Still not shopping!

It's very strange - I still haven't been out to buy my new jeans, hair dye and new shoes. This is not a moral crusade to keep the Lent thing going into the rest of the year it is because of two things. 1. I just haven't had time - ridiculously busy with work, family and writing essays. 2. I'm just not feeling that motivated to shop. It is as though I've broken a habit.

I dare say it won't last but it feels funny now.

Meanwhile - on the good book front, Finding Sanctuary by Abbott Christopher Jamieson (Abbott of Worth Abbey), is a great read. Lots of practical advice and sage wisdom about slowing down a bit and creating space. When I have time I'll finish reading it!

A wife who waddles

I've been slaving away (well, trying to) on an essay about George Eliot (aka Mary Anne Evans), a forerunner of the humanist movement. In my reading, I came across this wonderful passage from her first novel, Adam Bede:

"I have seen many an excellent matron, who could have never in her best days have been handsome, and yet she had a packet of yellow love-letters in a private drawer, and sweet children showered kisses on her sallow cheeks. And I believe there have been plenty of young heroes, or middle stature and feeble beards who have felt quite sure they could never love anything more insignificant than a Diana, and yet have found themselves in middle life happily settled with a wife who waddles. Yes! Thank God: human feeling is like the mighty rivers that bless the earth: it does not wait for beauty - it flows with restless force and brings beauty with it."

Amen

A God For All Seasons...

This is a book I read recently by Sue Haydon-Knowell. It's for Christian women and addresses the different 'seasons' she may experience during her life. It particularly addresses singleness, marriage and motherhood. Now, I am usually very suspicious of books for Christian women, but this has come highly recommended.

Although I don't see exactly eye-to-eye with Sue on issues like male headship and feminist ideas, I found the book really refreshing. She speaks a lot about how we allow our attitudes (good and bad) to influence the way we live in each 'season' of our lives and our relationship with God as a result. She speaks about God's love and acceptance of us just as we are and encourages us to make more time for prayer. Being a person who's completely rubbish at prayer, it really encouraged me to make more of an effort and to think more about the way I pray.

Prayer tips anyone? What do you find helpful?

It's not easy being green

Despite me really enjoying (no, really) getting the bus to the station in the morning during Lent, I have returned to my faithful car since Easter. Why? Well, my bus pass expired and they've put the flipping prices up.

Forgive me for having a rant, but why are the Government encouraging us to 'go green' but continuing to make it more and more expensive? I want to get the bus, I really do. It reminds me that I'm part of a community and gives the added bonus of not polluting. But driving is simply much cheaper (and I don't have to panic about missing the bus!).

PS Where has the lovely sunny weather gone?

blogging away

I for one have really enjoyed blogging my experiences throughout the no new shoes project and a couple of people have asked whether the blog would continue post-Lent.

I think it would be a good idea for it to continue, perhaps addressing wider issues of Christian living and whatever thoughts tend to come our way. Posts might not be so frequent, but it's been great to share our thoughts and challenges and it would be a shame if all that ended.

So here's to the next stage in the life of no new shoes!

Watch this space...

Over and out

Well - I made it. I know than compared to most challenges, this wasn't that hard. But it was thought provoking. I realised just how much I normally snack in a day; how much time I spend mulling books or CDs to buy; how little time I spend thinking about the consequences of what I buy - the effect it has on the world and on me. I don't claim to be a radically new person at the end of this, but I am grateful for the chance to take part and the steadying influence you have all had - I would lasted about a week if it was only up to me.

Next year? Yes.

Toby

HAPPY EASTER!

Thanks for all the support, during our Lent experiment - do you think we should challenge the whole Methodist Church to have a go next year?

In a pause between mouthfuls of chocolate, I offer you:

A PRAYER
When everything was dark
and it seemed that the sun would never shine again,
your love broke through.
Your love was too strong, too wide, too deep for death to hold.
The sparks cast by your love dance and spread
and burst forth with resurrection light.

Gracious God, we praise you for the light of new life
made possible through Jesus.
We praise you for the light of new life
that shone on the first witnesses of resurrection.
We praise you for the light of new life
that continues in our hearts today.
We pray that the Easter light of life, hope and joy
will live in us each day;
and that we will be bearers of that light into the lives of others. Amen.