Not the BUGB leaflets of this name per se, but they have drifted into my attention as I prepare various things at the moment.

This morning I visted the headquarters/head office of the BUS to have coffee the Ministry Adviser and, so it turned out, the entire staff - new General Director, head of mission, etc etc.  Now that would not, and could not, happen in BUGB, far too big an organisation and me far too small a minnow.  It was a good morning and it felt good to talk to these folk who clearly love their union (even if all the Revds amongst them trained in England (discuss)).  The coffee was hot, the biscuits crisp and the welcome warm... exactly what you'd hope for.

Next Wednesday I am in Paisley contributing as a 'teacher' of sorts to the Baptist College's module on Leadership.  This is where the BUGB leaflets may come in as they have some useful starting points for thinking about this, and other, topics.  I am meant to share something of my experience as a leader in (my careful choice of word there) a local church so that will be entertaining, not least selecting suitable images to accompany what I say.

In between times I am preaching this Sunday on Baptism and the next on Membership.  These won't be either theological treatises on the topics or veiled altar calls (though requests for Baptism or Membership would be brilliant news) but will hopefully help each of us to reflect a fresh on what it means for us to be part of a Baptist expression of Christianity.  For example, the Baptism service will, as one of four reflections, draw us to Galatians 3 and the radical community that is the 'Body of Christ', keeping as ever a kind of missional edge to my waffling.

So, basically a very Baptisty time - to be followed very quickly by the supreme immersion in all things BUGB-BMS as I join a couple of thousand others in Plymouth where those being hand-shaked this time include my friends Kez, Andy, Simon and Vanessa and a newly discovered colleague in BUS, Theo, who gets his BUGB handshake after he transferred to BUS (only in Baptist land...).  All good fun.

Yesterday I was struck by the delicate and fragile beauty of the white blossom on the trees at church - three columns of loveliness heralding spring.  This morning I was woken by the dawn chorus singing out their little bird hearts in praise of the light (or to impress the girls) and a glance from my kitchen window revealed both the vibrant pinkness of newly opened cherry blossom and the aptly named spring-green of new leaves on city trees; soon the roof tops will be masked by a sea of luxuriant greenness.  Meanwhile, on my landing my azalea has blossomed early and is a cloud of pink flowers.  All of which means I rediscover the joy of adjectives and metaphors as spring reaches the city.  Alas the weather forecast for next week is grim, so the delight may be short-lived, but for now I'll just enjoy it.

There seems to have been an Easter rush of people either migrating their blogs to new platforms or deciding that it is time to 'draw stumps' or 'extinguish tealights' on their virtual worlds.  As a result my sidebar listing has been updated a bit, though unless you use it often you maybe won't notice what's changed.

I have also discovered that Scottish Power takes far too seriously the implications of Matthew 6:3 as we are now on their third attempt to sort out my fuel supplies.  Fortunately their staff are very friendly and concur that it is all very muddled up... in the meantime I try not to waste too much of earth's resources.

People have commented to me that NHS health-care in Scotland is cheaper (at point of delivery) than in England... well I'm not so sure having just been given a quote by my new dentist (nice man, shame about the gag-inducing X-ray equipment) for a few minor repairs.  The Scottish payment system is certainly more detailed, being piece-rate rather than banded, but will actually cost me about £20 more than the same treatment in England.  So, my conclusion is that the costs are actually about the same, just distributed differently, and on this occasion I lose out slightly.  I'm sure it'll all work out in the end.

Anyway, after a week of doing very little, it is good to be back to work, good to catch up on those weird jobs all ministers end up doing for which no college course can ever provide preparation, and good to know that in the good old UK we have so much by way of good infrastructure that we have the audacity to moan about it when any tiny glitch happens.

The BBCs election web pages have suceeded in making me feel old!  There is every likelihood that the next PM will be younger then me.  Not by a huge amount, evidently Messrs Cameron and Clegg are both 43, but there is something rather discombobulating that the nation will be run by people younger than my little sister!

There doesn't seem to be too much to talk about at the moment, and I am trying not to post merely from habit or (self-imposed) expectation.  It is fine to say nothing if there's nothing to say.

This weekend has been just glorious.  Weather reaching near summer temperatures, windows flung wide and Glaswegians shunning their woollies to dine al fresco in skimpy tops.  At the same time, there is still a little snow on the top of the hills I can see from my window, glinting defiantly in the morning sun.

On Saturday 32 of us shared the West End Christian Walking Club outing to New Lanark.  The unexpected high temperatures, lack of breeze and squelchy mud, calf deep in places, coupled with a slightly longer than usual walk, made it unusually demanding but a great time was had by all.

This photo sent to me by one of our number evidently caused some amusement as it appears I have a person hidden in my back pack...

The Falls of Clyde were in spate, so looked amazing, and we were able to view the peregrine falcons nesting along the route (Operation Peregrine provides a viewing area as well as ensuring the birds are kept safe).  Truly a glorious day out, concluded with good food and a birthday cake for the club's leader.

Sunday dawned equally bright and sunny and I was impressed that anyone came to church when the temptation to spend the day in the sunshine must have been enormous.  I had invited the Sunday School team round for lunch and a meeting, so 11 (eight workers, two children and me) of us sat down in my kitchen to share food.  It was, for me at least, an enjoyable occasion, with plenty of laughter as well as some serious conversation.  A's cranachan (typical recipe here) made with her husband's 12 year old single malt was potent to say the least (I only managed one spoonful) and E's banana bread a delight.  Some of us were introduced to marmite cheese (see the website for mamitealoholics here) which is truly superb, while others discovered root vegetable crisps.  Truly a day of new experiences all round.

The day drew to a close with a gentle, meditative evening service focusing on some of my favourite Easter events - Thomas' and Peter's encounters with Jesus - and a chunk of Matthew 25.  We sang 'Come with me, come wander' (BPW 333) a capella which was stunningly beautiful and there was a picture on our service sheets of a tube 'station' called resurrection (here).  Each of these took me back to other Easters in other places ... singing the hymn accompanied by a saxophone in Manchester, and preaching on 'being a place called resurrection' when I was in Leicestershire (near Dibley is a place called Anstey, evidently a corruption of Anastasis which means resurrection).  It felt a good, nay, glorious, end to my first Easter connecting past and present, sharing a journey into the future and being reminded of my own calling to walk with Christ.  So thank you B for a special moment.

Today is 'off' and includes the inglorious prospect of seeing my new dentist, but the sun is lovely and Glasgow is glowing... another good day in prospect.