Faith Goes Walkabout

Thoughts and reflections

Tag: faithgoeswalkabout Page 2 of 7

Christmas is Coming!

By

On December 20, 2022

In Christmas, church seasons, Faith goes walkabout

St Mary’s East Walton, West Norfolk

The last of the shopping, the final decorations, how many more lights can we have?

Watching the night skies when it has been so cold and the night skies have shimmered with stars have been amazing. Jupiter has been shining bright in the evening sky. How much brighter it would have shone on that Christmas Eve before Jesus was born as it moved towards an alignment with Saturn and the star Regulus.

A time for awe and wonder, a time to experience how large is the universe and how small our part plays, but yet for each one of us we are important to God.

Mary and Joseph would have been approaching Bethlehem so many years ago, the city would have been seen under the same sparkling sky.

Let’s journey together under the same starry skies.

Rev’d Sue Martin

Harvest Services with Schools

By

On October 19, 2022

In church seasons, community, Diocese of Norwich

Harvest services from our schools have filled the churches. Way beyond our expectations. Churches bursting at the seams. Food donations piled high at the font and the altar. All ready to be taken to the town food bank.

Children’s voices raised the roof. Prayers read and stories told.

What more could I add than just the biggest thank you from the depths of my heart for bringing back the love, laughter and joy to church.

Rev’d Sue Martin

St Michael and All Angels- Michaelmass

By

On September 30, 2022

In Faith goes walkabout, Michaelmass

St Michael is seen as the chief of archangels, a defender, guardian, protector of Israel and the faith. He is shown in Daniel as a warrior and of course in Revelation he is the slayer of the dragon and the angel who cast out the Satan from the heavenly thrones.

The to angels is said to be:

First Order are Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones,

Second order Dominions, Powers and Virtues

Third Order Principalities, Archangels and Angels

Terms also to describe angels are sons of God, ‘holy ones’, Angels are mentioned in the divine council of God as members of a heavenly chorus,

St Michael is  gentle and brave, gallant and bold.

From the hymn by Jan Struther,

Let faith be my shield and let joy be my steed

‘Gainst the dragons of anger and the ogres of greed:

And let me set free, with the sword of my youth,

From the castle of darkness, the power of the truth.

Michaelmass, September 29th is the time we remember St Michael and also celebrate the changing seasons of the agricultural world.

Read more in Sermons 2022…

Feeling small…

By

On February 6, 2022

In community, Diocese of Norwich, Faith and business

I have always been fascinated by the large container ships that carry vast numbers of containers across the world. In October 2018, I was visiting my daughter and family in Hong Kong and we were fortunate to or not, to get very close to a large container ship.

We were out on a small junk, with a crew of two people and crossing the shipping channel on our way back to Hong Kong. I had seen the large container ship travelling our way and as it came closer we slowed down to let it pass in front of us.

The video shows how close we were, it made us feel very small. This container ship was certainly not one of the largest, but it made me realise how small we are in the big scheme of things. Maybe a speck of dust from outer space, but yet each one of us is special to God!

Like all the things inside those containers, from the smallest reel of brightly coloured ribbons to large boxes of fruit, being small does not matter.

Back in March 2021,one of the largest container ships The Ever Given became stuck in the Suez Canal. The Ever Given was 400 metres long and held 20,000 containers. Once stuck it was an enormous problem to re-float this huge structure. As a result, large number of container ships had to wait at the entrance to the Suez Canal and shipping around the world was delayed.

How dependant we are on far away places.

Rev’d Sue Martin

 

 

Epiphany 1

By

On January 10, 2022

In church seasons, Diocese of Norwich, Epiphany, Faith goes walkabout

Arise and shine for your light has come ! Isaiah chapter 60:1

How hard it is to emerge from the darkness, the long dark nights and the cold wet days. What a joy the sunrises and sunsets and the days we have had where the sky is blue and we can feel the strength of the sun, that bright shining star that we depend on to survive.

Some time in the surf would be just the thing!

So, moving on from Christmas and into Epiphany, the time when the light shines on us all as we realise that the day has dawned when Jesus is with us for ever. The greatest ever moment of Epiphany.

Read more in Epiphany…

Christmas – 2021!

By

On December 23, 2021

In Christmas, Faith goes walkabout

Christmas at Ely

A time of  festivity, of giving, a time of love and laughter, of friendship and togetherness.

Twinkling lights in the midst of darkness, presents and gifts, trees brought in the house and traditions to mark this special time.

Christmas, the time when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, Son of God into the world.
Christ among us.

The story of the Nativity, the journey of Mary and Joseph, the manger and the stable, the shepherds on the hillside, the wise men travelling from afar.

The brightest of stars marking the place where Jesus lay in Bethlehem.

But why did he come to us? Why didn’t he appear amongst wealth and fortune like other kings?

Read more… Christmas 

Remembrance 2021

By

On November 13, 2021

In Faith goes walkabout, Remebrance

Poppies in the field..

At the 2 minute silence, my thoughts were in small pieces, sound bites ! They were…

On a school visit to the trenches, the tiny distances that were fought over, yet the huge space of the battles in Northern France.

The Canadian War Memorial in Arras, so many name and all those graves.

The medals that were won, the pride, the courage and the hope.

The Second World War and places like Dresden, destroyed, our own cities too,

The whole concept of a concentration camp, people I knew who escaped over here and sought refuge.

The army, the RAF and the navy, everyone doing their bit, the land army too.

Captain Tom Moore British Army officer and fundraiser who made international headlines in 2020 when he raised money for charity in the run-up to his 100th birthday during the COVID-19 pandemic. One mile a day!! We were all touched enormously by the strength and determination of this amazing man of stamina, both physically and mentally.

It isn’t always in the huge things that are done but  in the small things done with great heart. 

Read more in Sermons 2021

Rev’d Sue Martin Diocese of Norwich

Michaelmas and Archangel St Michael

By

On October 3, 2021

In Faith goes walkabout, Michaelmass

September 29th. Michaelmas, an important  day in the farming year when traditionally farm tenancies changed, and farm workers were unhired or hired for the coming year. Must have been a difficult time if you were a hired hand and then n longer had a job for the winter ahead.  The hiring fairs across the country were held around this day

St Michael the Archangel is patron saint of sea and maritime lands, of ships and boatman, of horses and horseman. He was the Angel who hurled Lucifer from Heaven for his treachery. He is seen as the leader of the army of angels against the forces of evil, as a protector. He is a Satan slayer and a dragon beater!

Read more in Sermons 2021…

Rev’d Sue Martin

Education Sunday 2021

By

On September 13, 2021

In Education, Faith goes walkabout

Every step of our lives is involved in learning. Every day, every waking minute, wherever we are, and however old we may be, we are still learning.        Education is the key!

It is the key to our understanding, the foothold on which our ‘ladder of life’ is based. It fills
our minds to grow, our hearts to understand and our souls to be refreshed.
We all have a part to play in education, whether in our own lives or for our families.
In our country we have an education system which is free for all children from ages 4-18
years. In further education we have a system whereby young people can follow their hopes
and dreams and find a way to a career. Education doesn’t end there… we have a lifelong
learning programme whereby we are encouraged to find out about different aspects at
different times. Every day and every year can be a learning journey.

Read more in Sermons 2021 

Written as part of my work as Bishop’s Officer for Schools Mission in the Diocese of Ely

Poppies and storm clouds

By

On August 8, 2021

In Faith goes walkabout, Poppies

A few weeks ago I took the photo of the poppies in a nearby field, close to where I live in West Norfolk.

At that time fields were full of the stunningly bright red poppies.

 

 

Where there had been crops of wheat and barley, the fields had been turned into rewilding projects on the local estate farms and the poppies flourished.

For me, the poppies represent all that we have lost in this last year. Through their radiant colour, they show all that is good in this life. They show that if cared for they can flourish, just like ourselves.

The dark grey clouds indicate that we are not out of the storms yet, we still have to find our way through the Covid 19 crisis, blue skies appear from time to time, but still the storm clouds roll in.

But we will find our way through ,and with God’s help we can look after others who are struggling and we can find new ways of living. Like the poppies in the fields, which had been  struggling, but now are  radiant and flourishing.

Rev’d Sue Martin

Page 2 of 7

Previous

Next

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén