Dear friendsAs another week draws to a close, and another weekend arrives, with it's promise of gathering together to worship on Sunday morning, I wonder how you are feeling about the circumstances we are living in? Close to home, covid cases continue to rise, and only a short distance away, war continues in the Ukraine. It can feel overwhelming, and I have to confess to limiting my tuning into the news coverage. We might also feel helpless in our ability to respond, either because we don't feel there is anything we can, or because our capacity to respond, alongside all the other things going on in the world, in our country, even in our own lives or those of our friends and family, feels limited.The initial invitation to respond by donating to the DEC humanitarian appeal last week resulted in almost £300 cash donations through church services and other sources, and I know some of you have made your own donations online. Thank you. Our contribution to the fund that is helping those who most need it, on the ground, can make a difference.Our ability to pray is also a mighty weapon, for peace keeping and peace makers, for limitless compassion, for resilience and capacity for those who can help practically. But as we acknowledged in Morning Prayer this morning, sometimes there are no words, and our pray is simply a sigh - please God, be God. And of course, as we pray, prayer changes us. For if we pray that God will reveal to us the world as He sees it, and people as He sees them, even for the revelation of what our prayer should be, we may discover there is something we can do, in the way we live our lives, in the way we speak to and about others, in the way we seek solace or company ... and for us as a Church, as a way to be the Parish church for the 7500 souls that live in our parish. How can we reflect the light and love of Jesus, Prince of Peace?There will be the opportunity to find space to pray on Monday in church, from 4pm until 8.15pm. With different areas in the church with prayer pointers, or even simple activities that may help you engage with prayer, or the solemnity and stillness of praying in the Lady Chapel, there is something for all ages and all preferences available to support you in the way you pray. For those who enjoy praying corporately, or who may have specific prayer needs that they will to talk about, there will be a prayerful conversation between 7 and 7.30pm, before a space to gather for contemplative prayer from 7.30 - 8.15pm. Even if you simply would like to come and light a candle, please come. This is God's church, and your parish church, and it is a sacred space in which people have prayed for many many years. Why not come along and join your prayers with theirs?As we look forward to gathering on Sunday morning, just a reminder that we have a traditional said Holy Communion service at 8.30am, and Cafe Church at 10.30am: the informal space for talking around tables, as Jesus often did. Cafe church includes breakfast pastries, worship and prayer. This really is suitable for all agesand all faith perspectives, and is a space for the 'praying', 'learning' and 'growing' characteristics I have spoken of in recent weeks.Finally, we met as a PCC on Wednesday evening and reviewed our Covid protocols. The PCC have decided that our 8.30am Communion service should remain a space where mask wearing and social distancing remains the expectation, for the time being. At 10.30am, mask wearing is optional for all services, including when singing, and there is an opportunity to use notices on seats either side of you if you would prefer to maintain a social distance.It is hoped that in having one service every week where protocols remain in place, those who are either more vulnerable, immuno-compromised, or have a preference to be in a gathering where everyone will be wearing a mask, will feel their needs are met.I continue to hold you in my daily prayers With every blessingBecky
Dearest sisters and brothers in ChristThe news this week continues to tell us about the escalating crisis in Ukraine, and the terrible conflict taking place. As we commented in Morning Prayer today, God has given us such a beautiful world, and humanity does such a good job of creating hell for each other. We pray for all of those affected, for peace makers and peace making, and for support to reach those most in need. The standing committee has taken the decision to hold a retiring collection for the DEC Ukraine humanitarian crisis after both services on Sunday, more details are in this email.You will remember over recent weeks I have spoken of the building blocks, or foundation stones that I believe are core to our identity as church here at St Martins. From "Praying" and "Learning" I want to add a third element of "Growing".There are a number of ways we can aspire to grow, as individuals and as a church. Firstly, through our praying and learning we will grow, I hope, in our relationship with Christ. This may be growth in the realisation of being loved without condition, it may be growth in our commitment to follow the ways and teaching of Jesus, it may be growth in our commitment to our church family, or growing in the desire to participate in the life of the church. For some, it is growth in the awareness of a vocation. Whatever the individual level of "Growing", this leads to an inevitable "Growing" of who we are as the body of Christ: awareness of each others gifts; growth in fellowship; building up of the body. We can then "Grow" as a presence in the community, being present in our Christian identity in whatever 'frontline' we face - our places of work, where we socialise, even at the school gate. Growing isn't limited to age or size; I think the more profound growth is what happens to our characters, our inner selves, even our souls. Growing up in our faith also means sometimes letting go of those things that are no longer helpful to our lives as Christians, or behaviours, attitudes or judgements that we no longer need to choose to live by. Growth means being open to being shaped and formed, being open to things we don't yet know, and as the best gardeners will know (indeed even Jesus had something to say about this!), growth sometimes requires the pruning of unhealthy parts!Going forward I would love these themes of "Praying" "Learning" and "Growing" to marinate with us, to get used to these becoming more than words, and instead to become intention for each one of us. How are you praying? How are you learning? How are you growing?On this first Sunday of Lent, where we turn again to Christ, and the journey ahead of us, praying, learning and growing can become part of the spiritual discipline of this timeThroughout Lent there will be many opportunities to pray, learn and grow, through our gathering as a worshipping community, through corporate and private prayer, through the Lent Study material, and supported by whatever you are choosing to do to shape and form your own journey.I pray that Christ will give you the grace to grow in holiness, to deny yourselves, take up your cross, and follow him.With every blessing, as everBecky
Dear sisters and brothers in ChristYou may remember in my last message I spoke about prayer being a foundation stone, or part of our DNA, as people of faith. The situation in Ukraine calls us to this vital part of identity with urgency, so I hope you will join me in praying for the people of Ukraine, and for peace in this terrible time of conflict. We will be praying for Ukraine in all of our gatherings on Sunday, as all churches in the Church of England have been called to do. Lord, have mercy.If "Praying" is part of our identity here at St Martin's, then so, I believe, is "Learning". We have opportunities to learn in formal and informal ways, and as individuals as well as corporately. Those of us who have the privilege to preach or offer reflections in our acts of worship really hope that this is an opportunity to learn (which includes the learning we do when we study scripture to prepare our offerings!). Listening to God's word and then being invited to a response through a sermon that offers reflection and challenge is a significant way of learning. It has often been said that sermons should "comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable" and we try to hold the tension between these aspects well. Another opportunity to learn is through Bible study, and the weekly "Going Deeper" offers a way in to this intentional studying of scripture. We also find in our discussions at Morning Prayer on Monday and Friday mornings that our reflection on the passages of the day give each of us new insights and learning that we can apply to our lives. Thirdly we have the opportunity to learn through conversation and exploration. Again, this can be experienced in structured ways in our morning prayer gatherings, or in some of our more interactive sermons, but as Jesus so often gathered around the table, so we have those spaces for table conversation at Cafe Church on the 2nd Sunday of each month, and the 4th @ 4pm, which will again be meeting this Sunday at 4pm. To be open to new discoveries and insights about our faith and our God should be a core part of our ongoing journeys, which is why having space to do that with others, or resources to do this privately and individually is so important.As Lent approaches, I am pleased to confirm there will be opportunities to learn through our Lent Study. The theme is "Making Decisions as God's people", and we will be taken on a 5 week journey through the timing of decisions, those decisions that are more complex, where God is in our decision making, when our decisions might be flawed because of misjudging a situation, and how we live with the decisions we have made. There will be groups on a Monday evening and Wednesday morning for those who would like to study the material together, as well as a Tuesday evening youth session. However the booklet is also available either electronically or in printed form for anyone who would prefer to study the material independently.The Lent invitation booklet is available from this weekend, detailing the various and varied ways in which we can gather in praying and learning throughout Lent.This begins with our service on Ash Wednesday at 7.30pm, where you are invited to come and begin your Lenten journey with a corporate act of worship, which will include the imposition of ashes.With every blessingBecky
Hi friends, As I write this, on Thursday the 17th of February, it is a rare sunny day in a week that has been dark, wet and VERY windy. I’m afraid the weather for the rest of the week doesn’t look much better, but I am happy to enjoy this day even if it’s the only nice one we get this week! This Sunday’s gospel reading is Luke’s account of Jesus calming the storm. When I woke this morning and saw that the storm had cleared, I did smile as it seemed to relate so closely to this Sunday’s reading. Although I am at St Luke’s this Sunday, I’m sure this will be reflected on and explored further in our 8.30 am and 10.30 am services. However, it has caused me to reflect on whether I take the moments of stillness after the storms of life to pause and appreciate, to be thankful to God and simply rest and be in those more consistent, calmer moments. If you’re like me, you might be looking ahead to the next challenge, or anticipating what else might go wrong, rather than enjoying the present moment. We are also finding this true for our pattern of worship at church. You probably have heard either I or Becky say, this is a time of ‘consolidation’. As we continue to move forward and recover from the pandemic, we wish to establish a pattern of worship that is consistent and allows you, if you are in the throes of a storm of life or not, to come and gather together and experience God’s presence through word and sacrament. During the pandemic, Becky and I felt like God was saying to us to be generous with scattering seeds; meaning to provide lots of new or different opportunities for us to meet with God. As we feel we have done this and as we have felt God’s affirmation in the new and previous ways of worship and gathering, we now want to allow this pattern to establish and embed. Just like the seed analogy, it is now time to allow the seeds to grow, develop which often happens deep in the soil where we cannot see the growth happen. And of course, we are in the church liturgical season of ‘ordinary time’, a season before Lent to allow the things we learnt over Advent and Epiphany to grow, deep within us. A season to simply ‘be’, to appreciate the stillness and consistency of our liturgy, safe in the knowledge that God is working and with us in our ‘being.’ Like taking a big breath on a sunny day in the middle of a stormy and windy week. This Sunday is a Eucharist service at both 8.30am and 10.30am, celebrating and focusing on how as a church with an Anglo-Catholic tradition we worship God. Something I believe deeply is that we are a better, fuller representation of Christ when we can come together to worship- no matter what age, or preference, we are richer and a fuller body of Christ when you can come and worship. We also continue to love and serve our families in our Parish with Bears and Prayers on Wednesday 23rd February. And we are also preparing for our next 4th at 4 gathering on the 27th of February- a new expression of gathering at St Martin’s which celebrates and seeks to provide a space for those who want space to talk, to be in conversation with others about the everyday questions that matter. This gathering is also a space for those who might be exploring faith, have no faith or just want something slightly more informal than our Sunday morning expressions. So, whether you feel like you are right in the middle of a storm or not, I pray you will be able to take a minute, a day, to appreciate and be thankful- even if it is for a brief moment. I pray you to know that God is working in our stillness, growing and breathing life on things that are deep within us where we might not be able to see the fruit yet. Look forward to connecting with you over the coming weeks,Laura
