By Not Known Most of us seek a place to call ‘home’. However humble it is, our place has a special significance as the place of rest and being with loved ones. The Old Testament church found their sense of place and home in the land of Israel. Israel is not especially large and other…

By Not Known As of today, 2007 has wasted seven days. Sounds pessimistic to begin with? Not quite! Many of us look forward to a new year with numerous aspirations. But as days turn to months and months to yet another year end, reminiscence takes over in increasing measure. That journey from aspiration to reminiscence…

By Not Known At this time of year many of us are planning. Corporate bodies and public organisations look into the new year with a clear sense of what they want to achieve. We, like other churches, seek to be responsible stewards of the gospel by having a ministy plan to help achieve God’s kingdom…

By Not Known Ever since the Roman Emperor Constantine decided that Christmas should be celebrated on December 25th, the festival has grown in its trimmings. Special church services were organised and magnificent Christian music written to celebrate the coming of the Christ. Over the years we have added Christmas presents, cards, trees, holidays, parties, the…

By Not Known Today’s service of lessons and carols brings the whole sweep of the Christian faith before us. This is a good reminder Of how the birth of Jesus fits into the biggest story of them all – the stoy of a sovereignly gracious God reaching down to restore his creation to himself. The…

By Not Known John the Baptist was a preacher and Luke’s story of his ministry teaches us much about the preacher’s person and work. After his birth, John spent many years in the wilderness (Luke 1:80). Apart from wearing unusual cloths and eating unusual food (Mat 3:4), we can safely expect that these were years…

By Not Known The Christmas carols of the Bible give important clues about what happened at Christmas and what its purpose is. Today we look at a ‘carol’ from Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist (Lk 1:67-8O). Zechariah writes about John’s birth and ministy, but makes it clear that John is understood in the…

By Not Known For many of us, our most precious and most pressured resource is time. We shorten sleep, multi-task, double book and cut corners to try and squeeze more and more into the day. The Bible says a lot about time. It is ultimately in God’s hands and there is a natural cycle for…

By Not Known Words are powerful things and we should always take care in their use. This is especially so with the language of prayer. We need care in our approach to God, how we express our heard and the framing of our desires. Firstly, the Psalms are careful in how they address God. They…

By Not Known What do we think of when we read the words “The Worship of Work“? Perhaps we think of work becoming an act of idolatry that replaces God. Work can be an idol and an act of false worship. Our longest and best hours are often spent at work, to the neglect of…