Whether it's a staycation on your allotment or whether you are managing to get further away, enjoy some great reading over the summer. Here are 7 suggestions from me: 1. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Cromer Cromer points the figure at ‘hurry’ as being the root of both our spiritual poverty and the toxicity of the modern world. ‘Love, joy and peace are incompatible with hurry,’ he says. ‘The danger is that…we skim our lives instead of actually living them.’ If you read only ONE book this summer, make it this one! 2. Finding God in the Waves by Mike McHargue 'Through the lens o ..read more

We need to talk about race I’m committing to educating myself about racial issues in our world today and what they look like from the perspective of others. And I’m starting with a book called We need to talk about race – Understanding the Black Experience in White Majority Churches. It’s written by Ben Lindsay, a black British pastor and activist based in South London, and gives much needed insights into the black religious experience, challenging the status quo in white majority churches. Filled with examples from real-life stories, including his own, Lindsay offers a comprehensive analysis ..read more

Looking at my next seven days of To Do Lists, here are the things that top them: Sat Wrap Edie’s presents Sun Prepare for funeral service on Monday Mon Prepare for Staff Meeting and other Zoom meetings this week Tues Invite people to a socially distanced tea party in the Church gardens Wed Prepare for my online Home Group Thurs Prepare my sermon Fri Record our online service Now all these things are, of course, very important and deserve their places at the top of my lists. But there’s one thing that I’ll be putting before them. And it’s the same thing for every day. And that is – Spending ti ..read more

Have you ever tried to cover up - to shift the blame, to wriggle your way out - when someone discovers you’ve done something wrong? Well, if you were ever a five year old then the answer to that question is YES! We all have. But, as we grow up, we discover that it’s always better in the end to own up to our mistakes and take the rap. Cover ups have a tendency to lead to more and more deception and, when they are exposed, cause us more shame and embarrassment than the original misdemeanour or failure in judgement. In the Bible Jesus says, ‘Nothing is hidden that will not be disclosed, nor is a ..read more

The story of the Ascension is bizarre The story of Jesus’s ascension into heaven can seem bizarre to modern day Christians and I struggled with it myself for many years – wondering how Jesus’s body could have lifted off the earth and where exactly it went. In time, I came to see the story as simply marking the end of Jesus’s bodily resurrection appearances and I assumed that the disciples were given a vision of Jesus ascending into ‘heaven’ because, in the first century, people would have thought of God being ‘up there.’ And so it made sense that, if Jesus was returning to the Father, then he ..read more

I was reading Luke’s wonderful account of the early church this morning and I was struck by how simple it was and how real. And, more than that, how relevant – especially today. Here are three things that particularly struck me: 1. All who believed were together OK, yes I know we can’t all be together in person. But we can be together online – and this is making such a difference. I now have a weekly catch up with my extended family on Zoom where we chat for about an hour – and I feel we are becoming more engaged and present with each other than we ever have been. Being together – whether in ..read more

I’ve been reflecting on the story of Jonah. You know the one – the one where this guy disobeys God and ends up getting eaten by a whale. Or more accurately by a ‘big fish.’ The story of Jonah is nothing to do with a whale or big fish The thing is that this story is really nothing to do with the big fish. And it’s certainly not a kids’ story. It’s a hard-hitting parable – about our very human shortcomings and God’s grace in rescuing us – even when we are at our worst. And forgiving us. The story has a lot of important messages. But one of the things it tells us about is prayer. Or, in fact, th ..read more

Rainbows have become a symbol of hope and gratitude throughout the coronavirus period. And artists from pre-schoolers to the great Damien Hirst have produced rainbow images that have been posted in windows and online all over the country. Why the rainbow? But why the rainbow? Why IS the rainbow such a sign of hope and gratitude? Here are four reasons – and all of them can be found in the Bible! 1. Rainbows are beautiful At the end of the Bible John of Patmos has a vision of a new earth – an earth that is finally the way God always intended it to be. It’s a vision full of light and beauty and ..read more

There’s a wonderful section in Luke’s gospel where Jesus is on the road with his disciples from Galilee to Jerusalem. And Jesus takes the opportunity to do a lot of teaching though parables and stories. So that his disciples understand who he is and what the Kingdom of God is and how they can help to bring in this kingdom. Just before they arrive at Jerusalem – where Jesus knows he will be arrested and executed – Jesus tells his disciples the story of the ‘rich man’ and Lazarus. It goes like this. The rich man and Lazarus The rich man walks past Lazarus every day – who sits outside his house ..read more

One of the great challenges of recent years has been limiting our face to screen time and prioritising our face to face time. So that we are not reduced to digital zombies - with everyone glued all the time to our phones. We are all digital zombies now But, in the lockdown, many of us have become 100% digital in our social interaction. And the rest of us are not far behind. So what does all this mean? Can we really be community if we are ONLY meeting up online? What does it mean to be truly present in a community? And is it enough if we are ONLY present digitally? My own dilemma At the beginn ..read more