2009...

So we are now 7 days into this new year. As always I am interested in speculating as to what position West Ham will be in at the end of the season (hopefully we will avoid a relegation dog fight but that depends on the financial situation I guess!); I have made great plans as to how many books I would like to read this year; I am wondering where we will go on holiday.

But this is no ordinary start to a year, in fact I don't even feel like the last year has ended yet due to the awaited birth of Baby Taylor. At this time, amongst the futile things that my mind ponders on, there are three major thoughts on my horizon which easily surpass everything else:

1) What will it be like to actually be a dad?

I have dreamt about it, prayed about it and thought about it for years now, but now the time is almost upon me - I am going to be a dad. Things like will the baby and B be well, how do the finances all work, how much reading will I actually get done!

I have many more questions that don't need to be aired here, and I am also aware that my questions are different to B's (evident from our midwife appointment on Monday). All I know is that I want to be the best husband that I can be and the best father that I can be, because I know that those two things bring glory to God.

2) What does God have for me and B in this coming year in terms of spiritual growth.

I could never imagined that last year would have panned out as it did. God did and he had used the events of last year to grow me in ways that I wasn't expecting. All this leaves me in a sense of excitement and and righteous trepidation as to what is to come in 09. Being a dad will change my out look on things of this I am sure, however I know that it is God who actually will do this that I might be able to display His love and grace more and become more like Jesus.

3) What will our church look like at the end of 2009?

In this year I would love to see more salvation in our church whether through programs, Sunday mornings, cell groups or through individuals leading their friends to Jesus in their work places, over the garden fence or at the school gate.

I would love to see more of heaven invading earth in healings and signs and wonders.

I would love to see a greater outpouring of His Spirit that we may be a people who walk in step with His will and we like Jesus will do what we see the Father doing.

I would love to see new people added to us and new people stepping up into different responsibilities in church life.

I will not list everything that I would love to see that could take a while but what I do know is that we will only see these things when we start to earnestly seek Him and expect Him for these things. I need, to pursue him for the desires that he has given me, that His will will be done here in Reading.

A must view!!!

Just found this on Terry Virgo's blog - thought it was brilliant - link below

http://www.janga.biz/terryvirgoblog/?p=379

What will your response be when you are not getting drunk at the office party or any other festive event?

A very good draw

It's taken a few days to sink in, but Chelsea didn't beat the Hammers!!! I thought that after the dismal effort at home against Tottenham, that Chelsea would destroy us. Especially due to the fact that Frank Lampard had sat out of the mid week game due to suspension. Instead the boys played well! Zola had them set up to nullify the attacks of Chelsea forcing them to play through the middle, so when the ball bounced out we could counter attack effectively.

The only thing that I do despair at is the fact that Carlton Cole has definitely stopped scoring again. He should have made it 2-1 on Sunday in the dieing moments but chose to shoot instead of rounding the keeper and slotting the ball in. At times we look like a very blunt hot knife cutting through butter - i.e. we get through the defence easily, but have no sharpness in front of goal.

The defence is definitely better, I hope Zola now works on attack!!!

What a party!

What a fantastic afternoon we had yesterday. As I mentioned on Wednesday, a group of us from the church helped out at the Residents Association Christmas Party for the elderly.

It was one of those events that you never know how it will go. It was organised by the team, they had hired a singer from Bristol and had invited us to partner with them. An event that draws together people from different avenues can be tricky, but this one was not. There was good hearted banter as we set up for the event; the singer was excellent and really worked with the crowd of around 40 that had gathered; and the team from RFC were outstanding in doing everything and anything that was needed as well as chatting to the guests.

Highlights included Andrew using his charm to help the guests feel at ease so he could take their photos; Hannah dancing with one of the ladies towards the end in a jive type dance; seeing Sam do what she is great at i.e. making people feel welcome and loved; Kay was a hero in the kitchen helping Barbara (one of the residents association) to make sure there was a flow of tea and coffee, mulled wine and juice; Joseph, Gary and Tom all served brilliantly on the tables and made sure that everyone had what they wanted; Tim Rooke bringing in a couple of his young people to give out presents.

However the biggest buzz was probably seeing a majority of the guests smiling and dancing at the end as we had some rockier songs sung by the singer. To me this said that the event had been a great success. Maggie, who had done a lot of the organising was thrilled with how everything had gone.

I returned home at about 6pm on a complete high, knowing the presence of the Holy Spirit. I know that being out in the community was great for all of us who went and the guests were greatly impressed with the people from our church who served. We may not have preached the gospel, but I do believe we loved with the love of Jesus and that we will have more opportunities to do so with this particular group.

Out and about

This has been an incredibly busy last couple of weeks. There has been so much going on that blogging has been the last thing that I have been able to get to and hence here I am two weeks on from my last post.

Today has seen me have the opportunity to speak at two very different gatherings. The first was at the pastors prayer meeting at Greyfriars. This is an hour where the pastors of the town and the leaders of Christian charities come together to worship, share a word for the day and then pray for each other and the town. This morning we read Philippians 3:7-9 and I spoke about the year I have just had and the fact that God got me to a point that I recognised that all (including ministry) should be counted as loss for the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus. I brought the message in humility due to my relative young age considering the wealth of experience and wisdom in the room!

The second gathering was at Verizon, a telecommunications company with it's UK headquarters at junction 11 on the M4. Here I had the opportunity to speak of God's love for us displayed by the fact that Jesus chose to come to this planet and live and die for us. Through it I shared snippets of my story and even used some audience participation! The event was accompanied by good food and there were at least two responses in terms of people wanting to know more about Jesus. It was 'good times' in deed!!!

Ultimately I am about the business of the King and today I have enjoyed being a mouth piece for Him. At other times I will be back seat and support ministry. Whatever He has for me I want to embrace and run hard at. Today was going to two different venues with a message for each - tomorrow sees a group of us from the church supporting the South Reading Residents Association Party for local elderly residents - this will be a time to listen!

Time with my dad

One of the highlights of my weekend away at my parents was Sunday afternoon, going to the pub to watch footy with my dad. Although West Ham did win, which was great, it was the first time me and my dad had sat and had time together alone, doing something that we could both talk about for two hours. That time spent with my dad was priceless and will be a lasting memory for me.

It's funny how we can yearn for and have these encounters with our earthly fathers, when actually our Heavenly Father is yearning for those encounters with us. He longs to spend time with us; and for us to seek time with Him. After the enjoyment of spending time with my dad on Sunday, I have realised that I long for those moments with my Father in Heaven and I have to make more time in order to have those times. I can't remember who said it (might have been Luther), but whoever it was said:

If I know I am going to have a busy day, I make sure I spend at least three hours in prayer.(Or something like that anyway!)

Great quote, but I want the principle behind it to be true for me. If I'm busy I need to seek God more than if I am doing nothing, otherwise I am just doing stuff in my own strength. I also get to a place where I am just not enjoying my time with Him, just because I want to spend time with Him.

Feeling very looked after!!!

Greetings all the way from Devon!!! What a lovely time we are having with mum and dad. As I type this post, a wonderful roast chicken is being dished up; this off the back of my favourite dinner yesterday, bacon pudding! We have also been treated to a cooked breakfast this morning and we are looking forward to sausage sandwiches for tea, just before we embark on the 2 and a half hour journey back to Reading.

It's not all about the food though. It was good to see my little sister yesterday with her husband and three children. More importantly though, spending time with mum and dad is great. It's the first time they have met B's bump and they are so excited. Ah! We don't get to visit often, but when we do we try to make the most of it. As with B's parents we always go home feeling very looked after and ready to tackle the week ahead.

Must go now, but I am reminded again how blessed B and I are in having such lovely parents.