My goodness, I've not blogged in such a looonnnggg time but now that I'm a yummy mummy on maternity leave surely I should have time!!
The other reason I think I need to get back into blogging is that I've been completing a course: called to serve (and not enjoying it) since last September and I've just had to complete a self-assessment of the first two terms, which I struggled to do because I feel like since I became a mummy that has overshadowed everything else, so I struggled to remember what we studied in the first term or what i learnt from it. However my over riding conclusion is that I'm just not very good at being reflective. I enjoy talking, discussing and debating things but I'm just no good at reflecting on things, thoughts and experiences and yet I think blogging is good at encouraging this, so I'm going to set myself the challenge of blogging more often. It may also help keep the mummy brain at bay!!
You won't be surprised to learn that I had to reset my password even to get into my blog today!!
Friday, 19 March 2010
Wednesday, 24 June 2009
My head hurts
Now I'm not prone to deep thinking very often I leave that to other people see here and here but this week as I've been munching on my cheerios every morning I've been reading the latest edition of Christianity magazine and an interview with Terry Virgo who heads up Newfrontiers international has left me puzzled.
They don't agree with women teaching or having authority so women are not allowed to teach about the doctrine of God BUT they are allowed to teach about evangelism because that is seen as 'the proclamation of the Good News to the unsaved.' Now what is making my head hurt is that somewhere down the line of evangelism we have to teach people who know nothing about God about the doctrine of God. Where is the line? How do you know when you've passed it? I want to be facetious and imagine that some poor woman somewhere mid conversation with an unbeliever stops and says 'oh sorry I'm not allowed to teach you about this I don't have the authority I need to go and get a man.' What will the unbeliever think? Not sure that approach will win many into the kingdom.
The other thing that is really making my head hurt is the fact that despite this teaching, which I personally find a little comical never mind tenuous, is that actually God is blessing their work and ministry big time and that raises too many questions for me to process.
Anyone any wise suggestions?
They don't agree with women teaching or having authority so women are not allowed to teach about the doctrine of God BUT they are allowed to teach about evangelism because that is seen as 'the proclamation of the Good News to the unsaved.' Now what is making my head hurt is that somewhere down the line of evangelism we have to teach people who know nothing about God about the doctrine of God. Where is the line? How do you know when you've passed it? I want to be facetious and imagine that some poor woman somewhere mid conversation with an unbeliever stops and says 'oh sorry I'm not allowed to teach you about this I don't have the authority I need to go and get a man.' What will the unbeliever think? Not sure that approach will win many into the kingdom.
The other thing that is really making my head hurt is the fact that despite this teaching, which I personally find a little comical never mind tenuous, is that actually God is blessing their work and ministry big time and that raises too many questions for me to process.
Anyone any wise suggestions?
Friday, 12 June 2009
Cherish
The boys at our Church (sorry men) have been nipping off to the men's Excel conference at Abundant Life Church in Bradford for a couple of years now and kept going on about how we ladies should go to the women's conference. My initial reaction was no way, I'm not sure why I just wasn't keen. Anyway as I'm prone to do I ended up organising a group of us ladies to go over half term. And I need to take back my annoyance at going, my oh it will be naff etc etc.
It was quite simply: awesome, life impacting and changing if I'm honest.
It's hard to describe if you've not been but you can search on Youtube and watch video highlights. But there's something about being with 1500 other women and being told that it's ok to be a woman and be a Christian and be called and have a vocation and a purpose and be reminded that you have influence no matter what you do. And it's more than ok to wear nice clothes and make up and care about how you look and be rubbish at baking (as I am) and be thin and be on fire and be crazy in a good way.
I'll be honest I came back affirmed. Affirmed by God that I am how he made me and that's good. I was inspired by some amazing women teaching the word of God honestly and with integrity. I felt affirmed in exploring my vocation and my giftings in Church. I loved being able to worship without being worried that old people we're tutting about me. It was great to take 7 other women with me and see God touch their lives while we were away.
So I'm going again next year, you'd be more than welcome to come with me!!
But we won't be staying in the ETAP hotel again, but that's another story!!!
It was quite simply: awesome, life impacting and changing if I'm honest.
It's hard to describe if you've not been but you can search on Youtube and watch video highlights. But there's something about being with 1500 other women and being told that it's ok to be a woman and be a Christian and be called and have a vocation and a purpose and be reminded that you have influence no matter what you do. And it's more than ok to wear nice clothes and make up and care about how you look and be rubbish at baking (as I am) and be thin and be on fire and be crazy in a good way.
I'll be honest I came back affirmed. Affirmed by God that I am how he made me and that's good. I was inspired by some amazing women teaching the word of God honestly and with integrity. I felt affirmed in exploring my vocation and my giftings in Church. I loved being able to worship without being worried that old people we're tutting about me. It was great to take 7 other women with me and see God touch their lives while we were away.
So I'm going again next year, you'd be more than welcome to come with me!!
But we won't be staying in the ETAP hotel again, but that's another story!!!
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
PCC Meetings
Before I 'became an Anglican' (because really I'm not one!!) I always imagined PCC meetings were just like they are portrayed on the Vicar of Dibley random, boring and never ending.
However I am now an elected member of the PCC of my Church and have been to my first meeting and so I feel I may have to adjust my mental image of them because I don't want to label myself as being random, boring and never ending!! Someone told me they were looking forward to my being elected because I would bring life to what have previously been quite dry meetings - no pressure there then!!
In my first meeting on Monday we got to meet our new vicar who comes in September officially and August unofficially, I'm very excited about it because he seems like a fantastic people person who is willing to get stuck in and is excited about coming to lovely Cleveleys. He may also have won favour with me because he said he and his wife want to help out at the holiday club I'm organising and running in August - a very good start to his ministry here if you ask me. When it comes to the holiday club anything makes me happy!!
Friday, 17 April 2009
Friendship Ponderings
We're just back from a lovely holiday in Lanzarote which my other half has already blogged about here so I won't mention the holiday but I've been thinking and pondering about what I read on holiday. I've been wading and I mean wading through John Ortberg's 'Everybody's normal till you get to know them.' I've been reading it for ages and am finding it hard going, never having read anything by him before I can't decide if it's me or the style of the book or what but it has got easier to read and it has challenged me in the area of friendships.
He talks a lot about community and what it means to be in community, how to be in community effectively, how to have meaningful relationships, how to be close to people without getting hurt and that's where it has struck a chord with me. You see I have lots of friends (382 on facebook) lots of people who I can meet up with, have a coffee with, chat about this and that with but Ortberg challenges us to have around us a couple of people who know us very well with whom we are able to have unveiled faces, to be accountable, to be honest and to share the sticky stuff of life. Don't get me wrong I have Mr B and he is fab but over the past few months (maybe even past couple of years) I have felt a sense of wanting to have a friend with whom I can be that close and honest to share the hard stuff and find a listener still listening. At uni I had a couple of friends like that but ended up getting hurt and now I find there's no one around me who I see regularly with whom I can build that kind of relationship and maybe deep down I'm afraid of getting hurt again so spend more time by myself and in chatty chatty friendships as opposed to deep friendships. It's something I need to think and pray about: do I need that kind of relationship/friendship, is my thinking about it a sign that it is something that is missing from my life, how do I go about building that kind of relationship either with someone I'm already friends with or somebody new, do I need to stop being so busy and using that as a mask to finding and building meaningful friendships?
Hmm deep thoughts for a Friday evening, can't help but think I'm probably not the only person in the world thinking these things and that gives me hope.
He talks a lot about community and what it means to be in community, how to be in community effectively, how to have meaningful relationships, how to be close to people without getting hurt and that's where it has struck a chord with me. You see I have lots of friends (382 on facebook) lots of people who I can meet up with, have a coffee with, chat about this and that with but Ortberg challenges us to have around us a couple of people who know us very well with whom we are able to have unveiled faces, to be accountable, to be honest and to share the sticky stuff of life. Don't get me wrong I have Mr B and he is fab but over the past few months (maybe even past couple of years) I have felt a sense of wanting to have a friend with whom I can be that close and honest to share the hard stuff and find a listener still listening. At uni I had a couple of friends like that but ended up getting hurt and now I find there's no one around me who I see regularly with whom I can build that kind of relationship and maybe deep down I'm afraid of getting hurt again so spend more time by myself and in chatty chatty friendships as opposed to deep friendships. It's something I need to think and pray about: do I need that kind of relationship/friendship, is my thinking about it a sign that it is something that is missing from my life, how do I go about building that kind of relationship either with someone I'm already friends with or somebody new, do I need to stop being so busy and using that as a mask to finding and building meaningful friendships?
Hmm deep thoughts for a Friday evening, can't help but think I'm probably not the only person in the world thinking these things and that gives me hope.
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Is this middle age?
I've always prided myself on being young at heart; I try to be trendy, I shop in trendy places, I do young people type things, I love loud music and hitting thirty appalls me but recently I've noticed a change.
Time was, when at uni I would spend time with my friends chatting, watching TV, going for a drink, going out for tea, shopping for clothes now with these same friends I find myself going to visit garden centres to look at plants!! And today I have planted a vegetable patch in my garden and I'm dead proud of it and excited about all the home grown produce I'll hopefully be eating this autumn (providing the slugs don't attack!) Here is the evidence to prove the hard work.
I'm worried...this must be middle age...someone help me please!!
Time was, when at uni I would spend time with my friends chatting, watching TV, going for a drink, going out for tea, shopping for clothes now with these same friends I find myself going to visit garden centres to look at plants!! And today I have planted a vegetable patch in my garden and I'm dead proud of it and excited about all the home grown produce I'll hopefully be eating this autumn (providing the slugs don't attack!) Here is the evidence to prove the hard work.
I'm worried...this must be middle age...someone help me please!!
Chocolate O chocolate
This year as I was still putting on weight and not eating very healthily I decided to give up chocolate for lent and eat fruit instead and I have done very well indeed. I've bought fresh fruit and natural yogurt from Tesco and every morning I've made little fruit salads for Stephen and I to have in our packed lunches and I haven't really missed chocolate at all.
However yesterday Stephen's parents celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary and they had been bought a chocolate cake which I had to eat to keep the in laws happy and .....I didn't enjoy my sliver of cake at all, could barley eat more than three mouthfuls - this could be a disaster or it could be a good thing only time will tell if i am able to return to my chocolate eating ways again or if this is the beginning of a whole new chocolate and caffeine free me.
However yesterday Stephen's parents celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary and they had been bought a chocolate cake which I had to eat to keep the in laws happy and .....I didn't enjoy my sliver of cake at all, could barley eat more than three mouthfuls - this could be a disaster or it could be a good thing only time will tell if i am able to return to my chocolate eating ways again or if this is the beginning of a whole new chocolate and caffeine free me.
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