Yoblog - Musings of a Church Youth Officer

Maybe I am still young enough to have not had to write that many of these.  That’s why I am no good at it.

It is strange that you are maybe only looking for 3 or 4 sentences to write, but you could spend hours looking at a blank card.  You want those few words to be personal and mean something and not sound like a cliche.  And then when you work for the church, is there an expectation that you magically know the right ‘churchy comforting’ thing to say? 

Ooh. Stop blogging and write the card.  Surely it is the thought that counts!

I was amazed at how clever human bodies are when I observed my children this morning.

It seems to me that the circumference of your index finger is always a perfect match with that of your own nostril, independent of how old you are.

Creation could never be random!

The girls went on a wee morning out to Ikea today and had a grand time.  And surprisingly didn’t spend all that much money!

I think there is a level of experience with Ikea that can be gained through visiting over time.

1. Avoid weekends if you possibly can.

2. Don’t go on your own or somebody will nick your stuff while you are getting your car.

3. Have lunch in the restaurant before or after lunch time.

4. You don’t need any more tea lights or energy saving light bulbs.

5. Only take men with you if they can be useful lifting heavy stuff.  Otherwise you will just get more light bulbs.

6. Join Ikea Family and you get sent great special offers like the £10 off voucher I used today.

I was going to show our Sunday Club a DVD this morning on the Easter theme.  But as I reviewed the DVD (U rated!), I decided it had too much violence for the age range of kids we might have (age 2 or 3 and upwards).  So it’ll be Veggie Tales instead!

We love telling our kids the Christmas story.  It is easy.  We can answer their questions.

But somehow we gloss over Easter much more.   It can be simpler to happily jump from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday without mentioning Good Friday.  Fewer tricky questions or puzzled looks.

There are a couple of events for children running in Edinburgh on Good Friday and Easter Saturday and I’ll be interested to see how the story is told.

Tomorrow is one of those days where I should be in at least 3 places at once, but will only make 2 of them.

I looking forward to co-leading the last Core training for children’s workers in the morning and then leaping across the road, while stuffing a sandwich in my face, to present at the Diocesan Synod in the afternoon. 

Some would say I have had a lucky escape in only going to half of Synod.  I reserve my judgement!

Maybe everyone else is already using Bible Gateway and nobody told me, but I’m finding it great as I prepare for Saturday’s training course.

Without having your lap piled high with different versions of the Bible, you can quickly pick the most appropriate version to get your point over.

I’ve been daring and gone for “The Message” for Saturday.  Life on the edge!!

I went to the local skip today (or community recycling facility as they now call themselves) to recycle various bags of stuff.

The clear glass bank was overflowing and I asked a member of staff where I should put my clear glass.  He told me just to chuck it in the general waste skip as the bottle bank was full.  What message does this give about recycling to your average member of the public??

I growled quietly and told him that I had not sorted my waste and come to the dump just so that it would go to the same landfill site that it would have if I hadn’t bothered. 

I think the chap could see the letter to the local paper drafting across my face and an empty wheely bin appeared from no-where for extra clear glass.

It worries me that the committment towards environmental management is so wishy washy.  It is not complicated stuff.

I’ve been trying to review the various new resources that I have acquired recently (music, DVD’s as well as books).  I’ve been surprised at how things designed for children have been challenging my perceptions.

So often in stuff for children, everything is digital - there is a definite answer that leaves little room for doubt.  Some of the images that come up are of Jesus as being your best friend, that God will always look after you, wanting to be like Jesus. 

Maybe it is because I don’t come from an evangelical background, but what happens when life deals you up something tricky?  How do you explain it to kids if everything has been so black and white?  At what age do you start discussing the shades of grey?

I’m reminded of the really intense Christians I came across when at university.  They were so certain about everything and in a way I envied them that.  But then something happened in their lives that didn’t conform to their taught beliefs, so they cast the whole lot aside and stopped being a Christian.

I think being a Christian is a lifelong learning process; asking questions is maybe not the easiest way, but the best way to grow in faith.  I guess this is why Godly Play has been so successful with middle of the road churches. 

Maybe it is the fact I am looking at resources that vary across the spectrum from traditional to evangelical that I struggle to tie them together? Can you pick and mix modern praise songs with questioning??

After many hints yesterday, I was brought a cup of coffee in bed this morning and wished a happy mother’s day.

Before I had had a sip, I was told to get up and bring my coffee downstairs so I could get the children their breakfast because they were hungry.

Maybe it takes a few years practice to get a chilled out morning of decadent relaxation?? 

Having lent out most of the stuff I had purchased when starting this job, I’ve ordered some more things which have just arrived.  I’ve still to watch/read some of them, but if you are interested in borrowing any of the following, get in touch.  First come, first served!

DVDs:

• The Easter Collection (Easter Storykeepers, The Great Easter Egg Hunt and My First Bible Stories)
• VeggieTales - Where’s God when I am S-Scared?
• Veggietales- The Complete Silly Song Collection

Books

• Skits and Dramas- Sizzling Hot Resources for Youth Workers (Burns, Stanfield & Lusz)
• The Gospel according to the Simpsons: Leader’s Guide for Group Study (Pinsky & Parvin)
• The Gospel according to Harry Potter: Leader’s Guide for Group Study (Neal & Parvin)
• The Gospel according to Harry Potter: Spirituality in the Stories of the World’s Most Famous Seeker. (Neal)