by Chris Burchell
The clouds were banking up and the breeze was keen as a small group of us gathered for Forest Church led by Rob Marshall. The location was Westborough Woods, a small relict of the once extensive Royal Deer Park that stretched Northwest of Guildford and remembered in such names as Stag Hill (the site of the University of Surrey campus) and the Chase. The woods lie on a steep hill surrounded for the most part by housing and allotments.
As we climbed the hill and entered the woods, which are a mix of oak, holly and ash, there were already hints of spring, with a few daffodils and cherry blossom and the lively calls of great and blue tits. Hearing the wind through the trees always makes me think of Jesus’s words in John – ‘The wind blows wherever it pleases – so it is with everyone born of the Spirit’. Rob reminded us that God’s spirit lies behind all of nature.
We left the woods and entered an open stretch of ground under which there is a reservoir serving the people of Westborough with water and it commands wonderful views across Guildford. We grouped together for an awareness exercise focussed on the presence of Christ following the point of the compass. I reflected that we all need to get our bearings, to feel secure and grounded especially in what feels like an increasingly unstable world. Rob also read a little-known poem by William Cox Bennett called The Green Hills of Surrey which was very apt as we looked across at the North Downs.
Returning to the woods, and the explosive sound of a wren contrasting with the much more plaintive song of the robin, we spent some time looking at two oak trees, one had a burnt hollow and seemed to be in poor shape. We calculated its age by a method I had not seen before measuring its girth and dividing it by 2.5 which gave an approximate age of 175 years: it was amazing to think when that was starting to grow, Victoria was on the throne! We often think of time in our own human centric terms, but a growing tree works to a very different timetable. God often does the same with us!
The other oak was in a clearing in the centre of the wood and seemed to be thriving its boughs reaching outwards unrestricted and free. Rob helped us reflect by reading the famous passage from Isaiah 61, which foretells The Christ and is blessings on the world and His people who will be called ‘Oaks of Righteousness’ (Verse 3). This conjured up in my mind strength and continuity and variety (given the oak as a rich ecosystem living within it). The Church, I thought, should always celebrate difference and diversity.
I also noticed that there were other oaks growing very close together and they seemed constricted – I was thinking of the numerous responsibilities in my life and how sometimes this can crowd out by walk with God. Mark, who was with us, was from a conservation background commented that although much work had been done to restore the woodland it was now not actively being managed and it needed attention to ensure that it continued flourishing. This spoke to me about Lent, to think about those things that need stripping back, pruning and cutting away to allow new shoots, new growth, and the light of God’s light to shine in those darker places of my life.
As we finished our time and walked back down the hill, it was wonderful to visit this little gem of woodland so close to home. It reaffirmed the role of Forest Church in my spiritual walk and as we left, I thought of Romans 1 – ‘For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made