By the time you read this I will probably be away at Methodist Conference. Conference meets every year and is made up of lay and ordained representatives elected from every district in the country, as well as visitors from further afield. Any Member of the Methodist Church can be elected to Conference, and this is the body that makes major decisions in the Methodist Church.

This isn’t my first Conference, but my experience has been rather odd. In 2017 I was Ordained in Birmingham – well, Wolverhampton actually, there were a number of ordination venues scattered around the area – and stuck around for most of the week out of sheer nosiness. Discovering that it was really quite interesting, I put my name forward as a rep to Conference 2020 for the Southampton District but… you’ve probably already spotted the problem… COVID happened. I was a rep at both the 2020 and 2021 Conferences, both of which happened online!

The work was done, but it wasn’t the same. As is always the case when a group of people with shared interest get together, Conference is a loud, buzzing gathering. Yes, there will be a lot of business – that’s what comes of having a system of consultation rather than one or a few people arbitrarily making decisions; But although the formal business takes place with all due reverence, most of the ‘putting the world to rights’ happens over a cuppa (or something a little stronger?) at the end of the day. Personally, I’m going with a long list of people I ‘really must catch up with’ and expect to come away having seen about half of them, but with a head full of ideas and excitement about where God might be leading the people called Methodists.

Because, make no mistake, God is moving in the national church – not necessarily conventionally, but when has God ever been conventional?

It’s our task to pray, expect God to answer, and then follow God’s lead.

Love and blessings,

Laura

“…But when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

If you were at the Circuit Service on Sunday 19^th May I’m sure you’ll understand why the events of Acts 1 and 2 remain at the forefront of my mind – what a fantastic day!

Several times in the weeks sine then, my mind has been drawn to the hymn ‘Jerusalem’ which comes from William Blake’s poem ‘Milton’. It isn’t a piece I am particularly familiar with and for a variety of reasons has not featured in Methodist hymn books for many years. However, having hummed snatches of the tune rather a lot recently I’m beginning to realise that it is not just Jesus’ references to the city of Jerusalem just prior to his ascension that caused it to come into (and stick in) my head.

The hymn begins ‘And did those feet in ancient times walk among England’s mountains green?’ If we take this question literally the answer, as many have protested throughout the years, is ‘Don’t be daft! Of course they didn’t!’ The narrative of the New Testament takes place within the context of a specific area of the middle-east more than two-thousand years ago. We can say with conviction that the historical Jesus did not ever visit any part of what we now know as the United Kingdom…

… and yet the risen Jesus, ascended and available to all, breaks into the world offering a grace and love that transcends time, space, and every other restraint imaginable. Suddenly the Kingdom of God, the New Jerusalem, ceases to be a dream for the future and becomes a reality to be experienced now.

In his book ‘A Rumour of Angels’ Peter Berger writes of the importance of ‘Keeping the rumour of God alive’ through acts of love and witness. The historical Jesus may never have set foot on UK soil but the Body of Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit, are tasked with being his hands and feet on earth. Hands that work without agenda; feet that walk alongside others without seeking reward.

Thus we join in the work that God is already doing in this community and throughout the world.

Love and Blessings,

Laura