Hello again!
Well, here I am again. It's been a long time since I wrote anything for my site, but a lot can happen in 2 years as you all know!
Where to start?
Well, I suppose I should start by saying Esther and I are getting married!! We got engaged by the side of Lake Windermere in February 2009. Since then, time seems to have flown by and on the 31st July this year we will be married at Trinity Methodist Church in Chelmsford. Preparations are well under way for the big day, which is partly why I have come back to the website to have another look.
Our marriage has prompted us to look at how we might give information to our guests, particularly those who don't know Chelmsford at all, or who are travelling from a long distance. So with the invites will be a web address so that people can look at where all of the venues are, where to stay and what to do in Chelmsford. The pages we have created are looking good. So good in fact that I now need to work on the rest of the site so that it catches up with the look and feel of the new pages and also so that it includes content which is not 2 years out of date.
Street Pastoring
Also in the last 2 years, I have embarked on a new venture with many Christian friends in Chelmsford. With these friends I regularly go out and patrol the streets on a Friady and Saturday night as a Street Pastor. Since we started the scheme in Chelmsford we have managed to help a great number of people. We've swept the streets for bottles and other items which can be used as weapons if they were allowed to remain in place, scooped people off the streets when they have over indulged, performed basic first aid and generally been concerned for the well being of everyone out between 10pm and 4am at weekends.
It is amazing work, and along with the work of helping people, we've managed to have some incredible conversations with people about faith and life. I can say without any hesitation that it is the most fulfilling and beautiful thing to be able to meet with people and to serve God in what we do.
Preaching
With all the time on the streets, it would be easy to overlook preaching.
I have continued to preach, and have now become a full preacher on the local plan. This covers approximately 15 churches from Chelmsford to Braintree, up to Halstead and across to Burnham.
Although I said I would never be a preacher, I have learnt quite quickly that with God, you should never say never. Throughout both street pastoring and preaching, I keep discovering what it means to be a child of God. That we are all known and loved by the God who knitted us together is so incredible and so powerful that it's one of the core themes I preach about regularly.
