"Please sit down and make yourselves comfortable….you could be in for a long one! Karen and I were both invited to talk to you but she delegated it to me so she's lurking down there somewhere.

Before I start my talk this morning I need to perform a little duty to the clergy. Week after week they prepare and deliver sermon after sermon, based on all sorts of different texts and situations. They stand up in the pulpit and speak to an enthralled audience for 10 minutes or so, inspiring many people and offering guidance to countless others…apart from me. I am renowned for having a sly sleep, folding origami frogs and boats for the choirboys or reading a book or two during these sermons so I thought that it would only be fair to give them the opportunity to ignore my little contribution and I have some reading material that might alleviate the boredom.

They get up and always mention the texts that have inspired them to put pen to paper. These texts range from the Bible itself and, any one of dozens of poets and authors galore. There is even mention of cricketers' dreams of glory. I wish I had the inspiration of such wonderful writers. I would LOVE them to get up and say that their inspiration had come from an episode of Spongebob Squarepants or The Simpsons but I think that that would be rather unlikely.

So, to the real reason why I am here and you're supposed to listen - I love having a captive audience. That's why I went into teaching because the kids just can't get away from me and they have to listen to the gibberish I spout out day after day. St Mary's is 150 years old and, although I haven't been around for the full 150 years, our lives have been centred around it from a very early age. We have had so many experiences with, and in, this wonderful family that we all know as St Mary's.

My Mum and Dad were married here in the 1950s and, although we were living in Lytham St Annes, I was brought back to the 'family' church to be baptised. The story goes that, when water was being poured onto my head, my sister shouted out to ask if I was having my hair washed - and those people who knew - or still know - my sister will know that she has the family trait of not being particularly quiet.

After that time I don't remember very much and we moved to Spondon, near Derby, where we lived until my father died in 1966. My Nanna and Granddad still lived in West Derby so I moved to Liverpool, living with them initially and then moving up the road to our own house. And now comes my very first memory of St Mary's. My Nanna took me on a day out to Lord Sefton's Estate, now known as Croxteth Park. It was in the days when you couldn't get very far down the path - you could walk down the fence-lined driveway as far as the Bee Cottage on Croxteth Hall Lane. It was a hellishly hot day and we stopped at the Bee Cottage and the resident kindly made us a cup of tea - they were friendly days, or so I remember through rose-tinted glasses. On the way back I remember noticing this huge red building with big gold clock that chimed a booming chime, similar to the chime of my other grandparents' grandfather clock. We walked up to the door and it opened so we stepped inside. I can still remember just how dark it was inside compared to the glaring light of the summer's day outside. I can remember the tall pillars which seemed to stretch up into infinity, the big long aisle that went from the back of the church to the golden cross at the front. I was so frightened when this ghost (or so I thought) appeared out of nowhere to welcome us. It was of course the rector of the time, though I have no idea who it may have been. I just know that he scared the pants off me and I cried most of the way home. I don't remember stepping into the church again until shortly after my 7th Birthday. My Granddad was a friend of Hornby Lowe, one of the elder statesmen of the choir, and he thought that it would be good for me to get involved in the choir. So one Friday in 1968 I joined the choir and 38 years later I am still a member, well just about!

The choir has been such a huge part of my life. I have worked my way through the ranks to head chorister and beyond and some of my very best friends still sit up in the choirstalls with me. The choir is a big part of the St Mary's tradition as it leads us in the worship and allows us to focus on prayer. This can be difficult during some services but works particularly well during Evensong which is an inspirational service and often beautiful. We sing such a range of music, from very traditional to contemporary stuff, in the hope that there is something for everyone.

Choir has provided me with many experiences, including singing in varied and strange places and having great fun on holidays in Wales, Scotland and all over the place. Peter Miller is, of course, responsible for most of our choir expeditions and we all had such great times. It's not as easy to arrange such things these days and the things we used to get up to would not be possible today, with risk assessments and worries about litigation making it just too much of a problem.

In the mid-seventies I started to get involved with the Church Youth Club and it was at that time I decided that St Mary's didn't do enough for young people. Our youth club was a strong group with a huge membership. We met each Friday and our sessions would involve a serious aspect and a fun aspect every week.

As soon as I was old enough - I think that it was around 1977 - I was voted onto the Parochial Church Council and I have been there ever since. I have always felt that St Mary's could do more for the children of the church - they are the future of the church and we must never forget that. We do a lot for the kids but there is certainly a lot more that we could be doing to make them feel welcome - a friendly smile and a hello goes a long way. There are some children who may approach you this morning to get a sheet signed as part of their first communion preparation. Please have a chat with them and find out just what they have been up to.

It was here that Karen and I married in 1984 - a truly memorable day. The weather was glorious, the choir sounded fantastic and the church was packed. I still remember each and every part of it - the best day of our lives. Things were going so very well and we thanked God that it was. ….and then disaster struck.

Firstly, not 6 months after our wedding I had a serious accident and ended up with a back injury. Shortly after, Karen's Mum died unexpectedly, followed 6 months later by Karen's Dad. What had we done wrong? We really began to doubt God and our faith was brought into question. If this wasn't bad enough, I ended up in hospital again and had to have a rather nasty back operation. Why were we being punished like this? What had gone so very wrong?

Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse - I was lying in a hospital bed, writhing in agony and feeling at probably my lowest point ever - they did get worse; Jenny Bowen arrived! I'm sorry to say that I really didn't know who she was and I really didn't care. To this day I still apologise to her for the terrible language I used before she left my bedside hurriedly. I am glad to say that she has since forgiven me and she has become a very special person in our lives. I think her timing was just about perfect really because she arrived just when I needed it. After she left I was able to think, and did so for some months whilst laid up. I came to realise that there is a reason for everything and, although I couldn't instantly see any reason why we should suffer in such a way, it allowed us to again question our faith. I praise God that I am now as fit as ever and able to live a normal life, whatever the word normal actually means.

In 1988 Christopher arrived. He was (and still is sometimes) a joy and we enjoyed all aspects of parenting. He was baptised in 1989 in the same font that I was dunked in 29 years previously. Rebecca arrived in 1993 and our family unit was complete. I am pleased that they both showed an interest in the life of St Mary's, attending the wonderful church school and Chris following me into the choir - and enjoying it just as much as I did. Rebecca has been a server for some time and has been a regular member of Sunday School.

We made a huge, life-changing decision in 1995, and I left my job of 19 years with NatWest Bank to go to university for 5 years to study to be a primary school teacher. This decision was a tough one to make but so many of our St Mary's friends offered advice and words of support before I started and during my studies. In fact, if it hadn't been for my St Mary's friends I would never have known about the job at Merchant Taylors' Junior School where I now work. I'm a lucky bloke.

So what does St Mary's mean to us? A great deal actually. We have thought about moving house a couple of times but have never actually made that vast step. A large part of this decision was based on the fact that we would miss St Mary's so much. So many of our friends are here. We are so involved in the life of the church and could think of nowhere else where we would be so involved. As well as the friendship and the involvement of the family, we love the worship. It is a huge part of all of our lives and, when we miss it, for one of many reasons, including football, dancing and simply oversleeping, our week is never quite the same. I personally haven't been here much over the past few weeks and I have been genuinely surprised by the number of people who have stopped me to say that they have missed me. I am sure that's just because there was no-one singing out of tune in the choir when I wasn't here.

I also love this great giant of a building. My alarm clock wakes us at 6:30 each morning and, as I peep through the curtains, I see the church standing proud - the clock usually telling me that I am late and need to get a move on.

My big worry when putting this together was that I would overrun and people would sneak out at around 11 o'clock with me still rambling on. I think I've got it just about timed ok and thank you, and God, for listening, if you didn't actually doze off, but more importantly thank you for allowing us to be a part of the family we know as St Mary's.
Amen."