From the Manse: A Thought for the Week
Sunday 7th June 2026
Dear Friend,
One of the questions I find myself asking from time to time is this: Do I give
God enough space to speak, or am I simply too busy to listen?
Life today seems to move at an incredible pace. Our diaries fill up quickly.
There are appointments to keep, jobs to do, messages to answer, and
countless demands on our attention. Even when we do find a spare
moment, it is often filled with the noise of television, radio, social media, or
the endless stream of information that comes through our phones.
Being busy is not necessarily a bad thing. Many of us lead full and
meaningful lives. Yet there is a difference between being busy and being so
occupied that we leave no room for God.
In the Old Testament, the prophet Elijah discovered that God was not in the
wind, the earthquake, or the fire, but in what Scripture describes as "a still
small voice" (1 Kings 19:12). God often speaks most clearly in moments of
quietness rather than noise.
Jesus Himself understood the importance of stepping away from the
crowds and demands of ministry. Again and again in the Gospels, we read
of Him withdrawing to lonely places to pray. If the Son of God needed time
and space to listen to His Father, then surely we do too.
The challenge for many of us is not that God has stopped speaking, but
that we have become less skilled at listening. We can become so focused
on what we want to say to God in prayer that we forget prayer is also about
listening. We can become so busy doing things for God that we neglect
simply being with Him.
Creating space for God does not necessarily require hours of silence or a
retreat to a monastery. It may be as simple as sitting quietly with a cup of
tea before the day begins, taking a walk and noticing God's creation around
us, reading a few verses of Scripture and reflecting on them, or ending the
day with a few moments of stillness before sleep.
Psalm 46 reminds us, "Be still, and know that I am God." These words are
both an invitation and a challenge. In a world that constantly demands our
attention, God invites us to pause, to be still, and to remember that our
worth is not measured by how much we do but by whose we are.
As we move through this week, perhaps each of us might ask ourselves:
Where is the quiet space in my life? When do I stop long enough to listen?
What might God be trying to say that I have been too busy to hear?
My prayer is that we, and yes that includes me, may all find moments of
stillness amid the busyness of life and discover once again the gentle voice
of God speaking words of guidance, comfort, challenge, and love.
Every blessing,
Rev Jade