Ramblings along the narrow way

Well, I thought I’d configure my MSN Messenger with a more recent email address, as the one I used previously was registered years ago. I’d already started using a newer, different email address because the old email address was being spammed so much it was unusable. Of course, this new email address isn’t being published on the web in an effort to avoid spam. Most people I know now send email to my newer address, so now seemed like a good time to kill off the old address completely. However, there were a few people who would still send email to the old address because they saw it in my MSN Messenger account. In order to kill it off completely then, it seemed necessary to transfer my MSN Messenger account to my new address.
At first, this appeared straightforward as I saved my contacts list before changing the email address which was registered with MSN. After changing the email address and firing up MSN all my contacts appeared offline and none of them could see me. I then deleted all my contacts and imported the list I had saved earlier, which brought some contacts into view and they could see me. Some contacts remained offline and they still can’t see me, however I can’t tell for certain which ones! It’ll take time to work out who can and can’t see me I think.
So, in summary, if you want to contact me on MSN and I’ve appeared offline for a week or so, try adding a new contact to your MSN contacts list using my new email address. If you don’t know my new email address and you want to know what it is, use the email form here and I’ll let you know what it is. (Assuming I know who you are :))
I do apologise for the interruption in service.

I should probably avoid late nights as my concentration span and memory appear to suffer.
This morning’s sermon was on the passage in Genesis where Pharaoh appointed Joseph as his second in command after Joseph explained Pharaoh’s dreams to him. Pharaoh had recognised that Joseph was different to all his other advisors, that Joseph had the Spirit of God and so treated him accordingly. Through the Spirit, Joseph’s behaviour was different, he worked honestly and faithfully and through it all, he trusted in God. Despite the hardship and difficulties he had experienced to this point, Joseph remained loyal to God and God honoured him and Joseph was fruitful.
In the bigger picture, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob demonstrated that he was unlike any of the other gods who were worshipped. He ruled over everything, throughout time, even dictating when times of plenty and famine would occur, unlike the gods of the Egyptians whose supposed powers were limited at best, and who were ultimately man-made gods.
This same God calls us to trust in his Son, Jesus Christ that we might be different from the world. When we trust in him, his Spirit will dwell in us and will cause us to bear his fruit.

OK, so it’s not the fifth of November, in fact as I write it is now the seventh, but the sixth is what I’ve just experienced.
To any non-British readers, on the fifth (or usually the closest Saturday to the fifth), the majority of Britain commemorate and celebrate an event which took place on November 5th, 1605. On that day, a small group of Roman Catholics, headed by Guido “Guy” Fawkes, plotted to blow up the Houses of Parliament during its formal opening, with gunpowder. This would remove both Commons and Lords as well as King James I, leaving a power vacuum in which a Catholic could seize power and restore Catholicism to Britain. However, the plot was discovered and Guido and his group were arrested by the authorities, thereby leaving Britain a Protestant country. As such, in commemoration, across the country bonfires are lit and firework displays are commonplace.
So my evening was spent first at my church, where the annual bonfire and fireworks display was organised. It was very good, with many visitors, both from other local churches and people who had connections with the church but who wouldn’t normally go to church. This was a great opportunity to get to know people and for them to get to know us. The display was followed with food and a short epilogue. All in all a good evening with a great way to share the gospel both in word and deed.
The rest of the evening was spent with young people from HTC, APC and HWEC as we went in a large group down to Battersea to see a huge fireworks display. It took a while for all of us to find each other but we managed it in the end. Quite a few of us had taken our cameras with us, so there was a line of us taking photos throughout the display. (Photos from the evening are in the usual place.) After the display we sauntered off to find something to eat and just to chat and chill, and then eventually we headed home.
All in all a great evening.

Sometimes after a long hard day, I play some music on the piano to wind down. This has the added benefit that it keeps my piano playing at a reasonable level. Recently I’ve discovered The Sheet Music Archive which has loads of music scores available for free download. Being free and above board, it means only scores which have passed out of copyright are available. This suits me fine though as I prefer classical music.
So far I’ve tried learning to play Fantasie Impromptu, by Chopin and The Pathetique Sonata, by Beethoven. I think I’ve cracked the Fantasie Impromptu, with only the problem of keeping the momentum going in the fast bits to sort out. I do love the beautiful lyrical melodies entwined within it though. You could almost envision it as a lover whispering sweet nothings into the ear of his beloved, with his beloved responding back to her lover very delicately in the middle of the piece, returning to the lover on his original theme and finishing off with his beloved and a kiss.
The Beethoven is a completely different kettle of fish though! I’ve got the second movement sorted and the final movement is coming along nicely. The first movement isn’t quite so easy to pick up though. In addition to remembering a vast number of notes, its speed and relentlessness cause my arms to ache after a while! Despite the title, the Beethoven is significantly more robust than the Chopin, encompassing more of the emotional spectrum, with frustration and anger in it, as well as tenderness and reflection.
I think with continued effort and perseverance, they might even be performable and I’ll be able to share these delights with others. We’ll see.

The day Thou gavest, Lord, is ended,
The darkness falls at Thy behest;
To Thee our morning hymns ascended,
Thy praise shall sanctify our rest.

We thank Thee that Thy church, unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.

As o’er each continent and island
The dawn leads on another day,
The voice of prayer is never silent,
Nor dies the strain of praise away.

The sun that bids us rest is waking
Our brethren ‘neath the western sky,
And hour by hour fresh lips are making
Thy wondrous doings heard on high.

So be it, Lord; Thy throne shall never,
Like earth’s proud empires, pass away:
Thy kingdom stands, and grows forever,
Till all Thy creatures own Thy sway.
John Ellerton

Every now and then I get email forwarded to me from well meaning friends which purport to be petitions supporting a good cause. The most recent one allegedly supporting Dr. James Dobson, of Focus on the Family, in his alleged appearance on TV to oppose the alleged proposed restriction of religious broadcasting by the Federal Communications Commission. Maybe I’m just cynical, as you may have guessed from my liberal scatterings of “alleged”, but I thought I’d check it out before considering it and forwarding to anyone I know. After a couple of minutes with Google, this page surfaced which showed, with very little doubt, that this particular petition was bogus. In fact, the aforementioned article highlighted a few important points.
If we claim to follow the truth, we should be careful that everything we say in our own name, the name of others, and in the name of God is the truth. (Which is effectively what we’re doing when we forward these emails.) Otherwise we may be guilty, albeit unintentionally, of breaking the ninth commandment – You shall not bear false witness.
If we receive an email claiming to pursue the glory of God, we should investigate its claim – especially if we intend to forward it. After all, as 1 John 4:1 says, we should test what people say in the name of God against his word, to see if they really are from God. The Christian faith is not about blindly believing everything we are told, but about using the brains God has given us that we believe the truth which will withstand rigorous inspection.
It usually doesn’t take long to uncover a hoax. Usually a quick Google search or a visit to somewhere like Truth or Fiction will determine the validity of an email.
Additionally, the time wasted on fake petitions could be better spent on legitimate concerns such as those raised by organisations such as The Christian Institute and The Barnabas Fund.

Another evening of running around the football pitch for an hour. Saying that, this evening was much better than most Monday evenings! For a start I managed to run around for the whole hour, albeit with five-a-side. I also managed to score multiple goals – more than two, although how many more than that I’m not sure! Maybe it was because the clocks went back an hour? Who knows? All in all, a good run around and quite pride puffing. 🙂

At the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus makes it clear who he is speaking to.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” Matthew 5:3

Before anything else is said, he explains what it is to be one of his followers. We need to realise we have nothing we can offer God to make us acceptable before him. Nothing about us, our pride, our righteousness, our works can justify us before God. Once we have acknowledged we are truly poor in spirit, true, deep, exceeding happiness is ours when we trust in Jesus Christ instead of ourselves.
Jesus then follows with another facet of what it is to follow him.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Matthew 5:4

As our relationship with Christ develops, we become ever more concious of our sinfulness, indeed we mourn over our sinful state. Yet, because of what Christ has done for those who trust him, we are comforted that our sins have been dealt with. To have one’s sins wiped away is happiness indeed.

Went bowling with the usual suspects this evening, after spending the day doing pretty much nothing. Started fairly well, with Karen and I on level pegging pretty much throughout the whole game, with the rest either way behind or way ahead. Eventually came fourth being pipped to the post by Karen in the ninth frame.
Thinking about it, whilst this evening wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, it was still a good evening. Sometimes routine is a good thing, just to keep ones sanity. It is such a blessing that friends are part of routine. Life would certainly be a lot poorer if friends were not routine. I guess this is what makes friends so precious. Hmmm…rambling…possibly…

PS Don’t forget tomorrow is Reformation Day, commemorating the posting of Martin Luther’s 95 theses to the door of a church at Wittenburg and unwittingly beginning the Reformation.

Spent the evening at Slough Ice Arena with some of the usual suspects. I must admit ice skating is not one of my talents, although I only fell over once today, taking out Dave in the process. I can actually pick up quite a scary speed, although if anyone gets in the way, steering is a problem, so if I hit anyone I’m likely to flatten them. As most of the rink seemed to be populated by small children and rather young teenagers, I kept my skating antics to sedately going around the edge. Although I must admit that going round and round in circles did induce boredom after a while. Ah well, at least it was slightly different from usual. I guess a little more practice probably wouldn’t go amiss, although maybe somewhere a little quieter.

Q: What offices doth Christ execute as our Redeemer?
A: Christ, as our Redeemer, executeth the offices of a prophet, of a priest, and of a king, both in his estate of humiliation and exaltation.

Q: How doth Christ execute the office of a prophet?
A: Christ executeth the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by his word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation.

Q: How doth Christ execute the office of a priest?
A: Christ executeth the office of a priest, in his once offering up of himself a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice, and reconcile us to God; and in making continual intercession for us.

(Questions XXIII, XXIV and XXV from the Westminster Shorter Catechism)

I must admit to being slightly bemused by yet another article speculating on Jesus Christ’s ethnicity. It would seem that some people only look on the surface, especially in this image concious age – although this is not a new phenomenon – rather than “look” at who Jesus really is.
The Bible is notable for lacking any information on Jesus’ appearance, but concentrating on his deeds and his words. It would seem that the writers of the Bible considered his image to be completely unimportant, and Jesus’ message to be of utmost importance.
Will we follow the world and look at the surface, or will we look deeper and discover what is really important?

Oranges and lemons
Say the bells of St Clements
You owe me five farthings
Say the bells of St Martins
When will you pay me?
Say the bells of Old Bailey
When I grow rich
Say the bells of Shoreditch
When will that be?
Say the bells of Stepney
I do not know,
Says the great bell of Bow
Here comes a candle to light you to bed
Here comes a chopper to chop off your head

Chop chop chop chop the last man’s head!

Well, I appear to be restored to full health as I wandered onto the football pitch this evening. Well, I say full health, as full as it was before my cold. Of course this meant my usual attempt to run around lasted around half the game, with the other half spent wheezing and wishing the game would finish soon! Not a bad result though, with the team I was on coming out ahead in the end. Although not sure I helped much there.
Saw the second episode of Monarchy, chronicling the reigns of Alfred the Great’s descendents up until the arrival of William of Normandy. I still find certain parts of history fascinating, especially the events which have helped to shape the world into what it is today. Things such as the agreement of King Ethelred in 1014 to rule by the consent of the nobility – the first vestiges of a parliament – rather than as a warlord.

In this part of John 16, Jesus explains his Father to his disciples. From this dicourse we can learn something of the God the Father.
The Father can be known. If this were not the case, Jesus would not bother to explain the Father to his disciples. As such, the Father is approachable by us.
He has special love for those who believe in the Son. He provides and cares for them.
And he has purpose, to bring about the salvation of men through the work of the Son and the Holy Spirit. Everything that happens is ultimately under his control.

We should trust the Father and not in our own strength. If we trust in our own strength we will fail. We should put our faith in the Father, and not in our faith. For the Father sent his Son who has the power to “overcome the world”.
Can Jesus say of each of us “You believe at last!”?