I'm not really made from pink wool, and I don't live in outer space, but I DO like knitting! I'm a Bible-reading, maths-teaching, theology-studying, resource-writing, terribly untidy mum-of-three currently located in the middle of England. Occasionally, God gives me a thwack round the head with a rolled-up newspaper, and I try to listen. Sometimes.
Yes, I know, It’s not even Hallowe’en yet, let alone Remembrance Sunday or Advent. But these things have a habit of creeping up on us, don’t they? So this week I bring you an adorably cute mini-Christingle Bauble, and next week it will be the audacious Christingle Beanie (assuming that I’ve finished knitting the prototype … More Christingle Bauble!
Job 42:1-6, 10-17 What do we say when things go wrong? When, despite all the fervent prayers, the diagnosis is cancer, your son does not come home, the baby doesn’t make it? “God works out everything for good,” some say. Really? Try telling that to the folks in Ukraine or Gaza, or that entire family … More When words are too much.
“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” Job 38:1-7, (34-41) Take a brief look at social media and we’ll find plenty of words without knowledge – disinformation is the plague of our modern age. Sometimes, this is merely annoying: my youngest was in McD’s yesterday and got Regent St on her Monopoly … More Words without Knowledge
Wildflower Paper Here’s a lovely activity for autumn or spring, perfect for a Harvest Festival, Hallowe’en light party, Messy Church or Easter garden party. Also perfect for the parable of the mustard seed, the sower and the soils, that bit about Apollos watered but God made it grow, wheat and tares, the reapers overtaking the … More Sowing the Seed
Feathers I went for a walk this morning and found a red kite feather along the path: long, brick red (ie, orange-brown, not red at all) and a bit tatty along the edge. Red kite feathers are not uncommon where I live. There are plenty of red kites round here (small and furries of the … More Feathers – James 5
A horse walks into a bar. The landlord says, “You’re in here a lot. Are you sure you’re not an alcoholic?” The horse ponders for a moment and replies, “I don’t think I am.” Poof! The horse vanishes. At this point you might smile because you know the famous postulate, ‘I think, therefore I am.’ … More Glasses at the ready – Prov 31
Psalm 19 This a deservedly well-known psalm: from the first verse (‘The heavens are telling’, featured in Handel’s Messiah) to the last (‘Let the words of my mouth’, a prayer before many a sermon), it is packed with juicy morsels of wisdom – reviving the soul, making wise the simple, more to be desired than … More Ps 19:12 – Unknown unknowns
Isa 35, Jas 2 and Ps 146 Unless your name is Inigo Montoya (“You killed my father. Prepare to die.”), vengeance is not a popular word in our culture. It brings forth images of blood feuds, savagery and gang-land violence. So when in our Isaiah 35 reading or Deuteronomy 32:35 (It is mine to avenge; … More Vengeance and a Dominionican
I’ll be taking a break for a couple of weeks, folks, cos I’m off on holliwags! Oh yes, the sunny climes of Conwy, North Wales await. We’ll climb the town walls, fish for crabs (much more fun than it sounds), visit nearby Llandudno*, patronise a LOT of tea shops and play board games in the … More Ephesus and Conwy
[reposted from 2021 cos it’s the summer hols and I need some time off ] This afternoon, in a rare moment of domesticity, I made bread. I’m about as effective in the kitchen as a butterfly in a sumo match, but technology helps me cheat, so the house has been filled for hours with the … More 1 Kings 19:4-8 & John 6:35, 41-51
The Reflectionary 