GadgetVicar

Glee

Lots of laughter at the meeting of our Prayer Response Team tonight. I could have sworn that the intro to one of the songs we used in worship was "We Will Rock You" by Queen. The little group I was in never got round to praying for each other as we were too busy getting to know each other, which was part of the aim for the evening. We ended with Holy Communion and prayer for the staff. Much appreciated. We're beginning to feel our way forward in this area of ministry, with a sense of things developing well. Sunday morning will see us offering prayer for everyone in the congregation, in what is beginning to look and feel like something special.

Rounded off a busy few days by watching "Glee" (or as GV Bro describes it, "Let's do the show right here").  Tonight we discovered that Sue Sylvester has a soft side. Amazing! I really don't understand how one of my friends, who is a lover of all things cheesy, doesn't like "Glee".  It's clever, funny, and at times, uplifting. There's prejudice, jealousy and anger. There's also lots about loyalty, joy and creativity.  It is very watchable.

It all takes me back to my own youthful days of treading the boards......maybe we should start a Glee Club at church?

Florence Gets A Brit!

My old pal, Florence Welch (have I mentioned that I've met her?), won a Brit  for the Best British Album last night. Hooray!

I will be seeing her in concert again in May (this time in Auld Reekie). This will be the first time in my life that I will have seen one group perform live four times in a calendar year. I know this pales into insignificance compared with some peoples' devotion to artistes (some Porcupine Tree fans for example - hi to you all!), but it's a big deal for me!

Last time I saw Florence & The Machine, GV Bro and I joined the queue outside the venue, and we felt really old. The average age of the punters seemed to be about fourteen. I used to go to gigs and wonder who the old age pensioners were that showed up. Now I discover that I'm one of the OAPs. On the other hand, I was at the lower end of the age spectrum at the Carolina Chocolate Drops' Celtic Connections gig. I guess that's what middle age is all about.

Prefab Sprout - God Watch Over You

This is for some friends I spent time with tonight. You know who you are! Praying.

The beardie in the picture is the genius that is Paddy McAloon. Not sure about "guardian angels" (hope that doesn't provoke a chain of comments like the last post did), but it's a stonking tune. Link to the CD this comes from is in the right-hand sidebar.

Don't Get Trouble In Your Mind

I saw the Carolina Chocolate Drops tonight, who transported us to the mountains of North Carolina (one of my most favourite places). Stunning vocal harmonies, much swapping of instruments, and mesmerising performances, kept me smiling throughout.

A Dream Festival Lineup

"Paranoia Alert" - Is someone monitoring my blog playlists? Florence & The Machine, Little Boots, Vampire Weekend, La Roux, The Temper Trap, Miike Snow, Hot Chip, Devo, The XX  AND Porcupine Tree (among many others) are all appearing on the same festival bill in April. The only trouble is, it's Coachella in California. Mind you, it's post-Easter and I'll need a week off.........

Happy Christmas

A little GadgetVicar tradition.....A Happy and Blessed Christmas to all readers of this blog.

Porcupine Tree in Glasgow.......On My Birthday!

It's been a busy but fun week. One of the perks of this job is the blurring between what constitutes work and what is simply fun. Often both things happen in the same place at the same time. Last night I attended the annual Christmas dinner for staff, volunteers and Board members at  the new Glasgow City Mission building. Some good company and delicious food made for a great evening.

I'm off today, and will be having some more fun. It's my birthday, and I'm so grateful to Porcupine Tree for organising a special gig for me in Glasgow tonight. Very thoughtful. The fact that there will be many hundreds of other folk there is immaterial. After the Florence & the Machine gig on Wednesday night, my ears are still ringing a bit, so I'll be taking some earplugs with me tonight.

Martin Stephenson & "The Month Of Gigs"

Next Thursday night I'll be at Martin Stephenson's gig in Ayr. I've just discovered that on the 17th December, he'll be playing with the Daintees a little bit closer to home than that. To be exact, a five minute walk away from the Rectory at the local Tennis and Bowling club! The promoter, Soundinthesuburbs is doing a great job.

Here's a wee gospel song with Martin Stephenson and Moore's AME Zion Men's Gospel Choir:

In fact, the Daintees are playing locally on the 18th as well, but I'm off to see another brilliant singer/songwriter in Largs that night, Ian McNabb.

December is a busy gig month because there's Florence and the Machine on the 9th and Porcupine Tree on the 11th (my 36th birthday!) to look forward to as well. Life can't be all work can it?

Did I mention that I have another gig to attend? The St Silas' Carols by Candlelight event at 8pm on the 20th December. Do come with your family and friends!

Christ the King Weekend 2009

And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. Ephesians 1:22-23

There's way too much going on right now. Been busy today getting ready for the weekend/next year which is naughty given that today is meant to be a day off. I'll make up for it next week. I applied to become a postman today. Don't panic, I'm not giving up. It's not for me, but for GV Boy. One question they asked was about what you'd do if it was going to take longer than you were contracted for to complete a piece of work. The right answer was to complete the work, rather than work to rule. Go the extra mile and all that. Ministry is about that kind of thing too.

Tomorrow is the meeting of the Scottish Episcopal Evangelical Fellowship at Letham St Mark's Church of Scotland in Perth. It's going to be a good turnout, with lots of lay people (not so many stipendiary clergy - many of us tend to avoid Saturday conferences). We'll have a little episcopal input in the afternoon, after I've delivered some words on spiritual warfare and the tough ministry which Charles Simeon endured. Prayers for the Revd Canon Ian Ferguson (aka "The Wee Dalek") who was meant to talk in the morning but who is unwell. We'll get to pray for one another too. I have a sense that many people are feeling the burn right now.

Sunday sees us focus on "Servant Saints", as our wills get all stirred up. We'll also be encouraging people to keep the Building for the Future project in mind for their giving and prayers.

Today, my tickets for the December 9th gig of Florence and the Machine arrived. That will be the third time of seeing them this year. I'm not obsessed, honestly.

In the words of her latest single (originally by Candi Staton, but the best version until now was the remix with The Source):

Sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air
I know I can count on you
Sometimes I feel like saying "Lord, I just don't care"
But you've got the love I need To see me through

Sometimes it seems that the going is just too rough
And things go wrong no matter what I do
Now and then it seems that life is just too much
But you've got the love I need to see me through

When food is gone you are my daily meal
When friends are gone I know my Saviour's love is real
Your love is real.

The Wee Jig

Beat Attitude (who you may remember plays in The Jiggers Ceilidh Band ) has asked for my blog-help recruiting dancers to help the band make a video this Saturday evening.

 The “secret” free event entitled The Wee Jig is being held in an undisclosed location, somewhere in Woodlands in Glasgow. Hmm I wonder where that could possibly be? Anyone looking for a wee impromptu jig aboot (no experience necessary, we are assured) should be available from 7.30 until 10.00 on Saturday night, and contact Greg on 0141 419 9558 or email via the Jiggers website for details.