Today I have the first cup of Advent Calendar tea!  It is a blend called 'Spooky Spice.'  I expect it's aimed at Halloween rather than Advent, but never mind, 'spooky' is one of the words I use to describe the moments when I sense the activity of God's Spirit in my life.

So, I have my cup of tea, and I open up the first reading from 'Honest Advent' and it focuses on the story of the Annunciation, and invites us to ponder the kind of revelations we might invite, and the kind of revelations we actually experience.

I have a 'hmm' moment, flashing back to the second Sunday in Advent 1997, and the incredible moment that God spoke to me with unmistakable clarity, calling me to ordained ministry 'you, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season.'  Almost quarter of a century later (how on earth - or in heaven - did that happen) I still feel that mix of terror and certainty, as I knew that to say 'yes' would irrevocably change my life.

Sometimes, I feel like a grumpy old minister, cynical with age, and then in a spooky moment, God touches me afresh.

If you read this chapter of this book, do so carefully, and take it seriously - saying 'yes' to God will mess with your life-plans...

At its best, it will be so incredibly wonderful, and at its worst, so utterly awful, but in it all, you will know that for this God called you - here I am am Lord, let it be to me according to your will.