I’ve just got back from preaching at Rochester Cathedral at tonight’s Saints Alive Celebration. I was really nervous about this, and don’t think I have been this nervous about talking for a long time. What I said seemed to go down OK – although one illustration may have raised a few eyebrows – lets just say I don’t think anyone else has used the word willy in the cathedral before! I did use it to illustrate misunderstandings rather than to shock – honest! I spoke around the subject of Hope and how can help others experience hope in our community.

The most exciting part of the evening was seeing our friend Lucy talk about Love Gillingham to 300 people in the cathedral. She was simply fantastic and when she finished there was spontaneous applause for her words. At the end a youth group leader asked her to go and speak to their youth group about Love Gillingham. This is really excellent – and seeing Lucy grow in confidence over the last few years has been a sheer joy as well as exciting to see.

After the service I went of with two great friends – the 2 Becky’s – for a drink at Wetherspoons. We came up with a plan to transform Medway … so watch this space!