Wilder Worship

So here we are in the last month, of the first decade of the third millenium anno Domini. It seems no time at all since I was standing with my lovely wife at the big fish in Belfast, with a couple of close friends and a bottle of bubbly - watching the fireworks explode in the sky above the waterfront hall. Now, 10 years, 2 children, another church, several guitars, a couple of cars and many other things later, here we are ready to enter a new decade. I wonder what this one has in store for us all? But what of November? I had a wild night (quite literally) in the Mournes, navigating through the darkness (and rain and wind - and when I say rain, I mean rain...100s of pounds worth of outdoor gear and I was still absolutely soaking by the end of it) of Tollymore and Luke's mountain. Hopefully there'll be lots more adventures like this in the new decade. Speaking of adventures as well, I managed to get to Ikon in the Blackbox last night. Talk about alternative church! It was alternative alright, but not in any sense that you can fit it into a particular "box". It was different certainly, but challenging, thought provoking, relaxed (I mean what other "church" could you go to that has a break at half time so you can get more drinks in!), exiting, liberal and conservative - all in the same hour and something that it slips by in. The theme was ADVENTure (it's nearly Christmas don't you know) - an adventure that begins...and ends...with worship. The folks at Ikon pointed me towards The Advent Conspiracy - check out the website, and then:

WORSHIP FULLY

SPEND LESS

GIVE MORE

LOVE ALL

Happy Christmas. Come...with the shepherds...and the wise men...and the angels...and worship...the baby...the Christ...the King!

October was a bit wilder...

SO what can I say of last month? For September not having been too wild, October has been pretty good in terms of a wild life. There was the gig at Dunamis early on in the month, which was a blast - thanks to all the guys who played. Worship for the rest of the month has been harder...one of God's saints on earth was taken to be with Him...and we miss her and will go on missing her. Carole was, to say the least, amazing - and the number of lives that she touched, the smiles she brought to the people who encountered her, in her all-too-short 26 years on this earth - are testimony to that.


So worship in church since that dreadful night at the start of the month has been a bit like wading through mud. We don't really have a lot of songs that allow us to cry out and lament to God; that allow us to express our worship when things are bad. "Blessed be your name" is great in it's sentiment, but it's too hard for me to sing in the midst of this time. John Bell's translation of a traditional Mexican lament "We belong to God" has been gently meaningful. And so we keep on going, "weeping with those who weep, and mourning with those who mourn" for we love them all dearly. And it was a privilege and an honour to lead worship at Carole's funeral.


I haven't wanted to put any of this into words until now, I suppose maybe because putting it in words makes it real and absolute. But I can't not mention it ,for the impact on me, on everyone who knows Carole and her family, has been enormous.


So we go on, taking small steps forward, as we get to "carry each other" as Bono so beautifully phrased it...


One small step for us was a weekend in Bryansford - right at the foot of the beloved Mournes, and we even got to walk in them - three times!

A long wander through Tollymore (made all the longer because the stepping stones were under the rain that fell the night previous) was a great start to a Sunday. And a great finish to the same Sunday was Mrs McC dropping me off at Trassey track - in the pitch darkness, from where I made my way, into and through the darkness, across the hills at the back of Tollymore, and then through the forest and back to the cosyness of the holiday house. I should say, the open ground was great, mainly because my mind was fully occupied with navigation. Once on the familiar tracks of the forest however, the old mind had more free capacity for playing tricks, as the trees made strange noises in the wind, and set the heart beating, it felt, almost out of my chest! Glad to see the lights of Bryansford. Monday, and daylight, saw our intrepid explorers leading mum and dad up Hen mountain, with lots of climbing of rocks to be had. A great weekend all in all. And the night time walking has other people interested - so we'll go again this month and try to scare a bigger group out of their wits!

September ain't so wild...

So here we are, heading towards the middle of September, and it all feels a bit wick...and that's not just me! However, last Saturday was good - a trip to the folk museum, which for once was really good, and not bunged with people (even if PWC did have their family day on). Even got a ride on a horse and cart (or horses and cart to be precise - a wild life eh?). After that we saw the biggest aeroplane in the world as it flew over the city airport. Mrs McC tried to be excited for me, but it really was impressive as far as I was concerned.

SUnday worship was great...first evening service in a while, so that was good...despite a little bit of lethargy before leaving the house...amazing freedom in worship in CoGS. This Saturday night is small-worship chez nous. A chance to chill out with a glass of the fruit of the vine, and the mellow tones of an acoustic guitar and hopefully an acoustic bass!

The end of the month will let me into the beloved Mournes, which I feel like I haven't seen never mind been in, in a very long time. Meelmore crying out to be climbed, but we'll see how my unconditioned legs hold out...great coffee in Meelmore lodge. So roll on the end of the month, til we get through the blues of children going back to school, homeworks, dark mornings, dark evenings...even this will pass.

So I hold on to something Alan shared with us on Sunday evening..."Bidden or not bidden, God is present." Which is a good job really, 'cause even when we don't realise it, what would we do without Him holding us, and making us holy in His sight.

A bit wilder this week...

So, from a relatively calm summer, the past week has been a busy one. Started last Sunday with a visit to the "big house"...which was very different to my expectations. Anyone out for a stroll at Antrim loughshore on Wednesday would have seen 3 canoes making their way down the river and then back up again. We did try to paddle upstream, but as is the way in Northern Ireland, we encountered a large group of muppets who started hurling abuse...and I was worried that our non-reaction to that would tempt them to hurl something more physical. And yet you know that really - they'd love to have go! It was a fantastic night for a little paddle, and we even managed to rescue two footballs, 3 life rings, and a teenage boy after he tumbled out of his canoe...brilliant night. Yesterday however, was the ultimate wild...a group from the firm took a trip to Shane's Castle, and spent the day trying to hit each other with little balls of paint - fired at about 210 mph from what are called "markers" but look remarkably like "guns". Brilliant day's craic...if you're looking for something wild, check out Escarmouche. The picture of me below says it all!

Yeah, I know - guns and all that...but it was great - the adrenalin was pumping. And on the worship side, today was the first of me playing and Alan L. preaching since his sabatical... church is good. Worship this morning was great. Sermon was nail on the head stuff.

Ah well - back to work tomorrow for another fun filled week...and we'll all compare bruises - those paintballs hurt a bit!

Has anybody seen the sun?

So it has been a few months since the last typings... but my lovely wife has found a creative passion for blogs, and has inspired me to write a little bit more! As I type, said wife has just shouted "I see the sun", because the past few days have seemed more like December than the end of July. Holiday time means I haven't been leading worship for a few weeks - although that's a bit of a welcome break. The guy who shares this role with me had a little debate with a circular saw several montsh ago...and the saw won. It's hard to play guitar when your finger tip is healing. But I've had my fair share of sermons as well...and another this Sunday - and it's in a different church.
So what's been on my mind this while is "community". Been reading John Ortberg's book - "everybody's normal until you get to know them" which has been a challenging read. Felt obliged to share a little of his thoughts with the congregation last week - and I think it'll be the same tomorrow...big reflections on the story of the paralysed man - whose friends cared for, carried, and lowered him...without the friends, the story doesn't happen. The man never gets to be in front of Jesus, never gets forgive, never gets healed. So have friends and be a friend!

So sermoning this week, leading worship next week, and an interesting experience awaits tomorrow afternoon, for me and my guitar will be leading somewhere a bit different.

And what else on the horizon - who knows - great ideas for days out don't seem as appealing when it's chucking it down outside. But the north coast calls, as do those sweeping down to the sea mournes. And a bit more kayaking called for as well...spent a pleasant evening at shaw's bridge for the first in a very long time...and I didn't get wet! So the confidence is up now - let's get paddling.

Let it snow...

So the snow came at last...the weather forecasters have been promising it all week, so they had to be right sometime! Not that it met all the expectations of my children, who were very disappointed that there was only enough snow in the garden for the tiniest of snowmen.

And what else of the news this week? Well the education minister has thrown the baby out with the bath water in regards to the selection process for primary school children heading to secondary school. Whilst her idea of removing academic selection is honourable, the chaos that ensues will be to the disadvantage of many children, ending up with either a multitude of tests set up independently by the Grammar schools, or it becoming a case of those people who can afford to live in areas where the "good" schools are, turning it from academic selection to "selection by mortgage". So the spiral continues in a downward fashion.

As I write this, I really should be preparing a sermon for Sunday evening, havng realised just last week, that the 8th February was much closer than it seemed in the middle of January, when some Sunday night in February was ages away...but as the saying goes..."anyone can do any amount of work, provided it's not the work they're supposed to be doing at that particular time!"

I was hoping to get some ideas from Gap's meditiation on this week's verse, but with a shortage of leaders on Tuesday that didn't happen...Oh well back to the drawing board.

Church, despite my blank mind when it came to choosing songs, was absolutely great on Sunday evening. The songs that had come to mind fitted perfectly with the whole service, and it even led me to sing "When my heart runs dry" on my own...the words rang round my head when I couldn't think of other songs...

"When my heart runs dry, and there's no song to sing...I'll remember you, I will turn back and do the things I used to do."

So maybe that will feature in the sermon...along with "I know the plans I have for you says the Lord" and a but of "I have come that you might have life, and have it to the full" We'll se how it comes out on Sunday night.

One think that has been striking us in church recently is that songs of celebration are in absolute abundance, but when we don't feel like celebrating, there's a very small number of songs to turn to, that allow us to express our feelings of sadness, doubt, despair, and the rest, to God. As we get closer to Lent, we'd like to introduce a song of lament to the congregation...just looking forward to Easter when we can cast off the cold, and the sadness and fed-up-ness, and Easter Sunday morning will ROCK! In the meantime, I'm working on a lament, so we'll get it up here when it's done (hopefully it'll come easier than the sermon that this isn't!)

And on the Obama front...well done that man for being human! I think this is the first time I've seen a world leader admit, without coaxing, or a need to do it, that they've made a mistake..."Change" has indeed come...not just to the Whitehouse, but to world politics...excellent!

So where does the "wild life" bit come in?

So you'll gather that my main interest is worship...but as well as that I love all things outdoors...well except for this time of year when the sport of choice is climbing of the indoor variety! My mate Bob is a monkey..a tree monkey to be precise. His job has him up and down trees all day every day, which makes him a perfect climbing partner, 'cause he can climb just about anything, as was the case at the climbing wall on Tuesday. Some people take their climbing very seriously and use just one colour of hold to make their way to the top...I prefer the "colour blind" option, where there are, quite literally, "no holds bared". The real objective is to get to the top of the climb without incurring any pain as far as I'm concerned. I can just hear the purists tutting...

So today was the presentation of the Eames-Bradley report, and what a to do! What amazed me most from the TV pictures was the apparent ability of those who were not protesting to sit calmly in their seats, chatting away to one another, whilst all around, chaos seemed to be breeding! I'm not really one for political comment, but you have to ask how anybody can think that paying out to someone who caused their own injury as well as to everyone else they took with them is an idea that will be easily accepted - I know that the definition of "victim" is based on the "Victims and Survivors (Northern Ireland) Order 2006". Reading between the lines of the report it seems that this was a bit of a nightmare, as the report states,

"In the consultation process a definition of a ‘victim’, acceptable to everyone, did not emerge. The contention the Group encountered around this issue is nothing new."

So there you go - there must have been some long and heated debates about that one. As Lord Eames said (it seemed over and over again on every news broadcast), they've been at this for 18 months...so really, who am I to question them...doesn't make it any easier to swallow! Better that the money goes to people directly affected than to all the lawyers and civil servants and the rest, who suck the coffers dry during all these inquiries though!

I think I'll just stick to trying to climb up the wall.

Anyway, back on the wild side of things, I've forgotten what the Mournes look like, it's been so long since I was in them...must have a wee dander next month!

Our Gap group in church have been meditating (well I've been trying to get them to meditate) on a different verse each week...mainly driven by what it says in Joshua 1:8...Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Sounds pretty good doesn't it...and God does make you prosperous and successful, and I don't just mean in a Christian-super-spiritual way ;-)

So the verse to be discussed next Tuesday is:

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Now that's worship rolling right on in to a wild life - don't you think? Gappers - get meditating!

This is new for me...

So, here we are, nearly at the end of the first month of 2009. Where did January go to? I've heard enough about these blogs, and thought it was time to get myself one. With no idea what will be written here, away we go!

Church was great yesterday. I was leading, and having witnessed major history in the US of A, I thought it a very apt time to throw in a bit of "Pride" to the worship set. )Make sure you check out the videos of U2 at the Lincoln Memorial!) Linked in nicely with Third Day's version of "Turn your eyes upon Jesus". Apologies to the congregation that it was too low - it sounded alright in the house...we'll know the next time! Had some friends down to visit as well...and the neighbours who we'd invited to come to church for the first time...that was really cool.

Last night was the memorial service for Rev. Gary...very sad, but very amazing service. The full band weighed in and sounded great...and the packed church sang their hearts out to God. Alison and Rebekah we love you with the love of the Lord...keep on keepin' on!

There is something amazing about children praying and singing. Suggested to Gary H something that I'd seen in a friend's church - asking the children for their prayer requests...what is it the bible says about "out of the mouths of babes..."? I think we're going to try that in Sunday School and lead into trying it in the church service...really looking forward to seeing how that works out.
Gappers...hope you all enjoyed laser quest last week while I was sick...I'll post the verse for next week up here shortly...and I want some good debate on Tuesday week. Danny, hope you arrived safe and sound in the land down under. Let us know how you're getting on.

And the band...next scheduled gig at the moment is to be Dunamis on 4th April at Tandragee Leisure Centre...I wonder can we do "Pride" there? Can't wait to play another gig with the band...and Mark's new guitar (don't tell his mum and dad - they think he's skint (and now he is after buying a new guitar!) And just what drum kit will Pete bring this time? Hopefully there'll be a couple of gigs before this, but I'll let you all know.

So...this looks something like a blog should I think!