I'm back!

No you're not imagining things...I've actually returned to my blog after a long winter hibernation!!

I was fast joining the statistic of those people who stop blogging after the first six months. It really does get harder the longer you stay away.

So a quick update....

2008 has been a bit mental to be honest. I think if Andrea and I could re-plan our first six months of marriage it would have been a lot more chilled. Probably one out of two weekends has been spent with either travelling, church stuff or having family and friends visit. All of it has been good but it's left us a bit zonked and quite drained by it all at times.

Thankfully, things are slowing down at last and Andrea and I are looking forward to some weekends home and away together over the next few weeks.

We had an awesome Easter week this year. 15 students from Bangor S.A. in N.Ireland joined us for a week and helped us run a kids club in our local leisure centre. It was amazing watching 30 kids and a fantastic team have so much fun and also learn about what a life following Jesus Christ looks like.

Here are some highlights....

- Hearing 30 kids from our estate sing with conviction the simple but profound words to each other -'God loves you and nothing you can do will ever change that.'

- Hear one kid tell us that he'd love to be a Salvation Army officer when he grows up and another of our youth say he wants to be a youth worker after volunteering with us this week.

- Watch with immense pride as five of our local teenagers from our youth club volunteered all week with our kids work. They were AMAZING!

- Holding our Easter Sunday service in our local pub and see 85 people turn up and pack the place!

- Witness 15 young people from N. Ireland come and make our community their community for the past week and serve it so selflessly.

In the midst of the craziness of the week I had to lead a funeral in the estate. I've only led one before and tragically that was of a 14 year old girl who was part of our youth work in Gibby.

I have to be honest and say that it's not my favourite thing to do but it's always a huge honour and privilege.

On Wednesday, over 120 people from the community packed into our church to remember Betty, a lady that lived round the corner from us. What a privilege to share with my neighbours at such a difficult time in their lives. What an honour to speak words of hope and life into their lives as they gathered to grieve, remember and celebrate.

Life here can be so surreal at times. One minute you're doing silly actions with kids at a club and the next you're literally in your black suit standing by a graveside saying 'ashes to ashes, dust to dust'.

It's only God's grace that carries me in this work. He's so faithful.

Anyway, that's my little update. For all you doubters who took me off your list...Oh ye of little faith!

See ya in three months!

Quote of the day

“Everything wrong in the world is a divine call to use your life in righting it” W.T. Stead.

HILARIOUS!

Ok, this video is either really cruel or one of the funniest things I've seen in a while. Maybe both.

All I can say is that I'm in tears having just watched it. Thought it was only right to share it! Thanks Melzers.

Legends!

"My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it." - Clarence Budington Kelland

"Children and mothers never truly part -Bound in the beating of each other's heart."- Charlotte Gray

This is a picture of my parents.

I got an email from dad yesterday with a link to a little promo video for his church. It's pretty cool and I got a wee bit vaclamped(!) as I saw bits of footage of my folks on it. This is the first Christmas in thirty years when neither Mel nor I will be with our folks in Canada or them with us in the UK. We had an amazing few weeks in September/ October when they were over for both our weddings but the pennies couldn't really stretch to Christmas. It's gonna be tough.

On the other hand, this is my first Christmas with Andrea as my wife and I'm really looking forward to that. It's been so busy recently and we really can't wait to have some time off together.

I'm so blessed to have the most amazing parents I can think of. As the years go by, their courage, steadfast faith in God, forgiving heart, compassion for everyone and perseverance through the hard times (with joy) is mesmorizing. Only when I really started having a go at adulthood myself have I realised how truly amazing they are. The way that they have lovingly sacrificed their lives for Mel and I over the years, and still do, even when we were wee brats (and still are!) is such a reflection of God's all-consuming love for us.

Legends.

It's always hard to be so far away from them both (they live in Canada) and never gets easier. Phone calls just aren't the same. If mum is reading this she is probably crying (ye big baby!) but I just wanted to big them up today through my blog.

I miss them loads and Christmas won't be the same without them. I'm just glad they're in my life.

Love you guys.

PS. See the cool promo of the fantastic church my dad pastors in Ontario. Dad's the one seen preaching with the snowy white hair :-) Seriously Gordo, a smile wouldn't hurt! Loving the cheesy north american voiceover!

Sally Army- Part 2- Morissons

On Tuesday, a few of us were carolling and collecting at Morissons. We need to raise some funds for our kids and youth work so we struck a deal. Our local Morissons would let us collect for four days in December if we provided some Crimbo music while we were there.

We're not really a Sally Army with brass band players etc. so I contacted our headquarters and they kindly sent three officers with their instruments and one for me. Andrea and a friend played the flute when our lips couldn't function any longer!

I was a bit disappointed that I didn't see Lulu or Alan Hansen but I did meet two amazing people who have stayed in my mind all week:

Person 1: While we made a good wee bit of money on Tuesday and many people were kind enough to stop and put some silver in our collecting box, lots of people passed us by with their big trolleys of goods.

During the last hour I noticed a little old woman come in by herself. She was hobbling slowly on a walking stick. You know the kind of woman. The one you see in your town that is usually on her own and seems to get forgotten about. Double-lensed glasses, wooly hat, not very fashionable. Seems quite poor and hard done by, but still smiles. Doesn't really fit into modern Britain. She probably has little plates in commemoration of royal family weddings and such.

You know the lady.

This particular one hobbled passed and I remember her really standing out from the crowd in my head. She looked so alone and I really felt for her. A few minutes later I saw her coming towards me. She didn't say a word to me but put a £20 note in my collecting box. Then she slowly walked away smiling as I said thank you to her. I watched her head into the cafe all by herself for a wee cup of tea.

Widow's mite?

Person 2: After three long hours of collecting and carolling, Andrea, Matt (our youth worker) and I decided it was time for one last carol. I was at the entrance collecting, Matt was by the display we made and Andrea started playing 'Away in a manger'. What happened next you just can't make up!

As Andrea played, a mum walked over with her young blind daughter and stopped in front of her. The little girl began to get really excited and started singing along to the carol at the top of her lungs 'bless all the dear children in thy tender care....' At the end of the carol she jumped up and down, clapped and cheered. Couldn't stop smiling.

Give me meeting those two people at Morissons over Lulu and Alan Hansen any day!

Sally Army- Part 1- care and share

So I was getting my hair cut today.

You see, after about 7 weeks and no haircut I can easily resemble Michael Jackson circa the 1970s! It really was time! Observation: why when you ask the hairdresser to 'just take a little bit off' do they always completely scald you?

Anyway! Steph, the girl with the scissors, was cutting my hair and she was quite the chatter. We got around to talking about Christmas and she asked me what I was doing on Christmas day. I shared how before heading to London on Christmas night my wife and I were having a friend from N. Ireland, another close friend from London who just lost her parents this year (love ya stelle!) and a mum who always usually has to fend for herself and her five daughters every Christmas.

When I finished speaking she went, 'Wow. Salvation Army eh?!'.

Thing is, I hadn't told her that I worked for the Salvation Army. When I told her I actually belonged to the Army she almost cut my ear off with shock! We laughed our heads off and then she just went 'well there you go then- care and share!'

You know there are times when I wonder why I'm still in the Sally Army. I love my local expression of The Salvation Army but I find so much of the 'army world' quite irrelevant and odd. But boy do we have an amazing reputation with the public built up by generations of sacrificial living and giving, caring and sharing...and some reasonably good P.R!

Here was Steph, who when hearing how Andrea and I were 'caring and sharing' for our friends this Christmas (although they care and share with us just as much!), immediately connected that spirit- the spirit of Christ- with The Salvation Army.

Of all the organisations, denominations, religions and societies in the world it was the first to immediately come off her lips.

There's lots wrong with the movement I've given my life to but I sat in that chair as my afro was slowly fading away and had a little bit of godly pride for this strange little movement I'm a part of.

The Archbishop of Canterbury in the pulpit