Welcome to Brooklyn

The day after the NYC Marathon I received an email from New York Road runners congratulating me on completing the Marathon on Sunday. It said this “You are incredible—a champion in your own right! Then it goes on to say “we hope the moment of pure elation will stay with you forever”. A week later I must admit it has stayed with me in many ways. Running a marathon is not just about completing the race, there is so much more to learn about oneself. There is a sense of achievement coupled with the ability to overcome adversity,  so deeply rewarding

Running the NYC Marathon was a truly amazing experience and as I think back to the start of the race when we stood waiting for the gun, I remember talking to a very nervous young man for whom this was his first marathon, I reassured him that having done the training all he needed to do was pace himself.  I learnt that he was born and bred in Brooklyn and for him it was a lifelong ambition to join the thousands he had watched as he grew up. The marathon he said had changed the lives of many Brooklyners. I realise that Brooklyn is a big part of the New York culture, the food, the music, the fashion it has become a very popular place to hangout for people across the social spectrum. It took two miles across  the Verrazona Narrows Bridge before we saw the welcome to Brooklyn sign and with that  the support of the crowd was immense, my name on my top people showed their support by shouting words such as go girl, looking good, doing well this continued into Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx back to Manhattan for the Finish. I felt as though I had made a huge number of friends along the way, so humbling to see people supporting one another from different walks of life. I won’t forget miles 22-24 when fatigue set in and as struggled to keep pace, a gentleman in the crowd looked at me and shouted dig deep Janet.

I wonder how well the Christian journey reflects the kind of love for humanity through the eyes of Jesus Christ for people we know let alone those we don’t know. In his book Everything Belongs the author Richard Rohr says “The ability to respect the outsider is probably the litmus test of true seeing. Everything becomes enchanting with true sight. One God, one world, one truth, one suffering and one love. All we can do is participate”.  

The email from New York road runners a first for me was well received but I am very conscious of the fact that grace covers a multitude of human sin and it’s the only reason why anyone could call us incredible, a champion because in God’s eyes whatever we do and whoever we are, we are all incredible and champions in his sight.

The countdown begins

It’s not normal to get down on one’s knees to start a marathon that’s usually reserved for the sprinters among us of which I am not one. But even before lining up at the start I want to thank God for the opportunity to be amongst 47,000 people  who will gather from around the globe each of varying abilities to start a journey of discovery together. I think it’s not until you are well outside your comfort zone that you begin to appreciate God’s faithfulness and for each of us this happens at different times and in different circumstances. On Sunday when we set off from Staten Island with 26.2 miles ahead of us we will all be willing each other to have a good race and finish well.  Each person taking part whether a professional or a fun runner will each have their own story to tell. The Kenyan Tegla Loroupe the first African woman to win the race says this “ I went through a lot of hardship growing up in Kenya and running was my way out.  At first I competed just to beat my brothers and prove that girls can run, but soon I realised that running could open doors

As the runners gather in the athletes’ village with hours before the start of race no doubt we will share our stories and in some cases friendships will be formed.  It will no doubt be a time of anticipation, anxiety and excitement but the training is complete and all we can do is trust in God.
My race number 13-174, start time 9.40am (see route below)  With just 24hours to go the race is indeed before us

NYC Marathon start

NYC Marathon Finish

New York marathon….the race is on

With just one week to go to the New York marathon the clock is ticking and although the prospect feels somewhat daunting I am very excited. It’s good to know the training is complete and all I have to do now is rest, eat well and keep myself ticking over with a few short runs. I am eternally grateful to God to have got me this far as at one point I didn’t think it was going to be possible. My training started in May but in June it all seemed to be going wrong when I picked up a calf injury and soon after Achilles tendonitis. I now know the literal meaning of the term Achilles heal, as every athlete knows that even a small tear of the Achilles tendon takes months to repair. I am grateful to Bob Fudge at Windsor Slough Eton and Hounslow (WSEH) athletic club who after a series of intensive massages and physio, got me running again.

It was the middle of August before I was able to get back to serious training and thankfully although not fully recovered the injury didn’t get any worse and actually seemed better after a long run.

After a very slow painful 10 mile run on the 20^th August, painful because I was tired after a week at Soul survivor  I devised a training plan that I hoped would get me back on track which included a series of weekly runs totalling 45 – 55miles increasing weekly. This included two half marathons a month apart. I kept on track and was able to run my final run of 22.5 miles on the 15th October. This was an amazing feat as at 12 miles I was joined by Steve and Mike fellow runners at the Datchet Dashers running club, who provided me with the support I needed to complete the final 10 miles. Wow!! Isn’t God good, somehow at all the points when I needed encouragement the help was there in so many ways?

As I trained Matt Redman’s new album 10,000 reasons including my favourite track ‘Never once’ learnt at Soul Survivor was ringing in my ear another source of huge encouragement.

So here goes New York in a week’s time and believe or not i am looking forward to it.

Soul Survivor - LOVE never fails

This morning as I unpacked after Soul Survivor one of the first thing to come out of my suitcase was my hot water bottle that had kept me warm for the last five nights. It was a Christmas present from a very good friend, I think she thought it would  convince me sleeping in a tent wasn’t such a bad idea and would play a part in persuading me to attend Soul Survivor 2010.  It did and in more ways than one it was a pretty rewarding and amazing experience. Printed on it's warm soft outer clothes are the words LOVE and it reminded me of a seminar I attended on Romans 8 during the past week, verses 31- 39 talks of God’s love in Christ and asks the question “Who can separate us from the love of Jesus? Can troubles or problems or suffering or nakedness or hunger or danger etc. the passage finished with “nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord”.

Through the story of Joseph and his brothers we learnt about relationships this week we see that relationships are hard, difficult at times. As Joseph showed off to his brothers they hated him. He flaunted his dreams that made him appear superior to them, and as his father’s favourite son, he is given coat of many colours which made them hate him even more. Human beings experience a fair number of broken relationships and sadly jealousy is the cause of many, it drives people to do hateful things. For me this week was amazing because I had the chance to be with young people I haven’t seen in a while. Some since starting my role as Olympic and Paralympic Chaplin last September, I think young  people have a way of showing us adults what relationships are about. As always I had the dilemma should I go to Soul Survivor 2011 or not but in the end it was easy. I knew it wasn’t just about the wonderful worship but the friendships I had made during three years of curacy.  I felt at home in everyone’s company immediately and we got stuck in as we had done the previous year.

During the week we heard a great many testimonies of God’s love for us that he came to earth and died on a cross, shedding his blood to cleanse us from our sin We also heard testimonies from those new to the Christianity of what God’s been doing in their lives during the past 12 months.

A favourite song of mine this week is Matt Redman’s Never Once from his new album 10.000 reasons.

chorus:

Scars and struggles on the way,
But with joy our hearts can say,

Never once did we ever walk alone.
Never once did you leave us on our own.

You are faithful God, you are faithful.

That’s my testimony of the last year in particular. There have undoubtedly been some difficult moments but I know for sure that never once did I feel alone.

Of course on the final day as we packed up with exhausted bodies and souls to take the journey home and to eventually go our separate way perhaps for another year. I am again reminded of the words from Romans 8, nothing can separate from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord. Like the warmth of the hot water bottle - a gift, nothing will transform a person more than the gift of love. The hand of compassion, kindness and patience can often be God’s hand of provision to another person through us, which gives us the ability as Christians to transform our world.

A quote from Soul Survivor 2011
These sandwiches are not just ordinary sandwiches they were made with my love. Sam Price.

Slough celebrates children's right to play

I attended an event yesterday that was amazing.  I am not a child but Slough play day is a free event that celebrates children’s right to play and the importance of play in their lives. It is for kids of all ages and I mean all ages because judging from the faces of the parents there they enjoyed it as much as their children. The event took place in Salt Hill park from 12noon until 4pm and attracted around 3000 residents and this year for the first time Churches together in Slough took part providing free bottles of water, a bouncy castle and around the clock puppet shows from  Puppets for all’.

The puppets were great and children and adults alike loved them they provided the opportunity for families to hear the story of the parable of the foolish builder as well as joining in to Christian action songs which otherwise would not have been possible at an event of this nature. Puppet for all is based at St Peter’s church in Burnham and has been very popular in all age services, nursing homes and other gatherings
Play day provided a wonderful array of activities for children to try out  including: junk modelling, mobile play equipment, gymnastics/cheerleading, funfair games, disability sports , assault course , clay animals (arts and crafts), bicycle treasure hunt , smoothie bike , free tennis with GDT, the tennis centre in Salt Hill Park, mobile farm,

circus skills , hand puppets, fire engine,face painting, story telling and live music provided by SWIPE a local Youth group run especially to encourage young people’s musical skills and talents.

Megan Hurley, Slough Borough Council’s play coordinator, said: "Playing is a fundamental part of childhood and this is a great opportunity for children and their parents to try out new activities and new ways to play"

With the Olympics next year this is an example of the kind of community activities that churches could partner with their local council to provide and a way of spreading the good news of Jesus love to members of our communities.

Wouldn’t it be good to see events like this up and down the Diocese with the church at the centre.

Tree of light Project – Slough Town Centre Churches to get involved

At a meeting last night I learnt so much about trees. In just fifteen minutes I was amazed at how a group of people looking at a few postcards came up with such wonderful and creative images of the human interaction and ultimately our dependency on trees. One such image was the idea of trees watching us through history being there through time observing our relationships and interactions with one another.  With God in the midst of all that sustains and norishes we need strong roots that will enable us to grow and develop in all sorts of ways, to do this we must plant our roots deeply in the teaching of his word. This morning I read Psalm 126 a favourite of mine. A song of restoration when Israel returned from Babylonian exile, they hardly dared to believe it.  The joy for those who returned felt like a dream.  As I reflected on last night’s event to recruit volunteers to be part of the tree of light project  and as we celebrate ‘one year to go’ to London 2012, I wonder whether we will look back and see the opportunity of the Games  as a dream that we dare not believe that God could set before us.

The tree of light is one of four cultural Olympiad events across the UK.  It’s a large scale community event to take place in four locations Oxford, Henley, Reading and Windsor. It will be a visually stunning performance featuring music choreography and cutting edge digital arts in spectacular surrounding.  The project aims to encourage the excitement of the 2012 Games and will be shared by many thousands of people at community level.  The Slough town centre churches applied to take part and have been selected alongside other community groups to take part.  Christians will be encouraged through working with songwriters to use our Christian faith and bible knowledge to develop their own creative response and performance to one of the Tree of Light themes.

Anne Brown a member of the local Baptist church has the experience of managing a project of this scale is heading up the initiative. She says ” This came at the right time for me as this was just the sort of thing I wanted to get involved with, I felt very excited and enthusiastic about the project.  She goes on to say that “all that is needed is enthusiasm and a commitment to see the project through from beginning to end. Representing Christian values and beliefs and a passion to take part in arts activities and a large scale performance”

This is an amazing opportunity for Christians to be part of an amazing project and there is many more. In our Christian journey all that is needed is enthusiasm, commitment and a passion to be part of the God’s plan and purpose for his people. To hold firm to the teachings of the Gospel and represent Christian values and beliefs and see the journey through from beginning to the end.

When we look back on the London 2012 Games in years to come let’s not think of it as a dream but that we did everything we could to make it a reality that God could put such an opportunity before us to reach out to our communities and change lives for ever. 

http://www.racebeforeus.org.uk/

Church notices - It's just one year to go to the Olympics

It’s always a bit difficult to get church members to listen to the notices and then even more difficult for them to volunteer for things, the Olympics is no exception.  At the start of the service on Sunday If you were to ask the question "who can tell me what big event is happening next year in this country". Most people would respond the Queens Golden or is it her Diamond? never mind it’s one of her jubilees.  If you then probe a little with “Is there anything else going on”? then depending on where you are you could get it’s the Olympic thingy isn’t it? With a year to go tomorrow to the opening ceremony of the Olympics in London no longer can we call it the Olympic thingy because like it or not it’s happening and from here on end it will be coming very quickly. So will we as churches be ready to respond to Jesus call on us as Christians to serve our communities. We could be, because we are very well served by More than Gold a Christian organisation who can help us to be ready for the biggest party on earth. They have been around since 1996 and have the expertise and experience to help us plan and not be caught out at the last minute as we usually are, so don’t miss the boat let’s get planning.

There are many activities and events we can run, from children’s holiday clubs , sports clinics, big screen events the list is endless. It’s a great way to get the church out into the community.  You are not on your own there are many individuals, organisation, other churches who would like to do something but don’t know where to start.

Be the one to get a group of people together to form a committee and register as a Gold champion on the either the Racebeforeus http://www.racebeforeus.org.uk/or More than Gold http://www.morethangold.org.uk website.

Run the race

Local churches working together for the local community

A group of churches in South Bucks and Chiltern has grasped the opportunity to serve their community by planning a series of events and activities to take place during the Olympics and Paralympics Games. They see the Games as a once in a life time opportunity for local churches to show the world what we are about. Extending hospitality to our neighbours is a big part of the Christian ethos and there is no better time to demonstrate the love of Christ in its fullness by serving our community. Run the race is the name of the project which covers Hospitality, Outreach, Justice Prayer and Discipleship.  There is a lot that could be done and these areas help people consider where they might best focus their particular gifts.  A presentation by More than Gold at an event held on 18^th July at St James’ Gerard’s Cross  highlighted the need to build community relations, and sports is a good way to develop connections, bridge gaps that ultimately change lives. A further More than Gold evening to inspire members takes place at Goldhill Baptist Church on Thursday 21^st July.

For further information go to www.runtherace.org’uk.

Olympic 'one year to go' event unites community

Dorney Village

Olympic countdown event

22^nd-24^th July 2011

We are all very excited about the Olympics and Paralympics coming to Dorney, and having  met with the Bucks 2012 representative who advised that there are many opportunities available to the community and that the identification of a lasting legacy was important.  One enthusiastic villager took the initiative to form a committee to look at the opportunities available . The group came together on 21st June for the first time and those present represented the non-profit organisations in the village such as Playground4dorney, Youth Club, Village hall committee, Walk to school team and the Parish Church.

The possibility of organising a free, community weekend to celebrate ‘one year to go’ met with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. The aim to bring everyone together as well as help to dispel some of the anxiety for those who are concerned about the Games disrupting their lives.

The weekend was organised to include the following: 

Friday 22^nd July

Olympic themed Walk to School. Children to walk in sports gear, Flags, mock Olympic torch and possibility of an Olympic athlete to walk with the group. Olympic themed, healthy breakfast available at the school at the end of the walk. BBQ event with music late afternoon.

Saturday 23^rd July

Dorney one year Countdown Rowing challenge. Ergo machines in the village hall. Challenge for residents to row the 35 miles from Dorney host village to the Olympics village. a Fun Run for all abilities and a tennis competition.

Sunday 24^th July

Ergo challenge continues if miles have not been completed. Cadburys Spots and Stripes Olympic family afternoon. Olympics games for all. Competitions, prize giving. BBQ to run during the afternoon. Tuck shop, tea and coffee. Face painter to be invited to provide Olympic face designs.

The weekend of the event is fast approaching and villagers especially children and young people who have been busy making Olympic torches are all very excited.

We are praying for good weather and that many will turn out for the various events.

Put your church at the heart of your community

Community Festivals are a good way for churches to connect with their communities. See below for more information.

Are you planning, or thinking about running, a Community Festival? Then read on.

For you to run a Community Festival in response to the 2012 Games would be a smart move. And there's lots of help for you.

If you are in any doubt about what a Community Festival offers then click here - for our web pages. They tell you how a festival can -

· Put your church at the heart of your community

· Help you build lasting relationships

· Be a demonstration of what the Kingdom of God can look like

Think wider than the Games

There are opportunities for festivals even before the Games start. The Royal Wedding showed us that. Three possibilities are -

· The Diamond Jubilee - a special Bank Holiday on Tuesday 5 June

· St George's Day - run it the weekend before the actual day, Monday 23 April

· The European Cup - running from 8 June to 1 July

If you are first time to the concept of a Community Festival, any of these would be a great way to put your toe in the water.

More training dates added

To give you more opportunities to see a festival and learn the ropes we've added extra training dates. The details are on our website - just click here.

By taking part you'll get -

· A clear rationale for festivals as a way to do mission

· Training to define a vision for your festival

· Practical guidance - what works and what doesn't

· A fat resource pack

· Lots of ideas, resources and useful contacts

You will also meet a bunch of people just like you - to share ideas and the vision to reach their community. Even if you can't make the training come to experience what a festival offers.

The complete list of training dates is -

Tooting Junction, Saturday 2 July

Leyland, Lancashire. Saturday 9 July

Reading, Berkshire. Saturday 9 July

Headington, Oxfordshire. Saturday 16 July

Preston/Clayton Brook. Saturday 16 July

Bradfield, Essex. Saturday 30 July

Croydon, Surrey. Friday 5 to Sunday 7 August

Liverpool. Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 August

Aylesbury. Saturday 3 September

Festivals Guide Book now available

You can now find everything you need to know about running a community festival in one book. That's thanks to Share Jesus International.

They've done it despite being in the middle of their own festival season where they have seen festivals in Central London, Spelthorne and Sheffield. And report that 'sporting fever is creeping its way in with volleyball tournaments, Aerobics classes and street dance'.

To get hold of a copy of the Festivals Guide Book or find out more about their festivals just click here.

Download manuals ready soon

There will soon be a place where you can download manuals on subjects that include -

· An Introduction to Festivals

· Sharing your Faith at a Festival

· Puppets

· Clowning

· Building Festival equipment

It will all on the member's area of Fusion's 2012 website that opens in a week or so. There will be details in our next On Track eNews that you will receive.

Sorting the tricky issues for you

The BBC have announced that there is no need for a licence other than a regular TV licence to show their Games coverage on big screens - so long as the content is not messed with or charged for.

On the way from Fusion is an online shop with low-cost resources for festivals from balloon modelling to face painting, from Diablo to inflatable balls.

We've found a production company able to arrange Day/Night Screens and we'll have a manual on how you can do screens on a small budget by August.

We're currently sorting through how to best serve local groups with insurance, council permissions and forms to help simplify organising.

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The Games are coming our way and only 388 days to go

For most of us London 2012 will be a "once in a lifetime" opportunity to experience the world’s greatest sporting event on home soil here in the UK. - something we're not likely to forget. It’s been a year since I started the role as Diocese of Oxford Chaplain to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, initially for three days each week and then full time from September 2011, and so much has happened in that time. My first task was to meet Canon Duncan Green, the Church of England Chaplain and Faith Advisor to LOCOG. It was then important to meet others doing similar roles as well as other organisations and agencies getting ready for the Olympics and Paralympics. I soon realise that there was already quite a lot of work going on. In fact More than Gold a Christian organisation with experience of helping churches to engage with the Games was already years ahead. It was a pleasure to meet members of the team at More than Gold, their enthusiasm and insatiable appetite to share the good news of Jesus was a joy to behold. I was somewhat relieved that I wouldn’t have to work on this mammoth and challenging project on my own. The next task was to put together a committee who would support the role and assist with driving the project forward but first we needed someone with the right credentials willing to act as chairperson. I was delighted when Bishop Alan contacted me with the news that David Brodie, a Professor of Cardiovascular Health at the University of Buckingham and a member of St James’ Church Gerrards Cross had been invited to head up the committee. David and I met in August 2010 and soon realise that our passion for mission and a common interest in sport made us ideally suited to work together on a project of this nature. We set about planning our first committee meeting which took place in September 2010. An exciting meeting where Bishop Alan spoke to the group about the opportunity for the church to re-connect with our communities and the need to be intentional about mission. The challenges have been many but one of the most difficult came about when we had to change our logo ‘Challenge 2012’ when it was discovered that LOCOG forbids use of the numbers 2012 from any activity associated with the Olympic and Paralympic Games.  Going back to the drawing board however proved all was not lost and The Race

Before us’ our current logo proved to be a blessing.

For me the last 12 months has been a huge challenge but the joy and privilege of serving God in this way is even greater. The London 2012 Games will surely be an amazing event in all sorts of ways. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone in our communities including visitors across the UK had the opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel message? We hope that as many churches as possible will run all sorts of activities to coincide with the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The opening ceremony is a little short of 12 months to go and if we haven’t already done so we need to start planning in earnest now.

Current members of Challenge 2012 are:

Revd Charlotte Bannister - Parker -  The Bishop's Adviser for Overseas Programmes

Revd Dr Michael Beasley – Diocesan Director of Mission
Revd Janet Binns – Diocese of Oxford Olympic and Paralympic Games Chaplain.
Revd Andrew Blyth – Vicar St Mary’s Church Aylesbury
Prof David Brodie – (Chairman) Professor of Cardiovascular Health - University of Buckingham
Revd Simon Cansdale – Vicar Great Chesham
Steven Dass – Secretary
David Gambier – Diocesan Advisor travel and tourism
Canon Duncan Green – C of E Olympic and Paralympic Chaplain and Faith Advisor to LOCOG

Revd Lucy Holt – Vicar of Eton Eton Wick & Dorney
Sarah Meyrick – Diocesan Director of Communications
John Underwood – Head teacher Chalfont St Peter C of E Academy
Steve Ward – South East area Co-ordinator  ‘More than Gold’
Bishop Alan Wilson – Bishop of Buckingham

Please join with us in praying for the London Olympic and Paralympic Games 2012, and watch out for news and information about ways in which you might get involved. For information simply log on to The Race Before Us or More than Gold websites and register as a gold champion for your church or to receive up to date information. Look out for year to go events.

Websites: www.racebeforeus.org.uk and www.morethangold.org.uk