“I believe that prayer is one of the greatest powers available in the entire universe. When we think of atomic power, we think of forces greater than we can imagine. When we think of something as basic as fuel power in a motorcycle, we think of something noisy, intense & potentially dangerous. But every kind of power we encounter on earth means nothing in Heaven. Atomic power could wipe out an entire city of people, but it cannot give them eternal life. This power once commanded the attention of every nation on earth, but it never healed a broken heart. Fuel power may take us where we want to go in the world, but it does not help us make spiritual progress in our lives or in our move towards God. Prayer opens the door for God to work. It is the activity that you & I engage in on earth when we need the power of Heaven to come into our lives & bring wisdom, direction, encouragement, or a miraculous breakthrough. Prayer releases the power of God into our daily lives, & the power of prayer is that it connects us to the power of God. Only the power of prayer can move the hand of God. & only the power of God can change an individual heart, free a person from slavery & torment, overturn disappointments & devastations, break the power of an addition or heal a person’s emotions. Only God’s power can bring peace, instil joy, grant wisdom, impart a sense of value & purpose to a person who is lost, & work every kind of miracle. The awesome, tremendous power of God is released in our lives through simple faith-filled prayer.” (The Power of Simple Prayer: Joyce Meyer)
Lent continues to go well for us: a time of gentle reflection, prayerful self-examination, simple good works, & profound thanksgiving for the gift of our faith, in God & in each other. Last Thursday, the Feast of St Benedict, & the Patronal Feast of our Primary School we had a special Collective Worship looking at St Benedict’s call, his work, his special welcome for guests, & his emphasis on the family within monastic life. Please keep the children, staff & parents in your prayers as they await an imminent Ofsted Inspection. Each week of Lent we are meeting with the parishioners from St Hilda’s for a Lenten Pause a half hour of silent prayer & reflection (waiting for the kingfisher). Dates each week vary to try to include as many of you as possible.Tues 26th March St Hilda’s: Mon 1st April OL&SB: Tues 9th April St Hilda’s. All at 5.15pm until 5.45pm. There are usually 7 or 8 of us representing the faith in the Village. Caroline Dollard’s Lent Course, based on her new book “Seeking God Together”, continues on Wednesdays. Each person there receives a copy of the book courtesy of the Parish, as a commitment to our ongoing spiritual formation so vital for each of us. The course is helping us to look at how we accompany families of all shapes, sizes & make up, at every stage of their existence as part of our belonging together & our community responsibility. Last week we looked at the childhood years.4 more “seasons” to explore on Wednesdays 27th March, 3rd, 10th, &17th April 2019, 7.30pm to 9pm. On Sun 14th April (Palm Sunday) there will be an ecumenical Stations of the Cross & Palm Procession at Byland Abbey probably at 3.45pm. More details to follow. Last Sunday we welcomed to Mass 28 Confirmation candidates & 6 Catechists from Our Lady of Kirkstall Parish in Leeds who were on Retreat with Fr Bede for the weekend. They were very grateful to you all for your warm welcome & interest in their faith journey. In the final session “what next?” the following intentions emerged “we will take more responsibilities; we want to be include more in Mass; we will help our parents more; it is our responsibility to go to Mass & to pray; we will spread the faith; we hope to be trusted more.” Please keep them in your prayers on their journey. with love & my prayers. Fr Bede