Rectory Ramblings…
Jesus said to his disciples “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.                   (Mark 6:31)
 
After what has been the stormiest and wettest winter that I can remember Jenny and I are jetting off for better weather in the Canary Islands. So, after a frantic couple of days doing all the things I needed to do, to clear my desk before going on holiday for 2 weeks, and with the suitcases were half packed I made the mistake of taking one last look at my email before switching the computer off. That was when I saw the reminder email for something I’d forgotten to do: So this is a very quick off the cuff and rambly Ramblings!
 
The word for holidays comes from Holy days, Days set apart for religious celebrations, but this setting apart meant that no work was done. The word holiday has changed to mean a time of rest and relaxation, but this does not make them any less important than the religious celebrations. The rhythm of “work, rest and play” was not invented by the Mars Bar company, it is in Genesis chapter 1. At the end of each day stopped work to look at and enjoy what he had made. And the seventh day was a complete day of rest. And that was God. In a busy modern world, going on holiday is more important than ever, as part of a healthy lifestyle. But journeys come in many different forms, and we make them for many reasons. For many of us, part of that work rest and play rhythm of daily life includes commuting. It may take two minutes or two hours (and I have done both over my 40 years of working), but its purpose is the same, to move us between our places of rest and work.
 
Then there are other journeys we may make. Journeys of exploration and discovery. Sometimes these journeys are internal, and we don’t physically go anywhere. Sometimes they may involve physically travelling to somewhere new to find an answer to a question, or simply get closer to God, and there is a special name for this sort of intentional journey of discovery. It is called pilgrimage. There is usually a destination and purpose in mind, but unlike commuting to work or travelling to a holiday resort, it is often the journey itself that is the most important thing rather than the arrival at the other end. And in the end, every one of us is on a kind of pilgrimage, whether we are using it to learn a little bit more about God and become a little bit more Christ-like or not. It is called the Journey of Life.
 
Those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,     they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint (Isaiah 40:31)
Revd Eddie