Jane Robson, previously a member of our church, is currently training for the ministry at Regent's Park College, Oxford, and is working with Kingswood Baptist Church, Watford. Keep up with Jane's news here.

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Saturday 26th February 2011

I had hoped to be joining with the ‘Friends of Woodside’ this morning for a ‘First Signs of Spring Walk’ but a) it’s cold and grey, b) there’s a certain Rugby match on this afternoon that I’d like to watch and c) I have a 1000 word essay to write for a week on Tuesday and for reasons I won’t bore you with, I only managed to start thinking about it last night. So, my priorities this morning, so far, have been to clean my walking boots from a walk I did with Brenda around Ryton Pools; do a load of washing; clean the kitchen floor (just call me Mrs Mop!) and write my blog. Exciting this ministry life, hey?!

It will be an interesting morning at church tomorrow – I have already warned the deacons – we’re set up “cafe style” because we’re looking at the Creation story and it’s going to be a very practical, hands-on time with the opportunity to draw, colour, paint, use Playdoh, make figures from maize shapes and just generally ‘join in’. It evolved from the SU All-age worship suggestions and should be an interesting morning. (I’ll let you know what the reaction is!) But I am looking forward to it and am trusting that I’ve heard God right on this.

Next week will be a week of meals ‘out’ – and the rest of the week on bread and water......! On Wednesday I am lunching out with the vicar and curate from the local Anglican church and the minister from the local Church of the Nazarene (only the vicar is male!); Thursday I am going to The Harvester across the road with one of my congregation after the church’s coffee morning and then on Saturday morning it’s the ‘Christians Across Watford’ leaders’ breakfast at the YMCA. Maybe I should fast on Sunday? Which wouldn’t be so odd as this will be a Parade service and as it’s just before the start of Lent, we’re using the Christian Aid “Count Your Blessings” sheets and looking at the temptations of Jesus. Please pray for that service – it’s our first link-up with the Brownies since Christmas.

Friday 18th February 2011

The good news is that our first essays have been returned – and I’m pleased to say that I was given 66% for my essay and 68% for my project. Phew. And all of us in our year group did similarly well, so that’s good to know. (It’s not making the writing of our next essay any easier though!)

As I mentioned last week, Wednesday was indeed a busy day; but useful. In the morning I attended a Herts. Baptist ministers’ meeting where about 20 of us gathered for a morning’s “fellowship” – it was good to meet and to be introduced to a number of my colleagues in the area and to start to put names to faces. At Kingswood we’re currently following a ‘Spring Harvest’ Bible study on the Exodus and five of us met in the afternoon continuing to be challenged about our part in God’s Mission. And then carrying on in that theme, one of the deacons and I went to Kings Langley in the evening to join with about 60 others in a Central Baptist Association road-show called “The Big Society: The Big Mission” (very topical!)

It was led by two of our Regional Ministers Geoff Colmer and Helen Wordsworth: and was a useful time to listen to and talk with one another about the church’s mission.

A week on Monday I’m responsible for leading worship at the start of the day (10:45 on a Monday) at college – and I have the passage from Mark 2:1-12 to use as my theme. It only lasts about 15 minutes (and we’re not assessed on it) but I’d value your prayers for that time as I lead staff as well as students in worship. And now I need to focus on this Sunday...and then on with that next essay.

Wednesday 9th February 2011

I seem to have had a bit of an odd week – in terms of the fact that looking back I don’t feel I’ve done anything much. (Not true, of course, I hasten to add...) It’s a very strange feeling. Part of this will be due to the fact that last Sunday was my Sunday “off” (when I don’t lead worship or preach). There were no children there either for me to work with, so I sat through a whole service for a change. But I have been involved in various bits of pastoral work during the week (nothing major) which does tend to break up the days, so it may be that that’s at the root of my unsettledness.

Anyhow, enough of that – I am about to start a run of six weeks’ preaching and next Wednesday I have a Hertfordshire Baptist ministers’ meeting in the morning; it’s our Bible Study group in the afternoon and then I’m going to an evening led by Geoff Colmer and Helen Wordsworth on “The Big Society: The Big Mission” for anyone from the Central Baptist Association. Chances are that I won’t be saying in next week’s blog that I don’t feel I’ve done much!

College continues to be interesting, challenging and a lot of fun – we have a number of “gigglers” in our group and so tutorials sometimes disintegrate into the less than serious affairs they usually are – it all makes for an interesting formation process! And following on in that line, if you have another spare couple of minutes after reading this; use this link to see me, Ann and Shona “in action” courtesy of some of the more creative members of the group...I shall say no more.

Wednesday 2nd February 2011

If you have been kept in suspense over just where it is that Jennie is/will be, my apologies, but I can reveal to you now that she has been called by the church where she has been training - and that is at Hackleton in Northamptonshire. And Nigel Wright’s day with us was very interesting, although I must admit to spending a lot of the day with a furrowed brow trying to get my head round all that I was hearing...especially when he started talking about “non-ontological realism”! The joys of theological training! Plenty of food for thought.

I’m no further forward with evening worship though. Having decided to got to St. Luke’s last Sunday, I discovered they were only having a short 1/2 hour service so didn’t go in the end. However, I had the pleasure of experiencing Anglican worship earlier in the week when I attended Evensong at St. Albans Cathedral. KBC had a coffee morning on Thursday and so I stayed in Watford this week instead of coming up to Rugby for my day off and decided I’d go over to St. Albans. I had planned to try out the Baptist Church coffee shop – but it shut at 2pm and I didn’t find it until 2.30pm! So, being very ecumenically minded I indulged in an “Anglican” latte and fruit scone. Very nice. And then as the afternoon wore on, choir boys started to appear and I realised that there would be a service at 5.00pm and that would make a great end to the day. I wasn’t disappointed – it was wonderful – and such a beautiful cathedral. The only challenge came when the order of service said “turn to face east” when we had to recite the creed but a slight hesitation on my part meant I could just follow everyone else.

And then on Saturday morning I joined a small group called the “Friends of Woodside” who are a community group who look after the environment of the Woodside area and Albans Wood (just across the main road about 10 minutes’ walk away from me). Had I arrived at the start time of 10am instead of half-an-hour late (so not like me, hey!) I would have actually helped with the litter picking but I found them in time to have a coffee and cake, so I’ve made now contact with some other members of the community and plan to join them again next month.

Can I talk essays again? This term is beginning to look far more pressured – I have a 2500 word and a 1000 word essay to write by the end of the first week in March – and Easter approaches rapidly. I need say no more...