Ministry on a different table by Frank McGuiness
Contrary to widely held belief Table Tennis did not originate in China but in England.
It was in England, in the late 19th century, that table tennis made its appearance. Taking inspiration from lawn tennis, the first players belonged to middle-class Victorian society. The first game would have been played using a champagne cork as a ball, cigar boxes as bats and books for the net.Mary-Anne asked me about six weeks ago if I would like to say a few words about Table Tennis being played after the 9:30am service at church and also on Thursday for Community Connect so here goes.
Brad and I were having coffee one day after the service when we spotted a table tennis table in the storeroom and decided to set it up and have a hit. I used to play socially with my wife Ann with friends of ours years ago when we were teenagers. Years later when I started working our company had a team in the commercial league where we played against other companies so I joined the team. Later when I left the company I stopped playing and that was about 30+ years ago. So, I was excited to start again as I badly needed some physical exercise.
Documented benefits of table tennis include improvements in hand-eye coordination, mental acuity, reflexes, balance, leg, arm, and core strength, and aerobic fitness; moreover, it provides a social outlet that may benefit mental as well as physical health.
So apart from Rev Stewart (who is a good player) convincing me to pray in church I also pray that when I serve the ball it is a good one. Our little group which started with just Brad and myself has grown to about a dozen players who like to participate every now and then. All ages and genders are welcome and the banter during games is very funny. Games last about 5 to 10 mins so everyone gets a chance.
One of our players is Robert who at the age of 84 spins the ball that it is difficult to return so normally beats most of his opponents. Talking about spin another player is a member of the Queensland Government and you know how good they are at spin!
If you think the snake was only in the Garden of Eden think again it is also a shot mastered by our guitar welding player Jackson. It is a shot where the ball when hitting the table shoots off to the right or left making it difficult for his opponent to hit it back.
In closing I would like to invite anyone who is interested regardless of age and gender to come after church on Sunday or Community Connect on Thursday (9am to11:30am) to have some coffee and a chat and to test your skill (Even though you have never played we will teach you)
God Bless to all
Frank