Sermons And Gubbins

This poem was written for our monthly poetry group, The theme for November was memories/remembering. I hope you enjoy reading it! November Memories "Remember, remember"; you excitedly recite the poem you have learnt to me.  "Do you know it, Daddy?" And my childhood memories suddenly burst into my mind. Grabbing a stick to check for hedgehogs under the bonfire my own Dad had built in the back garden. And when it was lit - the siren-song of the beckoning heat and hypnotising flames, Calling me closer, only to make me recoil and flinch as the fire suddenly cracks  And a burning scrap of paper flies free from its boundaries, Racing towards my face before suddenly fleeing and fading  into the cold night sky. I can see the enticing tin that the fireworks came in,  looking all the while like a magical box of forbidden treats; Fountains of gunpowder sherbet. Explosions of neon popping candy. A golden sparkler; a treacherous lolly-pop I hold at arm's length  for fear of ...

This sermon was written for Bible Sunday 2023 and was preached at our Sunday morning service that day (29th October). In the news recently had been stories of awful atrocities committed in Israel and Gaza with escalations of violence on all sides. My sermon this morning has been a particularly difficult one to write. For me, the weight of everything that’s happening in Israel and Palestine just feels so heavy. I’m sure for you, there’s a similar feeling. It’s a kind of grief, I guess, mourning the senselessness, the cruelty and the seeming hopelessness of it all. There are no easy answers, and there really does not look to be a way out of this situation, save for a multiplying of the violence. Today, we’re supposed to be celebrating Bible Sunday ; a day to come together to celebrate the gift of the scriptures to God’s people. But, for me, at the moment, I cannot help but think about the fact that this book is intricately linked with the soil and the sea of the land we are watching fall...

Today is National Poetry Day; I thought I’d put together a post collecting my poems written over the last twelve months, each should open in a new window/tab so you can come back to this page easily if you like - hope you find something you enjoy! Manchester   I Would Walk The Breadaholic After the Storm The Body of Christ Best Mates

This poem was written for our monthly poetry group. The theme chosen for this month was ‘friendship’ - I hope you enjoy reading it! Best Mates  You're my best mate by miles, by far! We help each other prop up the bar. I'll always let you drive my car; You know where the bodies are. We're there together, through all life's strains. Through lows and highs, with loss and gains. You've got the brawn and, well, you've got the brains. I know my place; you hold the reigns. I'm the Sundance Kid, and you are Butch, You're Starsky - I will be your Hutch I know we'll always be in touch. We have to be; you know too much. We just work; like an air tank and an ocean diver, Like streaking goes with Lady Godiva, Or duct tape, and TV's MacGyver; So... pretty please, guv, lend me a fiver?

This sermon was given at our morning service on Sunday 10th September. The Gospel was Matthew 18:15-20 . I hope you enjoy reading it!   Are you listening? No, but are you listening? That’s what Jesus is asking us this morning. Listen – there’s that word again – listen to his words from our Gospel again and see how often that word comes up:   “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax-collector.”   So – are you listening? Not necessarily to me prattling on up here on a Sunday morning. I’m not particularly bothered about...

I wrote these lyrics for a hymn for a service celebrating the Feast of the Transfiguration. It's in 7,7,7,7 meter, and would fit to the tune used for "There's a Wideness in God's Mercy". In the end, we didn't use it as a hymn for the service, but instead as prayers (changing the language to communal instead of personal). Both versions are below. It's based on a  quotation  from  Teresa of Avila . Feel free to use as a hymn or prayers if you wish! I'd love to hear about it, if you do! Hymn : The Body of Christ Where now are your hands, O my God? They are those with which I touch. They are all you have to use to heal the world you love so much. Where now are your feet, Lord Jesus? They are those with which I tread. Walk with them to take your gospel   All across the world to spread. Where now are your eyes, O my King? They are those with which I see. Open them to view your world as you yourself know it to be. Where now is your mouth, O my Lord? It is tha...