Dear Friend,
Music shops always intimidated me when I was younger. They would be populated with musicians who seemed far better than me testing out the latest equipment. I would hardly ever play anything and I probably looked too young and without much money for the sales team to waste time on. These angst-ridden days of youth came to mind when the other day I happened to go into a music shop again. When strangely enough the sales team seemed much more interested. And so, I ended up trying some electronic drums. It was marvellous fun and unlike my younger self, I didn’t really care what anyone thought. Thankfully the drums stayed in the shop but it reminded me of how we change through our lives. How that which once caused anxiety and worry does no longer. That doesn’t mean that worry magically disappears – more that it changes as our lives and their priorities do.
Over the last twenty years, I’ve had a spiritual director. And though the person has changed during those years the role has retained its importance. For a spiritual director is a person who has encouraged, challenged and helped me make sense of my life and of how God’s story is weaved with my own. These special people have helped me establish (to return to the drums) a rhythm of life and create the space to pay attention to God’s presence. The importance of the role continues as I get older and make new discoveries.
Last year as the pandemic came to the forefront in all our lives, the rhythms of life that had sustained us changed. In some ways that was good, we were forced to stop and live differently. But now as we continue to work out how best to live with the virus and return to some degree of normality we need to re-establish good rhythms for living, rhythms that help us to pay attention to God’s presence in our lives.
As a community we are trying to do some of this at St. Mary’s and part of that discernment is in and through a ‘Rhythm of Life ‘course we shall be running from Thursday 20 January. It will be in the church, start at 7.30 pm and be led by Joan Williams and Jean Bradley, two members of our church family who know the value of a rhythm of life. Do please come and join us as we try to grow in love in 2022 and hopefully find a good rhythm for our lives.
With love and prayers,
Matthew