Rev Bev writes...

Dear Friends

It doesn’t seem that long ago since our last edition of Logos – in fact it’s only been about 3¹/₂ months, but they’ve certainly been busy months. Mind you, it always seems to be busy these days – that’s the story I hear everywhere. With the fast pace of our times, and the multitude of activities that seem to fill people’s lives, it seems more important than ever to make sure we intentionally set aside some time to draw breath and to be quiet and still, reflective and prayerful.

We have had a number of opportunities to do this over the past year, with the Lenten Reflection Day led by Bishop John Noble, the weekend in April with the Little Brothers of Francis, the 24 hour prayer vigil in August, and most recently, our Quiet Morning in October led by Franciscan Brother Lionel, who helped us to reflect on contemplative prayer. The meditation meetings led by Carol Streatfield on Monday evenings at Holy Spirit have been a real oasis for me this year. If you haven’t tried Christian meditation, I encourage you to come and “taste and see”.

Our memorial service for departed loved ones on All Souls Day in November was a very special time of reflection and remembering and resting in God’s presence. I am hoping to start up a Bereavement Support group in the New Year. We have a considerable number of parishioners who have lost loved ones over the past few years and many are finding the going tough. I would be keen to hear from anyone who would like to be part of this little group, which might meet on a monthly basis at Holy Spirit Church.

We now head into another intentional “waiting on God” time – the beautiful season of Advent – when we are called to enter into a prayerful, searching preparation time to celebrate the coming of our Lord. The season of Advent happens during one of the busiest times of the year, and so we have to be very purposeful about making the time for stillness. Our Morning and Evening Prayer Services during the week are also times to stop and enter into the rhythm of God. There will be more opportunities in the New Year for Quiet Mornings, and reflective services, starting with New Years Eve, to say good bye to the past year, and welcome in the new. We have such beautiful surroundings to be able to enjoy these special times in God’s presence. When we take these opportunities to stop, the voice of the Spirit is able to penetrate our beings, to guide and inspire us, and to equip us for all that God is calling us to do and be.

There was an historic meeting of the Parish on the 1^st Sunday in November, the day we celebrated All Saints – perhaps they were praying for us. This meeting was the culmination of 12 months hard work on strategic planning for the future direction of the Parish. The overall plan, which is summarised later in this issue of Logos, was passed unanimously at the meeting in November, and it is obvious that people want to move forward in a united way. It is very exciting, and means that now all the hard work really begins. It is essential that we keep moving, and don’t stop now. We need a number of key people to help – maybe one of them is you?

When Bishop Ron came for his official (Episcopal) visit in October, it coincided with the arrival of my new Licence as Rector of the Parish, and he presented it to me during our dinner in the Courtyard with the Parish Leaders – to the accompaniment of much toasting with Champagne. The Parish has always had a Rector, which is a permanent appointment, however, as this has been my first appointment in charge of a Parish, I had to be licensed as Priest in Charge for a period of time. It feels good to have this all finally sorted out.

We’ve had some great “fun” fundraising activities over the past few months, thanks to the hard work of many people, and I thank them most sincerely. We had a terrific evening at the Spirituality Centre for our Trafalgar Dinner to raise funds for the Mission to Seafarers, a wonderful Open Garden weekend at Chrissie Buchanan’s and also Susan Thomas’s innovative book stall. Thank you for people’s good ideas, and willingness to carry them out. We hope to continue more fun social activities in the New Year – some will be fundraisers, some will be simply the opportunity to enjoy one another’s company.

Our new Sunday Evening Services at Holy Spirit on the 1^st and 3^rd Sundays of each month are growing in popularity, and I think our children’s and family service at Good Shepherd Brookfield on the 4^th Sunday at 11.00 am is also off to a good start. One of the great blessings that has come from the 40 Days of Purpose Programme held earlier in the year, has been the increased number of small groups meeting in the Parish. People are finding great blessing in belonging to these groups and real opportunities to explore questions of faith in a safe and friendly atmosphere. There are plenty of spaces in all of the groups for more members.

As well as the great news during the year about our Archbishop becoming Primate, we have just heard about our own Archdeacon Ven. Jonathan Holland becoming the new Bishop of the Northern Region. Jonathan’s consecration will be on Thursday 2^nd February at the Cathedral.

We have been blessed in this Parish in many, many ways during this past year, and we give thanks to God for these blessings. We always keep foremost in our minds however that there have been so many places throughout the world that have experienced terrible devastation and turmoil and tragic loss of life during this year. The things we see and hear about on a daily basis have the potential to sink us into despair. The Season of Advent helps to grow anew within us Christ’s gifts of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love – the gifts that have come with the Christ Child’s first entry into our world, and the gifts that continue to help Christ’s disciples make a Kingdom difference in this hurting world.

A little prayer from the Christmas Bowl resources to finish:

“God, I’m scared. So much is happening in the world and I don’t understand it. How can we make our voices heard? What can we do to make a difference? Where can we find hope when all seems hopeless?

God I thank you. I thank you because I have a voice and I ask for the strength to use it well. I thank you because I live in a place where I am allowed to have a voice. I thank you for the difference I can make just by talking and sharing with others. I thank you for the hope that I find in small things and the knowledge that wherever you are, there will be hope. Amen.”

God Bless your Advent preparations, and from myself and Paul and all our family, may your Christmas be hopeful, joyful, peaceful and filled with the love of God who came to be one of us – Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Rev Bev