You know you're getting old when....

...You go to a family party to celebrate the 18th birthday of someone who you still think should be 15!

Adam, who is referred to, quite rightly, as the youngest cousin, on my Dad's side of the family, turns 18 today, but for family tradition, we always celebrate occassions such as this on a Sunday afternoon/evening. So yesterday, we piled over to Hadleigh to wish him many happy returns and pull out al the old stories, of when we were children and life didn't include mortages, exams and university choices. It makes us happy for a brief moment (and especially happy to note that the eldest of us will be turning 30 in the next three years!) and then we go back to real life... The family bubble is amazing, we can go from opening our doors to loads of boys, to having a roast on a Thursday lunch time, to gently (though sometimes it hits below the belt) humouring each other over food and beer (and this time cake!)

Here's the whipper snapper of the group

That's 'Happy Birthday' in lights for those of you who are struggling with my photo taking abilities (they were brought with the thought that at Christmas he was dressed like a Christmas tree!). His girlfriend is sat next to him.

And this is the cake that helped us to celebrate in the only way we know how (eating lots and singing really loudly!)


That cake topper has glasses, black hair, a black outfit and the coolest drawing of a skull and cross bones I've seen for a very long time! It was created in foam by my Aunt's colleague (who isn't a profession cake maker, but a teacher). The comptuer has a mouse and a key board, plus all the wires you need! It's not edible, but still, I love it!

So Happy 18th Birthday Adam! Enjoy it and we'll see you in the pub some time soon!

Believing the impossible

For the last couple of posts I've been talking about being in our local secondary school, participating and leading lessons for year 7's and 8's (that's anyone aged 11-13, if you don't understand our schooling system!). The year seven groups have heard all about church from a Christian perspective (I can't do it any other way!) and the year eights have had the horror of crucifixion (believe me, it's not very nice to hear the description every day, I haven't got used to it yet and I hope I never do!).

I wanted to call this post 'Celebrating the Ordinary' but I think that what we've come across in the last three weeks has been extraordinary, the students we've spoken to, taught and listened to have all been interested in church and Jesus, His life, His ministry. Which for me is amazing, we don't know their backgrounds, but you can be certain that some of them have parents who have never set foot inside a church. I have been astonished by the wealth of knowledge that we have come across, and I hope that they all remember it for a very long time!

(Of course, we have our funny stories - one boy when asked the difference between real bunnies and the Easter bunny said that Easter bunnies lay chocolate eggs - a highlight of the time we've spent in school!)

The year seven's are doing a church project, they have to visit a local church and build up a report of it, and present it. It's a big part of year 7 R.S. and being one of the closest churches to Mayflower School, we end up getting a few young people through our doors. It's a great idea and it gives me a chance to talk about a building I grew up in, and this week I spotted this


(I love that I have a 5 megapixel camera with me all of the time)

Some pretty cool shots of the church I know so well and I have the privilage of working in.

These images are really key right now, particularly the one of the cross and the banner. We're heading quickly into Holy Week and before you know it, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday will be upon us... but Sunday is a'coming.

This time last year, I was scared, I didn't know where I was going, what I was doing, but this Easter, I'm excited, full of passion for what I believe to be true, the saving grace that has brought me this far, and the ability to put it into words and share the truth of Easter with those I care about the most. To speak about a history that stretches beyond my imagination and to help others catch a glimpse of what it means to be a Christian with a rich tradition, after all Jesus was a Jew!

I've been reminded this week as well that the Trinity will deal with doubters, God will arrive and say

"Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me." Job 40:7

Jesus will appear and say to those who are unsure

"Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." John 20:27

And the Holy Spirit will turn up and speak to those in their own language, so that they will believe. (The whole of Acts)

The one thing that made me chuckle is that the Thomas story appears in John, and if you know anything about John the writer, you'll know he's a little self centred at times. (Don't believe me? Read John 20: 3-9) Just made me laugh that he's a little 'I can point the finger, because I'm so great'.

Any way... pretty powerful ideas, it's for us to love the doubters, to listen to their worries, their theories, but believe that God will show up in a big way to change their lives.

Getting the sniffles

As always, whenever there is something hugely important going on, I get ill. I get run down, panicked and generally a little ditsy through stress (so apologies if I don't spell check this entry). I can feel myself right now, heating up a little, but I've got cold feet and cold hands, perhaps time to take a couple of cold and flu tablets, to keep my temperature down.

The hugely important thing? I know I've already mentioned it, but I'll say it again, we're in school, doing lessons this week. I do love it, though I am hugely out of practice and know I can't do it without God's power and words. And you know how I know this....

“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9

I've been reading in my Bible notes that we're all given talents, we all have to work at them, but in the end God knows how He wants us to use them (and more importantly when), so we have to step back and say to God 'I can't do this, but I know you can'.

(I use Mettle Bible Reading Notes from YFC, which are aimed at 14-18 year olds, and you may think that is odd, but I haven't come across anything that is specifically written for 20 somethings, that isn't full of patronising stories, some times it works, other times it doesn't, but I still get a structured way of reading the Bible and by the time I'm at a point where I can write bible notes, I'll be patronising to everyone who is 20 something!)

I've stepped back a lot over this month and said 'God you do this, I can't', and I've seen some amazing, mind blowing results.

Last night, we had a full youth group, but only four staff members - that's 16 young people (and one dog), to four adults - normally, we wouldn't open with less than 5 people, but we did, and it was a brilliant night, there weren't any major incidents and despite the change of layout, everyone was fine. I definitely felt God's presence falling on the building. One of our staff members is ill at the moment and he told me that a mix up had occurred a couple of weeks ago and the doctor had told him that he's not as unwell as we first feared. I felt a huge sense of relief and thanks that his treatment could go ahead.

Now we're praying for leaders, we're in desperate need of people to help out on Thursday evenings.

This morning I was at an assembly for the school where my boss is chaplain. It was really good to see him speak and pray over a school that is so close to our church.

Keep praying with us, keep asking God to protect us, at school, at youth group, as full time and part time workers.

Celebrations

Yesterday evening we travelled to Quendon Hall (just outside Ugley - tee hee!) to celebrate the marriage of Laura and Kevin.


That's Me, Laura, Kevin, Mandy and Rob in the Drawing Room when we arrived. Laura was soon whisked away to say goodbye to people. It was a wonderful evening, we shared a dance floor and food (very good). So glad to be invited and although none of us were at the ceremony, we were happy to celebrate with drinks and smiles. I know that this is a good and strong relationship, and we're praying for them both as they start living together!

The other reason I'm celebrating is because we're (Schools Ministry Billericay) in Mayflower School for the next two weeks. So far (and I've only done three lessons) we've had a positive response from everyone and loads of questions from students and teachers. We know that our profile is going to be raised and we pray that what we teach sinks in!

Speaking Out

Once again Bible passages are speaking to me left, right and centre!

I've been reminded recently that

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

which is from Psalm 23 - the writer is talking to God thanking Him for the protection and shelter that He provides - yet in the midst of that, there's this verse, verse 5, which cuts right to the core. My take on it, after being told that I needed to read it after a particularly hard day, where it seemed that everything had gone wrong and everyone was against me, is that God has spent a lot of time finding the right food, the right bits of information for me and has created a feast in front of the people who hate me the most, those who would like to trip me up, get me angry, upset me. I know that I can be full, when my enemies are starving, if I lean on the Lord, if I trust in Him with all of my heart. I have a really big picture in my head of a table full of food, and with Easter approaching, it's quickly turning into a Passover meal. There's also another element, God has prepared a safe place for me, a feast is rarely laid out where scavengers can get to it, so I don't have to keep looking over my shoulder to protect myself and I can lay down and enjoy it. I think I'm always going to go back to this when I come across really tough situation.

The other passage that has hit me square between the eyes is

Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

Romans 12:16

I knew that 'live in harmony' was a big thing, and I know it's all about forgiveness and listening to each other, and I try my hardest to, its the next two sentences that made me sit up and listen. A stark reminder that although I know that God loves me and sent His own Son to die for me, I certainly shouldn't act like I've got one-up on everyone nor do I know the whole history of the world and whats to come. I guess though, that the same goes for people who aren't Christian... I think the world would be a better place if some of us learnt that we need to keep find out things and that we're not top of the pile.

The fact that I'm surprised by the verses I've mentioned is a reminder to me that I'm in serious need of some learning!

The end is in sight

For the painters of the lines

The rest of the road has been finished, its just the space underneat* the two cars that have sneakily parked in the road. And by sneakily, I mean, they still didn't put out cones or anything... at the moment though, there are still no restriction signs anywhere to help motorists fathom why the lines have been put down.

I will say it over and over... thinking before acting is a tried and tested method of getting success.

*No not a spelling mistake but a link to a great website!

Oh the evidence

Following on from my last post I have the evidence... it's damning, shameful and yes, ridiculous...



Taken this morning, while I was still in my car as you can tell from the bonnet and windscreen wiper in the picture, but you can just see the 'dashes' of double yellow lines... not that I've seen any notice of the restrictions or what the restrictions actually are. I'm sure I'll find out on Monday. The question still remains though... why, when the road is most definitely going to be empty, haven't the line painters closed the road, and finished the job? Is it safer to paint lines between cars?

I know, I just know that as I drive to work tomorrow, I'm going to see cars parked in the 'empty' spaces. And of course, how are they going to police this restriction?

I've asked the question many a time and have never had a satisfactory answer... I've seen people parked outside school when they absolutely should be penalised - for dangerous, on the kerb parking, and there haven't been any traffic wardens around to issue penalties.

Enough... I promise my next post won't be so ridiculous.

Oh the ridiculousness!

Of the council mainly.... I've been driving around Billericay now for 8 and a half months and I don't think I've ever seen the stupid things that I've seen today. Maybe it is just because I have to concentrate on what is happening now that I spot the strange idiosyncrasies of people who are working for the council by default.

Line painting is my example. We've all seen/heard the stories of people having their cars painted with yellow lines or been given tickets because the traffic warden (or whatever the PC term is for them...I'm not particularly bothered at this time of night) has come round whilst the paint is still wet, and the uproar that it can cause. I get that the lines need to be painted, but really, painting between the cars? I'm partly tempted to go back to the spot where I've seen this an take a photo to show you... in fact if it's still like that on Sunday night I will.

It is stupid, a little fore thought would flag up that the cars are going to be parked there, day in day out, normally during working (or commuting) hours and that they will be removed shortly after 6pm or 7pm. After that time, work can commence or the cones can come out ready for painting the next day... simples (as Aleksandr would put it) but no.

Then there's the guy painting the lines with the road still open... on the estate where I live, it's not to hard to redirect the traffic and not a huge amount of people are going to be annoyed if you divert them for a very good reason. I don't want the person painting the line to get knocked over... as morbid as that sounds, it probably does happen. So shut the road of 5 mins and do it safely!

And finally... would it kill you to pull your trousers up whilst you're the face (arse) of the council? I mean literally of course, because the last thing I need on a Friday morning is to see that!

Expectant

The past couple of days I've felt like I'm actually being prepared to do something, to understand something that's coming my way.

For a couple of months I have been slowly coming back to reading the bible everyday, and for the last couple of days the readings and what I've been hearing through other people have been really interesting.

The CGi Women's Conference on Saturday was really powerful, I really like being able to be honest with other people who are in the same situation, who have a few extra years wisdom and can give appropriate advice.

The speakers all had something really important to say... right now I can't remember their names, but there was a lady from Cherish Uganda, who spoke about the work of the Holy Spirit in the village where she runs a community project. She was really aware of the presence of evil - like it was lurking... I've never heard someone describe evil in the way she did. It's really scary, I don't think of evil as lurking, I know something isn't quite right but from evil to be 'hiding behind a bush or something' sends chills down my spine.

We heard from the first black female Baptist president, who talked about King David and the transition of kings from Saul to David, where the community knew that the Lord had left Saul and moved to David, as soon as that happened the loyalty of the armies switched and so did the loyalty of Saul's own sons... if that's what God's power does, then I never want God to leave me.

During the afternoon stream we heard from the lead pastor at CGi Orkney, who used Titanic - a long 13 minute clip of the 3 hour movie - to describe how the church needs to get out of the cruise ship (because it eventually will sink), into the lifeboats and then looking for the lost, going back to those floating in the sea.

It was a great day, some really good times for worship. The rest of the week has been strange. I've had visions and my bible reading this morning was all about history... a whole passage dedicated to the fore fathers and prophets of the Old Testament, my vision was of a rug being woven, that although you can see the detail up close, you have to step away and see the whole pattern to appreciate the beauty of it. At the moment, I know I'm looking really closely at it... And I think I need to step back a bit. Or maybe something is going to be revealed to me soon. Hebrews 11 is a great reminder that as a Christian I've got a huge history of wisdom to draw on and a faith that is centuries old.

I don't know, but I'm excited that God has a plan for me and He's starting to give me little bits of the bigger picture.

It's only Fair...

It's only fair that during fair trade fortnight we should allow our community to try Fair Trade products... so that's what we've been doing... sharing chocolate, cookies, tea and coffee for free.

So heads up... here's a plate of chocolate to make you hungry/wish you'd never visited my blog/wish you lived in Billericay...


And it's all FREE! We've had a great response from the people coming home from school, some who just want chocolate, others who have stuck around to find out a bit more.

So why not buy some fair trade goods or a banana and be part of Go bananas!

Raising awareness

My sister is doing some fun-draising in her parish, all the details are there in the link...

I'm raising funds in a different way... by raising awareness of several different things this week. Firstly it's fair trade fortnight... so we're holding a couple of cafes at Christ Church and taking part in Go Bananas this Friday... I'm going to have bananas coming out of my ears by the end of the day... but it's all part of your five a day... so give it a go, help a worthy cause, and be part of a world record attempt by registering your group/office/family at Go Bananas!

Secondly, I've been raising awareness for the another group young people I'm working with in Chelmsford. If you've never heard of Envision, it's worth taking a look, by clicking on the link. This year, our project is all about sustainability in the community, creating a recipe book with quick and easy meals, so that during this time of economic downturn, people can find affordable ways of feeding their families. They are Boswell and they are really proud of what they are doing!

So I'm shooting off to Chelmsford to see how the project is going and then coming back to Billericay to work with the fair trade cafe!

Spring Has Sprung

Today has been lovely and sunny out, not really warm, but warm enough to forgo a coat for short walks. I stepped out the house and was greeted by a wonderful part of God's creation


Flowers... lovely sun yellow! I don't know what they are, but I remember thinking last week that nothing was going to grow in the space that was left and just looked like dead ground. Therefore I hadn't really paid attention to it, until now!

A nice little reminder that God had a great time creating a world for us that makes us smile.

Finding the forgotten...

Isn't it wonderful when you find something you've forgotten about totally?

I have just rediscovered the Metro Blog list, which I submitted an entry to years ago and obviously they never used my email for anything else. So the tracker that I have threw up a link I'd never seen before and lead me here. Quite exciting really. I don't know how much the person who clicked on the link read, but at least they were drawn in enough to have a go, even if the description is a little out of date.

Talking of finding something exciting... I went back in time recently to rediscover the Soul Survivor church. I've been a couple of times, but normally for conferences or with young people. This time was for a new venture, a new congregation and because it was half term I had some time to take for myself.

It was a good evening... Mike Palivachi, one of the main pastors, spoke on the parable of the Prodigal Son and made some good points, all interesting, he does speak for a long time. The worship was good, lovely Ben Cantelon lead, but the band were in the center and everyone was around the outside. That made it very difficult for me to concentrate on God, because I was conscious of people looking at me... I love singing so much, but when people are looking at me I shrink. Eventually though I got used to it.

Soul Survivor is a good church and a good organisation. It's probably a little too far to go for a regular church service, but still, it's the sort of thing I would attend again.

The one shocking thing (though I suppose it shouldn't really be any more) is the ratio of men to women. At a guess the ratio was probably 4:1 or 3:1 (women to men) which is high, but not unusual. When I was younger I'm sure most events were 1:1 - boys and girls evenly matched in number and I can't understand where it went wrong. I don't know if Soul Survivor is unique in this, but as a person who is surrounded by weddings and relationships, I can't help but notice the inbalance (and it seemed that all the men there either has girlfriends or were married).

Anyone else noticed the same?

Fits and Starts

Original post written very early this morning...

I'm currently word processing this blog entry because my laptop simply refuses to connect to the internet, in the wireless fashion that has revolutionised the way we use our computers, mine has a mind of it's own and as soon as I start to do something useful with my internet, it dies. There is no rhyme or reason, and as described above, it comes in fits and starts, lulls me into a false sense of security and then quickly – without any hint that it's going to disappear – the wireless connection drops dead.

I thought as soon as the house had calmed down, people had stopped moving around and the laptop was in a 'hotspot', as my Dad calls it, the internet would remain accessible for as long as I needed it... but no.

Anyway, what I want to really say has be prompted by The Brits (or The Brit Awards) and Take That (as well as a bible passage – but that's afterwards!).

The Brits, a celebration of music, funnily enough, from British bands and the occasional international band/artist. All great music (mostly – I still don't rate The Ting Tings or Amy Whiney much) and normally a live performance from some of the winners. This year, Duffy scored big time, as did Kings Of Leon. I'd tell you what they won, but I haven't got an internet browser up that works and I haven't been listening to the radio all day, like I used to, nor did I sit in front of the TV last night, voting my heart our and making careful notes! Anyway, Duffy performed live (that girl needs to sort out her intonation), so did Girls Aloud (live vocals to a backing track) and various other bands (I think KOL are in there as well as The Pet Shop Boys), I know I've missed some out, but I only skipped over them all to see Take That... and oh boy was I disappointed... I don't know what their excuse is, but Gary and the boys (or Mark and the boys as Sara Cox calls them) decided to mime 'The Greatest Day'. So so sad... I was looking forward to hearing their real voices.

I have been thinking about Live music and concerts for a long time, I'm a big fan of Radio 1's Live Lounge and I absolutely love hearing an artist to something really funny/amazing to their own or someone else's songs. Dizzee Rascal changing The Ting Tings (yes I know I've just slated them, rude boi) or Maroon 5 totally acoustic (what a voice Mr. Levine). I also love it when an old classic is turned into something completely different – think Take That on their come back tour...

So why mime? One of the biggest group around and they mime. Here's hoping they've got something extra up their sleeves for the summer. After all, you pay so much money for a show, and if the band ends up playing exactly what is on their latest album, what does that prove? It steals a personal identity from the members of the band who create that sound... sticks them in a box with the rest of the 'gigs to forget'. This year, I'm hoping Girls Aloud, Boyzone and Take That deliver something really special at each of their concerts.

Ok, so having half term means I spend a lot of time reading and studying. Yesterday I opened my bible notes after having several conversations with different female friend about worries and God gave me this

'Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you'

The whole passage is 1 Peter 5:6-11. The whole passage is full of advice, the whole book is. It was written for Christians who lived in a pagan society (sound familiar?) and were struggling with keeping their faith. Definitely would encourage you to read it in a day, its really easy, there's not a lot of text, but it will take time to sink in.

I don't think I have many worries at the moment, I'm not stressed out by much... but I know people who are. I know people who are really struggling with decisions at the moment and I've got to give them to God firstly, pray for them, for God to work with them and look after them before I do. Difficult, but worth it.

Lots of my prayers have been answered really blatantly recently, leaders have turned up when we've needed them, weather has cleared so I could travel, I'm grateful for all of these and in hindsight I can praise God for the things He gives us instantly. A good couple of eye openers bringing me back to trust and love.

You actually can't stop the beat!

Way back in October I wrote about how I'd become absolutely besotted with a Sky 1 programme 'Hairspray: The School Musical', you can read that post here.

Last week, I got the opportunity to see the West End version of the Broadway musical, which has been turned into a movie most recently. It's only 5 years old, bless its heart, and I think, thanks to Zac Efron and Nikki Blonsky, the theatre was packed for a Wednesday night.

Before all of that though, Karen and I met in Westfield to have a wander and a chat. You have to see this place to believe it. Sadly no photos (I did check my phone before I started to blog!) but it's way better than Cabots Circus (sorry, Brizzle fans). For a start, there's no chance of getting too cold - it's all under cover and the food court is amazing (though I couldn't take advantage of it cos I wasn't feeling hungry!). It only takes me an hour and 20 to get to, so I think I'm going there next time I head to London (hopefully with someone very special in tow! KAY!).

After walking around for what seemed like an age Karen and I headed back to the tube station and got to the Shaftesbury Theatre with about 10 mins to spare (which is the best time to arrive at a theatre).

Karen warned me that I wasn't allowed to heckle the actors this time, after my little episode at Never Forget where I got the whole audience shouting out stuff after I said something out loud to the actor who plays Mark. To be honest the theatre was huge, so my voice would've been lost very quickly.

It was a brilliant show though, the set was really simple in a good way, the actors played there parts really well, although Michael Ball (in drag!) took a long time to get to being a woman rather than a man playing a woman (which is why I love John Travolta) and Ben (playing Link) did over do it a bit at the end (yes, I know Link doesn't get the dancing thing first time around, but he is quite savvy!).

So the men were difficult to get, but all of the women fell into their roles really well. I know the movie almost backwards, so was really reserved about seeing it on stage. I wasn't disappointed though and I'm glad I got to see Michael Ball again. Now I can't stop singing... all I have to do is buy the album!

It's half term world right now, so getting to work is a lot easier and I don't have to clock watch when I don't go into school.

This week I'm also going for dinner with the Bridal Party for my best friends wedding. Hopefully the four of us will be able to do a lot of work together and get the whole outfit and colour issue sorted! Looks like a lot of my Saturdays are going to be taken up with dress shopping! Yeay!

Sev-ern!

If you've not got a clue what the title is about I suggest you type in Len Goodman to youtube or the BBC and have a watch of Strictly Come Dancing at some point.

At the end of my week of holiday, I managed to get back to Billericay, after driving in the snow for a good hour. This was in preparation for the follow days activity... Mum had decided to spend money on tickets to see the Strictly Come Dancing Tour, little did we know, or I forgot that level four means we're 'up in the gods' (which has become a phrase to use when talking about high seats in concert halls), which means and you'll see by the photos below that you're so far away from the action that it becomes hard to be involved in whats happening.

But before we got to The O2 there was some travelling to be done... so from Billericay to London, the main attraction at the moment is the 2012 venue. This is what it currently looks like.


You can just see the white zigzag of the stadium structure. It's going to be an interesting three and a half years, until the whole of East London is taken over but tourists and athletes. Then after that... who knows, we get a different report every week about what the legacy of the games is going to leave behind, what the stadium and surrounding villages and buildings are going to be used for. This week there's talk of it being a school and sports academy (I think with talk of the school actually being in the middle of the stadium... but I wasn't listening properly). The local football clubs won't spend any money to buy it, because it's being purpose built for the athletics. Some less local purpose built venues are up in arms because the planning committee have said that they would spend £42 million on a new shooting range (is that the right name?) overlooking a place that is already available (but at a cost of £30 million). It's a strange thing to be going though, especially with a recession.

And if you want to know what 'up in the gods' looks like while you're in the O2 here's a picture for you...

There's not much to be seen, but I can assure you that there are four judges, one couple and a presenter as well as a band down there!

It's crazy! Fortunately, my cousin and nan were found tickets so that they could be closer to the action. However, we tried to join them at half time and the woman on the information desk was the least helpful person I've met in a long time. So here goes my mini rant...

Your tickets get scanned as you go into the venue, so that the O2 know who have turned up and who haven't. Therefore, by the half time whistle, you'd think that they would know who's arrived and who hasn't... and therefore can give some unsuspecting people a chance to sit somewhere different... but the policy states that the tickets had already been purchased, so there was no chance for my mum and I to join the others on the same level. If you haven't turned up by half time, it's very likely that you're not going to turn up at all, so why not, knowing that we'd already been split up, let us sit ner each other?

I resigned a little too quickly from that fight, but went away really angry, knowing that I had a good point under my belt if I'd have stayed a little longer.

We missed out on the atmosphere, being too high up and far away. It just doesn't carry well when you can't actually see the faces of the people who are dancing, but still it was enjoyable, though I would push to get level one seats every time I go to the O2 now. Even if the website says sold out!

Lots of the white stuff

Here they are in order of creation...


Boris - looking a bit like a girl, but for a first attempt its not too bad.


Casper - our second attempt - we tried to go bigger than Boris, but it didn't quite work, so we ended up with a pile of snow and Kay gave it a face and a name.


And this is our third attempt and his name is Andrew - just because he is as tall and as skinny as my younger brother!

All fun, not too cold, but lots of snow fell while we were creating them. It was really cold, but we layered up and went out. Snow is a lot more fun when you're with someone who is incredibly excited about it all! (Kay's 24, she got the day off work and I've never seen her so excited!)

So now we're warming back up again and taking it slow.

Hopefully tomorrow I can get home and then go into London for the Strictly come Dancing Tour!

Taking a walk

Through Bristol town centre, also taking a few photos of the unusual things I've seen while I've been here...

Namely this...
This is a shot of the Harvey Nichols store in Cabot Circus at the centre of Bristol... yes that is a mannequin with its arms stretched wide, wrists at a funny angle and the others posed in a oh-so-stylish model like way... ridiculous. I had to stand off-centre cos there was a man watching me. I'm sure there is an ironic or biblical point to that...but as it stands all I can think about is scarificing all your worldly possessions to follow Christ.

This is the second photo I took...


This is a picture of one of the 'main streets' of Cabot Circus... you can clearly see that the roof isn't all one piece, so in my opinion, you could be dry one minute and wet the next if you're walking through. It's like the developers either couldn't decided what to do or didn't have enough money... All in all it's a strange and expensive experience (£3 for up to two hours of parking - so I didn't stay long), but its a shopping experience none the less, and a chance to spend some time looking at all the shops... even if I've not got enough money to buy! Some of the stores, like H & M (one of my faves) have a smaller store in Cabot Circus and a large store in another part of town... I don't know if that's a marketing ploy (i.e. come and see our store in CC, if you can't find anything you like, go to our bigger store and spend money there!) or just not very joined up thinking.... I thought there would be more of an opportunity for bespoke stores, but I guess the rent could now be excessively high (how else are they going to get the cost justified?) for small businesses starting out.

Still its shopping...

Finally here's a picture of the linking bridge, between the car park and the shops


Bottom left is the path, its a wonky bridge, so I took a wonky picture! (It's meant to be arty!) Again, in my 'I'm a member of the public' opinion, it's poorly designed. If you take a proper look at it, you'll notice that there's a gap between the sides and the roof. While above you is covered, there are gaps where sidewards rain can get in an soak you if you're walking across. It's a sturdy structure, so no chance of it being closed in high winds, but people might not park because they don't want to get battered by the weather!

Speaking of weather... driving in snow storms and wet conditions yesterday was interesting! I got in the car after stopping at Reading services and it started to absolutely chuck it down! I've never driven in snow like that, I hope that I don't have to do it again too soon, but I'm getting some motorway driving in!

Staying away

Because of the weather, because of the snow, because of the cold, I am at home tonight. Not the start I thought of when I planned a week away from work and away from Essex. I was really upset this morning, I woke up to an inch or so of snow, but then it started again and hasn't stopped since. We must be on three or four inches now... I've been watching the news, keeping an eye on the road reports, and the railways... there's no chance I'm getting out of here for at least another 12 hours.

So while I'm able here is a collection of photos that I have taken... first off, the traditional snow photos
The back garden
The front of the house.. yes the milkman still managed to do his job today.

Yes, I find it ridiculous that all the schools in Billericay were closed. When I was 4 we had worse snow than this and I still went to school...the snow was up to my waist and I remember being in school before being sent home. I agree with BBC London today... we're in a culture that is so worried about health and safety that eveything just stops, it is easier to be closed than to risk injury... we've been through world wars, and we're worried about a little bit of snow. London came to a grinding halt. It's crazy... I wanted to be in Cheltenham tonight.

Secondly a photo that has been a once in a life time opportunity.


Yes, look closely, this is no ordinary £1.83, but the special design for 2008. It's never been done before in bristish coin history as far as I'm aware. The £1 coin is the picture of what the other 83p should look like! Pretty!! Now there are regular coins in circulation, so its becoming harder to do this, thankfully I have people around me who love to do something until its done!

There are no more photos!

So the holiday isn't going well... I'm not where I want to be!

Cold Weather

Yeah, it's 10pm... so I'm watching the news and already the cold weather and snow have affected the roads and rail links across the country. We knew it was coming, we've had fair warning... why then is there disruption?

Last night before things got too cold, we had our first ever mingles night at Christ Church, well, not quite, we ended up in the pub and I knew everyone there! But never the less, we got to spend time together, we got to chat, drink and laugh... Hopefully this won't be the last time we meet, so keep your eyes peeled for new dates and events!

Tomorrow, I take my first proper, full week away from work, away from Essex. I'm not going to training, I'm not going on an organised retreat, I'm just going away. So to Cheltenham tomorrow, Bristol on Tuesday and Luton on Thursday...

Of course I'll tell you how it goes... you don't need to ask!

One month in...

Well, we're nearly a month in to 2009 and this year already has held some surprises and some shocks.

Like Karen says its a year of hope, faith and love... hope and faith that the new president will do well in his job and restore a failing America.

Hopes that Andy Murray would win the Australian Open have been dashed in a shocking manner.

Sadly hopes that this year would be better from a London perspective have been put on hold when we found out that another young person had been killed this weekend. Prays of faith and the knowledge of God's love and peace go to the families involved.

I'm surprised and shocked at turn outs for two events that have happened this month. One was SOLID:Remix. 300 plus young people crammed into chelmsford cathedral for the first event of its kind, and answer to the prayers of many of the planning team, who had only catered for 100 people...here's hoping that the SOLID Youth Festival is just as much fun and full of new people. The other event was much smaller...a church prayer meeting for the youth and local community only drew two people. Only God can explain why we got the lowest attendance of the week.

But at the same time God can only explain the verse I was given in preparation for the prayer meeting

"Pray diligently. Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude. Don't forget to pray for us, that God will open doors for telling the mystery of Christ, even while I'm locked up in this jail. Pray that every time I open my mouth I'll be able to make Christ plain as day to them.

Use your heads as you live and work among outsiders. Don't miss a trick. Make the most of every opportunity. Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out."

How awesome is that - this is The Message version of Colossians 4:2-6 and has become my prayer for the year, for myself, for the young people who possess faith and for the team of youth workers.

So I wasn't blown away by the attendance, but I was blown away by God!

I live in hope that this year doors will be opened and in faith that I am are clever enough to make the most of the opportunities the open doors create, and that I live in love, building people up wherever I go.

What a year... lets hope I can say that in December.

For an update on the state of my Dad's shoulder you can go here.

Annually away

There are various times in a year when I'm not going to be in the local vacinity but away on some sort of training/retreat time.

This week was one of those times. I was up in Audley End, taking time out with other youth works from across Essex to learn about Young people, Sexuality and Spirituality. David and Brandy came all the way from Knoxville to share in a very specialist subject it seems. David is only one of about 80 people in America who provide christian based sex therapy for families and teenagers.

Now be honest... Did you know it existed? I had some sort of idea, but still wasn't 100% sure, so as always I went into the unknown, head on, wanting to learn about this.

I learnt a lot. Things about teenagers that I never knew and had some really interesting discussions with the people that were there. Some of the behaviour I see has been explained, some of it is still a mystery, but I've got a way of finding out why that behaviour occurs.

David's work website is here.

I know I'm going to try and read up on this more and I've got a couple of CD's to listen to that are going to be good. David and Brandy were brilliant, easy to understand and consistently good with all their information. The whole time away was constructive for me, I did some thinking and started to understand my behaviour a little more. Made some good connections with people and I'm looking forward to seeing them all again.

I've also got another link for you to look at, head over to schoolswork.co.uk to see the new 'we love our youthworker' charter that has been launched, also check out Dave's brilliant postcards that go with the charter. (I want to retreat to the top of a column!)

Today is a 'do the minimum' day... I like it!

Damage Update

Check out the extent of the bruises my Dad has received from falling over on 5th January.
What you really can't see on my camera phone photos is the darkness of the bruises and where they are.

The go from the top of his right shoulder, all the way down his right arm and down the front of his chest. It would have been a lot worse if he wasn't wearing a back pack...

The way he got his injury is still not a full story. He was on his own, ad his memory has not allowed him access as to how it happened, but he's got a graze on his right foot, so starts the story with that and concludes that his arm was flung out behind him and ended up behind his head... you try it now... you arm will not do that willingly, unless you've got very loose muscles.

Still we're now 9 days into recovery and for the second day in a row he has been out of the house, firstly to visit the doctor to get his dressing changed... a full 19 staples in his shoulder to hold his wound together, something tells me this family are going to have a lot of dot dash dot jokes soon! The staples come out in two days time and far from being grossed out by this, he's rather intrigued as to how the work and what they look like.

I'm waiting for an email from our local councillor to find out who's in charge of pavements and salt bin up keep.

Of course, this is a spectator blog, for the patients account you need to go here.

I'm trying to keep my distance from him at the moment as I have been blessed with a virus or infection of some sort. I didn't feel too good yesterday and decided to stay at home today.

This is what happens....

when you fall over on the ice...

Yes, dad is at home and this is the extent of the damage. He's got a plate in there and some screws too.

The bruise has gone down, it's not as bad as it was, but he's unable to move his arm. The nice blue thing you can see is a sling - it wraps around the bottom of his arm and then around his shoulder and his waist. The yellow thing is a pillow case and that's just a comfort thing.

The white stripe is currently covering the staples and we think his scar will be between 15 and 20cm long in the end.

He's been signed off work for three weeks and will go back to have the dressing changed regularly and get it checked.

The good news is that there is currently not loss of sensation in his hand or the rest of his arm, though he is quite frustrated that he's only got one useful arm!

It's a treacherous world

It may look pretty...


... but I tell you, it's a dangerous place to be!

Yesterday afternoon, I got a text message from my Mum saying that my Dad was in hospital with a possible dislocated shoulder.

He'd fallen over on the way to work on the ice. He went on to his back and got up fairly quickly. He got all the way to work, thinking that he'd not done too much damage but realised that he couldn't move his right arm at all. He came home, went to see the doctor, who sent him to accident and emergency.

He had x-rays and found out that he had done a lot of damage to his right shoulder joint. The hosptial immeadiately took him onto a ward, and told him that he would be needing surgery, to fix the damage and to put a plate in his arm.

He went into surgery this afternoon and sailed through it, so hopefully we'll get to see him tomorrow and Karen comes back on Saturday to say hello.

I don't know how long the recovery takes for this kind of injury, but I'm guessing that its not just going to be a week!

And it was Andy's birthday yesterday, so we're going to know the anniversary of the worst injury in our family (so far) for a very long time!

Ringing in 2009

Happy New Year!

With Christmas well and truly over we started to focus on New Years Eve and the celebrations that have been in the pipe line for a good six months.

This year the theme was 'Hollywood Glamour' and the red carpet welcomed the biggest cast calling of them all. The leading lady and man were presented with Oscars on the night and the supporting actors and actresses were awarded with chocolates. The in-house band provided an award-winning performance and the DJ had everyone on their feet for the post-ceremony celebration.
The star of the night striking a pose with her best friends.

It's fair to say that this celebration was the best one of them all. Jen, party organiser extraordinaire, did a stunning job with her vision and drive, plus incredible selflessness that she possesses every time December 31st comes around. She works incredibly hard, as do the band and the caterers!

A good night, and we're all looking forward to 2009 being a good year!

In our news, I gave blood today, I'm on my 9th donation and I'm really looking forward to my 10th and 11th!! Do something amazing...

A thoroughly modern Christmas

A thoroughly modern bouquet - a vase of sweets! sadly, you can guess the amount, but you won't be getting any sweets from me!

This Christmas was a little different this year. I spent all of Christmas Eve doing Christingle services, leading them none the less. now I can normally do three Christingles but before it has been 'just for fun' as it were, no direct pressure on me, and not really a huge deal of preparation either but this year, I had to stand at front of church, prepare a power point, write a service order and learn it and remember to light the advent wreath. I also had to do a song sheet and speak to a number of people about how the whole service was going to work. The adrenalin soon wore off at the end of the last service and I came crashing down. It's tough working for 6 hours straight.

Then my sister returned home and after resting for a little bit, we watched the Gavin and Stacy Christmas special...which was a little long and I didn't really get it, because I've never really watched it before. We then headed to church for midnight communion.

All normal so far...other than being really tired.

Christmas Day, I spent the whole day with my family, not really unusual, but we had a change of plan mid-way through December my Nan decided that she was going to spend Christmas in London with my Aunt and Uncle, so no chance of a Christmas dinner at Nan's, which after spending 24 Christmases there, to not be at hers was different. Normally we head to church and then to Nan's where we sit and chat and dinner just appears, this year though, I helped with dinner. I really enjoyed it, I didn't over indulge but had enough to eat and then for the first time in 24 years, we opened all of our presents. After a couple of hours watching TV and playing about with new things, we headed to my cousins for dinner and more presents. I ended the day very tired but happy.

Doing all of this means that Boxing day was unusual too, I've spent part of the day outside and the boys have gone out to a friends house. We would normally have a family dinner and watch tv together, but that hasn't happened.

I feel like I've lost a day somewhere, but I really haven't, it was over a lot quicker than I expected and I've already done some sale shopping!!!

Merry christmas to you all and I hope your celebrations have filled you with joy, just as mine has!

P.S. Don't watch POTC before Christmas, you'll end up watching it twice!

The Office

No - I'm not going to talk about how Ricky Gervais only has one acting style or that one of his co-stars is far better than him...

No - I'm going to talk about my office, the hub of all the youth work at Christ Church. Since I began working for the church in July there have been various bits and pieces going on while I've been out of the building, and it's nearly finished, so here are some photos for you...


Ok, so it's a mess at the moment, but it's functioning as a great space for me to check my email, write letters and create talks...

Check out my lazy chair in the corner - from IKEA - an at a third of the cost, that is my bargain buy of the year! I love it! (it does need a cushion though!)

There's still a little bit to do, it's got to be painted, and I've got to find a sensible way of cutting out the draft...

A special Event

Want to meet some new people, but not sure how to? Well, come along to the event above, spend a couple of hours in the company of young adult christians, in a safe environment and in the knowledge that you'll come away knowing more people than when you started!

Search for us on Facebook, you can't miss the bight orange picture that's being used for our publicity! If you're not on facebook and would like to join us, please leave a comment and some contact details and I will get back to you as soon as I can... (I check my blog every day!)

Photo Blog!

Just some of the things I've seen over the past week or so for you to take a look at!


A rainbow above Mayflower School - yes we were stood in the rain, and yes, we all got our phones out to take a picture, whilst Gary proclaimed "That's a sign that God will never again flood the earth, that is!" Brilliant! Isn't it funny how God reassures us?



At the end of the Youthwork Conference on the way home, driving through the countryside - couldn't ignore the sun shining in my eyes - so had to take a couple of photos! We had a really good weekend. I still haven't really thought about it, I can't get my head around the weekend, it started well and had various highlights, Mike Pilavachi, Ben Cantalon and the Sunday morning seminars being the ones I can remember the clearest. God has definitely started speaking to me in a loud and clear voice again, so I've got to keep listening.

The next event was Jen's birthday, here's the lovely lady herself...


Ten of us went out to celebrate her birthday this year. We had a great time at Macaroni Grill (which I've never been to before) and then on to Chicagos, which has had a complete refit and looks absolutely amazing now. We had so much fun, dancing, laughing and eating that we're going to do it all again very soon!


Also, a formal congratulations to Mandy and Rob, who got engaged at the end of November. I'm very happy and can't wait for the wedding!!

And finally...


A packed church for the Advent Carol Service. A lot of work went into making a very special service to celebrate the start of the church year. We welcomed all of the different schools in our district and were blessed with a choir and hundreds of stars to decorate our stunning tree!

I have really loved the last couple of weeks, there's been so much good news. Looking forward to spending the next few preparing for Christmas with friends and family. I don't know if I'm ready for it, or even in the mood really, but whatever happens I'm sure it'll hit me soon and I'll get a little panicky!

P.S. This is for the third time of trying - for some still unexplained reason, connecting to the internet is still hit and miss.

Pulling a muscle

In more ways than one...

It's true, Wii sports is dangerous... I've pulled a muscle - how unfit am I? But it's totally addictive... especially if a young person has beaten your score and you know you can do better!

And laughing too hard... Mike McIntyre is hilarious! You know how your sides ache... He's someone I'd really like to see live... he's really clever and Live at The Apollo is so much better... I didn't like Jack Dee... he's far too dry.

This week has been good, I haven't been in school as much as normal, due to lots of things going on for other people.

Tonight we're out celebrating a birthday of someone who is very dear to me! I'm quite excited, we haven't been out as a group for ages, we get to spend a lot of time together which is great!

Also this week, a member of the same family got engaged to her long term boyfriend. I cried, I'm so happy for them!

Youthwork: The Conference

Spending a weekened in Eastbourne, wet, cold, windy, by the sea, in a hotel which bearly had a sea view...

The highs and lows of youthwork. Above the lows. Below the highs (does someone feel I'm doing this the wrong way round?)

Ok lets start with company... I joined the youthworkers of Luton on the retreat day after spending some time with my sister in Luton, we travelled down together and shared in a 24 hours of being fed, both spiritually and physically, in a lovely church called All Saint's. Luton youthworkers are great... very funny and they do get on with each other really well. It was good to spend time with people just chatting and chilling.

The rest of the weekend was just right, I took time out, I listened to seminars all of which was helpful to me. The worship from Ben Cantalon was brilliant (if in my old age it was a little loud at some points) and I've got some good resources to read and use.

I absolutely love the 'We love our youthworker' which is a new charter for churches and youth workers, which helps youth workers and gives them a voice...

More when that comes into the fore during 2009! More when I've reflected some more!

Good clean fun...

Just watching some of the Children in Need programme from last night... It's a fundraiser for children in the UK who are disabled or struggle with life in some way.

It's good clean fun, there's nothing that's close to the mark or controversial... Terry Wogan is always a laugh and they focus so much on English bands and artists, it's nice to see the stars of our small screen enjoying themselves (newsreaders, soap stars and lifestyle shows)!

(Unlike Comic Relief/Red Nose day, which is just cringe worthy i.e. Tim Westwood pimping some old people's minibus - they don't need DVD players installed! and Ricky Gervais' sketch that was just wrong)

Personally, I spent the day collecting money from people, at a fundraising concert and with the young people of Christ Church, watching the evening unfold.

Last night alone £21.9 million was raised, I don't know when the final figure comes out, but I'm sure it will be a lot higher than that, for a start, I've got to add £20 to it!!

Something less fun was shopping in Basildon for a birthday present... so many people around, the Christmas lights were switched on this weekend and it seems that people have started to panic a bit about Christmas being just around the corner... 5 weeks 5 days....

Playing with fire

Well, not quite fire, but definitely sparklers. And not really playing with them, more watching the young people to make sure that they didn't attempt to hurt each other.

For something that happened and we weren't quite sure of how it would go, all of the leaders were positive at the end of the night... 20 young people from two youth groups... sparklers, food and a uni-hoc game...oh and some indoor fire works that set off the fire alarm (which reminds me that I don't know where the smoke alarm is or how to shut it up). It was a good night and we've been invited across town to the christmas party in a month or so.

It's saturday, yeay!! I've almost got rid of my cold, after spending a lot of today in bed...

Going to Come Dancing at church this evening... Should be interesting, I always enjoy learning new things and raising money at the same time. There will be photos!

Where do we go from here?

This is a question that haunts me. It's one that is always being asked...no doubt there's one man who's asking it more than everyone else.

If you've slept for the last 18 months or so, you won't know that the American election has happened and the new president of the free world is Barack Obama. I couldn't get to sleep last night, so I ended up watching the BBC results programme for two hours. They talked and talked about how much McCain was like President Bush, and were absolutely sure that he wouldn't be in power when the presidency changes hands in January.

I guess one of the reasons I couldn't get to sleep was because I'm worried (as well as being ill). I'm worried about how Mr Obama will put in to practice the ideology that he's talked about for so long. I'm worried that if it doesn't work out (in my very English way of not trusting politicians) there may be a horrible backlash and America will take some steps backwards (dare I say, more steps backwards).

I saw a postsecret that said 'It's only a matter of time' - a postcard of famous political faces who had been assassinated, people who wanted change. You can take that two ways, either as a threat or as someone who is worried for safety. I'm the latter.

I want to see this world get better, in so many ways...

I'm praying hard for the government that is going to surround this man.

We're also asking the question about our alpha group...but we haven't come up with any ideas yet!

At it once again...

Ok, so when did I last blog? An hour and a half ago...?

Guess what my little brother is doing again...yes, drinking soup and eating as noisely as he can... do things not stick in peoples minds? Does being told off, or warned against something not make an impact in the minds of teenagers any more?

I know the answer to the last question, there is no impact to be made, no matter how many times...

Here he goes again...

Youth Alpha talk is going well so far...blogging and facebooking takes my mind off it temporarily, so that I can refocus and get it done for tomorrow evening.

There's doing things quietly

and then there's doing things noisely...

I'm complaining quietly about my brothers noisey soup drinking...don't get me started on how annoyed I am today...

I had to ask him to do what he was doing quietly (or I would've taken his soup away from him) and he gave me a dirty look!! It's rude to slurp at the best of times, but least of all while I'm quietly stewing about how the next couple of days are going to turn out.

I've always been concerned for safety, for good teaching and for everyone to have a good time. So to be told that I've got to be careful with the sparklers that I'm going to give to my young people next friday annoys me a little. I've had all three things drill into me since I was very young. I know the rules inside out, and I will be passing my knowledge on to the young people who will be holding the sparklers so that no-one gets hurt and everyone can have fun.

I don't make up the rules as I go along and everyone will get a fair chance - those who play up will feel the consequences. I've got a mobile phone and I will have all of the young peoples names and emergency contact details so if anything goes wrong there is a plan.

I really don't know what else to say...some poeple are helpful, others not so. That's life and we give thanks in all circumstances - so thank you Lord, that there are people who are concerned for my safety and thank you that they haven't completely scuppered all of my plans as the new youth worker in town.

I'm sorry that's the wrong answer

I'm always facinated by how things work, how they are made and what drives the people to create things that can make our lives easier, or more fun.

Finding out the answers to my questions though is sometimes a little frustrating - big companies like to keep secrets.

Take walkers for one - they pretty much run the snack empire in the UK at the moment, so they can reinstate crisps and the like at their will. They've brought back monster munch, quite successfully, which leads me to me first question - How is monster munch made?

Being internet savy that's where I'll always go first. Type in whats in my brain and see what happens...normally I don't get the answer straight away, because my mind seems to work slightly differently from those who add to the internet daily. But I keep searching and eventually get some sort of answer...however, there's nothing online, so I went to 118.com, because they've got an 'ask us anything' policy, so I did - guess what? They haven't got the answer either. ARGH...so I'm going to suffer for a little longer. I don't understand the snack world and I probably never will!!

And I'm trying to find out the background song to the new Rimmel London advert with Sophie Ellis Baxter - no joy there either, the other problem with the internet is that you can always find outdated information...I won't tell you about the time that I asked about a job only to be asked where I found the ad and that the position had been filled for over a year.

Talking of outdated...I need to update the CCYM website!

(P.S. Kate Moss looks awful on the Rimmel London website - how is having your mouth open in a photo ever attractive?)

I had an interesting day yesterday...it started with purchasing tickets to see Take That in concert on Saturday 4th July 2009. Fastest ever sell out tour, it took 9 excuricating minutes for me to get on to See Tickets to buy tickets, but here I am, still alive and very happy that I won't have to take a day off work to see them, and I will be taking all of my best friends with me.

The rest of the day was taken up with prep for the Club night at St Marys, a very successful night, and we're hoping that it will grow and grow in the coming years!

A Nautical Night

Happy 21st Birthday!!!
So the images loaded backwards, and it takes a lot of effort to move them around. So this is Helen, hugging her balloons. Very pink and very big...Post cake at the end of the night...


Post blowing out candles...speeches time as always at 21st, the dad just has to say something. I can't remember what my Dad said at mine, simply because I was a little embarrassed, and probably too stressed out by the whole day.


This party, however, was a lot different, here we are (Heather and I) waiting for everyone to arrive so that we could give Helen her 21 presents. We were rushing around like lunatics in Basildon shortly before hand...but Sailor and Lifeguard...we were ready and Helen got the shock of her life when we arrived!

So its half term at the moment...there's not a lot going on, which is relaxing, but frustrating too. I know that I've got a busy term ahead of me...Christmas is racing up on us really quickly and I know I've got a lot to do, but I can't plan for it, until I've got an idea of what actually needs doing.

Still, Friday is a big day, Take That tickets go on sale and we've got our second club night at St Mary's on the High Street. Big smiles all round! :-D

You can't stop the Beat!

It's Saturday...Yeay!!

For the second time this week I have watched Sky 1's 'Hairspray: The School Musical' and I'm absolutely besotted by the whole thing. Teenagers doing something enjoyable and showing the world and themselves that they are totally capable of producing a West End production in such a short amount of time. A couple of well known celebrities took a group of students and coached them through 6 weeks of rehearsals, and at the end they went to the Lyric Theatre and preformed to a sell out crowd of friends and family.

If you haven't seen any of it, see if you can find it online...when I was their age I just didn't have the confidence to do anything like that, even now it would take a lot of convincing. But seeing young people working hard and producing something that they're going to remember for the rest of their lives really makes me smile.

Tonight we're all heading to church to celebrate Helen's 21st birthday...all in Nautical gear...it's going to be so much fun...we've got a lot of different outfits and of course there will be photos!

Christ Church Weekend Away 2008

Here's the official report of the weekend away...

We started by getting lost - or at least I got lost on the way to High Leigh Conference Centre...more stressful than I'd ever imagined, and I now know that following someone other than Jesus is an experience that's not so good for me!! Thank you Helen and co for being patient with me though!

We had a good weekend...the young people learnt a lot...here they are with 'Loser' written on their foreheads after the second session...


For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. Luke 9v24

Bravely showing off that they'd give up their lives to be followers of Jesus.

In the afternoon, we went to Lee Valley Boat hire to have a go at Pedaloing...

Us after hour on the river...it was really good fun, I'd suggest it as a good afternoon out, if the sun is shining and there's a pub you can get to afterwards!

The rest of the weekend was interesting, I shared my time with people I'd not really spoken to before and having communion altogether on the Sunday was a really good idea.

Stars in his Eyes is our regular saturday evening entertainment, and hopefully everyone enjoyed it, from those taking part or those just watching. I'm very proud of some of my young people who thought of things to do.

I'm still recovering after being at work for the whole weekend, but it does take time. I have a day off this week, so hopefully I can use that time to think more about what went on, and make some notes for the next time I have to do something of this magnitude!