Courtesy or Compassion?
Monthly Archives: August 2019
Views from the Manse: Baptismal Blue
Views from the Manse
A monthly series showcasing different expressions and experiences of the role of a Pastor’s spouse. Stories span from the archives to the present. We invite you to contribute your story by emailing John Sampson at jcsampson406@gmail.com
Episode 3 – Baptismal Blue
The deacon responsible for filling the baptistry got talking to some of the visitors and by the time he turned off the tap the thing had been overfilled. This meant that water sloshed over the rim and on to the carpet during the ceremony. Some towels were used to mop up the mess and no one gave it any more thought.
The small church was packed, as not only was there a baptismal service but a special music program had been arranged, with extra chairs at the front to cater for the enlarged choir and a small orchestra. It was a very special day and the place was overflowing. By mid service it was stifling hot and the kids in the back row were starting to tune out.
During the readings the choirmaster decided that he needed to urgently confer with the minister sitting behind the pulpit on the other side of the church. So he slipped out of his chair and darted across the edge of the baptistry as inconspicuously as possible. But he never made it. The tiles were wet and slippery, he overbalanced and took a plunge instead.
When he surfaced, gasping and totally dishevelled, the music he had been carrying was fluttering down like a box of confetti emptied over a blushing bride.
It was in the days when men wore suits and ladies wore hats, so the kids could not possibly laugh out load. They were reduced to rolling waves of stifled giggles. It was the most fun they had ever had in church and still relished talking about it when I arrived 40 years later.
What is your experience of being a pastor’s spouse? If you would like to contribute to this series, please email jcsampson406@gmail.com
Views from the Manse: Baptismal Blue
Views from the Manse
A monthly series showcasing different expressions and experiences of the role of a Pastor’s spouse. Stories span from the archives to the present. We invite you to contribute your story by emailing John Sampson at jcsampson406@gmail.com
Episode 3 – Baptismal Blue
The deacon responsible for filling the baptistry got talking to some of the visitors and by the time he turned off the tap the thing had been overfilled. This meant that water sloshed over the rim and on to the carpet during the ceremony. Some towels were used to mop up the mess and no one gave it any more thought.
The small church was packed, as not only was there a baptismal service but a special music program had been arranged, with extra chairs at the front to cater for the enlarged choir and a small orchestra. It was a very special day and the place was overflowing. By mid service it was stifling hot and the kids in the back row were starting to tune out.
During the readings the choirmaster decided that he needed to urgently confer with the minister sitting behind the pulpit on the other side of the church. So he slipped out of his chair and darted across the edge of the baptistry as inconspicuously as possible. But he never made it. The tiles were wet and slippery, he overbalanced and took a plunge instead.
When he surfaced, gasping and totally dishevelled, the music he had been carrying was fluttering down like a box of confetti emptied over a blushing bride.
It was in the days when men wore suits and ladies wore hats, so the kids could not possibly laugh out load. They were reduced to rolling waves of stifled giggles. It was the most fun they had ever had in church and still relished talking about it when I arrived 40 years later.
What is your experience of being a pastor’s spouse? If you would like to contribute to this series, please email jcsampson406@gmail.com
Source: BUV News
Our Little Caravan
My name is Christina Douglas, and in 2017 I was privileged to be a participant in the BUV’s social enterprise training program. It was really helpful for me to receive insights on how to be missional in my community, and at the same time, I learnt skills to develop a business with a Kingdom vision.
My project idea was to build an online community that teaches social enterprise skills to teenagers. As an experienced teacher, I am passionate about helping, supporting and encouraging teenagers discover and apply their unique talents, gifts or hobbies while making an impact in their local community, with other like-minded teenagers.
Our Little Caravan (OLC) has been on a journey. From a beginning in 2014, as a birthday party business set in a vintage caravan – into a community social enterprise in 2015-2017 set in a craft collective, brick and mortar store in the south eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and now into an online community designed to help develop social enterprise skills in teenagers.
One of the social enterprises we helped set up through our online Academy programme was called: Butterfly Effect. A group of Year 10 boys decided to sell journals, specifically designed with teenage boys in mind, to encourage them to write down their problems and look at them from a different perspective.
Kyle Patocks, Founder of Butterfly Effect said “We wanted to create a movement through our brand to remove the stigma surrounding mental health. There were a lot of challenges which we faced when making this business. One of these challenges was contacting Beyond Blue who was our Not-For-Profit (NFP) impact partner. As I am not a very confident person, writing and sending of an email to our NFP was a challenge – but with the support of OLC, I did it! And now we can support this wonderful organisation with our products.”
At OLC, we’ve kept the caravan, as it is a wonderful metaphor for life. The caravan moves along steadily with occasional detours. These detours represent the challenges and fears that we must overcome. For some, these challenges take longer to overcome, and for others challenges are opportunities. The caravan often stops to unload and reload, or pivot and change direction, just as we need to do in life. The caravan is full of opportunities from which we can learn.
If you’d like to learn more about how you can be involved with your teenager or youth-group, you can visit www.ourlittlecaravan.com.au
Our Little Caravan
My name is Christina Douglas, and in 2017 I was privileged to be a participant in the BUV’s social enterprise training program. It was really helpful for me to receive insights on how to be missional in my community, and at the same time, I learnt skills to develop a business with a Kingdom vision.
My project idea was to build an online community that teaches social enterprise skills to teenagers. As an experienced teacher, I am passionate about helping, supporting and encouraging teenagers discover and apply their unique talents, gifts or hobbies while making an impact in their local community, with other like-minded teenagers.
Our Little Caravan (OLC) has been on a journey. From a beginning in 2014, as a birthday party business set in a vintage caravan – into a community social enterprise in 2015-2017 set in a craft collective, brick and mortar store in the south eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and now into an online community designed to help develop social enterprise skills in teenagers.
One of the social enterprises we helped set up through our online Academy programme was called: Butterfly Effect. A group of Year 10 boys decided to sell journals, specifically designed with teenage boys in mind, to encourage them to write down their problems and look at them from a different perspective.
Kyle Patocks, Founder of Butterfly Effect said “We wanted to create a movement through our brand to remove the stigma surrounding mental health. There were a lot of challenges which we faced when making this business. One of these challenges was contacting Beyond Blue who was our Not-For-Profit (NFP) impact partner. As I am not a very confident person, writing and sending of an email to our NFP was a challenge – but with the support of OLC, I did it! And now we can support this wonderful organisation with our products.”
At OLC, we’ve kept the caravan, as it is a wonderful metaphor for life. The caravan moves along steadily with occasional detours. These detours represent the challenges and fears that we must overcome. For some, these challenges take longer to overcome, and for others challenges are opportunities. The caravan often stops to unload and reload, or pivot and change direction, just as we need to do in life. The caravan is full of opportunities from which we can learn.
If you’d like to learn more about how you can be involved with your teenager or youth-group, you can visit www.ourlittlecaravan.com.au
Source: BUV News
The Divergent – Unlocked
How knowing Jesus brings the best out of ‘The Divergent’ as we consider how Jesus helps us understand identity
Ep 135: Why give voice to the voiceless?
What motivates someone to care? Hear Esther’s story as she shares about why she cares for people facing speech challenges in our community. A conversation to get everyone talking.
Get a Grip: Who can you trust in a fake news world?
The Edge on 22 August 2019
An Open Heart
Courtesy or Compassion?
The Perfectionist – Unlocked
How does Jesus bring out the best in the perfectionist?