God's presence in the everyday

Here's the sermon that I shared at St Catherine's and St Andrew's this morning:  

God calls us, in prayer and contemplation, to see his presence in the everyday, our everyday lives, tasks, activities, and the people and things we see around us. With spiritual insight we will see Christ in all these things. In Philippians 4.4-9 we read: whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. We are, therefore, encouraged to go through life looking for God and the good in all that is around us. 

Today, therefore, we are going to pay attention to one of our Harvest donations. This humble jar of Branston Pickle. I wonder what we can see of God in this jar when we spend time with it and think about it. How might we see something of Christ in a jar of Branston Pickle?

Does anyone know what is in Branston Pickle? Branston Pickle is made from a variety of diced vegetables, including swede, carrots, onions and cauliflower pickled in a sauce made from vinegar, tomato, apple and spices. Reflecting on this aspect of its manufacture can lead us to give thanks to God for the wide variety of vegetables he has made and for those farmers who grow them.

Does anyone know where the recipe for Branston Pickle was created? We can give thanks, too, for the human creativity – another gift from God – that resulted in the recipe for Branston Pickle, which was first made in 1922 in the village of Branston near Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, by Crosse & Blackwell.

For those who like it, Branston Pickle enhances certain meals by adding zest and flavour. Giving thanks to God for tasty and nutritious meals is what we do when we say Grace. We can certainly do this in relation to enjoyment of Branston Pickle. A partly consumed jar, as this now is, is a reminder to us of the many occasions and people who have enjoyed this food to date. Each of them has received something good from God for which we can give thanks.

There’s a part-used jar of Branston Pickle in the art installation we currently have in church. Usually, we might simply toss a part-used jar of Branston Pickle way without a further thought, however, in this Season of Creation we are specifically thinking of how we can reuse waste items. Including everyday items like this jar in this installation provides us with the opportunity to stop, to look, to think and to pray about humble, everyday items. If we are open to that possibility, there is much for which we can be thankful as a result of contemplating such an object.

Jesus encouraged us to be like salt in our everyday lives (Matthew 5.13). Salt is an ordinary, everyday object which is used sparingly to flavour and preserve food. A little salt has a significant effect. Just like salt, Branston Pickle enhances and flavours meals. Perhaps, if he were teaching today, Jesus might have taken a jar of Branston Pickle as his illustration to encourage us to be people that provide zest and flavour to the lives of others and to our community.

Today’s New Testament reading from Philippians encourages to look for good in everything around us. To pay attention to the things we see and to contemplate them. In this way, we can have a Harvest Festival every day of the year by celebrating the good things we see around us and remembering that they are all good gifts from God for which we should give thanks.

Just as we have done with this jar of Branston Pickle, why not go through your cupboards or rooms at home on a regular basis to reflect on what you can see of God in the everyday objects you have around you. If you do then you will be putting today’s reading into practice and will see the ordinary things around you in new ways as a result. May it be so for each one of us. Amen.

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Peter Mayer - Everything Is Holy Now.