Grace
?Lord, it belongs not to my care Whether I die or live; To love and serve Thee is my share And this Thy grace must give.? William Blake (1757-1827) ?Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and gladly sell all that he has. It […]
Holy Communion On The Moon
Did you know that when ?the Eagle landed? on the moon?s surface 50 years ago, before he ventured to do anything else, Astronaut Buzz Aldrin first paused and celebrated the Christian Sacrament of Holy Communion? There is no doubt that the moon landing in 1969 represented one of the greatest accomplishments of human history,in terms […]
Wild Plants
There are many plants that no-one planted. Some of them we call wildflowers. Some we cultivate for our garden. But those that creep into our gardens unbidden are labelled as weeds. Weeds (from the Old English word weod, meaning ?unwanted? or ?small?) are also the hardy survivors, growing between paving bricks, along paths, and beside […]
Where’s Your Security?
When I felt secure, I said, ?I will never be shaken.? Lord, when you favoured me, you made my mountain?stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed. [Psalm 30:6,7] Often our security is based in ourselves. We can feel like we are ?cruising? in life, and have everything under control. Then suddenly […]
The Grace of God
Theologians point out that there is a sharp distinction between the use of the word ?grace? in the Old and New Testaments. In the Old Testament, it can be used to designate kindness and graciousness in general, with no particular tie or personal relationship between the individuals involved. It is also used to signify a […]
In, But Not Of
Jesus said that we are to be in the world (Jn17:14-16). He didn?t just mean that we are on planet earth, but that we?re ?in it? in the same way He was. That means, living with and amongst all people, loving and offering friendship and help ? no matter who they are, sinners, outcasts and […]
God Be In Your Face!
We say that someone is ?in our face? when they invade our personal space, are always ?on at us? about something, make us feel uncomfortable, and particularly when they keep ?pushing? all of our annoyance ?buttons?. They insist on getting our attention, and forcing us to respond to them. Our gut reaction is to hold […]
From “Celebrating Common Prayer”
Faithful God, full of mercy, nourish your people in a world of violence; through prayer and the Scriptures give us the life-giving water of truth and the rich goodness of Your presence; in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. As your living Word brings light out of darkness, O Lord, so may Your Spirit renew the […]
Is the Government appointed by God?
James Ross-Naylor gave an excellent exposition of Ro 13:1-7 last Sunday evening ? election weekend – and that passage indeed states that the governing authorities ?have been instituted by God?. This is because Jesus Christ is ?the ruler of the kings of the earth? the Almighty? (Rev 1:5,8), and therefore all things serve Him and […]
The Left, the Right.. and the Heights
??.remember the heights from which you have fallen,? [Rev 2:5] We?ve heard a lot in recent weeks about how far left the Left are, and how far right the Right are, as well as about right-leaning members of the Left, and the left-leaning members of the Right! Not to mention the ?loopy-Left?, or the ?loopy-Right?! (?it feels […]