In March I went to the funeral of a very good friend who died after a 6-month battle with cancer. She was clearly loved and had touched the lives of many people judging from the numbers who attended. As we left the church we were all given a packet of wildflower seeds and bulbs. I…

I was recently reading about a young woman by the name of Kayla Montgomery.  I’d not heard of her before, but I found her story moving.  Kayla is an American distance runner.  She became widely known for competing at a high level after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis as a teenager. She was good!  So good that she was given…

Today’s thought for the day is brought to us by Tanya Person www.ellel.uk Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on…

The Twyford church in Hampshire, UK has a tradition of ringing its bells every year on October 7th. I wonder what the residents think about that? However, the origin of this tradition goes back to the 18th Century when a local resident called William David became lost in heavy fog while riding home at night.…

Read Psalm 8:2(b) ‘You have founded a bulwark because of your foes’. Reflect Different translations of this verse give us different words to ponder. The New Revised Standard Version says, “You have founded a bulwark”; the New International Version speaks of “a stronghold”; the English Standard Version says, “you have established strength”; and the King…

Earlier in the year I wrote about slavery after I had visited Bristol, where the subject comes up so often when looking at the city’s history. If I were to ask you which figure did most to bring about the abolition of slavery, I imagine many would reply  ” William Wilberforce”. A very prominent figure…

A recent social media article referred to the inevitability of death, but for the Christian, the prospect of heaven. I recall growing up in a church that had a weekly communion service lasting over an hour, with lovely contributions that encouraged the singing of a phrase from a hymn. “If such a glimpse of love…

My daughter-in-law is learning to drive which gave me opportunity to revisit the basics of driving theory. There are probably many of us who were “fortunate” enough not to have to sit a driving theory exam. I can remember in my driving test being asked to read a number plate and identify a couple of…

For many years now, I have travelled from Lofthouse in Upper Nidderdale over the moors and down to Masham in Wensleydale, firstly with my parents in our trusty little three-wheeler Reliant Regal then, in more recent years, I have driven my own family. Looking up to my right on the descent towards Leighton Reservoir I…

The problem was I just could not stay upright.  Down I went again, my walking trousers becoming covered in sticky brown mud.  The ground had turned in a matter of moments from a dusty path into a brown ice rink.  The rain had come down like sheets suddenly and with only minimal warning, in a…