By this time next week, the school summer holidays will be over, and the children will be back in their classrooms beginning a new year. Some will have moved up to a new school, whilst others will have just moved up a year group. The little ones will be starting their school journey, taking their first steps in the system of education that exists in this country. I’m sure with all of them there will be a mixture of emotion: excitement, nervousness and in some cases fear. They will all be thinking about what might be different – how will they cope with the new things that they will be asked to learn, will they be too difficult to understand?
When we all start something new, there is always some trepidation as to what it will be like – what will we face, and how will we cope with something we haven’t tried before? Occasionally, that fear deep inside prevents us from doing something, it consumes us so much that we hold back. Of course, the children have no option, they have to go to school; but hopefully as they attend each day and the fears and tensions begin to subside, they can then begin to enjoy the experience as well as learn.
I recognise that to enter a church building for a service of worship can fill some with a little fear: will I be able to follow the service, stand up or sit down in the right places and so on. In all of our four churches you will find we are a very warm, welcoming group of people, and so we would be always happy to see you in our churches on a Sunday. And there are different kinds of service, some less formal than others: Café Church, family services, as well as services of Holy Communion – details can be found in the Riversmeet Recorder, our Benefice Magazine. I look forward to meeting you!
With Love, prayers and God’s blessing.
Rev Graham
