On December 19, 2023, Heather Birtles lived out an adventure she always knew would happen, and she faced it with courage — perhaps even some excitement. Heather had been preparing for her death for a very long time — doing so was part of living out her faith. I have no doubt that those many moments in her life which felt like “a touch of heaven” are her new eternal life: singing in a choir, laughing with her husband, watching her grandchildren, or being in contemplative prayer.
Heather was an active member of the Anglican Fellowship of Prayer (AFP), and for many years she was our leader. We miss her dearly and we struggled with gathering again without her beautiful presence. We are grateful to St. Matthew’s Anglican Church for inviting the AFP to lead a prayer workshop for their prayer team and other members of the congregation and deanery. We were encouraged by people’s faithfulness to prayer, and it was such a gift to be in a group again, praying for people’s concerns and community issues. We were also inspired by one of their prayer team, Marilyn Boyd, asking if she might join AFP. She recalled how much her grandmother appreciated her time with the AFP.
The mandate of the AFP is to encourage Christians in their prayer life and provide resources and learning opportunities for congregations and individuals. When the AFP members talked after the prayer workshop at St. Matthew’s, we decided we had better get back at it — SO WE ARE BACK!!!!
We meet on the second Tuesday of every second month at 10:00 am at St. George’s Anglican Church. We welcome anyone to come in the next few months to pray, or to come and receive help and encouragement in their personal prayer life or that of their congregation. A congregation has asked us to offer a short mid-week teaching before Lent on the ways of prayer and are in discussion about a possible prayer workshop in a deanery that would be open to the rest of the diocese.
We are a very small group of lay and clergy who do not have any special expertise or wisdom, but we believe in the power of prayer and the importance of strengthening our relationship with Jesus through constant communication. This often just involves listening. Please feel free to join us. Call Bill Oakley at (204) 224-5002 or Diane Guilford at (204) 823-3383 for more information.
By Diane Guilford on behalf of Linda Oakley, Bill Oakley, Eric Parsons, and Marilyn Boyd.
