When we were children, my older brother had a large swivel desk-chair. One of our favourite activities was spinning our younger siblings as hard as we could on said chair, then laughing as they eventually tried to stand up and walk, clearly feeling disorientated from the relentless circling.

Sitting on my bed during lockdown, things were not good and I was definitely not at peace with God. I lamented, ‘Can’t you just fix it, God, like a lightning bolt.’ Instead I distinctly remember being told, ‘Go to church’ – that was the last thing I wanted to do, as I hadn’t been involved in a church in years and I never was a great church goer even when I had.

We live in a world that seems to offer us almost unlimited choices, whether that’s what to eat for lunch, where to go on holiday or what series to watch this evening. Choosing takes time and, whilst it can be an enjoyable experience in itself, often it’s just another chore.

As I read the start of Isaiah 61, I can’t help but wonder if this is true of me? I can see it clearly for those around me – but has the Lord anointed me to live my day-to-day life?

Sharing an apartment or flat with others during our time at university is – for most of us – more a (financial) necessity than a deliberate choice. It gives us a glimpse of what community living can look like, but often it’s more living in proximity than intentionally living in community.

It was one of the lowest moments of my life. I was facing a dilemma at university that was forcing me to question the foundations of my embryonic adult life. I vividly remember screaming into my pillow in anguish one night before battling with sleep and waking up feeling more fragile than ever before.

My mom appeared to take seriously the verse about dwelling in the house of the Lord forever! Growing up in a university town in south-eastern Nigeria, from infancy we were in the university chapel for Sunday morning service, back again at 5pm for a follow-up class for…

“I don’t have anything to give that person. What would they be able to learn from me?” Many people have this sense that they aren’t quite ‘spiritual’ enough or ‘sorted’ enough to be let loose as an alongsider.

I’ve been a Navigator for 30 years and spent many of those years in ‘professional’ outreach work, yet something was always missing. Getting alongside people who don’t know Jesus and helping others to do the same felt so difficult.

It’s easy to orientate our lives to the next deadline, holiday or crisis. Jesus used many word pictures to help us reimagine who we are from a different angle: our orientation to God.
Imagery captures imaginations and, since we are made in the image of an endlessly creative God, I find film often inspires my imagination to think about him.

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I love the Christmas season! And I love that we serve a God who loves to celebrate!
I think my favourite miracle in the Bible might be Jesus turning water into wine. There is just something so extravagantly over the top about it.

The theme of generations runs throughout the Bible like a golden thread that can be seen in five distinct but interrelated strands. Generational influence isn’t an add-on or something reserved for specialists.