Happy New Year!
I hope you had a good and peaceful Christmas. Thank you to all who helped decorate the church for Advent and Christmas – it looked lovely. And thank you for all your cards and kind messages to me and Jamie.
We had a quiet Christmas Day, after the morning service, but made up for it on Boxing Day with a visit to my sister where we met up with all the family, including my mum and the two new great-nephews who were born last January. From there, we went on to Norwich and stayed a few nights in our new house. The weather wasn’t great but we managed a few brisk dog walks and even a trip to the seaside, only half an hour away. We came back well rested and ready to face all that the new year will bring.
That’s just as well, because 2025 will be an interesting year. At the end of July, I will retire after 15 years in ordained ministry. On the one hand, I’m excited about the prospect of a fresh start in a new place, of having more free time, and of being closer to my mum and sister. On the other hand, I shall be really sad to leave this church and the lovely people in it. It has been such a privilege to walk this part of our faith journey together, and I like to think we have all grown closer to God in that time.
It’s particularly hard to be preparing to leave Wembley Park when the future of the church itself is so uncertain.
The congregation is thriving and even growing, and the elders are doing an amazing job of leadership in both spiritual and practical matters; it’s hard to imagine God would want this to come to an end. Yet it’s difficult to see who could replace these elders when they are no longer able to carry on. And without elders, and a Church Secretary, we can’t continue as a URC congregation – regardless of what we decide about the buildings.
Part of the difficulty for me is that I’m impatient to see things sorted. In the house, I’m champing at the bit to choose colours and start decorating, but I know it makes sense to get other bits of work done first, and to take our time in deciding what we really want before we rush ahead. In the church, I would very much like to have a decision made before I leave – but it is more important that we discern God’s call, and God does not always fit neatly into human timeframes.
I recently came across this prayer by St Brendan the Voyager, which I found really helpful; I hope you might too.
‘Lord, help me to journey beyond the familiar and into the unknown.
Give me the faith to leave old ways and break fresh ground with You.
Christ of the mysteries, I trust You to be stronger than each storm within me.
I will trust in the darkness and know that my times, even now, are in Your hand.
Tune my spirit to the music of heaven, and somehow, make my obedience count for You.
Amen
Every blessing,
Sue
