Christian Comment with Will Mansell of Stroud District Foodbank

Going for Gold

THE Olympics always engage a nation in a range of sports that never normally receive much public focus - the omnium, K1 kayaking, 3M synchronised diving for example.

Indeed the Team GB medal winners are often plucked out of obscurity to receive our adulation - who had heard of Florence and Hounslow or Laugher and Mears before this week?

However, our lack of knowledge of these great Olympians disguises an amazing fact: unbeknown to us these people have been working hard week in and week out for years, and sometimes for a lifetime, to achieve the goal of winning a medal.

They receive praise and support for a small period and then we forget them again for four years but these people have trained day in day out to be ready, to achieve and to win.

This dualism between athletes practising quietly and unnoticed compared to the sudden glory they receive always reminds me of the way the Church operates in our towns and villages locally.

The goal of Christian discipleship and the goal of any church is not be glamorous, famous or widely praised.

Instead, like an athlete preparing for the Olympics, we are called to practise and work day in day out unnoticed, to be ready.

We are preparing to be able to support the vulnerable, care for sick, to bring hope to the hopeless and demonstrate a reality beyond this world.

Like athletes, this takes time and training.

We need to learn how to navigate the world, learn how to copy Jesus and learn how to make a difference.

This message isn’t just for those engaging in Church but is one for the whole community.

In running a Foodbank, I know the power of the Church to support and help those in need.

Most people haven’t heard of us but then when time comes we help and for a brief moment people know our names, our skills and our roles.

What the Church needs to do better is let the public know we are always here to help, you haven’t got to wait four years before you see our skills and abilities in action.