A message from Becky... 26th July

Notices Church_news From_the_Vicar
Dear friendsAs I write this penultimate weekly message, I have spent a few days this week preparing to move home. Sorting things into "keep, bin or charity shop" is a great activity, although there have been moments where I wish I hadn't started, such was the magnitude of the task!I met with my spiritual director in the midst of this. A spiritual director is someone who has a vocation in careful listening - who listens to what you're saying, and offers a reflection on what they are noticing about the work of God and the Holy Spirit in response. Sometimes they ask really difficult questions that you don't really want to think about!My spiritual director noted that there are sometimes seasons in our lives when we need to do a similar spiritual "keep, bin or recycle" activity - and this most definitely happens when the shape of a vocation changes, as is happening to me currently. I offer these insights to you, in case you also find this a helpful activity:What are the things that have been from this season, that have formed and shaped me? What are the things that were necessary, but that I won't need to carry with me any more? What are the things that were "in order that" the next thing could happen?I wonder if these are questions you might like to ask yourself as well! I do believe that nothing is wasted in God's economy, so as I "keep, bin or recycle" both the practical and ponder the same with the spiritual, I recognise that God's presence is in all of it. We might look back over years of "stuff" that we've accumulated, again physical as well as metaphorical, and all of it had it's place and meaning. We might consider where we are now, and realise that we don't necessarily need to hold on to all of it. We might look ahead with curiosity or uncertainty, and wonder if we will have all we need. But the God who calls us is faithful, we just need to say yes, and bring what we can - and as we will hear with our Gospel passage this coming Sunday, even the offering of a couple of rolls and some fish can provide abundantly, when offered through the power of the Lord. I know that many of you are away on holiday, and I pray this is a time of blessing and restoration. Equally you are invited to come along on Sunday morning to our services at 8.30am for Holy Communion, and 10.30am for our All Together Communion service, where we worship together as a whole church family. It would be lovely to see you.With all good wishes, as everBecky