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Eight years ago at church we ran a series called ‘Broken’. The invitation publicity read: ‘We live as broken people in a broken world. There are no rules for or exemptions from brokenness. We are all randomly affected. The best, the strongest and the most confident can be broken. And yet the Christian Gospel isContinue reading “Broken… Again”

I find the Bible inspirational and encouraging… but difficult and challenging… I’ve been reading Joshua and Judges… After years of unrest Israel’s finally settled in their ‘Promised Land’. There’s great stories about Joshua and Gideon – heroes of the faith. There’s lesser known adventures of Caleb and Deborah… salutary tales of Achan and Samson… JudgesContinue reading “Parachutes, Pies and Pals”

Yesterday my friend Jack said that he identified with the Muppet Gonzo… in particular Gonzo’s ‘feat of lunatic daring’. We talked our feats of lunatic daring… …then our mutual friend Roger, who’s become a wrestler. He’s takes his wrestling seriously. There’s regular training and practicing with a local group of wrestlers. Jack had been toContinue reading “The Feat of Lunatic Daring”

Over this last week the temperature has risen and we’ve seen a little sunshine. About this time of year Mum would announce that she was doing her ‘Spring Cleaning’. I have three ‘spring cleaning’ childhood memories… clearing all that was under the beds (sometimes discovering the unexpected!) and Mum cleaning excessive dust… removing all thatContinue reading “Spring Cleaning”

On Friday a friend was bemoaning the fact that her children hadn’t produced grandchildren for her yet. She was smiling, but pointed out that other women of her age had grandchildren… At church yesterday another friend – of similar age – was telling me about her grandson, her first grandchild. I heard about the baby’sContinue reading “The Good, The Bad, and The Bag of Gold”

Some days I watch TV and understand what ‘survival of the fittest’ is all about. Nations show their weapons and fighting power and determination to defeat the enemy, businesses compete for prominence in the market place; entertainers compete for awards, sports contests have a winner; talent shows, reality TV, quiz shows all reward the best.Continue reading “Grace Will Lead You Home”

Control… Yesterday at our ‘Singing for Health’ group we sung the old English folk ‘Dashing away with the smoothing iron’. I last sung it when I was at primary school.  It features a man admiring his wife as she carries out her linen chores. It starts: ’Twas on a Monday morningThat I beheld my darling,SheContinue reading “Control, Care, Commitment, Consequences…”

A couple of weeks ago I was challenged with the question, ‘Who would you phone if you needed a friend at two o’clock in the morning?’ I thought about the closeness of my friendships, who I could phone, who might phone me… In the last week I’ve been challenged by family relationships with people IContinue reading “The Two O’clock Call”

On the news… A large sinkhole has appeared in Godstone High Street. On Tuesday it had grown to over 20m long and 6m wide. Yesterday a second hole had appeared; a car was teetering on the brink. The story particularly grabbed our attention because Rachel and her parents used to live in Godstone. We knewContinue reading “Life in the Sinkhole”

I’m reading the book of Joshua. Moses has died; Joshua is leading Israel. This morning I read: ‘When Joshua was old and well advanced in years, The Lord said to him, ‘You are old and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over.’’ It’s a time of reflection, taking stock… Assessment…Continue reading “Assessment, Achievement & Attitude”