How life changes! I remember as a boy sitting in our lounge at home in Birmingham watching Andy Pandy and the Wooden tops on a TV set build by my uncle Aub. It had a screen the size of an iPad in the box the size of a dark plywood refrigerator!
This week we found a couple of series of programmes we had watched some time ago on Britbox and we pondered between that and the offerings on Netflix and Amazon Prime….. and BBC1. and then we found The West Wing on More 4……. the choice was endless.
Choices are endless not just of TV but also of food to the extent that we really are spoilt for choice. Gone are the days when you chose what you wanted from the local cooperative store with sugar and rice in plain blue bags. We got quite irritated doing out ‘Click and Collect’ the other week from Tesco because they had not got any Aubergine, I mean fancy that no aubergine!! Then we took a step back and realised how silly that is when much of the world has only the choice of a bowl of some cereal or not eating.
Choice is something we treasure… there always being a choice, even if that choice is to do nothing. Sadly there are folks who have little choice in these times of pandemic and lockdown, with loneliness being high on the list of problems. One could argue there is a choice about whether to break the law or not and group with others or choose whether to get connected electronically but in reality people feel trapped and choiceless.
Lent is a time of choices:
we can choose whether we are grateful or whether we just take things for granted, or worse still, moan when we can’t get the aubergine of our choice.
We can choose, on out shopping walks, or during exercise to greet people and with a smile and say hello or we can shut out the world and stare at the ground
We can choose whether we look up and breathe in the air and the wonders God has given us or we can choose to feel miserable or guilty because we have failed to give up chocolate for alcohol for lent.
So this week, as I switch from Britbox to Netflix or order an aubergine, or an alternative by ‘Click and Collect that someone else will take off the shelf for me it will remind me that in all I do I have choices and that I can choose to love God love my neighbour generously and gratefully.
