We recently had the opportunity to go on a pilgrimage to Israel with a group of people from Highfield and St Michael and All Angels churches led by Revs. Erica Roberts and Sheena Williams.
We spent six nights in Jerusalem visiting nearby places and then travelled up the Jordan valley to stay three nights in the Galilee area. At many of the sites, we paused to read the relevant Bible passage and pray. We also had a variety of worship times and services of communion, and a renewal of baptismal promises at the River Jordan. We were accompanied on our travels by an excellent local guide, from whom we learnt a lot about both Israel’s history, and its current political situation. It was an exceptional experience to visit this special land. Being in the places where events in the Bible happened brought them to life. The Mount of Olives for example has an amazing view over Jerusalem and it was moving to consider Jesus looking over the city and weeping. Walking around Caperneum and taking a boat on the Sea of Galilee, it was easy to imagine Jesus and the disciples being there in the familiar stories of the gospels. We were also particularly impacted by our visit to the Western wall in Jerusalem where the Jews go to pray. Both of us felt a very strong sense of God’s presence there as we prayed. On the social side, we enjoyed meeting new people, eating together and having fun floating in the Dead Sea. It was a spiritually significant visit for both of us, which will have lasting impact as we read the Bible stories afresh with the wonderful pictures in our mind of where they occurred. John and Jean Fleming
0 Comments
Is this your view of welcoming? It’s not our view either, nor is it God’s. Romans 15:7 tells us that we should ‘welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God’. We have been called into God’s family and as God’s children we are called to receive others into His family too. We might be the first Christian that someone meets when they come into our church building and we can play our part to show something of God’s love to them.
We have welcoming teams at St James by the Park, but we can all be part of making others feel welcome. They might be a new person or someone who has been to church hundreds of times before. A friendly smile and asking some one how their day is can be a great start. Maybe introducing that person to someone else in the congregation or asking if they want a drink could help them feel a part of God’s family. We are looking for new volunteers; if you would like to serve with us on the welcoming team, we would love to hear from you. |