As the school year draws to a close, I've been reflecting on what has been a great year of life and ministry at Emmanuel. Here are some of the highlights...
1. God's plans are better than mine
Leading a Youth Alpha session |
Fancy dress at Soul Survivor |
Back in February I had a call from a family in our parish requesting a visit. This family were not involved in the church and did not have a Christian background. When I visited, I sat down with the mum and 10 year old daughter and they started to ask about baptism for the 10 year old. Naturally I was curious and asked why she might want to be baptised, to which the response was "I just want more of God in my life". After picking my jaw up off the floor, I continued the conversation, and invited her to our groups. She is now a regular attendee of our discipleship stream for 10-13's...
3. We all need to be challenged
I started a prayer triplet with two old mates in September, and we've managed to keep it going throughout the year. We set out to be "as iron sharpens iron" (Proverbs 27:17) in each others lives, and I've really valued the times of challenge, support and stretching. We all need a place where we can be open, accountable and questionned. Especially me.
One of my favourite quotes was from a recent get-together:
"We've made the gospel to be like a cheese sandwich, when it's a huge feast. I mean, who wants a cheese sandwich?"
4. It's a real blessing to have a supportive church
I can't tell you how supportive Emmanuel has been this year. The conversation I had with the then church warden sums up my experience, in a rather amusing way. We were busy testing out the setup for the upcoming Youth Alpha, and the conversation went like this:
Me: Yep, the new HD projector looks great, as do the new backdrops. I also like the new sofas and beanbags. Thanks for putting the new PA in place, it works well, but...
CW: But...
CW: Hmm...
Me: Do we have a subwoofer in the church?
Me: Do we have a subwoofer in the church?
CW: I'll see what I can do
And lo and behold, the sub was purchased and in place the following week! What a guy!
5. Never leave your wet pants in the vestry...
A remake of the baptism moment, using sweets! |
It had turned out that the local primary school were visiting, and had subseqently got more than they bargained for out of the vestry...