By Judy Taylor

Last week Paul and I had a lovely break for a few days in the Cotswolds and we were so lucky to have chosen a week when we had such lovely weather. We were staying in what would once have been a stately house set in hundreds of acres of beautiful grounds. The weather was so warm and sunny and I wanted to make the most of it so I decided I would go for a walk in these lovely grounds on Wednesday. There were paths taking you into different parts of the estate with a map to guide you but I was just so glad to be outside in the sunshine after the long dreary grey days we have been having, I thought I would just see where my footsteps would take me. I hadn’t been walking for very long when I saw an old rustic bench which looked very inviting. (What sort of walk am I on I can hear you asking yourselves?!). Well I sat there for a while, just drinking in the sunshine, feeling the warmth which seemed to not only warm my body but also my spirit. After leaving the bench I found myself walking through dappled sunlight into some woods. Here there were many clumps of snowdrops and – birdsong. It was as if every bird was singing in these woods. Songs I had never heard before, the chorus of sound was just beautiful. I had to stop and listen and marvel at everything around me and I think that it was here I began my prayer walk but it is only looking back that I realise that that is what it was.

I was giving thanks to God for this beauty all around me, and as I stopped to look at yet another lovely group of snowdrops, they were nodding their little heads as if in agreement with me. My pace got slower as I stopped just to hear the birds or just to be in the sun. I did not want anything to spoil this wonderful experience but as we all know, the mind doesn’t always go where we want it to go! I found myself thinking about the awful state of the world and in particular of Ukraine and all that has happened recently with President Zelenskyy. I brought this to God, as I know millions of people will be doing all over the world. In this special moment I felt at peace, which was different, I normally feel anxious and fearful of what is to come and pretty overwhelmed too. I don’t know how long I was walking but in all it was a healing and a reassurance experience knowing that God holds everything and we just have to trust that.

I love to think of Jesus, walking in the hills overlooking Galilee. There he would have found peace, away from the crowds that followed him. He too would have marvelled at his Father’s hand in the beauty of the flowers, the sun, the birdsong and the lake below. It was here that he found his Father, in the stillness where he could be with him and listen to his voice. We all need to find a place to be with God, whether on a walk, listening to music or lighting a candle to bring us into that time of stillness. We need this more than ever in these uncertain and turbulent times. And it is here that we can tell God of those fears and worries. We can bring to him all that is on our hearts knowing that he listens, hears us and loves us.

As we continue our journey this Lent, let Jesus be our companion and let us be his companion too. Let us walk with him our most trusted friend, see his absolute trust in his Father even though he knows what awaits him. If we can we bring him comfort and love by staying with him, his journey like ours will be lighter and wherever our walk in Lent and beyond leads us, we can, like Jesus, know that his Father, our Father loves us unconditionally and at our journey’s end he will welcome us home to be with him always.