Book-ends

I don't believe it's that uncommon for people to link a specific occurrence to an earlier one of which it is either a repeat or the reverse ... like the selling of a car, for example, linked to its original purchase.  But, on such an occasion, do you reflect on all that the pages between those two 'book-end' events record?

Last Saturday, I finalised a short sequence that saw the disposal of the robes I had used when serving as a Reader in my village church in Norfolk.  In a few months' time it will be 38 years since I was one of a party of young (mostly) men who were admitted and licensed in Norwich Cathedral; I obtained at that time a small suitcase that became home to those robes, and has remained so ever since.  Now they have found a new home, and have taken the case with them ... leaving me a small free space in my bedroom.

At the time, my licensing provided useful support to a priest who had four parishes to look after.  Another Reader and I (he was licensed the following year) were able, with the help of a retired Bishop who lived nearby, to keep things running a couple of years later when we were without a Rector, and then provided similar support to the next incumbent.  After a few years my personal circumstances changed; I moved to Hertfordshire, and made a number of efforts to continue to support my church in a similar way, all to no avail.  From the church's point of view, that phase of my ministry had come to an end.

For me, however, there was no going back to what had been before.  There are different forms of ministry: some ordained, some lay;  there are different forms of lay ministry: some licensed, some not.  Not all Readers are in licensed positions ... for many years now I've been one of them and this blog is one way in which I serve the wider church ... service not confined to my own denomination and certainly not just to my own parish.  I regard being a Reader as a way of life: as much so now as then when I wore the blue scarf.  I recognise, though, that my parochial services are no longer going to be required; so it seems appropriate to pass on the paraphernalia of those times to someone with whom they can once more be put to use.

I also recognise the possibility of other challenges on the horizon.  When I was admitted all those years ago, I was presented with a New Testament and a Service Book.  In the front of the latter was a dedication, signed by both the Bishop and my Rector, referring to the Bible verse "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor."(Luke 4:18).  These were words that Jesus quoted from Isaiah's prophecy when he preached in the synagogue at Nazareth, his home town.  They marked a turning point in His life, and on the occasion of my admission, they marked a turning point in my own.

Those same words were part of the readings in our service on Sunday, the day after I'd handed over my robes.  It underlines last weekend as a book-end moment.  Over the last year or so, there have been changes in my life, in my behaviour and in the things that I'm involved with; at the turn of the year I handed over the Health & Safety responsibilities that I held in my church for the last three years, and I find myself asking 'What now?'  So far there is no sign of an answer to that question.

But what have my experiences to say to you, dear reader?  What might be happening in your life - right now - that is a ending, matching something that began a while ago?  The Holy Spirit speaks to us in a variety of ways and we must be careful not to read too much into what could be a coincidence.  However, if we don't get the message the first time, there could well be a repeat and we have to be ready to respond.