Their eyes were opened...

Well...today the sun has gone back behind the clouds and according to the weather forecast, it is due to stay there for quite a while. We shouldn't complain though because we have had some exceptionally warm and sunny days and my garden, for one, has benefitted enormously. I finally finished the path I was building. The vicarage garden, with the house being empty for so long,  was very overgrown and needs a lot of TLC! The leaves on the apple trees are a bit of a giveaway as to how long this has taken me. Every stone in the middle picture came from the garden itself (and there is a lot leftover!) and the mound of earth is not a grave(!) but what was dug out to make the path. It has been hard work but worth it.  My next garden project is to raise a bed to grow some herbs, afterall it would be a shame to waste all that lovely topsoil. The lack of a blazing sun will make the digging a bit more bearable ...photographs to follow in due course.

Click on the image to enlarge

Will the lack of sunshine change your routine? I had lunch in my study today instead of sitting in the garden. Sundays in lockdown, for me are a bit different. So, in the morning, the first thing I do is to prepare for the online service. This means moving the furniture around in my studio study to make a space so that I can be seen, and my laptop is precariously placed on top of a make-shift table at just the right height. The 'Communion Table' is brought in and erected and I make sure that I have all the right documents in place so that they are to hand at the right time. All of this, of course doesn't take into account the preparation that takes place before the service itself - pew sheets prepared and saved on the website, hymns (if used) to be ready to play (complete with speaker) and the words to be put onto a slide to share online; the same with the readings. There's readers, responders and intercessors to find and then of course, there's the sermon to write! Phew!

I must say that I am really loving the online services. They have taken a bit of getting used to and we are still learning as we go along. We discovered that music doesn't come across very well if played through the laptop, so this morning I played the music in my study and it seemed to work better. The words of the hymn was shared on screen and I could see people singing along. It is so good to see so many of you embracing the technology and worshipping God from your own homes.

This morning's gospel reading was one of my favourites. It was the walk on the road to Emmaus.
It is one of the final jigsaw pieces to be slotted into place as the story of God's redemptive purpose is revealed. It is about Jesus meeting us right where we are, even bang, smack in the middle of our anguish and pain...regardless of whether we recognise him or not.  He is there, with each one of us...holding us until we are ready to have our eyes and hearts open, ready to receive him fully. Then he feeds us...not with physical food but with himself...his love...his compassion...his strength...his forgiveness...

Luke tells us that it was at the moment when the disciple's eyes were open that Jesus vanished from their sight. It was the moment that the disciples, filled with joy went back out into the world to share the Good News!  Perhaps our time of lockdown is a time of being fed...of preparation, ready to re-enter the world with fresh eyes, renewed faith and a story to tell?

Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him,
and he disappeared from their sight.

Luke 24: 31