A Powerful Silence

Good evening all. I'm back up in Eston after a week training, good to get back to my ministry here. Just had a team meeting this morning and it's fair to say that the next few weeks are going to be busy and then it'll be Christmas!

So as I said in my last blog, our training was at Aylesford Friary. Other than the training, the most significant time for me last week for me was when I was on my own at night where I could relax and spend time with God in the silence. Once all the sessions were out the way, I would wrap up warm and find a bench and sit and do nothing. I just listened and spent time in prayer. I'll try and describe the surroundings; I sat on a bench with a pond behind me and in front of me a garden with tree's around the perimeter, although it was cold, it was almost silent with an occasional noise made by the swans behind me. It was very peaceful and I think at times it was just what I needed. It was so powerful those moments, just thinking and quietly spending time in prayer with God. I almost came away from that bench refreshed and relaxed because it was that quiet, even if it was at times around 11pm at night. When I was thinking about me being silent before God, I suppose silence is key to the story of Jesus' birth. It implies that Mary was silent when the Angel Gabriel came to her and told her she will carry the Son of God. It was in the silence, on the hills when the shepherds again were told by the Angels that Jesus has been born in Jerusalem. How many times did God use the silence during sleep to speak to people through their dreams in the Christmas story? People being silent before God is key in the story of Jesus' birth and it is in the silence God spoke to people and told them what He wants them to do. I am not sure how I would have reacted if an Angel turned up while I was on that bench at Aylesford, probably very much like the shepherds.. utter fear. But what a hallowed moment that must have been, I hope that I will continue to get the oppurtunities to be silent because it is those moments God does speak. That doesn't mean that the Lord won't speak in the noise, God spoke to Elijah during the earthquake! But it was refreshing and I felt that I was on Holy ground.

I think I may keep my blogs nativity themed in the coming weeks. I love the Christmas story, it is full of so many "wow" moments and challenging words, every year I read the beginning of Jesus' life again just to see if anything new jumps out at me and every year I get a new meaning or something stands out that hasn't before. I want to get a new dimension of Jesus' birth and make the coming of Christ not just a story that happened 2000 years ago and gets pulled once year, but in fact a very real and relevant thing for my life. My saviour being born.

I hope you have a good week this week, still no sign of snow... long may it continue. If you have any questions or want to get in touch about anything then like always I will leave my contact details and feel free to get in touch

God Bless.

@peggo36
pegg.j@hotmail.co.uk