Blessing is about becoming small so someone else can become big. 
It's about kneeling down before someone. It is good to kneel down before God, good to remember that he is bigger than greater than we are, too wonderful for us to understand. It's good to get lost in the vastness of God.
There are lots of songs that help us to bless God. 10,000 Reasons has become a classic. If you don't know it please do check it out. It will do your soul good, as will any way that you bless the Lord.
Now here's the bit that may surprise you. Blessing is a two way thing. We bless God and God blesses us. He becomes small so that we can become big. He comes down to our size and welcomes us into his vastness.
Many years ago the priests were called to pray God's blessing on people: 'The Lord bless you and take care of you. The Lord shine his face on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his face to you and make things go well for you.'* 
Try to imagine it for moment: God stooping down to us, giving us favour, shining his light upon us.
Sounds good, doesn't it? We are going to explore this at our  all-age service on Sunday. We'll start with 10,000 Reasons and take it from there. 
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* Numbers 6:24-26






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 'The one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.' (Hebrews 2:11, NIV)
We are of the same family as Jesus. That's what the early church said, and it's what Jesus said to Mary Magdalene just after the resurrection. He calls his disciples his brothers and sisters. He calls his Father their Father, his God their God.
There isn't much difference between us and Jesus. We share his life. He is in us; we are in him. The love God has for his Son is in us.
Pretty good, isn't it?
I'm not sure I can describe it much further, except to say that a good look at Jesus will open you up to all sorts of possibilities. The resurrection of Jesus looks weird, but it's a weirdness that draws us in to the one thing that makes sense.
Blessed are those who have not seen but have believed.
We celebrate the resurrection this Sunday from 9:00am, with breakfast, communion and all age worship. We will take a good long look at Jesus. You are invited. 

John's gospel tells us that a soldier pierced Jesus' side and out came a sudden flow of blood and water. 
Jesus was dead. But water and blood were already flowing from him.
It's what he said - if we ask him he will give us running water, and if we drink that water we will never be thirsty again. 
The water he gives us becomes a spring that wells up to eternal life.
You may think I'm talking a load of jargon here.  But it's not really hard; it's about recognising  Jesus as the source of eternal life and receiving it.
Jesus cried out from the cross: 'I am thirsty.' The one who promised running water was drained dry. He stands alongside all who are drained dry today. But from deep within flows life that has no limit.
He calls us to drink his blood. We act that out in our worship. The life of the body is in the blood. And we receive his life in the ultimate blood transfusion. 
Ask Jesus for life this Easter. We'll look further at our Good Friday service, this Friday at 10:00am.

It's a small detail in the gospel story but it is an important one. After the events of Psalm Sunday some Greek people went to Philip who went and told Andrew who went and told Jesus. Their request was simple. They wanted to see Jesus.
It's important because it was what Jesus' opponents feared. It seemed to them as if the whole world was going after Jesus. 
It's important because Jesus was about to be 'lifted up'  on a cross so that he could draw all people to himself.
Read that last sentence again, until you get it.
The cross is a big signpost. Look here! You will see who God really is. You will see love poured out beyond any limit. It becomes a sort of magnetic attraction or, perhaps better, a voice gently calling us home.  Our accusers are defeated. Love has won.
God didn't send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save it.
The bread of God has come down from heaven and given life to the world.
God reveals himself in many ways but this is the ultimate.
I can't prove it. I can only ask you to look until you get it.
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Sometimes we human beings get it spectacularly right. 
We often get it wrong and the wise know it deeply.  If you know the Easter story  feel free to compile a list of people who got it spectacularly wrong. Start with Judas and take it from there.
But the Easter story also tells us about people who got it spectacularly right:

• A  woman who poured expensive oil over Jesus' head. Jesus said it was beautiful and that her story would be told wherever the gospel is proclaimed.
• A teacher of the Law who agreed with Jesus that love was more important than sacrifices in the Temple. Jesus told him he wasn't far from the kingdom of God.
• A bandit  who recognised that Jesus had done nothing wrong and who asked Jesus to remember him. Jesus said that  he would be with him in paradise.
• A centurion who saw the death of Jesus and decided that he was, after all, the Son of God.

This Sunday we are going to celebrate the people who got it right. Let's make it a good one.