The most enjoyable things about preparing these blogs is to find an appropriate photo and a relevant prayer. A recent blog was accompanied by a donkey and an old rhinocerous, with the question, which one was I? Once upon a time, in a former I was very definitely a rhino, a charging rhino. I'd been... Continue Reading →
Go Well Into a New Year
I had to make an early (for me) start today to get to a hospital in Portsmouth. People anxious about me having rather too much iron in my blood; me worrying that I was slowly turning into a giant magnet. Never having been there before I allowed an hour for the trip. Coat on, ready... Continue Reading →
Who Pays for Dinner?
Last week, right out of the blue, someone told me I was a cheapskate, with a ‘very different set of values to theirs’. Cheapskate: a miserly or stingy person, especially one who tries to avoid paying a fair share of costs or expenses. Etymology: skate - an old horse not worth much, (at least one up... Continue Reading →
Donkey (or Old Battered Rhino) For Hire
I’ve finally come to an end of a challenging assignment. My toughest so far by a long long way. I mentioned in my last blog that I'd been invited to join the board of a local food bank, saying 'this would be like a walk in the park'. ‘You wish’, responded the CEO. I hope... Continue Reading →
When Will I Ever Learn?
“As we journey through life, discarding baggage along the way, we should keep an iron grip, to the very end, on the capacity for silliness. It preserves the soul from desiccation.” (Humphrey Littleton, quoted in The Times.) Right now we’re all trying hard to make sense of things. Danger threatens from different directions; serious hardship or... Continue Reading →
Authority and Power (2)
My last blog on Authority and Power hit the spot with a number of readers. 'This almost exactly mirrors the situation I'm in'. 'You must have written this just for me', to mention a couple of comments. And I've been told some harrowing tales of charities where there's been a disharmony between authority and power.... Continue Reading →
Authority and Power
Last night we popped out to watch ‘Doubt; a Parable at the Festival theatre. A 5 star performance from 4 players who worked hard to produce a memorable experience. It came at a time when I’ve been reflecting on Authority and Power. The play was all about the interplay of these two themes; on the... Continue Reading →
Charity Briefing – New Charities Bill
I’d quite forgotten that a new Charities Act is underway until I was reminded by a question that arrived recently. The bill is still in committee stage and will be a while before it becomes an act. It’s a considered attempt by the government to make life simpler for charities by removing some of the... Continue Reading →
What Does the Year Ahead Hold for Church
What a year it’s been! Rather than spend time in analysis let’s look to see what 2022 might hold. More of the same you might think, given our excitement at seeing new variants emerge. So what might we expect? What might churches expect this year?A big reset is underway. Right now, not in a few... Continue Reading →