Paul says, “Imitate me as I imitate Christ”. (1 Cor 11:1) In many churches we have a rightful expectation that the preached word and the word studied will lead to changed hearts and changed lives. The word has that power to do this and we depend upon the “living word” – Jesus – to grow […]
I was sorting the garage out the other day and realised something really important – you know you’ve turned into your dad the day you put aside a thin piece of wood specifically to stir paint with! This was quite comforting, however, as I can think of no better compliment than for someone to say […]
While on holiday in Malta we were sitting having a coffee opposite the island where St Paul was shipwrecked on his way to Rome. A desolate place, yet a stopping off place for him. He must have considered what and where he was going to next? We often find ourselves at those cross road situations […]
How do you get men in retreat? Ask them to join the quilt group; teach children’s Sunday School; or bake a quiche maybe? Seriously, I was thinking more of a spiritual retreat. Every year in Spring, our Dutch church is a guest of a church in Surry at their men’s retreat. It’s a wonderful time […]
I recently learned of something which I thought worth passing on as a helpful guidance to us men in the sensitive area of sex, lust and sexual relationships. Our society seems to be obsessed with sexuality and lust as we are continuously bombarded with sexual imagery in advertising, TV and films and even our popular […]
Earlier this week I went to bed to find our cat “Meta” curled up halfway down the duvet, clearly not wishing to be disturbed, after all he was there first. I successfully got into bed and gradually claimed the quilt back. Meta did not complain and leave as usual but insisted on snuggling up to […]
The fastest growing churches are the ones without ‘walls’, the New Testament church, the persecuted underground church in China, the Pentecostal church in South America and parts of Africa. They have no buildings, no institutions, no professional leadership, but they have the body of Christ involved in all spheres of life. In Africa I have […]
Dementia is typically an illness of old age; the longer you live, the greater your chances of developing dementia. In the UK, between the ages of 40 and 64, only one person in every fourteen hundred people has dementia. In those over the age of eighty it is one person in six. Women with dementia […]
“Get a house group going this Lent.” was the exhortation from the pulpit at my church eight years ago. I did and the mixed group I started is still running and healthy. Being an expat church group the membership changes every year and only 3 of the 10 original members remain but I thank God […]
There is an old saying that “wisdom is the comb that life gives you when your hair has fallen out”. Another phrase often used is “being wise after the event”. Anthony Trollope wrote that the wisdom of those of mature years comes from reflecting on our failures rather than considering our successes. A sentiment echoed […]
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