Happy New Year! I’m praying that love for God this year would blossom like never before in our lives personally and within the world-wide church as a whole.
Have you ever thought about the extent of the beauty of the world-wide church based on the extent of her love for her Bridegroom, Jesus? How beautiful will the Bride be when He returns and how beautiful is she at the moment? Or how whole-hearted is her love?
Continue reading “Ten Thousand Little Things”
Having a Christmas break from the normal run-of-the-mill must also involve one from writing (for me). But this blog article below is an encouraging read if you love God and sport and especially if you have little sons to pass a whole bunch of things on to.
I thought you might enjoy this:-
http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/football-and-the-warrior-instinct
We will all have been moved in the last 48 hours as memories from Nelson Mandela’s life have been aired across the world’s media. The impact of this man’s life is truly remarkable and it is encouraging to see such universal acclaim and respect for him as his life has been honoured. And great honour was due.
Continue reading “Remembering Mandela – Truth and Reconciliation”
Occasionally I’ll hear a lyric in a song of worship that will make me wince. Brooke Fraser’s bridge section from Hosanna is a good example of this where she pens,
“Heal my heart and make it clean…break my heart for what breaks Yours”.
We sing, we follow suit, we play…but, really? Break my heart – really? Lord, I want to feel deep heart-break…really?
I winced recently when I heard a lyric clearly from the costly, private world of Matt Crocker and Joel Houston from the Zion track Mercy Mercy – and I wince every time I hear it and wince even more when I have the courage to sing it.
Continue reading “Mercy Mercy”
This Desiring God blog is worthy of being in reblogosphere territory. The wisdom and balanced but prophetically penetrating points from Piper are compelling. Happy reading!
Watching the recent programmes from the BBC entitled Richard Hammond Builds a Planet/Universe has reminded me of the hopelessness of our attempts to reach or understand God without God himself leading the way.
Continue reading “God Almighty Built the Universe & All Its Planets”
Etched on the grand arch above where we worship together as a church family here at HTR are the following words from Psalm 96:-
“O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness”
Since arriving at Holy Trinity two months ago with my beautiful wife, Mairi, we have talked about these words together several times. They seem to watch over the church like an angelic reminder, like a prophetic banner as we sing and pray, a sense of the beauty of the presence of the King just a few feet above our heads, covering all we do in unspeakable grace.
During times of corporate or private worship, song-writing, prayer and even rehearsals, I’m always on the look-out for ‘grace notes’. I’m on the look out for them because they are keys for moments when it’s as if there is a special deposit of anointing available, His presence, for the purpose of the moment that is unfolding.Continue reading “Grace Notes”
One of the Bible’s highlights for me is Psalm 27 – it contains some the most beautiful verses anywhere in its pages. I’m thinking of sweeping, lyrical crescendos like verse 4, “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.”
Another verse that stuns me, particularly because of the brokenness I constantly see in society where families Continue reading “Taken In”
If you missed the recent release of The Presence Project, here’s a taster….
Watch the real thing here
firebrandnotes.com