It was a great joy last week to restart the 8am service on the first Sunday of the month, and to see so many people in the chancel. From October, we will be using the Book of Common Prayer for this service. This week we will be restarting Evensong at 6.30 on Sundays, and I know this will be welcomed by those who love this service. The choir is already limbering up ready for Sunday!
We are getting ready for our Harvest Festival on 26th September, and planning more events in the autumn. It’s lovely to be able to see things happening, and to know that we can begin to make plans for events and celebrations. But in the midst of this return to life and busy-ness I’ve also been thinking about time to just ‘be’. Perhaps this is on my mind because the end of the summer holidays has come and my children are going back to school. Those long days of the summer holidays, without things to do and places to go, are at an end. But time to be was also one of the gifts of lockdown – even if we felt we had far too much of it! – and I’ve been thinking about how we might make some time for quietness and prayer in our busy life at St Mary’s. I’m always struck by the way that Jesus goes off by himself to pray at intervals through the gospel narratives. How can we make that time for ourselves? And can we help each other?
I’m going to mull this over in the next few weeks, so if you have any ideas, I would love to hear them. In the meantime, I leave you with a prayer that I sometimes say at the beginning of Breathing Space, our time of silent prayer on Zoom each Wednesday:
We ask for that quietness of mind and spirit which reflects the stillness in the heart of God, as a calm sea reflects the shining stars. Enable us, Lord, to hear the still, small voice of eternity speaking through the sounds of time, that we may dwell in your peace and be one with your love, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
with my prayers and blessings, Nicola