Sarah's Story

We love them first and we love them enough that we want to share the Gospel with them.My name's Sarah and this is my story.I think that being a mother has probably shaped nearly all of my ministry of reconciliation.I think as mothers, on the whole, we are better at experiencing one another's downs as well as our ups.And one of the ways in which I think we can share the Gospel with others is through those down times.And the time of greatest transformation in my life was as an adult having just turned 40, and I had a complete crash, what many people would call a breakdown, working too hard.Fell on my face really, and I was a mum with children at the time and a loving husband and a wonderful community around me.So no reason really for that to happen other than, I think, what God taught me through that time, and that was to be utterly dependent on Him from a place of deep vulnerability.One of the exciting things about being a Christian mum is that other people quite quickly know that you're a Christian mum, and even if you don't ever mention the word "Jesus" people are watching you.If they see a family that is struggling with all the normal things and they still know that you love Jesus and that he is evident in your life, that is probably the best form of ministry that we have as mothers.I am the advisor to Archbishop Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, on peace and reconciliation.We have launched a programme called 'Women on the Frontline' looking at the fact that women are the first to spot rising tension.They are the first usually to diffuse that tension, and they are usually the ones who are looking after the victims of conflict at every level.Our ministry needn't always be a public voice.I think it's wonderful when we have that public platform, but we also have a ministry in our homes and in our communities.It's the most extraordinary privilege to work with women who love Jesus and when they worship they come alive, and you just see a deep and personal relationship with Jesus that's the driving force for them and their work.For example, Alice is someone who has spent her life in one small community ministering to those in that community who are marginalised.And she's done that in such a quiet and unnoticed way, but she has faith like a mountain.She is riding, if you like, on the top of this mountain that is Jesus, her friend and her Saviour.Of course those who come into her home experience some of the peace that she feels through her relationship with Jesus.Jesus is our ultimate reconciler, in terms of examples.God is the reconciler.So all the work that we do is dependent on the fact that God has reconciled us to Himself.When I look to Jesus, he spent most of his time engaging with people outside his own tradition, and he spoke across boundaries all the time, and he did that in risky places where he would be condemned by his own people.And I sometimes wonder, as Christians ourselves, are we taking enough risks.Do we go into places knowing that Jesus has been there before us.