Oops!

This morning at church, I had to speak about the 10 lepers from Luke 17. I'd been at conference yesterday and so was shattered and didn't prepare, which actually meant simply printing off my vicar's 10 paragraph assessment of the episode, ready to read out. We were late for church this morning and I faced a decision: either I print off the sheet and whizz off in the car, husband and girls following on, when husband gets out of shower or I stay - don't print off sheet and we all go together, albeit late. I chose the latter. I suspected that in church the piece of paper would have been printed off anyway - in the past I'd only ever ended up bringing a duplicate. But for the first time my reliance on others did fail and no - I'd messed up by not printing it off. I worked out that there was indeed no duplicate copy just 5 mins before I was due up so I prayed during the hymn beforehand - simply - Lord - be with me- and he was and I took the mike from the assistant vicar. I spoke about Luke 17, off the cuff, and I loved doing it. I felt I really engaged with what this story means because as I spoke I was working it out for myself at the same time. I looked at the congregation rather than a sheet and saw their faces looking back - I looked at all the children and tried to get them to understand what leprosy was like, how important it was that this man should present himself to the high priest and that Jesus wants to restore us and make us whole. You know it gave me such a wonderful feeling to be standing there as we all tried to understand this story together, having to relate it in such a way so that 'all ages' could understand it.

I really want to do this with the rest of my life - and all the other stuff that goes along side it, the stuff that perhaps challenges me even more. I think there's a reason why sometimes we perhaps aren't meant to prepare, perhaps God can reveal things to us more clearly when we haven't thought to try and work it all out before-hand. Oh and the vicar didn't seem to mind either - phew!