On the phone last night to a friend I havent seen in ages - the father of my 2 not-so-wee-anymore Goddaughters. J told me off for not updating the blog in a while, and was checking that things were generally ok.

Pentecost seems an appropriate time to start again - new life, new energy and all that jazz which is so important in church and in life.

Its just been a case of blog staleness, rather than anything major that has kept me away this last month and a half - life continues as ever with its varying busy-ness. Time has been spent balancing family/social/work lives (how do those of you with kids manage this???)  and rebuilding energies and enthusiasm in the 2 wee churches here in the West End, with mixed results. A joint service last Sunday (as we do on the first sunday of every month) saw a couple of visitors bravely invited along by members who have been thinking about mission as we’ve worked through some of the “leading your church into growth” material.

That the skeptics (in the nicest possible way) bit the bullet and decided to invite someone was success in itself - though you should have seen the faces when those “invitees” came along! It was wonderful. A congregation of almost 50 for a joint service is unheard of, but there we had it, and it was great!

business and family life keeping me absent at the moment.  back soon

After a mystery virus caused Alan to lose his voice way back at the beginning of June, 4 months off work, and 5 months of speech therapy, he is as cured as he is likely to get.  Its been a long haul!

We were both surprised I think by how much life changed while he had no voice, and how uncomfortable he felt being around  groups of people when he couldn’t join in the conversation.  It was isolating for him (although people understood and tried to make him feel at ease), and awkward for many who didnt know how to react to him.

He’s slightly quieter than he was,  can’t really shout,  and is slightly (ever so slightly) higher pitched.  But for him life is better  - no longer struggling to join in with conversations, no longer avoiding social situations where he knows he won’t be heard.  No more speech therapy.  Great News!

He is Risen indeed. Alleluia!

After worship this morning myself and members of the congregation walked the 100 yards or so to Crow Road, to wait in the cold for the Annual Easter Egg Run - Thousands of Bikers in convoy throughout the city. An Amazing sight!

I like playing with the Wii.  But this is just a bit odd.

Want to play as Jesus?  No thanks.  Want to play against Jesus?  not in the slightest - there is something in me which just doesn’t want to add further insult to injury, especially not this weekend.  So I’m not boxing him, or beating him at golf, or attacking him with a lightsaber.   Just working on getting my voice back for tomorrow.

From the Mission Bay Community Church Website:

Let Jesus into your Wii

This Easter Sunday, we will provide anyone who attends church with a Jesus Mii for their Nintendo Wii console. Just bring your Wii Remote or Wii and we’ll transfer a Jesus Mii to your system.

Then you, too, can box with Jesus, golf with Him, or even bowl with Him! A night bowling with Jesus? What could be better? Especially if you get that turkey and best Him by 100 points! Don’t worry;—He’ll forgive you. 

kind of. Tuesday of Holy Week (I can never remember the date, but the day and that phonecall I will never forget). I was 19.

The day Dad died.

He was only a few years older than I am now.

We never had a brilliant relationship - in fact at times it was pretty horrible, and I hadn’t seen him for over 3 years.

But today my dad has been dead for over half my life, and regardless of how rocky or non-existant our relationship was, I miss him, and I am so thankful for the last few weeks of his life - a precious time of reconnection and forgiveness.

Rest in peace Dad.

Tell me:

What came first

Easter or the egg?

Crucifixion

Or daffodils?

Three days in a tomb

Or four days

In Paris?

(returning

Bank Holiday Monday?)

When is a door

Not a door?

When it is rolled away.

When is a body

Not a body?

When it is a risen.

Question.

Why was it the Saviour

Rode on the cross?

Answer.

To get us to the other side.

Behold I stand.

Behold I stand and what?

Behold I stand at the door and

Knock knock.

(Steve Turner)

Be careful of your thought for your thoughts become your words
Be careful of your words for your words become your actions
Be careful of your actions for your actions become your habits
Be careful of your habits for your habits become your character
Be careful of your character for your character becomes your destiny

Source unknown

What an exciting, challenging and powerful two and a half days it has been.

Rather than the “conference for failures” Fr Kenny joked (and later repented!), it has been an opportunity to learn and to be inspired.

Tim and Damien, the course leaders, kept us entertained, made us work hard and assess realistically where we are at and where we want to be as churches.

Firmly rooted in the reality of the parish and the community, with plenty of anecdotal evidence and support, they led us on a journey of confidence building and of changing perspectives - not to look for the mega-church revival style growth, or to hide from mission by claiming that “its not about numbers”, but enabling us to look to the commuity where we are and make a diffence, adding the ones and twos to our we congregations as we go.

Fantastic stuff, and as i go through that process of reflection and working with the vestries, I’ll write more!

It is now good to be home, tired but excited and revitalised.

Heading to Renfrew for 3 days for the “Leading your Church into Growth” conference today. As sole cleric of 2 small and struggling churches, I’m looking forward to it - an opportunity to learn and to share with colleagues, get some new ideas and be inspired. We dont come together often enough to support and guide each other, so events like this are often cherished.

However, as is frequently the case I suspect the greatest learning and the most valuable discussions will probably come after the official sessions are done, over coffee or in the bar.

Taking the laptop, so if I get the opportunity I’ll be blogging as we go