I seem to have spent a lot of time sorting things out lately.  First there were all the things at the Presbytery at Ripley to go through in May 2019.  So that the builders and decorators could get to work prior to the house being rented out, we first had to completely empty it.  Quite a task, but thanks to the help given by Margaret and a good number of supportive parishioners, we managed it in the inside of a week.

Eighteen months later, in the later months of 2020, it was time to do the same thing all over again at Belper.  I’ll be honest: there are still quite a lot of books and a certain amount of furniture to be disposed of, in the Parish Room and at home, but with help we’re getting there. 

Our lives can get cluttered – and not just with material things.  We can get over-busy, over-committed, and find we’re not necessarily spending time with the people and projects that matter most.  Prayer and spiritual matters in particular can get pushed to the bottom of our busy agenda.  “We’ll get round to it when ….”  (a bit like all those things in the loft and the garage we’ve been meaning to get round to sorting).

Lent can be a time to reassess just where our time and energies go – and make the changes we need to.

MICHAEL KIRKHAM