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Lord of the morning
Let the brightness of your presence
Scatter the darkness that is about us
Open our eyes to your glory
Open our hearts to your love
Fill our minds with your peace
Fill our days with your light
Come, Lord, and change us
Set us on fire with desire
For you and for your goodness.
David Adam (C) SPCK 2002
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Dear Friends -
What a wonderful and inspiring writer David Adam is! For many years he was the Vicar of Lindisfarne, and this poem prayer is taken from a book he produced with a photographer, Robert Cooper, which celebrates the beauty of the “Island of Light”.
If you’re lucky enough to have a bit of relaxation through August, with schools closed, less meetings and commuter roads much less busy, perhaps you can take a little time out to think about ways in which we can connect with God and pay less attention to ourselves. Or, those of you for whom the school holidays mean more hassle rather than less (and yes, I do remember them well!) might like to reflect on how you can seek the sanctuary of a moment’s peace and quiet with God – these precious moments might need to be snatched between busy family times, but they can still be enjoyed – perhaps savoured even more for their swift passing.
But how do any of us achieve moments of peace and tranquillity – times when we open ourselves to God and offer ourselves the opportunity to be calm and quiet with our creator? When for some of us our lives are a hectic round of work and family commitments, while for others there may be too much space and time to ourselves, and we can be in danger of feeling isolated from the world and at a loss as to how to connect. Each of us is different and even at different times in our lives we might need to take a different approach.
For some of us, DOING can be a great way to re-connect with God and with our own inner spirituality. Volunteering in a capacity that we know is going to benefit others could be a way for us to understand in a very real way that we are Christ’s hands and feet now. You could get in touch with Adur Voluntary Action to see if there are opportunities for voluntary work in this area. Or offer to help a neighbour with chores or a garden, or simply invite them in for a coffee?
Now for others, doing might be the very worst thing – some of us have far too much doing in our lives already! If this is you, how do you make space for yourself in that busy day? How do you carve out a bit of time in which you can simply BE and be still? Difficult, I know, but we all must have these times or we will never have the opportunity to see what is going on inside of ourselves and how God may be trying to speak to us. Perhaps early in the morning before others are moving – some time of quiet reflection. Or a quick walk along the beach (we have that privilege) and a sit on the rocks to watch the waves moving? Or last thing at night – just 15 minutes can be all it takes to re-connect ourselves with our spiritual beings and check in with God.
If anyone would like to raid my small library of poetry and prayer books for something to read this summer, please do ask – I only BEG that you give them back to me!
Enjoy your August – whether it’s busy or calm – but please try to spend some bits of it with God!
With much love - Gail
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