Reflections Blog

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and got to spend time with those you love and care about.  Mine was a bit frantic but I enjoyed time with my children and my gorgeous new grandson and New Year’s Eve was spent hosting a party for my youngest daughter Erin’s 21^st birthday.  Erin decided that cocktails and nibbles were appropriate for such an occasion and you can guess who was tasked with the job of ‘Cocktail Waitress’!!!  Your vicar has acquired new skills and I can confidently say that I make a mean Tequila Sunrise and a pretty amazing Woo Woo, although the Hairy Navel is definitely an acquired taste!!  Bookings through my agent please!

December and January saw the start of our new style Family Service at St. Ippolyts on the first Sunday of each month.  The aim was to create a relaxed and informal space for families, especially those with young children, to worship God together and to get to know other families in the community over breakfast after the service.  I confess that I had no idea whether it would work or not but I have been blown away by the response so far.  Our church was packed and it was an absolute delight to see so many people staying to chat and engage with each other over breakfast.  It was a timely reminder to me that even though we may not see the path ahead clearly, if we follow where God is leading then he will do the rest!

And this year will see a lot of things happening in our Benefice.  St. Mary’s in Great Wymondley will be undergoing major restoration works and will need to raise a substantial amount of money in order to cover the costs.  St. Mary’s in Little Wymondley are struggling to find ways to engage with the local community when resources are thin on the ground and there are only a handful of people able to help.  St. Ippolyts Church is trying to find ways to engage with the growing number of families in our parish and trying out new styles of services.  All these things are a challenge which can sometimes seem too huge to even begin to attempt and our human nature is such that we think we have to do it all under our own efforts.  It’s at times like these that we need to remember, more than ever, that if we seek God’s will in all that we attempt and have the courage to trust in where he is leading us then there is nothing that is impossible.

“Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you;  he will never leave you nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:6).  I would be very grateful if someone would think to remind me of this the next time you see me flapping and twirling because I am trying to do everything myself!!

JOURNEY THROUGH LENT

I will be hosting a series of evening meetings throughout Lent where I hope we can explore and discuss our faith together in an informal setting.  The meetings will be held at The Vicarage on Monday evenings from 7.30pm. - 8.30pm. on 19^th and 26^th February and 5^th, 12^th and 19^th March.  Each evening will have a different focus but we will begin on 19^th February with the theme of Exploring Prayer.

                                                                                    With love - Ginni

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