Whilst living as a Christian today it is easy to feel lonely and confused when it comes to considering the nation in which we live.  What’s worse is when Christians themselves become so divided over political issues that brothers and sisters in Christ end up at war with one another.  This isn’t good.  But the idea of God’s people struggling to understand…

If you’re anything like me you send out several emails every day, and most seem to disappear into the ether.  Sometimes it is discouraging, not to mention a little annoying when people don’t respond, although am I perfect in this regard?!  But when I thought about it, I realised that so often this is what praying feels like.  Whether you’re praying as…

We begin again today the wonderful season of Advent.  It’s a great time of preparation and expectant / exciting waiting.  But what for?  Clearly we’re looking forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus but this is also a particular period to think about His return. In the concluding verses of 1 Corinthians 16 Paul suddenly writes “Come, O Lord” (v22).  He is…

Gill and I have recently read the excellent book “The Life You Never Expected” by Andrew and Rachel Wilson.  The sub-title is “Thriving while parenting special needs children” and with great honesty and Biblical insight the Wilsons describe life with both of their children (at the time of writing) having severe autism. Rachel begins one chapter with these simple, yet profound words:…

The above words will be in our hearts and on our lips today as we remember those who have died in war so that we might have freedom and peace.  Let us again today and tomorrow (11th) especially give thanks to God for His protection and blessing upon us as a nation, as well as for those who gave their lives or…

About a year ago I had the opportunity to head into the forest with a group of young people to rediscover the simplicity of life.  What we discovered instead was how complicated it was to start a fire.  It had been raining all week, and so most of the wood around us was soaked through.  Just as we managed to land a…

Have you ever had a conversation become lost in translation?  There are many wonderful examples of miscommunication in the world of marketing.  As companies try to communicate their brand internationally, it isn’t uncommon for campaigns to be received in unexpected ways.  For example, when the American beer brand Coors tried to launch their “Turn it loose” campaign in Spain, they found out…

I came across the following stark commentary on Daniel 1 which formed part of my Bible reading this week: “We are either potential martyrs or potential suicides; I see no middle ground between these two.  And the Bible insists that every believer in the true God has to be a potential martyr”. You may remember that Daniel 1 describes the deportation of…

What comes to mind when you hear the word peace? Maybe you have the kind of life where peace is missing altogether. Perhaps a better question then might be ‘what is it that stops you finding peace?’ I remember the children’s story Five Minutes Peace where Mother elephant is searching for a five-minute break from her children. In one scene she attempts…

Two quotes particularly struck me as I prepared to write this bulletin article.  The first came from my earthly spiritual hero C H Spurgeon (CHS) in a daily reading: “Let us study what books we may, the knowledge of a crucified Saviour will still remain the sublimest of all the sciences”.  The second is an unattributed quote in some notes of a…