Page 6 I GOOD NEWS I April 2019 EASTER – WHY SHOULD I CARE? IS EASTER just another chance to get on with the DIY, take a holiday or see the grandkids? What difference does it make, whether you believe it or not? Well, if Jesus did not rise from the dead, then you can get back on with your life and forget all about it. But if he really did come back, then he is still alive, he is the God he claimed to be, the Bible is true, and there is a heaven and a hell. So back to the resurrection – did it really happen? Countless intellectuals have looked at the historical evidence and concluded it’s convincing. Why? There are lots of reasons, but consider just four: 1. The explosive growth of the Church. Just weeks after Jesus was crucified, a movement arose which, as its enemies later admitted, “turned the world upside down”. If its leader was executed, you’d expect the movement to fall apart. Instead, it spread like wildfire. 2. Jesus’ first followers were cowards yet later would die for the truth. After Jesus’ crucifixion, most of his followers (disciples) ran away and went into hiding. Even the boldest leader, Peter, denied knowing Jesus three times. But a few days later, they stood up in public and told everyone that Jesus had risen. Ten of the eleven disciples were martyred for their faith – many in horrific ways. What turned these wimps into heroes? If they’d made it all up, why would they die for a lie? 3. The empty tomb. The Romans and Jewish religious leaders wanted to crush this Christian movement. All they had to do was show the body to disprove it all. They never did. The disciples could have stolen it – but none of them ever confessed to it despite torture. And if you wanted followers for a new religion, why make it harder for yourself by claiming something as difficult to believe as a resurrection? 4. Millions of changed lives over 2,000 years. Over the last 20 centuries, millions of people claim to have experienced a personal relationship with Jesus, and that he has changed them – some very dramatically. Can a dead person do that? There’s much more. So why not check the first-hand accounts yourself and see what you think? See these chapters in the Bible: Matthew 27-28, Mark 15-16, Luke 23-24, and John 19-21. GOOD NEWS Issue no. 216 www.goodnews-paper.org.uk Published monthly by the Good News Fellowship UK, a registered charity, no. 1167287, in association with the international family of Challenge newspapers. Please note that some stories in Good News may be unsuitable for children. Editor: Andrew Halloway. Address: Good News Editor, PO Box 9831, NOTTINGHAM NG2 9JN. Email: goodnewseditor@ntlworld.com To order your copies of Good News: Please order 5 weeks before month of publication. Office hours are 9am-5pm, Mon-Fri. CALL 0115 9233424 and ask for Good News, or email: mandy-goodnews@ ntlworld.com GOOD NEWS SUPPORTS PAPER RECYCLING Recycled paper makes up 75.5% of the raw material for UK newspapers. EMERGENCY! In the ambulance with the paramedics… ON THE BBC: Tim (centre) with Songs of Praise presenter JB Gill and paramedic Chris Treves A MAN who has suffered from post traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety and agoraphobia himself goes out with ambulance crews on their callouts. Tim Parsons, aged 35, who also now has Crohn’s Disease, is a voluntary chaplain to South East Coast Ambulance Service. Tim has written two children’s books based on his experiences as a paramedic chaplain and hopes to use the proceeds to open a “much needed” healing centre. Church minister’s son Tim became very ill soon after getting married in 2007. Amongst other things he was badly affected by a child at his dad’s church being killed in a bus accident: “During that period I felt very lost and felt my faith had been severely tested.” But after counselling and the birth of his first son in 2010, Tim sensed healing, and “as I was getting better, I was introduced to Kent Workplace Mission who send chaplains to various workplaces. I felt this was a good step forward”. Ambulance service chaplain After serving as chaplain to a dementia care home in Gravesend, Tim became a voluntary ambulance service chaplain in 2012. He has not only gained a lot of front line emergency service experience – training in CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and trauma – but “at the same time boosted my own confidence, as well as supporting staff through various situations”. He recalls: “Not long into my work I went out with the ambulance crew on a 12-hour shift and worked alongside a paramedic called Chris. “We got on very well and he shared his own story about how his daughter had been battling cancer for about a decade since the age of two. Paramedic Chris “Yet she’d written a fiction book based upon her health experiences, and this got me thinking about doing a book myself.” The result was two children’s books about Paramedic Chris – one based upon a hoax call and another on a mental health call. A review of book one reads: “Although a children’s book, it will also be read by adults and in time will be one of the influences that reduces pressures on our NHS as children grow up to understand appropriate use of our NHS... It would be good if this could be in the hands of schools and children everywhere.” Tim told Good News: “My ultimate aim is to sell enough books to fund a 24/7 healing retreat centre, as I see too often with the crew how much people are hurting and in need of support. “The amount of alcoholics, drug users, mental health patients and others taken into hospital by ourselves as an ambulance crew only to be discharged back into the community and not given appropriate long term support is phenomenal.” Songs of Praise Tim, who runs a computer business, had a busy time last year. Soon after receiving an award at Westminster Central Hall honouring his work as a chaplain, he made an appearance on BBC TV’s 70th anniversary episode of Songs of Praise (see more in our sidebar.) He grew up in Norwich where “from a very young age I felt the presence of God upon my life” and went on to study theology. Now he’s busy putting theory very much into practice! • Tim’s Paramedic Chris books are available from amazon.co.uk, waterstones.com, foyles.co.uk, gardeners.com and Barnes and Noble. by Ian White Ambulance chaplain on TV LAST July, Tim’s work alongside ambulance crews was featured on BBC TV’s Songs of Praise. The programme gave a fascinating insight into his work. Without imposing his faith, Tim gives pastoral support when requested, and lends a hand practically. Generally he serves the crews but he can help members of the public too: “On a pastoral one to one level, there’ve been a few times when I’ve sat with someone, even cried with them. “As a chaplain I’m made to be part of the team, even down to things like the uniform I wear. People will ask me why do you believe [in God] when such bad things happen? And I sometimes have to think: ‘Yes, where is God in this?’ And then actually I do know exactly where he is... It’s a bit like when I come home from work and I go to our children, I give them a big cuddle to comfort them. I go to God and I go to his loving arms for comfort, and I know I can go to those arms at any time.” Fellow paramedic Chris Treves is full of praise for the volunteer chaplain: “We could be going from anything from a trauma to something minor, to something that might be playing on our minds, from home life to work life. And Tim’s a very good arm to have within the service that we can access and talk about it to him, and be confidential.” RECOGNITION: Tim (centre) receives an award for his chaplaincy work FIVE WAYS TO LIVE IN THE MOMENT BY DR HILARY JONES TV doc Hilary explains the best ways to immerse yourself in the ‘now’ to enjoy the most magical moments in life USE YOUR SENSES LIVING in the now can become a part of your daily routine by deliberately tuning into the sensory details of something that you are doing. Focus on the sights, sounds, smells and feel of your daily activities. Whether it’s the small things such as feeling the breeze against your skin or the bigger moments in life like hearing your child’s first cry, or listening to your partner say ‘I love you too’ – rich experiences await if we engage with our senses, creating memories that will stay with you for ever. A survey by Hidden Hearing revealed that 79 per cent of people in the UK believe that hearing is key to enjoying life’s most magical moments. If you’re worried that you are missing out on those moments because of your hearing, or know someone else who might be, book a free hearing test at your local Hidden Hearing centre. Visit www.HiddenHearing.co.uk or call 0800 037 2060 for more information.
GOOD GARDENING Through the gardening year with Cat Bailey April is my favourite month of the growing year – the month I spend every spare moment in the vegetable plot or the greenhouse. I praise God for the fact I have a garden large enough to accommodate a veg plot and I thank him for seedlings sprouting on an almost daily basis! The vegetable garden This is when I like to empty the compost heap onto the garden and dig the compost in well. Adding organic matter to the soil encourages plant growth. The seeds for most crops can be sown this month. Hardy crops can be sown directly into the soil. Tender crops need to be started in the greenhouse or indoors on a sunny windowsill. Follow the instructions on each of your seed packs. In my veg garden I’ll plant onion sets, carrots, potatoes, courgettes, squash, peas and dwarf French beans. In the greenhouse I’ll grow tomato plants and chilli peppers. Don’t worry if you don’t have space for a veg garden. Most things can be grown in containers on a sunny patio; just make sure they don’t dry out. BRAIN SIZZLING Sudok u by Shogun Across 1. Structure from which spectators watch sports (5) 4. Central to this puzzle and to the Christian faith (5) 8. A chocolate to enjoy at Easter? (3) 10. Unwell (3) 11. Line where two pieces of fabric are sewn together (4) 12. They take photographs (9) 14. Plant with edible root (6) 15. Ancient city in south-west England (6) 17. “Why do you look for the ---- among the dead?” (Bible: Luke 24) (6) 19. Black-and-white bird (6) 21. City of the Easter story (9) 23. Open uncultivated land (4) 24. Curve forming part of a circle (3) 25. Evergreen tree (3) 26. Girl killed by Bill Sikes in ‘Oliver Twist’ (5) 27. Worn on the feet (5) Borders and lawns Weeds! They seem to grow faster than any other plant in the garden! Some gardeners recommend hoeing weeds but I worry I’ll damage self-sown seedlings, so I get down on hands and knees with my trusty trowel and dig out weeds before they establish. A tedious but necessary task! I also dig in some of that lovely rotted compost as I weed. Watch out for hungry slugs and snails munching on your seedlings! Prune hardy fuchsias and buddleias but wait for spring flowering plants, such as winter jasmine and forsythia, to finish flowering before you prune. Lower the blades on your lawnmower slightly this month and treat the lawn to a weed and feed solution. FILL in all the squares in the grid so that each row, each column and each of the 3x3 squares contains all the digits from 1 to 9. MARCH SOLUTION PRAYER REQUESTS If you would like prayer for whatever issue you are facing, or help to become a Christian, call the UCB Prayerline on 0845 456 7729 (UK local call rate) or 1890 940 300 in the Republic of Ireland. The Prayerline is open Monday to Saturday from 9am till at least 10pm and on Sunday evenings from 6.30pm to 11pm. Trained Christian volunteers will take your call and pray for you and with you. Wait for spring flowering plants, such as winter jasmine, to finish flowering before pruning BREAK TIME CROSSWORD 7 10 14 17 Down 2. Scented preparation for the body (4) 3. Gobi, Libyan and Sinai are names for this geographical feature (6) 5. Frank (4) 23 1 2 3 4 5 20 21 26 12 13 8 9 15 18 19 25 27 6. Type of house (abbrev.) (4) 7. Kind of spectacles (7) 9. ‘Up from the ---- he arose’ (hymn) (5) 11 22 24 6 16 11. Large fish-eating coastal bird (3,5) 13. Passenger plane (8) 16. Small male deer with reddish summer coat (7) 18. Showy in a tasteless way (5) 19. A cat does this (6) 20. So be it (4) 21. Among the first disciples to visit the empty tomb (4) 22. One of the gospel writers (4) • See May 2019 issue for solution MARCH ANSWERS S O L A R T R A C H E A W O A H C E U I A C T O R A L D E R F I F E O C G O T L E N G I N E E R S E A L E A H A 13 C O SY O S L O A R Y D A G O G FLO U N D E R M A R B BS R I R I I G O A O N A A N C PU G T Y O N E DUST M EN N E STS This Easter give my very tasty Belgian buns a try. Just follow my easy recipe and soon you will be enjoying 12 of these wonderful buns. Remember to check out my website (address below) where you can find more recipes and contact me with your questions. I reply to as many as I can. Have a very happy Easter! INGREDIENTS • 195g mixed dried fruit • 2 drops vanilla essence • 1 pinch nutmeg • 460g strong white bread flour • 150ml just warm milk • 1 tsp salt • 8g dry yeast • 55g sugar, caster or granulated • Zest of 1 small lemon • 2 small eggs, beaten well • 55g melted unsalted butter For your topping • 220g icing sugar • 3 tablespoons of water – add GOOD NEWS I April 2019 I Page 7 Flavours to Savour with Chef Mike Darracott Easter Belgian buns more sugar if too wet and more water if too thick • 6 glacé cherries, halved, to pop on top HELP FOR READERS AS you have read through Good News, we hope you have seen the difference knowing Jesus Christ makes to people’s lives. If you would like to know more about this, read on, or see: www. goodnews-paper.org.uk and click on the Finding Faith section. THE CHRISTIAN FAITH is not some philosophy, dreamt up to make people feel better, or to be a crutch in times of need. It is based on a person. Our time itself is measured from the day of his birth. His life is a fact of history: Jesus Christ. In Jesus, God became a man, lived a perfect life, and died on a cross – taking God’s punishment for all your sins and mine. But he came back to life to prove his power over death, then went back to heaven and will one day return again. In Jesus, we are offered a person to follow, a power to transform lives, a purpose for living and eternal life. If you would like to know Jesus Christ for yourself... 1. Read aloud, meaningfully and sincerely, the prayer opposite, and 2. Fill in the coupon below so we can send you information to help you in your new life. First preheat your oven to 200°C/400F°/gas mark 6. (1) In a bowl, mix together your flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Next make a little dip in the centre and slowly add your beaten eggs, vanilla essence, nutmeg, zest, milk and melted butter. Keep mixing until it all binds together, and then work it for a while on a lightly floured surface until it becomes elastic-like. (2) Put it back in a bowl and cover with a clean damp towel, and leave somewhere like your airing cupboard if warm, for around 45 minutes, and it will double in size. (3) Grease a large baking tray; get your dough and knock it back to the original size before it was left to prove. (4) Using a large heavy rolling pin, roll the dough into a large rectangle – around 50cm by 35cm. Stretch it with your hands if you have to. (5) Throw your dried fruit all over it – then holding the longest side, roll out your dough into one big sausage shape. (6) Next cut up the sausage into 12 long pieces, and coil each into a round shape, pinching each end with maybe a little milk to seal. Place on a tray, cover with some cling film and leave to prove for around 25 minutes by a warm heat source. (7) Next bake them in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, but keep an eye on them so they don’t burn. (8) Take out when baked. Allow to cool right down to cold. (9) Now simply cover each with icing sugar, made by following the instructions on your packet, and place half a cherry on each bun. For more recipes see www.chefmike.co.uk HOW TO KNOW JESUS FOR YOURSELF Dear God, I believe Jesus died so that I can be forgiven. I admit I have done wrong things and not lived my life how you want me to. I’m sorry. Please forgive me, and come into my life to help me live your way. From this moment on, I want to follow Jesus’ example and join other Christians in serving you and other people. Amen. FREE OFFER FOR THOSE SEEKING FAITH... I want to make a new start in my life and would like: o The free DVD ‘So Who Is This Jesus?’ o The free booklet ‘Love is the Bridge’ o Contact from an experienced Christian, to help me learn more about Jesus. My tel. no. is . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . We regret this offer is only available to UK and Ireland readers. My name (print) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Post code ....................... Send to: Good News Newspaper, PO Box 9831, NOTTINGHAM NG2 9JN or email: mandy-goodnews@ntlworld.com If you have any questions about faith, email: brianward2009@hotmail.com Feb 2019
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