Today is the first anniversary of my appointment to this parish. At this time last year we were preparing for the service of Induction and Institution; and wondering how the new appointment was going to work out. Today, after a year of getting to know each other, I would like to reflect about our life together as children of God and as Church. Now is a good time to do this because the season of Lent is coming, and Lent is the time when all Christians should take some time to think carefully about their future with God. I hope that we will do this sincerely and honestly, because it is important for our life as Church and it is important for our eternal life with Christ.

If we want to be a church which is alive and if we want eternal life with Christ, we must take every opportunity to make changes where things are going badly and to find encouragement where things are going well. It would be very foolish of us to say, "Everything is going well, we can relax."

Many times in the past, when God's people have said, "All is well." then disaster has struck. The whole of the Bible bears witness to this truth. Every time the people of God grew complacent, God sent prophets to stir them up into life again.

Micah was one of the prophets who was called to show to the people of his time what God is really like. Although Micah lived 2,700 years ago, his time was rather like our own. Unemployment, the concentration of wealth in a few hands, governments blind and deaf to the needs of the poor, the decay of religion and breakdown of community life - these existed in Micah's time as they do in ours.

What Micah was trying to do was to refocus the nation; to turn its mind away from possessions and power back towards reliance and trust in God. He reminds them that it is God who brought them out of Egypt, and provided them with leaders. It is God who freed them from the curses of King Balak and gave them victory from Shittim to Gilgal. The children of Israel might think that they have control over their lives and their world, but Micah reminds them that they owe their very existence to God.

"Remember what happened," he says, "that you may know the saving acts of the Lord."

Micah calls the people back to God and calls for a response. "With what shall I come before the Lord?" he asks, what does God really want his children to do. Are they to bring burnt offerings, vast herds of sheep and cattle, unimaginable floods of oil? Or should they even kill their own children so that their blood might wash away their wickedness?

Certainly not. Micah declares God's answer "God has told you, O Mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" This is the way that true children of God behave. The children of God are just, kind and humble before God. Psalm 15 answers the same question. "Who is it that the Lord loves? Who is acceptable to live with God?" It is not those who overwhelm God with their gifts, but those who do what is right, loving God and loving their neighbours as they love themselves.

This teaching would have been shocking to many who heard it, those who thought that wealth and possessions were a sign of God's blessing, and the only response God required was a share in those possessions. Micah criticised a materialistic society for prizing its wealth and forgetting its humanity. Jesus, in all the gospels, never says that God's blessings flow from wealth and power, on the contrary, it is the poor, the mourners, the meek and the hungry who are blessed by God, the merciful, the simple-hearted and those who make peace, who are God's blessing to the world. Micah and Jesus remind us of how we are to behave if we want to be children of God.

Let me tell you now about some ways in which our life as children of God shows in the way we live our life as church.

Children first. We have a growing number of beautiful children in our church. We want them to grow in the love of God and in the fellowship of the church. We want them to feel safe, encouraged and loved. After church today we have a time to talk about working with children. Susan Hill will be leading that, and I hope that all who are interested in the welfare of our children will attend. After that, a small group will meet to discuss the Sunday School and the needs of children during worship.

Next Sunday is the first Sunday in February and our first Parish Community Time for the year. The Natural Church Development survey we completed last year suggested that we need to know each other better, and these Community Times are opportunities to do so. Please plan to be there.

Then Lent begins. Lent is a time of preparation for Easter, a time to turn from our sins and renew our faith in Christ. Our Lenten program will begin in that week. Lay Kum is gathering a group at her house, Stuart and Trish will meet with a group at their house, and I will be leading two groups. Think seriously about joining one of these groups or starting one yourselves. We need to think about our relationship to God, and Lent is the time to do so.

Then our Annual Vestry Meeting is coming up on February 20th. We will need to elect parish councillors and wardens, but we will also be considering the needs of the Op Shop, the Friendship Group, the Youth Group and other activities of our community. St Luke's church needs all its people to be involved in some form of ministry if it is to be a true community of God's love.

Our reflection this morning is really very simple

Remember that you are children of God; and let this shape your lives, spiritually and practically. Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with your God.