So today I am back at work after a lovely, leisurely week off during which I visited and re-visited many great places in and around Glasgow; I also discovered some were closed for refurbishment, and that googling 'Hunterian' can lead you to the wrong place if you aren't careful.  Anyway, from military bands to Nardini's ice-cream, sailing on the Waverly to a 3D IMAX dinosaur docu-drama film, and finally doing the open-top bus tour, it was fun.

Now, as the ubiquitous saying goes, it's old clothes and porridge, aka back to work.

This morning's PAYG was the story of the beheading of John the Baptist, on which I preached just a few weeks back.  One of the slants they took was about the challenge of trying to 'do the right thing' when under pressure to 'give people what they want'.  Whilst Herod directly contributed to his dilemma, and we may not always be so obviously complicit, it was a good question to ponder at the start of the new season.  We have several new initiatives that we have deemed 'the right thing' but not everyone is going to like all of them, maybe any of them, so how do I respond?

Tricky, as by nature I'm a 'people pleaser' but know fine well 'you can't please all of the people'.  So my plan of action?

Firstly, I intend to enjoy the new things!  They are opportunities to grow in faith and in grace, to meet new people, to unlock hidden talents, to play our part in God's Mission.

Secondly, these are the decisions of the church, not of me, and therefore we are together equally responsible for the changes and their management.

Lastly, I need to do my best to be caring, pastoral, supportive to those who find it difficult, whilst encouraging people to engage with things that are new and maybe challenging.

~

Back to John the Baptist and Herod

No-one is going to ask me for someone's head on a plate - but I am still challenged to reflect on those areas where, ultimately, I will go with the flow for a quiet life even when I have a sense of disquiet.  Maybe sometimes I do well to be disturbed by glimpsing myself in the 'villains' of the stories.

~

Now then - first job of the new season - go to Coffee Club!  How brilliant is that?!

BBC Beyond Belief presented a brilliant example of Baptists, well, being Baptist...  "agree to disagree and still love each other."  Go listen.  Especially proud of my former research supervisor Ruth Gouldbourne.  Some interesting questions and answers, and hopefully illuminating for all who listened.

Will be available to download after the i-player version has expired.

I have no idea if Ship of Fools have spotted this one, but oh, my, word...

According to Amazon it is a "spiritual male praying hands sculpture... looks like David Beckham."  Nuff said.  (I was looking for a large praying hands decal (sticker)...)

Today we used the Roots 'Gigantic Welcome' material as a basis for our service.  It was the first of our 'new format' services so it was not without some trepidation that I stood up to lead.  It is a complicated theme, and I'm not sure I did it any justice whatsoever... my sermon was still not the greatest despite five attempts, and I think that's perhaps because I was trying to juggle too many balls.  People were gracious and generous in their response - even those who are not entirely convinced this is the way to go and the closing activity 'responding all together' seemed to work well as we made 'welcome bunting' for the church.

More than forty hand-crafted 'flags' which I have just threaded onto string (perversely I'm relieved a lot of people were away - the usual congregation would have meant double that!) assisted, or is that hindered, by a black and white furry fiend friend.  A few photos to give just a hint of the kind of thing we made... just as thy were threaded along, so systematic selection I can assure you!

I love writing sermons, well most of the time.  I love the surprises I get as I work with a text or texts.  I love the new insights into familiar tales.  I love the challenge of discovering what it is that emerges as this message for 'this week'.  I also love the fact that by dint of the Holy Spirit, somehow people hear something irrespective of how ham-fisted my endeavours.

Just occasionally, I have a real struggle to disocver the sermon hidden in the thinking, preparing and praying.  And often those are the ones that, once formed, seem to say something important.

Even more occasionally I write a sermon, quite serviceable, quite appropriate and yet...  I think twice in my life I've woken up on a Sunday morning and known I had to chuck away my sermon and write a knew one.  And each time it was 100% the right thing to do.  Exactly once I've abandoned my script and just spoken 'off the cuff' and that was right too.

This week I have had two (or three, depends how you count) goes at my sermon, and what I have doesn't quite cut it.  So, rare event, I am going to be sermon writing on a Saturday.

That doesn't mean the exisitng sermons were wasted, nor that I was out or tune with God, rather that somehow in the iterative process of writing and revising, and thinking and praying, God was guiding me to something that is not necessarily 'better' as measured by standards of intellect or style, but closer to what is needed at this time.

Bit of a blog break ahead - after Sunday I have a week or so of leave at what, in Gorton parlance, is referred to euphemisitically as the Hame'lldoo Hotel at Ayrgate (i.e. I'm staying at home and having days out).  To ensure I get my break the laptop will be switched off, packed away and hidden from view!