Be Still and Know

1 Corinthians 12:4-7 I often hear people being described as gifted. They may be a particularly able pianist, flower arranger or speaker. I understand what is being said, but it could be misleading. It seems to suggest that there are two types of...

1 Corinthians 11:27-28 If you are employed, you probably have the delight of an annual appraisal. The intention is to stand back from how things are going in order to acknowledge what went well and what went not so well, and to reflect on how thi...

1 Corinthians 10:31 Life throws up many challenges for us in the 21st century, and it was no different in Paul’s day. One of the issues that he faced was meat taken to pagan temples as an act of worship before being sold by the butchers. Paul was...

1 Corinthians 9:19,22-23 I love meeting people who are passionate about something. It may be their love of horses, a particular football club or their devotion to gardening. You sense that their whole life is tuned into their passion and I find i...

1 Corinthians 4:16-17 The disciples learned how to follow Jesus by looking at his example. They saw the way in which he responded to the constant demands of his ministry. They saw his kindness and patience and the way in which he welcomed every k...

1 Corinthians 3:5-6 Think for a moment about the Christian leaders that you have known. I’ve been a Christian a long time and I could easily come up with a list of scores of leaders who have helped me to understand the Christian message. I am so...

1 Corinthians 2:1-3 I once heard about a church that regularly visited the houses nearby. They sent out people two by two. A young girl nervously agreed to join in. She went to one house and a large man came to the door asking in a gruff voice wh...

1 Corinthians 1:18 Paul was absolutely sure that the cross of Jesus stood right at the heart of his life and ministry. It was the lens through which Paul saw everything. For him it was the most wonderful message, communicating God’s love and powe...

1 Corinthians 1:4-5 If you know anything at all about the church in Corinth you will know that it was a disaster area. Everything seemed to be going wrong. They were divided. They had a case of incest in the church and nothing had been done to so...

Ephesians 6:10-11 Just imagine if someone were to walk on to a battlefield wearing casual clothes. The thought is absurd. If you knew that you were heading into battle, you would go fully equipped. Paul made it absolutely clear to his readers tha...

Ephesians 4:22-24 Do you like change? If I’m honest I have a love/hate relationship with change. There is much about life that is comfortable and congenial and I would be happy if it stayed the way it is. There are other things that I would be ha...

Ephesians 3:20-21 The resurrection of Jesus is so completely amazing that it needs to challenge every aspect of our thinking about life. If God was like us then it would be understandable if we expected only ordinary and predictable things to hap...

Ephesians 2:8-9 I remember my first pay packet as a teenager. It was a small brown envelope and it contained what, at the time, seemed to me like a considerable amount of money. It wasn’t really very much but I had never had a job before, and it...

Ephesians 1:19-20 I love everything about Easter. Winter has gone and we can see evidence of new life springing up all around us. It is as if creation is joining in the celebrations of Easter and confirming the promise of new life in Jesus. Easte...

John 21:20-22 Having received his commission from Jesus to care for his sheep and been given an insight into his future, Peter then became curious about others. He asked about how it was going to be for the disciple whom Jesus loved, who we assum...