We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for youColossians 1:3 I remember a time when my prayers consisted of the following:Lord - save me from this bad situation I’ve put myself inGod - please give me this thing I need (or more likely - want)God - please change this person because they aren’t doing what I wantLord - please make me feel happy instead of sadOne of the ...  Read More

Q. 8. How doth God execute his decrees?A. God executeth his decrees in the works of creation and providence.Westminster Shorter CatechismGoogle docs doesn’t like executeth… how sad. The Westminster Catechism was written by a bunch of very intelligent and godly men in the 17th century (1647). And yeah they use some big words and different words than common speech today. But more importantly, what d...  Read More

The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.Proverbs 12:26It’s a strange thought. Choosing your friends. But we do don’t we? We have a choice and there aren’t many more important choices than who we surround ourselves with. I wish I had understood this wisdom sooner. For much of my life, I surrounded myself with people who led me astray rather than clo...  Read More

10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not conside...  Read More

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.Jeremiah 17:7In the Hebrew, the word blessed literally means happy (or if you prefer, deeply joyful). It’s funny, sometimes we should be happy and yet we don’t feel happy. That can be for a number of reasons. But, sometimes, we need to remind ourselves that we have every reason to be happy. Memorise this passage and be remi...  Read More

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.Acts 2:42One of the things I love about Village Church is our dinners together. Food is a wonderful way to celebrate togetherness, to serve one another and to enjoy each other in Christ. When we do this, we partake in a tradition from the earliest converts to Christ. Acts 2 reminds us that t...  Read More

10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not conside...  Read More

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.Colossians 3:16Many of us love singing. Particularly at Christmas. There is something special about singing Christmas carols, songs that we only sing at a particular time of year but that we have always...  Read More

Q.7. What are the decrees of God?A. The decrees of God are, his eternal purpose, according to the counsel of his will, whereby, for his own glory, he hath foreordained whatsoever comes to pass.Westminster Shorter CatechismWhy? Why does our earth exist? Why humans and their seeming uniqueness in our world? Why does gravity keep the planets spinning? Why do some live and some die? Why do empires ris...  Read More

As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.Proverbs 26:11Are you a New Year’s Resolution person? Have you already failed? Hopefully you haven’t! No doubt you made some great commitments. Exercise more, spend more time with people you love, (hopefully) read the Bible/pray more.If you are anything like me, New Years Resolutions often take the form of starting something or doing more ...  Read More

10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not conside...  Read More

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of ChristEphesians 3:17-18The start of a new year is always a good time to begin new habits (or is it!?). Either way. Why not commit to memorising a passage of Scripture each week? And no need to come up with which passage on ...  Read More