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A Circuit shaped for discipleship and mission

We are a community of eleven village and town churches who are seeking to discover what God is doing among us and how we can join in and share his mission with our neighbours.

A message from Rev James Bamber, our Circuit Superintendent

Dear Friends,
Crisper mornings, turning leaves and shortening daylight hours remind us that autumn is coming. Perhaps the changes in creation call us to notice the everyday beauty which is always around us but we can so easily overlook.
 
On 4 October some Christians celebrate the Feast of St Francis of Assisi. Francis is remembered for his devotion to God, his care for creation and his compassion towards those who were poor or overlooked. He understood the interconnectedness of the whole of creation, and its giftedness coming from God. Francis referred to the sun ‘Brother Sun’ and the moon ‘Sister Moon’. He lived his faith believing that no act of kindness was ever insignificant. A prayer traditionally associated with him begins: ‘Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.’ Although it is likely Francis did not actually write this prayer, its words beautifully reflect the way he sought to live echoing the word of the apostle John, ‘…let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.’ (1 John 3: 18)
 
As autumn draws on where there is loneliness, may we bring friendship; where there is need, generosity; where there is sadness, kindness. As the leaves quietly change the landscape, may our small acts of faithful love quietly change our community too.

"Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible;
and suddenly you are doing the impossible." Quote by Francis of Assisi

Blessings and prayers,
James