Busy

What a busy day! Things are hectic, so no major posting, until maybe later... History tonight looks at the Ulster Crisis.

Sunday morning

This morning we had a busy time at the 11.30 service. First of all, there were 3 baptisms, and loads of extra people in church (and baby noise, which was great!). But then we had Communion afterwards for those who wanted it, because there was a mix-up over Early Communion, which found only Stephen present... But it was good to see the Chancel full (with one overflow in the Organ Aisle) whereas we would only have about 12 or so at the early service.

This afternoon I'm for a flower festival in Tandragee Presbyterian, and then Church and YF tonight. But this week is going to be very busy, as I am working EVERY night through the week, including trips to Belfast and Magherafelt... So hopefully I'll have Friday off to relax and catch up on sleep before our Sunday Club trip to the Zoo on Saturday...

Sad news

I cannot bring myself to type this. It is the saddest news I have had all year, but my 100% record of winning at 10-pin bowling has finished. So many times young Jordan has tried to beat me, and failed - well at least I still have that. But we went to the Odyssey tonight, and I'll let the results speak for themselves:

Stewart 109, Bryan 155, Gary 140, David 81

Stewart 125, Bryan 139, Gary 108, David 86

My first score was respectable (possibly even one of my better ones), but that was only because it was bolstered by two strikes in the 10th round. So I have lost my 10-pin bowling winning streak... but there will be other times, and I'll get Bryan again!

And as for David. Well, poor David. He used to always give me a run for my money during our time at Queen's, but recently he hasn't been at the game at all - whether Union College has done something to his bowling ability or what, I don't know.

I'll keep you all up to date with the bowling latest!

Ballymena

Yes, once again, the magical mystery tour that is a Saturday afternoon landed in Ballymena. But there was something new and different today. As well as ma wandering around the shops and me wandering to Faith Mission etc, we also visited the Royal Irish Regiment museum in St Patrick's Barracks. In what is a site very close to the town centre, we had never been past it up close before, but we ventured in anyway (getting in past the security man!).

A group from my work had been there yesterday, but I was unable to go along (due to having meetings to go to), so I thought I might as well, while I was in the area. The tour started outside, looking at various memorials from Korea, and to the UDR and RIR, as well as some armoured vehicles and tanks in the grounds down towards the parade square. Then inside, there are a series of models and exhibits charting the progress of the regiments that would eventually become the Royal Irish Regiment (which only began on the 1st July 1992), begin merged from the Royal Ulster Rifles and the Ulster Defence Regiment.

The museum was very good, and the shop was well stocked with posters, postcards, books, cds, videos and other products connected with the RIR and preceding regiments. The staff were also helpful, giving a good tour of the outside elements, and then letting us wander inside. If you're ever about Ballymena on a Wednesday or Saturday from 2pm - 5pm, call into St Patrick's Barracks and have a look. It is well worth a visit, and a bargain for £1 entrance fee!

Tollymore

Today work was hectic, and included meetings in Dungannon and Belfast, but it was a nice day, so pleasant to be driving in. Then tonight, I went for a walk in Tollymore Forest, and the weather was just perfect. Some photos have been added to my photo site, under 'Tollymore' so have a look - I didn't check the photos first, so some might be slightly out of focus, but the ducks were nice, and posed for photos, and then the sunset was nice over the Dromara hills.

Oh, and we went for Guinness too. Hehe. But not the drink. On the way to Dundrum from Dromara, you go over Guinness Mountain, and at the crossroads is Guinness Primary School!

Doubles?

I've just got this email from Stewart... how weird is this:

Just about 5 minutes ago I was walking across the car park here in CSS when I thought I saw you. I was so sure that it was you that I was about to put up my hand, when I thought, 'Hold on, what's Gary doing here?'. I looked again and this person is the spitting image of you, but drives a different car. He's probably wondering what this freak was doing staring at him!

So there we are... is it possible I could have a double in Craigavon? Should we hunt this person down? It would be like doing a 'Dave Gorman', only with looks instead of names... Hm... maybe Dave Gorman isn't well known to everyone, so I'll explain. Dave Gorman set out, with his friend Danny Wallace, to find 54 other people in the world called 'Dave Gorman' (I think it was to settle a drunken bet). To ruin the end of the story, he was successful, but the story is funny because of the telling, and how he came to find them. It was a stand up show, then was made into a tv programme on BBC 2, and is now out in a book.

I have also emailed a couple of people called 'Gary McMurray', but I haven't heard back from any of them - Google is handy for so many things! One Gary McMurray is the manager of the First Trust Bank in Lisburn, another was a competitor in the Paralympics for New Zealand, one is a senior researcher in a robotics initiative and so on... Maybe the idea of getting an email which says 'Hello to Gary McMurray from Gary McMurray' was just a wee bit weird!

Actually - having looked at Dave Gorman's site, there's a link to another site called YourNotMe which scans the electoral registers in the UK to see how many people share your name. According to it, there are 12 people called Gary McMurray in the UK! Which means that if two of us are within 10 miles of each other, that is quite something!

Dublin and Peter Jensen

Yesterday was a great day! From just being up, and Bryan sitting outside in the car (cos he wasn't sure of where he was coming and so came early), David arriving late, and then the drive down, to arriving back in Dromore, it was a great day.

The first lecture, I must admit, went a wee bit over my head. It looked at TC Hammond, who left Ireland as a 67-year old to go to Australia to become Principal of Moore College, Sydney, and who did a marvellous work for God in his 'retirement' years. However, some of the lecture looked at his theology, and some of the disputes he was involved in and has been accused of since (for a sample, try insubordination, federal theology and Arian theology).

We then had lunch, all provided, sitting on a wall overlooking the Liffey in the glorious sunshine and trying to make sense of the morning!

The afternoon sessions were a bit better for me. The second session looked at 'Living in the Light of the Future' - which was on Christian Eschatology (the study of the end times). The basic summary was that Christians should be living in the light of the future, knowing, as we do, that we will be with Christ, that there is a judgement and a hell, and that humans need to be saved from hell. This knowledge, therefore affects what we do now, and challenges us to 'read the times' and address the unchanging gospel to a changing world racked by materialism and worldliness. This was very powerful, and was a summary of the book At the Heart of the Universe.

The last session was called 'The 10% Vision' and looked at the vision of Sydney Diocese to see 10% of the population of the diocesan area to be in a Bible-based church by 2010. This seems to be by focusing resources into encouraging more people to enter ministry (full/part time, lay/ordained/voluntary), with relevant teaching.

All in all, there was a lot to be thinking about, and no doubt as I process it, I'll have more to share...

But one final thing. Jensen is Archbishop of Sydney. I'm not sure too many other bishops would say the following thing: 'We should be evangelicals first, and anglicans second' - our primary focus is our witness to the faith, and our gospel focus. Our church comes second, and always should!

What is a Christian?

I've come across this very good, clear, simple explanation of the Christian message. It's called 'Two Ways to Live' and explains the gospel in six pictures. To launch the presentation, click here. I came across this site, through looking at the All Saint's Belfast website.

Tuesday and Dublin bound

Last night the history seemed to go really well - although, as often happens, history merged into other discussions too, leading to plenty of chat until well into the evening. But that's good - the concept of our group is about bringing people together in a safe place to share their experiences, and support one another towards recovery (if possible). And if the history course provides a forum for people to talk, and opens them up, then who am I to complain about it (even if it means I'm in bed late!)

So today I'm in work again, but tomorrow should be an interesting day. I'm going to Dublin for the T C Hammond Lectures, hosted by Irish Church Missions. The speaker is Peter Jensen, Archbishop of Sydney, and I'm really looking forward to hearing from him. I have previously read one of his books ('At the heart of the universe'), which was very good. The lectures are in honour of TC Hammond, who was an Irish Evangelical Anglican who moved to Sydney Diocese (which explains why Jensen is speaking). I'll try and provide some summary of it on Thursday or so. But even besides the lectures, it should be a good day. We're having like a 'road trip' with Mark, David, Bryan and myself going in the car to Dublin - dear knows what the craic will be like, but it's usually good when David is about.

History

Tonight in the Historical Awareness Course in the office we're looking at the 1798 Rebellion - one of the more interesting times, when in Ulster, Presbyterians and Catholics joined in rebellion against the Church of Ireland Ascendancy. Yet within 5 years, the Presbyterians had become staunch unionists... And also the period during which the first settlers from the island went to America - not the Irish Americans (they came later), but instead the 'Scotch-Irish' who contributed so much to the new American society (including many signatories of the Delcaration of Independence and up to 17 of the 43 Presidents to date). There seems to be a huge interest in the Scotch-Irish now by Americans, with all things Ulster-Scots being valued by them.

Of course, 1798 is important locally (in County Down), due to the battles of Saintfield and Ballynahinch. One of the rebels was discovered and arrested in the Dromara Hills, and brought to custody first in the basement of our Rectory (before it was a rectory), before being taken on to Lisburn and being executed.

test image

This is just a test to see if I can get a picture in a post... and I think it has worked!

Sunday

Well, what a busy Sunday! We had two services of Holy Communion, one at the Celebrate at Ten service, and the other at 11.30, a Sunday Club Meeting, then Evening Prayer and YF.

At YF we looked at what is important or valuable to us, by way first of all, of several ice-breaker questions: 'If you were on a desert island, what one song would you want with you?' and 'If you could have one wish, what would it be?'

We then looked at God asking Solomon what he wanted (1 Kings 3). Then we moved on to looking at a couple of parables form Matthew 13, about treasure in a field, and the pearl of great price. In both, the Kingdom of heaven is shown to be something of great value, that should be obtained without regard to anything else. In each parable, the man went away and sold all he had in order to get the pearl, or the treasure.

So then, having established that God's salvation is of immense value, we then looked at how God can see us as valuable, and precious. We did this by considering Romans 8 and Zephaniah 3:17. In these passages we find that while God love the whole world (having given his Son for it), he especially loves those who are predestined and called to salvation. Having been saved by grace through faith, there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.

We finished by thinking on Zephaniah 3:17, putting people's names into the passage. Why not do that yourself:

Zeph. 3:17 The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.

Tired

Tonight I was bowling... 113, 112... so I got worser as the night went on. It was good craic tho, and I met some new and interesting people.

But now I am so tired... so I'm not gonna stay online... bed is calling!

Saturday

Just a normal sort of a Saturday. Today I lay in til about 10.30 or so, then was up and about... making it to Newry, then Portadown, then Tesco in Banbridge.

I've just realised that I didn't talk about last night, so I might as well now... Last night I was in Markethill for the parade organised by Kilcluney Volunteers - never have I seen such a huge crowd at a band parade... the people must have been at least 5 thick the whole way up the main street as well as in the other streets... and there was a good mix of bands - 2 Pipe Bands (Tyrone's Ditches, and Armaghbreague - Armaghbreague was the better of the two), 2 Silver Bands (Hamiltonsbawn and Tullyvallen - Tullyvallen was the better), a wheen of Accordian Bands (possibly Pride of the Birches was the best), and then the usual mix of melody flute bands and blood and thunder bands.

The Pride of Ballinran stole the show, by stopping on the main street (just where I was standing!), and they did a bit of figure marching type stuff - in through the ranks, while playing 'Killaloe'. Then they did a drum salute, where the drummers not only hit their own drum, but also the sticks of the drummer beside them - hard to describe, but fantastic to watch. then they played 'The Great Escape' before marching on up the street. Absolutely brilliant!

See my photo site for some cultural pictures of band parades, banners and lambeg drums. Sadly I can't display my video footage of the parades, but if anyone knows of a site that would host video clips, let me know and I'll try and add them!

The following letter was in the Church of Ireland Gazette last week, and made a profound impact on me... here's the text of it, then I'll tell you why afterwards:

I was ashamed and embarrassed by Archbishop John Neill’s recent comment that the election of the Pope sent a shiver down his spine. He called Cardinal Desmond Connell a “reactionary”.
May I ask he takes the log out of his own eye first. He believes Anglicans are on a faith journey- searching, questioning and with no liking for packaged answers. We are on a journey, but not on the liberal high church path he is on.
A recent ERSI/Independent poll found that 60% of Anglicans in the Republic opposed homosexuality and 58% opposed abortion in all situations. The figures for the North were higher. Sadly, our bishops don’t know this, or refuse to acknowledge it.
The Reformation happened because people wanted a greater biblical emphasis in their faith. A reformation is happening within Anglicanism today. The Church of England was traditionally ‘High Church’ and suffered what the Church of Ireland is at present suffering – a loss in church attendance. Yet in the Church of England a biblical ‘Low Church’ revival is happening and the ‘High Church’ bishops are being pushed out, especially those with non-biblical views.
I pray this too will happen here and that our Northern Anglican brothers and sisters will lead us back to the path of eternal salvation, not eternal damnation.
-Barry William, Ballytarsna, Abbeyleix, County Laois.

So why did that impact on me? Well, when we were preparing for Selection for college and all that, we were told that when we are ordained, we have to commit to working 'anywhere in Ireland' for at least three years. As you may have gathered from this blog, I'm rather fond of my British identity, and Ulster-Scots culture etc... and so, I always squared it in my mind that, while I could end up anywhere, I would prefer to work in Northern Ireland...

And then this letter appeared in the Gazette. I have been thinking about it all week, and was inspired to think on the subject even more after a chat with Stanley Gamble. Now, Stanley is from Lisburn, but for the past two years has been working for Irish Church Mission in Dublin, doing evangelistic mission and outreach. Stanley is so passionate about the Gospel, and reaching people with it, and is also due to start college in September (although he gets to start in Second Year as he has previously done theology). According to Stanley, there is a hunger in the south for the gospel...

So who am I to turn down working with these people in the Republic who so desperately are crying out for the Gospel? Here am I Lord, send me where you will.

Hobbit Name

Did you know you have a hobbit name? Maybe you don't know what a hobbit is... well, they feature in Lord of the Rings, and Frodo is one of them. I came across a website that generates your 'hobbit name'... Are you ready for this?

I am: Minto Bulge of Hobbiton!

Click here and see what your name is!

Update

So here we are... Friday again! Last night the history class in Magherafelt went very well. The participants were interested and keen, and all fed in their knowledge to boost what I had, so we engaged together in learning.

The drive over the Sperrins wasn't too pleasant, due to the rain etc, but on the way back it had cleared up somewhat, so that I was able to get a few photographs of the Sperrins in the evening sun - although I'll try again if it is clearer next week. There was one spot that was absolutely beautiful, where the stream meandered down through a gorge type thing, and then into the main river. The photos are now on my photo site, in the Sperrins album.

The other thing that struck me about the Glenelly Road through the Sperrins is that the sheep just run wild over it... on three separate occasions I had to stop or slow down to pass or overtake sheep... but at least they know their highway code... they were walking on the lefthand side of the road!

Mary Part Three

Having been notified by IrishAngle, the text of the Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission report Mary: Grace and Hope in Christ can now be read online.

Thursday

Well well... Today has been very busy, especially with the History course in Magherafelt tonight, which I'm not overly ready for... but ah well, I have to do it!

This morning I was greatly encouraged by reading a testimony of a friend, which will soon appear on one of the sites that I link to...

So other than that, there isn't much to report.

Oh, one other thing while I'm here - this might encourage more of them, but I'm intrigued at the number of anonymous posts on my blog... I know I have cleared the way for them, by allowing them, but have a bit of courage and out your name to your comments!

1st June

So here we are at the start of yet another month... Just a quick post as I've a meeting, then to Belfast for a meeting... Happy birthday to Pamela, who I had the misfortune of forgetting her name in church when introducing her to people (at the same time as remembering her friend's name who I had never met before) - talk about embarrassing!