Sermons And Gubbins

This poem was written for our July poetry group. The theme I chose was 'an epic journey'. I hope you enjoy reading it! Into The Dragon's Lair I sing a tale of derring-do Of monster and of beast Of heroic deeds and heroes who  Together, quest and fight and feast. To slay the dragon was the ask. Was it not ever so? Five mighty warriors took on the task And took up sword and staff and bow. Sir Jonn of High-Reach led the band, A sword for sale, but noble knight. And walking tall at his right hand, His oldest friend, Aethelstan the White. They'd hired a thief to join the crew, For to defeat a wyrm took stealth,  Young Bess joined quickly, for she knew  The vastness of the dragon's wealth. Heinrick, a local priest had heard  Of the quest they'd undertook  And, on the calling of his Lord, Offered up his staff and book. And last, from the far north came Swen. He'd journeyed months to fight this beast. He'd tracked the creature to its den  And joined the knight, ...

This is a (slightly) updated version of my story from 2015 and was given for my sermon on Sunday 30th June 2024. The gospel was Mark 5:21-43 . I hope you enjoy reading it!      She’d heard he was going to be there. The talk on the street was of nothing else. The man who worked miracles, who cast out demons, who cured the sick, was in town. She knew she had to be there too. Perhaps, just perhaps , he’d take pity on her? Perhaps this was her chance?  That’s why she was there that day. That’s why she was being jostled back-and-forth in that crowd – every one of them hoping to catch a glimpse of the teacher. For her, though, a glimpse was not enough.       She wasn’t just ill. As awful as the constant bleeding made her feel, that wasn’t the worst of it. She was ‘unclean’. Physically and spiritually . She hadn’t been allowed in the synagogue for twelve years – hadn’t been allowed to worship God for twelve years. She shouldn’t even be out in public, ...

This poem was written for our June monthly poetry group. The theme was 'a broken promise'. I hope you enjoy reading it! Promises, Promises 'You promised I could watch TV'; 'You promised you would eat your tea'. 'You promised I'd sit on your knee'; 'You promised you would leave me be'. 'You promised you would play with me'; 'You promised not to disagree'. 'You promised I could keep both hands free'; 'You promised to not hurt anybody'. 'You promised we'd be gone by three'; 'No more promises; we'll see.'

This sermon was written for our Trinity Sunday service on Sunday 26th May 2024. I hope you enjoy reading it! Eleven years ago, I sat in what was then Vicky Johnson’s office, over the road, and talked to her about the possibility of me becoming a Reader. I remember saying to her at the time that I was worried about preaching, as some of my views about God were probably heretical! Vicky laughed and replied that someone had once told her that all good sermons had a bit of heresy in them! Whether she believed that or just said it to make me feel a bit better at the time, it’s often brought me a bit of courage when writing sermons – it’s allowed me to say the braver thing, rather than the safer thing – and I like to think, it’s helped me to become a better preacher.   And – if it’s true – well, buckle up, ‘cause today’s sermon is going to be a doozy!   Today is Trinity Sunday. And today, brave preachers up and down the country are going to be preaching heresy – accid...