Monthly Newsletter

Dear Church Friends

May is officially my favourite month of the year. It’s that time of year when the trees are in full bloom, the grass is luscious

and green, the days are getting longer, and the sun is more than happy to come out of hiding, and shine! To me, creativity

is at its most vibrant. The new life of early spring is finding its feet, its path, its purpose. Mornings are filled with the chatter

of birds, the days are filled with bees buzzing, lambs bleating, cows moo’ing and trees swaying in the breeze.

In other words, creativity is connecting. When I last wrote to you all, in March, we were preparing for Lent and I talked about my plan to cut down on social media. Well….. I have to confess that it didn’t quite happen due to my manager wanting the whole workforce to start actively using LinkedIn.

If any of you are unfamiliar with LinkedIn, it’s a professional social networking platform designed for business and employment. It allows users to connect with other professionals, build their professional network, find job opportunities, and share industry insights. So my Lenten promise may have taken a detour, but I’m certainly not complaining because LinkedIn has made me realise the power of connections, new and old. For instance, I rekindled a connection with a colleague of 21 years ago who has since introduced me to some of his contacts. Quite a few of these have a clear faith, which doesn’t tend to come up in face to

face work situations for me. It’s therefore been so refreshing to have a professional platform where I’ve had the confidence

to actively celebrate the faith part of who I am and make connections on that basis.

In the context of our church calendar, we’ve recently had the most amazing celebration of Easter Day and we’re now in the 40 day period to Jesus’s ascension. Jesus is readying his disciples, meeting with them, talking to them, re-establishing his connection with them, showing them that he is indeed the resurrected Lord. Jesus is ensuring his disciples are fully versed and equipped to follow his lead and make future connections in order to continue his ministry.

Of course, these connections didn’t stop after the resurrected Christ ascended. Notably the connection with Saul on the road to Damascus. This, in modern terms, to me, is equivalent to a social media post going viral. Saul/Paul’s connections, through his letters and epistles, allowed Jesus’s message and mission to exponentially grow.

Jesus has, does, and will continue connecting with us, and through us, to expand and grow His Church.

Within our Parish we’ve excitedly been given the green light to start the recruitment for our new Vicar so our PCC team will be busy connecting with prospective candidates in the coming weeks and months.

We’ve also launched the ‘Live at Shaw’ series and it’s great to see Christ Church filled with new people to connect and engage with. Likewise Atworth has also been filled to the brim at choir concerts and a most celebratory Easter Day service. It’s great to be part of a church family that is visibly connecting: with each other, our community and beyond. Planting and sowing seeds that will bloom, like the vibrant buds of May.

One of my newest connections on LinkedIn has a platform called ‘Blessed Before You’re Dressed’ where, every day at 7am, we are invited to comment on what we are grateful for that morning. It’s such a beautiful way to start each day, and an opportunity to openly (and publicly) give thanks.

So, in this month of May, I want to give thanks for the beautiful world that God has created for us all. I want to give thanks for the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross, on our behalf. I want to give thanks for all of you and for all the connections we make, together, to grow in the Body of Christ.

As disciples of Christ, let’s ensure we keep connecting and sharing our faith, in whatever ways we can, during May and the months ahead.

Blessings

Paula