Rest, refresh and reset

An article from Bishop Martin for October’s parish magazines.

As I was writing this article in August, the fields and parks and lawns were burnt and brown, trees were already losing their leaves and the birds seemed lethargic and lost. Although some fields are thick with wheat and barley, I’m not sure how good the grain will be with the ground baked hard. Livestock are already being fed winter feed and farmers must fear for what is to come. It feels as though the climate and the land on which we all depend needs a chance to step back from the brink, and to rest, refresh and reset.

I was able to take a sabbatical break after Easter. After many years in ministry, I was ready for a break.  My aim was a simple one. To rest, to refresh, and to reset myself for the next stage of life and ministry here. It was wonderful to turn the alarm clock off and enjoy a diary empty of meetings and obligations. It was wonderful to have time to be with Katharine my wife, and to have an adventure, travelling across China together. It was so good to have time too with my adult children and young grandchildren, with a family week away together. It was an absolute blessing to have time to walk, to pray, to go on retreat, to study, and to finish the time with two weeks of peace and quiet in the beautiful Isles of Scilly. I returned rested and refreshed in body, mind and spirit, and ready and reset for whatever lies ahead.

Giving our precious planet the chance to rest, refresh and reset is not something I can do on my own. Solutions to the climate crisis are not simple or pain free. They involve commitments at every level from us all, as individuals, churches and communities, and at national and international level. During my sabbatical I discovered that when I slow down and do less, then God has a chance to do more within me and through me. Perhaps as a church and society we need to slow down the pace of relentless change, to let go and let God be God, within us and all around us.  To let our loving God lead us to streams of living water, to rest, refresh and reset.

Bishop Martin