre houses the largest collection of ceramic moulds in Europe, and the site also boasts a steam engine and a Grade 2-listed kiln. A one-hour factory tour offers a chance to learn about production from a lump
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of clay to a finished pottery item, while traditional oatcakes are served on the company’s pottery ware in the café. Middleport Pottery is open from 10am-4pm. Call 01782 499766 to book or visit: https://www.burleigh.co.uk/pages/visit-middleport-pottery
