The Ponderings of a Meandering Minister…
Allow me to let you into a secret – I’m shy. I know in the past I’ve found an outlet for humour, creativity and energy through drama and kids’ action songs on a conference stage, but those days are a fair bit into the past now. I enjoy preaching and leading worship and pastoral calls, … Read moreEvery Little Thing’s Gonna Be Alright
Well, there’s a title to get the twitter bots to follow me! As anyone who has ever played or sung with me in a band will tell you, I can’t remember lyrics. I wouldn’t stand a chance on the X-Factor/American Idol/The Voice. It doesn’t matter whether it’s the fifth or the five hundredth time, or … Read moreThe Story of My Life through The Best Songs Ever
I’ve been at JMC – the Junior Ministers Conference – for the last three days. It’s fairly strange to realise that I’m now in my seventh year of ministry (at least, this sort of ministry anyway): it’s like I’m in Upper Sixth of the school of post-college life already! The conference took the form of … Read moreThe Gift of Still and Thankful Presence
Forgive the Methodisty nature of this one – I was at a day of teaching and reflection on the nature and calling of the church on Saturday. As a denomination (a family of over two hundred congregations), we’re hearing a call to fluidity, relying on our identity in Christ, being ready to set aside yesterday’s … Read moreStatues of Liberty
As the song goes, I could feel it coming in the air – the friendship noose was coming ever closer as person after person succumbed to the Ice Bucket Challenge. Started as a prank nomination thing on the internet, it took on a charity edge when an American organisation related to Motor Neurone Disease was … Read moreIce Bucket Challenge
There have been a number of suicides in our area recently, a tragedy that has reared its head before but had been more calm for a while. Our church is connected to one of the grieving families and so I was present for the funeral of a beautiful young woman the other day. The depth … Read moreHelp and Hope
You may have heard of ‘Back to Church Sunday‘ – it started in England about ten years ago, encouraging local churches to have one Sunday a year where every member had the chance to be an evangelist in a low-intensity manner: invite a friend to go to church with them. There was an initial flurry … Read moreInvite, Welcome, Befriend
At the encouragement of the Methodist Church in Ireland, we operated a prayer room for 24 hours on 25-26 January 2014. While the emphasis was put on helping as many people as possible to pray in a focused way during that time, rather than specifically covering every hour, only four hours went without cover – … Read moreNight and Day Prayer
In January the Methodist Church in Ireland encouraged us to consider the theme, “Covenant and Choosing” so we could take extra time on the meaning and impact of the ‘Covenant Prayer‘. The third service focused on Christ at the Centre, using Luke 10:1-12. What follows is an excerpt of the script I was working from … Read more12 Practical Tips On How To Do What Jesus Wants Us To Do
Oh my, what a moving movie is Les Misérables! We saw the London show a number of years ago – Bring Him Home had me a blubbering, inconsolable wreck on that occasion – but I don’t think I understood the story until last night. Two strands stood out for me in particular: one was the … Read moreMisery – Caught between Justice and Grace