Pilgrim's Progress column with Hannah Smith: Happy September

It’s September and I have said ‘Happy New Year’ to a number of people this week – to their amusement! This time of year can feel like the start of a new season as pupils and staff go back to work, family holiday-time comes to an end and offices get busier again.

This sense of newness can be an opportunity to reflect on our patterns of life and see if there are things we want to start, or stop, or embrace again – a sort of reset similar to new year’s resolutions but perhaps in a gentler way.

September can be a good time to take on a new habit – to eat more healthily, to move more, to find more spaces to be still, to take time to be grateful and count our blessings. Often, even the smallest changes that we choose to make can have a big effect on our well-being. I wonder what might be a helpful change you might want to make?

As Christians we believe in a God of endless second chances – whenever we stop and take stock, say sorry, ask for forgiveness and resolve to start afresh – we believe God is kind and, because of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, we have an opportunity for a new start. That’s why many churches have an act of confession most weeks when they meet – so that each week, we can stop, let go of what hinders us, and find new ways to live that honour God and give us fresh hope.

I wonder how your life might change if you believed you had endless second chances and fresh opportunities each day, each week, each season? Can I encourage us all to embrace the ‘New Year’ feeling this autumn term?

Hannah Smith, Parish of Sandal Magna