I’ve been glad this week – by the power of the mighty internet – to hook up with Laurence Tom AKA abcpastor.
As I was checking on what bloggers were saying about the Fermi Project’s Q convention, I found Laurence’s blog, and just got drawn in – it’s an aesthetically pleasing site with lots of interesting things to say about Church, mission & general life stuff.
It’s been good to talk, LT! (BIG THANKS to you, for the pic.)
Definitely worth checking out folks!
I stumbled across this blog post at A Minor Technicality, which piqued my interest:
Check the vid out…
…and the accompanying comment…
I have no idea why, but the Salvation Army brass band turned up, played a few tunes on the green (positioning themselves quite symmetrically, I must point out), then vanished. It was close to a military exercise in guerilla band playing.
I couldn’t resist offering my own comment to add to the dialog:
“On one level this is hilarious. Your bemused comment shows that the Sally’s attempt to communicate with the people who live in their community through music has spectacularly failed to hit the spot!
On the other hand, there’s a sadness about the fact that their sincere efforts are so culturally at odds with regular people’s lives that they soldier on (excuse the pun) regardless of how big the disconnect is…”
Any thoughts?
It doesn’t seem like long since the last jig, or shuffle of the blog roll, but spring is in the air, so it’s time for a spring clean!
First – the outies:
• Ali – slips away quietly..
• Anita - I’m so tempted! Get blogging again, girl! You stay in by the skin of your
teeth, and the likely threat of physical violence if I remove you!
• Jon-Mark – no posts since November, so I think J-M’s run out of steam on the blogging front.
• Not that Stratford goes back even further, so Nick’s gonna get swept!
• Randy Elrod. Good blog – I just don’t find myself going back that often these days.
All of the above have been good value, and will go straight back on the ‘roll if and when they start blogging again. Why not pay them a visit, leave an encouraging comment, and see if it stirs them back to life.
Next – the innies:
• Grumpy Old Git goes straight in on account of him being a top fellah who I’ve known from way back who’s battling cancer like a good ‘un! Powerful stuff.
• The Forgotten Ways because Alan Hirsch has either been author or co-author on my two favo(u)rite reads of 2008, so far: The Forgotten Ways and The Shaping of Things to Come. (with my new buddy Michael Frost). Top missional stuff.
• Out on a limb….because I’ve been meaning to show this communitas from the Big Easy them some link love for ages now.
Likewise – bounce over to the innies, see what you think – leave a comment, and tell ‘em Johnny sent you.
Finally, the tweaks!
• Eric Bryant moves slightly – almost inperceptibly – to Eric Bryant
• Chris Council of War shifts to the infinitely more post modern Coffee’n’Cake
• Vicki Adams is now at Bounces & Cartwheels
….and I think that’s it.
…apart from the addition of Worldchanging and Trailrunner to the mags:
HT to the guys at Oxted & Limpsfield Residents Group, who’s site has alerted me to the fact that the news about potential over-development of green field land in Oxted made the BBC website today.
After having heard about this initially last week, on Sunday afternoon I took a run – more like a stagger really – across one of the beautiful fields in question, and it really would be criminal if it were to be built over.
I haven’t had time to check my facts, so I’m only expressing a gut reaction, but I had a slip of paper arrive through my door last night advising me, and other local residents of some worrying news about possible building developments by Village Developments plc on green field sites in our beautiful little semi-rural home town of Oxted.
Knowing the sites in question, they are exactly the kinds of spaces that people who choose to live in the town value….precisely because they are green, and offer us some space! The notion that they would be built upon is quite upsetting to say the least.
I’ll be watching out on this site for any further news.
Check it out if you have a local interest.
In Christ alone my hope is found;
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My comforter, my all in all—
Here in the love of Christ I stand.In Christ alone, Who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save.
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied;
For ev’ry sin on Him was laid—
Here in the death of Christ I live.There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain;
Then bursting forth in glorious day,
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory,
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me;
For I am His and He is mine—
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.No guilt in life, no fear in death—
This is the pow’r of Christ in me;
From life’s first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No pow’r of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home—
Here in the pow’r of Christ I’ll stand.
Words and Music by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend
Copyright © 2001 Kingsway Thankyou Music
HT to Matt Stone at Journeys In Between for the African Jesus image
Hat tip to Jason Clarke, who has altered me to the visit of Brian McLaren to the UK in June at the RUN conference .
Jason will also be speaking at some of the seminars.
Gotta check my diary, but it’s definitely very interesting.
Peace & blessings
J
This Sunday was the 3rd Sunday in a row I’ve not attended my home Church at The Salvation Army in Croydon…which at this time of year is something of a record.
On each of the last 3 Sundays I’ve been in a different place:
Sunday # 1:
This was a planned weekend off. Although we had initially planned to travel somewhere away from home for that Sunday, we ended up staying at the house and chillin’. The beauty of it all, was that our next door neighbor(u)rs came ‘round on the off chance, so we were able (unusually for a Sunday morning) invite them in for a coffee and a chat around the kitchen table for about an hour….and it was just bliss. We were so glad to not be rushing around, and have the time available just to be with our good friends.
Sunday # 2:
Sunday # 3:
Noah had been unwell, so I stayed behind to look after him, while Janet went to Church with Mia.
Hooking myself up with a coupla cups of strong coffee, I managed to catch an episode of Faithworks’ Intelligent Church DVD and a NOOMA vid, in preparation for our Home Group, which I bounced over to after Jan returned home, and we swapped baby-sitting duties. As ever, the Home Group was a really relaxed, encouraging time, when we could eat, pray, study Scripture, and consider how we can apply it to our day-to-day lives.
Increasing, I’m becoming aware of the value of really observing the Shabbat or Sabbath.
It’s quite a time since I posted here, on the subject, but the quote from Southern California Church, Rockharbor’s site bears repeating:
Sabbath is a weekly day of rest in which we cease from our weekly tasks and pressures in order to rest and be refilled. In fact, the term Sabbath comes from the Hebrew term shabbat, which means “to cease or rest.” Exodus 20:11 states “in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, but He rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” God felt so strongly about the need for a weekly day of rest that He called all of Israel to observe a Sabbath rest once a week.
On the Sabbath, we’re called not only to cease from working, but also to empty ourselves of our need to accomplish, produce, and worry about our lives for one day so that we can be refreshed and refilled. It’s a day for us to stop working towards becoming and simply focus on being. One great benefit of Sabbath keeping is that we learn to let God take care of us – not by becoming passive and lazy, but by giving up our feeble attempts to control our own lives and simply resting in His provision.
A really good friend of mine from back in the day when we were kids sitting next to each other in the Sally Army Band in Bedford, England is really pretty unwell at the moment.
If you are a pray-er, check out his blog, and learn more about his story.
Like many of you out there, Andy is a major Mac head
Thanks, Andy, for your cool pic.
I’ve been occasionally enjoying Alan Yentob’s current IMAGINE series of documentaries on the BBC lately, and last night’s show on architectural superstar Richard Rogers was a real highlight for me. I’m not sure why buildings and created environments get me so pumped, but I’ve always enjoyed looking at them and learning something of the vision that brought them into being, and this Mr Rogers is a king in this area.
If nothing else, it was worth watching for the spectacular views from his house in Tuscany.
There is a list of incredible and significant projects as long as your arm, but a couple of my favo(u)rites are the National Assembly of Wales and Madrid’s Barajas Airport. If you check out some of the links, to see that RR and his colleagues at the various firms he has been involved with for about 50 years, you’ll see that very many of the iconic buildings of the 2nd ½ of the 20th Century and into the 21st have the Rogers stamp all over them.
…must try and catch the Richard Rogers event at The Design Museum later in the year.
