Happy Christmas.
Friday, 25 December 2015
Wednesday, 23 December 2015
Handbags at dawn
Here's the video that I showed on Sunday at the Carol Service - the one with the hand bag.
Monday, 21 December 2015
Advent - week 4
Yesterday was the fourth and final Sunday in Advent - it was also our Carol Service here at CBC.
So far in this mini series of Advent posts we have briefly looked at the themes of hope, peace and joy. To complete the set we need to focus on love.
Certainly at Christmas time these are themes that are not exclusively linked to people of faith - they are seen as attainable seasonal ideals within our wider culture. You only need to watch a few Christmas adverts, or watch a few Christmas films to know that our society is looking for hope, joy, peace and love at this time of year.
And it expects to be able to find it. But as the wise men discovered - you won't find what you're looking for unless you're looking in the right place.
Presumably, this advert from John Lewis, is encouraging us to show someone that they are loved this Christmas by sending a gift - but the Man on the Moon is still alone at the end of the advert. He now knows that someone knows he exists - but he is still alone.
Part of the good news of great joy of Christmas is that we are no longer alone. Jesus was given the name Emmanuel - which means 'God with us'. And whilst sin separates us from God - Christmas reminds us that God came to earth to be born as a little baby, in order to make it possible for the divide between us and God to be bridged.
God didn't just send a gift - he came himself. And he promises to be with us what ever it is that we're going through this Christmas. He doesn't just see it from far off - he walks the road with us.
God demonstrates his love for us by coming to earth to live with us and ultimately to die for us - not by sending a gift to show us that he's thinking of us.
So far in this mini series of Advent posts we have briefly looked at the themes of hope, peace and joy. To complete the set we need to focus on love.
Certainly at Christmas time these are themes that are not exclusively linked to people of faith - they are seen as attainable seasonal ideals within our wider culture. You only need to watch a few Christmas adverts, or watch a few Christmas films to know that our society is looking for hope, joy, peace and love at this time of year.
And it expects to be able to find it. But as the wise men discovered - you won't find what you're looking for unless you're looking in the right place.
Presumably, this advert from John Lewis, is encouraging us to show someone that they are loved this Christmas by sending a gift - but the Man on the Moon is still alone at the end of the advert. He now knows that someone knows he exists - but he is still alone.
Part of the good news of great joy of Christmas is that we are no longer alone. Jesus was given the name Emmanuel - which means 'God with us'. And whilst sin separates us from God - Christmas reminds us that God came to earth to be born as a little baby, in order to make it possible for the divide between us and God to be bridged.
God didn't just send a gift - he came himself. And he promises to be with us what ever it is that we're going through this Christmas. He doesn't just see it from far off - he walks the road with us.
God demonstrates his love for us by coming to earth to live with us and ultimately to die for us - not by sending a gift to show us that he's thinking of us.
Saturday, 19 December 2015
Reading the Bible in 2016
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about The Bible Project's 'Read Scripture' reading plan and video resources.
Here's another little video that they have released to explain what they're doing and why you might want to be involved.
If you want to find out how to download a printer friendly reading plan and sign up to their email alerts you'll need to click here.
One of our seven core values at CBC is that we are biblical. We will only encounter God in the pages of the Bible if we read it - which is one of the reasons it is so hard at times - the enemy will do anything to make sure that our Bibles stay closed. If you're looking for a Bible reading programme for the coming year, and want to read through the whole Bible, this looks a really good resource, and the videos are going to be a great help to understanding some of the more challenging books in the Bible as well as offering the occasional nudge and encouragement to keep going.
Another of our core values is that we are prayerful. One of the things that excites me most about this programme is the way it wants to develop the daily habit of praying through the Psalms.
Our vision talks about becoming a ...community... My experience is that when I have taken part in a through the Bible reading programme in the past, I have benefited most when I have done it with other people. If you're a part of CBC and wanting to follow this programme I'd encourage you to sign up to do it with others. If you're not a part of CBC then find someone who lives near you to do it with - or get in touch and we can think about setting up a virtual group.
Here's another little video that they have released to explain what they're doing and why you might want to be involved.
If you want to find out how to download a printer friendly reading plan and sign up to their email alerts you'll need to click here.
One of our seven core values at CBC is that we are biblical. We will only encounter God in the pages of the Bible if we read it - which is one of the reasons it is so hard at times - the enemy will do anything to make sure that our Bibles stay closed. If you're looking for a Bible reading programme for the coming year, and want to read through the whole Bible, this looks a really good resource, and the videos are going to be a great help to understanding some of the more challenging books in the Bible as well as offering the occasional nudge and encouragement to keep going.
Another of our core values is that we are prayerful. One of the things that excites me most about this programme is the way it wants to develop the daily habit of praying through the Psalms.
Our vision talks about becoming a ...community... My experience is that when I have taken part in a through the Bible reading programme in the past, I have benefited most when I have done it with other people. If you're a part of CBC and wanting to follow this programme I'd encourage you to sign up to do it with others. If you're not a part of CBC then find someone who lives near you to do it with - or get in touch and we can think about setting up a virtual group.
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