Dealing With the Storms of Life

The disciples are in a big storm on the Sea of Galilee and they are cold, wet and scared. In the last watch of the night they see a figure in the waves. They are terrified and think it is a ghost ‘but Jesus immediately said to them ‘take courage! It is I. Do not be […]

Lessons From Moses: Are Your Eyes On You or God Today?

In Exodus 3-4 God calls Moses to go to Egypt and rescue the Israelites. The Lord Almighty does this by speaking to him out of a bush, revealing wonders of who he is and demonstrating his power through signs. Yet during this incredible encounter with God, Moses does not focus on the wonder and majesty […]

Great is Thy Faithfulness

The timeless hymn of ‘Great is Thy Faithfulness’ by Thomas Obediah Chisholm has been on my mind this week, particularly the chorus: Great is Thy Faithfulness Great is Thy Faithfulness Morning by morning new mercies I see And all I have needed Thy hand hath provided Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me After a […]

Raise a Hallelujah, Heaven Comes to Fight For Me

I have had an anthem this week which I keep coming back to; it has helped me to communicate with God through some tough things and has really lifted me. It’s a song called ‘Raise a Hallelujah’ by Bethel Music and it is all about the power of praise when things are difficult. Here is […]

Oh Happy Day!

This morning I woke up feeling groggy. After peeling myself out of bed and feeling a bit grumpy with that Monday morning feeling, I put on Christian radio. I heard the song ‘Oh Happy Day’ by the Edwin Hawkins Singers and it transformed my mood. The song is very simple; these lines are repeated over […]

Abide in My Love

I often come to God in prayer and begin straight away with requests and petitions. I was therefore struck by a tweet that I saw earlier in the week where Terry Virgo is reflecting on John 15:9: “Abide in my love” must require our spending time (each day) simply enjoying the wonder that he loves […]

Jehovah a Provider and Deliverer-Psalm 34

Last week I wrote a tribute to a good friend of mine called Dai (see here) where I mentioned that the psalm he clung to during his battle with cancer was Psalm 34. Dai and his wife Maggie spent several months away from home as he had his treatment and they attended a different church. […]

My Identity in Christ

This week my identity in Christ has been on my mind, I have been dwelling on the fact that I am chosen (John 15:16), loved and accepted by God because of what Jesus did on the cross for me (Galatians 2:20; Romans 15:7). I am in fact God’s child (John 1:12), this is profound and […]

Having a range of tools to engage with God: getting creative

When I was really sick I often couldn’t read more than a verse or two of the Bible at a time or attend church meetings. I had to find some different ways to engage with God, I needed more tools in my toolbox. One of these was painting with worship music on, I had never […]

Strategies to engage in sung worship when sick

My last post was about ‘The Importance of Worship’ particularly sung worship. Now if you have a chronic illness engaging with sung worship may be difficult, here are some of the strategies I have used, please let me know some of yours: If you are able to, listen to worship songs or even parts of […]