Rescued from the mower

‘Which of these two apples do you prefer?’

asked Ven Mark Badger, Archdeacon of Worcester, in the Children’s Talk.

He held out two apples. One, red and shiny, the other, a rather more battered, green, specimen. ‘This one’s from Waitrose. And this is from my garden. I rescued it from under the tree, just before I mowed the grass. It was nearly lost forever!’.

The children thought hard, and all plumped for the red apple. Mark explained that it was easy to like the smart, shiny-looking apple, but that inside both apples were probably very much the same, as you can’t tell how juicy or sweet an apple is from looking at the outside only.

But which apple would Jesus have chosen? Probably the green, bashed-up one, especially if it wasn’t an apple, but a person. Jesus tells us to love more challenging folk. He loves everyone and we are all called to do the same.

After the service two of the congregation shared their 60th wedding anniversary cake with the congregation over coffee before swiftly moving on to running a very busy, buzzing Messy Church, with the theme ‘Stain Remover’.

The children learnt about John the Baptist. They made locusts, from cucumbers and celery, decorated pictures of John the Baptist, sang songs and enjoyed a delicious tea.

The busy Priory day ended with a peaceful Evensong led by Rev Roger Latham, with the Priory Singers.