Reverend Hannah Higginson 

Assistant Curate in the Parish of Finchampstead and California

AS WE- come to the end of the holiday period, I wonder how many of us feel well rested and ready for the business of September? Whether you are returning to school or work, or whether you are unaffected by the school holidays, there can be no doubt that August provides something of a lull in the year. Our roads are quieter, there are fewer meetings, and we get a break from our regular commitments.

Do you relish this opportunity to have a rest from the norm? Perhaps you are frustrated by the change in pace; or perhaps you treasure this quieter time and it causes you to ponder why the other 11 months of the year are so busy and fraught?

Jesus encourages us to ‘come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest’ (Mt11:28). The rest that Jesus offers us in the stillness of his presence is rest which eases the burdens and strains of life and refreshes us. Only by praying to God for his peace and rest will we find the true rest that can rejuvenate and sustain us. It is my prayer that we may all know something of this rest in our lives.