Wilderness

It is hard to remember much of my spiritual journey in the mid 90s. For probably about 2 years I didn’t go to church at all, partly because the local church were more linked to tradition than to spirituality and also because of other life events.

For a while I started attending a middle-of-the-road Anglican church in a neighbouring area and joined in with some of the activities including a small group who met to worship and discussion.

However before very long, I can’t remember exactly how long, I moved to a different town/village which was about 50 miles away and where I knew nobody. On my first Sunday there, I saw a notice board advertising a Sunday service which was about to start so I went in to see what it was like. It was the church which I have been a part of to this day.

What drew me to stay with them, apart from their strong welcome, was their informality, a style of worship which was close to the Charismatic Evangelicalism which I had encountered in the early days and because they had small groups where we could meet for devotions, Bible study and to share our journeys.

Despite my first impressions, and in contrast to the previous times I had moved to a new place, the next five years at least were very much like entering the wilderness. I was unable to get to know the other church-goers beyond the superficial and my main travelling companions at the time were people I was in contact with on the, newly emerging, internet. These were both Christian but predominantly non-believers who had life challenges. It was a time when we used to have get-togethers in different parts of the country for a drink and a chat and on a number of occasions people came to visit.

How did that influence me spiritually? It is hard to know.