Youth Alpha amongst other things

Youth Alpha session one: outcome good!
This is all I will harp on about for the next 11 weeks or so, get used to it. We put the kids into their small groups yesterday with minimal fuss, and we were fed by Wiz, who does an excellent spag bol! Ant's talk went down really well. We've changed the stream, so now we're mainly on the Active stream and the kids respond a lot better to it, so far. Apparently they were talking about the Holy Spirit last night, which again is a promising start!
Other thing: not so good. Scared a little of what is going on in other people's lives. Pray for Helen, Michelle, Kay, Emma and Mary. (Told you I was doing a lot more talking!)
Mettle A tonight, which I am looking forward to!

Prayer please

I seem to do a lot of talking and not a lot of listening. I guess I've got a lot to pray about at the moment though.
The first week back at work was a little up and down for me really. It was good, one of the best weeks the groups have had since September. Like I've said Rock Solid was good, and RS2 went well yesterday morning. The 11-14's have their moments and the rest of the time they are tuned in and answering left right and center. So it was good, and air of contemplation for once.
Youth Alpha start last week. Definitely a high, I'm going to be teaching in just over a week, so I'm looking forward to that to an extent.
Everything really hit me yesterday evening though. I've been surrounded this week and felt cornered some of the time. I've been thinking a lot about other people, and not very much about myself, which means I let my emotions get on top of me really.
So I'm going to say thank you to those who prayed for me yesterday, who built me up in the right places, I've taken stock of all thats going on, and I'm starting to let my soul sing again, seen as it's been pretty quiet for a while.

My Bible reading notes reminded me of a Bible verse that equates to my life and the life of those around me at the moment

'For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.' Jeremiah 29:11

All God, His way is the only way...looking forward to the future but living for the moment!

Rock Solid

I was speaking at Rick Solid last night, and it went really weel, the whole evening had a positive feel to it, and although there was an awful lot of rubbish floating around at the end of the evening, the kids really are behaving themselves.
At the moment, I'm looking at our Spring Harvest accounts and trying to get hold of our Tresurer! Lots of fun. I've also got to set up RE:fresh and write a shopping list for RS2 on Sunday, all before I leave.
Day off tomoro!! Yeay...

Youth Alpha and moving house

Youth Alpha went very well yesterday, even though we had enough chinese to feed 30 people. Think about what you need and half it! Good advice! The guys and girls are really responsive to every thing, the surroundings, the layout, the teaching and most importantly each other and the leaders.
This morning I moved house. I'm now living with a wonderful woman called Yvonne. I'm looking forward to the next part of this year out. I'm further away from the office, which means I'll be doing more walking.
At lunch I was at PBF which is always a source of joy, although I felt totally under prepared. Theclubwithnoname is tomorrow, so I should do a better job of it second time around.
Just a few bits and pieces to sort out before I go home and unpack!!

Back in Stokey G...

And straight to work. Trev's going on training with YFC, which means the first full week of term is going to be incredibly busy.
Last night I started work as soon as I arrived. We had a RE:fresh and Mettle social, which was a film night. We watched a movie about Nascar racing, a little too male for me, but I am so tempted to use the dinner scene where Will Ferrell is saying grace to baby Jesus to challenge peopole about prayer and who Jesus was! Still they seemed to enjoy the evening, and the tuck shop went down really well.
I'm off to pack some more, because I am moving again! Not quite sure when, but that'll all be sorted by tomorrow morning. I'll be further away from the church which means I'll get more exercise! Yeay!

Templates

The template for my blog is playing up a little today, since I decided to add another blog. I can't see any reason why it would play up but still, we'll see what I can do, when I can be bothered.
Right now, I'm wondering what to do with my day....

Discovering

Another blog. Mary is a top lady who has so much going for her. Check out her blog and Windows space here.

I'm watching Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the moment and will probably fall asleep some time soon. I was woken at 11.30am and told that we were going to help tidy the church after last nights party. Although we were the last people to arrive, it still took two hours to get the church back to normal! It looks good though, nice and clean. The church does need to invest in some kind of super cleaner though. Its such a large space and hoovering takes so long. Any ideas?

RIght I'm going to catch up on some sleep...

New Year

Happy New Year...Lets hope 2007 brings lots more joy than 2006. Already three hours in and I'm managing to be pessimistic, a new record.
I was definitely in the right place tonight, in my home town, with my long standing friends. The people who make Billericay what it is. Of course my parents were there too, which always makes for a laugh, although my Dad seems to be abstaining from dancing, a good thing? Possibly. Apparently I get louder and more overt every year, which kinda shocks me, cos I think I've been this way for a few years now. Maybe I don't see it...

Anyway, I'm tired, so I'm going to post some photos and then I'm going to bed...

The Gang at the beginning of the night



Anything but Rough...



The Organiser



And finally...



Well...a good night had by all. I'm going to remember tonight for a long time, for all the right reasons.

Who is this?

Having a bored day, and with wireless internet access, that equates to me doing strange things - so here we go, which Super hero are you?
Your results:
You are Green Lantern

Green Lantern 75% Spider-Man 70% Wonder Woman 70% Superman 60% Robin 57% The Flash 55% Supergirl 50% Catwoman 50% Iron Man 50% Hulk 45% Batman 20%

Hot-headed. You have strong will power and a good imagination.

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...


Umm...maybe I should turn the laptop off - I have no clue who this guy is!

Belonging

I need to learn me some Greek, so I can understand the New Testament a little better. There's one word that is bugging me a bit, I don't know whether I'm looking into it too much, but there we go. Its in my mind for a reason, and now I wish I'd done Biblical languages during my degree.
It's the word 'belong' in 1 Peter. Any ideas? Like the original Greek meaning? Or the New Testament context? Umm...

On another note...there are now Christmas photos online atflickr. All good ones, with a Christmas theme. Seen as the limit for downloading is really big, I'm going to put a lot more on in future.

Not a lot else to say really, life is going along. Getting ready for parties tomorrow, trying to find out what everyone is doing while I'm at church.

Feeling Deflated

I've just found out that my ring is not worth as much as I thought it was, which shows how much I know and also is rather annoying and upsetting. Its worth more to me than what I was offered, so now I really don't want to let go of it, but probably should. I've been given some good advice about selling it and how much I should receive for it, but still its hard to hear a jeweller say that he doesn't feel theres much value in it.
But like my sister said 'they don't buy sentiment', I guess its true, so there we go, I'm going to keep it for a little while long, and hope that someone would like to buy it from me for a little bit of money.

New Toy

I was going to keep a secret, but I'm a girl and I like to share things, so I'm going to tell you that I've got a new laptop!!
Tomorrow is going to be spent transfering some of my work so that I can leave the 'zombie laptop' (Ant's nickname for the beloved machine that has been dying since May!) in Billericay and not have to worry about whether the keyboard is going to work, or how long the battery is going to last. I do have to pay careful attention to what I download and how I treat the tiny thing that is sat on my lap at the moment. Its a Philips X55. I'm so excited, I can pick it up in one hand without breaking my wrist and the blood doesn't get cut off to my feet when I'm sat down with it!
I was told that I'm a girly boy today, just because I got all girly about a new laptop and then stated that I loved technology. Its how I feel though. I can get excited about having a new toy to play with and I do love the fact that computers are getting smaller.
We also went to giant Tesco, to do a bit of shopping. Spending my Christmas money already, but for good reasons!!

Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing day!

We're all 'relaxing' after a busy Christmas, its all over and I'm already looking for things to spend my money on! Is that awful or what?

Christmas, as my sister says, was quite an achievement this year. With a 5 year old and a toddler who is 20 months, dinner was the craziest thing I've done in years. Children just don't sit still any more. Of course, I can't remember being five, but I'm sure in the years after that I was glued to my seat during Christmas dinner, and had to ask if I could get down. It was a good day anyway, it seems to run really smoothly (because I stay out of the kitchen!), the whole family understand what they are allowed to do, and what they aren't.

Boxing Day was the usual. My family extend Christmas for as long as possible, as far as present opening goes, we start on Christmas Eve and finish on Boxing Day. This year we were joined by my Nan - no girlfriends or boyfriends (as we had last year), just Nan, that meant that we strangely behaved ourselves over dinner!!

Christmas does have its ups and downs, we were reminded on Christmas Eve, by our vicar, that there are some people who don't have enough to eat all year round and personally I was reminded that I'm single now and I don't have a wedding to look forward to (or organise) any more. The ups come from getting a whole series of C.S.I. on DVD, getting cards from the people in Bristol and falling asleep during POTC, but still knowing exactly whats gone on when I wake up!

Brand new!

I realised I can't write spanking in a title of a blog, its probably not right!

Anyway, I'm sat in front of a totally new computer and benefiting from the wonders of crystal clear screens and broadband, I'm just waiting for wireless to hit the house so I can sit in the comfort of the living room and blog. At the moment I have a cold hand! (Yes singular, no mistake!)

We've also got a recordable box now, which makes watching TV so much more fun, we only fight over when we're going to watch the recorded stuff now!

I still have to find a new laptop, I'm thinking ultra small and light, to save space in the office and my shoulders when I'm traveling. If I could go home with a new laptop, that would be ideal, but we'll see. The keypad seems to be working fine, since I started to complain. Funny, that!

Being back at home is interesting, we've already spent a morning in Basildon, and I've managed to help mum with wrapping presents, though not much else! My room is still as cold as the outside temperature, which means I'm finding getting up a little difficult. IS there a away to wrap a room, so it keeps all the heat in?

When a day just gets better and better...

Today has been an awesome day! With all that has gone on in my life recently I needed to spend a day smiling, and today has been just that! So thank you to everyone who has blessed me, even if they don't know it.

I've received numerous presents, which I am itching to open, but won't do until Boxing Day (as per family tradition), had lunch with a friend (which included cake!!) and had a conversation with someone who is on a cruise ship off the coast of Cardiff! Very brief, but it was great to hear from him!

Off home tomorrow, as I keep saying, can't wait to be home, but I'm going to miss Bristol and work... I'm sure God will use me while I'm at home. He always does!

Birthday!

Happy (belated) birthday to my boss, who was dreading 30, but looked like he really enjoyed himself yesterday!!

I spent yesterday trying to get over my cold, by working with a lot of 5-10 year olds for the afternoon! Much fun, a little out of my comfort zone, but I managed it, and I've realised that there is still a scary side to me.
I spent a good hour on my hair yesterday, because its so long and I'm getting bored of the 'dead straight' look, its too serious! So here's what I came up with



I think I look good, but I swallowed a can of hair spray to achieve it, and didn't feel too good until I got some fresh air into my lungs!

I'm on my way home, tomorrow morning, my good friend James is picking me up and we're going back to Billericay together, which is better than being sat on a train on my own, and carrying a huge suitcase with me. I do however have to do the return journey on my own, so I'm practicing a little restraint!

Not a lot to say...

But I'm going to blog anyway.

Today I'm feeling a little run down, after all of the joys of the weekend. I was almost sent home, but refused, because I'm basically well enough to work...as long as I get to eat and drink too. And the office needed to be tidy, otherwise none of us could work.

Staff meeting this morning was interesting, lots of different things to consider for the new year, and now I realise how uncomfortable I am praying aloud when I don't have a clue what I'm saying! I have to pray aloud when I'm on my own because my focus drifts horribly, but when there are a load of people I respect in a room, my thoughts and sentences fall to pieces! Got to keep trying though!

Tomorrow my main event in the Youth Alpha leaders team meeting, which I'm slightly spooked about as I've never done Alpha in any form as a leader, so I'm going to be learning and leading at the same time! Hard to strike a balance!

One last thing, in my general 'curl up and die' mood this evening I came across some awful TV. It was about Princess Di's dresses and how apparently they're all cursed. Now I know its been 10 years since she died, but can't we just leave her alone please. Americans crying over someone they've never met is a little odd, and do we talk about Mother Teresa in the same way? I have never seen or heard it. Ok celebrate someone's life, by all means, but believing that dresses are cursed just because they belong to a woman who died in a tragic accident? Too far fetched for me.

Going home on friday, and looking forward to it.

Mettle/RE:fresh Banquet

A whole day on my feet, but I loved every moment of it!! Everyone looked amazing all dressed up. It's great to see the lads put in the effort too. There's not a lot else I can say really. It's my first one, I didn't quite know what to expect, but it was beyond what I'd imagined. I was disappointed that I couldn't eat my roast though!

A huge amount of effort went into the evening. I've never handled so much cutlery in my life! We were talking about getting my brothers in on the act for next year - they both work in the silver service industry and would be ideal for the job! It looked so good at the end and all of the party goers were really thankful for it.

I took a few photos, but none of myself, I'm waiting for the main ones to be put online so I can see what I really looked like. By the end of the night, my feet really hurt, but I wanted to keep going, after all, I have been a student, and I'm used to going until 2am at least, so finished by 12 meant that I still had two hours of energy left!

So I phoned a friend, one who I am not going to see for another 6 months. Someone who I have know for a long time. He's doing the right thing by going away, but those who know him are going to miss everything about him. He's a great person, who can alway put a smile on my face! Well Done, Rich, good luck with everything!

Blogging from a limited keyboard

Not that limited, but its amazing that the letter in the middle of q and e means that my blogging is a little stranger and there are not as many open questions. Beleive me this is harder than it seems. Typing http's is annoying, and my shift key dosen't like making capitals! Going to need a replacement soon. FED UP, GOING TO TURN THE LAPTOP OFF!

Being unique...

As Helen has mentioned - she spent the weekend (well, about 36 hours!) visiting me in Bristol and spending time in Cheltenham with old friends. It was really good to see a lecturer who is now a pastor and a family who I haven't seen in a long time.

Funny thing is the phrase that was used the most was 'nothing changes'. I guess there are certain traits that don't change - like my love of shoes and dresses as well as my obsession with pink, but everything else is constantly moving on. Religion, the people we are friends with, the seasons, thoughts and feeling, faith. All of these things are changing, developing. I'm lucky that I have a constant through all this: God and His faithfulness. I can trust totally that when everything around me is unrecogniseable, God will still provide for me. Its brilliant.

My Bible notes this morning were challenging and so was Ant's sermon yesterday. Have you ever looked at Genesis 1 as an instruction or a commandment? Each 'day' of creation starts with 'Let there be...', so in God's perfect creation, why do we have to change what is already there?

Ant spoke about stepping out in God's image of who you are, being happy with who you are and not asking 'but what about them?'. John 21, where Jesus talks to Peter about becoming the head of the church, was a passage that Ant used. Jesus says to Peter 'Follow me' after telling him not to worry about John. Are we so concerned about others that we miss the point of what Jesus says to us? Jesus calls us by name, and says 'follow me', He's got everyone else sorted, so we don't have to worry about it. Of course we should have fellowship, share and question faith, but we are all just as important to God as each other, given our own gifts. Loved. Equally. With our own paths, and God wants you to step into who He wants us to be.

And this is who I am -



Pink tree. I finally found some decorations, after being stubborn about going into the loft (via a ladder that is not attached to anything!). What do you think? A tad unconventional, but then haven't I always been?

We're all currently looking to the future, which all seems rather exciting, and scary too!