asadmin I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene…’ So goes the grand old hymn, which has reminded me that it’s too long since I’ve chosen to sing it in church! But it touches on a deep truth: how important it is to continue to be amazed by Jesus. ‘Who is this?’ the disciples … Read more
This is, as they say, a passage of two halves. Sometimes the headings we put into our bibles, dividing up the text, aren’t always that helpful, and this might be one occasion. What we see here is the beauty and the beast of our discipleship. First the beauty: time spent in the presence of Jesus. … Read more
If you ever have the chance to visit the Mount of Olives just outside Jerusalem, you can sit on a stone wall directly in front of a large mustard plant, about 30 feet wide. It’s quite something to see the very things that Jesus uses as part of his teaching right there in front of … Read more
One of my favourite times of year is Harvest. I usually have opportunities to take assemblies and acts of worship in the local schools – as I do presently – and one of the things I like to do is to show the children a pumpkin seed. ‘What do you need to make this grow?’ … Read more
Back in the day when I worked for a market research company, detail was a key part of my job. Often the client paid thousands of pounds for one set of results contained in one book of tables, so it was vital that every figure was checked and double-checked to make sure it was correct. … Read more
As winter beckons, many of us lucky to have gardens or allotments will start to think about what we’d like to grow next year. Over the next few months, there will be prep work to do, getting the ground ready for planting and (hopefully) the abundance of spring and summer to come. Nowadays, gardening is … Read more
Most of us love a good puzzle. I certainly do – and I’m not just talking about jigsaws, but all types of head-scratchers. Perhaps it’s Sudoku for you, or crosswords, or logic problems… or a good old-fashioned crime drama. Agatha Christie remains the best-selling author ever – apart from the Bible – because we love … Read more
As some of you know, many years ago I studied art history; my particular area of study was the Italian Renaissance – or as my friend bluntly (but not entirely inaccurately) put it: ‘brown pictures of Mary.’ It’s certainly true that, next to Jesus, there are far more pictures of his mother Mary than of … Read more
Many people will do anything to avoid giving God the credit! It’s just human nature. I remember a miraculous healing at the prison twenty years ago, when an inmate’s blood pressure plummeted overnight – he went from permanent tinnitus to the BP of a fit young man in his 20s (he was an ex-smoker in … Read more
Not many people have robes nowadays – at least , I don’t think they do! It’s a garment associated with authority or magnificence, isn’t it? Our late Queen even had her own Mistress of the Robes, a post which dates back to the 16th century, albeit now it’s more ceremonial than literal. And this is … Read more