Welcome
We are the Church of England parish of St Mary’s Shaw cum Donnington – just to the north and east of Newbury.
Our purpose and focus is Knowing Jesus, Sharing God’s Love, Caring for People.
You can read more about it here.
We meet every Sunday at 10am, as well as at other times during the week.
Everyone is welcome to join us.
Word for the Week
- Talking to God
In the book of Ecclesiastes it says “God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few”. Jesus said we shouldn’t babble like pagans (Matt 6:7), as if God could be impressed by our words (either because they are many, or because they are eloquent). But if God is Great, and I am small, perhaps it would be better to say nothing at all – then I can’t get it wrong.
Except that saying nothing would be wrong, because it disengages us from God. God doesn’t want that.
Jesus said “When you pray, say …” and Ecclesiastes talks about few words, not no words.
But how do we choose the right words when we pray? I wonder if the answer to that is that we shouldn’t think about it. As soon as we try to construct a ‘good’ prayer, we’ve moved away from a relationship with Our Father in Heaven. Prayer isn’t trying to manipulate, it is seeking to be close and growing closer.
So if we find prayer hard or confusing, maybe we could try being like little children and saying what is in our heart. Say it once, say it to our Father who loves us, who may correct, but will never leave us.
Raymond