Tag: bible

Posted on

Alive! Death could not keep Him, the grave had no power, hell was defeated!

After the sombre meditations of Thursday and Friday, the main event and the reason for it all came to fruition on the third day.

Today is the real birthday for all Christians, the day that Christ came to Earth for – to free us all from sins grasp and to give us an open road to our Father in Heaven.

I *love* Easter – with a passion. Something in my spirit, in my soul and in my body just leaps for joy at this time of year. I know that I have a future, there is a great eternity for me all because of Jesus breaking the stranglehold of sin and the grave.

The story is not yet over – we don’t know when the final chapter will take place – but the fact is that there is only our pride and our own minds that can get in the way of us knowing Gods Love.

I rediscovered it 3 years ago, and there’s not a day goes by where I don’t rejoice in that fact.

My prayer is that if you haven’t discovered this joy, that you will come to know it.

JOY!
Posted on

More than one man can take

It was 24 hours that would make a day in the life of Jack Bauer seem like a cuddly fuzzy teddy bear.

It started with a dinner party with the closest friends a man could have, followed by a sing-song and a walk in a garden, then some deep soul-searching. This was then rounded off with the cruellest of betrayals along with the desertion of friends and even being denied by the closest of them all, a farcical pretence of justice, a beating to within an inch of his life, humiliation, one of the most tortuous deaths known to man, rejection by a father and a descent to hell that no man can begin to comprehend.And that was just the first 24 hours – the story wasn’t over there. Continue reading “More than one man can take”

Posted on

Conflict, Comfort Zones and Fractured Heroes

“I need to get out of my comfort zone” or even worse “They need to get out of their comfort zones” – those phrases have always, sometimes irrationally, wound me up. The first as I’ve always found myself thinking “well do it then”, the second as it has always appeared judgemental and holier-than-thou and yet the past year or so I have found myself increasingly challenging myself with the uncomfortable. Making myself ask questions that can give me headaches.

There’s always need for caution though. I don’t want to walk the path that is lined with fluffy thought clouds and warm fuzzys, but I think there can also be a real danger in challenging yourself too much. Overthinking can lead to less faith, more logic (not necessarily more truth though!) and would probably turn me into a completely paranoid conspiracy nut who wouldn’t believe in anything – in fact I’d probably end up questioning it was raining whilst being stood outside getting soaked!

So why am I sharing these somewhat jumbled thoughts?

Continue reading “Conflict, Comfort Zones and Fractured Heroes”

Posted on

To be, to do. To see, to say. To live, to love

be inspired

be inspired

What inspires you? What motivates you? Drives you? Gets you excited, scared, fired up, moved?

What makes you feel ALIVE?

Sometimes the day-to-day monotony of life can drain us in oh so many ways. It can wear us down physically, it can tire us emotionally, it can even weaken us spiritually and when it does it can be an effort to stir ourselves back up again and find that get-up-and-go.

The early part of the year is always a tiring season for us. The end of the year is a mad rush with Christmas, our youngest lads birthday and Mrs H working all hours selling trees. The beginning of the year isn’t much calmer with another birthday just into the new year, the end of the annual adrenaline rush and then our daughters birthday and more mad rushing around. It’s always a season when catching a breath is a thing to treasure, and where getting going is always an effort.

In the midst of this, I’ve found myself thinking about inspiration. What it is that I can use to stir me up, to get the blood flowing and the fire burning. Searching for that lightbulb moment that will shine through the greyness of winter and bring spring to my spirit. I’m not saying that I feel down, depressed or even mildly like eeyore on a rainy day – it’s more a lethargy and weariness that sets in and drains me and that’s something I actively have to kick to get myself going as soon as I can.

And that’s where inspiration comes in.

Continue reading “To be, to do. To see, to say. To live, to love”

Posted on

Through it all – He is Holy

"When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. "


"When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. "

At the beginning of the year nobody would have predicted the events that have been taking place in recent weeks, and that are still taking place today, as waves of civil unrest sweep across Africa and the Middle-East and event threaten to touch nations such as China. We’re not removed from it here in the UK either as rumblings against cost-savings, student fees, petrol prices and more lead to threats of strikes and “action” within our nation.

On top of this there have been the natural disasters in Australia and New Zealand, the on-going rebuilding of Haiti and Pakistan and the war in Afghanistan and conflicts in Iraq.

The situation in Libya has particularly shaken and scared me as I’ve read and watched the news of people being killed by Gaddafi and wondering just what atrocities his insanity will lead to. I’ve found my heart crying out and my soul shaken and unsettled, with the only possible response being to call out to God for His peace, mercy and endless Love.

Then one song struck home with me and made me realise that through it all, and even if we can’t see it, He is Holy. Gods heart breaks at the suffering and the hurting, and it’s hard sometimes to see suffering and equate that to a loving Father – but without getting into the whole debate over free will etc all I can say is that faith and personal experience speak louder than words to me.

Continue reading “Through it all – He is Holy”