I think Life Verses are probably a bit of a marmite thing – you either love the idea, or hate it/don’t see the point. I must confess that I haven’t read any direct explanation of what they are, so I’ve inferred it from some of the youthwork books I’ve read and my own personal experience. […]

(Download PDF Template) Sometimes a little bit of structure can make a huge difference, especially when trying to do a Bible study. I must confess that I find it very hard to engage with the ‘standard’ sort of Bible study, where you start off with a list of comprehension questions (“Where was Peter when he […]

There are many ways to interact with the Bible – I have previously talked about Lectio Divino, or holy reading, and FIER is another technique where you try to experience a passage “first hand”. Obviously unless you are The Doctor (or possibly a neutrino), travelling through time to experience it first hand is a tall […]

One of the ancient contemplative habits of the ancients is Lectio Divino, or Holy Reading. This is a way of engaging with the Bible and with God in an utterly different way to normal. In fact, it’s different from any other form of reading. The best and most helpful description I have come across is […]

Wow – life has got busy since I started my ordination training in September! The Yorkshire Ministry Course is really good – we’ve settled into a rhythm now, of Wednesdays and weekends, working our way through the New Testament and elements of Ministry and Mission. My fellow ordinands are awesome, and there are one or […]

Well, the exiting news from the household is that I have been recommended for ordination training in the Church of England! I have felt that God was calling me to ordained ministry for many years. It has been a long and, at times, quite difficult journey. The process of discernment is long and thorough, and […]

There’s been a couple of quite interesting posts by Bishops recently on the changing nature of the clergy in the Church of England, and I wanted to bookmark the links, as it can be horrendous finding these things again! First is by Tim Thorton (Bishop of Truro) on Shaping Vicars – http://www.freshexpressions.org.uk/views/shaping-vicars. Second is by […]

Wow – not blogged for ever. Been so busy recently, and I think my all out assault on the Times Crossword has sucked up more of my time than I realised it had. Anyway, about to go to bed, so no time for a long one, but I wanted to at least put down a […]

I’ve decided to give up (reading) Twitter for Lent this year. I had originally couched this in terms of social media, but actually I can’t give up e-mail at work, and I hardly ever go on Facebook, so Twitter it is. That said, I’m not going to start browsing Facebook just because I’m off Twitter!!! […]

When I was a bit younger, there was a sort of craze in Christian circles for wearing rubber bracelets with the initials “WWJD”  – or “What Would Jesus Do”. The idea was, I think, to provide a tangible challenge to yourself about your behaviour and decisions. When one found oneself in various situations, when question […]