One of the more entertaining aspects of PAYG is discovering the saints days, holy days and other special days that are marked.  Today is the RC festival of two Thessalonican brothers from the 9th century who undertook missions among the Slavic peoples in what is now known as Bulgaria.  No martyrdom so far as I can ascertain, Cyril is credited with the alphabet used in eastern European countries to this day and it seems the brothers were advocates of liturgy in the vernacular.

I don't think anyone has developed a card for this festival!  I presume it won't result in hikes in the prices of flowers or chocolates or strawberries, but the ability to read scripture in the vernacular, to pray in our native tongues and to hear of God's love in words we understand seems worth celebrating.  I think today I will take a moment to recall the work of the Bible Societies worldwide who still strive to bring these life-giving words to people of all languages.

On the eve of the annual celebration of mush and slush, for which restaurant and flower prices are hiked, aka St Valentines day, Baptist Times new Sweep offers two links, one tongue in cheek, one serious...

At Stuff Christians Like a forty question (too many, I got fed up)  quiz to see how your church measures up in caring for singles.  As the crazy cat lady (Q17/18) I found it made me smile, and made me sigh, and made me realise that despite some serious research I did a decade ago, I have done too little to tackle these less lovely elements of the Noah's Ark (two by two) that is the church.

More serious is Inspire which shows that, of people signed up with a Christian dating agency, two-thirds would rather be single than marry someone who didn't share their faith.  It (a) fails to note that most single Christians will not be signed up with them and (b) seems to me to perpetuate the myth that singleness is the second-base option for those who fail to find a Christian soul mate.  Clearly, imo, if someone signs up with a faith-based dating agency, their preference is someone who shares their faith, so the sample is hardly unbiased.

Presumably, then, were Jesus here now, he would have to get a cat and babysit, and his singleness be seen as less desirable than the possibility of one day marrying Martha of Bethany...  [if that offends/is blasphemous, I apologise]

One of the things that happens all too often, yet never ceases to amaze and beguile me, is that way that two services of worship, prepared completely independently, on seemingly unrelated themes, have overlaps and connections beyond the trivial.  Worshipping with people who have a substantial repertoire of hymns and songs, very often there will be one item that occurs both morning and evening.  With themes that sound utterly unrelated, the same Bible passages will be selected.  With diverse theological understandings, the same thought processes and ideas emerge.  How can it be so?

It has to a mystery, a mysterion, a movement of God-in-us that stirs up a whisper, a hint, of something that fits this context, this group of hearers, at this time.  And it is somehow something mighty, something bigger and deeper and wider and, and... um, more than just co-incidence (occurrence close in time)... I am forced to conclude that somehow or other, this is God at work.

I know I've blogged thoughts on this before but it never ceases to intrigue me that it happens and happens again and happens again, again.

Mighty and mysterious

In the highest height

God from everlasting

Very light from light:

One with God the Father

And the Spirit blessed

Love, in love etenral,

Rest in perfect rest.

(We did not sing this yesterday... but it'd be curious if someone reading did!)

I know some of you still use my blog as a quick check that I am OK, and as it is more than 48 hours since I posted, may be anxious.  I am fine, just busy.  Yesterday was out walking all day and today I've been busy with churchy stuff.  Plenty to occupy me so not much time for writing.  Life is good.  God is great.

Oh yes, we weighed an elephant shaped sweet and measured a smile in church this morning.... 8g and 7cm respectively... just so's you know.  All part of our way in to thinking about God's love being immeasurable.

Oh yes, number two... my gluten-free, vegan, triple chocolate cake (long story; failed the soy free bit as I misread a label :-( )  weighed in at 1lb 9 and one-eighth ounces, and evidently tasted OK... phew!

I seem to be going thought a phase of using questions as post titles... ah well.

The decision to cease publication of the Baptist Times, essentially at the end of December 2011, left me, like presumably many others, having paid an annual subscription of which a substantial part was 'unused'.  This week, a letter arrived from BT inviting me to consider donating my refund to Home Mission - something I have cheerfully elected to do.  Because of the date at which my subscription began, I was entitled to a refund of £20.04.  I expect this is about the average, since no new subscriptions would have been taken out once the closure was announced, and most people would be part way through the year.

£20.04 on its own is not much, but multiply that by hte number of former BT subscribers, and it becomes substantial.  I have no idea what the circulation of the BT was - 1000? 2000? 5000?  Suppose it was 1000, and suppose everyone donated their refund of, for sake of argument £20... that would be £20,000 which could help fund two full time or four part time ministerial posts for a year (or more at a lower proportionate rate).  £20k is perhaps not a massive sum of money, but could, for example, provide substantial grants to 20 churches for mission projects, or pay for important training for community workers or evangelists.

There is a line in the old Graham Kendrick song 'rejoice, rejoice, God is in you' that says God 'turns our weaknesses into his opportunities'... I think this is one such, and I hope both that BT readers are generous in their response and BUGB HM creative in their employment of this money.