There’s a man who had been ill for 38 years. An invalid lying by the pool, waiting for healing when the waters are stirred up. 38 years is a long time to wait for healing. And Jesus knows he’s been there for a long time. So the question he asks, is a strange one:
“Do you want to be made well?”
Advent is that season of expectation, when we await the First and Second Coming of Christ – as Saviour and then as Judge. Traditionally, Advent includes looking at the dark things – including Death and Judgement. Advent means “arrival.” And so we wait expectantly for Christ to come.
The first coming of Christ our Saviour was as a baby in a manger. Continue reading
I wonder whether and how you celebrated St Patrick’s day yesterday?
My first experience of St Patrick’s day was of the green everywhere. Leaping green Leprechauns with large green hats and green hair. The larger than life St Patrick, the famous bishop wearing green and yellow. Continue reading
Here we are a week after Christmas. I suspect mince pies and Christmas cake have lost their shine right now. And biscuits. And turkey. Maybe even chocolate!
Yet we are still journeying through the Christmas story. And we are still thinking of the nativity and its scenes.
In Bethlehem, the world’s most earth-shattering event has happened. Silently, a wondrous gift was given… a gift that meets all the hopes and fears of all the years. There was no fanfare. No trumpets. Mortals sleep. The silent stars go by. And a King of an eternal Kingdom is born. The baby – God’s son – lies asleep in a manger as the shepherds come to visit him.