I often say to people, that if anyone had told me three years ago that one of the highlights of church life would be Thursday Afternoon Bible Study I'd probably have said "I don't think so".  I enjoy Bible Study groups, but would not usually rate them as among the 'bestest' bits of church life.

At the moment we are using the, now almost a decade old, BMS Discover Your Shape in Mission, and are having some great discussions.  Today it was third study, based on part of the book of Job, and questions of suffering.

Then it was tea and cake and chatter - it was very wide-ranging, someone told a joke speically for me:

Why did the chicken cross the moebius strip?

To get to the same side

Well I liked it.  Then I shared one I heard (bit sexist, sorry)

If a man says somewthign stupid and no-one hears, is he still wrong?

(Yes, according to one of my hearers)

Then we had a foray into Zen proverbs (trees falling in forests, one hand clapping), which totally bewildered one person, I had to make a moebius strip to demonstrate the joke, and we even touched on the humour of Adam Hills The Last Leg.

We had some real fun, lots of laughs, but we also shared some quite profound moments, stories of suffering, of people who have inspired us, and along the way recalled a whole range of hymns that have sustained us in difficult times.

Thanks ladies, and one gent, for another lovely afternoon.