tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47477176854856580692011-12-31T23:30:32.155ZThe day-to-day experiences of a Christian computer programmer living in East Anglia, UK.Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.comBlogger221100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-7624146740421779272009-06-02T22:10:00.006+01:002009-06-02T22:14:51.141+01:00

Barnabas France have opened a new French-language website at http://barnabas-asi.org. It is focussed on mercy ministry in Cote d'Ivoire and other Francophone West African countries. A key project at the moment is the establishment of a Christian school in the town of Duekoué, western Cote d'Ivoire. The motto of the website is "L'amour donne des aides" which means "love gives help".

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-60015577524948383002009-02-11T22:42:00.009Z2009-05-04T14:05:36.105+01:00

God challenged Nally and me last November to come back to the UK and raise up prayer and intercession for the work of God in France. In response, we have started publishing a quarterly newsletter. Its aim is to encourage intercession for a move of God in France and the French-speaking world. Here is edition # 1 December 2008. We welcome ideas and suggestions regarding forthcoming editions.

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-10350394253453091112008-11-12T07:50:00.006Z2009-02-11T22:41:53.539Z

Nally and I had a great time a few weeks ago when we visited our brothers and sisters in Christ at the Barnabas church in Digne-les-Bains, South of France. We accompanied Brian and Caroline Gingles of the Barnabas church in Larne, Northern Ireland. You can read Brian's report on the visit at the Barnabas England website. Here is a photo of Nally, Brian and Caroline at the house where we stayed,

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-34538385595790410332008-10-05T17:40:00.015+01:002008-11-12T07:49:16.067Z

The Ten Commandments. It's the title of a film by Cecille B. de Mille, starring Charlton Heston. The subject is the Law given by God to Moses for the people of Israel, on Mount Sinai. There are many messages that could be preached just on that one-sentence introduction:-Who gave the Law (God)Who received the Law (Moses, Israel)What was given (the Law, engraved on ten stone tablets)Where was this

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-79870209818024445982008-09-30T22:43:00.014+01:002008-09-30T23:30:13.435+01:00

Butoko Yaya, an Ethiopian apple farmer Send a Cow work withI am a glutton for punishment... volunteered again to coordinate this year's Churches Together in Ely Apple Day presence. Apple Day is an annual event put on by East Cambridgeshire District Council. But speaking seriously, I am really encouraged and blessed by this opportunity. I want the event to communicate to the people of Ely just

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-87050412827885270262008-06-19T20:22:00.004+01:002008-06-19T20:48:52.796+01:00

Here are some slides in Open Office Impress format, of a message I gave last Sunday at the Olive Tree. I have been reading the Book of Titus for the last couple of months and really getting interested in it. The eponymous guy was a co-worker with the apostle Paul. He sounds to have been a great bloke to know. He did a lot to help many people, among them the Corinthian church and the people of

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-25855425566870820182008-06-19T19:59:00.006+01:002008-06-19T20:21:27.229+01:00

Here is my hawberry (or hawthornberry) wine, which I bottled this evening. It's a bit sedimentary, if that is a fair application of the word. I got five bottles out of the demi-john. Makes a change after a knackering day at the office. The wine hasn't got a very strong bouquet, but it has plenty of body. It's somewhat like a dry sherry, with flavours of lemon, orange, toffee and raspberry and

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-48758810908118948882008-05-25T18:31:00.007+01:002008-05-25T18:41:10.908+01:00

Here are some shots of my local town, Ely, taken on Easter Sunday.River Great Ouse Jubilee GardensThe Dean's Meadow Ely Cathedral

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-51531479580365465482008-05-25T18:19:00.003+01:002008-05-25T18:30:29.419+01:00

I have been wondering for the past year what it is that is provoking unpleasant blotchy excrescences on my walnut tree. For the last two years they have been covering many of the leaves. I assumed it was a fungal infection and treated it with Dithane 945 (so much for the organic gardener!) It seemed to go away and this year the new growth in May was completely free of the ugly swellings.

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-6649598504758081472008-04-27T20:38:00.005+01:002008-04-27T21:37:16.955+01:00

Here is my sermon given on 13th April at the Olive Tree in Ely. The subject is the Book of Nahum.You can download it from this link. NB the file size is 37.5 MB. If you are using a dial-up connection, I suggest you email me with your phone number, as it will be quicker if I repeat the sermon over the phone!

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-9839901657916635962008-03-21T16:05:00.012Z2008-03-22T15:35:53.741Z

God is For us, not Against usSince I became a Christian, I have read the Bible a few times. One book, however, I have avoided. This is the Book of Nahum (34th out of 39 books in the canon of Hebrew Scripture). The reason I disliked it, was the opening stanza, after the introductory title (Nah 1:2):The LORD is a jealous and avenging God;the LORD is avenging and wrathful...I committed my life to

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-81771945076774480622008-02-27T07:30:00.003Z2008-02-27T22:55:01.336Z

I walked down a lane in Milton yesterday, in bright blue sky weather. There was a hawthorn hedge alongside the path, and its branches were robed with delicate, white blossoms. This is the time for the white flowers: the pink ones, perhaps, come later in the Spring. There were even a few rotten berries here and there, left from last year's harvest, which the birds had disdained to touch. I am

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-31761361963834967732008-01-06T18:04:00.000Z2008-01-06T18:07:48.822Z

I tasted the hawthornberry wine as I was siphoning it out of the demijohn in which it completed its initial fermentation. It is the best we've made so far. We used a champagne yeast, and the extra quality makes a difference. It is a medium dry, orange-coloured wine, with a wonderful flavour. Next year we must make twice the quantity!

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-24511938888823486062008-01-06T16:07:00.000Z2008-01-06T16:25:26.887Z

I had a very rewarding time over Christmas and New Year. I helped a friend install and configure a rebuilt PC so that she could surf the Web and receive emails. I had great fun. It is a cooperative project with a friend who has donated his defunct PC with its CPU and peripherals. The hard drive had crashed, and the lady paid for a new one, which I got from Dabs for £35 inc delivery. It was a

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-16285309041912265432007-12-16T17:31:00.003Z2008-03-21T16:04:32.391Z

Here is our hawthornberry wine, which has been on the go since 13th October. I described it then as "marmalade colour", maybe it has matured towards a walnut.Mousse au ChocolatI must report a recipe I received from a friend in France, named mousse au chocolat. The name needs no translation (nor does the flavour). Here's a photo taken up close.It is really Oooooooh..... I made a bowl of it for

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-87639592741095367082007-11-21T22:09:00.000Z2007-11-22T20:20:34.324Z

Here is a movie of our holiday snaps set to a wonderful song by a French worship leader. The song is called "Que Ce Pays S'Incline", which means "May This Land Bow Down".If you can't see it please try this link instead and download the "France movie" file (NB it's 10 MB so you will need a broadband connection for this).

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-37691578562323775662007-11-11T22:59:00.002Z2008-05-02T07:16:48.289+01:00

We just came back from a week in Provence.It's hard to return to Cambridgeshire after you've been dazzled by the molten autumn colours of the provençal mountains.Here is a picture of the bungalow we rented during our stay.Nally and I have felt stirred, for more than a year, with the thought that God could want us to become more involved with His work in France.The week before last, we

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-47899824555962970822007-10-24T07:39:00.000+01:002007-11-11T22:59:33.461Z

On Saturday 20th October, Ely celebrated her (his? its?) annual Apple Festival. It was a brilliant affair. The weather was fabulous - sunny, not a cloud in the sky, perfect late October conditions - and the atmosphere was friendly and delightful. Numerous agencies mounted displays, Churches Together in Ely (CTiE) included. I helped out with preparing CTiE's display on the theme of Send a Cow (

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-76497107818550253302007-10-24T07:20:00.001+01:002007-10-24T07:35:52.931+01:00

...or Hawthornberry wine, if you prefer. I finally collected my gallon of hawberries (lots of tramping over fields searching for the Right Kind Of Bush) and prepared a demijohn of wine from them. I used CJJ Berry's recipe (First Steps in Winemaking, ISBN 1-85486-139-5, which can be purchased from Amazon at this link).It is a dry, pale wine. I am surprised because, when you look at the berries

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-49590090259188659792007-09-20T07:19:00.000+01:002007-09-21T07:39:19.287+01:00

Nally and I are building up our links with French Christians, through our Barnabas Fellowship of Churches (BFOC) connection. The situation of believers in France is unlike that in England. Here, we are respected by the local community and have freedom to express our faith very widely. There, on the contrary, there is a lot of suspicion and little understanding of the goodness of the Gospel.

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-70200069901903093692007-09-20T07:07:00.000+01:002007-09-20T07:45:25.478+01:00

A couple of weeks ago, I went out and picked from the hedgerows six pounds weight (about 3 kgs) of blackberries. I noticed that the harvest this year in Cambridgeshire isn't particularly good. I have been blackberrying for three years in various parts of England. In comparison with 2005 and 2006, this year is decidedly poor. It makes one wonder what wildlife will make of it, as they really

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4747717685485658069.post-12908043316173042692007-09-12T07:46:00.000+01:002007-09-12T08:05:55.913+01:00

On Thursday, I will be taking part in a meeting of Churches Together in Ely (CTiE). My part there is to help with planning our involvement in the Ely Apple Fair (Saturday, 20th October 2007). We have the idea of selling apple-related produce to raise money to support struggling farmers in two-thirds world countries. Send A Cow (SAC) is a charity that exports fruit trees to Ethiopia to encourage

Simon Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16598602666682703596noreply@blogger.com0