Day 9

Today has been a tremendous day for many reasons. We've walked the greatest total of kms so far and had great fun with the folks from the Parish of Hillsborough Riverside. There was much laughter. In addition, I learned many things about the countryside in this area. The day was also enjoyable because we walked on footpaths rather than roads for much of it. To end the day, we gathered in the little stone church in Riverside Albert for Evening Prayer.

This morning as I walked one of my travelling companions told me about how Jesus has released him from addiction and healed other parts of his life. This all happened several decades ago and was miraculous in the way it happened. It is always good to hear such stories as it reminds us of the greatness of the God whom we worship and his care for us.

As I walked through woodlands, beside ponds and streams; hearing the call of birds and seeing the evidence of the animals who inhabit the countryside, it was almost information overload about the creativity of God. My senses were buzzing with an appreciation of the majesty of God. Yet in the reading we had from Romans 8 this evening, we were reminded that creation is groaning in pain as a woman in childbirth. It is waiting for the children of God to be revealed so that it can be restored.

As the passage was read tonight and as I thought back to the marvels of the day, I was in awe of the greatness of God. The beauty of creation is stunning yet this is not a patch on what God intended. We do not know the magnitude of the difference between what we have and what was intended, but we know that it was more.

The creation we experience shows the love of God for us. It sustains us in more ways than we can imagine. God shows his grace to us through it as he does through Jesus. We also see the graciousness of the Father as he brings wholeness to damaged lives, as he did with my companion of this morning.

As a side note Fred, our Primate will not be able to join us on Wednesday as planned. He needs to remain in Toronto due to an important family matter. Please pray for him.

David