hello there, haven't blogged for ages. (mainly 'cos a strange german bloke has been living in my computer room) (sorry, Wil, you're not really strange. You and Anna are welcome to stay as long as you want). so what brings me back to the blogger? well, some amazing news. Only 10 days overdue, after a 24 hour labour, our good friends Lorna and Dave have had a baby boy! Baby Aiden (sp?), a mere! 9lbs 15oz, our first God-son, welcome to the world. Tres exciting.
What have I been up to? Well, had a fantastic week down in Cornwall. Had a birthday (thanx to all who came to Habibi, it was a great night). Started back at college. Had 17 people round for lunch on Sunday,.Fell off my bike this morning, twisting my knee and narrowly avoiding falling in the canal, oh well, these things happen. will blog more soon hopefully.

Started back at college this week after what seemed like an incredibly long summer break. I have really been looking forward to coming back this year and getting stuck back into some study.
I am really grateful to God that He has enabled me to take this time to study His word. I was originally only planning to do one year at BCC, but I enjoyed the 1st year so much, that I was keen to come back for more. God has provided abundantly to help with the course fees and our living costs. I am also so grateful to Su, without whom I could not have done what I'm doing now. Not only has she been working hard in a difficult job, but she has been constantly faithful in supporting me, encouraging me when I've been down and bearing with me when I've been tearing my hair out (eg when I'm finishing off an essay at 4 o' clock in the morning).
I have been so impressed with the lectures this week. There is a noticable increase in the level of study this year, which I relish.
Increasingly I am asking the Lord to give me wisdom and understanding, I have no interest in becoming 'Bible Answer Man', being able to quote chapter and verse on any given subject, but I do want to become more familiar with the whole biblical story, being shaped by the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Would you know who is the greatest saint in the world? It is not he who prays most or fasts most; it is not he who gives most alms or is most eminent for temperance, chastity or justice; but it is he who is always thankful to God, who wills everything that God wills, who receives everything as an instance of God’s goodness and has a heart always ready to praise God for it.” – William Law
Lord help me always to be thankful for who you are and everything you have given me, help me to want the same things that you want, and help me to recognise that every good and perfect gift comes from you.
There are so many things I have to be thankful for, for Dave and Lorna, who are expecting their first baby any week now. For Wil and Anna at church who are also expecting, and especially my sister Rachel who is due in January. I’m going to be an uncle! Also, my friend Tom from university is getting married in October. Father, I thank you for all these pieces of good news, I pray that you’ll be with all of these families, protect them and bless them in Jesus’ name. Amen

According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's probably shouldn't have survived. Our baby cots were covered with brightly coloured lead-based paint, which was promptly chewed and licked. We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, or latches on doors or cabinets and it was fine to play with pans. When we rode our bikes, we wore no helmets, just flip flops and fluorescent 'clackers' on our wheels. As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. Riding in the passenger seat was a treat. We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle - tasted the same.We ate dripping sandwiches, bread and butter pudding and drank fizzy pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing. We shared one drink with four friends, from one bottle or can and no one actually died from this. We would spend hours building go-carts out of scraps and then went top speed down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into stinging nettles a few times, we learned to solve the problem.We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back before it got dark.

No one was able to reach us all day and no-one minded. We did not have playstations or X-Boxes, no video games at all. No 99 channels on TV, no videotape movies, no surround sound, no mobilephones, no personal computers, no Internet chat rooms. We had friends - we went outside and found them. We played elastics and street rounders, and sometimes that ball really hurt. We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits. They were accidents. We learnt not to do the same thing again. We had fights, punched each other hard and got black and blue - we learned to get over it. We walked to friend's homes. We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate live stuff, and although we were told it would happen, we did not have very many eyes out, nor did the live stuff live inside us forever. We rode bikes in packs of 7 and wore our coats by only the hood. Our actions were our own. Consequences were expected. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law. Imagine that!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and inventors, ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all. And you're one of them. Congratulations! Please pass this on to others who have had the luck to grow up as real kids, before lawyers and government regulated our lives, for our own good.

I think I must be gettiing old. (I'll be 29 in October). Evidence for this is
1. I've been listening to Radio 4 for at least 3 years.
2. I was in a skate/surf type shop the other day and I was 'disgusted at the price of the t-shirts.
3. I can entirely relate to the following (above) :

'Take God seriously, but never take yourself seriously' - I liked this bit of advice (I think it was from Rick Warren, in a comment on emerging minister's blog) The problem is most of us do the exact opposite.

Serious lack of blogging for a while, so I'll try and catch up today. mmm, lets see, what have I been up to? Well I've been out cleaning chimneys with Colin twice now and I have to say I thoroughly enjoy it. It's nice to be out and about, meeting people and well, cleaning their chimneys. I've done about 8 so far and I'm going out all day tomorrow. After that I should be ok to go out on my own. Good honest work and the money's decent as well. Otherwise, I have been working in the bookshop the last couple of Saturdays and all last week, which I've also quite enjoyed (despite all the Jesus junk we have to sell). Read a 'Walk through the bible' by Leslie Newbiggen (note to self, read all of his work), an excellent overview of the whole biblical story, and also 'Responding to the challenge of evolution' by Kevin Logan, which was one of the best (short) introductions to the whole creation/evolution debate I have read.
I've even been doing some DIY (shock horror!). Managed to go to B&Q without getting depressed, and then replaced a drainpipe on the back of the house. It gave me a sense of enormous well-being. Next up, painting the downpipe, and replacing the roof on the lean-to. Man, I'm interesting.

What a cracking weekend. Another heatwave is upon us (must resist the temptation to grumble about the weather we had on holiday). Saturday, Su and I went for a bike ride to a village called Monk's Kirby, which turned out to be a lot further than we thought. Really nice to get away from the city. We stopped off at a pub in Brandon and read a chapter of Dallas Willard's 'Renovation of the Heart' over a pint. Tres cool.
Sunday morning we went down to Moods, for our 'chilled out church'. Met up with Will and Anna, Tom and Angie, Steve, Clare and baby Nathaniel and a lady called Marrione. Steve entertained us all by playing catch with Nathaniel (much to the consternation of his mother). Tom and Angie came back for lunch in the garden, then we prayed for about an hour about church stuff. Payed a visit to Will and Anna, then finished off the day in the garden.
Su is finding work really difficult at the moment. Lord, I pray that you will give her strength and encouragement today and give us wisdom regarding her job situation and my course. Amen.
I'm waiting for a phonecall to go out and get trained up in chimney sweeping! How bizzare is that? Chim-chiminee, chim-chiminee, chim chim cheree, a sweep is as lacky as lacky can be.

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I loved this 'Christian celebrity death match' thing between Dallas Willard and Len Sweet from the 'what is church?' blog. And who said Americans don't have a good sense of humour?

This blogspot advertising banner is getting quite amusing, it was just trying to sell me '28 days later' on DVD, after I talked about it the other day. Could turn into a little game. Let's see how good it is. Mmm, I wonder where I could get hold of copy of 'The Last of The Mohicans' on DVD.

Well, back to good old Coventry after a week or so in Devon. Had a great time, weather was pants though, a complete contrast to the heat wave the previous week when I was kicking my heels around the house.
The best part really was spending lots of time with Su. (He says, trying to redeem himself). No, I mean it. I heard a story on the radio about how loads of couples actually fall out on holiday. They spend all year not talking to each other, go on holiday, where there is nothing to do but talk, and then find they really can't stand each other. Thankfully, this is not the case for Su and I, and I think we both came away feeling a lot closer. (I know, get the vomit bucket.)
Despite the bad weather, we made the most of it. One day Su and I cycled to Woolacombe, from West Down where we were staying. When we set off, it was only slightly raining. Spitting, you might say. As we went on, it got heavier, and heavier. We carried on, getting wetter, and wetter, as the rain turned into a torrential downpour. Chucking it down. We got soaked to the skin. It was fantastic. The route was nearly all downhill to Woolacombe. and I went fast. When we got there I sat on the rocks for two hours, taunting the sea as the tide came in. After almost catching pneumonia, we sat in mum and dad's car and had a picnic. (sitting in a car, eating lunch in the pouring rain, reminds me of sooo many family holidays when we were young) Thankfully we were able to put the bikes back on the car to go back up the hill.

I enjoyed the surfing, well, body boarding, immensely. I was thinking about why I love this so much, and snowboarding too. Well, apart from being an adrenaline junky, I think it is something to do with cooperating with something that is much more powerful than you are.Whether it's waves, or a big snowy mountain, gravity and a slippy bit of wood. Just putting yourself in the right place at the right time, pushing off and holding on. On the edge of loosing it. (and frequently doing so). You are not in control, you're just cooperating. This is how life with God should be. There is this guy who just did a skydive across the channel. He went from 30000 ft, freefalling (flying) for six minutes, reaching speeds of 220 mph. The whole thing took 14 minutes. How cool is that? Su! I've got a new hobby!

Well, tomorrow we're off down to Devon for a weeks holiday. We're staying at my brother in law Karl's sister's house, with Rachel, Karl, mum and dad. This will be the first year since we've been married that we havn't been to Cornwall, but Devon is just as nice. Can't wait.

10 best things about going on holiday:

1. Not working

2. Surfing

3. Barbeques and Beer on the Beach

4. Spending all day, everyday with Su

5. Long Walks

6. Sunsets

7. Sitting on the rocks watching the waves crash at your feet

8. Eating out.

9. Finding new places

10. Bike rides

5 worst things :

1. Packing

2. Traffic

3. Rain

4. Packing to come home

5. Coming home

Su has been away tonight. Although I miss her dreadfully, obviously, it does give me a chance to watch a dvd that she wouldn't like. So this evening I watched '28 Days Later'. From the director of Trainspotting and The Beach, Danny Boyle, it is essentially an update of the zombie genre. A Night of the Living Dead for the noughties. Britain has been devastated by a disease which turns people into flesh-eating monsters in seconds. It was pretty good. Lots of suspense, atmosphere, intriguing plot, great cinematography. Fascinating to see scenes of London and the M1 completely deserted. Why is it that I can watch stuff like this and just find it entertaining, whereas my wife would be scared witless, horrified by nightmares for weeks afterwards? Am I wrong to enjoy movies like this? Does this mean I have become desensitized. Hard hearted by years of exposure to senseless violence? Or does it just mean I am not a girl?

Quite liked this C.S. Lewis quote I read earlier about other religions :

'If you are a Christian, you do not have to believe that all the other religions are simply wrong all through. If you are an atheist, you do have to believe that the main point in all the religions of the whole world is simply one huge mistake. If you are a Christian, you are free to think that all these religions,even the queerest ones, contain at least some hint of the truth. When I was an atheist, I had to try to persuade myself that most of the human race have always been wrong about the question that mattered to them most; when I became a Christian, I was able to take a more liberal view. But, of course, being a Christian does mean thinking that where Christianity differs from other religions, Christianity is right and they are wrong. As in arithmetic-there is only one right answer to a sum, and all other answers are wrong: but some of the wrong answers are much nearer being right than others.

man, it's hot outside! Yes I've finished college, and finished all my essays, hoorah.
I will try and blog a bit more now. I've been reading some of real live preacher's blog. That guy is an amazing writer, everything he writes is interesting. I' d love to be able to write like that, rather than 'er.. today I went to the shops, and then I er.. came home again.'

The last few weeks have felt pretty hectic. I think I've been doing too much thinking. There have been times when I've felt so low and I couldn't explain why. Su has been so supportive. She really is amazing. She works so hard in a difficult job, and has me to deal with as well. She is much stronger than she realizes.

Spent this weekend down at Su's dad's. This is always nice and relaxing but also a bit weird 'cos I never know quite what to say to them. Managed to mess up quite spectacularly on Sunday night before we came home.

mess up no. 1 : spilt a full glass of red wine all over their new garden furniture. (no I wasn't drunk)

mess up no. 2 : whilst playing swingball with Chris (su's little brother, age 9), managed to thwack it full pelt into his face, oops. He cried like a baby.
I'll get my coat, I said.

Oh well, I've done worse.

Found a friend's web site with loads of photos on. This guy was in Banff for the season when we went out there snowboarding in Feb. He's now in New Zealand. Jammy git. Anyway, I'll blog more later, as Su is out all evening on a work's do, lucky girl.

O Thou who camest from above,
the pure celestial fire to impart
kindle a flame of sacred love
upon the mean altar of my heart.


There let it for thy glory burn
with inextinguishable blaze,
and trembling to its source return,
in humble prayer and fervent praise.


Jesus, confirm my heart's desire
to work and speak and think for thee;
still let me guard the holy fire,
and still stir up thy gift in me.


Ready for all thy perfect will,
my acts of faith and love repeat,
till death thy endless mercies seal,
and make my sacrifice complete.


Charles Wesley 1762

ouch, my head hurts.Just finished essay no. 3 out of 5, about 'evangelism' in the book of Acts. I think my information intake level is far exceeding my brains ability to process it. Basically, I read too much. I think I may even be addicted to it. I suppose there are worse addictions, but still. Currently on the go are (some of these are even to do with my course) :

The Cost of Discipleship - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

What is Mission? - J. Andrew Kirk

Evangelism in the Early Church - Michael Green

Beyond Tithing - Stuart Murray

Houses That Change the World - Wolfgang Simson

God of The Poor - Dewi Hughes

Rich Christians in An Age of Hunger - Ronald J. Sider

The Resurrection of the Son of God - N.T.Wright

Stupid White Men - Michael Moore

Now, most of these books are pretty devestating in their own right. Taken together they are a recipe for a full on breakdown. I think I may need to calm down before my brain explodes. Maybe I should get out more! oh, I nearly forgot - The Purpose Drivel (tm) Life. I have to agree with Greg Adkins about this one - it kinda bugs me.

I like it when I read old books and find stuff which foreshadows what other people are saying today.This happens a lot with people like Tozer. Here's a couple I've come across in the last couple of days:

Heres Dietrich Bonhoeffer, writing in 1937- The Cost of Discipleship, but it could be Dallas Willard -

'Discipleship means adherence to Christ, and, because Christ is the object of that adherence, it must take the form of discipleship. An abstract Christology, a doctrinal system, a general religious knowledge on the subject of grace or on the forgiveness of sins, render discipleship superfluous, and in fact they positively exclude any idea of discipleship whatever, and are essentially inimical to the whole conception of following Christ. With an abstract idea it is possible to enter into a relation of formal knowledge, to become enthusiastic about it, and perhaps even put it into practice; but it can never be followed in personal obedience. Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity without discipleship, and Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ.'

Duncan Campbell -1956 'I want to say reverently and humbly that for me the greatest reality, the greatest fact in life is just the presence of the Lord Jesus.And I love Him; that to me is greater than preaching, it is greater than seeing revival...the greatest thing of all is just to have fellowship with Jesus'

Lord Jesus, I want to be able to say that too, and mean it. Amen

OK, what have I been up to for the last few days? Well towards the end of last week I was getting a bit anxious. I think it was mainly 'cos of these essays I have to do. It's crazy, I've been given this opportunity to study what I'm most interested in, and yet I still moan about the work I have to do. I guess at the bottom of it all is the fact that I'm just plain lazy. I think I inherited it. It seems a bit unfair. I mean, people get all kinds of special treatment for various problems, dyslexia, short sightedness, work related stress, but us lazy people are made to feel guilty. I didn't ask to be lazy, I was born that way. It is only through tremendous self-sacrifice and perseverence in the face of adversity that I am able to get up in the morning and function on a semi-normal level. what? ok, enough whinging

Friday evening we had our worship and prayer evening. There was only a select few of us but it was a good time of really meeting with God. We used the Lord's prayer for a structure and we had one of the best prayer times I can remember for ages. Jesus knew what He was talking about.

Saturday, I played football in Birmingham with our college team against South Birmingham Evangelical church. It was probably the best game we've played, but we got killed (7-3). I really enjoyed it though, scored a couple of goals. I love the way when you're playing football you can just switch off for 90 minutes and nothing else matters except the game. Relaxing in a knackering kind of way.

Our Sunday morning gathering at Moods was nice. Got to pray with a guy who wandered in off the street which kind of makes it all worthwhile.
Rachel came over on Sunday afternoon and yesterday we went for a day's walking in the Peak District which was great once we got away from the bank holiday traffic. So it was a great long weekend all in all, but now I REALLY need to knuckle down to some work.

Need to blog more! Housegroup was cool tonight, Su Clay was back from her O.T. placement. It was great to see her. Bert brought his friend Caroline along which was cool. Talked about Dying to Live, following on from Nick's talk on Sunday. At least we starting off talking about that then moved onto building genuine friendships with non-Christians, sorry, people who aren't yet following Jesus. It seems like lots of people feel they have nothing they can talk about with people or nothing in common and the frustration of smalltalk.
I think we need to focus on this a lot more. How to have common interests and build genuine relationships with people.
I have so much in my head at the moment. 5 essays to write. At least 3 of them have to be in in just over 2 weeks time. I find when I am stressing about 1 thing that I stress about everything else too. Church stuff. Job stuff. Future stuff. I constantly need to remind my self to hand everything back to God. I am asking God to make me delight in Him more than anything else in life.

Well, I did my preach at Beeches Evangelical church this morning. Seemed to go ok, I was probably the most nervous I've been about any talk I've done for some reason, but God really helped me when I was up there. For the childrens story I did an updated version of the prodigal son which Su helped me write, gave out balloons, party balloons and lollipops which went down well. The church was about as far removed from Coventry Vineyard as can be, ex-brethren v. conservative evangelical. We actually sang 'All Things Bright and Beautiful'. Probably the first time I'd sang that since school. They were very welcoming and v. kind about what I said (and generous too). Didn't rock the boat too much, although I did talk about how the Father lost all sense of respectability and dignity and breaking with tradition in order to run out to the lost son. And I talked about prostititutes quite a lot. (to the adults this is, not the kids!).
This afternoon was another BBQ in the park which was good fun. I love hanging out, BBQing, playing aerobie and football.
Then we had explore the bible this evening where we are continuing to read through Acts. Amazing stuff. I love the prayer of the disciples in Acts 4:24-30. v.powerful. This week as a community here at Coventry Vineyard we are agreeing to spend half an hour each day in prayer. God seems to be speaking to loads of people about prayer at the moment. Found out that, quite independantly of each other, Nick and Andrew McNeil were speaking about prayer this morning, using the Lord's prayer model. And the church I spoke at this morning did it last week. Anyway, must go to bed now. Goodnight.