28th January

It's the end of another day, the family are starting to make their way to bed and I am left to reflect on what has hapened over the last 15 hours or so. Highlight of the day was having Stephen Matthew and his wife Kay from the Abundant Life Church, Bradford come to speak in our church. As you would expect he was excellent but having them back for lunch afterwards was the icing on the cake for me. Such really nice, positive and constructive people, with no airs and graces, very down to earth but who have accomplished so much. Quite a unique gift to have done so much with your life but to still be so approachable and available. Mary made a great lunch, Owen's Kim joined us (Owen having to work elsewhere), Lucy was working in the shop at Ripley and we just had a really good time. Positive feedback from Steve re the development of our own church since he was with us two years ago.
Later in the afternoon we paid a visit to the offices to say goodbye to Neil Prem, followed by a quick walk around the Stray. When we came home I spent some time preparing for Bible Study tomorrow evening and then watched Top Gear where the return of Richard Hammond was celebrated. What a lovey guy he is and what a brilliant, but crazy show. I can't help but wonder how he can keep playing with fast cars after the near death experience he had in the jet car. Even more interesting is whether or not he has any concept of or belief in God after his close shave. He will know that you don't crash a car at 280mph and survive, normally. So why did he survive when others die in accidents that occur at a fraction of that speed? Does he put it down to pure luck, the softness of the grass, the structure of his crash helmet - or could the fact that some of his friends and family may have been praying for him before the crash and a lot more people were praying for him after the crash, have anything to do with it? I would love to know and maybe one day I or someone else will manage to find out.
It's strange how some people can have a near death experience in a car or on a motorbike or through sickness and disease and they start to see God involved in their escape or recovery, rescuing them in some way, and others are completley spirually unmoved and unconvinced. There's great material for someone's doctoral thesis there - maybe, one day.
I have come across some people who could have a vision and explain it away as a trick of light but others could just feel the breeze blow in a different direction and interpret it as guidance from God. I wonder how many different factors go towards creating the different response?
I wonder what God thinks of it all?
Started reading a brilliant book over the weekend called "Learning to Breathe" by Andy Cave. He comes from the mining village of Grimethorpe and went down the pits as soon as he left school. Whilst mining he discovered mountains and rock climbing through a friend and was hooked. He goes on to write about the 1983 miners strike and the devastation the Tory Gmnt wrecked on the mining communities, but how towards the end of that time he developed a love for English literature and eventually applied to do "A" level english which led to him going to University to study at graduate level, followed by doing his doctorate. All of this also meant he had more time to pursue his love of climbing which eventually led to him climbing some of the highest and greatest mountains in the Himalya and the Alps. All that talent that was only released because the mining industry was finished off. How many hundreds of thousands of men and women never realise their full potential that was within them because their path was marked out for them through the community in which they lived, where you weren't expected to excel at anything other than earning an acceptable living and following in your father's footsteps. How many doctors, lecturers, university proffessors, scientists, musicians, artists and poets have been lost to the world because they were born into a certain community. But then again, whose to say that a good miner is any less valuable than a good surgeon?
It must be getting late - I'm rambling.