Mike's musings

My first sermon at Halstead

I preached on Peter's lack of faith giving him wet feet. I talked about how fear, and doubt, and failure don't seem to be very Godly, but how they're very human. And how Jesus was, arguably, the greatest human failure of all time (he started as Son of God, and ended up asking why God had forsaken him, after being betrayed by his friends). But how his resurrection means that faith never ends in failure. I was very pleased with it, and a number of people were very appreciative afterwards.

I'm still enjoying deaconing.

Labels: sermon

Sermon

I'm not going to be preaching it until at least the beginning of July, but I'm beginning to worry, already, about my first sermon as a deacon. This is silly, I realise, but that's just running round my head. Do you preach to the lectionary (something I'm not overly given to), or to the season, or to recent events, or speak about myself, or curacy, or the diaconate? I literally have no idea. And it's obviously, obviously too early to think about it.

I'm currently going through the "why isn't everybody else so enthusiastic about the Gospel, then?" phase. This, I'm given understand, is typical of nearly-deaconed ordinands. Expecting to enthuse everybody else is a dangerous fallacy, and I'm glad, at least, that I've seen it. And enthusiasm is good. But needs watching.

Now Moo's not well. Hope she gets better soon. I've done a part dog-poo clearance, and 90% of the ironing (ran out of coat-hangers), and cooked supper. And spent around an hour getting Jo to sleep. But I hate it when Moo's ill. Particularly as it's partly due to overwork.

Labels: diaconate, ordination, sermon, theology

Last day of holiday

(backposting) Polzeath - went body boarding (despite Jo). Jo decided that the body board was for her, not me. I had to sneak it away. The surf was much better than yesterday, and I actually managed it a couple of times. Really got it together, and it was pretty good.

Had a work call in the afternoon - changed out of wetsuit, obviously. Changed Miri whilst on a conf. call: put the phone on mute, as I'm a professional...

Two things made me cry on the TV: Natasha Kaplinsky on the BBC's "Who do you think you are?" (family involvement in the Shoah - the Holocaust), and Rhys Jones' funeral (an 11 year old caught in the crossfire between two Liverpool gangs, it seems). I expect to be preaching on this at some point.

Labels: holiday, sermon