Thought For The Week 27 October 2024

Two weeks ago I returned to te Maungarongo Mārae, Ōhope, for a PCANZ hui, and while I was there I realised  that I had arrived for the hui exactly one year to the day after I arrived on my study leave journey.

An old friend used to describe those coincidences that are too perfect to be coincidence as “God-incidences”. You can explain them away if you want to, but, to the eyes of faith, they invite us into a deeper understanding of God’s participation in the life of this world.

Arriving on the same day, one year removed, was for me a God-incidence that invited me to reflect on the changes I can see in the marae community, and the changes I can see in myself. To reflect on the journey I have undergone in the intervening months.

It was so encouraging to see little signs of growth all around the marae – everything looking a little more ship-shape, the whānau bright and hopeful, the footprint I left in the fresh paint in the Sister Emily Ross youth hall. All of these things speak of growth, and hope and newness of life.

In my own life I have had quite a journey too: Study leave, losing mum, discernment for the future. As I look back over the last year I acknowledge the hard times, and I celebrate the growth: I notice in myself a greater reliance on and connection to God through the Spirit. I notice resilience, I notice new seeds of hope for the future germinating. I wonder where God will lead me in the next year?

I encourage you to prayerfully reflect on the year that has been, to give thanks for the growth in your life, and to pray for God’s guidance for the future: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13

Many blessings,

Rory