Joyful

 

Hello All

I hope you are well. Right, let's get on with it. I am writing this before Elton John comes on at Glastonbury and I wouldn't mind having a look at him. It's not that I am a huge Elton fan particularly, it's just that he will be the first person that I have heard of at this Glastonbury. Ok, I've heard of Guns and Roses but I couldn't whistle anything by them and there are lots of bands with names like Billy Bobs, Pinkeys, Baaahs, Dogs on Heat - that sort of thing and I'm afraid they have all passed me by. I'm not sure that any of those are genuine names but I am even less sure that they are not. So Elt will come on and do Your Song and all will be well with the world. For three minutes at least.

It's been a rough week again. Lots of comparisons of the plight of refugees in boats with the amount of publicity the men in the doomed sub received. I'm not sure it is an entirely fair comparison. Everyone deserves to be rescued - even if they have paid a small fortune to dive down to the site of someone else's misfortune. I'm also not convinced by the argument that they knew it was a risky venture. I think an adventurer might risk his own life but I don't think you would risk your son on what is essentially a vanity mission. risking your son to escape persecution is, of course, something else altogether.  

This Saturday was the last Messy Church of the season. We were doing Saul and Paul (same person for the uninitiated). Our craft table had to make a head from pop socks and put grass seed in and then soil. Then. we made two faces - one at the front and one at the back. The sock was then dangled over a jam jar with water and the idea is that the grass will then grow. It's not Monty Don but it's pretty good. The face above was Saul - before conversion and therefore understandably grumpy. The face below is Paul - after conversion  - actually I think it must be just after conversion - he looks terrified so this may be four of your actual seconds after the vision that knocked him off his horse. 

Unfortunately, I woke up on Saturday with a pesky migraine but I had said that I would go in, so I set off with more drugs in me than a Columbian prison and it all went ok. This morning I was due to be serving coffee and my head was feeling a bit better so I went in. again. Unfortunately, this Sunday was something called Pick and Mix church - where you have lots of different rooms with different creative things going on. You can move around the church and do different ones - crafts, talking, meditation etc. However, what with my head and everything, when someone mentioned cow bells, I felt it was time to leave for the day. I'm much better now thank you. I was a bit disappointed because I haven't had one for months and months so you dared to think that you may have it beaten. However my two triggers which are stress and dehydration have been creeping up a bit - nothing dramatic - just a slow build and this weather is quite difficult to keep hydrated in. It has disappeared now - you can set your clock by it. It's a weird thing.

I  wouldn't like you to think that I am against fun in church. HOH is but I'm not. HOH isn't that keen on fun generally. I don't mind so much. So long as it doesn't include that game where you have to pass an orange along under your chin. That's not fun. Also, anything that involves doing impressions at the front of church. If I close my eyes in a quiet room I can still bring to mind someone impersonating Max Bygraves doing The Deck of Cards in the pulpit. (Look it up if you dare). As I've said before, as a young girl, at a Christian social event, I remember an older lady who had been giggling at something or other asking me (with a straight face) "You don't think the Lord minds if we have a laugh do you?' 

Finding joy is important. Even in the midst of everything that is going on at the moment - never mind anything that may be happening in our own lives and the worries that any of us may be living through. The things that give us joy are not trivial things and sometimes, other things need to be pushed through to get to them.Jesus knew though. He knew about being weary and losing heart and keeping going. And while we are doing that, I'm certain it's ok to have a laugh.

For the joy (to remind you - that joy is you and me. We are his joy) that was set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12