A Change of Pace

The month of August often signals a change in life's pace. For many people, being liberated from the constant routine of getting children ready and to school on time is a relief. Many people take holidays in August because it is the school holiday. Those not connected to the academic year might notice less traffic on the roads to and from work. There will be many people away from work on holiday; the feel of work will be different, possibly fewer interruptions and the opportunity to do some work that you have been meaning to get around to. August can be a time for a little breathing space and time for reflection.

The counterbalance to all this is that for many people, this is their busiest time. They are often involved in tourism or offering hospitality. The busiest time ensures they have the resources to manage the less busy periods in their business. It becomes important that this hard work is successful. There are questions about whether holidays and eating out are still affordable in our difficult financial times. On a more subtle note, the days are becoming shorter, and the journey towards autumn has already begun. It means that, for farmers, there is pressure to complete harvesting before the seasons change. There will be many long days of work and anxious checking of the weather forecast.

  In church life, the month of August was also seen as a quiet time. When I started in ministry, the bishop would be away for the whole month of August. I suspect it was connected to the recess of the House of Lords, which starts last week in July and resumes in September. There was also an exodus of people going on holiday, so church activities were suspended during this period. It is noticeable that people are going away all year round. I am now asked to do things in August that would not have been possible twenty years ago.

  What is interesting to me is that God can be found in the busiest of times as well as in the quiet times. It is not so much that God changes; rather, our view of God changes. Sometimes when life is so busy that we do not have time for God, he is left on the pending pile until life quietens down. Or the opposite is true: without God’s help, we will never manage to get through our stressful times. The challenge for us is to build a relationship with God that endures in both the quiet and the busy times. Like everything, it requires discipline and commitment to maintain it. It is much easier to let things slip and be surprised when we end up in a place where we do not want to be.

Rev. Martin Wood. The Rectory, Church Lane, Cheriton Bishop EX6 6HY 01647 24119 (Tuesday to Sunday) revwood163@gmail.com