Some of my November doings and prayer diary

Stormy waters most you will be aware of the horrendous journey back home from Tenerife at the end of October, not so much the journey as the 12 hours spent due to a delay in what has to be one of the most uncomfortable airports in the world! Not helped because I had been awake most of the night before with sickness and diarrhoea. I was nearly reduced to tears on more than one occasion.

Whilst away on holiday we heard the sad news of the death of my brother-in-law Colin within four weeks of being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was 62.

Arriving back on Saturday I was due to attend the Church Army AGM and a C.A. Cluster Coordinator’s meeting in Sheffield, travelling up there on the Monday and staying over until Wednesday. At that stage we had no news from my sister-in-law, Alison about any funeral arrangements and therefore I cancelled this trip so that I could be around and also fully recover!

Training in Faith Sharing –

I have had a great time with a small group from St Peter’s East Blatchington and St Andrew’s Bishopstone on evangelism. This was held over three consecutive Sunday afternoons. I based these sessions on the Rural Evangelism Course available on the Arthur Rank Centre web site…

www.arthurrankcentre.org.uk Both places are no longer what may be deemed rural having been morphed into nearby Seaford. However I was pleased that the Course whilst being rural proofed is not so tightly rural specific that it cannot be adjusted and adapted to a different setting.

Due to Colin’s funeral I had to cancel another trip to Sheffield for the Area Evangelist Conference. The funeral itself went as well as these things can go when someone you know and love is taken so quickly and unexpectedly.

I did take a trip north, near to Tamworth for a Farm Crisis Network Conference. We stayed at Whitemoor Lakes Centre, an amazing place opposite the National Memorial Arboretum.

http://www.actioncentres.co.uk/whitemoor-lakes/ I was asked to be the Chaplain for the FCN Sussex Group not that long back so this was a good time to get to grips with what that actually means. It was also an opportunity to meet up with ‘old faces,’ people who have been knocking around the rural church circuit for some years.

Our Christian Vision for Men Regional Day was AWESOME! Being our fourth one and with low numbers in the last few weeks leading up to the event we did wonder if we had overcooked this enterprise. We were delighted when the number crept up in the last week and we just topped 200 on the Day. Our theme was ‘Rooted & Booted’ – rooted in Jesus then out into the world with our boots on ready for action. And if you are looking for a great venue in Crawley then try the Charis Centre, they were fantastic.

Yet another cancelation, this time due to weather, was a Rural Evangelism Network Consultation in Cornwall. My colleague Barry Osborne did make it, just, and as stood in my stead as through the wonder of email I could send down my PowerPoint and hand-outs.

Prayer Diary December 2012

Saturday 1^st St John the Baptist Hove ‘Quiet Day’ (participant)

Monday 3^rd  Sussex/Surrey FEAST and making plans for the forthcoming ‘Mission Shaped Ministry’ course

Tuesday 4^th Soul by the Sea, meeting to plan a Nativity in Brighton. This is a gutsy telling of the story and linked in with the group who produced the Passion Play. In the evening a Mission Action Planning meeting with St John the Baptist Hove.

Wednesday 5^th Mission & Renewal full team meeting and in particular laying out some plans for 2013.

Thursday 6th As a Spiritual Director I am meeting with two others for mutual support and supervision.

Sunday 11th Mince Pie 10 mile run and seeking to raise funds for Pancreatic Cancer UK.
www.justgiving.com/Gordon-Banks6    

Tuesday 11^th Spiritual Directors Course (as delegate)

Wednesday 12^th Kidz Klub Party – give thanks to God for the great work that Chris and his team have done for many years reaching thousands of children with the love of God in Brighton and the surrounding area.

Thursday 13^th  Personal Quite Day

Monday 17^th Meeting with my friend as she walks towards Ordination

Tuesday 18^th Evangelist and good friend Tim Hill has been calling a group of like minded people together to share a curry lunch for a few years now. It is always a great time to chat and chew with people who ‘get evangelism and mission.’

Friday 21^st Church House Carol Service 1pm I am drawing this together with Jane’s help.

Tuesday 18 – Friday 21 December 2012
Brighton Christmass Nativity  ~  not the ‘tea towel nativity' but a gutsy retelling of the Christmass story 

Doors open at 7:00pm

Venue: St Mary’s Church, 61 St James Street,
Brighton, BN2 1PR
Check it out and get your tickets on line

http://www.soulbythesea.info/our-events/christmas-nativity/

The Family: Joe is close to being offered a full time job with Cotswold in Truro. However he does need to get a motorbike to get him from Fowey to Truro as the railway has proved unreliable in getting him to work on time. Daniel is still the Man with the Van, or perhaps that should have been a boat given the recent weather. He is getting increasingly involved with the youth side of things at Holy Trinity St Austell, which is great. He was one of the founder members of the Truro Youth Council set up by the diocese. Tabitha has secured an eight/four contract with Monarch. She had hoped to get a temporary post perhaps in Starbucks, however jobs are like hen’s teeth so she is now waiting until later in December when she will be back flying. Tabitha is also looking at trips and tours to China and Russia for later next year – that’s a bit scary! Jane continues to be a bit all at sea, she is not really settled into any one Church, has not managed to secure any kind of posts and it all feels like life is just slipping through her fingers.

Monthly News

THE WEDDING – Daniel and Tracey were duly married with great ceremony at Holy Trinity St Austell on the 4^th August 2012. As ever on these occasions it was good to meet up with family and friends. The next day (Sunday) saw a few of us gathering again at Holy Trinity for Holy Communion. It was a delight  to meet up with Peter and Sue Willows who have recently returned to Cornwall and ‘happened’ to be in Holy Trinity that morning. Several years ago Peter and I along with Steve Wild ran a number of combined evangelistic initiatives in Cornwall, in particular ‘Exalt Jesus.’ 

The other ‘big’ thing for me during August was an operation for a benign prostate. As this meant being off work for at least a fortnight I was busy trying to clear the desk and make preparations.

The operation itself went well and in particular as I was asked if I was available to bring it forward a day and to go into Nuffield Hospital in Haywards Heath, the expense being met by the NHS. I know the hard pressed NHS do their very best yet the difference in the Nuffield is remarkable. In many ways this answered Jane’s real concern as I was due to be admitted as a Day Case. The operation was to be at around 11am and then sent home with a catheter at around 3pm. The Nuffield didn’t do that and you stay there until all is clear and well and the catheter is removed or at least you fully understand the management.

I was in hospital for around 30 hours before being sent home.

Then began the recuperation and I was not allowed to lift or carry anything or to drive for at least fourteen days. As I felt fit in myself this was frustrating. However Jane confiscated my mobile phone and made sure I couldn’t access emails!     

Fortunately the weather was kind for the most part which gave me an opportunity to sit in our back garden and read. My reading was eclectic (my reading always is!) I finished off ‘Spiritual Direction,’ W.A. Barry & W.J. Connolly and ‘Heaven’ by Paula Gooder. I read ‘Gothic Charm School’ which was a Father’s Day gift from Joe. Plus I am continuing to read a big novel ‘King Cotton’ about the Lancashire Cotton Industry in the late 1850’s early 1860’s and the crucial role they played in the American Civil War. The second week I was able to go for long walks along the beach (we live 100 yards from the sea) which I really enjoyed, ambling along, stopping to read or just looking and being,

A veritable feast!

On the 23^rd July Jane and I celebrated our 30^th Wedding Anniversary with a short trip to Venice. This past week, August 4^th we were in Cornwall to celebrate the wedding our eldest son Daniel to Tracey.

A wedding truly is a feast, not only a feast of food and drink but also a riot of colour with everyone dressing up, the flowers, the table decorations, etc. It is also a feast of emotions that run the full gamut at any wedding. The happy couple deeply in love, many older couple recalling their own feelings. Those who have lost their life partner may have feelings of sorrow; there may be feelings of regret. There may also be feelings of anger around at unresolved family issues that always lie just below the surface on these types of occasions.  

Where does all of the stuff come from and why do we have it and does it serve any real purpose?

Mechanistic reductionism would have us go back to the lowest common denominator and would, it appears to me, to be in no need for such stimuli.

At one level this is perfectly rational. Food is basically fuel, what it taste like, looks like or smells like is not of any real significance, apart perhaps from early development to try and steer us away from eating things that were not good for us or that didn’t like being eaten!

That strong driver of sex is merely for the purpose of procreation and maintaining the species, no need at all for it to be a pleasurable experience.  

However does such an answer satisfy, does it tell the truth of what we experience, the pleasures that we enjoy? Why should a pint of beer taste so nice, or not to some people? There is absolutely no reason to it.

As Christians we are often asked, and rightly so, to answer for the pain in the world. I want to ask those who view the world in terms of mechanistic reductionism to give an answer for the pleasures in the world – especially after a nice meal they have just enjoyed!   

Oh, and congratulations to Daniel and Tracey, the happy couple.

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Still Dreaming!

The Dreamer

And the Lord said…
I myself will dream a dream within you
Good dreams come from me, you know
My dreams seem impossible
not too practical
not for the cautious man or woman
a little risky sometimes,
a trifle brash perhaps.
Some of my friends prefer
     to rest more comfortably
         in sounder sleep
              with visionless eyes.
But, from those who share my dreams/
     I ask a little patience,
          a little humour;
               some small courage,
                        and a listening heart -
I will do the rest
Then they will
     Risk, and wonder at their daring,
     Run, and marvel at their speed,
     Build, and stand in awe at the beauty of their building,
You will meet me often as you work,
     in your companions, who share the risk,
     in your friends, who believe in you enough
           to lend their hands
           their own hearts
                  to your building
In the people who will stand in your doorway
         stay awhile,
         and walk away knowing they, too, can find a dream.
There will be sun-filled days,
         and sometimes it will rain,
                 a little variety,
                     both come from me.
So, come now, be content.
It is my dream you dream,
         my house you build,
         my caring you witness,
         my love you share,
         and this is the heart of the matter.

Charles Peguy        

Gordon's May News

I seemed to have hit May at full speed and not stopped, and no sight of any let up until the end of July.

I had the great privilege to attend the Press Launch for The Boat at Thornham Marina. Visit The Boat web site for more details of this fantastic Cultural Olympiad initiative. http://www.theboatproject.com/  The Boat was also seen off in grand style after being berthed at Brighton Marina for a week during the Brighton Festival. The Bishop of Horsham, the Rt Revd Mark Sowerby in full regalia blessed the boat as it prepared to sail to its next destination. This was followed by a Service in the

Market Square

involving Sea Cadets and the hymns being led by a local Salvation Army Band. Various schools took part and created their own boats and prayers and aspirations, some of these written on rice paper were cast into the sea. Check out the diocesan web site for some remarkable pictures of this outstanding event. http://www.diochi.org.uk/ (look under News)

The Church Army Chichester Cluster said farewell this month to Capt Ron Bradford upon his retirement. We had a good turn out and after a morning of sharing and praying for each other we went across the local pub for a splendid lunch.

Christian Resources Exhibition at Esher seemed a bit ‘thin’ this year with some notable gaps. More than likely a sign of the serious financial constraints we are all living under currently. I did however manage to meet up with some friends and in particular Ross Coad promoting Storykeepers DVDs. Check out http://www.storykeepersedu.com/

If you don’t know where you’re going you might end up somewhere else! It was great to assist in an Away Day for Christ the Lord Broadfield. This was a follow up to a Growing Healthy Churches Angels Morning Peter Scofield and I ran for them earlier in the year.  We were helping them try and discern their particular calling. After a morning spent thinking we then moved after lunch into exploring the theme with crafts, games and drama. I love this way of doing things, using both right brain and left brain. I also got the opportunity to run a short Games session for some of the children. I have not done this for some time and it was great fun.

School Assemblies are also something I don’t do much of these days. However Fr Andrew and I went along to St John the Baptist School (Roman Catholic Primary) in Brighton to encourage them to get involved with The Boat project which they subsequently did with great enthusiasm.

Sadly I had to take three days to make a trip to Blackpool on the sudden death of my Uncle Peter.  A fit man in his very early 70’s he discovered that he had cancer after checking out jaundice. It was a great privilege to be asked to offer a spoken tribute at the funeral.

We travelled back on the Saturday and on the Sunday I was dressed in blue tights, red shorts, a Superman T shirt and a red cape, looking a bit like Superman’s granddad! I was taking part in the Heroes Run raising money for Africa schools project and also Off the Fence, a local charity that works with the street community. 10k in 57 minutes.

Then to round off the month we had the last planning meeting for the South of England Show. I travelled down to Petworth to meet with a steering group engaging with the Torch Relay. I helped set up and then took part in the Boat Blessing Ceremony. I led a module on Mixed Economy and Cultural Engagement for a One Day Mission Shaped Ministry Taster Day. I also helped with the Church & Countryside Annual One Day Conference using some of the material from the Rural Evangelism Course available on the ARC web site. http://www.arthurrankcentre.org.uk/ 

Then all next week we have the South of England Show and so have been busy trying to get ready for that as well!

Citizens of Heaven - Residents of Earth

I was listening recently to a programme on Radio Four that brought together those at the forefront of the hand over of Hong Kong to Chinese rule. Amongst the many fascinating insights was a comparison to the Falklands Islands.  Many Hong Kong people feared becoming part of a Communist Dictatorship especially following the aftermath of Tiananmen Square. I have also been watching the fascinating series with Mary Beard trying to unearth and get to know the ‘ordinary’ people of 1st century Rome. What Beard suggests is very telling. That Rome wasn’t so much a place as an idea.

The ‘idea’ of being Roman was not focussed on a certain land mass, even less so on the city of Rome. It was its customs, its laws and practices. It was a whole mixed bag of stuff that went to make up the idea of what it meant to be Roman. At the extent of the Roman Empire the world could almost be divided up into two basic groups, Romans and the rest.  And what the ‘rest’ needed to do was to become Roman or at least as near as they could be by at least accepting the ‘Pax Romana,’ the rule and authority of Rome whilst of course paying taxes.

A common enough sight that Jesus would have seen was an evangelist proclaiming good news (the evangel) if not in his home village then certainly in nearby Sepphoris.

This good news would be that the mighty Roman Empire had won yet another victory and that the great ‘idea’ of Rome was continuing its advance or putting down any rebellion against the idea.

‘Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of God, and saying, “The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the Gospel.’ Mark 1:14. That is dangerous and subversive language to use in a country that was under Roman occupation.  The Gospel writers tell us about this kingdom movement and what it means to become a member. Repenting is certainly one thing spelled out here by Jesus. Repenting meaning to turn around and follow a different path, not so much as saying sorry. ‘One small deed done is worth a thousand good intentions.’

One thing that becomes abundantly clear is that this Kingdom is not a place but an idea much in the same way as Rome was an idea. This is why the Letters written to the early Church talk about being citizens of heaven. (See Ephesians 2:19-22 for example)  This would have been familiar to many people across the Roman Empire. Veterans of the Roman Army who had served their time would be given lands in which to settle down and form a Roman Colony. The idea of Rome would shape the new settlement and the citizens would consider themselves Romans. Yet they would have no concept or thought of actual wanting to travel to Rome as a physical place. That wasn’t necessary for them to be considered Romans. They could be Romans anywhere in the world.

The focus for Jews in the 1^st Century was largely around the Temple and Jerusalem as this was the place Yahweh dwelt.  This was the place of pilgrimage, the place to go to be identified as a devout and faithful Jew.

It was the Romans who destroyed all of this as prophesised by Jesus (Matthew 24) who saw that unless people repented, took a different path, then destruction would come upon them.

Therefore the question that arises is, just what is the Gospel? For some it is to escape from hell and enter into heaven in some future realm, place or state where God dwells.  ‘Earth is not my home I am just passing through.’ The Church is the vehicle which transports us on this outwards journey to our eternal destiny beyond the skies.

However Jesus proclaimed the good news that the kingdom was already here; geographically, politically, personally and any other way you may choose. This is surely what the Lord’s Prayer is saying isn’t it?  ‘Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.’  Isn’t this what we read in Revelation that the New Jerusalem will come down from heaven to earth.

Isn’t the Gospel then an invitation to repent, i.e. change direction, and sign up as a citizen of heaven? Then, much as a Roman Veteran would do, living with the idea of Rome, seek to live out the idea of being a citizen of heaven wherever they find themselves, in the present reality.

Roman expansion began in the days of the Republic, but the Empire reached its greatest extent under Emperor Trajan: during his reign (98 to 117 AD) the Roman Empire controlled approximately 6.5 million km of land surface.

Our hope for the Kingdom of God is that the entire world shall come to accept the Pax Christus, the just and gentle rule of God. And the best news of all is that the last and most feared enemy has been conquered. Death itself has been swallowed up in victory. The author and pioneer of our faith, Jesus Christ, has gone ahead and won the victory. Jesus is the first fruits of the resurrection and the promise is that we, like him, shall at the last have glorious resurrected bodies. Not some ethereal soul that migrates from the body upon death; that is a Greek thought, not Hebrew.

We live as signs and symbols of the Kingdom of God as a foretaste of the now and not yet but one day to be fully revealed sovereign reign of God. We live in that manner as individuals and corporately as the Body of Christ, the Church.  The Church is not a vehicle to escape from earth to a heavenly realm, but a portal through which heaven breaks into the earthly realm.  

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your Kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.
Amen. 

Day Dream Believer

This morning (Monday 30th April 2012) I caught the last few minutes of Radio Four’s ‘Start the Week’ 09:00–09:45 with Andrew Marr on creativity with Jonah Lehrer, Scanner, Rachel O'Reilly and Joanna Kavenna.

The conversation was around the value of day dreaming, or what is sometimes referred to as ‘blue sky thinking.’ Indeed one of the contributors spoke of his joy in flying in an airplane and how he didn’t want to be able to get mobile phone connection. He further argued that we should treasure moments of apparent boredom by allowing our minds to wander freely and not try and cram every moment with answering emails or meeting some demand.

My wife and daughter are always telling me off (mostly in a nice way!) for always fiddling with my phone and checking emails.  I know there is a real danger that we can do this because at a subconscious level we want to say to people look how important I am and how much in need people are of my attention.

Referring to somebody today as a dreamer is most often said in derogatory terms. We take it to mean someone who has their head in the clouds, who will not face reality, living in a fantasy world.

However dreamers are essential for human flourishing and development.

Yes, they need to be able to share that dream, to convey it in such a way that it can be grasped by hard nosed realist who can begin to turn the dream into a reality.

The dreamer and the dreams also need carefully monitoring – Hitler dreamed up a world of the most imaginable horror that then led to hard nosed realist building an efficient way of exterminating a whole human race and class of people!

The way of Scripture, Reason and Tradition, beloved on Anglicans can help put the dreamer’s dreams into context as to whether they will help build the Kingdom of God upon earth.

Whilst training for Church Army my tutor reported that I was a ‘dreamer’ – this was written in a report with a slight note of disdain or concern. I thought long and hard about this and in the end came to thank God that I was and am a dreamer. (The tutor eventually also came to the same conclusion).

A part of my ministry as a Diocesan Evangelist is to dream dreams as I work alongside Churches helping them find creative ways of communicating and proclaiming the Gospel. Busy clergy and churchwardens and congregations often find themselves so hard pressed and up against things that they have lost the capacity to dream and to think of anything beyond what is facing them and any kind of solution. They have so often reached an impasse, a log jam with no discernable way through. 

This is common in all spheres of life, families, big businesses and the Church. Often what they require, and sometimes pay good money for, is someone to help them move forward first by imagining a different scenario and then by agreeing upon that idea, followed by practical steps to make it happen. However it begins not with the practical steps but in the dreaming of a different outcome and future!

Most of my ‘dreaming’ is done whilst out running on my own. No phone, no emails, nothing but an hour or more to allow my mind to wander and explore all sorts of things. I love dreaming, I love allowing my imagination to wander, I love looking at clouds and seeing animals or all kinds of other stuff, I love sharing this with those around me. It is important for us all occasionally to have our heads in the clouds!  

What time do you allow yourself to dream dreams? Is this your gift to the Church and to the world?  How do you convey your dreams? How do you measure and weigh them up to try and discern if they are from God and can help build up God’s Kingdom? How often do you encourage your Church leaders to spend time day dreaming?

‘In the last days, God says,

   I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

  your young men will see visions,

  your old men will dream dreams.’