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Sabbatical
February 1, 2008
Dear Friends,
Thank you to all those who brought Mince Pies for our “give
–away” on the Otford Open Day and to those who helped with
our Special Service for Christmas and New Year.
As this Newsletter comes out I will be about to begin a
three month Sabbatical, through February, March and April.
Sabbaticals have long been a part of the life of the
Methodist Church, and although I am Sabbatical Secretary
for our South East District, this will be a first for me
and for Otford. Sabbaticals are meant to be a GIFT for the
whole Church. They are an opportunity for the Minister to
stand back from normal activities and responsibilities in
order to spend time reading/study, praying, reflecting,
doing special things and also giving more time to family.
Some ministers have one focus and others more varied. For
the Church it is an opportunity to develop the gifts of the
whole Church.
My specific plans are:
• On Sundays to share in worship at other Churches,
especially some of the higher profile growing Churches.
This will give the opportunity to learn from others and I
also hope to see whether some aspects of theology and
outlook are similar or varied and how much those attitudes
might contribute to growth
• To spend a time reading – not on one topic but many of
those books I have “never quite got round to but have
really wanted to read”
• To go on Retreat. I have booked to spend “Holy Week on
Holy Island”. Holy Island, Lindisfarne is off the North
East Coast of England and is steeped in Celtic Christianity
from the legacy of those early missionaries to Britain who
set up Christian Communities and began to evangelize the
whole area.
• To visit Israel. Brian, myself and eight others from our
Church will be among those joining the Oak Hall Trip from
April 10-19th. Those who went last year found this a
spiritual and scriptural experience and were deeply blessed
through it
• As well as those specific things, I hope to have more
time to spend with family members and also to deal with
much of the “clutter” that has accumulated in my life,
physically and spiritually. That should enable me to seek
God for myself and our Church.
How far I achieve those things will be interesting to see
and I will share that with you when I return in May.
For me the hardest part will be not being involved on a day
to day basis with our Church Family at Otford that I love
so much. Therefore, I must take it as a discipline not to
get involved with what is happening or with people. While I
am away please contact Margaret Matthews about general
Church matters and John Curnow about pastoral matters. John
will be available most Thursdays at the Hall from 10.30am -
1.00pm
Barbara Davies is coordinating the Pastoral Visitors and
the Church Office will be able to direct you to relevant
people to deal with different matters.
During our Christmas Day service Margaret kindly gave me,
on your behalf, a Journal with a Church Directory fixed in
it. On my Sabbatical I will be praying for you all and I
will focus on a particular individual or family from the
Directory each day and so cover the whole Church in the
three months. Please pray for me during this time that I
may really seek God and know a deeper experience of His
love in my life. Please also pray for Brian, Sarah and
John. We all thank you for your love and concern following
the death of Brian’s father in January.
In the previous Newsletter I wrote about “Hope 08” as an
umbrella theme for many Christian activities during this
coming year which aims to raise the profile of the Good
News of Jesus. Since then plans have progresses in many
places and we have agreed with the other Churches in Otford
to deliver a Hope 08 leaflet to every home which will
outline a number of activities that we are inviting the
wider Community to share in. John Ward will be coordinating
this and we hope to make the delivery prior to the Open Air
Palm Sunday Procession and Service on the Green. Therefore
the printed leaflets should be ready at the beginning of
March and we would be grateful if you would deliver a road.
God Bless you and with warmest Christian Greetings
Kath
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