As we prepare for Christmas, I wonder what you’re having to make room for. Are you having to make space in a bedroom for extra guests or an extra chair or several at your table? Are you rearranging your furniture to make room for a Christmas tree or even rearranging your outdoor planters to make room for a blow up snowman or Santa? I wonder if you have time, or consciously make room, for pondering what Christmas is about? This year, somewhere between the tinsel and the turkey, or maybe in the days between year end and year beginning, I invite you to make room for pondering Christ Jesus. This is after all what many Christians around the world do during Advent. They intentionally stop and take a pause to remember that first Christmas, which reminds them that Jesus is the Christ child that gave us Christmas. But why does it matter today, 2,000 plus years later? I’m looking forward to Christmas 2022. It seems so much more hopeful than r...
The symbolism of the sea in the Bible begins with the creation story. The creation of the universe by God was seen by ancient Hebraic peoples as creation from the cosmic sea (symbolic perhaps of the spiritual realm). In Genesis God separates the waters creating the sky (heaven) and the sea/water on earth as 2 distinct realms and then places boundaries on the earthly seas by creating land. At creation the Spirit is present as he hovered over the waters bringing order to the chaos. The sea is the source of all water on earth. Water springs forth from below and drops through apertures in the firmament above as rain and snow, even providing water for the great flood (Gen 7:11 & 8:2 – the rain fell in mighty torrents and the underground waters stopped flowing). God is seen to therefore use the sea in judgment against sin. In contrast, in Micah 7:19, we see God’s forgiveness by “casting sin into the depths of the sea” but t...
I’ve recently been reflecting on persistently, constantly and patiently doing good. We’ve seen so much of people doing good over recent months. Whether it’s the many people who have volunteered for Community Hubs picking up shopping or prescriptions, or businesses stepping in to provide children’s lunches over half term, or Joe Wicks (and others) offering their skills free of charge during lockdown to keep the nation fit and well in body, soul and spirit. But, it’s hard to always keep doing good. Whilst we maybe able to be good in one area of our lives, there are often other areas where we are less than good, maybe a lack of patience within our own families, frustration with the authorities, struggling to persistently choose to eat healthily and exercise, or just being plain sick and tired of the daily grind. Persisting in doing good requires a striving and a seeking from within to do so. It takes effort and choice. Constantly doing good requires us ...
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