I recall a Methodist minister colleague telling me how it felt quite scary when he saw his carefully prepared services for the Chrismas period laid out neatly on his desk - and the worry that he might pick up the wrong one.  Would that my desk were that tidy (it would, for those who can recall it, currently give Rachel Jenkins a run for a her money).

Only six more services to deliver - and I think that in terms of prepartion I'm almost there.

This week seems to be eat preach and sleep - in no particular order - with a bit of mega pastoral work thrown in for good measure.  By the end of Christmas Day service, since Sunday last, I will have had around 500 people-contacts  (not 500 different people, but certainly at least 300) in a gospel capacity.  Something tells me that that is more than worth the stupefaction I am already feeling!

There's a good initial reaction to this here which I think says most of what I felt.

To be fair, sitting down at 11 p.m to watch this, after a fantastic evening of our own, I was probably too exhausted to really appreciate it fully.

It felt to me that it tried to fit in too many songs, and that it was, as my university markers would say, overly dependent on Lennon and McCartney.  It was a tall order to get through the synthetic Luke-Matthew composite in an hour, not least as Mary and Joseph had to get the ferry across the Mersey, and these lovely little vessels don't hurry, so all credit to them for managing it.

I wasn't at all sure about Herodia as the villainess; though I thought it was pretty brave of them to include the slaughter of innocents aspects, something usually conspicuously absent from nativity plays/readings.  Maybe because the Bible has enough bad girls already, thank you, maybe because women of all faiths seem to struggle to be neither Madonna nor Jezebel.  Not sure, quite, just that it didn't cut it for me.  They could have had a woman as one of the Magi, if the intent was to have more female parts, or even a female publican.

I was struck, even through my late night stupor, by the strong political undertones, and admire the BBC for this.  Jesus as a revolutionary, questions of asylum and homelessness, politics and power.  This, for me, was a prophetic edge that I hope struck the thousands of people who saw, heard or took part in, the event.

For me, this one was less powerful than the Manchester passion, but it was a valiant effort and well worth the licence fee!

"Isn't it good to see people queueing up to get into church" (Secretary of D+1 whilst waiting to collect her service sheet after tea).

"You've certainly made your mark" - actually said to me by someone in her 80's.  I think it was a compliment.

I could, but won't record the few grumbles and mumbles, not least because it was a great evening.  Some how we gave away more than 180 tealights.  It might have been a miracle and they multiplied, or it might have been that a few folk put them down and forgot them, so they were then given away a second time.  Logic says the latter is more likely, and I'm fairly sure it is what happened, but frankly I'm not too fussed, because I believe everyone had a lovely time.

The entire stock of hall chairs of Dibley have been returned to their rightful owners, cups have gone back to chapels and sheds, and I seem to have gained a whole heap of stuff that needs to be returned to its rightful owenrs after they said "oh just give it to Catriona and she'll get it back to me".

My guess is there were just under 200 folk at the service - almost 8 times our normal; certainly five times us and the Methodists combined.  It was lovely to stand at the front of such a large congregation, such a privilege to lead worship... and the last words we heard as we left?  "You will do it again next year, won't you?"

I hope so - but first I need some sleep!

Some interesting stuff being posted on the relationship of, specifically, imagination and revelation.  Sean has a wonderful quotation from Barbara Brown Taylor here.  Some of my own 'revelation' moments have certainly cut right through the intellect/imagination left/right brain model in ways that I can't really explain.  Whilst it would be fair to say that they have been involved in the process, I do not think they give rise to it.  I do wonder if there is a danger of confusing powerful emotion with revelation in a similar way to what can happen in charismatic circles.

Anyway, being a scientist type of person and liking digrams (a resource most theologians seem to me to make inadequte use of) I have had a very quick play with these ideas using some venn diagrams here.

180 hand decorated tealight holders

Tomorrow we will give way lots of love to local people.  Little things - tealights in hand decorated holders, goodie bags to children in the choir, craft items and sweets to small children, sandwiches, cakes, hot and cold drinks... smiles and the warmth of fellowship.

We will recall a little thing, a baby born in a little town, largely unnoticed... whose story would change the course of history.

What we do won't be earth shattering, but sitting down to write my 5 minute talk, I find myself drawn back to the mystery of the infinite contracted to the insignificant, and these wonderful words of a carol we won't be singing...

...Yet in the dark streets shining

Is everlasting light

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in you this night.

God of little things, take this little thing and make it meaningful.  Amen