Please do support the cause 'stop the traffik'....it's part of Oasis and based in our building. Basically the aim of the group is to stop human traffficing around the world. Their current campaign is based upon the chocolate industry where they are encouraging people to eat fair trade chocolate only....there is some really interesting stuff on their website:http://www.stopthetraffik.org/. Please check it out.
I'm writing about Stop the Traffik because i think it's a great cause. However, it also brought about an exciting end to my day. Dave Parr (currently doing a voluntary gap year as Steve Chalkes driver) asked me at around four o'clock whether i wanted to help him attach a Stop the Traffik banner to the front of the church....i happily agreed. As Dave later said "you always feel like you've done a good days work when you've been up a ladder". So up a ladder i climbed, banner in hand... Now it might not sound so exciting but it really was. The Church is right in the centre of Lambeth so we were drawing a lot of attention from the commuters walking by. One guy even came up the steps to ask us what Stop the Traffik was....that was before we had even put the banner up! Now the banner is up and i am pleased with our work. Sometimes i get frustrated that the community we serve doesn't know how much we have on offer here. I would love to be able to find a way to tell all people but i realise that these days it's harder and harder to reach some groups within society....especially in London with such diverse language and culture barriers.
I'm now into my sixth month in London and i feel like time is slipping away.....we've achieved so much as a working community centre but i feel like there is so much still to do. We now have the coffee shop pulling in good numbers of customers, the kids clubs are establishing themselves as popular events within the community (one kid has refused to go to his drama lessons because he wants to come to our club)....At the school where i work half a day a week Oasis Mentoring is 'well' cool....within the year group we work with all the kids want to be mentored by Oasis! The Football Training is looking like producing a successful football team which will be entered into a local league come next season. My main project 'the advocacy service' is growing wings and it looks as if it will be fully in place by the time i finish to be carried on by the Church congregation and volunteers.
Then sometimes i fear what will happen when me and the other volunteers leave and the team will go from 12 to 4....then i remember that the great thing about this Church is that it's part of a bigger agenda. One that i'm in no way control of and one that i will never fully grasp....
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Imax.....
Today's been very cool.....
We had our first Kids Club trip and we visited the i-max cinema to watch 'Lions of the Kalahari'. What a brilliant event it turned out to be after i had lost my glasses, cleaned up sick and facilitated a mental game of 'duck duck goose'. I remember when i was at primary school and we had school trips. Teachers were so organised they had everything under control. We on the other hand were a group of eight young people with the kids of twenty parents learning how to do an outing for the first time.....
When H told me he needed to go to the toilet i could tell by the colour of his face that it wasn't because he needed a pee. Scared that he would be sick all over the pizza i rushed him to the nearest toilet where he did the inevitable. I hadn't been expecting that! His mum works across the road so we went to get her. She arrived and told us he was fine and so we carried on with the day. As soon as his mum left I saw him go to the toilet. When he returned i asked him if he had been sick again? He informed me he hadn't! I wasn't so sure and so i went to the toilet because i knew he wouldn't have flushed it away....in the toilet i found the inevitable and returned to tell H that he would need to go home. It was a real shame because he didn't want to leave. I knew to check the toilet because once when were at a football centre he needed a pee and so i showed him where the toilets were. I also needed so i went after he had gone and found that he had actually peed in a shower! I decided to use the toilet....
When we arrived at the imax i needed to go to the toilet (a theme appearing here) and so i asked S aged five to hold my glasses (i dont know why i couldn't just have taken my glasses to the toilet!!). When i returned the glasses had gone and S didn't have a clue where they were! Just as i started looking the film started and i had to wait until the end before i could find them. I did find them..... crushed up against the chairs in front!
As for Duck Duck Goose, well its always mental no matter who's playing....there's always one kid who slips whilst trying to run round the circle at full speed! I think today i learned that despite difficulties these kids have cemented themselves in my heart. The longer i work with them the more i see their potential. For weeks we've been working on passing at football training and the kids just weren't getting it! But last night i watched as three of the boys passed the ball from one end of the pitch to the other and then scored....the feeling inside was amazing, like i had just overcome the greatest of challenges. As i tied my shoes this morning i started thinking how great it was that we were working with kids of age 7+ because as long as their living in this community we'll be involved in supporting and encouraging them.....Even just walking home from the imax today was brilliant....being out of the centre you see the kids in a different light.
I thought i'd add some pictures of me working.... in case it was in question i actually did work.
We had our first Kids Club trip and we visited the i-max cinema to watch 'Lions of the Kalahari'. What a brilliant event it turned out to be after i had lost my glasses, cleaned up sick and facilitated a mental game of 'duck duck goose'. I remember when i was at primary school and we had school trips. Teachers were so organised they had everything under control. We on the other hand were a group of eight young people with the kids of twenty parents learning how to do an outing for the first time.....
When H told me he needed to go to the toilet i could tell by the colour of his face that it wasn't because he needed a pee. Scared that he would be sick all over the pizza i rushed him to the nearest toilet where he did the inevitable. I hadn't been expecting that! His mum works across the road so we went to get her. She arrived and told us he was fine and so we carried on with the day. As soon as his mum left I saw him go to the toilet. When he returned i asked him if he had been sick again? He informed me he hadn't! I wasn't so sure and so i went to the toilet because i knew he wouldn't have flushed it away....in the toilet i found the inevitable and returned to tell H that he would need to go home. It was a real shame because he didn't want to leave. I knew to check the toilet because once when were at a football centre he needed a pee and so i showed him where the toilets were. I also needed so i went after he had gone and found that he had actually peed in a shower! I decided to use the toilet....
When we arrived at the imax i needed to go to the toilet (a theme appearing here) and so i asked S aged five to hold my glasses (i dont know why i couldn't just have taken my glasses to the toilet!!). When i returned the glasses had gone and S didn't have a clue where they were! Just as i started looking the film started and i had to wait until the end before i could find them. I did find them..... crushed up against the chairs in front!
As for Duck Duck Goose, well its always mental no matter who's playing....there's always one kid who slips whilst trying to run round the circle at full speed! I think today i learned that despite difficulties these kids have cemented themselves in my heart. The longer i work with them the more i see their potential. For weeks we've been working on passing at football training and the kids just weren't getting it! But last night i watched as three of the boys passed the ball from one end of the pitch to the other and then scored....the feeling inside was amazing, like i had just overcome the greatest of challenges. As i tied my shoes this morning i started thinking how great it was that we were working with kids of age 7+ because as long as their living in this community we'll be involved in supporting and encouraging them.....Even just walking home from the imax today was brilliant....being out of the centre you see the kids in a different light.
I thought i'd add some pictures of me working.... in case it was in question i actually did work.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Does God love chickens?.....probably
I report sadly that Andrew's hair was cut at 12pm today....i'm sure each of you reading this Blog will have at some time taken a constructive look at his mop! I can report that Andrew is happy with the cut but sad to have now lost what can regarded as a useful homeless outreach tool....Many people made commented how Andrew's hair looked like that of a rough sleeper.
The image below is a wonderful one.....i encourage you to follow your dreams. I led the evening service on Sunday night and i used this image. I felt pleased that everyone could open mindedly see the beauty of this cartoon. It's by edward monkton who is quickly becoming my hero alongside jesus, my dad and the tellytubbies (what they did for this world is a constant inspiration).
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Woke up this morning and found it had snowed....that was a nice surprise. Managed to squeeze in an early morning snowball fight before it all melted. It's not just the people that move fast in London it's also the weather. It rains quickly, the snow melts quickly.....so now there is no snow left!
Carrying on this theme of good deeds i wanted to write about a couple of things I've seen in the last week. On Friday i went out with my team to celebrate my Birthday (I'm now 23) and we had a great time. It's the first time since we arrived in London that we've all gone out together and we really benefited from it. Things were getting a little tense at work mainly because we were spending too much time working together and not enough time socialising. But after Friday night we all felt great having witnessed each other's company in an environment outside work....Anyway, we were standing at the bus stop awaiting our bus home when we were approached by this guy. He asked us if we had change of a fiver so he could buy his bus ticket. Each of us raked in our pockets but were unable to find five pounds worth of coins. We apologised and turned to walk away. Then in a moment of inspiration i said "we could just give you the one fifty to buy your ticket!" and each of my team agreed. At first the guy hesitated but took our money gratefully and bought his ticket. It was so wonderful to see his face once the ticket was bought. It was like he had just realised what had happened and was like wow! He asked us how he could repay us and we refused recognising it as a kind deed that would cheer him up. We found out his name and chatted until our buses arrived.
Then last night i was travelling back to Brixton on the Bus and i noticed that the girl sat behind me was crying......Here goes i thought searching for a sweet in my bag ready to cheer her up but then i noticed she was on the phone, talking the issue through with someone. But i was ready, i had rhubarb and custard sweets in my bag. There is a definite routine in London of get up go to work come home and sleep. People are in that zone and i think very unable to deal with things that don't fit in with their routine. On Wednesday i was walking from my house to the bus and suddenly a guy behind me just yelled.....I got such a fright. I turned round and saw a man with his face was all smashed up and cut. What surprised me was not his appearance or actions but instead the reaction of people around him. No one seemed at all concerned or bothered. They were just walking focused and efficiently....they were in their zone.
Carrying on this theme of good deeds i wanted to write about a couple of things I've seen in the last week. On Friday i went out with my team to celebrate my Birthday (I'm now 23) and we had a great time. It's the first time since we arrived in London that we've all gone out together and we really benefited from it. Things were getting a little tense at work mainly because we were spending too much time working together and not enough time socialising. But after Friday night we all felt great having witnessed each other's company in an environment outside work....Anyway, we were standing at the bus stop awaiting our bus home when we were approached by this guy. He asked us if we had change of a fiver so he could buy his bus ticket. Each of us raked in our pockets but were unable to find five pounds worth of coins. We apologised and turned to walk away. Then in a moment of inspiration i said "we could just give you the one fifty to buy your ticket!" and each of my team agreed. At first the guy hesitated but took our money gratefully and bought his ticket. It was so wonderful to see his face once the ticket was bought. It was like he had just realised what had happened and was like wow! He asked us how he could repay us and we refused recognising it as a kind deed that would cheer him up. We found out his name and chatted until our buses arrived.
Then last night i was travelling back to Brixton on the Bus and i noticed that the girl sat behind me was crying......Here goes i thought searching for a sweet in my bag ready to cheer her up but then i noticed she was on the phone, talking the issue through with someone. But i was ready, i had rhubarb and custard sweets in my bag. There is a definite routine in London of get up go to work come home and sleep. People are in that zone and i think very unable to deal with things that don't fit in with their routine. On Wednesday i was walking from my house to the bus and suddenly a guy behind me just yelled.....I got such a fright. I turned round and saw a man with his face was all smashed up and cut. What surprised me was not his appearance or actions but instead the reaction of people around him. No one seemed at all concerned or bothered. They were just walking focused and efficiently....they were in their zone.
Monday, February 05, 2007
Inclusive or exclusive in your view of other faiths?....can we truly respect people when we dont respect their faith?
Inclusive or exclusive in your view of other faiths....surely followers of christ should be the most inclusive.
Every Monday morning we have training and it always inspires me. Today we were talking about our understanding of other religions and asking the question 'are we inclusive or exclusive in our view of religion'. We also considered what we as followers of Jesus are called to do concerning other religions. What i took from the session was the importance of having an inclusive stance towards other religions. Indeed, it was proposed that when we are exclusive of other religions we become defensive and this affects the way we present our faith. The war on terrorism is a perfect example of exclusive faith. George Bush presents as a christian quote "God loves America", yet we fight with weapons. Do we really want to wipe out another faith as a response to what has happened (i'm sure these are questions that have been asked before but it's just fresh in my head today). I also realise that i haven't felt the pain or desire for revenge that may come with losing someone to a terrorist act.
When we are inclusive we embrace others peoples views and in turn people feel respected. To open up some debate about who is right and who is wrong again is destructive. Instead acceptance is the key. As followers of jesus we are called to love and accept....yet so many Christians feel the need to attack other religions. It almost makes me want to break away from the term 'christian' because the influential people out there do the term so much harm. Think Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and others in the public eye who i cant think of right now. What Oasis feel strongly about is creating a new understanding of the term 'christian'. I want to be a follower of jesus.... Following the actions of someone who had such a love for other people seems more appealing that the 'anti' abortion, homosexuality, sex before marriage picture of christianity currently in parts of society. Please help to change this picture....
The thing i like most about what we covered today was this statement.... "Jesus came to the earth not to create religion but instead to show Gods love". Simple and comforting. Where did we get it all so wrong....
Every Monday morning we have training and it always inspires me. Today we were talking about our understanding of other religions and asking the question 'are we inclusive or exclusive in our view of religion'. We also considered what we as followers of Jesus are called to do concerning other religions. What i took from the session was the importance of having an inclusive stance towards other religions. Indeed, it was proposed that when we are exclusive of other religions we become defensive and this affects the way we present our faith. The war on terrorism is a perfect example of exclusive faith. George Bush presents as a christian quote "God loves America", yet we fight with weapons. Do we really want to wipe out another faith as a response to what has happened (i'm sure these are questions that have been asked before but it's just fresh in my head today). I also realise that i haven't felt the pain or desire for revenge that may come with losing someone to a terrorist act.
When we are inclusive we embrace others peoples views and in turn people feel respected. To open up some debate about who is right and who is wrong again is destructive. Instead acceptance is the key. As followers of jesus we are called to love and accept....yet so many Christians feel the need to attack other religions. It almost makes me want to break away from the term 'christian' because the influential people out there do the term so much harm. Think Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and others in the public eye who i cant think of right now. What Oasis feel strongly about is creating a new understanding of the term 'christian'. I want to be a follower of jesus.... Following the actions of someone who had such a love for other people seems more appealing that the 'anti' abortion, homosexuality, sex before marriage picture of christianity currently in parts of society. Please help to change this picture....
The thing i like most about what we covered today was this statement.... "Jesus came to the earth not to create religion but instead to show Gods love". Simple and comforting. Where did we get it all so wrong....
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