Bartimaeus was in a sad state. This poor blind man was sitting by the side of the road, on the margins of life. He was forced to beg and was totally dependent on the charity of others. His situation was hopeless.

Over the last few weeks as I have popped in Aldi (Other supermarkets are available!) I have found myself having a few conversations with one man who works on the checkout.

I have been hearing about the trials and tribulations of him preparing the ground, digging it out and then trying to lay the base of his new green house.

I have been thinking ( always dangerous) and reflecting on the story of Jesus calming the storm as recorded in Mark chapter 4. I think it must be something to do with the weather we have had this last week.

We are in the season of celebrating Harvest. I have four harvest services in three weeks. Each one reminds us to look back with thanks and look forward with hope and joy.

Last week Margaret and I were able to escape north of the border for a few days for the first time for a year. 2 nights we spent in a bothy with minimal facilities which took us over 2 hours to walk there.

Last weekend was certainly an inspirational weekend, firstly with the Grand Slam Ladies Final in which Emma Raducunu and Leylah Fernandes went head-to-head in a stunning and exhilarating match. Both girls serving as wonderful ambassadors for their respective countries. What talent……yet it was more than talent it was an innate gift possessed by both girls who did not leave it at that but were prepared to put in hours of practise to reach their goal.

I am writing this letter to you following our Circuit Staff Meeting this morning when Matt Barrick our Circuit Youth Worker led the devotions taking the theme of ‘New Beginnings’. He told us about his daughter who had just started her first day of school. A new beginning for her and the family….

We all need hope. We all need to know that it will be ok in the end. Hope isn’t though about wishful thinking. The hope God gives us is a confidence in the future based upon our present experience of his love. We need to pay attention to the present and to know God at work in our lives. We do this individually but also as community.

As Christian people, I believe that God calls us to be holy risk takers, to try new things to step out in faith and to follow the call of God on our lives as individuals and as collective worshipping communities.

You will all know the feeling of a day going pear-shaped! We can make all the plans we want but sometimes, a phone call, email, letter or text can completely scupper our plans and, instead, we find ourselves muddling through the day.