Bible2020

I marvel at great feats of strength and endurance. The annual world's strongest man competition or Tour de France show the limits we can push the human body to. Yet when it comes to the Christian life and ministry, I often think, I don't know enough. At times I find myself too tired to do anything more. I can look around the breadth of the church and in my more cynical moments think 'really, this is the team you have left to carry out your mission Lord!' Then there is the

One person can stand in wonder as a new train passes, another complains about the delay they are experiencing at the crossing. One person shouts with excitement as a try is scored, another wonders what all those men are doing on top of each other. One person is intrigued in the detail of a painting, another walks on by. We are all wired differently. We get excited about and are passionate for different things. Yet there is one who should grab all out attention. One who de

In these days no-one needs to be reminded about the pain caused by distance. When you cant visit family it doesn't matter if they live round the corner or across the world. When you aren't allowed to touch, even 2 metres seems like a mile. In today's Psalm we are encouraged to praise God because of the blessings of being brought near. Praise awaits you, our God, in Zion; to you our vows will be fulfilled. You who answer prayer, to you all people will come. When we were over

It is said, that talking to yourself is the first sign of madness; conversely I wonder if it is the first sign of wisdom, as demonstrated by today's Psalm. Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth i

Our theology of 'sacred space' has been challenged through lockdown, as we have been unable to enter a church building, instead our worship has taken place in living rooms, gardens and around kitchen tables. Our Psalm today begins with the sense that we can praise God anywhere. Indeed, everyone, everywhere should join in this song of praise. It then moves to tell us where our praise is truly located. Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness;

There is a dynamic in today's Psalm, which encourages us not to stop short in our worship of God. Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Psalm 105:1-4 We worship God today, because of all that he has done in the past. The core of

Yesterday, we seen that when we praise God, we join in a global song. Today, the Psalm reminds us that even the greatest on earth should praise God. Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is grea

We are an interconnected world - news travels faster than we can, as it shoots through the airwaves or down through the web. Today's Psalm reminds us that we don't worship a family god, or one of the parish. He isn't limited to the west, but is worship by people all over the world. Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts. Worship the Lord

When was the last time you stood in wonder? What was it that caught your eye? What grabbed your attention? What is it that grabs the Psalmists attention? Shout for joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious. Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing the praises of your name.” Come and see what God has done, his aw

I must admit, when I shout it isn't often for a good reason. Often I raise my voice to command attention or to issue instruction. Sometimes I raise my voice to vent my anger or frustration. Rarely do I raise my voice to tell of something good. I need to repent, and learn to shout with joy. Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of

Over the next 11 days, we are spending time in the Psalms. Many of the readings will be familiar to us, all of them in the proverbial 'Top 40'. Perhaps today's would even make no 1. The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and

Jonah obeyed, but God wasn't finished with him! That's why we have chapter 4 - the strange story of a big leafy plant, a little worm and an angry prophet! Then the Lord God provided a leafy plant and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered. When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun

Jonah finally came to his senses. It happened as he was sitting in the belly of the great fish. And there in that dark, stinking place - he raised a cry to God. God heard, and God saved. When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salva

I am not a great swimmer, so whenever I am on a boat, I like to stay well away from the edge. The thought of falling, letting alone jumping into choppy waters fills me with fear. I don't know if Jonah could swim, but in the middle of a wild storm, Jonah says throw me in! The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know t

There are many good reasons to run. Running is a great way to get fit. Running can help you get away from dangerous situations fast. And often kids run just because it is fun or they are feeling excited. When Jonah ran, it wasn't for any of these reasons. The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish . He went

We all have the same amount of time in a day - it's how we use those 24 hours which makes us different. Some move quickly, and pack their days full. Others, enjoy a more leisurely pace, and never seem to get around to doing that thing. People on these opposite ends of the scale can infuriate each other. And we can even get pretty angry with God, when it seems like he isn't moving at all. But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand

Have you ever been in a crowd and think - I don't really belong here? Everyone else seems like they belong, and you wonder, how on earth did I end up here? When you feel like that, you stand on the edge, you don't fully commit or get wholly involved. Today's reading, encourages us to be confident and fully committed. Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the

Yesterday, we discovered the radical transformation which takes place in someones life when they become a Christian. We live under a new law, free from the law of sin and death. Today, we discover our new purpose in life. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself i

Our lives are bound by rules. Some, like the law of gravity, we just can't escape. Others, vary by what age we are, or where we live. With laws like that a certain birthday, or moving house will be life changing as you step into a realm of new possibilities. Our reading today has the sense of stepping into a new realm, one in which you are governed by a different law. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the

It seems like we are hardwired to contribute to anything we are given. We accept wages, they are our due for work given. If someone offers us something they are giving away, we feel we need to pay them or give a donation in return. When someone does us a good turn, we are in their debt - we owe them a favour. And even when it comes to presents at birthday and Christmas, we give, expecting to receive! Such is the logic of our heart, and it is far from the way of God's grac