It was good to be with Alison Judd in Sidmouth last week. Yesterday she sent me this photo of a shop window there which had caught her eye. It had reminded her of my theme, Story and Song. This idea of story seems to pop up all over the place!
This shop window challenges me to remember how important it is to keep our responsibilities to our families in the right place, especially when we are busy preparing to be away from them! This week I shall be in London, next week in Northampton and at Launde Abbey and the following week in Cornwall.
The Sunday before my MWiB ‘chapter’ began in earnest, one of the lectionary readings was Isaiah 58. Hidden within it, at the end of verse seven, there is a little phrase about family, tucked in after all the very worthy instructions about serving others.
… this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from the relatives who need your help.
