Goodhand in Banbury

  Ghana   On moving to Sheffield a whole new opportunity opened up to me. At one of my churches in the inner city I found we had a predominantly Ghanaian congregation attached to the church. Their worship took place on an afternoon and I was committed to preach and lead communion each month. I duly rolled up for the 1pm service only to discover week by week the meaning of African time. 1 pm was just getting warmed up with song and prayer. The congregation gradually gathered so that by the time I was due to preach 2.20 pm everyone had arrived. The expectation was for a long sermon before communion. While I adapted the style of preaching I was not about to add length to the sermon just for the sake of it. I was to discover that many of the women were in fact thankful for a shorter sermon.  Their leaders on visiting me one evening expressed their desire to find a way of retaining vibrancy but without just doing a copy of the worship they had experienced back home. So began a...

Chapter 11 -   This chapter contains a snap shot of some material I have written over the years which usually arose out of a need for a particular event.  A Blessing for a Junior Church Bless this day O God   the oceans wide and deep the droplets small that form the streams the tiny streams that form the mighty rivers that feed the oceans of your creation. Bless O God   the Oceans that keep safe the droplets   that leave and return. Bless this day O God   the church wide and deep our children that form the churches the churches that form your church that feeds the Kingdom of your Love. Bless O God the church   that keeps safe the children that leave and return. Creator   source of water source of the church keep both droplets and child safe in the ocean of your love. Amen This reading is based on Jesus appearance to Thomas post resurrection.   Thomas And if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes I would never have believed it. I saw him touch a bl...