Angel of the South

Enjoyed a good walk today on the South Downs with Michael, Pete and Goul. Good weather, good walking, and good company, what more can you ask for?

Sunny Saturday

It was good to meet up with Mum yesterday in London. Enjoyed the sunshine in Holland Park.

south downs way

It's been a long time since I've blogged.

Michael & I enjoyed a fine walk Saturday from Southease to Hassocks along the South Downs Way and thought this warrented a blog. It's got to be the longest walk we've done at approx 16 miles. Some glorious views en route and fine weather but a bit windy!

This was a trial for the long distance walk we hope to do next summer from Melrose to Holy Island. And it proved to me that I at least will need to do some more training before then as I'm still stiff today!

Alt worship at the Ascension

The Church of the Ascension are doing another of their alt worship services. This one on 29th April, focusing on communion. They're inviting young people from local churches to attend again, and seem to be focusing their alternative worship services as youth services rather than just alternative worship for anyone - although anyone is welcome to go along.

birthday celebrations take two

Well, this being 40 lark is quite good - I've had another night of celebrating this week, with thanks to the 'girls'!
We took to an eating place in Haywards Heath and they took to suitably embarrassing me in public by singing happy birthday twice in the packed restaurant, once as a large cake bearing sparklers in the shape of '40' was produced, and once for no reason whatsoever! They adorned me with some sort of garland to wear around my neck which was so itchy it nearly caused a rash, and sat me under a 'Birthday Girl' helium balloon. As they said, though, this was mild embarrassment, and I tend to agree - they were kind.
A great night, and one I shall remember for a long time - to go with the 'other' night on my actual birthday which will also be remembered for a long time.
Surely this marks the end of celebrations...and the beginning of writing all those thank you notes.

A lot has happened over the last few weeks. Most significant perhaps is the fact that I turned 40! Pete and John had arranged a surprise - a meal out at the Savoy followed by a show - Stomp - with Pete, Michael, Jess, John and Daphne. Thanks everyone for making it so special!

My own 'treat' had been to book a family holiday on Holy Island, Northumbria for a week's break. It's one of my favourite places to visit. Many people go to Holy Island on retreat, thousands of others flock there when the tide is out to see the sights (Holy Island is attached to the mainland by causeway, cut off twice a day by the tide). I really enjoy staying there, the island is so different when the tide is in and the place becomes an island, and although I've not been on 'retreat' I always gain so much from being there and taking time to ponder on the spiritual heritage of the place. One of the highlights of this visit was taking part in a pilgrimage walk across the causeway on Palm Sunday with St Mary's Church. There were only 5 of us who took part so just as well Michael and I joined in really, and we felt most welcome by the local church. It was quite an experience being welcomed onto the island by a group of Christians (on retreat) who hadn't done the walk but gathered to worship and greet us. I wonder if Cuthbert had such a welcome party when he arrived?

This last week has seen me get through what has felt like mountains of marking, I have finally reached the end of the pile and am quite relieved. Just as I was coming to the end of it (the marking that is) a new book I ordered came through the post, The Sacred Way by Tony Jones. It's beautifully written and easy to read, 'an invitation to explore spiritual practices that will quicken and expand our everyday lives' as the review says.
I find it interesting and exciting that there is an increased interest in spiritual practices of long ago, I personally feel that the tradition I've grown up in hasn't given me much in the way of practices in this area and I'm the weaker for it. The thing is, as Jones writes, 'seeking God will not be easy' and what is comforting (for me, as I feel I'm fairly useless at times in this area) is that spiritual disciplines don't come easy either and haven't done for Christians throughout the ages. The thing with 'disciplines' is that they are just that - you have to work at them and make time for them, but they're not to be seen as a chore or burden, rather a way of finding space for God. Jones quotes Henri Nouwen:
'Discipline means to prevent everything in your life from being filled up. Discipline means that somewhere you're not occupied, and certainly not preoccupied. In the spiritual life, discipline means to create that space in which something can happen that you hadn't planned or counted on.'

It's the practices that Jones writes about (Silence, meditation, labyrinth, fasting, different types of praying, etc..) that can help us to be disciplined and to create that space for God to speak and for us to hear and grow and that's why I think the interest in this area, not just for individuals but in the whole emerging church scene is an exciting one.

On a completely different note...roller disco in the church hall tonight at youth group - should be fun! And, now that I'm a deacon (I was elected last night), I will be even more aware of the tension between taking responsibility for the state of the hall floor and allowing the young people to have fun!