Thursday, December 19, 2013

Make Christmas special ..SPEND LESS

An extract from my Christmas Thought for the day!

                                Well I reckon the world about now basically falls into two camps. On the one hand there are the people, like my wife, who just cannot stop singing little Christmas ditties. They bounce through December with an ever increasing sense of joy and excitement, I love em. On the other hand there are those for whom the turnaround at the end of Dickens’ famous tale is a travesty… Scrooge was right all along… Bah Humbug!  Now by and large I’d like to think I don’t fall into that second category, but when they’re casting for Dickens’ tale I do get twitchy … oh no they’re offering me the lead role again.


                                It’s not that I don’t like Christmas, I do, I love all the lights coming on even the gaudy ones, I love the singing, I must admit I tire of mince pies after about 10, but what really sets the scrooge amongst my pigeons is the shopping and the advertisements.  I want to shout from the rooftops… STOP shopping CHRISTMAS IS FREE. For the truth is the things that really make Christmas are free. The chance to see family, time to go for a walk, a children’s nativity play, community carol singing and dare I say it all the church celebrations these are all free: I don’t even mind if you come along and put no money  in the collection! We are getting to the point as a society where people can’t afford Christmas, it’s ridiculous. Well think again remember the first Christmas every expense spared a night in a stable, a bed of straw, and yet I truly believe Joy to the world. So there’s my thought for Christmas, make it special again and spend a bit less and enjoy a bit more. 

Friday, December 6, 2013

Enough is Enough

Text below from my Radio Bristol thought for today:              

  I’ve simply had enough of Christmas adverts? There are certain times of year when I really notice a massive disconnect between the ways of society, of which we are all a part and the message that I proclaim as part of my calling as a Christian.  Funnily enough Christmas is one of those times.  I announce week after week the message the angels brought to the agrarian night-watchmen: “you will find this babe wrapped in cloth and lying in a feeding tough.” Yet our Christmas has become a feeding frenzy of opulence and overindulgence, which many of us simply can’t afford.  Now please don’t get me wrong, I am no scrooge puritan humbug, any excuse for a party me, I love good food and I certainly enjoy a drink or two.  However, as the old drink driving campaign said: know your limits! Enough is enough.
                
Nelson Mandela also in a very different way realised enough was enough. He knew a system where people were judged by their colour and not by their personality was a perversion of reality. When he, along with many others, made his stand he liberated many white people along with bringing dignity and grace to those who in South Africa had become the underside of society.  Every person whether black ,white or coloured is of equal value and should be afforded equal dignity and rights.  I’m personally glad that he and others had had enough, that he was courageous enough to make his stand.

                So that is my thought for today, if you’ve had enough of something, especially if it’s something that robs others or yourself of dignity, make sure you too make your stand. Mandela proved that if together we stand for what’s right, the whole world really can change. 

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Sea Horses are Predators and long noses can be beautiful

A blog from my recent Radio Bristol Thought for the day

                I am of the opinion that everyone has a particular gift, something that makes them special. I discovered recently that in the underwater world of sea horses this is also the case.  I think we’d all agree that sea horses are fairly odd looking creatures.. and despite living in the sea, they look like pretty poor swimmers. However scientists have recently discovered that despite looking slow and awkward they are actually ferocious and ingenious predators.  Well ferocious if you are an extremely small crustacean! The weird thing is these crustaceans, or dinner, as the Sea Horses like to call them, are incredibly fast swimmers. If humans could move like they do, we could swim at 2,000mph, and yet these fast food escape artists are no match for the Sea Horse. Apparently it is all down to those strange noses, they are simply perfectly designed. They allow the Sea Horse to creep up on the crustaceans causing no ripples or warning signals, before they pounce.

                Watching Rebecca Adlington discuss with Miss Universe Amy Willerton  aspects of female beauty I am led to a similar conclusion; everyone has beauty in their own particular way. Coming from a family with long noses, who says that long noses aren’t beautiful and actually who really cares, when attitudes and actions and kind words are so much more beautiful than simply an hourglass figure or perfect skin. So my thought for today is, look more carefully at the people around you and watch out for they are all surely amazing and potentially beautiful people. Who knows once we start appreciating all the beauty around us we may even get a little better at realising the beauty we have within us. God bless

Friday, November 15, 2013

Caged Contentment

A blog from my latest Radio Bristol thought for the day
              
   Let’s start with chickens; a recent report from Bristol University suggests that with “new enriched cages”, caged hens may actually now be better off than some free range hens. They have, and I quote, “space, they've
Contentment when the family are around
got a little perch and they've got things they can scratch on!”  I’m no expert on hens, but that sounds fairly limited. Truth is though that some, in the carnage of the Philippines or witnessing the on-going grind in Syria, would probably be happy with those provisions.  In Bristol do we have enough? Well you have access to a radio and probably electricity, you may struggle with some bills, or even attend a food bank to keep yourselves fed, but these are there. I wonder how many are living on a wage below the, “living” wage of £7.65 an hour. And with rising energy bills, is that really just an enriched cage, just enough to scratch by.

                 For me, this isn’t a one way street; I am not convinced that everyone gets happier or fulfilled the richer they become. Too much, seems often to be nearly as destructive as not enough. There is a lovely phrase in the bible saying godliness with contentment is great gain. I am convinced there are plenty of people in Bristol who have all they need, or even want, but still they are not content. On the other hand, some have no job, no prospects, not enough to feed their family nor enough heat to feel warm, but from my experience they can sometimes be wonderful contented generous people. So I guess my thought is, scratch it out with what you have, and always keep an eye out for other chickens less fortunate than you are!

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Cold Tea


              I am becoming quite an expert in drinking cold tea. I am not referring to iced tea, a refreshing drink that I discovered first in America… no I mean good old fashioned tea… that has just got cold. I’m drinking some now, as it happens. One of the problems is that I don’t really mind cold tea, but it is not a good thing to be drinking too much of it!
                I am drinking cold tea, because I am distracted. I set out well, I plan things carefully, the cup and the kettle are all brought together in a perfectly brewed symphony of organisation but then it all goes wrong.. I am distracted here or there and an hour or so later I wander past and spot a cool cup of tea. At which point I decide if I try and make another one, I am just as likely to drink that cold so I gulp it down.  This habit of distractedness is not a good thing, it is symptomatic of a life that is unfocused and so I must make amends. But changing habits is not very easy at all. Children go through enormous stress simply at the thought of not sucking their thumb. Or adults can get confused if a particular rhythm is disrupted. I remember my mother had actual palpitations at the thought of missing her favourite TV program. (She was once reluctant to speak to me on the phone, simply because I interrupted her from watching Countdown. I wouldn’t have minded but I was ringing her to tell her I was engaged to be married… and she was watching Countdown.. on VIDEO!)
                I believe that the Christian life ought to become a habit for us, a way of life, a rhythm that gives meaning and order to our lives. Of course the easiest way for it to become like this, would be if we abandoned the calls of the world and all went off to live in monasteries where a bell would establish the rhythm of eating, sleeping, work and prayer. For most of us this will not be possible, but it is interesting to experience this rhythm if taking a retreat or a short break as I did last year on my sabbatical… no cold tea that week!  In normal life we will still face the distractions and opportunities that for me at least, leave that tea cold! How can I change and develop habits that leave me able to savour my tea, and truly experience all the other opportunities I often miss. I think the answer begins in confession, an acknowledgement that things are not right, cold tea is not good tea! Confession is not simply about accepting that something isn’t right, it is also to be accountable that you want to change. Hence I am confessing to you my desire to re-order my life around hot tea! (Actually I’d really like to see my life re-ordered around the values of God’s Kingdom… but warm tea seems like a manageable first step!) Finding someone or a group who can help us to make the transitions we need is vital if we are not to keep on making the same mistakes. People who have an inkling of what a balanced way of life might look like are very valuable. If we can find such people then we need to be prepared to make ourselves accountable to them.  Hence I make myself accountable to you, I must drink no more cold tea, but rather slow down and savour and enjoy all the opportunities that God places before us.
Stephen

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Thought for the Day for Radio Bristol

Now you see me, now you don’t

                                Is it acceptable for a woman to give evidence or be cross examined whilst a veil hides her face from the jury? It strikes me today that an awful lot of communication goes on where we cannot see who we are talking to.  We chat on telephones, we write letters, we text. Our communication involves reading, hearing and speaking, but not always meeting face to face. But that is not always acceptable. I well remember being told as a boy to, ‘stand still and just look at me.’ Whilst being berated for some crime of which I was normally completely guilty.
                                And so we come to the sensitive and delicate area of the hijab. Is it acceptable before a jury or for a health professional to address her patient whilst hiding a large proportion of her face? These are difficult questions; we face a clash of cultures and values. I would argue both have merit, but can’t easily co-exist.  A woman’s absolute cultural modesty is not an easy bedfellow with a culture of complete equality.

                                My favourite Jesus stories often involve women; his ‘inappropriate’ meeting with the Samaritan women at the well. He shocked his disciples by simply talking to her, a Samaritan and a woman, he shocked her by revealing that he knew all about her life and yet still asked her for a drink, and perhaps she shocked him by being so moved by his acceptance of her that she went and told the whole town, despite her modesty.   So that’s my thought today; whatever your view on this matter always remain prepared to be surprised, to learn something new from someone who, face to face, may seem very different from you. 

Monday, August 12, 2013

Out of Africa

As some of you know I had hoped to blog while in Africa... this was not possible.For a good chunk of our time we had neither electricity nor running water let alone internet coverage! And yet what a banquet of experiences we have shared....from utter terror and real fear for our own safety right through to raucous laughter, uncomplicated joy and sheer wonder at the whole beauty of it all. Uganda is rightly known as the "Pearl of Africa" and so it proved. It is a truly stunning place, I will post photos once I've begun to get my head and home sorted... but expect lions and mountains and more teeth in smiles than you would ever think possible from fellow human beings..to say nothing of majestic fish eagles and utter ramshackle dwellings and "butchers" with the highest standards of cleanliness!
 In short we have had an incredible journey. Upon arrival in Uganda..(I won't tire you with the boredom of travel itinerary) we were met with the reality of the fact that our "guide" was recently imprisoned. We discovered, gradually, that the offence was speeding and evading capture thus hitting a motorcycle and seriously injuring the riders. Although we were met with a more than ample replacement, Samuel, we were left without a vehicle capable of transporting the 5 of us to our destination near Kasese in SW Uganda. So the bargaining and bartering that I have come to understand "is" Africa begun. Sitting in a "cathedral" cafe looking out over the vibrant and yet apparently chaotic life of Kampala we watched and listened and wondered as our "fate" passed between pastors and family men and dare I say shady men, who we knew only by the increasingly bizarre and inflationary demands they seemed to be making as we sought simply a vehicle that could transport us through this teeming jungle of impossibilities. Night drew in and our fate seemed with each passing hour less and less clear, just where was Avis car rental when you needed it? Eventually a vehicle did arrive, there were complications, of course, there was literally no way our luggage could fit (a backup vehicle for the evening was provided until we could lash the luggage on the roof!).And then 50 yards up the teeming Kampalan unlit street we ground to a halt. There are no pictures of this terrifying event, for as we sat in our newly acquired steel coffin the world screamed past us on every side blazing out the internationally recognizable language of abuse that is the screech of a car horn. A fellow pastor eventually returned with a Jerry can of hope and we slumped and bumped our way to the only thing we now craved, a bed for the night. When we awoke at 5am it was time to strap suitcases to the roof and venture again onto the streets of Kampala. Long before I realised we actually were, I commented that we seemed to be travelling a similar route to fellow explorers, May, Hammond and Clarkson of top gear. Africa gradually awoke with children streaming along roadsides, motorcyclists carrying removal trucks and the sights sounds and smells that later became commonplace awakening our senses. And so there had been night and there was morning...the first day....confusion!
More reflections will follow, but note out of confusion comes hope, and we were not disappointed!

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Out of Africa... an adventure


This year has definitely been my year of adventures: a pilgrimage on a bike to Holy Island a building project (involving for me a pilgrimage from office to office!) and now a trip of a lifetime with my family to Uganda.  We often hear life described as an adventure, but not so often the lives of those who call themselves Christians. It was not always this way. Although Jesus’ own life could be described as almost domesticated: he didn't seem to travel much beyond his own borders. The life of the early church was anything but. Paul is of course famous, and many of us learnt all about his travels when we were at Sunday school. But Peter also traveled to Rome, Thomas perhaps as far as India and there are even the stories of Joseph of Arimethea, the supplier of Jesus’ tomb, travelling to Glastonbury. History has seen many like them, St Patrick, Gladys Aylward in China, David Livingstone to Africa and countless unnamed ones. They seem to have taken Jesus’ command to preach/ live out the good news in “Jerusalem, Samaria and to the ends of the earth” very seriously. Let’s be honest about this, it wasn't always the spirit of adventure that moved them. Sometimes it was persecution and the need to flee, that led to the opportunity to spread the good news. However they certainly did take some risks, and one could well say that they learnt to live their lives to the full, just as Jesus promised they should.

Of course not all of us are called to adventures in travel, or to cross cultural encounters, but the idea of our Christian life as an adventure is a rich idea. This is something of what pilgrimage or even discipleship means. I wonder though are you comfortable describing your life or your faith with this language? Sometimes I think we have made the fundamental mistake of mixing up faith with certainty and we thus become encamped around certain ideas; static and immovable. This is my one fear with the beacon project; that we will see this as an opportunity to settle down again in our new, now comfortable, surroundings. A beacon is a flame that lights up a pathway; an adventure is a journey without certainty where there may be struggles. Faith is the same. None of us can understand or comprehend completely where our life will lead, there are always surprises. Faith helps us to face these challenges and keep moving forward. Faith is the hope that at each crossroad there is still a pathway that leads to peace, and also the re-assurance that we are not called to travel that pathway alone. By faith we take hold of Jesus’ words that: “he will never leave us nor forsake us,” that he is with us, “to the end of the ages.” For the man or woman of faith these words give us strength for each day and the adventures that they may bring.  

Stephen Newell
I look forward to sharing my adventure stories from Uganda with you, and also listening to the stories of your own adventures and struggles and joys.


PS if I get the chance there may well be a blog to follow while we are travelling in Africa see: www.zuchurch.co.uk for details

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Create Expectations!

(Radio Bristol Thought for the day)
                My thought today is about expectations. When it comes to the weather we brits tend to catastrophise, we expect the worst!  Summer comes; the cricket gets rained of, brollies at Wimbledon and a Glastonbury mudfest.  Of course not all our summers are quite such washouts but we think the worst so that we can make the best of whatever comes.  There are of course sometimes strawberries at Wimbledon and singing in the rain isn’t always number one at Glastonbury.

                Fearing the worst about the weather is one thing, it has no effect on the weather!  However, when we expect the worst of others we could be creating a culture of mistrust. Stories about child abducting teachers or failures in the NHS then become evidence that no one else can be trusted, and when people do let us down it becomes only what we expected.  

                                Of course nothing I say today can change the weather. But we can change our expectations of others, perhaps that begins when we acknowledge our own weaknesses. I read recently of an encounter between two early church fathers.  One commented that a certain brother was a really good man, because he “hated evil.” The older man, Abbot Poeman asked, “What do you mean, he hates evil?” The younger brother thought for a while and had no answer, so he asked, “Tell me Father what is it, to hate evil?” Abbot Poeman replied, “That man hates evil who hates his own sins and looks upon every other brother as a saint, and loves him as a saint.”  I’m not sure about “hating evil” but here’s my thought for today: treat all those around you today as though they were saints, you may well get a pleasant surprise!


Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Wrong Green Trousers Day

Thought for the day on Radio Bristol 20th June


                                Are you wearing the right trousers today? Apologies to listeners wearing skirts or dresses, but wearing the right trousers can be a pretty big deal. Personally I seem to dress for yesterday; so the day a heat wave ends, I’m in shorts, and after a storm, I’m all geared up for it! Perhaps Bristol’s most famous trousers are the red ones worn by Mayor George Ferguson, except that just at the moment he’s wearing green to celebrate Bristol becoming green capital in 2015. But are these the right trousers? If the recent decision to halt the roll out of parking zones and the battle crazy that will probably meet the suggestion of a central Bristol low emission zone are anything to go by, perhaps we should doubt it.


                                Tomorrow is actually quite specifically “wrong trousers day”.  A day when in celebration of Bristol’s other great innovators, Wallace and Gromit, people are invited to wear the wackiest trousers possible to raise money for sick children in hospitals and hospices around the country.  So by the sound of it, the right trousers today may well be the wrong ones tomorrow! You see just like the weather, things do change.  So George’s green trousers and Bristol’s status as Green Capital may act like a weather warning; change is coming and we need to get ready. I for one think green are the right trousers to wear. As a recent convert to cycling I ask myself why we all propel ourselves around using an engine when God in his goodness gave us legs. So there’s my thought, wear the right trousers and take them out for a walk or a run or a cycle sometime, and leave the wrong trousers of the combustion engine at home if you possibly can! 

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Jesus and Culture

I’m not quite sure what to make of the depiction this week of a giant breakdancing Jesus opposite an iconic Banksy painting. At one level I’m thrilled, Jesus for once isn’t all gentle Jesus meek and mild; he’s standing upside down on one hand for goodness sake. In words my daughter might use he looks pretty hench!  On the other hand this is Jesus we’re talking about and I guess some people might be offended.  Or worse still this is Jesus opposite a Banksy, perhaps some Banksy fans might be offended!

                In the end though I’ve decided I like it, we all, including us religious need a bit of shaking up occasionally. Actually that is exactly what Jesus did, the main criticism he received was that he partied too much… hardly an accusation levelled regularly at his followers!  When people moaned at him he responded, we played the flute and you didn’t dance we sang a dirge and you didn’t mourn.  That’s the real trick we need to learn; when is it right to let your hair down and party and when are the times to go easy, to sit quietly, perhaps even to mourn and reflect on the people or things we’ve lost. Generally speaking we tend to do one or the other. Either partying all the time, not appreciating the struggles others go through, or down in the dumps, not really enjoying the beauty all around us. So there’s my thought if you’re a misery cheer up and if you’re a hedonist grow up. Or as Jesus put it weep with those who weep but really laugh with those who laugh.  I reckon if we try hard enough we can even do that standing upside down on one hand! 

Monday, May 20, 2013

View from a Pilgrim



                There are times when it is very hard to express with words all that we want to say.  The bible says of those times that sometimes we groan with the very weight of that burden. For me to express my sense of thankfulness is one of those moments. I have so much to say thank you for. I had a wonderful trip, a pilgrimage an adventure. I had three months when I didn’t have to do anything over much… a time to rest, to read, to reflect… and occasionally cook the dinner for Sarah and Debbie… (truth is they didn’t always appreciate my culinary efforts! But I was trying.) From my trip to Lindisfarne and beyond I have now raised £4,000 and the figure just seems to keep going up daily.  It was a real privilege to be given the time to do the trip, it was great fun and gave me an incredible sense of achievement… and somehow I feel I am being rewarded so generously for something that was good in and of itself, I say it again, thank you.
                There are many things I could write about what I’m learning about pilgrimage but I will confine myself to one: transformation.  A pilgrimage is a journey with a difference, the difference being that we are meant to be changed by the experience. For me it wasn’t about the arriving… although that was quite something.. {read my blog for more info on the arrival http://revgoonersteve.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/arriving.html } the real adventure was the taking part, to set of each day not quite knowing where I was going, not knowing who I would meet, how the roads or the weather would be. It was exciting to realise that each day I had to trust a mixture of God and myself. Whatever anyone may say God didn’t push the pedals.. he did occasionally send the wind, although if I’m honest there were several days when he blew in the wrong direction! (Quite hard!) On the other hand I almost never felt alone on the bike. For company I had the rolling hills and the sky and oftentimes the sea on my East, there were birds and hedgerows, and canals and cottages and somehow amongst them all the brooding powerful presence of God. God allows us to travel with him, to catch a glimpse of what he always sees and perhaps in that, to give us a glimpse of the fullness of his heart.  It is from that glimpse into the fullness of God that transformation occurs. It may have been me doing the pedalling but somehow the appetite, the appreciation, the eyes that wondered the ears that learnt to listen a little better to the strangers I met on the way, all these came from him.
                Many people have said to me, Oh you’ve lost weight, or you look well. Truth is I lost very little weight, even though I cycled well over a 1,000 miles climbing probably 100,000 feet in the process! I didn’t lose any weight, but I will concede that my weight changed. I am now better equipped for the adventure of pilgrimage.
I want to remain a pilgrim. Each day is new and uncertain, none of us knows what encounters and experiences await. We do have to take many of the steps through the day ourselves, but when we do, it is possible to become aware that even in our familiar circumstance we are never alone.  Pilgrimage, a life with a purpose, is so much more fun than just a journey. I am convinced that God is looking to travel with his pilgrims again. We are called to be a Pilgrim church, called out of our comfort zones to things that are new and exciting and which can also appear daunting.  Someone text me and said: “Stephen, we are proud of you, you did it for all of us.”  I still can’t believe I did do it, that I overcame the hills and the sheer mileage and minutiae that separated me at the outset, but I did. In the same way I want to text all of Zion and say: “Zion, I am proud of you, you did it for me.” You see as I was on my journey you were on yours, and God accomplished many things through you and in you whilst I was away.  Not least staying vaguely calm and united as a church without a building meeting in a temporary worship space which doesn’t quite fit!
My final thank you is to those who kept you all moving on pilgrimage while I was away. I have no sense that Zion has rolled backwards or backslidden, quite the reverse. Together I sense you have pressed on, sometimes a little excited and sometimes apprehensive.  You did exactly what I learnt to do on my pilgrimage… keep going! Paul expressed the same lesson in Phil3:12ff:
                Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on towards the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

what's not to love

Great day today...... England won the cricket... Arsenal sneak Champo league

http://www.flickr.com/photos/27453474@N02/8753765705/in/photostream/

and my fundraising just hit £4,000 which is awesome. A massive thank you to everyone and here's to the two charities who will spend the money... with Mission Direct building a disabled block attached to a mainstream school in Uganda.. and Rom 1:11 supporting a school/ orphanage / church pastor training center.

From all those who will be helped, a big thank you. From me, just awe really that something which was such great fun, can raise that amount of money... I am blown away that so money people just keep giving money. Generosity is a truly beautiful thing. Thank you to all who have made that £4,000 possible.

Oh yes and its Pentecost today as well.... a great day.

Stephen

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

The End

Whenever a family member goes away, we have taken to praying the above prayer from the Northumbria Community where I stayed for my post pilgrimage rest and retreat. Its about adventure; 'the wonders he has shown you.' Its also about connection, 'may he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.'
Wonders
The last couple of days cycling were simply awesome: Riding up the Northumbria coast as I waited for the tide and the causeway to re-open, peaceful and wonderful, castles and beauty.

Then of course I had 'my helper' arrive. One of my main coaches, who helped me to get to a point where cycling 40 miles a day was even possible. Chris arrived at the Causeway having cycled from Edinburgh that morning (we couldn't quite fathom the glowing hands, but he had cycled 90 miles!) His job was to lead me home rejoicing the following day. This he did even though the hills and the wind were formidable opponents! If you look hard into the distance you may catch Arthur's seat and Edinburgh as we crossed the fabulous Lammermuir Hills. (This was the place where a young shepherd boy St Cuthbert felt the call to ministry on the very night that St Aiden died on Lindisfarne. Even if I was following Chris, I felt I was in the company of Saints!)


It was simply a wonderful way to end my adventure. My sense of achievement to cycle over the Peak District, the Pennines to Leeds, to York, Whitby through Sunderland, Newcastle... to Holy Island and then after a rest on to Edinburgh... fantastic. I can't really believe that was me 649 miles and many 1,000's of feet up and down a real adventure! My bubble did burst slightly when after all those days of travel, sometimes over 8 hours in the saddle, 11 days of riding, the plane took just 55 minutes to arrive in Bristol! Bring me home rejoicing though, it did!

Connection and doors
 I don't think I ever lost connection. Of course nowadays there are mobile phones and email... but when you are riding you are always connected, the wind the road, the hills...the same wind, the same land that we all walk upon. I also felt the whole idea of a Pilgrimage opened doors that are often shut. Chatting to people, literally having people come over and tell their story to me, I felt I was on Holy Ground long before I reached Holy Island.  (If you are interested in this, I have just finished a wonderful book called: The Unexpected Pilgrimage of Harold Fry..a wonderful novel, not religious just delightful and powerful.) Of course the one who gained the most from this adventure was me, to be there was a privilege, even when it hailed briefly as we arrived in Edinburgh... I decided this was my ticker tape welcome for my longest ever ride in a day...eventually 82 miles. I am also delighted and proud to say that through your connection others will benefit, both of the charities I will visit in the summer will receive in excess of £1250, indeed I am secretly hoping that if a few more gifts come in like the £50 last night I may even make the £3,000 mark, just £300 more needed for that.

Good to be home
I have learnt a lot in preparing and now executing this pilgrimage. Walking with the Celtic saints, waiting for the tide to allow me to travel has reminded me of the beautiful rhythm that we have in life. Time to rest, time to work, time to sleep and time to waken. If everyday were 80 miles in a saddle over imposing hills then that would be no adventure. If everyday were resting other tensions would arise.(I noted as I passed particularly Middlesborough, just how many men I was suddenly seeing, walking dogs, or children or just walking.)  As I rejoice at being home, finishing of a wonderful sabbatical I am glad that there is a rhythm in life, an ebb and a flow. A time to give and a time to receive. I have received so much... now the end has come, which in my book will become a new beginning.
Thank you again for all your amazing support.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Fermentation

No pictures in the blog today, indeed not too much to say. I travelled yesterday to the home of the Northumbria Community... a mere 40 miles by bike...against the wind more or less I may add, as if to somehow justify that which should not need justifying. Today I rested and read, as the God book says there is a time for resting. So today was that day, a time to ferment the experience and the new thinking that is emerging within me: all of life as a journey a pilgrimage. An adventure if you will where outcomes are often uncertain and unexpected, roads are hidden.
Fermentation is a vital part of creating a good wine and a good beer, it needs the ingredients stirred in and then to be laid down for a time... now is that time for me, thoughts are bubbling through me, but they must await for another day
Stephen

Monday, April 22, 2013

Arriving

Truth is when I arrived on Saturday, I was exhausted and elated, but arrival really only occurred yesterday... my day of rest.

It's hard to say exactly what happened...I went to prayers and then to Church...after all I am on pilgrimage, and this is Holy Island! The service was nice but quite ordinary really, I went forward for communion, the organ started to play, "He is Lord" and that was it, I was gone...overwhelmed with emotion. Tears just streamed out of me. I felt really embarrassed but ,managed to keep my head down so that not too many noticed. What was it? An overwhelming sense of relief, accomplishment? Perhaps, but also for me a real sense that I was totally not alone.It came on me as a wave when I was not expecting it. The word I will put here are that I felt overwhelmed with the love of God...of course if you do it believe that is possible, you will need to find other explanations, I cannot and for me that answer fits the bill. 
So to the rest of the day... wonderful pub fish n chips, with the Marathon in the background....hmmm, 3 or 4 hours running and all that celebration. Still I picked up some amazing stories... the man running with Motor Neurone Disease the illness which took my Mother! While I was nearing Lindisfarne, and struggling, I did once think, cor it would be nice to have someone to cheer me home. (Now I realise I am in fantasy land now!) As I rode over the last hill, a flock of sheep sensed me approach and set the baa baaas off...to me, very exhausted as I was it was the applause I needed to get over the line. 
And so I did arrive, in many ways yesterday...and the applause went on. Was it mine to God or his to me? I sat looking at the sea...(picture below) and their were ducks... and then seals, bobbing around, I swear playing hide and seek with me! Hallelujah.

Then there was the early evening walk across the receding tide to Cuthberts Island (below) As I descended a beautiful barn owl, swooped around me...for me more hallelujah's. This truly is a holy wonderful place. I simply hope and pray that as a results of my visit, I too may become more in tune, more holy more free, more of what and who I like the owl, was meant to be.


Saturday, April 20, 2013

To Lindisfarne and beyond!

Well I made it...all the way to Lindisfarne by bike! Today was a fantastic days cycling, again 
Lovely weather, beautiful scenery...not too hilly, lovely coastline... only 1 puncture....but it was really hard. it was mentally hard, to be so close and yet so far. it turned out to be the longest ride I've ever done 68 miles... (I'll add up my totals later!) 

The real problem was that I got really excited yesterday....I was nearly here, I got really really excited today...when I saw the Island....BUT...so close and yet so far...I had to cycle past the Island practically before I could come across...my brain struggled, my legs struggled...my heart ached for the end of the journey. 

Today was all about arriving..not about the journey...I got to the A1..! Just a few miles north and I'd be there...But I have not built this pilgrimage on speed, or A roads, I've pottered along, sensing, enjoying wondering. Yet my mind really fancied the quick dash up the A1..! And once my legs realised that the picturesque route involved hill after little hill...my 
Legs were with my mind....take the A road...get it over with...we are tired out.  I won't even tell you what my bottom was telling me!
My heart however resisted....on a journey, a pilgrimage, you do not just throw in your principles right at the end, or when things get tough...It was right not to rush this, to practically cycle past Lindisfarne...to go beyond and then to turn back to arrive at a place of peace...peacefully. 
The cycle across the causaway was so peaceful...and now my heart rests.
More pictures and reflections will follow...but for now my legs and my stomach are winning....time to eat. Thank you for all your prayer and support.
Stephen
Total Mileage: 478



Friday, April 19, 2013

Teeside, Wearside, Tyneside..2 Punctures and a Ferry

I am in a very elated state this evening... I am now in Northumbria...I have to pinch myself to realise it.

(Pictures to prove it will be posted later, as internet still a problem!)
yesterday to give a few more details nearly did for me... Whitby fish n chips riding with two old mates, beautiful scenery across the moors...wonderful. Visiting the Abbey, the sight of one of the first places to spring out of Lindisfarne.... an alternative community, that offered hope all those years ago.... it was wonderful ..the piccies prove it.



However when you are out on a bike, you always need to be sure you can get home. Well yesterday I was not the navigator...an old friend Jamie had this role......He picked a fabulous route, and we would have been home and dry, all tucked up for bedtime.... if it had not been for the wind...a strong wind, sapping strength and energy. It came from the west, and my B&B.. aptly named travellers rest...was in the West. I did arrive, I can't help but hope God was 'refining' me or something. I was reminded of a phrase from St Brendan, a proper epic traveller. 'STORMY seas make for weathered seaman.... those who have proved God in the deep." I must admit to feeling a bit like a weathered cyclist!
Still another day another challenge.... I was apprehensive...Middlesborough, Sunderland Newcastle...not necessarily my image of a glorious day out. But ..
today has been glorious... fabulous route, if I say so myself, beauty is always just around the corner, even through the roughest cities. I did see especially around Middlesborough  loads of men out walking, be it on their own, or with their children or with their dogs. I can't help reflecting, they didn't look lazy, just I suspect for many of them rather dissilusioned looking for work.
And so to the coast.... after thinking that I really had done very well to get all this way..now in excess of 400 miles I think, without a puncture, I proceeded to get two in 1/2 an hour.... like London buses! Anyway I managed and set of to follow the coast road through Sunderland and Tyneside...it was absolutely stunning....a real privelidge to be out here. Crossing the Tyne by ferry ...and then the Northumberland sign

....I have cycled from Bristol to Northumberland. in truth I can barely believe I've done it. I am not just North of Birmingham, or Sheffield or Leeds or York....I'm North of Newcastle.... in my book that doesn't exist....and yet all the way I've had wonderful conversations and discussions..a real adventure....and tomorrow..Lindisfarne...so long as I don't misjudge the tides!

Whitby & Wind

Sorry no post yesterday no internet! More details later but in summary a lovely beautiful day with 2 old colleagues..whitby abbey the North York moors & lots of winds...against me! (60mph?)
Anyway today through cities of NE...

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Fit for a king


On a pilgrimage... there are times when you need guidance, sometimes we think a church building is the place to discover that guidance..... But there are signs everywhere...I took the above sign very very seriously... having tested and tasted the evidence I believe strongly Bennett's were right!

Today was a wonderful day, after de-rigours of yesterday I took it easy...lovely chat with my colleague Dave before setting out at about 11am... for an unhilly ride to York. On the way a deer chased past me:
I passed through beautiful towns and villages..The picture shows Tadcaster, famous for its three breweries.


I also had the bizarre experience of cycling through a castle...
would be fair to say I felt fit for a king today! especially when I arrived in Pickering and was given the warm welcome I received from a friends aunt and uncle. One of the Celtic prayers urges us to put "bread in the eating place." this has certainly happened for me.I've been treated like a King...tomorrow it is Hild's abbey at Whitby, and fish and chips on the front with old friends..Jamie and Dave....Fit for a king
(PS this strange castle was 
Where they filmed Brides head Revisited!)

Long slow march in a single direction

Today was the day when I realised quite what I was doing, I was in the saddle for nearly 8 hours, all for just 60 miles gain. I had chosen to avoid the industrial/built up areas of Burton, Derby, Sheffield, and Wakefield and instead to traverse the Peak district and the pennines in one.... Oh dear! 

The day started well, the B&B owners were into bike maintenance and fixed a glitch on my bike, so I set off in good heart. The views were incredible... so were the hills. I had plotted a route following little roads...1/2 way up a very steep hill, the ROAD ran out...so I was either back down the hill and up it again by road....I remembered my mid day prayer (It practically was midday before I finished this!)...Let nothing disturb thee...patient endurance attaineth to all things! I plodded on, off road with a bike laden with two panniers.... The day was beautiful the weather wonderful, I saw 2 hen Harriers, but the riding was hard....very hard. 

Still I did have one thing on my side.....the wind, in the picture above, which was the "high point" of the day, I was literally blown up the hill. This whole pilgrimage is slightly strange, even I'm not too sure what I'm doing, and yet it has been great to be out here on my own...even sometimes struggling... and then to ,meet Dolly's cafe, when I needed it, or to have the wind blow..when frankly my legs were gone...What have I proved, nothing...but although I am alone, with no real idea where I am going, I don't feel alone. I have begun this "Long slow ,march in a single direction" and I am getting there... will get there, withmy helper close at hand. 


Monday, April 15, 2013

Tour de Anglais


Best most beautiful day's cycling, real joy and privelidge to be doing this, so beautiful.

Short blog for now, just to say I got to Buxton, the highest market town in England...managed quite easily...perhaps that's the calm before the storm, as today has 5,000 feet of climbing.... so let's see how we go.

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Birmingham by boat?

And it was all going so well. yesterday I managed to cycle right into the heart of our 2nd city, barely seeing a car. I genuinely saw more horses than vehicles....anyone would think I am walking in the footsteps of Wesley or something!
There was one hill which probably ought to have persuaded me to avoid the peak district (which I am attempting today!) ...but the sponsorship didn't say....to Lindisfarne (mainly) by bike! 

So lunch in Birmingham followed by a potter along canals out to Lichfield in time for evensong......so I planned. Well you've heard of Roadworks, this was towpath repairs.... the diversion was definately designed for walkers, involving carrying my pannier laden bike up 12 flights of canal stairs. I thought about taking a picture, but was frankly too knackered! So I set of in the wrong direction, got renavigated  away from my chosen route, and learnt a few more lessons...my favourite from the midday prayer...patient endurance attaineth to all things. I did make it to the Cathedral...just before they closed up, but at this place where they have worshipped for nigh on 1400 years...I was too late! 

All in all, even though I definately saw less horses than cars in the afternoon..a good day, a route refound, and I must have crossed about 7 motorways.... My best encounter was with a sort of hippie/ down and out...who looked at my bike and simply said.... "I hope that's lighter than it looks." Fortunately this was before the 12 flights of stairs, so I didn't swear! I hope by the time I get to the sweet taste of Buxton, I will have avoided swearing today! 

Lichfield, the ancient capital of Mercia, one of the first centres of Christian worship after Northumbria...is now behind me...I press on, and today...up!


Saturday, April 13, 2013

Who pays the ferryman

Day One to Per shore....
I arrived, my longest ride so far..... but to be fair, I had and needed help.
First there was the three musketeers:
  1. thanks to the Riches and James... and quite a few support staff, supplying me even with sore bottom cream..I made it to Gloucester...and as I pootled on north of Gloucester I was feeling pretty chuffed with myself....what a wonderful quiet route I have planned I thought....all along the river Severn..wonderful. But then as I tootled down a quiet lane...a dead end...well actually a river...the Severn a big one. my sat nav gaily told me to cross the river and pick up the road on the other side and wholah Tewksbury! Who did the Sat Nav think I was....Moses.. I know some people have Faith in me but this was ridiculous. Hmmmm how to get back on the main road, this road less travelled stuff had got me nowhere...it was then I saw him, the little ferryman. Can I get the bike in that I asked, sure he said as he docked the boat (a bit wobbly I thought!) How much? £2 he called..a steal I thought, £2 or another 10 miles.... Then he asked me what I was doing, and as he whisked me across the Severn... he refused to take any money....what a wonderful bloke..Colin was his name.
 
So on a day that was meant to be all about Abbey's...Pershore, Tewkesbury and Gloucester (cathedral...well nearly an Abbey) suddenly my day was different. No longer was I reflecting about the past glories of Christianity..as I journey towards the place where it 1st established itself in our country... rather my question was..."Who pays the ferryman?" A small act of kindness, reminds me that all is not lost... God's goodness...is still very much alive in the Colin's of the world. so if you are so inclined do pray for Colin. if you are not so inclined, thank you that you are probably the kind of person who does the sort of little things that people like Colin do.
who pays the ferryman?


A great first day...thank you.


Thursday, April 11, 2013

Nearly there... well nearly at the beginning

The old saying goes that every journey starts with the 1st step. Well mine starts with the first peddle....and although I've done 100's of miles of training....my pilgrimage starts on Saturday. I must admit to being very nervous... can I really maintain 50-60 miles a day, over hill down dale, in the country or city come rain or shine. (I for one am well chuffed with a wind change to a SWesterly.)
  Still every change, every pilgrimage must begin somewhere, and mine begins Saturday... wish me good fortune and perseverance and as the Irish celtic blessing says...
May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,

and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of His hand
Can I say a big thanks to all those who have got me to this point. Of course the URC for giving me this break... my friends for training me and teaching me how to peddle and navigate, and of course my family.. for laughing at my craziness. 
I have raised over £2,000 I believe, but if anyone would like to put some more in... here are the pages for my two charities again:
http://my.give.net/lindisfarnebybike
 this goes to a little charity called Romans 1.11... it is a charity set up to create links between the church in Uganda and the church in the UK... Romans 1.11 says, we should be mutually encouraged. This summer my family will visit one of the schools/orphanages/churches that I have supported for years....I am well encouraged!
http://www.justgiving.com/stephen-Newell2
This is for a charity called Mission Direct, my daughter visited the Dominican Republic with them, and was inspired. As a family we will work for them this summer in Uganda and help to build part of a school for children with disabilities...particularly the deaf...hard work but rewarding.
you can also give the money to me and I will split it equally.  Thanks for all your support
Stephen

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Will I get to Lindisfarne like this?

Well for the last 12 days my cycling has been frankly pathetic.... My excuse is simple... I've had man flu... well flu, or a bad cough or .... I don't know what it's been but it hasn't been nice. Still coughing up trash now!

On the other hand in this time my other attempt to get to Lindisfarne has rocketed. Lindisfarne is the place where Christianity first became part of English society.... A Scottish monk by the name of Aiden, was brought down from Iona by the king of Northumbria to try and establish Christianity.... he did it, he taught, he listened he lived an alternative way... and something good happened.

Well many years have past since Aiden, that is quite sure... and something to be honest has gone quite wrong, Christianity once a clear source of goodness, kindness and truth became something else: a form of control a worldview that made us feel a little superior to others. All sorts of things went wrong, some of them definitely in me. So my pilgrimage to Lindisfarne is about rediscovering the good and throwing out some of what I've become. So I've been reading... and reading and reading.... I'm loving it. As most of you know I love the bible, I love the stories, something in Jesus just does it for me.... BUT... and it's been a pretty big but... some of the understandings of the bible and the way we've used the bible have really jarred with me. Well today, I felt like I practically arrived at Lindisfarne... this book "A new kind of Christianity" just blew me away. He undid loads of problems all in one go. The bible actually says that loads of us are going to hell right? It says that the world was perfect and we FELL and screwed it up right, so God hates sinners, right? Well no, wrong. We've read it like that because for 100's no 1,000's of years that's what we've been taught it says, but it doesn't say that. McLaren retells the fall story, like it is, a story full of grace, like a parent trying to teach her kids to learn to take responsibility. So those who screw up.... (all of us) can have a little hope again. Adam and Eve... naked, disobedient... what does our angry God do.... begins fashion... with fig leaves. Even Cain, who kills his brother.... what does God do...yes he banishes him.... it is bad stuff to kill your brother!! But it's not sorted by someone else killing Cain, so he's marked/ protected as he wanders the earth and learns to live with his mistakes. I could say more, but the best bit... and this is my GOD bit... what is God like, is he angry, vengeful, just waiting to catch us out. No, that couldn't be further from the truth in these stories, or indeed in my life... what is God like... he's the one who overcomes evil with Good. The first book of the bible Genesis, ends with the story of Joseph... he is wronged by his Dad, shows of to his brothers, is sold by them as a slave, is wronged by his master's wife and so wrongly imprisoned. even there he helps out people who forget him, until one day... it all turns on it's head, and God uses him to bless Egypt, to bless his Father and brothers... to bless the whole known world. What is God doing? "You intended it for evil, but God intended it for good." He is the one, the only one who can really show us how to overcome evil with good." Awesome stuff... mind you I failed to do it today. Out walking the dog... bemoaning other people who don't pick up their dog's poo...If I'm serious I guess I have to start taking out the extra poo bag... and helping God overcome evil with good in me........ So maybe I've still got a way to go till I reach Lindisfarne!
Stephen

Monday, February 18, 2013

Frampton to Holy Island part 2

Another Week of hard training has come and gone....

WEIGHT:  Still pretty heavy... but definitely shifting a few pounds!

KIT:   Nearly fully kitted out... I am officially a MAMMAL... a middle aged man in Lycra!

RIDES:  Have clocked up well over 200 miles in the last few weeks.... a quick 29 miles to Wooton Under Edge, with Mick Stoodley (it was quick for me but not for Mick!) and a not quite so quick 36 miles over the top of the Mendips to visit my brother in law in Glastonbury.... (fortunately Deb was there to give me a lift home!!)

FITNESS:   Well getting there.... but still a way to go. I have my sister training with me this Friday, which is great... she is going Paris to London in 4 days... even madder than me I fear!

FUNDRAISING:   Have raised over £1700 for the charities... so should be able to clear the £2000 target... thanks for anyone who has sponsored me or is still planning to. (Either give to me directly (preferably with gift aid details) or... use the two sites to give on the internet: 

ACADEMIC:  I have now passed my first essay which is a big relief... so now some more reading and I better get writing the second one!

Friday, January 18, 2013

View From a Cold Cottage.. Pastors last Ponderings for a while

(To See sponsorship details see earlier blog ref Lindisfarne)


                By the time most of you read this article I will have commenced my sabbatical. Truth is I’m feeling a bit guilty about that. At the same time, we as a church will have moved out of the building wherein we have worshipped for 44 years since our inception as Zion United Church. 

                Not much of a leader really… jumping ship whilst the crew have to steer through some fairly changeable and choppy waters. On the other hand, if I am the pilot, I should only ever consider myself the co-pilot, and in truth this is a time when of course we do want the chief shepherd the real pilot to guide us.  I am feeling a bit guilty, but at the same time I am feeling excited and confident for us as a church. A time of change is a real time of opportunity and I pray that my absence will make us all rely on God all the more.  If we do that then I believe this time of change and upheaval will also become a chance for us to develop as a community of God’s light… a beacon. 

                I am also a bit nervous, not so much about the work and the decisions that we will need to make, nor even about the upheaval… my prediction is that the car park is going to cause us the most problems… once the contractor starts shutting big bits of for safety reasons. No I am most nervous about people getting hurt… We all deal with change and upheaval differently and church is no different. I simply make this final plea to you all… Love one another. I think most of you love me….(even though you know me!) If you can love me, as I know you love Christ, please love one another… be patient with one another, forgive one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven us.  I doubt that I am famed for my patience, but I say to you all, please be patient with one another and put on large layers of grace. If we do that our prayers that we remain united during this process will be heard and answered.

                When I return, I hope and pray that I will be different. Perhaps I will understand a little better the society in which we live. I hope I will also have simply spent time with Christ. I’m pretty confident that I will be a little lighter and fitter. (If you want to sponsor me for my cycle pilgrimage to Lindisfarne, please fill in the sponsor forms in church or go online via my blog www.zuchurch.co.uk  to sponsor me directly there.) But what about the church, will you be different? I hope so. Perhaps there will be new people among us; perhaps the prospect of worshipping in a community hall with a slightly different style of worship will attract some new people. Perhaps we will have learnt and got to know each other better as change often fosters new relationships. I hope you too will have been able to spend time with Christ.
“If you love me you will obey what I command, And I will ask the Father and he will give you another Counsellor (Parakletos) to be with you for ever.” John 14:15-16
This really is a good time for us all to rely on God. We need the chief shepherd our captain to guide us through these changes. Not simply building works, but if we are going to impact and offer the love of Christ to our families and workplaces and communities I believe we need to learn new ways to be the authentic church of Jesus Christ, to become a beacon of his love.  This is in effect what Jesus promised his disciples before he left them. He promised them another counsellor (Parakletos) the person of the Holy Spirit who would remain with them forever. The Greek word Parakletos, was actually the name that Greek sailors gave to boats which would come alongside vessels and steer them safely into harbour. Surely that is what we need, not a new or improved minister, or even one who will remain with you while you go through big changes… we all need a Parakletos a “New Counsellor.” To this end while I am away many important things will be happening. Perhaps though none is more important than the Ignite day, of which details are in the magazine.  The strapline reads.. An introductory ‘taster’ event, exploring the person and work of the Holy Spirit.  I do encourage you all to try and attend that event, certainly for me that particular teaching has been the most important I have ever experienced. 
I commend you all into God’s sure and safe keeping. I thank you for your on-going love and prayers for me. And I look forward to God guiding us together into every place that he will call us.
To Him be all the glory: Hallelujah
Stephen

training Week 3

Well, this week it was seriously cold..... Still had Chris to help me, which was great.

Hinton Hill was still achieved, but the cold made it a bit scary, especially going down hill... still I am getting used to going out, even when I didn't fancy it.

Equipment update: I now have a very fancy pair of well it's like a leotard really with a silly bib type thing... they did keep my legs warm... still no shoes.. My feet are too big!

Next week I'll be upping to two cycles a week....