I am really sorry but since Wednesday the blog has not been happy. It is still very sensitive but I will do my best to keep everything up to date.

On Saturday 22 of us travelled over to the church in Southport for a fantastic day.

We were a little late but jumped straight into workshops. We did face painting, balloon modelling, puppeteering, drama, drumming - like stomp and evangelism. They were all great fun and very practical. At the end of the morning we had our lunch and then set off to put all our new skills into practice.

In the shopping centre of Southport all the youth participated in a time of talking about how good God is. All the practice in the morning was put to good use and we promoted an atmosphere of fun and enjoyment.

The outreach was followed by a BBQ and then a gig. We jumped all night with the Steels and had such a great time. The Steels are so entertaining live and such nice guys. We love them.

I didn’t get home until 11.30 and my mind was buzzing. A bit of Glastonbury festival was in order to numb my adrenaline. What a great day and I even managed to fit in a bit of shopping and 2 capacinos in with my mates!!

To all the youth that came I want to say you were great fun to be with and you made me feel really proud. You were so enthuastic, fun and stayed on task really well. You also rocked hard!! I may even forgive the person who was throwing sweets at me as I drove the mini bus!!

June 25: Ezra 4:17-7:28; Acts 4:13-22
June 26: Ezra 8:1-10:24; Acts 4:23-5:11
June 27: Ezra 10:25-Neh 3; Acts 5:12-32
June 28: Neh 4-6; Acts 5:33-6:15
June 29: Neh 7-8; Acts 7:1-29
June 30: Neh 9:1-11:9; Acts 7:30-43
July 1: Neh 11:10-12:47; Acts 7:44-60

Alright yes I admit it - I was listening to Ronan Keating. I found a really cool song that I might adopt for my youth workers theme song. It is fabulous.

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat
But always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small
When you stand by the ocean
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
Promise me you’ll give faith a fighting chance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Living might mean taking chances
But they’re worth taking
Lovin’ might be a mistake
But it’s worth making
Don’t let some hell bent heart
Leave you bitter
When you come close to selling out
Reconsider
Give the heavens above
More than just a passing glance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
(Time is a real and constant motion always)
I hope you dance
(Rolling us along)
I hope you dance
(Tell me who)
I hope you dance
(Wants to look back on their youth and wonder)
(Where those years have gone)

Here is the present you have all been waiting for. Amy Heague found him. Yes you can have your own Jesus to hug. It is a must for your Christmas list.

Here is my son pretending to be Russian. He is trying to grow in his skills of acting. What a cheek!!!!

I am really excited by all the fantastic things that are happening in the church at the moment. It was brilliant to see Keri Jones, our apostle, and Tony Ling, a prophet, plus other elders on Sunday. They had come to set apart two men as new elders in the church. It was so stirring to see the church so excited by all that God is doing as we prepare for even more growth.

Last Sunday I was thrilled to bits to be able to bring the word of God to the church. For those who missed it you can get a download here.

Readings this week:June 18: 2 Chr 20-22; John 20:11-31
June 19: 2 Chr 23-25; John 21
June 20: 2 Chr 26:1-29:11; Acts 1:1-11
June 21: 2 Chr 29:12-31:21; Acts 1:12-2:13
June 22: 2 Chr 32-34; Acts 2:14-36
June 23: 2 Chr 35-36; Acts 2:37-3:10
June 24: Ezra 1:1-4:16; Acts 3:11-4:12

It’s great after being on holiday to come back home. It is full of people and things that you have chosen to be there. Things you like, things you treasure, people you love and pets who have missed you. It is a place of comfort, familiarity and security.

It is amazing to think that God makes his home among his people.

 13 For the Lord has chosen Jerusalem;
      he has desired it for his home.
 14 “This is my resting place forever,” he said.
      “I will live here, for this is the home I desired.

Psalms 132:13

What does it mean by Jerusalem? Jerusalem was the city where the temple was built. Throughout the bible Jerusalem means the physical city but also means the church - the living temple of God. We are the new Jerusalem.

God desires to be and rest with us. He wants to live with us, make us his home in us. He wants to be in our everyday life. To spend his time with us. He likes it there and desires to be there.

Well, Lord Coe on his revealing the new London 2012 logo stated that they were trying to reach the younger generation. The claim is that the logo is “ambitious, interactive and youth friendly” So what do you think?

I have been on my jolly holidays and I did not tell you I would be gone a week. I am really sorry to all those who were expecting a new and exciting post - only to find that there was none. I hope you managed to find inspiration from somewhere else!!

We stayed at the Sutton-Smith’s house in Swansea. They are good friends of ours who we met when we were just married. My favourite beach we went to was the Three Cliffs beach. It is a 25 minute walk - but oh so stunning. The views are fab, the sea warm and full of good waves, there are rock pools, caves to explore, steep sand dunes to skid down and a castle. What more could you ask for? - well yes a toilet would be good!

The picture is of Pennard Castle. It is a ruin that overlooks the three cliffs bay. Our dog absolutely loved it.

Readings this week:

June 4: 1 Chr 9:1-11:21; John 12:1-26
June 5: 1 Chr 11:22-13:14; John 12:27-50
June 6: 1 Chr 14:1-16:36; John 13:1-11
June 7: 1 Chr 16:37-19:19; John 13:12-30
June 8: 1 Chr 20:1-23:11; John 13:31-14:11
June 9: 1 Chr 23:12-25:31; John 14:12-31
June 10: 1 Chr 26-27; John 15