Bob Warwicker's blog

It’s broad and easy,
the way stretches ahead. But
I soon find it’s wrong.

An embankment here,
a bridge there, a line of trees;
fragments of a past.

The colour of brass,
broken eggshell on the ground-
its story not known.

Complex of alleys,
streets, old ways, new ways, cobbles,
tarmac; friendly town.

In Sunday’s lectionary, the populace tolerate Paul and Silas at first. But when Paul and Silas take away the slave-owner’s chance to make money, the atmosphere darkens. Paul and Silas are imprisoned. You can say what you like, Paul and Silas, but you touch our money and you’re in trouble. Maybe that’s why some privileged and political people now hate church people whenever they speaks about social justice or money. (Which Jesus did quite a lot BTW).

Never completely

silent, but sometimes quiet,

this living city.

I cannot pretend
I am not affected by
stuff oceans away.

 

Between the green and
the concrete, the canal threads
together this town.

From Sunday’s Lectionary, Psalm 67, “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us…” How big is the ‘us’? I’d like to think that ‘us’ is everyone. The scope of God’s ambition as seen by the Psalmist is massive … “…that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations.”

Then, “Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you.
Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth.”

Birds in the wrong places…

Here is a Canada Goose near the Brent, like the Red Kite we saw near Leighton Buzzard.

Outside it’s raining,

comfortably warm, humid,

damping the pavements. 

The sound of traffic,
muted this evening, work done;
it’s time to slow down.

The rain has come now;
softly, drearily, greyly:
but no drama yet.

 

We are only having a walk, but we do a certain amount of planning. But read next Sunday’s lectionary, and you read about Paul and his companions’ flexibility in response to God’s prompting – there may have been more planning than we realise – but the impression given by that passage in Acts is of people ready to have new, exciting adentures at a moment’s notice – to spread the Good News.