Today I was given an advance copy of the latest church magazine.  As usual it is brim full of excellent stuff (and my bits too!) but what struck me was the diary page at the back.  There is one group that has been running for many years and was, let's say, a last bastion of patriarchy in the pulpit.  This month there is not one but two women speaking at it, both with links to the Baptist College and each with a clear and profound calling to ministry.

Of course I'm delighted to see this development, that goes without saying.  But more significantly I am struck by the openness of those in the group to God's gentle (or not so gentle!) prodding in this direction.  If I live to ninety, and if I am still wielding any influence on a local church, I pray that I might be as open to the mysterious, and taboo shattering, workings of the Holy Spirit.