First posted in January, 2013: "Thy Kingdom come." It’s probably the most frequently spoken prayer known in Christendom, uttered all over the world daily by multitudes of Christians since time immemorial. We so desperately want the Kingdom of God to come, don’t we? Errr….don’t we? Well…..maybe. Ever considered what we’re actually asking for as we … Continue reading From The Archives: Thy Kingdom Come?
The Kingdom
The Prodigal Father
"Prodigal": Spending money or resources freely and recklessly, wastefully extravagant, having or giving something on a lavish scale Oxford Dictionary To Simon, brother of my father, greetings and peace to you and your household. I will waste no time, uncle, in presenting to you the reason for my letter. I find myself in need of assistance … Continue reading The Prodigal Father
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The Jesus That Time Forgot
Until Christ is revealed in us and to us by the indwelling Holy Spirit we cannot know Him. For many Christ followers our journeys begin in a similar way. We hear and believe the gospel and set out expectantly, seeking to know more about this Jesus Christ who took our place on a Roman cross. … Continue reading The Jesus That Time Forgot
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From The Archives: No You Can’t, Uh Uh, No Way!
So there was Jesus making His way along the road. And there was the usual crowd, pressing, squabbling, gawking, chattering. Seems a familiar scenario - Jesus and crowds go together, right? No, not this day. This day Jesus turns, faces the crowd and presents them with something they didn’t come for. “You can’t follow Me” … Continue reading From The Archives: No You Can’t, Uh Uh, No Way!
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In Search Of Authentic Authority
Leadership. For many of us the word leaves a bad taste. For some it evokes a sense of deep disappointment, emotional pain or abandonment. And for far too many it awakens traumatic memories of spiritual abuse. Jesus didn’t have a lot to say about leadership, except to warn the disciples that His idea of leadership … Continue reading In Search Of Authentic Authority
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What’s Darker Than Dark?
When I was a child I was afraid of the dark. One of my earliest memories is of waking to see a gigantic feral cat, silhouetted in the moonlight, filling the doorway to my bedroom. Yellow glowing eyes stared menacingly back at me as I contemplated what to do. Terrified, I did the best I … Continue reading What’s Darker Than Dark?
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The Insanity of The Kingdom
Recently a blogger friend, Becky Johnson, remarked in one of her posts “I think this is normal to a life of faith – this feeling like we …. are doing something completely insane” I think she’s on to something. You don’t need to spend a lot of time reading the gospels before you realise the … Continue reading The Insanity of The Kingdom
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On Bearing Witness, Or “Just Go With Me On This”
We watched on with a mixture of awe and wonderment as the old woman cavorted gleefully just in front of us. She was short, round, gray haired…..and today she was beautiful. The silver hair on her head and her chin testified of a long life, a life that had known hardship - perhaps more than … Continue reading On Bearing Witness, Or “Just Go With Me On This”
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Of Wolves and Kings
The scene was somber. Weeping unashamedly each one in turn fell upon the apostle’s neck, covering his face with kisses, embracing him for what they now knew would be the last time. Each of them feared for their spiritual father's fate, but none could contend with his determination to go on. Regardless of whatever … Continue reading Of Wolves and Kings
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Unconditional Love – Or Not
Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned.( Luke 8:37) “Just go Jesus, OK? We don’t want anything to do with you. Don’t even think about entering this city. We’ve seen … Continue reading Unconditional Love – Or Not
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Christ is the answer!
I want to share with you a recent post by my friend Patrick Maina in Nairobi, Kenya. The word he shares here and the moving video need to be heard and seen by all who seek to follow Christ. We deal on a daily basis with our own set of circumstances, but this post and video spell out the reality of our deepest identity. The apostle Paul said we are a people who ‘as dying, yet behold we live’. There are those who call us the people of the Cross, and so we are. But we are also the people of the Resurrection. Whether our lives are personally threatened or not, let us live out the Love that is stronger than any hatred and let us carry the Light of that unrelenting Love into every dark and evil place. Death has been swallowed up in victory. In Him is Life, and the Life is the (only) Light of mankind.
Credit: Chrismons and Chrismon Patterns The attack in Garissa University earlier this month left many of us that are affected directly or indirectly with many unanswered questions. There was much pain and heartache at different levels and for this my prayer for peace and strength goes to God especially for the families and friends of the victims.
One brother from SA asked me what I felt and could only say sadness and helplessness, but deep inside I knew that even if it felt like that, we were actually not helpless. It may look like that, but the reality is different.
The creator of the universe, the omnipresent God was present as it was happening, and He was almighty to stop it, but He did not. The very present help in time of need was right there as those perpetrators opened fire on those unarmed people. To understand the whys and…
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Jesus Was Cool About Breaking The Rules
So there I was, frantically squeezing my feet into my brown school shoes, eyeing the wall clock with alarm and breathlessly leaping onto the back of the school bus as it pulled away from the bus stop. My heart was pounding as I rehearsed suitable excuses for missing roll call. My throat tightened with a … Continue reading Jesus Was Cool About Breaking The Rules
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Watch This Space
“Foolishness” mumbled the soldier Casting lots for the rabbi’s garment “An utter waste of a good man’s life” “Serves him right” spat the Pharisee Nodding to himself self righteously Stroking his beard with smug delight “It cannot be!” uttered the disciple Tears streaming from bloodshot eyes “It wasn’t meant to end this way!” … Continue reading Watch This Space
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A Tale of Two Adams
The Garden ‘Stay here and watch with Me. My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death.’ Matt. 26:38 It was not by coincidence that Jesus chose a garden as the setting for the greatest battle of His earthly life. Wasn’t it in a garden that His ancestor, First Adam, had rejected Life and condemned all … Continue reading A Tale of Two Adams
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Beholding The Glory
Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me….. Jn. 17:24 We who follow Christ have been invited to be with Him, where He is, that we may behold His glory. We are conditioned by religious … Continue reading Beholding The Glory
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Deep, Deep Love
Come’ You said. That was it, just: ‘Come’. So here I am, in this place of no return. Looking back I can see the boat: familiar, safe, beckoning. There are faces I know within that boat, that’s the hard thing. People I’ve called friends. But they’re in the boat, and I’m….well, I’m outside the boat … Continue reading Deep, Deep Love
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Love. Uncomplicated.
The doctor’s manner was courteous as we entered his consulting room, even if somewhat abrupt. Mr. P and I are no strangers to medical waiting rooms with their clinical atmospheres, hushed tones and oh so efficient receptionists. This day we had sat for an hour and a quarter past our appointment time, but the building … Continue reading Love. Uncomplicated.
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The Old Man and The Train
Imagine yourself in this scenario. You are on a train travelling at high speed, a speed that grows faster with each passing moment. You are in a crowded carriage where every other passenger is seated. But you are standing in the aisle, trying very hard to stay on your feet as the train’s … Continue reading The Old Man and The Train
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Crucified!
The mood among them was sombre to say the least. Passover was meant to be a celebration of Israel’s exodus from Egypt, but all this talk of Him going away without them was hitting them like a bucket of cold water. Now His conversation had turned again to the Father and the One He called … Continue reading Crucified!
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Of His Flesh and Of His Bones: A Mystery
One of the things I like about some more historic versions of the Bible is their poetic language. I know not everyone will agree and some struggle to understand the older translations, so this is purely an individual observation. Modern language translations and paraphrases also have an important place and personally I enjoy consulting a … Continue reading Of His Flesh and Of His Bones: A Mystery
Bread for the Bride 