Listening to the stones

Sunday, Sunday

It's been a while since my last blog entry. Forgive me. But things are starting up again and the festival is taking over (it has its own facebook site. Just search for BearsdenFestival). It has been very busy. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

But we're slipping towards Sunday once more. We had a songs of praise last week (was that just yesterday?!). Now facing this Sunday coming and thinking about all-age communion. We're going to have the theme "Gathered in God" and using some photos of the congregation being added to the table during the service which will be covered in a fishing net. All very symbolic.

What other hymns might you imagine being used on this occasion? It is communion but not a formal communion so what hymns might bring us to the table together in this more creative context where we can spread the story out a little more and inger with it a little longer, gathered in God in bread and wine?

What hymns move us closer to this place of being caught in the net? What music and hymns move your soul and break open that sense of belonging beyond the obvious?

Looking forward to this week...

Return

We're back with the blog. Here's somethign for our songs of praise service on Sunday:

 

Song God
May we listen to The Song
the waking song of the day
of sunlight stretching
petals opening
wind breathing
and the day stirring into life

May we listen to The Song
the ancient song of time
of ice-flows, creeping
of mountains, growing
of water, flowing
a song sung since the first of times

May we listen to The Song
the new song of creation
in waterfalls, running
in air, flowing
in creation calling
forever new, forever sung

May we listen to The Song
the peoples song
of love-word shared
of grace-acts given
of cries of hunger and hope
alive to the life of the world

May we listen to The Song
and night song of the world
of light being folded away
of stars being polished
the song of silence at the end of the day
holding breath till morning time

May we listen to the song
and find the words within us, O God
that we might join in

Hear us

More austerity again today

There is so much concentration on reducing the benefit bill that that seems to be an end in itself rather than first and foremost finding ways to create a community/country that looks after people.

It seems the priority is having a lower balance sheet and all the austerity measures are mainly coming through the treasury rather than a broad set of policies of a healthier community across all government departments. There is a policy for lowering bills (by whatever means) but very little principle led policies across the whole government for a better way of living in community.

And the problem with the money driving the plan (look at our own presbytery plans) is that the distance between haves and have nots simply increases and the solutions move further away from us.

I really do fear what we are doing. We've hung onto the wrong indicator that being the size of the bill rather than the quality of our community.

Believing in each other

I was never good at statistics but I love using them. You can make something sound so dramatic with a good statistic. Or you can expose all your prejudices and fears with them.

Royal Statistical Society has just shown to what extent we do that.

Teen pregnancies: how many do you think there are in our broken and morally bankrupt society? 15% of under 16's become pregnant each year?

No!

0.6%

Benefit fraud: how much per £100 of benefits is fraudulently claimed? £24 per £100?

No!

70 pence per £100 of benefits paid.

And we could go on. The higher numbers are what the majority of the public believe is happening. The lower numbers are the truth.

Perhaps it is not so much about what we do that is morally bankrupt but rather our lack of trust in each other.

New Post

A new post in Bearsden for a family and youth development worker.

New Kilpatrick Parish Church is seeking a creative and experienced person who will work with the congregation's leaders to develop and support our youth work and take initiatives in nurturing and encouraging young families in the area in becoming part of the local faith community. You will work alongside the minister and youth leaders in a large congregation with a history of seeking out new life and opportunities. This is a part-time appointment and CVs can be submitted and more information obtained from the church office (mail@nkchurch.org.uk). Closing date for applications is August 24th 2013.

Job Description can be downloaded here

Chocolate Teapots (30th June 2013)

2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

The whole mantle thing is interesting. We use it like a symbol because it is a symbol of course. When we pick up the mantle of someone before us, be it Martin Luther King, Oscar Romero, Nelson Mandela etc we talk as if we take on some of them, we want to be versions of them and do a version of what they did. Little mirror images.

Hmmmmm…

Elisha was always meant to be his own person. He wasn’t ever meant to be Elijah. Continue the story, the vision, the calling, but not be him. Elisha wasn’t to be a version of Elijah. he was to be himself because the story had been passed to him, the Spirit, the word: he was to tell it, speak it, be it. It was a new era.

The mantle was a symbol, not of the person, but the Spirit of God (for mantle can be translated as spirit): the energy of God has been reborn in a new person. No clones here. And a double share? Well, yes! The echo and memory of the old invested in the anxiety and enthusiasm of the new. That is one heck of a lot of power: memory and enthusiasm. You can do a lot with that.

Hymns and songs that might inform this passage? Incidental music? How would you read the passage to make it more of an encounter with God?

Thursday Night Out in the Garden

We had a great BBQ tonight in Manse Garden for Thursday Night Out. Lots of people and lots of good fun. Quizzes and hunts and garden snooping. If anyone has any photos please don't keep them to yourself.

Chocolate Teapots (23rd June 2013)

1 Kings 21:1-21

Elijah and Naboth's vineyard. It's a great big metaphor.

No prophecy in a vacuum. That's about it this week. No prophecy in a vacuum. Which means when any of us proclaim God's Good News it is done in the middle of everything else that is going on. It isn't neutral nor does it sit on the fence. Prophecy compares what is going on in the world with what God expects to be happening in the world. In fact without the context, you haven't got any prophecy at all.

All the mess of the world and all the politics of G8 summits and all the machinations of the church struggling to be relevant and all the neighourhood stories are the contexts for prophetic utterances. Without that context then you may be saying something righteous and doctrinally sound and beautiful, but it ain't prophecy, it ain't the word of God or at least it ain't the word of God that is relevant for this moment.

You can't suck the air out of God's Word so let the world back in to hear what God is saying.

Angel Cake

A food fest this Sunday. Or shall we say a recipe fest with the outcome of those recipes next week. We've the best angel cake recipes ever and you'll never want to eat any other kind of cake ever again. And we have to thank Elijah for it all. So edible liturgy comes into its own on Sunday, especially at the 9.30 service.

Bring your own plates.

And by the way, I haven't had any invites for fricassee from the previous week? What's going on?

BBQ

Thursday Night Out BBQ coming up on the 20th. Only £3 a ticket. The weather forecast suggests a few showers but I bet there won't be.

In any case bring a seat, a jumper, and an umbrella/parasol. It is going to be great. Lots of stuff to eat and chat about and other things too.

Big Family Night Out. And it is almost the longest day of the year. You can stay up late. Yay!