Saturday, January 13, 2007


The whole family has been out church cleaning this morning. I must admit it is an event I've ducked out of at times in the past when I've had 'more important' things to do... However something I read on another blog essentially sums up how I now feel about prioritising the less glamorous jobs in church and this one in particular.

"When he became Bishop of Birmingham (or Bishop FOR Birmingham, as he preferred to call it)John Sentamu (now Archbishop of York) made a big deal of replacing the part of the service where he should have gone and sat on his "throne" with a ceremony in which he washed the feet of 12 local schoolchildren, gave each of them a rather splendid theatrical crown to wear, and got THEM to sit on the throne one by one. In his sermon, he said that he believed in servant leadership - and I can vouch for the fact that even when he wasa lowly Vicar he was to be seen just as often as anyone else mopping the floor or washing the dishes. He never allowed the music group or any other "profile" ministry group to escape their turn on the cleaning rota. If you won't clean for the Church, he said, you have no right to minister to them."

This ties in with an extract from one of my all time favourite bible passages: Philippians 2

" Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, didn't consider it robbery to be equal with God but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant."

Cleaning may not be glamorous but it is a servant ministry and what could be better than emulating Jesus in a small way by taking the form of a servant? That said it was also great fun. We had a great laugh and some fabulous conversations whilst we got on and did the necessary....next time I certainly won't seen it as a chore but as a privilege!

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

You scored as Chalcedon compliant. You are Chalcedon compliant. Congratulations, you're not a heretic. You believe that Jesus is truly God and truly man and like us in every respect, apart from sin. Officially approved in 451.

Chalcedon compliant

100%

Nestorianism

67%

Modalism

67%

Pelagianism

67%

Monophysitism

67%

Monarchianism

50%

Apollanarian

33%

Socinianism

17%

Arianism

0%

Adoptionist

0%

Donatism

0%

Albigensianism

0%

Gnosticism

0%

Docetism

0%

Are you a heretic?
created with QuizFarm.com

Well, that's a relief!!!! Burning at the stake isn't my preferred option for shuffling off this mortal coil!!!


Last weekend we had a fabulous time in Pisa. Weather gorgeous and restaurants fab. My waistline is still recovering!
Here's a picture of son and heir with a famous landmark behind.
Chow!

Tuesday, January 09, 2007


When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild nations,
To bring peace among brothers and sisters,
To make music in the heart.
Howard Thurman.