I make a monthly visit to a number of care homes in this area. Each time, I spend about 25 minutes singing hymns with (or, in some places, to) the residents, with a Bible reading, a short talk and some prayers. Some of the residents are evidently devout Christians, most of them know all the…
Jesus, Mary and the Cross — A Holy Week Meditation
In all the gruesome gore of the crucifixion, amidst the injustice and cruelty, and the terrible suffering and pain, John relates to us a most incongruous scene of touching affection: When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said…
New Year’s Greetings and Resolutions 2024
Dear friends, We have entered into the year of Our Lord 2024. In the ancient world, the passage of time was marked by counting the years since the accession of the king on the throne: "In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius…" (Luke 3:1). Since the 6th century, however, the Christian world has…
Word and Flesh – A Christmas Meditation
There is an amazing sequence of salvation revealed in Scripture, which centres on the reality of the Incarnation. In the beginning, God made us in His image as creatures of flesh and soul. Through transgression, our flesh has been corrupted by sin and enslaved to its wages, death. Where once there was man in the…
A Luther Sermon on Good Works
Epistle Sermon on the Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity Martin Luther, Church Postil (1544) — Ephesians 4:22–28 Translated by John Nicholas Lenker (1909) 1. Here again is an admonition for Christians to follow up their faith by good works and a new life, for though they have forgiveness of sins through baptism, the old Adam still…
Prayer before the Study of the Word
I thank you, my God, who have prepared for me, a poor sinner, a treasure trove ful of all kinds of spiritual goodness and sustenance. This treasure trove is your holy and precious word, which you have given to me in the Holy Bible. Lead me by hand, dear Father, and take me into this…
What the State Funeral Tells Us about Bands in Church
Brief reflections on the church and culture The other day, I was having a friendly disagreement online with another Christian, who was arguing that culture is essentially neutral, implying that the musical styles and genres used in Christian worship are interchangeable. The point being made was that it’s not necessary for Christian worship to be…
Wedding Homily
Preached at Dr. Long Methodist Church in Sofia, Bulgaria, at the joining of Matt Osterndorf and Yana Nikolova in holy matrimony on 16 July 2022 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Amen. Let us pray:Lord God, you sent Your Son Jesus Christ to be the Bridegroom of…
No: THIS Be the Verse
They lift you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do.They fill you with the gifts they had And add some extra, just for you. But they were lifted in their turn By folks in old-style hats and coats,Who half the time made their concern To raise their children without notes. Man hands on…
Death Is Never Glorious
Following a predictable pattern that seems to be becoming an annual media pastime, this year’s Remembrance Day celebrations have again become the subject of a loud debate. Is there a poppy tyranny? Are we honouring the dead or glorifying war? Is the whole thing just a sham to build up nationalism, or to engage in…
SimonPotamos 