Thought for the Week
Whenever I want to be by myself for a while, I take my beloved dog Molly for a walk.
One morning last week I was walking through the woods near my home lost in my own thoughts. Molly was trotting along in front when suddenly she stopped, she turned towards me cocking her head to the side as if to say “Shhhh quiet.” I stopped behind her listening, hearing only the sounds of the woods, the echo of the birds singing, the slight breeze passing through the trees gently rustling the leaves, and, as I bent down to pat Molly on the head to reassure her I realised at that moment I was listening to God.
I could hear the heart of God beating in the eternal quiet of the morning. I’m not sure how long we stayed there but it wasn’t long before a cyclist came pedaling along the path and the moment evaporated away, bringing me out of my unintended meditation.
As we continued our walk, a few lines of the Psalm 104 came to mind: “How great are your works, Lord, in your wisdom you made them all. The earth is full of your creatures, living things both great and small.”
Many people experience God in different ways, some say they feel him all the time, others say they experience him often. I myself experience God in small fragments like that moment in the woods; they are like pieces of a jigsaw.
And every time I add a piece to the picture it always seems different than before. It’s as if God is inviting me to understand that my life is an intimate and fragile string of connections, as if God and I are holding hands; the wonder of God’s creation caressing my experience so simply that only in calm, only in peace can it be discovered.
This natural peace is from the divine, it’s a peace that we can’t come to without the world, and yet it is beyond it. A peace we can’t see but only experience if we open our hearts to it. Deacon Bill McMillan St Columbkille’s Parish
There was a summer stunner for Flemington Hallside Church recently.
The church held their Summer Fayre last
We are very grateful to all those in the community who came out to support us”