Spirit Break In

Many of us are familiar with the Pentecost story, where the Spirit falls powerfully on the followers of Jesus in Acts chapter 2. Note the detail in verse 2 - they were in a house. Kind of their own form of lockdown (though with many people in the same house!). They were there intentionally: partly to keep out of the way of the authorities, but also to pray and wait.

Heart of Worship - Isaiah 1 and Amos 5

There are times when God can be right narky - seen in some of the scripture passages. For example Isaiah 1 verses 10 to 15 God seems to be having a full on rant! Fed up with the sacrifices and offerings of the people - in fact the very practices of worship He prescribed back in the Exodus times. We might think such a rant can't apply to us, since in Jesus we have moved on from primitive animal sacrifices to the sophistication of our worship songs. But not so fast - read Amos 5 verses 21 to 24. Away with the music too!

Resonant Stories - 2 Kings 5

Through the lockdown many are re-learning the art of conversation - with neighbour or the person you meet on the street. That skill of listening well and picking up on what the other person has said is perhaps largely lost, but we are now discovering it again. It gives us all kinds of opportunities to be the witness to Jesus that He calls us to be.

Lane Assist - John 16 and 2 Timothy 3

Last year we went travelling and had a hire car. We were fortunate to get an upgrade which gave us a car with all kinds of extra gizmos. One was 'Lane Assist' - sensors that could see the lane markings so the car would beep at you if you strayed out of lane. We also benefited from the built-in SatNav - handy since we were in a strange country with unfamiliar roads and place names. Both were guidance systems to help us with our driving and exploring the land ahead.

[UP] Where is God nudging you?

Challenge: Up your game with reading some scripture regularly

Restoring Community - Zechariah 8

The previous chapters to Zechariah 8 describe a terrible situation, using language like 'a desolate land'. The people are scattered, the city left behind is like waste. It doesn't have its normal activity and on the whole the situation is pretty miserable.