Throw Away Prayers

Having done about 400 of the 550 miles that day, I figured I was due a break of longer than it took to refuel the bike. So, I rode about 300 metres down past the pumps and parked in shady spot before launching back onto the Dutch motorway.

Short moments of still, quiet, reflection are precious on a long journey. As traffic thunders past on the other side of the trees, I quench my thirst and get some sugar intake.

As I begin the ritual of putting on my helmet, shades and gloves before firing the trusty HD into life, I notice a small scrap of paper on the tarmac below the bike.


On closer inspection, it’s a paper dart with the words, ..’please pray for . . ‘ visible on the upside of one of the wings. I recognised it as similar to the little prayer card things that are often in the chapel in prison.

As I stooped down and opened it, I read the scrawly pencilled words also in English; ‘..nobody, because there are no god.’

Some years ago, Tom Petty sang, ‘Even the losers get lucky sometimes’. Maybe also, even now, the throw away prayers don’t necessarily fall on deaf ears.

Summer Updates

Just a few news updates for Zac's through the month of August. ...

Thursday eve Coffee Bar will be on a break through August, resuming 3 Sep. Some will be providing a soup run at around 9pm in town instead.

Tuesday 'Tribal Gatherings' will be on a break on 18 & 25th August and on 4th and 11th we welcome representation from 'Fresh Expressions' (the joint Methodist and Anglican crew exploring different concepts of church community), to see what we are up to and get some stories for their monthly podcast.

Discussions also continue about the options for starting a monthly Sunday night gathering at HQ this Autumn - more to follow . . . .

Facebook Feedback

For those on 'Facebook' you like to know that there is a Zac's Place 'group' - a space available for comment and discussion.
It has been encouraging to read comments, particularly about people's first experiences of Zac's Place - as folks folks have come along for many and varied reasons.

Here's a recent entry for your encouragement:
"My first experience of Zac's place..........hard to remeber. To be honest I was so off my face during that period ofmy life......? One thing that i will never forget is that it is where I first found Christ. Not in a head knowledge way but in a deep, heart knowledge. It was the first place I found Gods unconditional love, acceptance and grace in action. Not people talking it but people living it. Authentic faith and deeds in action."

For Facebook users you'll find the group here: Zac's Place Facebook Group

Final Curtains

This past week has as usual been varied at Zac's Place. It has however been particularly marked by the final performances from JEMS Drama School here at Zac's - infact not just here, but anywhere as Jayne winds the school up after ten years of wonderful creativity. As usual the kids pulled all the stops out and last thursday's final night was not just a great performance but also very emotional; especially as some of the older kids have been involved for the whole ten years. Many of the folks that come through this building are tortured souls, so I shall miss the sound of laughter from the fifty or so drama school youngsters even more so.

As I write and prep for tonight's Tribal Gathering at Zac's - with the images of Michael Jackson's Memorial Service in the news, (but not much about the 7/7 victims), we'll ironically be looking at 'lament' and 'grief', (in the context of Old Testament geeza David in 2 Samuel 1); Lament and grief are two things I really don't think we're very good at in our culture. Tragedy is easier to deal with if it's a news story or a spectacle . . . lament is possibly what we should do with our questions and struggle when there aren't any obvious answers, but we cling to a bigger picture.

On a lighter note, it was good to welcome year ten students to Zac's this afternoon, from a local school, to come and hear some stories and look at the artwork - Doris continues to be a star attraction - based on, yup, 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted'!

A Window Into Zac's Place

Zac's can be a bit of a mad house sometimes, it's also a haven of peace in a storm and a punch bag amid pain.
One of our regulars at the Tribal Gatherings, Liz, is also a regular blogger.
Here's a link to her blog, with a filter on it for the Zac's related posts, in which she share's her reflections and observations amid the kaleidascopic experience. Feel free to take a look if your interested:
Liz's Zac's Place Reflections . . . .

Tony Campolo Interview

Ok - He's an American and he's a preacher. But don't let that put you off. He's vastly different to most of them.
He's as passionate about advocating the rights of the poor and vulnerable as much as ever. Now in his 70's, here's a very recent radio interview link that he did last week with BBC Radio Wales. You'll need 20 mins or so, but it's well worth it.

Tony Campolo - BBC Radio Wales 14/6/09

The Gospel According To Nick Griffin . . .

Having seen the BNP's Nick Griffin being interviewed late last night on Sky news, as the European election results were being announced, I am a little confused. Mr Griffin stressed the importance of the UK being a Christian country and all residents should adopt Christian principals such as his own. I wonder which principals he means? Could it be the loving your neighbour or indeed your enemies ones? Or maybe it's the cross cultural connections that Jesus made cutting across all religious and racial divides when he spent time in the company of Samaritans amongst others? Absolutely bizarre. There We Are Then.

Street Football Wales - fundraising concert in Swansea

A Night to Remember!!!


Street Football Wales (SFW) to host a fundraising concert in Swansea.

As part of SFW's continued efforts to raise funds for the Street Football league and the Homeless World Cup Team, a concert has been arranged to take place on Saturday May 9th at Llewellyn Hall, Swansea YMCA. The Morriston Phoenix Choir will be performing alongside the Swansea Young Single Homeless Project Dance Troupe, the Disconnected and special guest Steve Balsamo!, (of The Story's, Jesus Christ Superstar and also currently performing with Jon Lord on International dates).

There is a lot of work involved in preparing for the concert and those involved in Street Football Wales continue to give up a huge amount of their free time in an effort to ensure the success of the league and the Welsh Dragon's participation in the Homeless World Cup.

If you are reading this and are in or around Swansea, come along and support SFW - tickets for the concert are a bargain at £5 each! Order your tickets by contacting streetfootballwales@hotmail.co.uk.

SUPPORT IT IF YOU CAN . . . . . .

Apprentices On The Road - Spring Harvest

Most of what I seem to get involved in is pretty well out there on the fringes when it comes to church related activity. Spring Harvest however is an exception, having been involved in numerous capacities since it's very early days in the late 70's. For those not in the know, SH is an annual multi week church based conference style family event spanning many denominations and attracts around 45,000 people in total each Easter. It's accommodated at Butlin's sites in Minehead and Skegness. There's bits of it that make me cringe and frustrate me, but I can't deny that certainly as a younger person there were some key moments for me in my Christian journey that Spring Harvest helped shape and it continues to encourage many in their faith and I am pleased to have the opportunity to be involved.

Over the years having been on the youth team as a speaker, detached youth worker, musician and in more recent years the pastoral team. In this role I have been running 'Just Looking' groups, specifically for those who attend SH who question much of what they see and want a safe space to ask questions and discuss life, faith and whatever else comes up. In practice this means over the course of the week about twenty folks come along and enjoy honest and open discussion not too disimilar to our Zac's tribal gatherings on a tuesday eve - but without the chaos!


In the wider programme the theme was 'Apprentice - walking the way of Christ' - the logo for which was a pair of old boots. As the week went on my own boots gradually desintegrated - if only replicating the way of Christ was as straightforward as that!

Is This A Road I Have To Go Down?

To continue the Holy Week theme,I couldn't resist putting in the following clip from local fella, Steve Balsamo singing 'Gethsemane'. Captures the the moment fantastically...

Performance of this show-stopping song at Ahoy, Holland in June 2004 by Steve Balsamo, who starred in the London West End Revival production of Jesus Christ Superstar in 1996/97 at The Lyceum, and tours and records with The Storys currently.

Hero To Villain? - Palm Sunday Reflection

Today is what in the Church Calendar is called 'Palm Sunday' - celebrated a week before Easter. Traditionally it's the day when we reflect on Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem amid the welcoming enthusiasm of the crowds that had caught on to Lazarus' raising among other things.

This scenario and the following Easter week is full of contrasts - betrayal and trust, love and hate, denial and faith, justice and coercion, mercy and brutality. I can't help thinking of the bizarre turnaround from the outpouring of emotion of the 'Palm Sunday' moment to the same crowd calling for His execution one week later. Sure they wanted a deliverer, but Jesus didn't fit the mould for their kind of warrior saviour. The crowd wavered in it's support and opinion over these days, but the message and actions of Christ remained constant as indeed it still does - amid our often wavering still.

The full horror and delicate beauty of the Easter week is not contained in a sanitized pic and mix saviour to make us feel good for five minutes to suit our wants, but in the stark reality of a sacrificial ragamuffin saviour bringing hope to a weary and wounded world. How we see the Christ of Easter and how we see the people around him at that time, will have a huge bearing on how we may or may not choose to follow Him. Me, I'll hang on to the hope that while everything around Christ was shifting he stayed true to what needed to be done and for that I am eternally grateful.

Sean
....................................................................................................
The Palm Sunday story is contained in Chapter 12 of John's Gospel which can be found here
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2012&version=65

Coincidence

The telephone goes; it's that mate that's been on your mind all day. For some reason you take the second left, not the first and you find a stranger needing help. You feel like giving up and moving on and a reminder stares you in the face to hang in there, keep going and not give up.

Telepathy? Good fortune? A Lucky day? or just Coincidence? In his book 'Wishful Thinking', the writer Frederick Beuchner writes of the word, 'coincidence':

"I believe that people laugh at coincidence as a way of relegating it to the realm 
of the absurd and of therefore not having to take seriously the possibility 
that there is a lot more going on in our lives than we either know or care 
to know. Who can say what is going on, but I suspect that a part of it 
is that every once and so often we hear a whisper from the wings that goes 
something like this: You've turned up in the right place at the right time. 
You're doing fine. Don't ever thing that you've been forgotten."

Bushfires

Today as Australia mourns, I too remember dear friends and brothers and sisters in Australia going through dark days. Even within the family that is God's Squad and St. Martin's, (my ordaining church), there are those who have lost their loved ones and their homes. There are others too who fought the fires and others who in their capacity as chaplains and pastors have much to do. May God grant them strength and grace.

Helsinki . . . to Minehead?

Not had chance to right much of late. But recent days have seen such diversity amid much activity sometimes you only get chance to take in what's happening when you write it down.

Was in Finland the weekend before last, (flew out Friday, back Sunday), on God's Squad duties visiting the Finnish chapter. Much road travel, little sleep and feeling full of flue, but had an encouraging time with the guys - the 'Dutch' were also visiting, so it was never going to be quiet. The ministry of God's Squad in the bike scene continues to be effective on many levels and it's rewarding to see the development of the new chapters in Europe with the challenges of not only language but also diverse church and bike scene cultures. Got back into Heathrow shortly before they closd it due to snow - kind of ironic having just come from Finland where packed ice and snow is normal on the roads for months on end!

The next week or so saw the regular Zac's Place gatherings and another funeral to take in Reading. It's been a rough ride for mate's up there. From their close knit brotherhood, three guys from their club have died in the last eight months, the second just a few weeks ago. Amid the heartache, it remains an honour to be entrusted with the responsibility to help steer people through dark days. I try to keep things real and honest in the hope that it helps a little.

Back to Swansea for more Squad related events and meetings on the Saturday and then in Swansea Prison first thing Sunday morning to take the services there. Jail is always a favourite gig! Especially Swansea as there's so many familiar faces in there! Also get the tragic news from friends in Australia the some have lost their homes and one dear brother has lost his two daughters - the faces on my God's Squad photo montage at Zac's help us to remember them in our prayers tuesday night. Dark days indeed for some.

A couple of local Church meetings and time to spend with the family and then hit the road again on Sunday for the Minehead gig. It's a one off Zac's Place 'on the road' Songwriters circle (see post below). Am looking forward to it as Lorraine, Phil and Rob have been three of the most supportive musicians in the 10 years of Zac's Place.

So there we go, Helsinki to Minehead - it's the usual diverse mix of people, places and emotions. All the more reason to hang to that which never changes.

Zac's Place - On The Road Gig - Minehead

Sunday night Feb 15, sees Sean hosting a night of music and banter in good Zac's tradition from the trio that is Lorraine King, Rob Ash and Phil James at the Regal Theatre, Minehead.

Live Music at Zac's Place - some discussion....

Since Zac's Place began as, 'Zac's Place - Church in a Pub?' just over ten years ago, great quality live music was an essential part of everything that took place in the four different pubs we used; Over 300 gigs in fact, lost count of the number of artists, five TV programmes with ITV Wales, several other documentaries for TV and radio plus festival stages. Musicians such as Martyn Joseph, Phil James, Rob Ash, Lorraine King, Bill and Rachel Taylor Beales, Julia Harris have all been regulars on gig listings. Guests for TV and festival stages have included Glenn Kaiser, Rick Elias, Mike Peters, Mal Pope, The Electrics, Ben Castle and many others as well. The quirky TrifleSky and innovative Iain Hornal made their mark alongside the metal of Kosher and in more recent months it was great to run the stage and host a fundraiser with The Story's.

Since having our own venue over recent times it's been good to have the occasional gig and this past year we've had guest: Bryn Haworth, Martyn Joseph, Rob Halligan, Julia Harris, Rachel Taylor-Beales and Sir Silence and then just last week After The Fire. Swansea continues to be a frustrating place to put on gigs, especially paying ones. In the main we've managed to make this years gigs work out OK and I want to maintain some sort of momentum into next year.

One option is to introduce a regular monthly gig - something like a Sunday Night Live at Zac's. Charge a little bit on the door cover all the costs and on a busy one might even make a bit towards the charitable work we continue to be involved in among the marginalised.

Ten years on and Zac's Place has moved on - we're a 'Church for Ragamuffins' - but I still passionately believe in the importance of the voice of the artist - as unpredictable and chaotic as it may be sometimes; I still believe in giving artists a platform for their creativity. So my friends - musos, artists, fellow pilgrims - is there any mileage in some regular gigs? Is it something you'd support? Let me know - lets bat it around for a bit........

Cheers and God bless

Sean

ATF GIG

Well, After The Fire came to Zac's to play their first gig in Swansea since 1981 and what a good night it was! Thanks to all those who came out to support it. Thanks too to Pete, John and the lads for making the journey and we hope it serves as a fitting start to their Autumn tour. It was a bonus getting them an interview and live session on BBC Radio Wales on the Fri night too. Rob Halligan grew in confidence taking the lead vocal role as his first full gig with ATF, and was good to see him again. Zac's is a long way from the venues and stadiums they played in with the likes of Queen and ELO in the 80's, but it was great to hear the songs are still alive and kicking and back on the road again.

AFTER THE FIRE PRE-GIG VIDEO...TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE

TICKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE FOR THE ATF GIG THIS SATURDAY AT ZAC'S PLACE - BOOK ONLINE FOR £10 OR ON THE DOOR FOR £12....

Here's a pre gig preview vid...

After The Fire Tour rehearsal and preview...

Only a few week to go before the After The Fire gig at Zac's - here's a snippet.

......The Persecuted

On a day when I was reading some news stories about the persecution of Christians in Iraq, the tragic shooting of 34 year old Gayle Williams by the Taleban in Kabul, Afghanistan also hit the headlines. Her body was peppered with bullets as she made her way to her office where she volunteered for a charity working among people with disabilities.




Taleban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told AFP that they killed Ms Williams "because she was working for an organisation which was preaching Christianity in Afghanistan"

At Zac's Place we have an art commission based on the Beatitudes. We shall be adding Gayle's name to the sculpture that was inspired by Jesus words 'Blessed are the persecuted...' It depicts hundreds of faces and hundreds of crosses separated by a river of blood and barbed wire, symbolizing those imprisoned and martyred for the Faith in recent years.



For those choosing to work in hostile environments takes courage born of faith and their stories should not just remain a story, but a challenge. It will never cease to amaze me just how threatening a life lived in love can be...


My prayers are for Gayles colleagues and family - for her, I am sure she is now indeed Blessed.