Grace | Spirit | 06-2007

We cannot see the Spirit of God with our eyes, so we need to use different ways to sense the presence of the Spirit. The journey into the service is a blindfold, barefoot sensory walk, intended to awaken our senses other than sight. Kathy guides Ethan onto the start.

The fruit is for smell. Textured objects are on the floor and walls.

Ethan finds the bubblewrap, after walking on the shale ["ouch!"].

Aluminium foil on the window piers, smooth and crinkled.

The walk ends in a space filled with garbled sounds from all sides. The blindfolded walker is turned by a helper to disorientate them. This is very effective - at the end you don't know where you are.

After a moment, Ben calls the walker's name, who then has to walk towards Ben guided by sound only. When they have emerged from the sound space the walker can take off the blindfold and join the rest of the congregation in the centre of the church.

Doormats and fruit

Lynda finds the bubblewrap.

The main space. People are still arriving via the sensory walk.

Anointing with oil as a sign of desire for the Spirit.

The gifts of the Spirit are not for internal ego-massage in the church, but are for using out in the world. We invited people to make a kite, to say that they want to be blown by the Spirit out into the world.

We hang the kites on the line.

At the end of the service. Most people have gone into the cafe but it's good to lie around and enjoy the ambience.

Joel DJs in the cafe afterwards.