Peppa Cochon

This is about the extent of what I can intellectually manage on a Friday night, but if you fancy swatting up on your old French classes - then take a look:

Getting Engaged... Take Two

Take two is not a reference to the fact I had to ask Elli twice to marry me, but that I hit publish on this post before I meant to. For most, ney all of you, that fact won't make a blind bit of difference to your life, but it did briefly appear as a ghost post on a number of people's blogrolls and on Facebook.

I had planned to propose to Elli in the half term holiday. She twigged that I must be up to something, I had proposed (informally) regularly up to that point so it was only a matter of time.

After some detective work and help from trusted female colleagues, I bought the ring and formulated a fairly fluid plan of action.  The Friday of half term week, we went to my parents' house for lunch. On the way, we stopped at the little village church where my parents met during a wedding, after 5 years of moving in different worlds and where love sprung into life for them. Elli knew this and was visibly excited - but no proposal was forth-coming. I admit, it was a deliberate tease.

Sermon Notes: Come Everything is Ready

If you’re an outsider looking in on a church, communion is an odd ritual isn’t it? Symbolizing cannibalism - eating Jesus’ body and drinking his blood? Moreover, if it is only a memorial (a remembrance), aren’t there better ways to remember? E.g. bible reading, DVD watching, worship CD listening?

Do You Worship God Like the Devil?

The Devil worships Jesus. Did you know that?  Jonathan Edwards explains...

The Devil once seemed to be religious from fear of torment. Luke 8:28, 'When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Son of the most High? I beseech thee, torment me not!' Here is external worship. The devil is religious; he prays: he prays in humble posture; he falls down before Christ, he lies prostrate, he prays earnestly, he cries with a loud voice; he uses humble expressions - 'I beseech thee, torment me not' - he uses respectful, honourable, adoring expressions - 'Jesus thou Son of God Most High. Nothing was wanting [lacking] but love.

We imitate the devil when we sing loud, pray loud, lift our hands, yet have no love for Christ, his Father and his Church.

Talk Notes

Some (slightly amended) notes from recent talk I gave...

The World as we see it...
Songwriters and poets tell us that love makes the world go round. What do you think makes the world go round?

• Money? (Ec.10:19)
• Knowledge? (Ec.12:12)
• Power? (Ec.4:1)
• Luck? (Ec.9:11)

C. S. Lewis on the Overflowing Goodness of God

Quote from The Screwtape Letters, Uncle Screwtape, a senior demon, describes to his ghoulish nephew how the true God - Father, Son and Spirit is utterly different from his master - the Devil:

One must face the fact that all talk of his [God's] love for men, and his service being perfect freedom is not (as one would gladly believe) mere propaganda, but an appalling truth. He really does want to fill the universe with a lot of loathsome little replicas of Himself - creatures, whose life, on it's miniature scale, will be qualitatively like his own, not because he has absorbed them, but because their wills freely conform to his. We want cattle who finally become food, He wants servants who can finally become sons. We want to suck in, He wants to give out. We are empty and would be filled. He is full and flows over.

Whitley Diamond Jubilee Street Party

Yesterday I had the privilege of being part of Berkshire's biggest diamond jubilee street party as churches in Whitley (including the one of which I am part) put on a great celebration to serve God, honour the queen and be a blessing to the local community.

BBC Berkshire turned up to document the party as did the local paper and we appeared on ITV Meridian News.