Happy Birthday Clare!

It's Clare Hepburn's 17th birthday today! She's spending it on the Filton High School Geography field-trip, but sounds like she's having fun.

Hopefully she'll be smiling more today than she was when this was taken (she was deep in thought in f h c u, to be honest!).

Happy birthday, Clare ... have a great day. If anyone deserves it, you do!

More pics to follow

My friend has also told me that I need more pictures on my blog. Message received and understood - I will do it once I've worked out how to transfer photos from my new phone to my laptop! In the meantime, here's an old one:



Suits me, yes???

(Thanks for the loan of the hat, Syril!)

I'm still here!

I know, I know ... I've not posted for a very long time! You may have gathered that I've been absolutely rushed off my feet for quite a while, and over the last few days it's just hit a climax. I'm not even going to TRY to tell you everything I've been up to ... but here's a flavour of it!

We got back to Stoke Gifford on Saturday evening to be faced by a very busy Sunday. I left the house at 8.30am and got home at 10.00pm after a day that included playing guitar in two services, RS2, Mettle Sunday, two music practices and lunch at the in-laws, amongst other things. Mary led Mettle Sunday, and we did "praying using the internet" which was really, really good ... and since then the "Prayer Requests" section of the website (www.stmikesyouth.org) has gone ballistic, which is really encouraging. Keep them coming guys - it's so important that we all pray for each other.

Monday was full of meetings, including one that yielded a new, much-needed Rock Solid leader in Rachel Mason. I'm so glad she's coming on board - we've been so short-staffed, and Rachel has a real gift for working with the 11-14 age-group. I'm certain she's going to be a real asset to the team. I also had a staff meeting and a trustees meeting, both with very positive outcomes. The only downside was that we had to cancel f h c u, because hardly anyone could make it. I missed it ... it's something of a highlight for me personally.

Tuesday was my day off, and ended up being very busy too! I went into town with Kelly and got a new phone (I can FINALLY ditch the rubbish one I've been using for too long!). I also got a new tariff which means my monthly phone bill will come down from £250+ to about £40. Laura is thrilled! And I spent the money I was saving on two tickets for Cats in Bristol this Saturday, so I'm definitely in her good books. I'd rather lick the dog clean with my tongue than see Cats, but it's worth it just to see her so excited!

Wednesday was another day of meetings, with an unexpected highlight in the morning. Liz was leading our team-time, and just used it as space for us all to try and listen to God. I ended up with some really profound stuff. I don't really do a lot of being still, but it was SO good ... I'll have to try and write it into my diary. The evening's Mettle session was cancelled (the same reasons the f h c u was) so I did the pub quiz with a couple of the older teenagers (all over 18, of course!) which was great fun ... it's nice to be able to hang out with them and just have fun without having to impose any teaching agenda.

Today's been manic, largely because I've been doing the Spring programmes. They're done! It's good to have them off the to-do list. Now I can focus on the Christmas Banquet. Help!

I'm doing a presentation on the Youth Ministry for the Beta group this evening ... not sure whether to be excited or nervous! I love talking about the Youth Ministry, but not so comfortable talking to adults. I'm sure it'll be fine.

On a personal note, Laura's just arrived home with the Razorlight album, which I'm thrilled with! And I've touched base with an old friend after a good few years this week. Tam, if you're reading, I'm so glad we're back in touch. Let's stay that way! (there's an exclamation mark just for you!).

Thanks for reading, everyone. Pray for energy for me - you can see why!

Uncle Ant and Aunty Laura!!!

We're in Derby for the day today, visiting Rachael, Dean and baby Zac. This isn't a photo taken this weekend, it was taken when we came up a week or so ago, but I remembered that I said I'd put one on when I remembered! Isn't he ace?

I'm focussing on family today, but I'll just say this: RE;fresh was SO much better! More details to follow!

It's been a good weekend so far ... a Derby County win over Leicester City will cap it off nicely. Please...?

Trev's chin is a hair-free zone!

Trev's shaved his beard off.

He looks about nine years old.

It's highly amusing, don't you think?

Bleary-eyed...

Still sifting ... but I can at least see my desk now (and my brain is just starting to feel a little bit less fried now, too!).

Mettle Group A was, once again, fantastic last night. There were ten of us there, which is just about the ideal number ... and the whole group is just so cool! We went through the basics of what a Christian in and what it means to be one, with a view to sharing "God's Story" with our friends. Then we shared bread and wine (well, Ribena!), which we've done before on weekends away but never just at a normal meeting. It was quite a special moment. I've said it before, and I'll sya it again: it feels like too much fun to be work when it's good! And The Art of Connecting course that we've been doing has been brilliant ... I'll be sorry to leave it behind after next week.

Naomi's a star! She's done a little presentation on our Child Sponsorship Scheme at two of the Mettle Groups this week, and has just done SO well. Everyone seems really enthusiastic about it now, far more than they ever have before.

One final note on last night ... Emily was there! She can't make it every week, although seems to be coming more often now. And that's great, because she is so keen to contribute and really gets involved and gets everyone else talking. She's such a legend!

Stayed up VERY late last night watching the start of the Ashes cricket, and England were so poor that I really wished I hadn't bothered. Now I feel tired, and I have a busy afternoon of dashing around planned. And Rock Solid tonight! I'll be asleep before the cricket starts tonight, I reckon!

Better start my dashing...

Conference Clutter

I'm sat at my desk, and it's just swimming with ... stuff. I really don't know where to start.

Most of it is the direct result of Youthwork: The Conference. I'll tell you all about it in a moment, but for now, the only tangible effect is the masses of leaflets, books, flyers, sample resources and free frisbies, pens and car stickers that you invariably get bombarded with on this sort of weekend. It's now my job to sort through it all. To be honest, 90 per cent of it is likely to be of no interest or indeed use, to us here at all but it feels like sifting for gold ... just occasionally there'll be something brilliant!

So more on that conference. Rob Bell is so amazing! The teaching from the early day was just about spot-on for me at the moment, and I know quite a lot of people felt the same. He's a really inspirational man ... such amazing knowledge of, and insight into, scripture and yet so humble and uncomfortable with the fame that his unique gift has dragged along with it.

While Rob Bell was the highlight, the whole conference was, as usual, the spiritual oasis that I have come to expect it to be. Eastbourne is a very cold, windy place in mid-November, and we were staying in a guest-house run my a chap who I strongly suspect is related to a certain Norman Bates (there was even a mystery female that we never saw! I kept my eyes open in the shower, I can tell you!). But despite those things, God's rich blessing was in real evidence. Normally, getting up at 7.30am is an almost-impossible task for me, but during the weekend I just couldn't wait to get started.

It's funny, the clutter on my desk kind of reminds me of my brain at the moment. I feel like I've got so much to think about and do, so many different ideas ... only some of them any good! I need to do some sifting...

I managed to have a night with Laura last night (I missed her so much ... four days is a long-time without your soul-mate) and we went and watched the new James Bond. Highly recommended, although don't go with your wife/girlfriend unless you're okay with her "admiring" Daniel Craig... for two solid hours...

Should be a day off today, but I've switched it so that I can go and visit nephew Zac on Saturday, so it's lunch with Clare, coffee with Kelly and Mettle Group B today.

I'll fill the gaps with some sifting ...

Amy, Zac and Rob ... very cool people!

So my globe-trotting weekend is drawing to a conclusion. The shape of my bottom is now a permanent feature on the driver's seat of my car!

Seeing Amy in Epsom was cool ... we went for a three-course Pizza Hut, and I got to see the Laine Theatre Arts, where Amy is at college, and the house where she's living. She told me all about what she does during a week ... it sounds busy, but she seems to be loving it and is full of smiles!

Yesterday Laura and I made a brief visit to see Rachael, Dean and baby Zac in Burton Hospital. My new nephew is amazing ... I even held him for quite a while! He's very well behaved and seems happy and healthy. I've taken some photos, and I will put one on here, but my phone-cable is playing-up and it won't let me do it! We spent a couple of hours with them, and then went back to Mum and Dad's for a fish'n'chip supper (I had a kebab which was very nice ... almost worth the four-hours driving on its own!) before heading home. We got back about midnight.

This morning, we're off to the Youthwork Conference in Eastbourne. It means another four hours or so in the car, but I absolutely love the conference, it's the highlight of my year, and Rob Bell (who has produced the Nooma short films series) is the keynote speaker, so I'm really quite excited!

I'll let you know how it goes. Until Monday, then!

Driving me insane!

This is going to be an odd week, because I'm going to spend most of it in the car!

Yesterday Laura and I travelled to Lee Abbey in Devon for David and Becky Widdows' commissioning service (which was ace, by the way!). That was two or three hours each way, mostly along narrow, winding country lanes.

Tomorrow I'm visiting Amy Hamlen, a member of Mettle, who is at a performing arts college in Epsom. Should be fun, but it's another four hours in the car by the time I've been and come back.

Wednesday, Laura and I are going up to Derby to meet our brand new nephew. I'm so excited, and can't wait, but obviously that's another four hours or so in the car.

And then on Thursday, Trevor, Liz, my friend Mark and I are travelling down to Eastbourne for the annual Youthwork Conference. It's always a (if not the) highlight of the year, but it's three hours each way.

I must put some more good music on tapes for the car tonight. I've only got the Kooks and the Goo Goo Dolls in there at the moment, and, while I love both those albums, twenty hours of it might just drive me insane!

NOW I'm an uncle ... at last!

Zachary Miles Holden was born at 4.32pm this afternoon and weighed a whopping 10lbs! Both Rachael and Zac are doing well ... and everyone else is thrilled to bits! ALthough, of course, it does mean I have definitely lost my bet with Laura...

STILL not an uncle...

Nope, still waiting.

Didn't do my work. Watched the footie.

Stupid thing finished 0-0.

Total waste of time.

Still not an uncle but plenty to think about!

Just how long does having a baby take??? Rachael started the process on Thursday afternoon. It's now Saturday lunchtime, and I'm STILL waiting for that phone to ring. They're inducing her today, so it should happen before the day is out ... I'll keep you in touch!

Last night was encouraging and tough at the same time. It was RE:fresh, and again, there were loads of people there, which was the encouragement. Again, there were new faces, and quite a lot from outside the church and from among the groups that we are trying to really reach out to.

That brings its own problems, though. I'm not going to go into detail, but we had various problems with alcohol on site, which has, quite rightly, resulted in complaints. I'm so scared that we're going to have to close ... I've got a few ideas about how we can move forward from here, but it's going to need the young people to co-operate. I really hope they're up for that. Still, I'm really pleased that people are coming ... I hope the church young people will still be able to enjoy it so that they can interact with these new guys, too.

Loads to do today ... have to prep RS2 which includes some complicated shopping, as well as thinking about the above and going to Angela's birthday party tonight. So I really should be doing those things instead of blogging in front of Manchester City vs Newcastle Utd!

Maybe I'll just watch until half-time ...

On tenterhooks...

... just waiting for the 'phone to ring. At some point over the next day or so I will become an uncle! My sister, Rachael, began the process of giving birth to her baby last night (a few weeks early, but nothing to worry about apart from the fact that I lose my bet with Laura!) and, whilst things seem to be moving quite slowly, it clearly won't be too long now. Ring, 'phone, ring! I'm actually quite excited!

Yesterday was another of those days that are busy but mostly great fun. Trevor and I started the day with two primary school assemblies (which I hate doing, but it went very well) and then a lunchtime club (which I hate doing, but it went very well).

I had a lunch with Laura Cooke in between, to talk about her baptism in December. She's grown so much in her faith recently, it's so exciting! Anyway, she's inviting family and friends, and wants me to do the talk. I feel really honoured to be asked!

We had a Mix planning meeting in the afternoon, and I managed to volunteer Mark for detached work... that'll teach him! I also managed to volunteer myself for a talk in April, and Trevor somehow got landed with organising the prayer ministry rota. We must both practice that little word "NO!" a bit more. Still, it's nice to be able to contribute.

It was the evening that was the real highlight of the day. Jeni Hine (officially the busiest person in the world) was in a play at her school, so Clare, Naomi, Emily and I piled down to Bristol Grammar School to see it. And it was ace! It was all about some pupils at a school in special measures, and their drama teacher who really inspired them. Some of the language was a bit ... shall we say, choice? But it was really well acted and produced and Jeni (and her brother Dave, who also had a main part) did really well. It's so nice to be invited to the things that young people do, and I must admit to feeling a great deal of pride as I sat there and watched. I know they're not MY children, but when you work with people in the way that we do, you really come to care for them and to see them doing something good gives you a buzz!

Must speak to Jeni about her language, though ... ;-)

Diary of a day or two...

Sorry to those of you that check this regularly ... I've been a bit slack at posting recently. Just general business as usual!

So, picking up where I left off...

The Mix was really good. However, that judgment is based on the word of Mettle members who went, as Trevor, Liz and I spent the majority of the evening standing out in the freezing cold doing "detached", which basically means chatting to those folk who come out for a breath of fresh air/nicotine/to escape etc. It was quite good, but I'd rather have been inside in the warm (even though we have to sit on the floor). It's all my mate Mark's fault ... he volunteered me for duty on the coldest night so far just because I wasn't at the planning meeting. Just you wait until December, mate!

Monday was a pretty good day, all in all. We had an ace fhcu session at Filton High, with a new girl there too. We basically just chatted about what was going on in our lives and then prayed for each other. We've tried it before and it hasn't really worked, but this time it really did, and it was so good. Filton High can feel a bit daunting, but this Monday lunchtime felt like a God-filled Oasis in the middle. Hope it carries on like that.

Then Trevor and I did a Year 8 Assembly that we were nowhere near prepared-enough for. I had to step in at the last minute because Liz has had to go home for the week, and we only finished planning it ten minutes before we left for school. But it went so well! The young people really responded to us and Trevor got the message across so clearly. It just shows how God can take the humblest of our offerings and really use them for his purposes. We can't use that as an excuse to not prepare properly ... but it does show what a little prayer can do!

I spent the afternoon doing prep for other stuff, and had the evening off. Laura was out for a drink with Annie, so I had the opportunity to spend some quality time with just me and God, which was ace. And then I met Trevor for a late-night pint, which really finished the evening off nicely.

Today was my day off, and I've done some cool stuff. Trevor and I went to the cinema to see "Click", which was quite funny and actually surprisingly though provoking. It really makes you think how lucky you are to have all that you've got, which wasn't a bad thing for me at the moment. This evening Sam and Cath came round for dinner. We've not really hung out much with them, but I think they're ace and we really must make more effort to spend time with our friends.

It's been a good couple of days, so I'm not sure why I'm feeling so down. I feel like a need a lot of prayer at the moment ... please feel free to supply it!

Fireworks, Friendships and Fifty Young People!

It's been an interesting weekend.

In September, we switched RE:fresh (our coffee-shop drop-in for 14-18s) from a Monday to a Friday. On Mondays, we used to get about 15 people coming, tops. Since the switch it's been steadily increasing. On Friday, it exploded.

There were 53 young people there.

It was great, actually. There was a real mixture ... lots of the guys from the church but lots from outside as well. We had several who have never been before, and, now it's a bit colder, everyone was inside. It wasn't without its challenges ... it was very crowded and the XBOX was in great demand ... the usual crowd couldn't get anywhere near it, which was a shame, but at least it was popular! And the two Mexican girls who have been coming taught me some Spanish, which was cool ... after my French excursion, I'm turning into quite the linguist (slowly!). I arrived home after RE:fresh exhausted, but thrilled with how it had gone.

As soon as I got home, Laura decided it was time to try and persuade me, once more, that I really ought to have a 30th birthday party. I've been really against it, but I find I'm coming round to the idea, provided Laura and Emily do all the work for it! We'll see ... it looks like we'll be in the Old School Rooms on the evening of 20 December after all!

Laura went off to London first thing on Saturday morning, and I had coffee with Tasha and lunch with Alice, which was cool. I finally made it up the The Mall to see Claire in Waterstones, and just made it as she was finishing her shift. Claire has posted her "testimony" on our website and it's great ... I'm so proud of her! And while I was at The Mall, I also bought the Kooks album (yay!).

I thought I was facing an evening being a Billy No Mates, but it improved! I managed to invite myself to go down the fireworks display at the primary school with the Hepburns, which was really nice. I'm a big fan of theirs and love any time I can spend with them! I had a great time with them and Emily, who met us there, and, to cap it off, they invited me back for a meal .... so much better than sitting on my tod at home eating a chow mein! So an unexpectedly delightful evening with some great friends. It was great!

We're off the The Mix in Bristol this evening, and it's all about sex, so that should be interesting. Laura should be home by the time I get back ... it's amazing how much you can miss someone in two days!

Waking the "Neighbours"...

So it was back to work with a bang yesterday.

The day itself was fairly slow. We had a lunchtime club, PBF, which I usually dread (20-odd Year 7s going nuts in their lunch-hour) but for once I actually loved it. Trevor had done a great job planning it and it went really smoothly, probably the best one we've done for years. We have a really nice group developing, too - a core of about 10 regulars, which is the first time that's ever really happened.

Then I had a couple of meetings, before Laura and I headed off with some of her teacher mates to watch a new quiz show being filmed. It is called "In The Grid" and it's hosted by Les Dennis (woot woot!). It goes out on Channel 5 at 6.30pm every day, and it's a little bit like "Deal Or No Deal", except crap. Oh well, it was an experience to see it, and we were on the front row (trying very hard to conceal our insuppressible yawns!). I believe that particular show will be aired the Friday before New Year's Eve, so look out for us. Otherwise, avoid it like the plague.

It was after all this that my life got busy. I'd arranged to meet my friend Angela for a drink afterwards, and we had a really good chat, but while I was there I saw another of my mates (a "youth"!) who was a bit upset. Anyway, I decided he needed to talk to someone and so I invited him to stay at my house. We stayed up chatting 'til the small hours, and I hope it helped him. I'm not sure how quiet we are ... we have new neighbours, and I'm sure they were thrilled!?!

This morning I got up quite early to take my mate home, and tried to catch up with another couple of hours sleep on the settee ... didn't really manage it though! Then it was back into the office for a couple more meetings, another lunch-club (theclubwithnoname ... not so good!), lunch with Annie and Trevor (an unexpected bonus!) and coffee with Lucy after school, which went really well. Busy day, but not a bad one!

We're off to dinner at Wiz's tonight, which should be cool, even though it's a semi-work social, as there's some stuff we have to discuss. Still, free food...!

One more thing: our new neighbours aren't the only ones appearing in my life. Clare mentioned "Neighbours" last week, and now I find I'm desperate to watch it again, after an absence of a good few years. If I turn into a sad soap opera addict, Clare's really for it!