We had a calmer Sunday.

None of us was practically involved in church this Sunday which is pretty unusual. We were able to get there at precisely 10.29! I had let everyone sleep in, even I managed to stay alseep until 6.00am which is a record for me these days. The kids sat around in the living room in their pj's watching tv, a delicious treat for them as we are so *scheduled* usually. And we made it to church just as it began. We haven't been able to do that for over a year!

Morning Church
Pastor showed a slideshow which went with a terrific, rocking, Israeli-style version of O Come O Come Emmanuel on CD, for the start of Advent. The slide show basically told a story in pictures of how messed up our world is and how we need Jesus so desperately. Later, I explained to the kids how Advent used to be, through the centuries up until about 50 years ago, a time when christians focussed on the Second Coming of Jesus, when people prayed and prepared for that event. Our Pastor seemed to be renewing that idea today.

One of our friends gave some testimony about their baby girl, who almost died this time last winter. She has Downs and is very susceptible to lung infections and had a heart defect too, which made her problems worse, but this has since been corrected. Last Christmas, Lucy was in hospital for weeks and was in Intensive Care not expected to live. One Sunday, the person leading the service that day asked us all to stand and raise our arms to the Lord, as his people used to do thousands of years ago in an imploring gesture and plead with God for this little girl's life. Our church isn't big on arm-raising, so this was a little uncomfortable to do. But we prayed. Goodness, how we prayed that day!

And our friend told the church yesterday that, at that very moment, the dr's were trying one last resort, cutting-edge treatment, adding some new gas to the mixture in her lungs and she began to turn around. They had told her parents to prepare for the worst, but she started to get better from that point. R also told how she feels so blessed by the time she spent in prayer during that period and never felt closer to God. What a powerful testimony! I'm so glad my kids heard it. It was good for all of us to hear.

R then sang a beautful song. She is a part-time professional singer. (Her other job is a psychologist.) The song had these words, but I can't remember the title:

'Father you’re all I need
My soul's sufficiency
My strength when I am weak
The love that carries me
Your arms enfold me
Till I am only
A child of God ...'

During the service we had lots of songs along the these of Jesus coming as a light into darkness, whcih was really appropriate for the first Sunday in Advent. The sermon was about the passage in Isaiah which predicts his coming, which I love.

After church
We nipped off as soon as church finished, also a novelty for us as we are usually there for hours packing away! We had lunch which was 'encore presentations' of yesterday's food with some extra vegies. Since moving our main family weekend meal to Saturday night, I now don't feel any pressure about producing a traditional British Sunday Lunch after church! Yippee! That is very nice!

We played Carcassonne, our favourite board game. Jamie checked out music versions of Christmas Carols. We got our Christmas boxes down from the loft. Played Handel's Messiah, on CD (not on instruments, we're not THAT talented!). Jack put up a little tree with lights and ornaments in his room. So, it's Christmas in his bedroom, at least! I cut out pieces for the Christmas lapbook we are going to have another go at on Monday and actually found some instructions for that, so we are in with a chance now! Then we went to:

Evening Church
Still working our way through Collossians very productively. Good preaching. Excellent music. We sang a terrific song called Praise is Rising (Hosanna!) http://shop.kingswaysongs.com/product_info.php?products_id=701

Chatted with some people afterwards. They are a very friendly fellowship despite being in the top 50 churches in the UK for size. Must be one of the top 10 Anglican churches in size. Yet, they manage to be extremely welcoming too.

They are planning to enlarge the building dramatically, if the local council gives planning permission, which is not certain, AND plant 5 new churches in the next 5-6 years! Whoever thinks Anglicanism is dead hasn't been to Oxford lately to any of the 'Godly threesome', the 3 largest CofE churches, which are all bursting at the seams and stuffed to the rafters.

Each of those 3 churches is planting other churches in Britain like crazy as well as growing many new ministers, converting and baptising hundreds every year and sending out dozens of missionaries, mainly to the muslim world. There's a Delerious? song called Revival Town http://www.delirious.org.uk/lyrics/songs/revivaltown.html
I wouldn't be at all surprised if they were singing about Oxford! {g}

Listened to Berlioz' Symphony Fantastique on the journey there. Kids not impressed. Should have remembered the Third Day album. {g}