blog

  • Just a thought... 7 Sept

    "Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God." (Psalm 42:5, 11) Life can be so complicated, with all that's going on around us in the world at large, as well as in our own lives. And it's so easy to get downcast, discouraged, frustrated perhaps. And we wonder where God is in all of this. We want to follow and serve him, but he seems so far away. With the psalmist, we feel indeed that our "soul thirsts...

  • Just a thought... 31 Aug

    As summer turns to autumn, the evenings begin to draw in and the air gets just that bit colder, the new ‘term’ looms large for children & teachers back to school, students to Uni and all the ‘usual’ activities looking to re-start. Yet this year is different: many activities stopped because of Covid and a good deal of what we once regarded as ‘normal’ now fills us with excitement or perhaps more than a little apprehension. Many have used the pause as an opportunity to make long-term changes and all of us have the chance...

  • Just a thought... 24 Aug

    When we look at the world around us, at the evil that happens, at the hardships we personally face, how do we respond? Maybe with self-pity? Or despair? Or anger, towards God or people around us? Or, much better, do we bring it to God in faith: seeking his help, pleading for his grace to bear and understand, for courage; trusting that God is in control, and that he has his good and wise purposes? The prayer of the Christians in Acts 4 shows us such a prayer (please read Acts 4, especially verse 23-31). Here, the lessons...

  • Just a thought... 17 Aug

    God with us Many of us will have had the experience of moving around over the summer, or at least seeing different people than at other times of year. In many different ways our lives & behaviour have been dictated to us over the last 18 months. As we move into the autumn with (we hope) less restrictions on society and greater opportunities, the choices now facing us should cause us again to question how to live and what to do. Psalm 15 that we considered last Sunday evening asks just one such question: “Who can live with God...

  • Reading the Bible Together

    With a new year comes new opportunities, and so as a church we're starting a new initiative of 'Reading the Bible Together' (RBT).

  • Well spoken?

    We all know that words can be really powerful. The old children’s rhyme ‘Sticks & stones can beak my bones but words will never hurt me.’ has a sort of simple logic about it, but we know that it isn’t true. At the very least, words communicate ideas which lead to actions.

  • No prejudice

    The offence of prejudice is often levelled at Christians in general and ‘the church’ at large. Sexism, racism, ageism, etc… People often argue that the ideal is for us to live in a tolerant society – but by that they usually mean that everything is tolerated but intolerance – which is rather contradictory.

  • Playing your part

    Some years ago before I was a Pastor, I regularly had to go to an aeroplane engine factory as a part of my job. It was an exciting large-scale place, full of huge machines and massive spaces to move them around. Visiting the factory every few months was a highlight of my job. One day I was asked to go to a particular workshop within the factory where a team of about 12 people, each with his own bench, were working. Most of these guys had been there for 20 years or more and their task was to make...

  • The Lord reigns

    The apostle Paul lived under the rule of a despotic Roman emperor insisting that he be worshipped as a god. The apparently unassailable imperial power was mediated through local pagan regimes which left anyone not engaged in emperor worship at the margins of society. Nevertheless, in Chapter 13 of his letter to Christians in Rome, Paul wrote these humbling words:

  • A new church for Marlborough

    We're delighted to partner with other churches in the region to support Christians in Marlborough who are starting a new church. The aim is not to be a cosy clique, nor merely to borrow Christians from other churches, but to reach out across East Wiltshire with the message of Christ. The group have chosen the name Emmanuel Marlborough (which does not mean it's our franchise). Our Assistant Pastor, Reuben Mann, is heading it up. Do look at the web site and go along if you live in the area.