Category: Reflections
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Grandpa’s gadgets
My Grandpa was a sucker for a gadget. He bought all sorts of things over the years from idiot-proof cameras to slow cookers. He would excitedly unpack his new purchase, have a cursory go with it and then declare it stupid because he couldn’t get it to work and so he’d never use it again.…
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Schwellanangst – fear of the threshold
When I worked for Voluntary Arts, the Chair of our Board, Peter Stark popped in to visit us and we had a very nice conversation (and some lovely M&S bakewell tart biscuits!). One of the things he said really got me thinking. He told this little story… Peter has always wanted to go into a…
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Do you take the Bible literally?
I’ve been asked this question a number of times and it’s a tricky one to answer as it all depends on what the questioner means. If they mean ‘Do you take the Bible seriously as the authoritative word of God?’ then the answer is yes. But if they mean ‘Do you think that every piece…
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Misunderstood lyrics and the Bible
Remember the Beatles song Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da? We used to sing it in school choir. One of the lines is ‘Desmond takes a trolley to the jewellery store.’ which had me really confused. I used to think that Desmond was buying so much jewellery that a basket wouldn’t be big enough. It was years until I…
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Who will remember you?
I’m working my way through 1 Chronicles at the moment and I must admit I’m finding it quite tedious. A lot of the book consists of a long list of names; fathers and sons, families and daughters and wives – just a long list of people who don’t really mean anything to me. It’s tempting…
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What I learned about prayer from my friend and her lucky crystal
I’ve just read ‘Faitheism’ by Krish Kandiah and found it really helpful and thought-provoking. He seeks to diffuse the ‘us vs them’ polarisation that often characterises interactions between Atheists and Christians and explores ways that we can find common ground and forge more meaningful relationships. In the chapter on suffering he highlights a couple of…
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Good things come to those who wait (for bears and God)
On a recent trip to Slovenia, my friend and I booked to go with a nature expert to try and see a wild brown bear. We drove out into the forest, hiked to the wildlife hide, climbed the ladder and took up our positions on the wooden bench, binoculars at the ready, to watch and…
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The power of the Spirit – Pentecost reflection
A short reflection on the power of the Spirit that came down at Pentecost and enables believers to love, hope, share the good news of Jesus and become more like him.
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What physical pain has taught me about spiritual healing
There’s a real analogy between emotional pain and physical pain. If there’s something seriously wrong with you physically there’s pain before you have the operation and if you don’t do anything about it it will get worse and worse and make you sicker and sicker. Then you have the operation and you can’t feel it…
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9 inspirational women from the New Testament
I love the fact that the New Testament records a range of women of different ages and backgrounds using their skills and gifts for God’s Kingdom. We see rich and poor, educated and uneducated, single and married, leaders, charity workers, intellectuals, risk-takers, business women and craftswomen all being used by God in powerful ways. It…
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