“God Knows” And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: “Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.” And he replied: “Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and … Continue reading Happy New Year!
I am reading The Art of Advent: A Painting a Day from Advent to Epiphany by Jane Williams. As you might guess, it gives a painting for each day with a reflection and a short prayer. Today's picture was the above - The Light of the World by William Holman Hunt. It's a very familiar … Continue reading The Art of Advent
A few things recently have got me thinking about those times when everything changes. I read about someone who's recently left his church after a long period of soul-searching and with a lot of hurt and confusion. This reminded me of a similar thing I went through in my early twenties when I could … Continue reading Transitions
Listening to a sermon this morning one particular phrase jumped out at me and has stayed in my head ever since: "I would proclaim the gospel from the rubble of this church rather than become its curator". The preacher was talking about focusing on what really matters: putting Jesus at the centre of what we … Continue reading Witnesses and Curators
This is my favourite depiction of the Trinity. I am drawn to its sense of community and togetherness, and the space left for us to join in the eternal relationship within our God - who is one in in three. Blessing for Trinity Sunday In this new season may we know the presence of the … Continue reading The Holy Trinity
“We are sometimes crippled by our weakest moments and embrace that weakness as our unalterable fate, but the reality is that ‘there is always time for endurance, time for patience, time for healing, time for change. Have you slipped? Rise up. Have you sinned? Cease’#BasilTheGreat”. I feel like I’ve maybe gone a bit too … Continue reading Making Mistakes
I’ve been hearing quite a bit about the importance of small things in sowing the seeds of faith. Sometimes it seems like it’s something we say to convince ourselves that our efforts are worth it when we feel a bit small and unimportant (or maybe that’s just me). Less cynically, though, I really do think … Continue reading On Small Things: Or a Path to Faith
Can a woman forget her nursing-child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb?Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands... Isaiah 49.15-16 For those who cannot celebrate Mothering Sunday, Mother's Day or whatever you want to call it: For … Continue reading For the Rest of Us
I wrote this while doing my training, as a reflection on sharing the peace during a communion service. The picture above shows The Statue of Reconciliation at Coventry Cathedral. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there … Continue reading A Meditation on Sharing the Peace
Today I've been struck by a comment on how we relate to God. The comment was that our relationship with God is a covenant, not a contract, and that the two are different. A contract involves saying "you do this for me and I'll do this for you", while a covenant says "I belong to … Continue reading Covenant and Contract