Viewing all items in Resource Category: Looking at God

‘A dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones. An’ I hear the word of the Lord!’ – (spiritual song by James Weldon Johnson) At this time of global pandemic, we live with stark reality of death and life. Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones (37:1-14) was given when God’s people were in exile...

At this time of global pandemic, we live with stark reality of death and life. Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones (37:1-14) was given when God’s people were in exile in Babylon. They felt dead, being separated from home and God! The vision answers God’s question: ‘can these bones live?’ We can also...

The BBC ‘Today’ programme that was broadcast on Good Friday included an interview with Hylton Murray-Philipson, a survivor of Covid-19. He had been on a ventilator in Leicester Royal Infirmary, “reduced to the state of a baby”. The programme presenter, Nick Robinson, invited him to describe memories of his time in intensive care.  When he said...

– the lament of Psalm 13 As we struggle with the effects of the global coronavirus pandemic, we might echo the words of Psalm 13: ‘Howlong, Lord? Will you forget me forever?’ It is one of a number of lament psalms, where the psalmist cries out in pain, because he feels abandoned by God. In...

The Scriptures stress the importance of desert experiences as essential preparation for times of spiritual renewal. The desert is the place of weariness, dryness and weakness which we all go through at times. The 35th chapter of Isaiah helps us to understand such experiences, and reminds us of God’s purpose in uncertain times. A Desert...

A friend, writing about the challenges she is facing, says: “We never cease to have invitations to trust, do we?” I tend to agree. Almost every day we face circumstances that we cannot control, and for which the only way to find peace is to trust in the loving wisdom of our faithful God. Yet...

Editor:   If you are not producing a magazine during the coronavirus outbreak, why not use one of these articles each week on your church website? Coping in the Storm From the Vicar Severed from routine and obliged to fashion new habits Psalm 34 Try a little kindness The wisdom of afternoon tea Passed On **...

‘Jesus got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.’ (Mark 4:39).  What started out for the disciples as a routine trip across the Sea of Galilee, ended up with a storm threatening to overwhelm their boat! Jesus was asleep in...

‘Jesus got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.’ (Mark 4:39).  What started out for the disciples as a routine trip across the Sea of Galilee, ended up with a storm threatening to overwhelm their boat! Jesus was asleep in...

Imagine a world where everything familiar has gone, the capital city’s most famous religious landmark has been destroyed, you have been transported to a foreign country, and have no idea when or if you will be permitted to go home. That’s roughly what happened to the Jewish people in what is called the Babylonian Captivity...

Amid the current coronavirus pandemic, we all live with fear and uncertainty. How do we deal with fear? ‘I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears.’ (Ps 34:4). In this psalm, David expresses real fears. He was on the run from Saul, who was trying to murder him!...

When TV presenter and celebrity Carolyn Flack took her life in February 2020 the world was shocked and saddened. How could someone so young, beautiful and successful do such a thing? It seems that the pressure of an impending court case, the vitriol she received online, and her own inner pain had become too much...