The game of choice this year has been Pandemic, a cooperative board game where all players join together to defeat viruses outbreaks across the world. I don’t know what made us think of this, but there we are. Pandemic is a notoriously difficult cooperative game…
I am not fully decided whether it is the pandemic or the predicted economic and employment turmoil that I am most concerned about.
In Acts 9 we read of Saul’s encounter with Jesus on the Damascus Road, and his sudden and unexpected experience of being rendered blind. Done to him, it plunged him into darkness and removed from him every confidence, certainty, and comfort that he was previously used to, and made him dependent upon others.
I remember press coverage of a “private” conversation between world leaders at a G8 summit a few years back where our (then) prime minister complained about the lack of thinking time and the relentless unceasing mill of meetings and decisions. There was no opportunity to pause or reflect or to gather evidence before setting events in motion, and as the leaders talked they each revealed a longing for space to reflect and consider.
If you’re starting to struggle, you’re not alone. I’ve been grappling this week with feeling sad at the ministries and gatherings that have dropped away because they can’t meet, and trying to summon up the energy to make some calls to colleagues. I suspect I’m not alone in wanting things to hurry up in a return to “normal”.
On Thursday this week (18th Nov, between 12.30pm and 1.45pm), many of our UCAN+ members are coming together to hear Gavin Smith (from the churchoffice.co.uk) speak to us about Biblical Productivity’. There is still some space, so do click here to sign up https://ucan.churchsuite.co.uk/events/rdnxgja7
The other day, I took a trip through the biscuit aisle of my local supermarket and stopped dead in my tracks. Sitting there in front of me on the middle shelf, on special offer, were several boxes of a new flavour of Jaffa Cakes – cherry! I stood there in astonishment – cherry… What a flavour! In my mind, cherry is equivalent to bacon, chorizo and beer. It tends to make anything it’s mixed with better. After a short interval for consideration (roughly 3 seconds), I relocated a couple of boxes from the shelf to my shopping basket and continued on my way towards the checkout.
If you’re a Harry Potter fan you’ll be familiar with the franchise’s instalment that involves the mythical phoenix – the bird whose fiery death results in sudden and unexpected re-birth. I’ll resist the parallel with resurrection, but in church administration there are many times when something has to die in order to be reborn.
UCAN Director Penny Clarke spoke on thechurchoffice.co.uk podcast with Gavin Smith on the challenges we face with volunteer levels in churches.
Never before have the UCAN Board found themselves as ‘at peace’ with a decision whilst simultaneously being absolutely gutted. The only explanation is that this must be from God. With our great thanks, enthusiastic support but also genuine sadness, we have to announce that Julian will be moving on from UCAN at the end of this year.
As a planner, I like to be in control and have thinking time to react and bring the strands of running the different processes of the church together in harmony at the same rate – a bit like bringing the horses in front of a coach together in harness to run at the same time and in the same direction. I liken the phrase “Hold your horses!” to the instruction given to the charioteer or coachman to bring the horses that you need working together, to the same canter and rhythm and to ensure that they are working together.
That’s a terrifying thought isn’t it? Just over 90 days to Christmas with very little visibility about what the season may look like or where on the country’s ‘roadmap’ we’ll have reached. Are there ‘U’ turns or ‘T’ junctions ahead or will be going via Spaghetti Junction? We don’t know. However, time is linear and the clock is ticking so Christmas does need some thought.
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