Posts from 2018
Pastors Ponderings
On that first Christmas, some 2000 years ago, a baby was born. He came into the world in much the same manner as all other babies of the time, without the aids of modern maternity facilities. But this was no ordinary baby. Jesus, as he was named, was God coming into this world as a human being. Why would the One who exists outside time and space come as a helpless, dependent baby? Why would the very Creator of the…
Oh, no, I’ve forgotten all my memory verses!
And I knew so many, too! From a very young age I’d learnt the Scriptures verse after verse, passage after passage What a heritage! What a privilege to have these treasures tucked away in my heart and mind. As I reflected on this, a feeling of deep regret came over me because I know my own children didn’t have the same opportunity to memorise Scriptures in the same way that I had. Week after week we would learn our…
Pastors Ponderings
Making Joy Complete Recently we watched a video in Young-Adults group where John Piper was reading from C S Lewis in response to a question that a lot of people (particularly from an atheistic perspective) ask about God: Why does God want us to worship him? Typically, we recognise the seeking of praise from others as a childish behaviour and a significant character flaw when we see it in grown adults.Surely the morally perfect God who made the universe cannot…
Faltering Steps
Paul tells us more than once to be imitators of Christ and I woke up this morning with words from a passage in Philippians going through my mind. Our Lord Jesus Christ didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped; he didn’t hang on to this as a right. No, instead, he humbled himself…took on the very nature of a servant…the form of man. He walked in our shoes to such an extent that it led him to…
Pastors Ponderings
Last Sunday we had the pleasure of having three people (Graham, Bonnie and Phil) sharing their perspective on what church is to them. There were a number of analogies given such as ‘family’ or ‘parts of a body’ but I have to say my favourite was a ‘stew’. Bonnie was suggesting that through a very odd mix of ingredients that needed very different preparation, something messy but heart-warming was produced. All the analogies linked with the sense that all of…
I don’t want to be tomorrow what I am today
I press on toward the goal. I once heard someone say that if you woke up wanting to sing you’re a singer. I guess if I woke up and wanted to go for a jog, I’d be a jogger. Well, I wake up and want to write…so I guess that makes me a writer. Writing is the way I process and express my thoughts. It’s one of the ways I talk to loved ones, encourage friends, pray or, at times,…
Growing in the Knowledge of God #1
Mmm…I’m not sure if I agree with that…I thumb through my Bible searching for a passage I read just a few days ago that will prove my point…back my point of view. Sound familiar or is that just me? Why is it so difficult to say, Lord, search my heart and show me your truth; search my deepest thoughts that I may be cleansed and brought closer to you. Philippians 3:10 has been my motto for years but do I…
Pastors Ponderings
A couple of weeks ago, Daniel spoke about the way Jesus walked a fine line when fellowshipping with those who society, especially the religious, saw as being ‘sinners’. Jesus ran the risk of being seen to endorse a person’s life choices or behaviour by eating with them. He was pronounced guilty by association. It was never Him who called people sinners (accept when describing the Pharisees themselves). His message was clear – everyone, whoever they were, whatever their background were…
Hold faith until he come!
Until He Come! Why celebrate Easter once a year? The truth of the cross is almost lost, I fear Every day, yes every day until He Come! ‘Till He Come!’ What precious words! Words we’ve long forgotten. ‘Till He Come,’ what does it mean? To our younger generation? What’s happening to our world? I hear the people cry. Is it true its coming to an end? We surely all will die! Our planet’s rapidly declining Are words heard most everywhere.…
Radical Thinking
To love or to condemn? How do I respond to those living a lifestyle that makes me uncomfortable? How do they see me? What attitudes am I conveying to them? Praise God for leaders with the courage to speak up and put these challenges out there for us to face. Praise God for those who continually make us think, read, pray, search your Word and ponder the questions from which we’d like to run! I’m scared, I’m uncomfortable and yet…
Pastors Ponderings
As promised, here’s my understanding on How to discern what the Holy Spirit is saying through Scripture. I need to interject here and say that I’ve checked with Barry that I can use his word as a teaching tool, just in case you are worried I’m going to publicly dissect everything that people say. But I need to lay some ground rules for how we work out what God is saying as a church together and Barry can cope with…
A Darkened Room
Some time ago I stopped to ask myself…how do I picture a true Church of the New Testament to look like today? What would they see if someone were to stumble into it? The picture that came to me was a church in prayer…but it wasn’t a church as we know it today… it was a darkened room…no furniture…no sound other than folk quietly praying. I realised this was a picture of the persecuted Church…a group of believers who met…