SNAC :: Sunday Night After Church(c) Salvation Army, Bellshill, 2006
Olly and I are really fortunate to be part of a contemporary worship congregation-within-a-congregation called S*N*A*C aka Sunday Night After Church : this is a space where guitars... video/multimedia... and even dance can be used to praise our Creator. Its a space outside the traditional SA programme of Bellshill... I say outside deliberately as its becoming a new space... a new congregation... bringing new folk into the hall and bringing others hungry for this kind of experience from miles around. Still small... still early days... but its good times... even with the perceived lack of support from the mainstream within the Corps. My great friend Jon G was there... which was lovely.
The format varies... but at the moment we are working on some worship followed by a Nooma DVD then discussion. The mantra just now is contribution not consumption with everyone's voice valued and cherished. Feels more like a home group than church... arguable more like church than I am used to... too!
It was a wonderful night... which was clouded by an issue (now resolved) that occured. Its ironic that we see all this success... and hold a great deal of anticipation for Alpha/A life worth living and are hit for six before it even starts.
This issued clouded Monday... I am glad I took Monday off... Plan was to work on the strategy paper for ((deep)), take Olly out for lunch, prep for Alpha, meet up with Ivor and Andrew Grinnell at DHQ... then, launch Alpha. It didn't really work that way with the Strat paper suffering as I helped Olly through the issue.
Delighted to have the opportunity to speak to Andrew Grinnell from NEO (New Expressions Of... the Salvation Army) about ((deep)). It was wonderful to meet the encouragement and focus of Ivor, Rita, Jon and Andrew. For more, check out my Hardthought.Alpha/A life worth living went well with tons of encouragement from our friends. I have posted about it earlier... Olly and I are really excited and hopeful for this session.
We took time to resolve the issue... or at least heal the hurt. The issue is still there and won't go away... but we have come to terms with it... with the rationale... and will see it through.
All in... its been a great weekend. One thing the Soos asked me this weekend was how do I switch off? Well unfortunately I can't really... but I am surrounded by fab people who make my life worth living... and, more importantly, a Creator who drives me with fantastic opportunities... and a loving family who love me and ground me in truth.
Good times!
2 comments:
sounds like loads is going on - good and bad - for you at present. I pray protection on you, Olwyn and the we'ans as you prepare to move forward with the plan God has laid at your feet. So much can be thrown at us by those around us. Some comes direct from them, some is put through them from other sources. Spiritual Warfare can be a frightening time sometimes but, when we keep our eyes focussed on the goal ahead and keep relying on God for His perfect strength, then all will be well in the end.
Stick with it Thomas.
all blessings
Dan
What a fool... I had a significant typo in that last comment that changed the meaning :) Here is it again:
Sometimes I'm stunned by God - and I know I shouldn't be. The major thoughts running through my head are also "contribution, not consumption" or, to be precise "moving from spectator to participator"... been thinking a lot about how we move from expecting "church" to be served up to us to embracing the fact that we ARE the Church. Perhaps that's a message that God is putting into people's minds all over his Church.
Interesting to see the photo of your hall. I don't know why, but I imagined it different :)
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