blog

  • Just a Thought... 14 March

    Probably because we live in such an increasingly ‘instant’ society, it’s easy to forget that just about everything we do has consequences. The enthusiastic mathematician can describe how something called ‘chaos theory’ can work out (with lots of imagination!) - that the flapping of a butterfly’s wings over the river Amazon can eventually, as air current flows, lead to a hurricane over Europe! The problem is we tend to assume that everything is that vague (and unlikely!) and park the idea of consequences in the corner of our thinking marked: “forget it!”. Yet connections between...

  • Just a Thought... 7 March

    Are you taller or shorter? Older or younger? Struggling or thriving? How do you compare? Constant comparison has been rampant in every society since the very beginning and it can be dangerously unhelpful: The fourth chapter of the Old Testament book of Genesis describes how Cain compared himself to his brother Abel and jealously killed him as a consequence. Of course, most of the time the results are less catastrophic, yet comparing ourselves to others can easily result in fractured relationships and sinful behaviour: Last Sunday morning we watched the apostle Paul warn the Christians in Galatia against becoming conceited...

  • Just a Thought... 28 February

    It’s a wonderful truth to know that as Christians we are saved by grace through faith alone! It’s one of the cries of the reformation because it’s at the heart of the Biblical Gospel! As Christians we can contribute absolutely NOTHING to our salvation and that’s great news because we would never be able to do enough… Nevertheless, when we read the Bible carefully, it’s clear that “the faith that saves is never alone”. The trust that we so desperately put in the Lord Jesus and our dependence on Him as both Saviour and...

  • Just a Thought... 21 February

    “Courage isn’t the absence of fear, it’s the decision to act even when you are afraid!” Yet going ahead with a plan when there are good reasons to be afraid, might be courageous, but could also be foolish! Surely the circumstances matter beyond simply how you feel – especially when there may be good reasons to fear! Last Sunday morning, in a break from our studies in the New Testament letter to the Galatians, we were reminded of the LORD’s Old Testament people after they left slavery in Egypt and were on the edge of...

  • Just a Thought... 14 February

    The greatest love All around the world people are celebrating Valentine’s Day today. I found out that this day actually started as a Christian feast day honouring some Christian martyrs, including one Saint Valentine of Rome who was imprisoned for helping persecuted Christians in the Roman Empire in the third century. Today it’s more connected with romantic love however, and many send cards or give flowers or chocolates to someone they love. This historic connection gives a beautiful pointer to the greatest love of all – a love that’s self-sacrificial and proven by someone’s actions...

  • Just a Thought... 7 February

    At times it can be tempting to live in the past: looking back at what’s been achieved or experienced and believe that we’re doing OK. Of course, it can be encouraging to enjoy the fruits of our labour, but only provided we don’t believe that as a result we have ‘arrived’! On Sunday morning James from London City Mission reminded us from Philippians ch 3 that the apostle Paul could also look back, but as he laid out his past achievements, qualifications and accolades, he… “…I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing...

  • Just a Thought... 31 January

    The Gospel of Grace makes us free, but it’s important that we understand what is meant by ‘free’. Our culture understands freedom as chaos. It's neatly captured in the film ‘Frozen’ in which one of the heroines sings the “let it go song”: “It’s time to see what I can do To test the limits and break through! No right, no wrong, no rules for me, I’m free! Let it go! Let it go!... etc..” She’s captured the modern secular Western mindset perfectly: Autonomy. Authenticity. Individuality. “Freedom”. Yet we...

  • Just a Thought... 24 January

    Unfulfilled expectations can be terribly disappointing, yet when they are ‘apparently’ unfulfilled by God, it can feel catastrophic! One problem is that we can find ourselves imposing expectations on God that are false: the idea that He will do something we thought He had promised but hasn’t, or sometimes misunderstanding what He has promised when actually His plan is much bigger. On Sunday evenings over the last few weeks in Matthew ch 11, we have seen John the Baptist’s disappointment that although the Lord Jesus clearly IS the Saviour, the promised judgement hadn’t yet happened! The...

  • Just a Thought... 17 January

    The Gospel is amazing! The wonderful truth of grace: God’s love for us in the Lord Jesus, His gift of eternal life as we put our faith in Him alone to save us through His death on the cross and resurrection from the dead – it’s all beyond our understanding and deeply humbling! Yet because it’s so beyond us, and God’s plan for the world is so amazing, we may be tempted to listen to hearsay rather than properly understood Bible! Indeed, our own sinful hearts can easily convince us that what we have in Christ...

  • Just a Thought... 10 January

    Prompted by our church motto verse for this year (1 John 3:1), last Sunday we paused with the children to think about what it means for God to have lavished us with His love. (If you missed that illustration you catch-up here , about 34mins in.) Thinking about the extent of God’s love, I’m reminded of an old children’s song I learned in Sunday School and still sing on Beach Missions with simple but profound words: Jesus love is very wonderful (x3) So high you can’t get over it, So low you can’t get...