Bryn Haworth Tickets are now available for the event on 17 October, on line via paypal at this Zac's Place link  (www.zacsplace.org/news)  for the price of £6. Just print out the order and bring it with you.

Last Sunday was what in the Church Calendar is called 'Palm Sunday' - celebrated a week before Easter. Traditionally it's the day when we reflect on Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem amid the welcoming enthusiasm of the crowds that had caught on to Lazarus' raising among other things.

This scenario and the following Easter week is full of contrasts - betrayal and trust, love and hate, denial and faith, justice and coercion, mercy and brutality. I can't help thinking of the bizarre turnaround from the outpouring of emotion of the 'Palm Sunday' moment to the same crowd calling for His execution one week later. Sure they wanted a deliverer, but Jesus didn't fit the mould for their kind of warrior saviour. The crowd wavered in it's support and opinion over these days, but the message and actions of Christ remained constant as indeed it still does - amid our often wavering still.

The full horror and delicate beauty of the Easter week is not contained in a sanitized pic and mix saviour to make us feel good for five minutes to suit our wants, but in the stark reality of a sacrificial ragamuffin saviour bringing hope to a weary and wounded world. How we see the Christ of Easter and how we see the people around him at that time, will have a huge bearing on how we may or may not choose to follow Him. Me, I'll hang on to the hope that while everything around Christ was shifting he stayed true to what needed to be done and for that I am eternally grateful.

Sean
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The Palm Sunday story is contained in Chapter 12 of John's Gospel which can be found here

PS. Check out Steve Balsamo's 'Gethsemane' video below - captures the pain and struggle of the Gethsemane moment so well . . .

Today as Australia mourns victims of the Victorian bushfires, I too remember dear friends and brothers and sisters in Australia going through dark days. Even within the family that is God's Squad and St. Martin's, (my ordaining church and Zac's Place sister church), there are those who have tragically lost their loved ones and their homes. There are others too who fought the fires and others who in their capacity as chaplains and pastors have much to do. May the tender shoots of God's grace be evident in all they do and grant them strength when they are weak. X

Not had chance to write much of late. But recent days have seen such diversity amid much activity sometimes you only get chance to take in what's happening when you write it down.

Was in Finland the weekend before last, (flew out Friday, back Sunday), on God's Squad duties visiting the Finnish chapter. Much road travel, little sleep and feeling full of flu, but had an encouraging time with the guys - the 'Dutch' were also visiting, so it was never going to be quiet. The ministry of God's Squad in the bike scene continues to be effective on many levels and it's rewarding to see the development of the new chapters in Europe with the challenges of not only language but also diverse church and bike scene cultures. Got back into Heathrow shortly before they closed it due to snow - kind of ironic having just come from Finland where packed ice and snow is normal on the roads for months on end!

The next week or so saw the regular Zac's Place gatherings and another funeral to take in Reading. It's been a rough ride for friends up there. From their close knit brotherhood, three guys from their club have died in the last eight months, the second just a few weeks ago. Amid the heartache, it remains an honour to be entrusted with the responsibility to help steer people through dark days. I try to keep things real and honest in the hope that it helps a little.

Back to Swansea for more Squad related events and meetings on the Saturday and then in Swansea Prison first thing Sunday morning to take the services there. Jail is always a favourite gig; Especially Swansea as there's so many familiar faces in there! Also get the tragic news from friends in Australia that some have lost their homes in the bushfires and one dear brother has lost his two daughters - the faces on my God's Squad photo montage at Zac's help us to remember them in our prayers tuesday night. Dark days indeed for some.

A couple of local Church meetings and time to spend with the family and then hit the road again on Sunday for the Minehead gig. It's a one off Zac's Place 'on the road' Songwriters circle (see post below). Am looking forward to it as Lorraine, Phil and Rob have been three of the most supportive musicians in the 10 years of Zac's Place.

So there we go, Helsinki to Minehead - it's the usual diverse mix of people, places and emotions. All the more reason to hang to that which never changes.

Please have a look at this petition, if you haven't already, and sign if you agree.............. The government are considering making it a legal requirement in the new tax year that anyone applying or re-applying for an entertainment license must have a noise control device fitted to the venue to which it applies. This could be the final nail in the coffin for all live entertainment in the UK as the level at which these devices cut you off tends to be very low and will, as a result, severely inhibit live performances. A single note hitting 80db could turn the system off! The petition is on the Number 10 Downing Street site so you know it is safe. Please take 2 minutes to sign it and join in the fight to preserve live music. The link is http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/NoNoiseControl/ and the petition reads : We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to NOT introduce sound control devices as a legal requirement in entertainment venues!. Please send details of this petition to your friends and if you have a mailing group, send the message out to it as well. The more people who make their opinion known the better.

Sunday night Feb 15, sees Sean hosting a night of music and banter in good Zac's tradition from the trio that is Lorraine King, Rob Ash and Phil James at the Regal Theatre, Minehead- see their links in our 'top friends'

Just a short update to say Sean will be on BBC Radio Wales early Saturday morning for an short interview on Mal Pope's show, (5-6am). Listen Online http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/radiowales/
Online 6 Dec at http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008lnfj
..and at Zac's Place between 1 - 3pm it's a bit of an open house with a craft fayre fundraiser, for any locals that are reading this and want to drop in.

Since Zac's Place began as, 'Zac's Place - Church in a Pub?' just over ten years ago, great quality live music was an essential part of everything that took place in the four different pubs we used; Over 300 gigs in fact, lost count of the number of artists, five TV programmes with ITV Wales, several other documentaries for TV and radio plus festival stages. Musicians such as Martyn Joseph, Phil James, Rob Ash, Lorraine King, Bill and Rachel Taylor Beales, Julia Harris have all been regulars on gig listings. Guests for TV and festival stages have included Glenn Kaiser, Rick Elias, Mike Peters, Mal Pope, The Electrics, Ben Castle and many others as well. The quirky TrifleSky and innovative Iain Hornal made their mark alongside the metal of Kosher and in more recent months it was great to run the stage and host a fundraiser with The Story's.

Since having our own venue over recent times it's been good to have the occasional gig and this past year we've had guest: Bryn Haworth, Martyn Joseph, Rob Halligan, Julia Harris, Rachel Taylor-Beales and Sir Silence and then just last week After The Fire. Swansea continues to be a frustrating place to put on gigs, especially paying ones. In the main we've managed to make this years gigs work out OK and I want to maintain some sort of momentum into next year.

One option is to introduce a regular monthly gig - something like a Sunday Night Live at Zac's. Charge a little bit on the door cover all the costs and on a busy one might even make a bit towards the charitable work we continue to be involved in among the marginalised.

Ten years on and Zac's Place has moved on - we're a 'Church for Ragamuffins' - but I still passionately believe in the importance of the voice of the artist - as unpredictable and chaotic as it may be sometimes; I still believe in giving artists a platform for their creativity. So my friends - musos, artists, fellow pilgrims - is there any mileage in some regular gigs? Is it something you'd support? Let me know - lets bat it around for a bit........

Cheers and God bless

Sean

TICKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE FOR THE ATF GIG THIS SATURDAY AT ZAC'S PLACE - BOOK ONLINE FOR £10 OR ON THE DOOR FOR £12....

Here's a pre gig preview vid...