Just because it’s Christmas (change the world)
Just because it’s Christmas a whole lot of things are going to happen. Many people will double (or treble) their calorie intake. A phenomenal number of gifts will be exchanged. Some will be greatly treasured, others will provoke a startled “Why would you think I would want that?”; several are likely to be in the socks and jocks category (useful though not inspiring) while yet others will be met with scepticism that will change to appreciation (“actually I really enjoyed that book I wouldn’t otherwise have read”, or, “once I understood the rules,...
Read MoreNot such a silent night…
Back in the 1990’s I was part of a tour which started in Egypt and finished in Israel. Naturally a visit to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem was part of the agenda. I had high hopes for the time, and imagined myself bowing the knee at the Grotto Cave where it is thought Jesus was born. Like the Wise Men of old, my pilgrimage was to worship the One whose coming reshaped all of human history, and all of my own history. The start of the visit was unpromising. Our tourist busload was one of far too many. I am sure the size of the crowd broke every OHS regulation and indeed, so many...
Read MoreChristmas: From “for us” to “with us”…
Probably like you, I am struggling to believe that Christmas is almost upon us – but facts are facts, and December is galloping away. I have done some Christmas shopping and the family are soon due to see the Christmas lights – so it is definitely that time of the year. As I have been thinking about the significance of Christmas (and Christmas seems especially poignant after this COVID filled year) I have been struck by my favourite name for Jesus, Emmanuel – which means, God is with us. One simple thought has jumped out at me: Until that first Christmas people had a...
Read MoreIf Christmas hadn’t happened…
As Christmas approaches, I have reproduced a piece I wrote for Christmas a few year ago and which appears in my latest book Could this be God? Bumping into God in the Everyday. Hope you enjoy it – and I do hope that Christmas provides a chance for you to connect more closely with the One who assuredly entered our world as a little baby thing… If Christmas hadn’t happened A rather harassed looking student popped into my office a few days back, claiming a mental block whilst doing an assignment. For some, that’s a permanent condition, but this student is usually pretty diligent, so...
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