Spring Harvest Day 2

Good Friday and it seems strange not to be spending the morning at the Winterslow Methodist Church with the children and then parading with the cross to Winterslow Church Hall. Instead we are here at Minehead for the second day of Spring Harvest. I didn’t sleep very well last night and got up in the middle of the night (around 3 a.m.) with a pain in my left foot where I had an old ankle injury. I watched a bit of a programme about the deployment of British troops in Afghanistan for about an hour before returning to bed. I awoke around 8 a.m. and we mustered the children to get them ready to join their activity groups. We all went to the Big top for the Early Start singing some familiar songs – some we especially like and this was followed by a bible study of Acts with Danielle Strickland, a Canadian preacher now living in Melbourne, Australia. She was very good. After coffee at Maxime’s, Susan and I went off to join the “Theorist group” in Jaks and Sara and Maxime went off to the Big Top to join the Pragmatists’. Susan and I found Jaks absolutely full so joined the Activisits in Whitehall. The presenters included Emily Chalke, daughter of Steve Chalke, who discussed some of the work she has been doing with the prostitutes of Thailand. Lunch was baked beans on toast which was followed by Sara going off to a seminar on bringing up children, Tom went off to the Skyline to watch the Wolves v. Southampton football game (Saints lost 3-0 again – their future looks ever bleaker) and Mary and I went to Splash for an hour of fun swimming. It was lovely to spend some quality time with Mary and she really enjoyed her swimming – what a water baby! This evening we returned to the Big Top after a supper of spaghetti bolagnaise for more praise songs, dance and a talk from Philip who asked us what was preventing us from going out as disciples/apostles. I learned that difference between disciples and apostles tonight – disciples are followers and apostles are those sent out to spread the word. So I guess we are called upon to be apostles as much as disciples. After the Big Top I went to a seminar on how we can find out what is our vocation. I thought the session was poor and left early but did take away a quote from Aristotle which I will muse upon – “When your talents collide with the needs of the world you will find your vocation”. I may not have got the quote quite correct but will look it up later. I joined Sara and Mary and the others (minus the Galleys) at Klynn’s apartment for red wine and cheese where we discussed more theology and how we had each found the day.