An Adventure in Ministry

     I have written before about the Sabbath (you can find it here:  Click here to view  ) and I find that God often convicts me of the need to rest as I am someone who can so easily miss out on rest in order to work myself to the point of burnout! I have studied the Sabbath and preached on the Sabbath, but just over a year ago my relationship with the Sabbath changed completely. I had been pondering on what it means to rest for a while and my favourite podcast – A cup full of hope was also doing a series on the same thing and when I heard the episode on Sabbath, I couldn’t get it off my mind (you can find it here: Click here to view )Caroline Harries talked about how she had journeyed to practice the Sabbath and I knew I needed to do the same.       Pri nciples of the Sabbath      Before I share a little of my journey, let me just explain a little about the Sabbath to you. At the beginning of creation, God created the earth an...

I am in the middle of an interesting week of training at The Salvation Army's William Booth training college. I have been surrounded by some amazing colleagues who serve, like us, as Territorial Envoys, running Salvation Army churches up and down the country. This is our third year at our annual seminar and this year I have been shocked to see some gifted pastors, who in previous year had been full of passion and zeal, looking exhausted. In conversation they have admitted that amongst other things, they aren't finding time to take  their day off.  I'm am passionate about keeping the sabbath, and seeing my friends and colleagues so tired prompted me once again to consider its importance to us in a society and job that never seems to stop. We know that God created the world in 6 days and on the 7th day he rested. Yesterday one of  our soeakers very briefly posed the question "did God really need to rest on the 7th day?" The answer of course is no, but h...

I have always loved this verse of scripture, and in my mind it often conjures up images of mountain tops or views like the picture above.  It has convicted me to practice the Sabbath properly and to take a break from the business of life in order to meet with God. However In the past few weeks it has taken on a whole different meaning to me. Four weeks ago, whilst away in Herefordshire for a couple of days, I fell down one tiny step and broke my ankle pretty badly. After five hours in surgery and a lot of plates, screws and wires, I was told that I am unable to bear any weight for six weeks. I have to keep my leg elevated and pretty much unable to do anything! Those of you who know me will know I am always on the go. Our church centre is a very busy one and I am often seen running around in business. I am at my happiest when I’m out in the countryside with Paul and my two dogs, so this period of enforced rest has, at times, seemed impossible! At present I am u...