Thought for the Week

‘Dead men don’t rise’

Have you ever heard anyone put forward such an argument? It goes something like this: “It just doesn’t happen. I’ve never seen such a thing. I don’t know anyone who has. Lame people don’t walk. Blind people don’t see. Dead men don’t rise. It can’t happen.” It is certainly true that such things don’t normally

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How People Change

Earlier this week some of us met up to review the ‘How People Change’ course that we went through at the start of the year, and we were reminded of one of the key insights from the course: my situation is significant, but not determinative. In other words, the situations we find ourselves in will

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Best value

We are familiar with trying to get the best value – whether it’s doing the weekly shop, making clothes last a little longer or putting in an offer for a house. Had you realised that getting the best value in life is something the Bible speaks of? Consider this: “Train yourself to be godly. For

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You shall not steal

“Where did you get that?” my father asked. He had noticed a small toy in my hand, just as we were leaving the toy shop. I replied, truthfully, that I had found it on the floor. He informed me that it was still stealing, taking something that didn’t belong to me. He duly marched me

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Forgive as the Lord forgave you

Christians know that they are meant to forgive other people. After all, we believe in forgiveness, and we rejoice in God’s forgiveness. It is only reasonable that, as forgiven people, we should extend that same forgiveness to others. But what does it mean to “forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13, NIV)? In what

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Our Vision

At our recent Vision Evening, we re-articulated the vision we believe God has given us for our church. This vision isn’t something we’ve devised cleverly after years of consultation, or made up for ourselves quickly one rainy afternoon, or received in a dream during the night. It is simply a re-statement of what the Lord

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What do I say when…?

At the Vision Evening on Wednesday, we were discussing how we might do better at reaching various groups with the good news of Jesus: families, students and the rest of the parish. It was pointed out that each of us could do with being more natural as witnesses to Jesus – and who could argue

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What we really need

“Drive bold”, it said alongside the photo of a shiny red BMW X4 (for those who don’t know, that’s a car). Over the page, a shiny silver Maserati Ghibli (another car!) was accompanied by the words, “The head says Yes. The heart says Definitely, Yes.” Perhaps those adverts do nothing for you, especially described coldly

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Looking for justice?

One of my favourite ways of winding down at the end of the day is watching Castle. Castle is one of the many identikit US crime dramas in which a glamorous team of detectives solves a murder with a minimum of fuss and a sprinkling of humorous one-liners. Of course, every murder is solved within the hour

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Need a substitute?

I was surprised and saddened by the news this week that Robin Williams has died. He was an actor whose films I grew up with and loved; he was guaranteed to make me laugh! But by all accounts, behind his quick-tongued, comic, public persona was a deep darkness and despair, a loneliness and a fear

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