I’ve recently had a lot of spare time on my hands, and in an effort to stop me getting bored and being tempted to push myself too hard, my sister sent me a jigsaw as a “get well” present. The subject matter of the 1000-piece puzzle was an “80’s” shopping basket – who remembers Cadbury’s…
Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B 16th June 2024. Lectionary Readings: Ezekiel 17 v22-24; Psalm 92 v1-4, 12-15; 2 Corinthians 5 v6-17; Mark 4 v26-34. Seeds of the Kingdom? One way to begin thinking about Mark’s ‘seed’ stories is to ponder what Jesus meant by ‘The kingdom of God’ when he introduced these…
My first memory of Brooke Methodist Chapel was Saturday 5th February 2005 when I arrived with my family on our visit for my potential new appointment as the minister. I would have three churches, of which Brooke was my small village chapel with a membership of about fifteen and I confess that having landed from…
I have been enjoying watching the programme on television about “The Amazon with Robson Green.” Part of the second episode dealt with where the Amazon was joined by its massive tributary called The Rio Negra. The Joining of the Waters is a short boat trip east from Manaus. The two rivers meet but they do…
Thinking of the D-Day anniversary, reminded me of this story. One Sunday, a man went to a service in an unfamiliar church. He arrived early and parked his car. As he opened the door to get out, another car pulled up next to him and the driver wound down his window,” I always park there.…
The daily bible readings recommended this week (see the centre of the Methodist Prayer Handbook if you have it) are from the book of Ruth. The overall theme for the week is ‘Faith in Providence.’ There are many interwoven themes in Ruth but that of Providence runs through the book. Providence means different things in…
Today’s contribution is by Dr Frances Clemson, Faith Communications and Just Scripture Specialist at Christian Aid. www.christianaid.org.uk Animals Something to read “Can you hunt the prey for the lion or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in their covert? Who provides for the raven…
This week, our 10 minute service reflects on Psalm 18:2
I recall a time when my wife asked me if I had heard the weather forecast and I replied, “Yes”. “What did it say?” she asked. My response was, “I don’t know, I wasn’t listening”. The ability to hear without listening is not dissimilar to listening to a familiar Bible passage and suddenly becoming aware…
Tenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B 9th June 2024 Lectionary readings:Genesis 3 v8-15; Psalm 130; 2 Corinthians 4 v13-5v1; Mark 3 v20-35 The true source of the power to heal. People in ancient times lived in fear of demons, who they thought were responsible for a whole range of what we would call…