Hyperbole I can remember coming home from day’s out in the Lakedistrict when I was a child, and my dad saying that he was so hungry he could eat a horse between two haystacks. One of my favourites is to say that someone has an ego the size of a small solar system. And recently…Continue reading Sermon for the Second Sunday before Lent

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany. It is a quiet feast for us in the UK but in other countries, epiphany is full of activity. Processions of kings on horseback throw handfuls of sweets to eagerly awaiting children. Children put boxes of straw under their beds for the camels. Holes are cut into…Continue reading A Sermon for the Feast of The Epiphany

With the Magi, we seek God’s glory; those moments when we are shown that God is here with us. God who made us all, each wonderfully different, we pray for followers of different faiths across the world Give us grace to learn from each other. Lead all who seek you in the ways of humility…Continue reading Intercessions for the Feast of The Epiphany

God with us, we give thanks this Christmas morning that you have come to share our lives, that you are with us in joy and sorrow, when everything is well and when everything has gone wrong. We thank you that you came as a child: you know the struggles of growing and learning: you know…Continue reading Intercessions for Christmas Morning

As you know, I usually bring a picture to talk about on Christmas morning. This year’s is a wall painting from a church in a little place called Easby, near Richmond in N Yorkshire. These medieval  paintings were whitewashed over in the Reformation and were uncovered in the middle of the 1800s. What struck me…Continue reading A Sermon for Christmas Morning

And now we give you thanks because, In the darkness you come as our light, In our despair you come as our hope, And, far from home, you draw near in love. 

God, merciful and loving judge of all, John the Baptist was your herald: we pray for your church, asking that all its members, especially those who preach and teach, will put aside their own interests and ambitions, their egos and love of power, and point others to you in simplicity and with honesty. Forgive us…Continue reading Intercessions for the Third Sunday of Advent

John the Baptist is a compelling figure. He has been portrayed since the earliest days as a wild and unkempt man with a shaggy beard and tangled hair. He was very outspoken to the point of rudeness – it’s quite something to call people a brood of vipers! His outspokenness brought about his untimely death…Continue reading A Sermon for the Third Sunday of Advent

God of the wilderness, we come to you bearing the our lives’ heavy loads; we bring our sadness and grief, our loss, anxiety and pain. Especially in these days before Christmas, when many feel left out of the joy and cheer, be with us on our wandering paths, be our companion when we’re lost, be…Continue reading Interecessions for the Second Sunday of Advent