Its been a busy few days... Last Thursday night, Olly was out with the Bellshill Salvation Army Band at a huge, beautiful church in Shettleston, Glasgow; The Old Parish Church has space for about 1,000 people... and an amazing sound inside. The band sounded fantastic... with my wee wifey sounding strong with her song... the body and the blood - nice!
On Friday... I caught up with Jon G for a coffee. He was seriously bummed - his house move is delayed... and he had broken his phone and had to buy an upgrade to keep in touch with his solicitor. Not a happy bunny. Please support Jon and Lorna in anyway you can... he needs your prayers!
We had a fab conversation about transition in the church. Jon is more radical than me... and thinks transition doesn't work. His view is that old ideas should be left to die out... as new ideas are allowed to grow. Great conversation, as always!
At night... Janey came over and I made (with their help) some Singaporean noodles. Unfortunately I misread the recipe and put 1 TBSP worth of curry power in instead of 1 TSP :: hot, hot, hot!!! Unfortunately Janey had the Gary Glitters all night... but Olly and I enjoyed it! We had a nice evening with Janey and Roscoe... good fun.
On the Saturday we took it easy. Went out to the Clydeside and chilled in the April sun. The Flowers of Scotland tearoom is becoming one of our favourite places. Their outside dining area has fab views and some great potential.
We spent some time at a country park at Crossford where we watched a birds of prey exhibition. Mixed feelings. Great to see the birds in flight... and it was funny to watch one of them get cheeky and refuse to come down. Sad, on the other hand, to see these powerful birds in cages. Didn't seem right some how.
Afterwards we spent some time with the papers in the garden. I love being outside in the sun.
Later on... we went to the Motherwell corps of the Salvation Army to enjoy a programme from Bellshill's Singing Company [inc. Dayna]. They did really well and Dayna's wee solo was sweet. Just like her mum! Afterwards we watched the mighty Jack Black in the hilarious Nacho Libre - its a funny film... subtle at times... but still very entertaining.
On Sunday morning... we went to the Salvation Army corps in Airdrie - they do not have an officer at present and the local corps in the area are mucking in with the locals to keep the fire burning. Sam from Bellshill was leading the meeting and he had asked Olly to sing for him. She sang a couple of great songs and the atmosphere was electric. It was inspiring to see the folks in Airdrie keeping their end up in the fight. The young folk were there because they wanted to be there... and were really making a difference. Their Singing Company for example is leaderless and still the kids keep it going under their own initiative. This blessed me. As did the attitude of older folk who were actively encouraging the younger folk and giving them their time and respect. Beautiful. It was great to see the two Bobbys I met at SNAC and hope to see them in a few weeks time.
Fast forward to Monday night and the 3rd week of Alpha / A life worth living in Bellshill. What a night. About a dozen folk there... sharing in worship and discussion. Olly and I led the a life discussion on Philipians 2 and the new attitude St Paul was commending to the folk in Philipia. We focussed on St Paul's call for unity and like-mindedness for most of the discussion. Regardless of the opposition we face within the church for seeking to do new things... we must always seek to love our opponents in Christian love... and always promote like-minded unity. Afterall, our goal is not to replace but to broaden the Army as we know it.
Busy weekend... Spring in Lanarkshire is special!
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