Millwood, The Geese and St Peters

We’re in our stride now, and coping with the Met-Office-official heatwave.  (Why do vegans never protest against hosepipe bans on the grounds of speciesism?)  Lizzie’s coming down from London, so Mary and I can have lunch with her after church.  There’s a busy day ahead.  I start early and knock up the obligatory seven kilometre jog to Ovingdean and back.  At breakfast, Ali tells us that both her Mum and Len’s are giving concern in their respective residential homes, resulting in middle-of-the night call ups.  

Millwodd community centre

The local congregation’s 11am meeting is in the community hall in the centre of the Kingswood estate.  Confusingly, it’s called Millwood, but we’ve now mastered the route to walk there.  Dave arrives without Helen, who’s in China on a school trip.  Louis picks some interesting songs.  Len invites folks to talk about the previous day’s pastoral training session, and Steven gives us an update on Jesus Centres.  We share the bread and wine, and Len leads a bible study from Romans 8.  Mary and I leave as lunch is served, because we have to find The Geese, where Lizzie has booked a table.

The weather called for some air conditioning, but we settled for a shaded corner, and ordered the traditional roast.  “Hidden secret, this place,” Lizzie confides, as she helps herself to more cauliflower cheese.  It was very good food.  Wear a black teeshirt and sport your tats if you really want to feel at home.  We decide to stroll down to the front for an ice cream.  It’s so busy that we opt to take a bus to the Marina. 

Lizzie, the fully-adjusted Londoner, has no cash, whereas Mary and I rely on bus passes.  I hadn’t been anywhere other than the Marina's Asda petrol station.  I’m pleasantly surprised by the harbours and the general ambiance, and won over by Five Guys milk shake.  When it’s time to head back to town for Lizzie’s train home, we discover that she can’t use her Uber account and Mary’s lost her bus pass – probably dropped on the outward journey.  Notwithstanding, we get to the Station on time, and then Mary and I saunter down to St Peters for the ‘Six’.

Archie Coates - St Peters

While this has been going on, Len and Ali have been running around attending to ‘the grans’.  Malcolm found himself locked out, and Steven walked the length and breadth of Brighton in search of a bottle of cold water.  He texts his apology for not joining us. 

At St Peters, Louis plonks himself down next to us.  The worship runs at a cracking pace and volume, despite the temperature.  Archie Coates encourages us to bring the best out in each other, and to learn how to confront in love.  This is a rerun of the sermon that Chris gave in Sheffield a month ago (even based on the same book).  It’s also sprinkled with references to Brené Brown, as was Steve’s message at the January Northampton celebration.  What is it about the Christian scene, that we’re recycling the same material?  (Or am I being harsh?  Actually, I don’t want to detract from St Peters: I do like what I’ve sampled.)

World Cup match on Luna Cinema

Mary and I walk home past the big open-air cinema screen.  I’m amazed that she’s kept going in the heat, as she generally wilts once the temperature tops 20C.  I’m the other way round.  If it wasn’t for what Jesus said, I’d opt for a theology where hell is cold.  Lizzie sends Mary a message to expect that her bus pass will have been handed in, like several things she’s left on the Tube.  But the customer service number is on answerphone until 7am tomorrow.  Len’s Mum has been taken into hospital, and Ali goes to join him at 10pm.  I wander off to bed, humming Bright City’s ‘Rock of our Salvation’.