Ministers Letter

Summer is here! I hope that you have been able to enjoy the

weather in some form or another. Near me, I hear the lawnmowers

and other garden tools running, usually early in the morning or later

evening as it cools, snatches of conversations, and dogs barking. And

then there are the snippets of birdsong and chatter of the magpies.

It is amazing how much is going on around me – nothing remarkable,

just people and creation simply being themselves. It is a joyful noise

(most of the time, anyway).

This phrase appears in the opening verse of Psalm 100: " Make a

joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth ". It is one of my go-to verses

to encourage congregations and groups of people when worried about

sounds during worship or equivalent situation.

I am not being flippant – the verse says to make a joyful noise

(shout, blast are other possible translations of the Hebrew).

Harmony and tuning are lovely, but sometimes we need to just make

a joyful noise to God – with our capacity and abilities at that

moment.

Making noise can liberate things because it does not require anything

more of us than to be noisy...joyfully...and to aim that noise in God's

direction. As the psalm continues (all five verses), we sense how that

initial shout can lead us to worship with gladness. To know and

acknowledge that God is God and that we are God's people.

And yet making a joyful noise can also be the hardest thing to do at

times. It is important to recognise that, and it is where we need to

look out for each other and be prepared to be a little bit noisier

until our neighbour is ready to join in again. Sometimes just making a

noise is necessary too, whether that be one of lament, pain, anger, or

frustration, as long as we are directing the noise to God and then

being prepared to wait and listen for God's response. The

reassurance here is in the last verse, " For the Lord is good; his

steadfast love endures forever and his faithfulness to all

generations."

I encourage you to seize the opportunities to make a joyful noise to

God and listen out for how others and creation are making their

joyful noise.

Yours in Christ

Revd. Marcia Tull