I was praying for a renewal of passion for the gospel, fervency in prayer, and increased effectiveness in ministry amidst God’s people.  In many ways it was a prayer that I hadn’t prayed in quite the same way for some time, but I had to come to it again because I can’t function without God’s … More Fanning into flame…

Maybe it’s just me and my own personality/spirituality, but I find winter to be a deeply reflective time.  Perhaps it is the longer hours indoors, the longer nights, or simply just the need to adjust our lives to the natural rhythms of our world.  If a winter internal withdrawing is good enough for the tree, … More Winter Pastor

Are you a resolution maker? I am, but not just for New Year. I have ‘mini bucket lists’ each season. My life needs the structure of something to attend to otherwise I’d get lost in the ocean of my own thoughts. Just gives shape to things. Having said that, most of these are joyous, happy … More Resolute

I’ve been catching up with the BBCs series ‘Broken’ depicting the work of a priest in a poor Sheffield community.  I had been avoiding it to be honest, because of the little I’d heard, but spend some of my day off yesterday watching… As I mentioned in my last blog, it was a difficult watch … More Broken 2

I finally did it.  I watched the first episode of Jimmy McGovern’s drama ‘Broken’ – a series focussing on the work of a priest in a deprived community in Sheffield, played by Sean Bean.  I’d heard people speak about this series and decided I had to catch up with it, but knew I’d had to … More Broken

There is an immensity about the person and work of Christ which means we’re always learning or rediscovering something about him.  We never ‘graduate’ from Jesus.  There is no end to the depths of him.  Here’s what I’m learning/rediscovering about him at the moment. 1.  He’s a servant. In prayer I’ve had a number of … More 5 Things I’m learning about Jesus

Today is ‘Stir Up’ Sunday – the day that people are supposed to stir up their Christmas pudding ingredients and let them settle before cooking the pudding for Christmas. In the wider Christian church it is ‘Christ the King Sunday’, and the last one before the Christian ‘new year’ on the First Sunday of Advent. … More Spirituality on Sunday: Stir up Sunday…

I felt a call to study through Romans in my personal study time recently – not for the purpose of preaching anything or preparing anything from it, but just for building myself up in the study of God’s word in a focussed way. So far, I’ve been unable to get beyond the challenge of 1: … More Missional Thursday: Obliged, eager and unashamed…

Casually I approach the eternal throne, and view the prize which I think is my own. That is not what Charles Wesley wrote.  It’s what I wrote just there after some time in prayer this morning.   I’ve become sick of my own lazy spiritual self, taking Christ for granted and my salvation as a given.  … More Casually I come…

I guess most people still think of prayer as a relatively passive event which happens behind closed doors.  Heads bowed, eyes closed sort of idea.  It is certainly not always the case the the church isn’t praying for the world, for its communities or people involved.  We even pray for missional outreach – which is … More Mission Thursday: Missional Prayer