This year’s parish retreat to Foxhill was a first for Andrew and Becky Ginn. Here are their reflections.
On Wednesday 11th April fifteen retreatants set off for Foxhill House at Frodsham, Cheshire, a retreat centre owned by the Diocese of Chester. Foxhill is the former home of the Pilkington family (the tile manufacturers) and is a mansion house set in 70 acres of lawns and woodlands.
From a personal perspective, the centre offered a place of peace and tranquillity which inspired a greater closeness to God. Through a series of talks, meditations, reflections, shared worship, a quiz and a film we were encouraged to gel together as a group and share ideas, life experiences, backgrounds and feelings at a level at which we each felt comfortable. We were invited using Lectio Divina and imaginative engagement with Scripture to reflectively read, observe and meditate on passages relating to Jesus’s empty tomb, resurrection and first meetings with the disciples after his death, putting ourselves in the place of the participants and being attentive to what God was saying to us. Our reflections were based on Archbishop Cottrell’s book “The Things He Said”.
We studied, we prayed, we laughed, we worshipped in the beautiful chapel, we broke bread together at the Eucharist and we had quiet time and space for our own reflections and stillness to listen to what God was saying to each of us as we rested in God’s presence. Through camaraderie, shared meals, fellowship and togetherness we learnt of and from each other.
Our thanks as a group go out to Revd Helen and Krystyna for leading the sessions, for Revd Sue for being our celebrant and to Christine for organising the retreat.
As I came away from this place of rest and spiritual refreshment the closing words of the prayer used at the Eucharist had sharper meaning: “Send us out in the power of Your spirit to live and work to Your praise and glory.” Amen.
Andrew Ginn
A Poem Inspired by The Foxhill Retreat
Listening to the bustling trees
God speaks to me through them
Watching water, in the stream
God speaks to me through that
Smelling the freshness of the earth
God speaks to me with that
Touching the grass and holding dirt
God calls to me by that.
God is in the “every day”
The here, the now, for life
He’ll run beside you, through thick and thin
And always be by your side
He’s here to help with things get tough
When you’re down and out and need friends
He’ll support and guide you on your journey
Until the very end
But he’s also here to celebrate
The achievements and successes we make
The good things in our life, sometimes
Are easy to mistake.
So God will remind us when we feel low
Of all the things that we have done
And will empower us to keep on going
Until the race is run.
Becky Ginn
St Margaret's Church Prestwich 