Tomorrow I will be heading south to West Brom to attend the Baptist Assembly (BUGB-BMS variety)... it's only over two days but necessitates a Friday journey from here to arrive in time!

This means Holly's very gracious 'auntie' will be sitting her yet again - so glad it is her and not the 'vulgarian' in this little film...

... like breaking the left arrow key on my laptop.

Yesterday I thought it was high time I de-cat-fur-ed the keyboard of my laptop.  By the wonders of google, I found out how it was possible to lift the keys, pick out the fluff and replace them... except the left arrow key decided to break, or at least the hinged thingy that goes between the key and the rubber thingy did.  I have managed to source a replacement key and associated 'thingies' from the wonder that is Ebay, and have a backup plan to buy a replacement keyboard and fit that (eek!) if necessary.  In the meantime I am really missing my left arrow key!

My typing skills are legendary in their awfulness, so the left arrow is my friend, allowing me to track backwards and make corrections without deleting a whole lot of text.  Of course I have found ways round it - using the cursor and mouse, using the up and right arrows creatively, even doing lots of deleting... but the instinct is still to hit the gap that was the left arrow.

Some might tell me there's a sermon in there, and maybe there is.  Certainly it's reminded me how easy it is to take for granted the little things that make life more pleasant.

Now then, up, up, right, right, right, delete....

Sunday's sermon was on the 'life in all its fulness' saying of Jesus... it seeemd to go well, covering much familiar ground, such as 'fulness' is qualitative not quantitative, and I suppose my 'angle' was to paraphrase 'life in its fulness' as being 'fully alive'.  I used three quotations in the sermon - one from Viktor Frankl, one from Annie Johnson Flint and one from St Irenaeus.  Here they are....

Life in all its Fullness

“We cannot, after all, judge a biography by its length, by the number of pages in it; we must judge by the richness of the contents...Sometimes the 'unfinisheds' are among the most beautiful symphonies.”

Viktor Frankl

What God Hath Promised

God hath not promised skies always blue,
Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through;
God hath not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

God hath not promised we shall not know
Toil and temptation, trouble and woe;
He hath not told us we shall not bear
many a burden, many a care.

God hath not promised smooth roads and wide,
Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;
Never a mountain rocky and steep,
Never a river turbid and deep

But God hath promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labor, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing sympathy, undying love

Annie Johnson Flint

"The glory of God is a human being fully alive; and to be alive consists in beholding God."

St Irenaeus

Today the Church of England held a service to celebrate reaching twenty years of ordaining women... evidently around 700 women were present, the bishops all dressed as priests and the arch bish was the deacon... lots of symbolism going on there.

As a trainee Bappy minister, my first placement was with one of the women ordained in the first decade - after the first few pioneers but before it was widespread, now she's Archdeacon of York.

Later during my training I met a woman training to be a priest, who, last I knew was a leading light in her own diocese.

Among my blogging friends is Perpetua a retired priest and I have one or two real life vicar friends.

All of them are a real asset to the church, each bringing her unique gifts to fulfil her calling - I am privileged to know them

I am pleased for them that they are celebrating - and the Arch Bish's sermon can be read here

Every blessing to S, A, P, O, J and all women priests in the C of E

This is a beautiful and profound video that expresses something important.  Apologies if the colourful language early in the video offends... if you get past that it's well worth watching: