August's letter from the vicar

As I write this I am just coming up to some much needed holiday. I am sitting here thinking about what a wonderful summer we have had this year and praying that the weather will not change now as I take off for Scotland, and now that the school children are on holiday. It is good to rest and take time out from the normal routine; we all need to re-charge the batteries at times.

I am mindful though of those who do not have the luxury of being able to get away and do something different. Full time carers, those in hospital, the sick and those who simply cannot afford to get away this year. If that is you, may God bless you where you are and send his Spirit to refresh you and strengthen you.

You know, life can sometimes get so busy, can’t it? We try to pack so much into our day as if there is no tomorrow. We haven’t got the time, it seems, to just sit and be still. When was the last time you took some time out of your day to sit and contemplate; to reflect on your life, to give thanks and praise, or just to allow God to meet with you?

I have started to attend a weekly ‘Soaking’ meeting where I meet up with a small group of people to spend time just soaking in the presence of God. We begin our time by simply asking God to come and minister to us by His Spirit and then the host puts on some gentle worship music. For a whole hour we sit quiet (some lay down on the floor) and just bask in the presence of God. It isn’t a time to pray necessarily, although sometimes I do, it is a time to listen. To listen to what God wants to say to me. It’s a time for me to worship God and for him to minister to me, a time for His agenda. Sometimes there is a real sense of God speaking and showing me things. At other times it is just good to be there, to be quiet and let all the business just wash away.

At the end of the hour we each share what we have sensed or heard from God and it is often amazing how many of us have heard the same sort of things. You might think that sitting still and quiet for an hour sounds too difficult, but the hour passes so quickly. Sometimes as we sit together like this in the presence of God, it becomes apparent that God wants to minister his healing to one or another of us. When this happens we pray for the one in need at the end of the session and God moves powerfully in that person’s life.

When we choose to come before God in this way, we choose to submit to him, to let him have his way in our lives; to surrender. God can do amazing things with a life that is completely surrendered to him. Some of us have such brokenness in our lives. For some people there is so much hidden pain, emotional pain as well as physical pain that we have to keep busy as a way of avoiding it. We dare not stop too long or be quiet for too long because we don’t want that pain to surface. However, if we continue to rush about avoiding the pain, that pain will surface elsewhere, either in physical ways, or through temper outbursts and eventually we will try to stifle it with medication or for some people it will be through drugs or alcohol.

When we are quiet before God, these things will sometimes begin to surface as God puts his finger gently on the areas of pain. But when God touches these vulnerable areas of our lives you can be sure that he wants to bring healing, release and forgiveness. Although most of the time these soaking sessions are just relaxing times in the presence of God, I am also eternally grateful for the healing I have received at these meetings and elsewhere as God has ministered his healing deep within my heart and life. I passionately believe that God still heals today; all we have to do is allow him access to the pain and allow him to remove it. For this reason we will be having occasional services of healing and wholeness which are open to all. The first of these will be at Luddedowne church on the 29th August at 6pm. If you have missed it though, do not worry because there are people who are willing to pray for you at the end of most of our services or at any time should you request it. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like prayer for any kind of need.

As I prepare to go away for my rest I hope and pray that you too may know the peace and rest of God at this time. Jesus said, ‘come unto me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden light’

Revd Angela Walker