This strange space called recovery…
My faithful blog followers know that I’m just back from some unexpected surgery over the Christmas and New Year period – an urgent hernia repair for those who like detail. I’m now in this strange space called recovery, when even a raised eyebrow sees Rosemary anxiously asking, “Are you sure you should do that dear? You don’t want to set the process back.” Oh it would be so easy to exploit everyone’s good will. I just need to cough a little piteously and I get offered another cup of tea or a biscuit. True, I don’t fool everyone. My 9 year old...
Read MoreOn waiting for surgery at the end of the year…
If anyone asks for a wise word at the start of a year, here is one you might like to pass along. If you’re going to get sick, don’t do it between Christmas and New Year. I’ve made the mistake of doing so, and oh my, it has been frustrating. In my last blog I indicated that I was hurriedly finishing off the post before having surgery for a hernia repair, and here I am 3 and a half days later, still waiting, though ready to be wheeled through for surgery should an opening come up. Let me fill you in a little more. On Boxing Day I woke to notice a significant swelling that...
Read MoreDead Poets, Cold Swims and Epektasis: My Takeaways from 2024
Last night Rosemary and I watched Dead Poets Society. It felt like a good thing to do as a new year beckons. There are not many 35 year movies that can hold my attention, but this is one of them. There is so much I resonate with, but also a fair amount that niggles and leaves me thinking, “I’m not so sure about that.” And that’s why it’s such a good movie! Whatever, in reviewing the year I asked myself if I have sucked the marrow out of life, and if I have remembered to follow the “carpe diem” principle and seized the day. In my own way, I think I...
Read MoreCall Him… Prince of Peace?
Happy Christmas. Here’s a short piece I wrote a few years back that is in my book Could this be God. It comes with my warmest Christmas greetings to you and yours. I was recently part of a group finalising a Christmas preaching series. We decided on the theme ‘Call Him’ and planned to look at a range of names given to Jesus. You know the ones I mean? He shall be called wonderful, counsellor, mighty God, Prince of Peace, Emmanuel and so on. Great names, they rightly inspire and motivate us. I’ve landed up with the Isa 9:6 Prince of Peace title. Of course the new atheists would snigger,...
Read MoreWhen a Child is Born: Some Personal Reflections
It’s been a big week for our family. Grandchild number four has arrived – clocking in 3 weeks early, a smidgeon over 3 kilograms, 52 cm long and happily exercising a healthy set of lungs. Her name is Audrey – my daughter Amy, her husband Aaron and their son Ashton determined to aliterate their first names. The triple A’s are now quad A’s. That this all happened just before Christmas has been more than special. The journey was actually fraught, and we weren’t sure they would get there. There had been several losses and more than a little heartache along the...
Read MoreBecause you never really know what you’re signing up for: Mary’s Story…
Perhaps you have heard the story of the farmer who discovered that a beautiful white horse had wandered onto his property. Despite the best efforts to find its owner, no one came forward and he was told to keep the horse, his friends saying: “You are so blessed to have received a wonderful horse like that for nothing.” And the farmer replied: “Who knows, we shall see.” A few weeks later while the farmer’s son was riding the horse he fell off and broke his leg badly. His friends said: “Oh how terrible. Such a bad break and especially sad as he is at the prime of his life –...
Read MoreRedeeming Disqualifying Stories…
Some people have stories that follow them around: “You do know about the time he…” or “You may not realise it, but though she looks like butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth, there was the time that…” At a church I once pastored a woman had found faith in Jesus whist in prison and now attended the church. She came up to me hesitantly one Sunday. I had given the church announcements and they had included the all too often pitch on the need for more helpers – this time for the tea and coffee roster. The task was straightforward enough –...
Read MoreBecause Honesty is the Highest Form of Loyalty
It was a throw away comment in an Adam Grant podcast I was listening to at the gym. Remember, he said, “honesty is the highest form of loyalty.” Of course, just because someone says something doesn’t mean it’s true, but in this instance I thought it worth thinking about – and I guess this blog is part of that thinking process. I put the comment alongside another discussion I heard on The Rest is Politics podcast, where the ever interesting Alastair Campbell was speaking about the Shimon Peres solution. “What’s that” you ask? In 1985 US President...
Read MoreThe Different Faces of Ambition
Ambition is one of those things it’s easy to be ambivalent about. In it’s naked form, it sees some catapult over others, with neither regard nor care for the impact their scramble to the top has on those further back in the line. Ruthlessness is not an attractive quality, but it is the price some are willing to pay to get their dreams to materialise. But ambition does not need to wear this face. It can be a commitment to ensure a worthy dream comes true. It can be about using our gifts responsibly. A clearly articulated ambition can help us know what to say yes to, and what no....
Read MoreYet I Still Dare to Hope: When Hope is a Virtue.
So what virtues do you aspire towards? If you want a conversation to take a turn to the serious, it’s a good question to ask. Some people will answer promptly – perhaps citing some of the more commonly listed virtues – courage, justice and integrity. Others might be more exotic in their choice. Perhaps they will leave you perplexed because they selected procrastination, doubt and detachment. Yet others will be rendered speechless. That’s not to say they don’t have any virtues, but it probably means they haven’t spent much time thinking about them. In a recent podcast on Stirrers...
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