Quarantine Journal

In my justly unfamous Plague Journals I reflected in harrowing detail on the stresses and strains of my transformation from old school preacher to 21st century Cyber Pastor. I can now Zoom with the best of them, although linking the platform with Facebook Live is still a bit hit and miss. And when I say 'with the best of them', that was a idle boast, really. I mean, some flashy churches do stuff like getting their worship band to play and sing together, despite being in different homes. We just stream Aber hymns. 

Ebenezer Baptist Church started gathered worship services at the beginning of August. It was good to be able to preach to a living, breathing congregation, rather than a pixelated version. The Chapel has no internet connection, but I managed to stream the service to FB Live using my mobile phone for the benefit of those unable to attend. At Providence Baptist Church we await the completion of major building works before we can meet at the Chapel. Hopefully it won't be too long before we can gather.

Like many other churches, even when both of ours are able to meet for worship, that will only be for one service a week, with other things continuing online so long as the government's Covid Secure guidance applies in its current form. 

We had a nice holiday in Biarritz in the Basque region of France from 4-18 August. I visited the city when Interrailing  as a student back in 1989. I remember hoping that if a girl I had my eye on and me got together, I'd like to take her to Biarritz one day. It seemed such a lovely, romantic place. Reader, I married her and 29 years since Sarah and I got hitched I finally whisked her off to the South of France. 

We booked the holiday back in January, way before the coronavirus outbreak came to dominate everything. For months it looks as though we wouldn't be able to go. Then the government opened an 'air corridor' to France and we were off.  Covid cases were low in the Basque region, but we kept an eye on UK news, as it became apparent that infections were on the up in France as a whole. Soon enough the 'air corridor' was slammed shut again on Saturday 15 August. But we didn't join the stampede to beat the deadline and avoid having to self-isolate for 14 days, 

While on holiday we enjoyed spending time on the beaches of Biarritz, exploring the town and eating out at local restaurants, We often went for evening walks to watch the sun go down and saw some amazing sunsets. When on holiday Sarah likes soaking up the rays, while I huddle under a parasol reading books, popping out several times during the day for a swim in the sea. I read Rorke's Drift: A New Perspective, by Neil Thornton and Interpreting Eden, by Vern Poythress. I almost finished The Mystery of Christ: His Covenant & His Kingdom, by Samuel Renihan and made a good start on The Care of Souls: Cultivating a Pastor's Heart by Harold Senbbeil. 

The second of the four titles was for review in the Banner Magazine and I've been asked to delay posting a my impressions on the blog until its published there. I'm currently working on a review of the third book, which I've now finished. Still reading the last one. I liked the first two or three chapters very much. The author's gentle pastoral heart shines through every page. But his Lutheranism seems to get more pronounced as the book proceeds. Talk of crucifixes and the like doesn't sit well with me as a Grace Baptist Pastor, but there are good things here too, with a strong emphasis on Word and Spirit in ministry. 

When on holiday we found an English speaking CofE congregation in Biarritz. They had a Lutheran pastor take the service on the first Sunday we were there, but had no preacher for the second Sunday. They knew I was a minister because we made contact with a member of the group before we set off for France. I ended up preaching the second Sunday, on Matthew 15:21-28, which was one of the Lectionary readings of the day. I wondered how I might go down with the people, as they weren't used to your typical Reformed Baptist preaching, but I felt helped and they've invited me to preach there again sometime. 'Guy Davies Global Ministries' really is becoming a thing at last.

Anyway, having returned to the UK after the quarantining deadline, we've been under virtual 'house arrest' for the best part of a fortnight. I don't know why the government can't regionalise 'air corridors' so only people staying in parts of countries with high infection rates are affected, or why they can't sort out airport testing, so only people who test positive need to isolate? Unlike for some, my work wasn't affected too badly, as most of our services are still online. 

In any case I didn't start back to work until last Monday, although there were still some bits and pieces that needed doing before then. We've had to do our big weekly shop over the internet and rely on our daughter to get us the other things we needed from the shops. Apart from work, we've done some decorating at home. I've managed to get a good bit of reading done and caught up with church members via phone and Zoom meetings. 

We got up to speed with the BBC's A Suitable Boy (1 episode still to watch) and used our freebie week's subscription to Now TV to see the powerful and thought-proving drama, Chernobyl. What a harrowing expose of the corrupt old Soviet Union. The whole system was based on illusion and lies, but the truth about the nuclear disaster  as told by Valery Legasov and others at great cost helped to bring the system crashing to the ground. 

I usually don't bother to shave when on holiday and have continued unshaven while quarantining. Here I am wearing at hat that was a birthday gift from our son. We'll be able to venture out again on Tuesday. The beard may have to go by then, but we'll see.