blog

  • Just a Thought... 18 June

    As the weather improves and sunny days are followed by clear skies at night, we have the opportunity to see the glory of the sunshine taking turns with the glory of the stars. There is a great deal of light pollution that obscures their beauty for us, but if you go out to a dark field, away from the lights of civilisation, you can see the wonder of “God’s 5-word creation of the universe” that shouts to all civilisations that He is glorious. Remember those simple words in Genesis chapter 1, almost as an after-thought: ...

  • Just a Thought... 11 June

    There’s a lot of talk about inheritance in the news at the moment, and especially “inheritance tax”. Different political parties have different policies, but all of them seem to be advocating that, one way or another, it’s here to stay. In practice that means that if someone has left you something in their will – or indeed, if you try to leave something for others - you may need to take such a tax into account. As we saw last Sunday morning from Deut Ch 18, the Old Testament people of God were likewise concerned with inheritance, but...

  • Just a Thought... 4 June

    On Sunday morning John reminded us from 1 Peter 1 of our wonderful salvation. Even in the midst of trials we can praise God for His work in our lives. 1 Peter 1:10-12 says: Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but...

  • Just a Thought... 28 May

    There is so much uncertainty around us: from sad news of war, to economic turmoil, to political instability, to broken relationships… As people we crave peace and security when a broken world that has rejected God can only deliver more brokenness. Nowhere is that more visible than the world’s wholesale rejection of the Lord Jesus: in some cases that rejection is clear and persecution is obvious, but in others it can be quite subtle and we must be alert to the devil’s ways and schemes: feigned concern at some of His influence, seeds of doubt sown in our...

  • Just a Thought... 21 May

    A wonderful truth that’s emphasised all the way through the Bible is that the LORD is interested in everyone no matter what their situation. We were reminded of this last Sunday morning from Deut ch16 when we saw that in the promised land, God’s people were put in 7 categories emphasising their identity and community in Him: “Be joyful at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns.” (Deut 16:14) Time and again we read of...

  • Just a Thought... 14 May

    Have you noticed how much competition is encouraged in our society? From school sports to board games to TV quiz shows and professional sports, competitions on the radio and what’s surely the peak of it all with the Olympics, which this year are in Paris! From a young age we are encouraged to compete. We might say that it’s not the winning but the taking part that counts, but it’s discouraging when many of us aren’t any good at sports! Nevertheless, as we saw last Sunday from 2 Tim 4 last Sunday morning, the apostle Paul...

  • Just a Thought... 7 May

    We rightly regard ‘slavery’ as an awful practice: people ‘owned’ by others, denied their freedom, forced to work for no or little reward and certainly with no choice, haunt world history. Yet in the ancient world, ‘slavery’ could mean indentured labour: a firm but time-limited work contract that provided some form of social security in a world where there was no welfare state. We would much prefer a welfare state but can recognise that for some ancient people it might have been better to work than starve. Last Sunday morning we saw from Deut ch15 how...

  • Just a Thought... 30 April

    Last Sunday we celebrated our 19th church anniversary (the actual date we first met all together was 17th April 2005, meeting in Hardenhuish School Hall). It’s important to note such anniversaries because, as Moses prays: “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm90:12) As a church we can gain a heart of wisdom by looking back over the last 19 years of the LORD’s faithfulness: through challenges and opportunities, massive discouragements and wonderful encouragements, He has kept us. Always we have sought to be driven by the Bible...

  • Just a Thought... 23 April

    On Sunday evening we continued to see from Matthew 26 that the events leading up to Jesus’ death were all part of God’s plan to save many people. God was working out His purposes even as Jesus was betrayed by Judas, denied by Peter, and deserted by all the disciples. Jesus knows everything that is about to happen to Him and as he anticipates the cross, we read in verse 38: “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” And in verse 39: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken...

  • Just a Thought... 16 April

    “Surely just a little bit won’t hurt…” is how our thinking often goes in all sorts of areas. Sometimes that’s true… Yet when it comes to decisions over right and wrong, the Bible makes clear that ‘compromise’ isn’t acceptable to the LORD. Last Sunday morning we saw Moses starting to apply the implications of the 10 commandments to the day-to-day lives of God’s people as they went to live in the promised land. The implications of loving God and not making idols were explained in graphic detail as God’s people...