When we were young, not so young, but young enough, my Nan and Granddad had a shed in their back garden. This shed was wide enough and wired up so that they could teach us darts and play music to us.
I have some very lovely memories of these times. Mostly the fact that I was particularly awful at darts and couldn't treble numbers on the odd occasion that I needed too. I won't forget Granddad telling us to always pull the top dart out first or Nan making that funny noise when we'd nearly got treble 20, only to hit treble 1. I understand the rules of darts because of my maternal Grandparents spending Friday evenings teaching us how to play.
Times have changed, last night my brothers and husband were teaching my Nan how to play darts on the Kinect. After discovering that I do not have the patience for such a game, Nan and Mum both hit their strides and were scoring well (until the Xbox over heated). I was demoted to back up and apparently Christmas arrived and it was New Years day by the time I'd thrown a dart!
How different is family life now?
No longer in a cold shed throwing sharp metal objects at a cork board, we're now throwing imaginary darts at an expensive TV.
Nothing in that statement is bad, just a comment on how over the last fifteen years technology and family have changed. And fifteen years ago I couldn't have imagined how yesterday evening panned out and couldn't have predicted how fun it was! (I beat my youngest brother at baseball!)
Monday, November 14, 2011
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Observations
This isn't a fully formed thought, but I thought that I'd try and verbalise how I'm thinking.
I was in church this morning and one of the girls was looking into a mirror during the worship time. The first thought that popped into my head wasn't one of annoyance or anything like that, but it was an obvious way to show how I sometimes come to church, to worship.
I can only speak from how I personally feel because I don't want to make assumptions of everyone around me. But do I sometimes go to church just to look at myself in a shiny bit of glass, examining how beautiful/ugly I look, depending on the mood I'm in or the week I've had?
It's not always the way I come to worship, and there is nothing wrong with a self-examination, that's what the Confession is about. We have to look at ourselves and see the flaws and imperfections, but not to be consumed totally by them.
God works in amazing ways and He's the one who makes us clean and whole. We can't do that under our own strength. We can have a really clean mirror, however it doesn't affect the object that is reflected.
Eventually I have to put the mirror down and focus on the cross. What is worship for, to glorify God? to get my vocal chords stretched so I can lead children's church better? to spend my entire time wondering how I sound or look?
I know it's the first one and I'm also aware that it's the last two more often than not. It's easy to say that worship is about God and for God, not so easy to do.
I was in church this morning and one of the girls was looking into a mirror during the worship time. The first thought that popped into my head wasn't one of annoyance or anything like that, but it was an obvious way to show how I sometimes come to church, to worship.
I can only speak from how I personally feel because I don't want to make assumptions of everyone around me. But do I sometimes go to church just to look at myself in a shiny bit of glass, examining how beautiful/ugly I look, depending on the mood I'm in or the week I've had?
It's not always the way I come to worship, and there is nothing wrong with a self-examination, that's what the Confession is about. We have to look at ourselves and see the flaws and imperfections, but not to be consumed totally by them.
God works in amazing ways and He's the one who makes us clean and whole. We can't do that under our own strength. We can have a really clean mirror, however it doesn't affect the object that is reflected.
Eventually I have to put the mirror down and focus on the cross. What is worship for, to glorify God? to get my vocal chords stretched so I can lead children's church better? to spend my entire time wondering how I sound or look?
I know it's the first one and I'm also aware that it's the last two more often than not. It's easy to say that worship is about God and for God, not so easy to do.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Finishing
Little updates here and there, but most of the people who read this should know this by now. I'm finishing up as Youth Worker at St Hugh's at the end of January 2012.
As you might have noticed, I love my job and the family at St Hugh's. People keep telling me how much I'll be missed and they are beginning to wonder what youth work will look like after I leave. I'm honestly trying not to worry about that too much. I know church will still look after the young people and they will definitely have to keep going to church, they have responsibilities! Whatever happens, I know that God will be teaching those involved.
I'm sad to be leaving, however leaving means that it's time to explore and create paths which are wide enough for me and Robert to walk side-by-side. What the specifics of that path is are yet to be determined. A move is in there somewhere, possibly over an ocean, and eventually children etc...
It's an exciting time. I never thought 18 months ago that this is where we'd be, let alone I. I remember talking in our family years ago about the boys moving to America and living the dream, who've thought that would actually be me?!
So that's where we are, more up dates and thoughts to appear soon.
As you might have noticed, I love my job and the family at St Hugh's. People keep telling me how much I'll be missed and they are beginning to wonder what youth work will look like after I leave. I'm honestly trying not to worry about that too much. I know church will still look after the young people and they will definitely have to keep going to church, they have responsibilities! Whatever happens, I know that God will be teaching those involved.
I'm sad to be leaving, however leaving means that it's time to explore and create paths which are wide enough for me and Robert to walk side-by-side. What the specifics of that path is are yet to be determined. A move is in there somewhere, possibly over an ocean, and eventually children etc...
It's an exciting time. I never thought 18 months ago that this is where we'd be, let alone I. I remember talking in our family years ago about the boys moving to America and living the dream, who've thought that would actually be me?!
So that's where we are, more up dates and thoughts to appear soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)