Back from Lee Abbey

Happy days… just back from a course at Lee Abbey focusing on Messy Church with about 20 wonderful people, ranging from those who were already running their own Messy Church to those who were really there for a nice time by the sea, and why not? It was a lovely group of enthusiastic generous people and we had some very interesting discussions.
My favourite was the Messy Discipleship discussion. On that subject, though not there and then, one person at a lunch table had said, ‘Oh yes, I was brought up in a Christian household.’ ‘How do you know?’ I enquired, keen to collect thoughts on how people ‘do discipleship’ at home. ‘Um… well, I don’t really know… I suppose my parents took me to church.’ ‘But did you do anything specifically Christian at home?’ ‘Well, no’ Interesting.
In the group, specifically Christian input ranged from prayers at bedtime to saying grace before meals. ‘We sound like Victorians!’ sniggered someone, when Family Bible Reading was mentioned. Our conversation about how Messy Church might be a vehicle for re-introducing parents to the concept that they can do faith at home was very thought-provoking.