On the far side of the planet, it is late Friday evening... with daylight saving probably almost 10 p.m. by now.  And in a room in a university a book launch has been held for a publication in which my essay is chapter one.  Obviously I couldn't be there... but I did drink a toast in tea!

There is something that appeals to my naughty side that likes the idea of a group of grown-ups reflecting on "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and a series that has titles including 'Father Christmas' and 'The Witch'.

This will be our lunch time series for Advent 2015... and this afternoon I am enjoying starting work on it.  More posts to follow as time moves along...

There are some quaint, and still beautiful, aspects of Baptist tradition I'd hate to see us lose.

One that I was reminded of last night is that we, like most Baptist churches, still require "two Sabbaths" or "two Lord's Days" notice for calling a meeting.  I kind of hope we never change to "two Sundays" or "two weeks" notice... there is something deeply spiritual about the archaic terms, a reminder that a meeting is never 'just' about a matter to be presented, discussed or decided upoon, rather this aspcect of our life is as much "the Lord's" as the service of worship.

Of course, to 'two Sabbaths' could actually mean 8 days notice if you had a Monday meeting...!!

As I sat down to edit and tidy my sermon for Sunday, I found myself calling to mind a pop song from the 1980s (eek!) that still has the power to touch my soul.  So for anyone old enough to remember it (and anyone who isn't) here is Sal Solo's song 'San Damiano, Heart and Soul'...

This morning I more or less split my time between starting work on the Sunday's sermon (so I have a few pages of scribbled notes and some thoughts perculating in my head) and starting to ponder what we might do during Advent.

This year for my own Advent reflections, I've decided to do two things...

One is to sign up for the Bible Society's #AdventChallenge here.  This, like the challenges I did in Lent, means I will be sent a new challenge each day.  I think I am looking forward to it!

The other is that I've taken out a subscription to Alternativity which allows me to download resources from their extensive collection.  I have decided to used the 'Star Box' which is an Advent calendar with brief thoughts for each day (and a few days when you get simply to chill) - I will probably also post the 'stars' on the noticebaord at church so that we can all consider them.

As usual I'll be blogging through Advent, so you have hte option of the skinny fairtrade latte version of either or both of the above!!

At the moment, the thing that is giving me the most glee is the titles I've chosen for a couple of the services in December - slightly mischievous but hopefully OK. 

Above all, I am looking forward to some gorgeous Advent hymns and anthems.