A few days ago I promised you a video clip of the demolition. Here it is. This clip shows the hydraulic crushing jaws at work on a steel reinforced concrete floor in the building that once included my office.
It's an extraordinarily quiet way to bring down a building, there is no loud noise, no great vibrations underfoot as large pieces of masonry come down. It's all crushed in situ and the pieces that fall are relatively small. There is awesome power in these steel jaws. The machine eats through concrete like a child nibbling chocolate.
15 December 2009
14 December 2009
Colworth (CU) - Church of Two
I had volunteered to take today's Christian Union meeting. I'd mentioned the idea of Church of Two (CO2) briefly before, 
but decided to share it more fully now that Sean and I have been testing it for a couple of weeks.
I introduced the idea in outline, explaining that it is simply two (or three) people agreeing to meet daily to do two short exercises together. The whole daily session may take as little as ten minutes, but the frequency and the nature of the disciplines encourages openness to one another and to the Lord.
We read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 which emphasises that two are better than one. And we also considered how Jesus sent his disciples out in twos, and how they are listed as pairs in the gospels.
I briefly explained the SASHET and VIRKLER disciplines. SASHET stands for Sad, Angry, Scared, Happy, Excited, Tender. The idea is that the partners in the CO2 take turns to discuss their feelings under those headings, focusing on the way each feels today. The other partner listens without offering advice, though asking for clarification is OK. In this way, both partners learn to share their feelings more freely and at the same time hear about the feelings of the other.
VIRKLER is a simple technique to help a person listen to the Lord. It consists of four steps done before the CO2 meeting each day. First it's necessary to clear worldly issues from the mind. The second step is then to focus on Jesus. Then, with the focus where it ought to be, pay attention to the thoughts, ideas, pictures etc that pass through the mind. Finally, note these things down as they present themselves and consider what the Spirit of Christ is saying to you today. The conclusions can be shared when the partners meet and may guide a time of prayer.
It seems likely that at least one other person from CU will now try CO2, and he already has a friend in mind. If so, it was well worth sharing.
There is much more information online. Read more about CO2 from the following resources...
but decided to share it more fully now that Sean and I have been testing it for a couple of weeks.I introduced the idea in outline, explaining that it is simply two (or three) people agreeing to meet daily to do two short exercises together. The whole daily session may take as little as ten minutes, but the frequency and the nature of the disciplines encourages openness to one another and to the Lord.
We read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 which emphasises that two are better than one. And we also considered how Jesus sent his disciples out in twos, and how they are listed as pairs in the gospels.
I briefly explained the SASHET and VIRKLER disciplines. SASHET stands for Sad, Angry, Scared, Happy, Excited, Tender. The idea is that the partners in the CO2 take turns to discuss their feelings under those headings, focusing on the way each feels today. The other partner listens without offering advice, though asking for clarification is OK. In this way, both partners learn to share their feelings more freely and at the same time hear about the feelings of the other.
VIRKLER is a simple technique to help a person listen to the Lord. It consists of four steps done before the CO2 meeting each day. First it's necessary to clear worldly issues from the mind. The second step is then to focus on Jesus. Then, with the focus where it ought to be, pay attention to the thoughts, ideas, pictures etc that pass through the mind. Finally, note these things down as they present themselves and consider what the Spirit of Christ is saying to you today. The conclusions can be shared when the partners meet and may guide a time of prayer.
It seems likely that at least one other person from CU will now try CO2, and he already has a friend in mind. If so, it was well worth sharing.
There is much more information online. Read more about CO2 from the following resources...
Cycling - The wrong way to do it
This is a bad idea. Do not try this at home! Watch these crazy cyclists in the video and then read on for more detail. It may be illegal, stupid, and unkind to other road users, but my goodness it makes for an interesting video!
There are some common-sense (but not necessarily legal) suggestions for safe cycling on the website where I first saw the video. The site is called 100 Mile Bike Ride.
There are some common-sense (but not necessarily legal) suggestions for safe cycling on the website where I first saw the video. The site is called 100 Mile Bike Ride.
13 December 2009
St Neots (Open Door small group) - A breakfast shared
There was no Open Door morning meeting today because the Priory Centre was not available for use. Donna's small group decided instead to meet for breakfast, six of us met at Tony and Barbara's for a traditional English Breakfast. 
Barbara had prepared eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, tomatoes, hash browns, along with some fine bread, toast and the rest. Thanks Barbara!
It was great fun to sit around the table, share the morning meal with thankful hearts, and chat. What a great way to build closer relationships and get to know one another better! Sometimes the simplest things are very effective.
After clearing the table we decided to head for the garden centre in Huntingdon, browse the cards, books, and gifts on offer, and sit together for a final cup of tea or coffee before heading home again.
Not only did we enjoy the food and the company, we also shared information and stories about our life, about church, and about Jesus. Great fun.
Barbara had prepared eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, tomatoes, hash browns, along with some fine bread, toast and the rest. Thanks Barbara!It was great fun to sit around the table, share the morning meal with thankful hearts, and chat. What a great way to build closer relationships and get to know one another better! Sometimes the simplest things are very effective.
After clearing the table we decided to head for the garden centre in Huntingdon, browse the cards, books, and gifts on offer, and sit together for a final cup of tea or coffee before heading home again.
Not only did we enjoy the food and the company, we also shared information and stories about our life, about church, and about Jesus. Great fun.
12 December 2009
Bedford - Tough Talk
This evening Donna, Paul and I drove into Bedford for the X-treme Camps reunion meeting at Priory Methodist Church in Newnham Avenue. 
The numbers were lower than expected, but the evening itself was just great!
There was live music and Stacey made an excellent job of capturing the attention of everyone in the room, especially the younger ones. This, of course, was the object of the exercise. The music and singing were strong and enthusiastic and were followed by a sort of bush tucker competition during which volunteers were invited to consume such delicacies as lemon and lime slices, banana and gravy, anchovy and chilli. One young man stuck at it valiantly and took away a very worthwhile winner's prize.
Tough Talk had been invited to take the main part of the evening and they were very good. They combined an account of one man's very rough life with brief episodes of squats by another guy carrying a heavily loaded bar across his shoulders. Each time Chris returned he lifted an increased weight and in between the story of Simon's life continued. This created a sense of tension throughout, keeping us listening to every word.
The true story involved Simon's love of money for the power it gave and the final loss of everything. There was also loss of a job, involvement in a club brawl, a court case because of the violence, and then a remarkable phase in which Simon met a follower of Jesus who persuaded him to come to church. It turned out to be Holy Trinity, Brompton - the home of the Alpha Course! Nicky Gumbell prayed with him, he took an Alpha Course, and his life was transformed.
We heard a second life story from another member of the team, the band came back for more music, and then we all headed home. I was greatly impressed by what I'd seen and heard. I came away with a DVD of more Tough Talk stories and two books with even more of the same. It's great stuff. Highly recommended for any youth or adult audience.
See Tough Talk in action for yourself in the video below. Premier.tv has more Tough Talk videos online.
The numbers were lower than expected, but the evening itself was just great!There was live music and Stacey made an excellent job of capturing the attention of everyone in the room, especially the younger ones. This, of course, was the object of the exercise. The music and singing were strong and enthusiastic and were followed by a sort of bush tucker competition during which volunteers were invited to consume such delicacies as lemon and lime slices, banana and gravy, anchovy and chilli. One young man stuck at it valiantly and took away a very worthwhile winner's prize.
Tough Talk had been invited to take the main part of the evening and they were very good. They combined an account of one man's very rough life with brief episodes of squats by another guy carrying a heavily loaded bar across his shoulders. Each time Chris returned he lifted an increased weight and in between the story of Simon's life continued. This created a sense of tension throughout, keeping us listening to every word.
The true story involved Simon's love of money for the power it gave and the final loss of everything. There was also loss of a job, involvement in a club brawl, a court case because of the violence, and then a remarkable phase in which Simon met a follower of Jesus who persuaded him to come to church. It turned out to be Holy Trinity, Brompton - the home of the Alpha Course! Nicky Gumbell prayed with him, he took an Alpha Course, and his life was transformed.
We heard a second life story from another member of the team, the band came back for more music, and then we all headed home. I was greatly impressed by what I'd seen and heard. I came away with a DVD of more Tough Talk stories and two books with even more of the same. It's great stuff. Highly recommended for any youth or adult audience.
See Tough Talk in action for yourself in the video below. Premier.tv has more Tough Talk videos online.
11 December 2009
Eaton Ford (day) - Prayer for friends
This was an unusual Friday morning for me as I had another appointment that would take me away before lunch.
Roger, Paul and I spent some time sharing news about our various friends. Some are in jobs that can be dangerous, one is in church work while another would like to be, there are some with serious illnesses or sick relatives.
After talking all these things over we began to pray about them until it was time for me to go. I crept out as quietly as I could, leaving Paul and Roger to finish on their own. Although I didn't get to share in the rest of this meeting I was glad to know that Paul and Roger would eat together and perhaps do some Bible study. I'm looking forward to a more complete meeting next week!
Roger, Paul and I spent some time sharing news about our various friends. Some are in jobs that can be dangerous, one is in church work while another would like to be, there are some with serious illnesses or sick relatives.
After talking all these things over we began to pray about them until it was time for me to go. I crept out as quietly as I could, leaving Paul and Roger to finish on their own. Although I didn't get to share in the rest of this meeting I was glad to know that Paul and Roger would eat together and perhaps do some Bible study. I'm looking forward to a more complete meeting next week!
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