Dear Friends

Not many people keep working until they are 96, which is when Prince Philip plans to stop official engagements. The Queen is a few years younger at 91 and still going strong. It’s often said that one of her secrets is a regular routine and that force of habit keeps her active and has allowed her to continue for so long. Breaking habits can be painful, as Lent reminds us. Do we really need to have a custard tart just because it’s 11 am, or a drink because it’s Friday evening? Those are the ones we want to watch out for. Equally though, we can train ourselves to acquire new, good habits. I was (almost) surprised to notice that when I was in Devon the other weekend I missed St Nicholas – it has only taken me since February to get used to being here every Sunday. Part of the Christian life is about finding ways to make space in our daily lives to pray and read the Bible. This doesn’t have to be a huge time commitment – it doesn’t take long to say the Lord’s Prayer to yourself or read a few verses. What matters is gaining the habit of doing it daily, come what may. Our weekly pew sheets have all three Sunday readings on them.
I encourage you to take these home and consider them again during the week.

Fr Alan