Category: ‘Yours on Sunday’

Where There is Love, The Mountains Melt Away

[This reflection by Chris Ginter was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 23/Jun/2024]

Do you ever remember going to a favourite place when you were a child and when you had left there you couldn’t wait to go back again? I used to love going to my granny and grandad’s house in Cheshire. The thing about it was that you were always accepted, you could do just what you wanted. You were always loved, you could sing, talk as much as you liked you were always hugged and you could eat as much as you wanted. (more…)

Contributor: Chris Ginter

Filling The Void

[This reflection by Helen Ruffhead was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 16/Jun/2024]

When I started my journey to adoption, over 30 years ago, the magazine for prospective adopters was full of profiles of children needing new homes. Since most adopters want babies or very young children, most of the children still waiting for homes were older, or had disabilities. I particularly remember the description of one 12-year-old girl, who it said: “wore her carers out with continual demands for new possessions.” It also said: “X has been described as having a huge hole inside her which she desperately tries to fill, but nothing satisfies.” Clearly this girl was crying out for the love which she had never experienced, but was trying to fill the void with possessions. (more…)

Contributor: Helen Ruffhead

Building the Kingdom

[This reflection by Dazz Jones was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 02/Jun/2024]

Our Role in God’s Divine Plan
Prayer can be such a mysterious thing to take part in. We can often treat it like a request list, or perhaps sometimes even give it a little bit of a superstitious edge, for example, we could be guilty of using prayer as a way to start and finish our get-togethers or meals out of some feeling of necessity or formulaic duty above the reason of just wanting to include God in what we’re doing and remember his goodness. If it becomes more ritual than relationship, how is it any different to a sports player simply touching a picture of Jesus before they run out onto the pitch and expecting God to bless them? Prayer is all about intention and relationship, we hope it becomes habitual and reflexive, yes, but it cannot become robotic. (more…)

Contributor: Dazz Jones

What Comes After Pentecost?

[This reflection by Michael Goble was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 02/Jun/2024]

Martin’s article last week reminded me that the previous week had been about the Jewish Feast or Festival of Pentecost. I had been ill that day and not been at church to be reminded of that. That also made me think of an excellent article by Helen Ruffhead in which she told how a number of Jewish Festivals related to our Christian faith. At Pentecost when the Jews celebrated the revelation of God’s word to Moses, God revealed His Holy Spirit and the Christian church was born. So how do all these Jewish Feasts or Festivals have meaning for us as Christians? (more…)

Contributor: Michael Goble

The Importance of Patience

[This reflection by Martin Shorey was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 26/May/2024]

Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait …
Acts 1 v4

Last Saturday us HBC guys gathered together at church to test our brain power. We had 4 rooms, and each room contained an object to find with the help of various clues, within an allotted time. My team managed the first room well, searching the room for clues, and finally discovering the location of a stolen jewel. Things didn’t go so smoothly in the second room. (more…)

Contributor: Martin Shorey

Yet Not I, But Through Christ In Me

[This reflection by David Makanjuola was published in the weekly news bulletin of Horley Baptist Church, 12/May/2024]

During a recent ‘Connect in Faith’ house group meeting, the internet connections went awry and the songs that had been prepared could not be projected and played.

The following day in church, I met one of the regular attenders, a friend, whose smile is usually so welcoming, you have no choice but to give him a hug, but not that day. He looked quite sad, and the smile was nothing near its usual, brightness. He just said it had been quite a difficult week. (more…)

Contributor: David Makanjuola