Dear Friends
Our five churches use a
hymn book called “Hymns Old and New”. As I write this final letter as your
Rector, I find myself thinking of “Friends Old and New”. There are those among you who have known Ron
and myself since we first came to the area, in the years that pre-dated Ron’s
licensing as a Reader and my ordination.
We have got to know many other people over the years, both in the Church
and the wider community. The nature of ministry as a parish priest is such that
I am always meeting new people and I feel that I am constantly making new
friends. That is a tremendous joy and blessing.
People have been asking if
I am looking forward to retirement. The
answer is a qualified “yes”. I shall enjoy having more time for the family and
for my various hobbies and interests, but I know that there are many aspects of
parish ministry that I shall miss, and I am going to miss the people I have got
to know and had the privilege of ministering amongst for so many years. I hope that I shall be able to keep in touch
with friends I have made in these parishes, but I do want to urge you all to
offer your friendship, encouragement and support to my successor. Whoever comes next will bring his or her
unique personality, gifts and experience to the role. I trust that this will
mean new and creative thinking and encouragement for the churches to move
forward together, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is my earnest prayer that the churches and
communities here will flourish and be richly blessed in the time ahead. Yes,
there will be challenges, but God has plans for his Church and plans for each
one of us. A Bible verse that has been
significant for some of us over the years is Jeremiah 29:11 – “Surely I know
the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for
harm, to give you a future with hope.”
Times of change can feel
exciting but also rather uncomfortable and it’s all too easy to look back to
how it used to be, perhaps to some imagined golden age (conveniently forgetting
those aspects we weren’t so happy about at the time!). As I look back over fourteen years as Rector,
it seems to me that we have come a long way on our journey together. As in any walk of life, there have been ups
and downs, joys and sorrows, successes and failures. It’s no good dwelling on the past. Instead,
let’s rejoice in the good things that are happening now, look to the future,
and put our faith and trust in our unchanging God.
As I enter this new phase
of my life, I will be praying for my successor, and for God’s blessing on the
five parishes, and I will be giving thanks for “Friends Old and New”. I guess I will make more new friends in retirement,
but I will always value the friendships I have found here.
With much
love, and many happy memories
Glynis
Hetherington
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