New Year, New Home New Parishes

Happy New Year and the countdown begins. This will be the third time of blogging a countdown to a move and hopefully this will be the last for quite some time. Things are slowly getting in place- TV licence sorted, Redirection of post sorted, removal company booked, carpets purchased and being laid next week, new cooker on order to be delivered and fitted next week, decision made about utilities and phone just got to arrange the changes. All happened while I also tried to prepare and lead Christmas services, and sort out a family Christmas. Four years into post the services were not too difficult though I tried to pray and seek God for what He wanted to say this year at the services. All went smoothly and everyone seemed to enjoy- my prayer is that they also came closer to God during the services.
It was a great joy this Christmas to manage to see all our children and grandchildren at different times. One day we may manage to get them all together.
Back to the move and 20 crates of books have been taken to the new Rectory and empty crates returned, now I'm starting on the sorting of papers etc, and glad that for this move we are having a full packing service.
Alongside all of this I have been arranging meetings with Church Wardens a retired Priest and a Lay Reader for the week I am licensed so that we can start to get things in place. Lent and Easter will soon be upon us!
It has been hard living with my mind constantly going in four directions- soon I can concentrate on one and then hopefully I will start to sleep better.
Anyway who eve you are and where ever you are have a wonderful and Blessed New Year.

Paris and beyond

Back in 2013 my husband and I visited Paris and like many before us fell in love with the wonderful city- with it's beauty, it's vibrancy and it's diversity. Like many others today we are devastated and mourning the  loss of life last night. Our thoughts and prayers are with those we met at the American Cathedral when we visited, and all who are in shock in the city- and country.
Tomorrow I must preach on what is probably the most apt Gospel reading for such a time- Mark 13:1-8 as set in the lectionary for the day. Wars and rumours of wars! We have those alright and so much more. As I read , pray and search for inspiration I have come across the following- which help to inform my thoughts and prayers.
http://www.episcopalcafe.com/letter-from-dean-of-american-cathedral-in-paris/

I am also aware that Paris is not the only city to have suffered in the past week- Beirut and Baghdad have as well but neither get the same response in our news.
Let us continue to pray for our whole world , for those who suffer and for  the birth pangs of the new world order to give way to a peaceful world.

change is coming

Back in March 2014 I wrote
"While with here, I both spoke and listened to her wisdom and I reviewed the past few months and looked ahead to the next year and all it will bring in change and journeying."
Well it is 18 months but the change and journeying are happening- a new destination as I am pleased to be able to announce that I have been appointed to the post of Priest in Charge of Walton on Trent with Rosliston and Croxall, Coton in the Elms and Immanuel Stapenhill in the Diocese of derby. This was announced in this team and it the above parishes this morning. This is a huge move forward for me on from Curacy. And the end of one journey from the day back in October 2003 when I spoke to my Vicar and first hesitantly expressed the belief that I felt God was calling me to ordained ministry. Now my Curacy ending I am moving into a new life as a fully fledged Vicar with a whole new set of lessons to learn, people to love and serve and new ways of listening and serving God.
Blogging will not be about the people or situations but may well record some of my reflections on my relationship with God as things move on. The future is looking daunting and bright at the same time- but I shall put my hand into the hand of god and move forward- and will have deep in my heart the words of the hymn- Lord for the Years you love has kept and guided for it is still so true for me today.

By the Waters of Babylon

I'm back from two weeks holiday. A rather mixed up holiday this year as it began with an interview but more of that at a later date.
The rest of the holiday was spent with a couple of days in Devon, a couple of days in Dorset, a few days at home which included a walk along the river at Calver then a return to the seaside with a couple of days in Whitby and finishing with a trip up to Lancashire to see my Mum. Each was a trip to walk along the coast to feel the salt air, to hear the crashing waves to be atuned again to the power of God in nature. As I wrote in the previous blog, water is such a refreshing healing entity.
Then on Sunday I visited a nearby village church where they have Messy Church as their Sunday morning service once a month. The theme was the waters of Babylon and we were reminded of those who sat down and wept for their homeland, and thought of those who are leaving their war torn countries. The service concluded with a baptism- more water.
As I look to the future, to the changes which will take place over the next months, to moving on- I think of all the water, of the changes it goes through each day of what it means for life and the journey's it makes. It is a journey with a positive outcome but at times is challenging and terrifying and for me the future will be positive and renewing but challenging and terrifying at the same time.
But God goes with me and Him I trust.

Not quite the End of summer

Today has been a beautiful day and so being my day off we took ourselves off to Bakewell to walk along the riverside and to enjoy coffee and cake. Its good to take time away from the house to just enjoy time together and to think about the future.
I particularly like being by water- whether it's a river, sea or canal. There's something so relaxing and refreshing about water. A reminder of course  that Jesus is the water of life who refreshes us when ever we come to Him.
In the river at Bakewell today we were fascinated by the number and size of the trout in the river- and the clarity of the water which allowed us to see them so clearly and even distinguish between brown and rainbow. Next week will see us at the seaside for at least a couple of days while on holiday- we both will enjoy the waves then.
 It's taking some time to get back into blogging after so long- and I was reminded yesterday - if I need reminding of how careful we have to be about what we put on the internet as you never know who may read it!

Back again

It is over a year since I posted here. At the time when I gave up it was for a number of reasons. However I still use the Blog to make links with other Blogs which I read. Then every so often I will reread my Blogs- remembering the journey and the emotions over the 4 years I wrote the Blog. Now it feels right to pick up Blogging again- to take time to reflect in a deeper way than I can on Facebook.
The journey is moving on- the time has come to look at moving on from Curacy- to take the next step in this vocational life.
Over the past year I have grown and changed. Have served and learned. In July I was signed off as being ready for my post of first responsibility.
I've applied for and been interviewed for a couple of jobs. Was offered one but after prayer and much heart searching turned it down and then went to the second interview and very quickly realised that though a good match on paper the role wasn't for me. The churches involved felt the same so all were content with the outcome.
Now I have 2 interviews on the horizon and I'm trying to make sense on this next stage.
I had hoped to just apply, pray and be interviewed for one post at a time but that's not very easy when jobs are advertised in batches. Though we are given 12 months to find a post after being signed off that time soon passes especially as the flow of jobs dry up at certain times- August, over Christmas etc. So I have applied for the 2 but have no clear guidance at this point as to which s 'the one'.
Somehow it feels as if I should know- should have a clear sense of where God is calling me to. But it's only when I meet the people, chat, listen and learn that I start to sense whether these are the people God wants me to love and serve for Him.
I;m reminded of Paul who thought he knew where he was called to go but then the Holy Spirit prevented Him. I'm a weak, work in progress and don't always hear very clearly from God- my prayer at this time is that I will be attuned to the murmurings of the Holy Spirit as I go forward for these interviews.