Thought of the Week - 18th September 2024
‘In the beginning,
God created the heavens and the earth. […] God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.’
Hello everyone, we hope you’ve had a good week.
Thank you to all who participated in Ride and Stride at the weekend, and to those who came and bought their tickets for the Annual Concert on 16th November. Tickets are still available so please email if you would like some.
Fairtrade fortnight ends this Sunday, there will be a fairtrade stall after the 9.45am service at St Mary’s. Collection for Harvest will be from 30 September to 6 October. Boxes will be at the back of St Mary’s for you to put donations of Fruit, Vegetables and dry goods, that will go to Yeldall Manor.
A reminder of the change of time for services during our interregnum, Knowl Hill and Warren Row’s services will be at 11.15am. And finally, this Sunday we welcome Rev’d Adam Curtis who will be preaching and celebrating communion at Wargrave.
May God bless you and your loved ones this coming week.
Good News for this Week
SEASON OF CREATION 1 September – 4 October
During the annual ‘Season of Creation’, we are reflecting on the awesomeness of God’s Creation, and our role and responsibilities as Christians in caring for all that God has made.
Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You
have set your glory in the heavens. […]
When I consider your heavens, the work of your
fingers,
the
moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
people that you care for them?
You
have made them a little lower than the angels
and crowned them with glory and honour.
You made them rulers over the works of your
hands;
you put everything under their feet:
all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild,
the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
A theme we hear a lot about these days is mindfulness – paying close attention to what is happening in us and around us. By paying attention to the heavens, the psalmist recognises the miracle of God’s grace - that the God of creation is mindful of us.
The Psalm also invites attentiveness to the beauty of creation, by which we see ourselves as part of creation, not separate from it. Observing the glories of creation leads us to an attitude of gratitude, a profound sense of worship. With that celebration comes responsibility, an echo of the dominion given to Adam and Eve. As in many places in Scripture, the psalm asks, ‘What will we do with what we have been given?’ How will we be stewards of Creation?
In our flawed history, the interpretation of dominion has been twisted to mean that we could do whatever we wanted with creation for selfish purposes. It's based on the illusion that we are somehow distinct from creation, above it all, so that we can use it all, without regard for the loving intention of the Creator.
We see the effects of our error all over the world.
We are called to a new and holy frame of mind. Albert Einstein said that we can look at the world in two ways: as if nothing is a miracle, or as if everything is a miracle. May our gratitude for the grace of God’s mindfulness of us, move us to see everything around us as a miracle of God, and care for it accordingly.
What do you feel when you look up at the heavens?
When in the rhythm of your week do you find time to stop and be mindful of the beauty of creation?
Prayer.
Gracious God, we marvel at your mindfulness of us, your gracious and loving regard for us as part of the creation you called very good. As we give thanks for all good gifts around us coming from heaven above, we ask you to make us attentive to the beauty of creation and to take to heart our own responsibility for its care. We pray in the power of the undivided Trinity, eternal Majesty, incarnate Word and ever-living Spirit. Amen.
Bible Readings: Sunday 11th September 2024
IN YOUR PRAYERS THIS WEEK
- God's peace and justice in all war torn places of the world, but especially in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan
- the bereaved
- the sick, in mind, body or spirit
- for our neighbours in Twyford and Ruscombe as they welcome their new vicar Mark Gould next week
- wisdom for our churchwardens and PCC, as we continue the process of finding a new vicar
Our Next Services
22nd September | 29th September | 6th October | |
Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity | Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity | Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity | |
St Mary's | 9.45am Holy Communion | 9.45am Parish Holy Communion | 8am Holy Communion (BCP) 9.45 am All Age Harvest Festival |
St Peter's | 11.15am Holy Communion | ||
St Paul's |