No, I am not about to post on the London underground announcement used at Bank station for as long as I can remember but about the One World Week service which we held today.

To be honest, the last place I wanted to be this afternoon was at church: it was cold and wet (very), I was tired and half my deacons and both my pianists were away (we borrowed an Anglican organist).  The Methodists due to do the drama had dropped out and been replaced by others and the preacher announced he was not intending to preach on the set text.  It could have been totally awful.

I arrived to discover that the deacon on setting up duty had never done so before and had to be told what was involved and then shown how to do most of it; a few folk from one of the other churches announced that they had been assured there would be lots of signs to tell them where to go and they hadn't been there (I don't recall agreeing to that, but hey).

Mind the gap - between rich and poor, male and female, black and white, faithful and faithless...

Mind the gap - between words and actions, then and now...

In the end it all somehow held together, people taking part managed to move to the right place at the right time without needing to be announced; the set prayers and hymns, the extempore prayers and the sermon did on the whole hang together; most people stayed for tea/coffee afterwards.

Mind the gap- between what I 'want' and what I 'need'

Mind the gap - between 'desire' and 'devotion'

Mind the gap - between 'fun' and 'faithfulness'

Mind the gap - between 'fellowship' and 'worship'

It would be exagerating to say that it was a particularly wonderful service, the heavy dependence on the 'humane invention' of 'preprinted formes', as the C17 Baptists would have said, wasn't entirely to my liking, but did serve to enforce the message about the gap between 'faith and deeds' in which we so often find ourselves.  It was, however, a good atmosphere and the congregation at around 50 was a good size for a united service.  With an Anglican preach (at about 7 minutes) it was also a short service despite having a drama and lots of liturgy.

I am still tired, it is still raining and all the people are still away, but somehow there was blessing to be had by being there today.