Author Archives: malcolmsmusingscom

From my earliest days I was taught Bible stories. As I got older I learnt about Christian beliefs and  Christian faith. It was important to have ‘orthodox’ beliefs… The Greek word ‘orthos’ means ‘right, true, straight’… the Greek word ‘orthodoxus’ means ‘having the right opinion’… Orthodox has come to mean ‘following or conforming to theContinue reading “Orthodoxy, Orthopaedics, Orthopraxis, Orthocardia”

John Wesley’s journal – May 24th 1738 In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I feltContinue reading “Looking For Warm Hearts”

For all those times you stood by meFor all the truth that you made me seeFor all the joy you brought to my lifeFor all the wrong that you made rightFor every dream you made come trueFor all the love I found in you… Celine Dion sings about someone who gives her strength in weakness,Continue reading “Because You Loved Me”

Yesterday I did my weekly prayer walk… Passing a school I pray for certain young people. Passing a church I pray for certain ministers. Passing a café I pray for friends I’ve recently drunk coffee with… At ‘Kathryn’s bench’ I remember Kathryn, a young person who died in 2012, her parents, and other bereaved friends.Continue reading “Remembering – With A Smile And A Tear”

The wheels on the bus go round and roundRound and round…The wheels on the bus go round and roundAll Day Long This children’s song is not some dark nursery rhyme about baking blackbirds in a pie, catching the ring-a-roses plague, or babies falling out of tree-top cradles causing unspecified injury… It’s a simple song aboutContinue reading “The Wheels On The Bus”

What would you think if I sang out of tune?Would you stand up and walk out on me?Lend me your ears and I’ll sing you a songAnd I’ll try not to sing out of key. I can’t remember what I did yesterday; I can remember the complete lyrics of songs from 50-60 years ago… IContinue reading “With A Little Help From My Friends”

I’ve bought a new electric raker/ scarifier for our grass. The theory is that it rakes out the moss and the weeds, and aerates the soil so that the grass can grow better. I’ve tried it out. It works well. I filled a large bin and two big sacks with debris and I’m only halfContinue reading “Scarified, Finished & Forgotten”

Years ago I watched Scooby-Doo… Like Enid Blyton’s ‘Famous Five’… four children and a dog solve mysteries. The plot was always the same… a haunted house… some bad guy’s doing bad things – but who was it? The children split up, worked as a team… there was some crisis… Scooby-Doo and his friends solve theContinue reading “Good Guys & Bad Guys”

It’s not often a friend gets in a national newspaper… Kim was interviewed some weeks ago; yesterday her story was published in ‘The Sun’: ‘I am 39 years old, but my life is nearing its end, my body ravaged by more than 20 years of anorexia. Everything I hoped for in my future when IContinue reading “Kim”

Brother, sister, let me serve you;let me be as Christ to you;pray that I may have the grace tolet you be my servant too. This week I shall meet many people – at church, in cafés, homes, clubs… friends, family… I’m not with them for my benefit, nor as some noble, controlling do-gooder, but inContinue reading “Brother, Sister Let Me Serve You”