[This reflection by Michael Goble was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 07/Apr/2024]
The granddaughter of our next door neighbours is a trainee film director and she arranged to make a film at her grandparent’s home just before Easter. As that would be the film set, we were happy to agree to her request for two days to use two rooms in our house, the conservatory and the dining room. It was a surprise when we discovered how much was involved. (more…)
[This is one in a series of devotional reflections prepared for Horley Baptist Church during April 2024]
When we look back at the events of Easter we can picture the central characters of the story: Pilate, Herod, the chief priests, the indifferent soldiers, the frightened disciples, the manipulated mob and, of course, Jesus himself. However, as Dazz reminded us,[1] there are many characters whose role seems secondary but yet without whom the story would be incomplete. (more…)
[This reflection by David Makanjuola was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 31/Mar/2024]
By the time this article is being read, we will be approaching the end of the run up to Easter. I have been pondering over the passages laid out in the Essential Jesus reading plan that some of us have been following for the last couple of months. The last few days have turned the focus to Christ’s resurrection. One thing I noticed but haven’t been able to understand is why those who encountered Jesus after he had risen didn’t recognise him. (more…)
[This is one in a series of devotional reflections prepared for Horley Baptist Church during April 2024]
Did you forget? On Sunday morning did you “show up an hour late like two frozen peas”?[1] The clocks went forward, but did you?
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[This is one in a series of devotional reflections prepared for Horley Baptist Church during March 2024]
In 1952 the Eurasian author Han Suyin published her semi-autobiographical novel “A Many Splendored Thing”. It describes a romance between two people of different cultures, both of whom had experienced the loss of their previous relationships. The principal male character is separated from his wife, the principal female character is a widow. Although those circumstances are very different, they are both examples of ways in which love has, in practical terms, died.
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[This reflection by Dennis Ginter was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 24/Mar/2024]
We Are Family!?
We often refer to our church as ‘family’. Last Sunday Reece shared with us from the front how God had responded to the persistent prayers of friends and healed him of a really worrying kidney problem. That kind of thing, as Reece said, should be shared much more often – if we really are ‘family ‘!
I know it’s not easy to facilitate such testimonies in the middle of a packed Sunday service. And maybe most of us already have a small group of fellow Jesus followers who really are family. But, if we’re going to call the larger church ‘family’, perhaps it’s time to ask ourselves whether we can somehow become more intimate – which is the identifying characteristic of true family.
The weekly YOURS bulletin is one way to do that, but it seldom functions as a family forum. And maybe it can’t.
Recently there has been a shift in our Sunday meetings. It seems, to me at least, that there’s more warmth, more deep love for one another.
That’s what Martin was talking about, wasn’t it? It’s more than possible for a large gathering to really be family, and I think the Holy Spirit is doing it!!
Resources:
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