Saturday 9th October 2021 – Let Us Serve Each Other

For the month of October, Linda Crossley reflects and offers prayers through hymns.

My starting point for these reflections was a number of hymns that have special meaning and significance for me in my Christian journey.

In preparation for my term as President, I needed to choose a theme on which to focus. “Brother, sister, let me serve you” (StF 611) had become very special to me over the preceding few years, as both my parents became unwell, moved into residential care together, and later died.  We had time to talk, reflecting on their long and happy lives, so amongst the bleakness and sadness, there were special moments of intimacy and joy.  (I chose the phrase “Pilgrims and Companions” from verse 2 as my theme.)

However, verse 3 says “I will hold the Christ-light for you in the night-time of your fear; I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.”  I tried to do that for both my parents as they faced the end of their earthly lives, and I regard that as a great privilege and a final act of love and service I could give them.

I have now sung the hymn in many different times and places, finding new layers of meaning in it each time.  One was that of actually realising what it means to “pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too”.  One of the strengths of MWiB is that many women are willing to lead, and capable of leading, as officers in circuit, district and connexional roles.  But does that mean we sometimes lack the grace to let others help us? I know that is true for me, yet when I opened up to the service and support of my colleagues, when I let them be my servant too, the results of our combined efforts were so much the better for it.

Let us pray that we may have the grace to let others be our servants, and combine all our endeavours to bring company, light, empathy and harmony into situations where they are so needed.

Please click the button to download the complete set of prayers for the month.