Sheila Fielding |
“Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13b-14 |
This is not the verse that was uppermost in my mind as I strained towards the top of Whernside in the Yorkshire Dales on my attempt to scale the 3 Peaks with 140 others in our sponsored challenge to raise vital funds for CAP, but it does illustrate pretty much what we were doing. Possibly a more appropriate piece of Scripture would have been Jesus calming the storm!
I was challenged by CAP’s founder, John Kirkby, at our summer conference, when he encouraged us to do what we could to raise funds through this, just one of many events being held this year. I also felt encouraged by God to get involved, to trust Him to enable me to do something I had never before attempted in His strength and, although CAP asked for a minimum of £100 sponsorship, God promised that He would help me raise £1000. A miracle was needed on 2 counts!
Firstly, I had 2 weeks to prepare physically for the most gruelling exercise of my life and, secondly, I had 2 weeks to contact everyone I could possibly think of to encourage them to get behind me in sponsorship. Praise God for email!
Most of you will know by now that Dean Murray, who had agreed to do the Challenge with me, and I did not finish the walk. We conquered Pen-Y-Ghent, the first peak and almost reached the top of Whernside, the second, when the weather conditions just became too dangerous for us to continue and we turned back. It was only when we were picked up by CAP staff that we were told that marshals were advising walkers to turn back due to the adverse weather conditions.
I must pay huge tribute to Dean at this point for his tremendous encouragement and patience as he waited for me to keep up and pointed out the top of each peak and just how far we had already come. There were times when I literally could not put one foot in front of the other and had to stop for a moment. He remained cheerful and calm at all times – absolutely the perfect companion for the trip.
However, the Scripture at the beginning of this piece is appropriate because what kept me going as I scrambled up rocks and through bogs were the faces of people I have met through my work with CAP. People like Clair, a young single girl who collapsed into floods of tears when we visited her and gave her an Easter Egg. The strain of her debt situation and the possibility that she might lose her home was too much for her to cope with. There was Ann, a lady who has suffered from manic depression for 17 years and would not leave the house she shares with her elderly mother without a fight. She is in debt partly due to her father, who used her signature to get loans from doorstep lenders, who has now died, leaving his daughter to pay off these debts. The list is endless, but CAP is fighting for justice for these people who do not have the means to fight for themselves.
I must also pay tribute to you, the people of God in the Benefice of The Redeemer, who got behind me so wonderfully and pledged so much money for this cause. As we set off on the walk, I had been promised £992. When I returned home, I was told that another sponsor had promised £10 and God brought in the last of the amount I needed and wonderfully fulfilled His promise to me.
God has never failed to deliver on a promise He has made and I pray that I will never fail to press on towards the goal to win the prize for which He has called me Heavenwards in Christ Jesus.
To find out more about CAP, visit www.capuk.org
I was challenged by CAP’s founder, John Kirkby, at our summer conference, when he encouraged us to do what we could to raise funds through this, just one of many events being held this year. I also felt encouraged by God to get involved, to trust Him to enable me to do something I had never before attempted in His strength and, although CAP asked for a minimum of £100 sponsorship, God promised that He would help me raise £1000. A miracle was needed on 2 counts!
Firstly, I had 2 weeks to prepare physically for the most gruelling exercise of my life and, secondly, I had 2 weeks to contact everyone I could possibly think of to encourage them to get behind me in sponsorship. Praise God for email!
Most of you will know by now that Dean Murray, who had agreed to do the Challenge with me, and I did not finish the walk. We conquered Pen-Y-Ghent, the first peak and almost reached the top of Whernside, the second, when the weather conditions just became too dangerous for us to continue and we turned back. It was only when we were picked up by CAP staff that we were told that marshals were advising walkers to turn back due to the adverse weather conditions.
I must pay huge tribute to Dean at this point for his tremendous encouragement and patience as he waited for me to keep up and pointed out the top of each peak and just how far we had already come. There were times when I literally could not put one foot in front of the other and had to stop for a moment. He remained cheerful and calm at all times – absolutely the perfect companion for the trip.
However, the Scripture at the beginning of this piece is appropriate because what kept me going as I scrambled up rocks and through bogs were the faces of people I have met through my work with CAP. People like Clair, a young single girl who collapsed into floods of tears when we visited her and gave her an Easter Egg. The strain of her debt situation and the possibility that she might lose her home was too much for her to cope with. There was Ann, a lady who has suffered from manic depression for 17 years and would not leave the house she shares with her elderly mother without a fight. She is in debt partly due to her father, who used her signature to get loans from doorstep lenders, who has now died, leaving his daughter to pay off these debts. The list is endless, but CAP is fighting for justice for these people who do not have the means to fight for themselves.
I must also pay tribute to you, the people of God in the Benefice of The Redeemer, who got behind me so wonderfully and pledged so much money for this cause. As we set off on the walk, I had been promised £992. When I returned home, I was told that another sponsor had promised £10 and God brought in the last of the amount I needed and wonderfully fulfilled His promise to me.
God has never failed to deliver on a promise He has made and I pray that I will never fail to press on towards the goal to win the prize for which He has called me Heavenwards in Christ Jesus.
To find out more about CAP, visit www.capuk.org
| Every blessing. Sheila Fielding, Blackburn Centre Manager |  |
