The Thought for the Day is from Psalm 147 v 4. Astronomers used Australia’s largest optical telescope to map 100,000 galaxies that surround our own galaxy, the Milky Way. The 3-dimensional map covers 5% of the sky and allows us to see 4 billion light-years deep into space. The number of stars included defies our imagination,…

Four years ago I was travelling back from Scotland. We reached Northumberland and the road we wanted to travel on was closed. We were diverted across the North Pennines, and came across a gem of a village, Blanchland. Whilst planning our summer holidaying June this year, we decided to make Blanchland our “stopover” on our…

In 1789, Benjamin Franklin, a significant figure in early American history, coined a phrase that is still quoted today. He said, ‘Nothing is certain except death and taxes’. Sunday 12th June is Tax Justice Sunday; an opportunity for churches simultaneously to address the two certainties that Benjamin Franklin spoke of. We have a gospel that…

1 Corinthians 13 –  A paraphrase    IF      I have the language never so perfectly and speak like a pundit and have not the knack of              love that grips the heart, I am nothing.    IF      I have decorations and diplomas and am proficient in all up to date methods and have not             …

On Sunday the 15th May Richard and I attended the morning service in Hakka Methodist Church. It is very close to his apartment. It was very hot and so the coolness inside the church was a huge relief. We were warmly greeted and shown where to sit. The first thing I noticed was the beautiful…

Last week we thought about God being in heaven. This week, in our next phrase of the Lord’s Prayer, we think about heaven on earth. And we are very much part of this. We cannot be passive recipients, rather active participants. There is an urgency in this part of the prayer. We don’t want to…