Bishop Jackie’s New Year message

As we step into 2025, Bishop Jackie reflects on her upcoming retirement and the journey ahead. In her final New Year message as Bishop of Crediton, she shares thoughts on looking forward with faith and the comfort of knowing that, though the future may be uncertain, guidance is always near. 

Bishop Jackie, who is retiring at the end of January 2025, invites all to join her farewell service at Exeter Cathedral on Saturday 18 January at 3pm. Tickets for the service can be obtained at TicketSource

For the last few years my husband has made a calendar, featuring photos from the past year, as a Christmas gift for family. 

Each month reveals a happy reminder from the previous year – a family wedding, a beautiful walk, a sunny holiday.

What it can’t do is look ahead – this is where you will be in the coming year! 

That’s just not possible.

As I approach retirement, I have regularly been asked the same two questions: Are you looking forward to it? And what are you going to do? 

They’re questions we could all ask at the start of the New Year. 

There may be events ahead we look forward to - a baby expected, a holiday booked, a new course of study – but we can’t actually know what is to come. 

And with the world as it is, and depending on our circumstances, they can be daunting questions to answer. 

A friend recently reminded me of a song we used to sing in church when I was a child. 

It has these words: ‘I do not know what lies ahead, the way I cannot see; yet one stands near to be my guide, he’ll show the way to me.’

On the special silver cross that I was given to wear when I was made a Bishop, these words from Psalm 23 are inscribed: ‘The Lord is my Shepherd’. 

They are a constant reminder to me that Jesus is the Good Shepherd, who cares for each of us and walks with us through life.

In answer to the questions – yes, I am looking forward to it, but with mixed feelings as I leave a role and place I have loved. 

And what comes next is an open question – there is spaciousness and possibility. 

And if at times that is daunting: ‘One stands near to be my guide; he’ll show the way to me.’ The Good Shepherd will do the same for each of us, if we let him, as we enter 2025.

I wish you a joyful, blessed, and peaceful New Year.

The Rt. Rev’d Jackie Searle, Bishop of Crediton